In the centuries after Malachi prophesied to Israel, a revival of interest in serving Yahweh by knowing and obeying His commandments was led by a group of men who became known as the Pharisees. They studied, taught, and enforced the laws Yahweh had given to their nation through Moses. They were spiritual heroes. After a few generations of their leadership, however, their influence degraded from revival to religion. Pleasing and […]
Author Archive: Douglas Thomas
Good and Evil
Now everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil.(Hebrews 5:13-14 Holman Christian Standard Bible ©®) What preparation have you had, and what are your qualifications that enable you to know the difference between good and evil? How accurate is your ability to […]
Seed to the Sower
Paul, encouraging the saints in Corinth to be generous, included this in his advice to them regarding their generosity: Now the One who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide and multiply your seed and increase the harvest of your righteousness, as you are enriched in every way for all generosity, which produces thanksgiving to God through us. For the ministry of this service is not […]
Courage and Fear
While Peter was in the courtyard below, one of the high priest’s servants came. When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus.”But he denied it: “I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about!” Then he went out to the entryway, and a rooster crowed.When the servant saw him again she began to tell those standing nearby, “This man […]
Crucified With Christ
On days, we don’t see any relationship between the idea He had when He threw the leaders out of His Father’s house because of their mismanagement of His property and us perhaps mismanaging lives that, at some point along the way, we declared were His. Our lives are His. Our relationships with Him are not just built on the fact that we stood in line and picked up our “get-out-of-hell-free” […]
Where the Pecans Live
By whom are you troubled? Someone who is hateful, or deceitful, or who is a thief? If it is January, there are no pecans visible on the limbs of a pecan tree. Not even a leaf. The pecans are there, though – already in the tree. If it continues to be January, the nuts will remain in the tree, and never appear on the tree. The warmth and rain of […]
How to be a Bride
When Paul wrote the letter to the congregations at Corinth that we call 1 Corinthians, he was not instructing them about how to have nice marriages when he got to what we marked Chapter 13. The last phrase in Chapter 12 and the first phrase in Chapter 14 make it clear that he was instructing them regarding being, together, married to Jesus. How that “together” was possible is what he […]
Under the Influence
Someone who is not under the influence of the Spirit of God while reading the Scriptures is like a person who walks up to the home of Jesus and His Father, and looks in the huge, low windows to see the furnishings and friends and family inside, but is still outside, not knowing where the Door is. Someone who is born of God and has met the Spirit, but is […]
Doing What Jesus Did
Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me. Otherwise, believe because of the works themselves.I assure you: The one who believes in Me will also do the works that I do. And he will do even greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, I will do it so that the Father may be glorified […]
Where You From?
When our Awesome God tries to instruct us regarding doing impossible things, we usually respond with something that sounds like (hick accent) “Ha! You ain’t from around here, are ya?” His very gracious response is then usually, “No, I am not from around here. And where I come from, I can do anything. Would you like to join Me? I can do anything here, too.” I pray that the God […]