Hannah is living the unbearable pain of a barren woman in Old Testament times. In her anguish she vows to give a son to the LORD if He will grant her one. Deal. Hannah delivers the young boy to Eli and then sings God’s praises.

The book of Judges is about failure, and the failures get off to a great start. The tribes of Israel repeatedly fail to finish the job of driving out all the Canaanites. Some failures are worse than others, but there are very few successes. This book will be one long downhill slide.

Paul is upset that the Galatians have been led astray by a group of Judaizers into thinking they need to be circumcised to be Christians. He starts his apologetic case against them by establishing his authority and by pointing out the confirmation he received from Peter, James, and Paul. More logic to come.

With the death of Moses, the task of leading Israel into the promised land is dumped on Joshua. The LORD promises to be with him and tells Joshua to be strong and courageous. So, when the people say the same words to Joshua, even though they couldn’t have heard the LORD say them, it’s a powerful moment.

The foundation of the faith is that it’s true—John saw and touched Jesus. The foundation of the gospel is that Jesus is light and the propitiation for our sins. The foundation of the practice of Christianity is fellowship (koinonia).

The prophet Amos, a sheep breeder, declares that The LORD roars from Zion. God is not happy. Judgement is coming.

This first week in the Gospel of John is logical instead of chronological. Jesus is introduced as the Word. Then John tells us that the Word is the Life and the Life is the Light that gives light to all men. John also brings in John the Baptist to testify to who this Light is. Those who receive this Light are given the right to become children of God!

When Nebuchadnezzar moves the temple treasures into the temple of his God, he makes it all about who is God, instead of about his personal wealth. Good. The battle is now joined. Next, he tries to erase the captives’ culture by changing their names. But their personalities are unchanged. There will be conflict.

We see with more than just our eyes; we see with our minds. Christians have a different mindset. This allows them to see things non-Christians don’t see — God’s hand in things, His purposes, His kingdom. Through the examples of Paul and Silas, Ananias, Simon the sorcerer, and Martha, we explain the difference between regular eyesight and seeing with Christian eyes.

Romans is Paul’s most thorough treatise on systematic theology. Paul’s opens it with his usual salutation, referring to himself as a bondservant (doulos) of Christ. Then he launches into a blistering criticism of hedonistic behavior, which he ascribes to idolatry. Paul doesn’t spare believers either, saying that we who condemn others are guilty of the same things.

God made man in His image. That’s a powerful clue to His personality, even to His motives. Specifically, our creativity generates some useful analogies.

This opens a door into deeper worship.

The things of God are wonderful, beautiful, and glorifying. We should thank God for His cleverness, creativity, holiness, and mercy every day. But Job said that he spoke of things “too wonderful for me.” Is there something we’re supposed to avoid talking about, or even thinking about?

We investigate that in this series.