A brief excerpt:

It’s sad, just flat out sad that our culture tells little girls (I’m speaking of girls ages 6-14 primarily; girls 15 and above should know better by that stage of their life): “Dress like a whore; it’s what everyone likes. All your friends are disgusting little tramps, so you should be too. And just think how popular you’ll be with the boys!”

It’s really frightening and sad to see these young women around our local high schools dressing like that. I don’t have a daughter–but have two sons–and there is no way they would ever leave the house dressed like that.

But since I have sons, my wife and I are raising them and pounding into their heads to treat women with respect. After all, every woman at one point in her life was some body’s little girl.

Dads: it really does begin with us. We need to teach our kids when they are young–and keep teaching them as they grow older–what modesty means and that they are truly children of God.

Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. –Psalm 127:3

Parents: Have you struggled with getting your kids to embrace modesty?

May He Increase!

And so when we sat down to eat dinner, I was lost in my thoughts as we all started eating. My soon-to-be-three year old son, Nicholas, said in the moment:

“Daddy, let’s pray.”

My mouth dropped to the floor and then my heart filled with joy inexpressible. The verse in Matthew came flooding into my consciousness:

And [the chief priests and scribes] said to Him, “Do You hear what these children are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, ‘OUT OF THE MOUTH OF INFANTS AND NURSING BABIES YOU HAVE PREPARED PRAISE FOR YOURSELF’?” –Matthew 21:16.

Jesus was quoting from Psalm 8:2.

At times it really seems like God has put an anointing on my son. Then again, kids “get” God for the most part. Makes perfect sense when you think about it. What did Jesus also say?

But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” –Mark 10:14-15.

That’s what God is looking for in all of us. That child-like faith that just trusts, and says “Abba! Father! Daddy!”

My family and I are entering a new phase in our lives where this is exactly what God is expecting of us. It’s partly exciting and partly scary at the same time. Seemingly God is asking me to put-up-or-shut-up with my faith and trust in Him.

God used my son last night to remind me how critical it is to be in constant prayer for thankfulness and for His will to be done in our lives.

Is God asking you to step out in faith and trust Him? Have you been through a season such as this? Care to share your experiences?

May He Increase!

Have you ever stopped to consider the answers to these questions? And I don’t mean “I just know” or “Because the Bible says so.”

If the Bible is a message from God, how can God authenticate this message as being from Him? How can He demonstrate to the reader that this message is truly from Him and not some contrivance?

You can sum it up in one word: prophecy!

God authenticates His message to us by laying out events before they happen, sometimes centuries before they happen!

God says through the prophet Isaiah:

“Remember the former things long past, for I am God,and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, ’My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure’; calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of My purpose from a far country. Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned it, surely I will do it.” –Isaiah 46:9-11.

The Bible is filled with prophecy. A classic example is Psalm 22. This Psalm vividly depicts someone dying of crucifixion. But the key point is that the Psalm was written 400 years before it was even invented by the Persians, later adopted (“perfected”) by the Romans!

So then the real question becomes: if the Bible is authenticated over-and-over again by way of prophecy, thereby clearly making it a message outside of our domain of time and space, what is the implication?

The answer has to be: it is a message from the Creator of the Universe! And if that is true, then this is not just some old book that was written by some really old Jewish guys, but a love letter to mankind, written in the precious blood of the Savior of all.

May He Increase!

Israel is front-page news again. Israel, the cup of trembling, once again has the ire of the world at large concerning their blockade of Gaza.

I don’t worry about Israel. The whole world can go ahead and condemn them. I’m not the least bit worried nor concerned about Israel. You know why?

Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The LORD will guard your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever. –Psalm 121:4-8.

The Creator of all things keeps Israel. Do you hear me all you enemies of God’s chosen? God keeps Israel, and He will neither slumber nor sleep! And for how long? Forever!

That is security.

Discern the signs of the times (Matthew 16:3): Israel’s Messiah is returning soon: which side will He find you on?

May He Increase!

But I wanted to look at just a small portion of this chapter that recently stuck out at me.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. –1 Corinthians 15:3-4.

In this passage, the phrase “according to the Scriptures” appears twice. I think a lot of us gloss over this without realizing what Paul is saying. At the time Paul was writing this, what were considered “the Scriptures?”

The answer is: the Old Testament.

So that brings up a question: where in the Old Testament does it prophesy that Jesus would die for our sins, would be buried, and would be raised on the third day?

The most common answer that people would probably come up with would be Jonah. After all, Jesus said:

“An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was three days and three night in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” –Matthew 12:39-40.

But did you know there are at least three other places in the Old Testament where Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection were prophesied? And not just His death (Psalm 22), not just His burial (Isaiah 53:9), but death, burial, and resurrection!

• Noah’s Ark
• Abraham and Issac
• Rahab and the Spies

We’ve looked at each of these at some point, with Noah’s Ark and Rahab being the most recent. The story of Abraham and Isaac we looked at in January 2009.

One thing I didn’t really expand on in the post about Abraham and Isaac last year was that Isaac was dead to Abraham from the moment that God told him to “offer him there as a burnt offering” in Genesis 22:2. In Genesis 22:4, the specific, three-day interval is described.

You have to understand that God promised Abraham that He would make him a great nation. So when God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac–the son of God’s promise–Abraham knew that God’s promise depended upon Him resurrecting Isaac!

A Little Extra

Continuing on the theme, I accidentally ran across the Holy Spirit lead me to this passage in my study.

From the book of Hosea:

“Come, let us return to the Lord. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us. He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day, that we may live before Him.” –Hosea 6:1-2 (Emphasis mine).

I love God’s Word. The more you dive into it, the more He reveals to you!

Has God revealed something new to you recently?

May He Increase!