January 12, 2012

"The Abundant in Years May Not Be Wise" (1/12)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Job 32-34.

“I thought age should speak, and increased years should teach wisdom. But it is a spirit in man, and the breath of the Almighty gives them understanding. The abundant in years may not be wise, nor may elders understand justice” (Job 32:7-9).

After listening to Job and his three friends debate the cause of Job’s suffering, the younger man Elihu finally spoke up. He was frustrated with Job’s answers and the inability of the three men to refute him. Surely the older, wiser men should have been teaching wisdom, not the young man Elihu.
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August 24, 2011

Finding Purpose Amidst the Vanity of Life

Man in Field

As we deal with the regular trials and pressures of this life, it is not uncommon to have periods in which we are down and might struggle to see the value in our normal pursuits. The wise man articulated these feelings in the book of Ecclesiastes. He opened with these words: “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 1:2). He then went on to mention several regular pursuits of this life that he considered vain:
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August 2, 2009

Reasoned Preaching

Paul preaching in Thessalonica

In Paul’s preaching, he appealed to reason. We see this example in his two visits to Ephesus. During his first brief visit, he “entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews” (Acts 18:19). When he returned to Ephesus, after being forced to leave the synagogue, he was “reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus” (Acts 19:9).

This style of preaching was not reserved for the people of Ephesus because of their particular background or circumstances. Instead, this was the kind of preaching Paul did everywhere he went. When he went to Thessalonica, Luke records: “And according to Paul’s custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead…” (Acts 17:2-3).

Paul’s preaching was very different from the preaching done by many in the religious world today. Notice what Paul did not do:
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