If Naomi had held the pen by which her story would be written, it would have ended as a tragedy. She believed that her life was over. All her decisions, or more so her husband’s decisions, led them to this bitter place. And it ended in death and no hope. She hadn’t even considered a kinsman-redeemer. In her mind her story was over.

The message of Obadiah, then, is a message of judgment against those who rule poorly. It’s a message about those who gloat and celebrate the destruction of God’s people. It’s a picture of what happens when humanity rules by their own heart.

I hate conflict. I’d rather shave with a cheese grater than have to be in conflict. I’m not alone in this sentiment either. Though some people seem to relish conflict, for most of us we would rather avoid disagreement and confrontation. Our bodies are hard-wired for agreement.

In his book, Collective Illusions, Todd Rose argues that when we belong, our brain release oxytocin. Oxytocin is a happy chemical and we love that feeling. Rose explains:

“…oxytocin increases our likelihood of complying with or temporarily supporting a position we may personally dislike. In search of this happy hormonal reward, we tend to prioritize behaviors that benefit our relationships. We look for affinity even when the basis for doing so is tenuous or trivial. We yearn to do more of what our community expects just so we can enjoy that sunny feeling of being included or admired by those we care about.”

In other words, we hate conflict and will even lie to ourselves to avoid it. But is this the way the Scriptures call us to handle conflict? What if conflict is inevitable? Are there times we should pursue conflict?

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They are not sheep because they do these good deeds or goats because they fail to do these good deeds, but rather their doing of the good, or failing to do the good, is precisely because of their character. Wise virgins wait. Good servants serve. Sheep serve. That’s the point of Jesus’ teaching here.

I do not believe that these years of silence are like a spurned lover or an angry parent who chooses silence over communication. The people had rebelled and God was continuing to hand them over to judgment. But he was also preparing for their rescue.

What if I told you that just like every other book of the Bible, Leviticus actually points us to Jesus? It does. Yes, it can be a difficult read in places. But there are places in Leviticus which clearly point to the need for a rescuer.

History is important. We might not find it important if we’re the type of people who just want to get from point A to point B. And if we aren’t careful, our Bible reading can have the same propensity. But it’s important for us to stop. It will help our Bible reading when we are able to attach it to place.

This verse, I believe, is one which can be easily misunderstood. We can assume that Jesus is saying something like, “prove your love for me by obeying what I tell you to do.” We can develop a works-based salvation from a verse such as this one. But there is something different happening in this passage.

There is a pattern found in the book of Judges that parallels the gospel story. God has set them in the land — and charged them with the creation mandate. They are to rest in God, rule their sphere for the glory of God, and live in a loving relationship with God and others. Yet, in Judges we see a pattern typical of humanity throughout the rest of the Bible. The people did evil in the sight of God.

Asaph seemed to be one of the more contemplative of the authors. He was able to see the depth of brutish temptation within his own heart, but also the steadfast anchor of God’s love for him.

I can picture it now. Mary going through all of her possessions. She ruffles through everything…nothing seems to fit. Nothing quite does it. And then she sees it. The most valuable possession in their house. A family heirloom. Expensive perfume. It’s the best things she’s got…what will she do?

Someone once asked me what is the most important tip you would give to a person first learning to read the Bible. My answer is simple. It’s all one big story that points to Jesus. This truth has revolutionized the way I read the Bible. Jesus himself, on the road to Emmaus, told his disciples that everything in the Scriptures point to Him. 

There are a few pretty obvious places in Scripture that point to Jesus. It’s rather difficult to read Isaiah 53 and not think of what Christ suffered. How could you read of the new covenant in Jeremiah and not see that Jesus is the fulfillment of that promise? Likewise, there are themes (like redemption, sacrifice, holiness, etc.) which run throughout the Old Testament (OT) which obviously find fulfillment in Christ.

But there are also a few rather difficult places in Scripture to see the gospel. How do you see Jesus in the ending of Judges? How do you see the gospel in the conquest of Canaan? 

The Exodus as a whole narrative is relatively easy to see a connection to the gospel. I will show how to make those connections, but I also want to show how to make gospel connections in a more obscure passage in Exodus. But first we need some help in learning how to make any gospel connection.

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I didn’t go to church much as a child. I only have a few memories of the few times I did go. One was trying to endure the music portion of the service and then secondly trying to keep myself occupied while some guy was up front talking to us about Jesus and some dude named Paul. Being the nerd that I am, I remember being intrigued by colored maps in the back of my Bible. One in particular that I remember was one with three different colored arrows with the heading at top: Paul’s Missionary Journeys.

I don’t know if I really understood who Paul was or even what a missionary journey was, but I thought the map was cool and it held my attention for a few moments. Perhaps you’re wondering who exactly Paul is and what his missionary journeys were.

To put simply, Paul was a guy whose life was radically changed by Jesus Christ. In the early part of his life, he was on a different kind of journey. He went throughout much of his land trying to tell people to ignore Jesus — and he was even instrumental in trying to hurt people who followed Jesus. But on one of these trips his life was changed, and now he went all across the known world to tell people about the goodness of Jesus. He went on three (or maybe four) big missionary journeys that we have record of in the New Testament.

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