Simply Gospel

May my steps be worship. May my thoughts be praise.

  • Elijah and Discouragement

    Through I Kings 18-19, Elijah experiences an emotional roller coaster. Elijah brings a drought to the land through God’s power, and, when he comes to see Ahab again, the king is very hostile toward Elijah. In turn, Elijah proposes a challenge: set up two alters, one to Baal and one to Jehovah, and Baal’s priests would pray for their God to consume their sacrifice in fire. Elijah would do the same. Baal’s priests cry out, dance, and cut themselves to no avail. Elijah then evokes God with a small, quiet prayer after having his alter deluged with water, and fire… Continue reading

  • Miracles & Spiritual Needs

    Isaiah 61 is a prophecy of hope and redemption. It is a passage of spiritual healing and promise of a Redeemer. Selections from this chapter are read from by Jesus in Luke 4:16, and He tells those listening that these verses are fulfilled in Him. He heals the blind and the lame. He gives comfort to those in grief. He proclaims the year of the Lord. In all of this, His focus remains intent upon the spiritual needs of the people He came in contact with every day. In Matthew 9:35-38, as He is teaching and performing miracles, we see… Continue reading

  • A Knowing Savior

    In each of the seven letters to the congregations in the opening chapters of Revelation, Jesus assures those congregations that He knows them, that He knows their problems, their troubles, and their successes. As we study the life of our Savior, we should be with impressed with the level of knowledge He has about those who come after Him. He wants to be close to us and know us like no other can. Mark 10:17-22 records a young man of great wealth coming to Jesus, and we see that Jesus has compassion for the man, knowing exactly what the man… Continue reading

  • A Faithful Hope

    The Bible is full of individuals who stand up and declare the word of the Lord in the face of public and political opposition. People like Moses, Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, and more – these face threats, persecutions, and ridicule for delivering a message that the people do not necessarily wish to hear. Among these great messengers is a man named Jeremiah, commonly known as the weeping prophet for the bitterness of his message to the prophet. In Lamentation 1, we see Jeremiah writing a song of mourning, told from the perspective of the city as it is being besieged. He… Continue reading

  • A Christian City

    After the kingdom of Israel divides in I Kings 12, Jeroboam wishes to restrict travel between the northern kingdom and Judah. He forbids travel to Jerusalem, hoping to create new holy cities in the north. Some forsake the north to worship in Jerusalem during the times of Asa, but the separation of holy cities remains even to the days of Jesus when the woman at the well asks Jesus where God desires worship. She is concerned that she worship from a location approved of by God, but Jesus redirects her attention from the physical to the spiritual. Augustine’s City of… Continue reading

  • And the Stones Cried

    Among the psalms of worship, lament, intercession, history, and others, are a collection of songs that proclaim God’s greatness as seen in nature. Three of these are Psalms 29, 148, and 19. Psalm 29 describes God as a thunderstorm, His voice and nature seen in the thunder, in the waves, in the winds, in the animals taking shelter – all of these proclaim glory to God. Likewise, all nature is called to praise Jehovah in Psalm 148, from creatures of the deep to the stars of the heavens. Finally, the heavens testify God’s name in Psalm 19. Nature is called… Continue reading

  • The Reforms of Asa

    In I Kings 15 and II Chronicles 15-16, we learn of a king of Judah named Asa. You might remember that the kingdom of Israel split after Solomon because of his idolatry – ten tribes are given to the servant Jeroboam and two tribes to Solomon’s son Rehoboam. Neither Jeroboam or his son Abijah are considered good rulers in God’s eyes, but Asa stands in contrast to his predecessors. He begins a spiritual revolution among his people – one that even draws some from the northern kingdom to worship Jehovah with him. In I Kings 15:9 and II Chronicles 15:8,… Continue reading

  • A Spiritual Revolution

    July 4th is a celebration of the American Revolution. An event that transformed our country, philosophically, and politically. More transformative than that revolution is the spiritual revolution Jesus teaches in his sermon on the mount. During His life, the scribes and Pharisees took the power of God’s salvation and turned it onto a bland set of rules accommodating to their own interests. Jesus sees that stagnation and disrupts their assumptions and beliefs. We need the same today. Now, like then, we need a spiritual revolution. Matthews 5-7 have a distinct path that separates worldly behavior from spiritual behavior, worldly priorities… Continue reading

  • Crossing the Veil

    In Genesis, Adam and Eve have a relationship with God we have a hard time relating to. It’s interesting to see their special fellowship with God and the close interaction they share with Him. They forsake that relationship in trying to become as great as Him, and angels are put in guard around the garden, forever cutting that relationship off between God and man. Fast forward to the establishment of the nation of Israel. In the middle of their tents, as they travel to the Promised Land, is God’s tabernacle. Physically, He is in the center of their community as… Continue reading

  • New Link

    I just discovered a spiritually focused site run by one of my Twitter friends called Faith Means Letting Go. You should really go check it out. Also adding her to my sidebar for future reference. Continue reading