Biblical poetry reveals expressions that run the gamut of human emotion — from the depth of despair to the height of happiness. While poetic language employs vivid imagery to describe events or themes of all kinds, most biblical poetry can be organized around two themes: the experience of human suffering and the assertion of God’s divine kingship.

Human Suffering

The lament psalms, the thanksgiving psalms and the book of Lamentations ...

 
 
In Jewish culture, women were accepted in positions of leadership. And we find stories throughout the Bible of women who showed extraordinary leadership and courage. Here, we take a look at the lives of three extraordinary women of faith who were used by God to help change the course of history.

Deborah: A Distinguished Judge and Leader of Israel

Deborah (Hebrew, “bee”) appears to have been a homemaker at the ...

 
 
Throughout the Bible we most often find God’s people turn to fasting as the natural, inevitable response to a grievous sacred moment in life, such as death, sin and tragedy. But other times a fast is not a spontaneous reaction and we have time to prepare to respond both physically and spiritually.

Fasting is not an end unto itself, but a means of focusing our minds and bodies for ...

The traditions of ancient peoples throughout the world share in common the inclusion of flood stories. The Mesopotamian accounts have garnered the most discussion since they are culturally closer to the Biblical material than any of the other non-Scriptural narratives. The most famous Mesopotamian flood account is the Babylonian version, found in the library of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal (seventh century BC) as part of the larger Epic of Gilgamesh.

In this ...

The “fruit” of the Holy Spirit refers to the godly attributes of those who “walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16). The true manifestation of the Holy Spirit at work in a believer’s life is that the believer becomes increasingly more like Christ in character and actions. The fruit of the Spirit should characterize the life of every believer. Today we take ...

“Tama na” (“We’ve had enough”) was the collective cry of the Filipino people when a national election was rigged to keep a president-turned-dictator in power. It was time to challenge a government that declared martial law and used it to harass and imprison those deemed enemies of the state. The list of those arrested over almost a decade included politicians, professors, charity workers and ministers. Reports of torture and death also ...

On the night before his crucifixion, Jesus’ disciples prepared the Passover meal. The traditional Jewish Passover feast commemorates God’s rescue of Israel from Egyptian slavery. Jesus applied elements from this meal – the bread and the wine – to explain what He would accomplish on the cross transforming it into a remembrance of His own person and work.

The more one understands the key terms the apostle Paul chose to explain the gospel, the deeper one’s experience will be with the gospel. Paul uses these terms throughout the book of Romans to describe the free gift of salvation and eternal transformation that is available to all who will believe and trust in Jesus for the ...

We sometimes tend to view spiritual renewal as being dependent upon external circumstances: When conditions are favorable, spiritual growth goes forward. When difficulties arise, spiritual growth stagnates. The prophet Daniel, however, maintained spiritual vitality in the midst of a world that was often hostile to his faith. No doubt a key factor to Daniel’s healthy faith was his regular practice of the spiritual disciplines.

When Daniel was a young man, ...

Jesus Christ, the most powerful man ever to walk on the face of the earth was also the most humble man who ever lived. His agenda was never to promote himself, but to please his Father by loving and serving others.

Jesus summarized his mission statement in these words: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” ( Continue Reading →