Matthew 11:1-6 Summary: John the Baptist’s opening question is born of deep puzzlement: “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” According to the expectation of all Jews, the coming of the Messiah ought to bring about universal peace and justice and victory...

Habakkuk 3 Summary: Habakkuk paints for us one of the most difficult realities of the life of faith–that often it requires trusting God in the face of suffering and evil that make absolutely no sense to us. As he faces the wickedness of his own nation and the impending Babylonian...

Nahum 1 Summary: Nahum may be one of the least popular of the minor prophets for its graphic depictions of God’s wrath toward Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. Apparently the repentance inspired by Jonah was short-lived, and Nahum is tasked with proclaiming a day of wrath and punishment for a...

Psalm 63 Summary: In Psalm 63, David expresses the desire for soul-filling, personal fellowship with God, and he pursues this fellowship (he says in verse 6) through meditation. As a supplement to our previous spiritual discipline (Scripture reading), this week we’ll explore the discipline of meditating on the Scriptures. Simply...

Micah 2-3, 7:18-20 Summary: Micah summarizes his own understanding of his calling (3:8) as a responsibility to declare to God’s people their transgression and sin. Some of the specific sins he condemns are land theft (2:2,9), corrupt leadership (3:11), and idolatry (5:12-14). His preaching was not popular as many didn’t...

Psalm 105 Summary: So often, as God’s people, we need the perspective that only hindsight can give. Events in our lives that didn’t go at all the way we would have chosen, in hindsight, turn out to be profound evidences of the goodness and wisdom of God. That’s the role...

Jonah 3 & 4 Summary: The book of Jonah would have such an uplifting ending if only it stopped at chapter 3. Instead, it ends on a very sour note and with a bit of a cliff-hanger in terms of Jonah’s ultimate relationship with God. The final chapter spells out...

2 Timothy 3:14-17 Summary: To a young pastor ministering to a small church in very difficult circumstances, Paul’s dying encouragement is simply to continue in the scriptures. Such is Paul’s confidence in the Word of God to preserve, strengthen, and grow the church. The disciplined intake of scripture is the...

1 Timothy 4:6-10 Summary: This Sunday will be an introduction to the Spiritual Disciplines–what they accomplish and why they matter. The word that the Apostle Paul uses when telling Timothy to “train” in godliness is the word from which we get the English “gymnasium.” It’s a word that entails persistent...

Obadiah 1-21 Summary: Obadiah is in its entirety a prophecy against Israel’s extended family and neighbours to the South. The Edomites are the descendants of Jacob’s brother, Esau. God’s issue with Edom, in one word, is her pride (v.3) which manifested itself most heinously in Edom’s gloating over, looting, and...