A Shortage of Ninjas

  [188 words] Apparently Japan is running out of ninjas. In the small city of Iga, the birthplace of the ancient ninja warriors, officials cannot find enough martial artists to perform for tourists, even though the job can pay up to $85,000 per year. Part of the problem is that the city’s young people are…

The Power of God’s Word

  [449 words] “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). “Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the…

They Just Won’t Listen

  [388 words] “Then He said to me: ‘Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard…

Rare Bible Found in Trash

[184 words] In 2006, electrician Michael Hoskins discovered a rare, 188-year-old, King James Bible. He told his hometown newspaper, that he went to drop off his household trash, and there it was. He also related that “There were three or four boxes of books leaning up against the concrete wall behind the dump site. I…

Cleaning from the Inside Out

[512 words] The story is told of an old man who lived on a farm in the mountains of eastern Kentucky with his young grandson. Each morning, Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table reading from his old, worn out Bible. His grandson who wanted to be just like him tried to imitate…

Read the Manual!

[490 words] When was the last time you bought something (anything) new? Like most of us, you probably pulled out the new product, proceeded to put it together or plug it in to use based on your previous experience with the product, only to discover that you have that one bolt extra that should probably…

Biblical Meditation: The Cure for What Ails You

  [392 words] “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and…

A Toothbrush and the Bible

  [302 words] What do a toothbrush, a scrub brush, and a toilet brush have in common? Each one of these items is a brushing tool that does a particular job. They are all used to clean. Even my two year old knows that a toothbrush is used to clean teeth, a scrub brush is…

Psalm 119:97-99

  [141 words] “Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day. You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.” When the law of God is loved, it will…

Important Facts About the Bible

  [258 words] Following are four important facts about the Bible that we should all know. The Bible is the ONLY Book that came to us from the mind of God. All other books were produced merely by human beings. The Bible comes from God’s mind and was revealed through human agents (apostles and prophets)…

You Scrumptious Beast

  [183 words] There are so many ways we can find ourselves vulnerable to Satan’s schemes. He is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. And he does not starve. There is always someone. There are always Christians who are having the off-days–and Satan knows how to make a bad day much worse.…

The Most Important One

  [95 words] It is said when the famous missionary, Dr. David Livingstone, started his trek across Africa, he had 73 books in three packs weighing 180 pounds. After the party had gone 300 miles, Livingstone was obliged to throw away some of the books because of the fatigue of those carrying the baggage. As…

Psalm 119:1

  [142 words] “How blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD.” Some folks have been known to lament that there is little enjoyment in a life lived under the restrictions of biblical morality and teaching. The most enjoyable life, we’re told, is in a life without moral…

Psalm 119:18

  [74 words] Psalm 119:18 contains this petition: “Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from Your law.” For some of us, reading the Bible has become dull, and consequently, unproductive. There may be any number of reasons why that tragedy has occurred. One may be that we have not saturated our Bible…

Psalm 119:30

  [79 words] “I have chosen the faithful way; I have placed Your ordinances before me.” Life is a series of choices. One will not be faithful to God simply because his parents were, or because he wishes to be, or because he sits in a church building a few times a week. One can…

Satan’s Lie

[276 words] Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but…

Lack of Knowledge

[250 words] Benjamin Franklin once said “Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.” There is no question that God places a high value on knowledge and particularly knowledge of His word. Hosea recorded the words of God when He wrote “My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge.…

What is the Bible?

[358 words] The Bible is first and foremost the inspired, inerrant word of God. It is the message delivered from Heaven through the spirit-breathed words of inspired men. It is historically, scientifically, and geographically as perfect as its original author. It contains no errors or contradictions as it has been protected by the very hand…

God Supplies the Raw Materials!

[81 words] A woman went into the grocery store to complain to the manager. “Something’s wrong with this flour you sold me,” she said. “It’s too tough. This morning I made biscuits with it and my husband could hardly eat them!” Sometimes folks get into this sort of position with God’s word. He has provided…

God Wants to Tell You Something

[284 words] Saul arrived in the prophet’s city hoping to get information from Samuel. What he got was something he did not expect. Saul’s father had sent him to find some missing donkeys. The future king of Israel and his servant looked but could not find the animals. Saul’s servant thought they should go to…

Do You Believe the Bible is True?

[210 words] “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17). Jesus, the Word made flesh Himself, claims in His Word, that the Word of God is truth. Well, many worldly skeptics would argue that just because the Bible claims to be truth doesn’t make it so (even though they would accept that…

Is Your Bible ‘Red’?

[172 words] A preacher once observed in a sermon that every Christian should own a “red” Bible. At least that was what people heard He actually said, “Every Christian should own a ‘read’ Bible.” Regardless of the color, it should be well-worn by the constant study of its owner. It is amazing how little people…

Receptivity

[386 words] Receptivity is the desire to hear and the willingness to accept God’s Word! The Master exhorted, “Therefore take heed how you hear” (Luke 8:18). This admonition concluded His teaching about the different soils (hearts) on which the seed (God’s Word) falls. Some hearts are hard. Some hearts are shallow. Some hearts are distracted.…

My Need, His Supply

[424 words] “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of…

A People Eager to Do Good

[309 words] We are God’s people, His holy people, the church of God, the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15). We want to do what pleases Him; it is our new nature (2 Cor. 5:17) and our identity as His children (1 John 3:22). However, we do fail, we sin! If we…

What Time is It?

[215 words] Ever been in a group of people and ask what time is it? How many answers did you get? You perhaps got as many answers as there were people with watches. Yet there is a place in Denver where time is correct to a split second. It is never wrong and many watches…

‘But They Did Not Ask Counsel of the Lord’

Soon after Israel’s victories over Jericho and Ai, several of Canaan’s southern city-states formed an alliance and immediately set out to fight against God’s people (cf. Gen. 9:1ff). The fearful Gibeonites, however, had a different strategy. They chose to deceive Israel into thinking they were somebody that they were not (non-Canaanite inhabitants) with hopes of…

‘The Bible Means Exactly What It Says,’ Sort Of

  [243 words] You might hear the above phrase from time to time, and it is a fair phrase. But we must be cautious; sometimes, the Bible doesn’t mean exactly what it says. Sometimes, God says one thing, but means something else. For example, Jesus said, “If thy hand offend thee [causes you to sin,…

The Source Matters

How much would you pay for a baseball? Not a baseball made of gold—one made of leather with red stitching just like any other baseball. You can get a whole bag of baseballs from a place like Wal-Mart for about $20. So what is the maximum you would pay for a baseball? What if I…

Biblically Correct

We hear much on the TV about being “Politically Correct.” It has some precepts which are correct. It tries to encourage or insist on citizens using certain words and phrases which are kinder, and less inflammatory, which is good! But without God it is merely man’s opinion. However, we Christians are endeavoring to be “Biblically…

Is the Bible Corrupt?

The Quran, upheld by those in Islam, says that the Bible has been corrupted. Bart Ehrman, a well-respected atheist, wrote in Misquoring Jesus, the Bible has “been altered over the years at the hands of scribes, who were not only conserving scripture but also changing it.” The word of God claims it is not corrupted,…

The Word of God

The empire of Caesar is gone; the legions of Rome are decaying in the dust; the avalanches that Napoleon hurled upon Europe have melted away; the pride of the Pharaohs is fallen; the pyramids they raised to be their tombs are sinking in the desert sands; Tyre is a rock for bleaching fishermen’s nets; Sidon…

Faith Comes by Hearing

“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). Pertaining to personal salvation, there is no subject more necessary than faith. In Hebrews 11:6 it is written, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He…

Responsibility

In one of the many Biblical dictionaries it states, “God has entrusted humankind both individually and collectively with responsibility.” Jesus told several parables with responsibility or accountability at the center. One example is the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:11-27). Two of the servants were responsible with the money—invested it and returned it…

Map, Compass, and Blueprint

A traveler was packing his suitcase in preparation for a long journey. He said to his friend, “In this small corner of my suitcase, I am going to put a lamp, a mirror, a telescope, a sharp sword and a small library.” His friend inquired, “How are you going to manage that?” “Easily enough,” came…

The Pattern of Sound Words

Man has ever sought to be free of divine restraint. In the early days of the church, a philosophy known as “antinomianism” was prevalent. It was the ideology that argued: “We are not under law.” The concept is not dead even today. There are some, even in the church of the Lord, who allege that…

The Divine Word Versus a Deceived World

The Bible teaches that men can be deceived by Satan (Revelation 12:9,10). Deception in vital matters pertaining to the soul means damnation. The religious world is deceived if it believes that God approves of religious division (denominationalism). The Divine Word teaches such division is sinful (1 Corinthians 1:10-13; John 17:20,21; Ephesians 4:1-4). The world is…

Thoughts Not to Entertain

If Paul had thought like some today, he would have written to the Ephesians like this: “Paul the apostle to the saints at Ephesus. Brethren, I rejoiced when I went into the theater in your city to behold the shows. The play of Aristophanes was a magnificent story of a man who overcame poverty and…

Who Will Guide You?

Think about a boat on the river with no one in it just going with the waves; side to side, bank to bank, and not knowing where it will end up. It could end up stuck next to the bank with branches all around it and not able to move. It could end up at…

A Solid Foundation

[237 words] Earthquakes capture the interest of the world. The tragedy is indescribable. Homes, office buildings, and highways were built and people were assured they were safe. Yet the buildings and roadways have proven to be extremely unsafe. Great damage was done and lives were lost as a result. Almost 2,000 years ago Jesus said…