When you think of God’s glory shining brightly in the Christmas story, what comes to mind? I suspect many of us think of the angels who lit up the night sky over Bethlehem. But as stunning as the angels were, the greatest display of God’s glory at Christmas was not in the night skies over Bethlehem.
Category: Old Testament
The Shaping Power of Friendships (Part 4 of 4)
I have two favourite songs about friendship. The first is James Taylor’s classic, “You’ve got a friend.” Don’t you love the promise he makes in the chorus: “Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you’ve got to do is call, and I’ll be there—you’ve got a friend.” Where can we find a friend like that?
Preachers: Stay on the Expository Path
Preachers and teachers have a choice to make every time they prepare to speak. They must choose the path they will travel. Here's why they should choose to stay on the Expository Path.
Why Sermon Manuscripts Make Better Sermons (Part 1)
After preaching for almost 40 years, I still write a manuscript for every sermon. I get the fact that not everyone is sold on writing out a manuscript for their messages. So let me offer seven reasons why manuscripting is worth the time and effort.
Preachers: Here’s a one-hour change that will improve your sermons (and lower your stress)
A number of years ago, I took a preaching course with Haddon Robinson. One of the most helpful things he taught us was a way to take some pressure off sermon preparation and wind up with a better sermon. The…
Read More Preachers: Here’s a one-hour change that will improve your sermons (and lower your stress)
Summer Tuesdays with Ezra (Chapter 10)
Ezra 10 Chapter 10 continues the narrative, picking up what happened as Ezra prays a prayer of deep contrition and confession. As he was “weeping and casting himself down before the house of God”, a great assembly of Jews—men, women,…
Summer Tuesdays with Ezra (Chapter 9)
Ezra 9 Ezra doesn’t get long to savour the amazing goodness of God in granting him favour before the Persian king and bringing the exiles safely back to Jerusalem. Four months after the sacrifices are offered (compare 7:8 and 10:9),…
Summer Tuesdays with Ezra (Chapter 8)
Ezra 8 Chapter 8 reads like an entry from Ezra’s personal journal; in vivid detail he chronicles the actions he took to gather and lead the company of exiles back to Jerusalem in the seventh year of king Artaxerxes. Ezra…
Summer Tuesdays with Ezra (Chapter 7)
Ezra 7 Almost 80 years after Zerubbabel’s return, and 60 years after the completion and dedication of the Temple, in the seventh year of king Artaxerxes (7:7), we are introduced to Ezra and his part of God’s story. Ezra, whose…
Summer Tuesdays with Ezra (Chapter 6)
Ezra 6 The opening words of chapter 6, pick up where chapter 5 left off. Tattenai and his fellow governors had requested King Darius to order a search of the royal archives and issue a ruling on the legitimacy of…
Rick and Linda Reed 