Weekly Perspective

The prophet Isaiah wrote, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil” (Isaiah 5:20). “Woe” signifies a crying or groaning on God’s part because of future punishments to come on those who allow themselves to finally embrace evil over good. These are a people who had once known the goodness of God, only…

The Philippian Formula After the Apostle Paul had received aid from the brethren in Philippi, he wrote and thanked them. His expression of love and care for them is instructive to us in our relationship with one another. He used the situation to instruct and encourage them in things pertaining to greater unity amongst themselves.…

Have you ever felt alone, or nearly so, as one of God’s chosen people? Not “chosen” as in having been perfected, but chosen as opposed to not yet having been called? It is not at all unusual to feel alone, the farther and farther the way of this world veers away from God’s righteous path.…

On my last journey to Madagascar to visit with our brethren there, I happened into an unusual situation. The 2019 African Cup of Nations football tournament was in full swing. (This was not American football. It would be called “soccer” in America, but the entire rest of the world knows it as “football.”) What was…

The Apostle Paul wrote to the young pastor Timothy to help and encourage him at a time when the Church was experiencing internal pressure from false teachers. He encourages Timothy to: “Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy…

Recently we discussed the concept of vertical unity. This is not a new or unique concept, but a way to picture the unity that flows from the Father, through His Son, and into the body. As each member of the body seeks to unify him or herself with God, that unity then allows the aligning…

Lysis is an interesting word. A common meaning of the word is the disintegration of a cell by rupture of the wall or membrane commonly caused by a viral infection. Once the perimeters of the cell are breeched, it will die. The breakdown of good and healthy cells and subsequent cell death has obvious and…

Mankind has lost the story that connects us all. There is a lot of noise, but no context to give life meaning. So, we drift through life without a true meaningful purpose — a story that connects us to something bigger than we are. Aristotle observed, “When the storytelling in a culture goes bad, the…

Sin can be both bold, clear and direct, as well as insidious and deceptive. Some sins are just direct transgressions of God’s holy law — choosing a course of action, knowing that it is against God. As morality generally becomes more accepting of sinful behavior, God’s people can find themselves doing things they would not…

If one were travelling in Africa – let’s say, near the equator – one would hardly notice a change in the seasons. There would more likely be simply rainy and dry seasons, but not the marked yearly periods so enjoyed in many parts of the globe. In the northern hemisphere for example, right now it…

The day of Pentecost and the Jubilee year share something in common – both involve counting fifty. For Pentecost, the fifty is days (Leviticus 23:16), and the Jubilee is counted in years (Leviticus 25:8). The Jubilee established a system where ownership of the land could never be permanently taken away from a family. If a…

Analogies can be very useful in transferring a pertinent message from one subject to another. It can point from one physical thing to another or from the physical to the spiritual. Consider what God said through the prophet Haggai. “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to…

What percentage of Americans would you guess actually trust the government in Washington to do what is right at least most of the time? According to the Pew Research Center, it has been at about 17% during the previous administration and during this present one. That puts public trust of government at near historic lows.…