Encouragement for Some or All? (James 5:1-6)

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When James is warning the rich it is easy for us to say that it is the other people who have to worry.  We might think that we are not on the Fortune 500 list so in reality we are not that rich.  The truth is that as Americans we are very rich, very blessed, and among some of the most wealth in the world.  Can we be Christians then?  How can we have a joy in the Christian life when James tells the rich to “weep and howl”?  Are these verses for all Christians or just a select few Christians?

Who is Like God? (Micah 7:14-20)

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The Lord is a God who is serious about his justice.  He will deal with the foreign people who make a mockery of His name and He will drive out His people who also make a mockery of His name.  This is something that we expect a sovereign God to do.  This expectation is not what makes God necessarily unique from all the other gods.  What is the ultimate thing that makes God unique for the other gods?  How do we have a relationship with this God?  How do we know that he really is the Lord of lords and the King of kings?

Wanting the Whole Person (Micah 6:1-8)

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The Lord offers Israel a series of options regarding sacrifices that might relieve them of the coming exile.  You would think that Israel, with a sacrificial system, could offer the Lord enough sacrifices to turn away the foreign army.  You can almost imagine the people thinking about going to the temple, pooling resources, and making the priests work overtime to gather together enough to avoid impending doom.  This is possible until the Lord asks them about child sacrifice.  Does the Lord really want them to sacrifice their children?  If there is not enough then what can appease this Holy God?  How can we please such a sovereign, mighty, and holy God as mere fallen creatures?

Willing to Suffer (Mark 9:30-37)

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We might think that the kingdom of God is a kingdom of glory.  There is glory in the kingdom of God, but that is not the whole story.  What is involved in the kingdom of God prior to the glory?  Why is it so offensive that the very men who bring the kingdom are rebuked when they discuss their significance in the kingdom?