Deciding

Apr 14, 2009 | SOAP Journal

SCRIPTURE: 1 Sam. 15-16; 1 Chr. 5; Matt. 1 1 Samuel 16:10 Jesse presented his seven sons to Samuel. Samuel was blunt with Jesse, ” God hasn’t chosen any of these.” OBSERVATIONS: Sometimes, it is as much about who isn’t chosen as it is who IS...

You Can’t Plan Stuff Like This…

Apr 13, 2009 | SOAP Journal

SCRIPTURE: 1 Sam. 14; 1 Chr. 4; 2 Cor. 13 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 Jabez was a better man than his brothers, a man of honor. His mother had named him Jabez (Oh, the pain!), saying, “A painful birth! I bore him in great pain!” Jabez prayed to the God of Israel:...

More than Inspired…

Mar 30, 2009 | SOAP Journal

SCRIPTURE: Judg. 8; Ps. 42; 1 Cor. 15 1 Corinthians 15:16-20 If corpses can’t be raised, then Christ wasn’t, because he was indeed dead. And if Christ weren’t raised, then all you’re doing is wandering about in the dark, as lost as ever....

Back to the ISH Problem

Mar 25, 2009 | SOAP Journal

SCRIPTURE: Josh. 21-22; Ps. 47; 1 Cor. 10 1 Corinthians 10:11-12 These are all warning markers—danger!—in our history books, written down so that we don’t repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we...

In It, But Not Of It

Mar 24, 2009 | SOAP Journal

Scripture: Josh. 18-20; 1 Cor. 9 1 Corinthians 9: 19-23 Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists,...