SPOILER ALERT April 12, 2020 | Matthew 12:38–45 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Those who review books or movies online sometimes include a spoiler alert. They want unsuspecting readers to be warned about the reveal of the key elements in the plot that might ruin the surprise. There are some people, however, who love to know […]
INEXPLICABLE REST April 11, 2020 | Matthew 11:20–30 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Some refer to the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter Sunday as Holy Saturday. The Scriptures are silent about what Jesus’ disciples did that day. They do not seem to have done anything worth recording. This may have been because it was the […]
IMPATIENT WITH HIS AGENDA April 10, 2020 | Matthew 11:1–19 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue I remember the first time I saw my mother cry. She told me that she had bumped her head. But I suspect there was a deeper reason. Whatever the cause, her tears disturbed me. We are not used to thinking of […]
A CAUSE FOR OPPOSITION April 9, 2020 | Matthew 10:34–42 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Someone once called Jesus the greatest marketing genius of all time. Today’s passage shatters this false image. If He hoped to market His message to His contemporaries, He was surely the worst marketer of all time. Do not suppose that I […]
A PECULIAR MISSION April 8, 2020 | Matthew 10:1–20 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Billy Graham was famous for his large evangelistic meetings. He followed in the steps of other evangelists, such as George Whitefield and D. L. Moody. Graham was a pioneer in evangelism by radio and television. His aim was to invite all people […]
HIS SURPRISING COMPANIONS April 7, 2020 | Matthew 9:1–13 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue In a popular song from the 1960s artist Dobie Gray sang, “I’m in with the in- crowd.” According to the song, “You ain’t nowhere until you’ve been in.” One of the obstacles Jesus faced was a result of the company He kept. […]
SURPRISED BY HIS POWER April 6, 2020 | Matthew 8:23–34 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue What makes you fearful? Spiders? Lightning storms? The dark? Fear can stop us in our tracks and make our heart beat faster. But not all fear is bad. The Bible describes a different type of fear, one that implies an attitude […]
AMAZED BY HIS TEACHING April 5, 2020 | Matthew 7:24–29 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue A popular website allows students to rate their college professors. The evaluations rate the professor by overall quality and level of difficulty. Students can also include comments about their experience. How would Jesus have scored on such a site? According to […]
AN UNLIKELY CHOICE April 4, 2020 | Matthew 4 DEVOTIONS This month’s issue In her book Team of Rivals, historian Doris Kearns Goodwin described how Abraham Lincoln chose an unlikely group of leaders to serve as his cabinet. Instead of surrounding himself with friends, he chose opponents and competitors. “[That] was evidence of a profound […]