Twice Blessed
Leaving Out One Thing
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 20 and 21. A Levite told the rest of Israel what a horrible thing a city in the tribe in Benjamin had attempted to do to him and had done to...Good Question; Wrong Motive
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 10:25-42. Luke wrote, "And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, 'Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?'" (Luke 10:25). Other questions may equal that one,...No King
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 18 and 19. Judges 18:1 makes a statement about the condition of Israel during the time of the judges and the Book of Judges says this more than once, "In those...More Forerunners
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 10:1-24. John the Baptist was the forerunner of the Lord, but by the time you get to Luke 10 in your reading, Herod already killed John. Did that mean no one...Retribution
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 15-17. Samson sought to go in to his wife, but her father would not let it happen (Judges 15:1). He explained that Samson's actions made it appear as though he hated...A Great Multitude
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 9.37-62. Luke wrote, "Now it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him" (Luke 9:37). Luke showed over twenty times...Left Out Again
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 12-14. The tribe of Ephraim was left out when Gideon fought the Midianites, and the tribe was out again when Jephthah fought the Ammonites. While we can understand Ephraim's offended heart,...The Power of the Apostles
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 9.1-36. Look at what Jesus gave the twelve, "Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them...Who Was Tola?
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 10 and 11. Who was Tola? Have you heard any sermons about him? All that we know about him is this, "After Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son...Jesus Knew the Storm Would Come
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 8:22-56. Watch what Jesus did, "Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, 'Let us cross over to...Not Wanting Others to Work Alone
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 8 and 9. Gideon with his men fought Midianites, but one tribe did not like being left out, "Now the men of Ephraim said to him, 'Why have you done this...
By Don Ruhl (05 April 2008, 02:36 PM)
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Continue reading: Not Wanting Others to Work Alone | TrackBack
Look Who Followed Jesus
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 8:1-21. Jesus preached the good news of the kingdom of God (which is the church of God), in every city and village (Luke 8:1). Look at the ones following Him wherever...Israel Did Evil
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 6 and 7. God did good in the sight of Israel, but Israel did evil in the sight of God. Judges 6 begins, "Then the children of Israel did evil in...Do You Criticize Either Way?
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 7:31-50. John the Baptizer lived one way and Jesus live the other way. Yet, those who criticized John also criticized Jesus. In response, Jesus said, "To what then shall I liken...To Know War
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 3-5. Israel did not obliterate all the nations in Canaan as the Lord commanded Israel and since they did not do that, He did not remove them either. He left them...Simple Trust
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 7:1-30. Why do we worry and fret although God runs the universe? Do we think to ourselves that running the universe is a huge job, much too great for Him to...Joshua Died and Israel Did the Right Thing
To read the Bible in a year, read Judges 1-2. The Book of Judges begins, "Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying, 'Who shall be first to go...
By Don Ruhl (05 April 2008, 02:17 PM)
Continue reading: Joshua Died and Israel Did the Right Thing | TrackBack
Continue reading: Joshua Died and Israel Did the Right Thing | TrackBack
Hope for Nothing in Return
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 6:27-49. The church exploded with growth in the first several centuries. Many things caused it, including the attitude of the early Christians. They did what Jesus said to do, such as...Give Attention to Loving God
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 23 and 24. Joshua urged Israel, "Therefore take careful heed to yourselves, that you love the LORD your God" (Joshua 23:11). God had done so much for them, and He promised...Critics
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 6:1-26. Critics are hard to take, especially if you fill your life with doing good things, and then someone criticizes you for what you have done. They might pick at little...Hold Someone Accountable
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 21 and 22. Levites approached Eleazar, Joshua, and heads of the tribes of Israel, saying, "The LORD commanded through Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with their common-lands for...How Could Jesus Associate with Such People?
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 5:17-39. It is odd what we want the church to look like. In many places, we only want everyone to look the same, to be full-grown Christians, who have no problems,...
By Don Ruhl (04 April 2008, 12:53 PM)
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Continue reading: How Could Jesus Associate with Such People? | TrackBack
Our City of Refuge
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 19 and 20. Wildlife refuges provide safe places for animals to live, that is, safe from man, except for limited hunting, but the animals have no safety from animal predators. Likewise,...Anywhere Was a Pulpit
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 5.1-16. Jesus did not need a pulpit from which to preach and to teach. On one occasion, He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret (The Sea of Galilee), but the people...Joseph Took His Inheritance
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 16-18. Joshua wrote of the borders of the children of Joseph, providing the details of the boundaries (Joshua 16:1-3). Once that was done, he wrote, "So the children of Joseph, Manasseh...Quieting Demons When They Spoke the Truth
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 4:33-44. In the synagogue where Jesus was, a man with an unclean spirit appeared (Luke 4:33), making this confession, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of...
By Don Ruhl (04 April 2008, 12:32 PM)
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Continue reading: Quieting Demons When They Spoke the Truth | TrackBack
The Land Divided
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 14 and 15. God gave to Israel and Israel took what God gave. That is the story of Joshua, beginning especially with chapter 14. The first verse says, "These are the...He Hungered
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 4:1-32. This passage fascinates me every time I read it, "Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,...More Enemies
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 11-13. Yesterday, we observed that many enemies gathered against Israel. However, the story did not end, because others opposed Israel also. The Bible says again, "And it came to pass, when...He Heard, So He Spoke
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 3. We know the time when John the Baptizer began preaching, for Luke wrote, "Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea,...Everyone Against God's People
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 9 and 10. Israel faced a formidable enemy after fighting Ai. The Bible says, "And it came to pass when all the kings who were on this side of the Jordan,...He Would See the Christ
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 2:25-52. There was a man in Jerusalem who knew that he would not die until he saw someone. "And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he...They Became Like That Which They Took
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 7 and 8. Israel entered the land of Canaan centuries after God promised to give it to Abraham's descendants. The children of Israel waited in Egypt for over four centuries until...
By Don Ruhl (04 April 2008, 12:06 PM)
Continue reading: They Became Like That Which They Took | TrackBack
Continue reading: They Became Like That Which They Took | TrackBack
The Census
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 2:1-24. What do you think of your government taking a census or registering you? Listen to what happened during the first century, "And it came to pass in those days that...What a Surprise!
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 16. After the death and burial of Jesus, three women bought spices to anoint His body (Mark 16:1). Their love for Jesus drove them to go to His tomb as soon...Remembering the Lord's Work
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 4-6. After the children of Israel crossed over the Jordan River, Joshua commanded them to take twelve stones to set up as a memorial (Joshua 4:1-5), "that this may be a...God Did It
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 1:57-80. The parents of John the Baptizer were old, but God made a promise to them that they would have a son. Luke 1:57 says, "Now Elizabeth's full time came for...Why God Would Be With Joshua
To read the Bible in a year, read Joshua 1-3. Moses died. What would Joshua think? Would he fear? He did not need to, because first, the Lord spoke to him, "After the death of Moses the servant of the...Hiding a Blessing
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 1:24-56. Elizabeth, the future mother of John the Baptizer, wanted a child, but she was well advanced in years and so was her husband. Then Gabriel the angel appeared to her...To Bless Before You Die
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 33 and 34. What would the man who led Israel out of Egypt and through the wilderness for forty years say to those people just before he died? Deuteronomy 33 shows...The True Story of Jesus Christ
To read the Bible in a year, read Luke 1:1-23. God used some men to write parts of the Scriptures of which they were not witnesses of the events they wrote about, nor could they investigate historical documents to see...The Lord Went With Israel, Not Moses
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 31 and 32. The time for the death of Moses had arrived. It was also time for him to go to Israel and to speak his last words to them (Deuteronomy...
By Don Ruhl (04 April 2008, 11:39 AM)
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Continue reading: The Lord Went With Israel, Not Moses | TrackBack
How the Enemies of Jesus Saw Him
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 15:27-47. The enemies of Jesus showed their disdain for Him when they did this, "With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left....
By Don Ruhl (04 April 2008, 11:22 AM)
Continue reading: How the Enemies of Jesus Saw Him | TrackBack
Continue reading: How the Enemies of Jesus Saw Him | TrackBack
With Whom Was the Covenant Made?
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 29 and 30. It is unfortunate that many people cannot see that the covenant God revealed at Sinai (also known as Horeb), which was also repeated in the land of Moab,...
By Don Ruhl (04 April 2008, 11:16 AM)
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Continue reading: With Whom Was the Covenant Made? | TrackBack
Blessings That Overtake
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 28. God promised Israel that if the nation obeyed Him, this would happen, "And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the...Consulting Against the Lord
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 15:1-26. See what the leaders of the Jewish nation did against the Lord, "Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole...Acknowledging God's Gifts
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 26 and 27. If someone gives you a gift, acknowledge it. Do not forget to do the same with God. In fact, Moses told Israel, "And it shall be, when you...He Fled Naked
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 14:51-72. As the Jews arrested Jesus and the disciples all forsook Him, Mark added this interesting note, "Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his...Those Excluded From the Assembly
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 23-25. Moses revealed to Israel, "He who is emasculated by crushing or mutilation shall not enter the assembly of the LORD" (Deuteronomy 23:1). Those of illegitimate birth and Ammonites and Moabites...
By Don Ruhl (31 March 2008, 07:21 AM)
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Continue reading: Those Excluded From the Assembly | TrackBack
Jesus Sang
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 14:26-50. Jesus introduced the communion and after the disciples partook of it, the Bible says this, "And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives"...Do Not Fear Those Who Stand Against You
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 20-22. Moses knew that Israel would face fierce enemies who would tempt Israel to fear. Therefore, He said, "When you go out to battle against your enemies, and see horses and...
By Don Ruhl (31 March 2008, 07:17 AM)
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Continue reading: Do Not Fear Those Who Stand Against You | TrackBack
Tricking the Son of God!
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 14:1-25. You know who Jesus is. Today look at everything around you, including both the natural creation and the things man has made (for man has done it through the power...Give God Perfect Gifts
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 17-19. Think on this. Moses commanded Israel, "You shall not sacrifice to the LORD your God a bull or sheep which has any blemish or defect, for that is an abomination...When the Romans Arrived
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 13:14-37. Jesus let His disciples in on what was to come in 40 years, saying, "'So when you see the "abomination of desolation," spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where...Remember Whose Children You Are
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 14-16. In regard to mourning for the dead, Moses told Israel, "You are the children of the LORD your God; you shall not cut yourselves nor shave the front of your...How Do We Like to Impress People?
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 13:1-13. Look at what one of the disciples of Jesus said to Him, "Then as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, 'Teacher, see what...
By Don Ruhl (28 March 2008, 03:58 PM)
Continue reading: How Do We Like to Impress People? | TrackBack
Continue reading: How Do We Like to Impress People? | TrackBack
This Message Is to You
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 11-13. Moses told Israel to love God and to keep His commandments (Deuteronomy 11:1). Moses wanted them to know that God spoke direct to them, not to their children, "Know today...Which Commandment Do You Think Is the First?
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 12:28-44. After hearing a confrontation that Jesus had and how He had handled Himself, Mark wrote this, "Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that...
By Don Ruhl (28 March 2008, 03:54 PM)
Continue reading: Which Commandment Do You Think Is the First? | TrackBack
Continue reading: Which Commandment Do You Think Is the First? | TrackBack
How the Church Can Live and Multiply
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 8-10. Moses told Israel, "Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of...
By Don Ruhl (28 March 2008, 12:59 PM)
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Continue reading: How the Church Can Live and Multiply | TrackBack
The Persistent Love of the Father
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 12:1-27. Jesus spoke a parable of a man who planted a vineyard and leased it to vinedressers, then the man left and went into another country (Mark 12:1). When it was...
By Don Ruhl (28 March 2008, 12:56 PM)
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Continue reading: The Persistent Love of the Father | TrackBack
Hear the Lord
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 5-7. Moses gathered Israel to him, and said, "Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your hearing today, that you may learn them and be careful to...Amazed by the Lord's Works
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 11:20-33. Jesus cursed a fruitless fig tree. The next day Peter saw the tree, "Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the...Do Not Fear the Established People
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 3 and 4. To engage in warfare, what does a nation need? That nation certainly needs an established infrastructure to support the military. Yet, Moses reminded Israel of their wilderness wanderings...
By Don Ruhl (26 March 2008, 12:14 PM)
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Continue reading: Do Not Fear the Established People | TrackBack
The Lord Has Need of It
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 11:1-19. Jesus sent two of His disciples into a village and they would find a colt. He told them to take the colt and bring it to Him (Mark 11:1,...The Preparation of the Farewell of Moses
To read the Bible in a year, read Deuteronomy 1 and 2. Moses had been at the front of Israel for forty years. It had to end sometime, for no leader ever stays with us forever, except the Lord. Moses...
By Don Ruhl (26 March 2008, 12:03 PM)
Continue reading: The Preparation of the Farewell of Moses | TrackBack
Continue reading: The Preparation of the Farewell of Moses | TrackBack
The Suffering of Your Friend
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 10:32-52. Imagine your best friend saying this to you, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the...Spitting
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 8:22-38. Jesus did something unusual. Some people brought a blind man to Jesus that He might touch the man and heal Him (Mark 8:1). Jesus was going to heal the man...The Border
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 34-36. God prepared Israel for entering and living in the Land of Canaan, saying, "Command the children of Israel, and say to them: 'When you come into the land of Canaan,...Jesus and Children
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 10:1-31. I heard a preacher say one time say that a leader in the church must love children because Jesus did. A leader who does not love children does not realize...Drive Out Troublemakers
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 32 and 33. The days of Moses leading Israel were almost over. Aaron had just died. It was a new time for Israel as they were about to cross the Jordan...Do Your Actions Cause Others to Stumble or to Believe?
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 9:30-50. Jesus warned, "But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck,...
By Don Ruhl (25 March 2008, 06:02 PM)
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Continue reading: Do Your Actions Cause Others to Stumble or to Believe? | TrackBack
Vows
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 30 and 31. The Lord was plain to Israel that they had to keep their vows, "If a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind...The Kingdom of God Arrived
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 9:1-29. Jesus prophesied, "Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power" (Mark 9:1)....Lambs to the Lord
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 28 and 29. The Lord commanded Israel to offer two male lambs daily at precise times, "This is the offering made by fire which you shall offer to the LORD: two...Israel Decreased
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 26 and 27. Churches always want to be growing numerically, but sometimes that does not happen, and it does not mean that church did something wrong. Nor does it mean that...Israel Decreased
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 26 and 27. Churches always want to be growing numerically, but sometimes that does not happen, and it does not mean that church did something wrong. Nor does it mean that...When Jesus Has Compassion
To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 8:1-21. When does Jesus have compassion on us? A large number of people followed the Lord and He said to His disciples about the people (Mark 8:1), "I have compassion on...Many Sacrifices Will Not Change God's Mind
To read the Bible in a year, read Numbers 23-25. God already said that He would not curse Israel. However, Balaam, who sought the cursing of Israel for King Balak, kept trying things to see if God would change His...
By Don Ruhl (24 March 2008, 12:19 PM)
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Continue reading: Many Sacrifices Will Not Change God's Mind | TrackBack