“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:13–14 ESV). David concluded this psalm with a strong affirmation of faith. Even though he had previously expressed fear of
Chapter: 27
WHY BUILD THE ALTAR OF UNCUT STONES?
“And there you shall build an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. You shall wield no iron tool on them; you shall build an altar to the Lord your God of uncut stones” (Deuteronomy 27:5-6 ESV). Moses instructed Israel to build an altar of natural, “uncut stones” after they crossed the
A PROVERB CONCERNING SELF-PROMOTION
“Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips” (Proverbs 27:2 ESV). In this modern era of social media and self-promotion, this proverb seems out of place. Yet self aggrandizement is still unwise. For if you praise yourself, others will not only remain silent, they will think you
WHAT SHOULD I DO WITH JESUS?
‘Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”’ (Matthew 27:22 ESV). The Roman Governor Pilate asked the crowd to answer this question for him. He sought to avoid making a decision about Jesus, but his plan backfired. The crowd’s surprising support of the criminal Barabbas left Pilate still
Surrendering Our Control
Jesus says that gentleness is the path to greatness and that meekness is the path to blessing. Yet meekness is probably one of the least admired qualities in America. We admire strength, not humility. We admire those who take charge, not those who surrender control to God. This might partly be because we don’t understand what meekness is.
In David’s Psalm 37, he instructed the people of God that living meekly, surrendering control to God, leads to a life of blessing. We can surrender our control to God to experience His blessing.
OVERCOMING FEAR BY FAITH IN GOD
“The LORD is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid? The LORD is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?” (Psalms 27:1 NLT). David wrote these powerful declarations of confidence in the Lord, revealing how he faced his fears. He wrote them as rhetorical questions, challenging himself
THREE ENCOURAGING WORDS WHEN FACING LIFE’S STORMS
“For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me, and he said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.’ So take courage! For I believe God.
LUKE SAILS TO ROME WITH PAUL
“When the time came, we set sail for Italy. Paul and several other prisoners were placed in the custody of a Roman officer named Julius, a captain of the Imperial Regiment” (Acts 27:1 NLT). Dr. Luke included himself in the Acts narrative with the use of the first person plural “we” (“it was decided that
CHRIST FORSAKEN FOR OUR ACCEPTANCE
‘At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”’ (Matthew 27:46 NLT). This is one of the seven last sayings of Jesus from the cross. The apostle Matthew recorded them in the original Aramaic that Jesus spoke, followed
THE SILENT SAVIOR WHOSE SACRIFICE SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS
“But when the leading priests and the elders made their accusations against him, Jesus remained silent” (Matthew 27:12 NLT). The Roman governor, Pontius Pilate marveled greatly at Jesus’s silence in the face of His accusers. Surely he had judged and condemned many a man, but never one like this. Who was this man that stood