Immerse yourself in this scene. Get the full picture in Acts 12. Peter was witnessing and personally experiencing the violent persecution that Herod Agrippa (“the king”) was bringing against Christians. Peter saw Herod kill his fellow apostle and friend, James, with the sword. He was seized by Herod’s henchmen, with plans to do the same to him as was done to James. Peter was arrested, thrown in…

The apostle Peter wrote about scoffers who did not believe that Jesus was going to return, for they fallaciously reasoned, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation” (2 Pet. 3:4). Every day looked the same and went by in the same way and there was no sign…

Have you ever thought that God expects too much of you and that there’s no way you can do all that He teaches and that you’re not strong enough to keep up with everything He commands? If so, take a moment and imagine being Joshua. Moses is getting ready to die—the Moses who spoke directly with God, led Israel miraculously out of Egypt, received…

When the first-century world wanted someone put be to death in the most open, dependable and confirmable fashion, they would crucify them. That was certain to drain every bit of life out of their bodies. Isn’t it interesting, then, that the Bible uses that very same term to describe how a Christian, who has been “called out darkness” (1 Pet. 2:9), is to relate…

My basketball coach in junior high was a no-nonsense coach. That’s an especially tough position to take when you’re dealing with middle school boys, but he laid out his expectations and “that was that.” If you goofed off in practice, you didn’t play in the game. If you goofed off in the game, you were immediately benched and ran suicides alone in practice the next…

For the benefit of all perfect husbands and perfect wives, you can stop reading now. This article is not for you. Go and find something else to do. This is for the less-than-perfect. Some days, marriage can be spectacular. Some days, marriage can be tough. Often, we might suggest that the determining factor in whether our marriage is “spectacular” right now or “tough” right now is how…

Do you know someone who thinks that they are “God’s gift to women” or “God’s gift to men” (as the sayings sometimes go)? I have known of preachers who thought they were “God’s gift to a congregation” and elders who thought they were “God’s gift to an eldership” and employees who thought they were “God’s gift to their job” and spouses who thought…

When the Old Testament comes to an end in the book of Malachi, there was much for the Jew (and now for the modern Bible reader) to learn. Without even looking at the specific instructions from the Lord and the specific rebukes that He issues to them, look at some simple wording used repeatedly in this short book. In a book that only…