What do you want from Jesus? We have no reason to believe that this paralyzed man and his friends were interested in anything other than his physical healing. And that’s how we often pray for ourselves and our loved ones, asking God to change the material circumstances of our lives:…

In Old Testament times, lepers weren’t just considered to be sick with a skin disease. No, they were ceremonially unclean, unfit to associate with anyone else in society. In fact, they were supposed to live “outside the camp” (Leviticus 13:46), and anyone who touched them became just as unclean as…

What is it that you most want from Jesus? I suppose most of us pray for our own health and the health of our loved ones. We might also pray for relief from various sorts of problems – besetting sins, bad habits, or even addictions. But the bottom line is…

In today’s world, we aren’t just bombarded with too much information through our TV, computer and smartphone screens. No, conflicting worldviews like Socialism, Critical Race Theory, America-First Nationalism, and even the “Name-It-And-Claim-It” Prosperity Gospel compete for our loyalty. How can we know whom to believe? And no less urgent is…

So, why would anyone want to follow Jesus? Regardless of what the peddlers of the false “prosperity gospel” say, He doesn’t promise anyone worldly wealth. In fact, the first disciples of Jesus abandoned their careers and all their property in order to follow Him. And James and John had to…

“What we need is a revival!” Maybe you’ve heard people say that, or maybe you’ve asked God for such an outpouring of the Holy Spirit for yourself or your community. But have you ever thought about what the Holy Spirit would do if the Lord were to answer your prayers?…

What does it really mean to get ready for Jesus’ coming? We Presbyterians would probably point to knowledge of important doctrines, some of which we find in verse 1: Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the anointed Son of David that God had promised would rule over His people. Moreover,…

We all know that David wrote a lot of sacred music – after all, 73 of the compositions in the Book of Psalms are attributed to him, and he may have written a great many more. In contrast, today’s passage is one of the few that we might call “secular”…

Rationalizations come so easily to us, don’t they? “Sure, it was wrong, but my intentions were good. After all, I was only trying to help. And don’t the ends justify the means? It may have been the wrong way to accomplish it, but didn’t we all want it to happen…

It’s hard to imagine a greater defeat. After the battle with the Philistines, Saul and all his sons were dead, and the Israelite army was scattered. Moreover, the Philistines conquered a significant amount of territory once occupied by the people of God (verse 7). And the best, the noblest thing…