The popular party game asks the question, “Would you rather?” For example, “Would you rather have smelly feet or stinky breath? Would you rather wake up in the morning as a bird or a dolphin?” And, you must choose one. You cannot say, “Neither.” So, let me ask you one: “Would you rather be rich or poor?” An interesting Bible text considers this choice. Agur the son of Jakeh…

A game that shows up at many parties today is called “Would You Rather?” The game presents the choice between two random things and asks, “Would you rather” do this or that? It’s designed to be fun, as folks make some wacky choices. The psalmist wasn’t playing a game when he made his “I’d rather” choice. When the psalmist considered the two very different paths…

The God that you read about in the Bible DOES NOT CHANGE (Mal. 3:6; Heb. 13:8)! He is the SAME God today as He was in Old Testament days and New Testament days. When the king of Syria sent his “great army” and “surrounded” God’s people (2 Kgs. 6:14), God was not off on vacation somewhere, nor was God too small to handle the…

In a recent Bible class, it was noted that first-century Corinth was not only the capital city of Achaia, but it was also “The Capital of Immorality.” Can you imagine how difficult it must have been to teach people about Jesus in the midst of religious perversion, rampant sexual immorality and sinful vices in abundance? Oh, wait! You live in 21st-century American culture! Maybe you can…

Talking about others behind their back seems almost like a sport or a competition today. We have to be intentional and paying close attention to our conversations to stop ourselves from doing it. Can we look at this for a moment? James 4:11 commands simply, “Do not speak evil of one another, brethren.” The same Greek word is used twice in First Peter of others…

Solomon was overwhelmed with being king of Israel, and the Lord wanted to get him started off on the right foot. The Lord asked Solomon, “What shall I give you?” (1 Kgs. 3:5). The king simply requested “a wise and understanding heart” (3:9, 12), and that is exactly what the all-powerful, all-wise, all-loving God gave to him. Wisdom! Near the end of his days, the…

Sometimes we may wonder if anybody knows or anybody cares what we do for others. Maybe we feel like we’re always the one giving but not very often on the receiving end. Perhaps we are forgetting too much and not remembering enough. The word “forget” is found three times in the book of Hebrews. First, the author wants Christians to remember that “God is not…

The translations vary slightly on the first part of Proverbs 29:18. They say the same thing but slightly different. “Where there is no revelation” (NKJV), “Where there is no vision” (KJV, ASV, NASB), “Where there is no prophetic vision” (ESV). The meaning of the term here usually is connected to the means by which divine revelation is communicated. Hold that thought. The verse goes on to say…