Proclaiming Christ

Immediately after the death of Isaac in Genesis 35 we get a genealogy of Esau — an interruption, it seems, to the story of the patriarchs. Should you preach on […]

The great Reformer, Martin Luther, once said that prayer is the breath of the soul. Christians pray! We are a people called to live and to walk in close fellowship […]

The story of the healing of the paralytic is a picture of God’s work of redemption through Jesus Christ. We are healed—saved—not because we merit favor, but because of the […]

Sinners don’t deserve God’s kindness, but he raises those dead in sins and trespasses to life in Christ (Eph. 2). Hope rises from the dead in Naomi through Boaz’s kindness […]

Triple tragedies strike Jacob in chapter 35. The death of his beloved Rachel, his firstborn son’s violation reprehensible sin disqualifying him from leadership, and his father Esau’s death. Yet in […]

God begins to turn around Naomi’s life in Ruth 2:1-13, a picture of what he does for his church. Ruth ventures into the fields in faith and just “happens” to […]

What does ‘mystery’ have to do with Paul’s ministry? Does it mean that Paul’s ministry is somehow mysterious? Does it mean that Paul’s ministry is difficult to understand? Not at […]

In Ruth 1, God brings back a wandering sheep in Naomi, showing us his grace and power. But Naomi still thinks God has dealt bitterly with her and defines herself […]

If you lived in the ancient city of Ephesus, the most majestic structure that you would see on a daily basis would be the temple to the pagan goddess, Artemis. […]

In Genesis 35 we have the “and back again” portion of Jacob’s journey. He comes back to where he started. Jacob’s journey back to Bethel marks the end of a […]

What happens when you leave the people of God and venture to a far country? And when tragedy strikes there, is there any hope that God’s grace can restore what […]

There is a transition that occurs between the ministry of John the Baptist and the Ministry of Jesus. John begins to decrease, and Jesus begins to increase. The Lord Jesus […]

Something significant is missing in Genesis 34 as we read one of the most shocking stories of Scripture. How do you preach Christ in a text where a violent act […]

Paul calls upon his readers to remember five realities of their former life: separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, strangers to the covenants, having no hope, and […]

Although humanity is dead and lost in sin, with no way to merit favor with God, God is rich in mercy and loves his people with a great love. Those […]

In this episode, we introduce the Gospel of Mark. We also explore how Mark introduces us to the person of Jesus Christ and the Gospel. Of special interest is the […]

Moses brings us to the height of the conflict between Jacob and Esau. We look at the need to preserve the tension in the story while connecting it to the […]

In this episode, we consider the reality that mankind, apart from God’s glorious grace, is completely and totally lost in sin. Before Paul moves to extol the riches of God’s […]

In this episode, we explain the meaning of David’s profession of righteousness. How can David speak about himself as being without guilt, relative to God’s law, when we know he […]

In part two of Paul’s Prayer we return to consider Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian believers. Yes, Paul’s burden is that the Ephesian believers would know the Lord. But what specifically […]

In part one of Paul’s Prayer, we will examine how the apostle Paul prays for the Spirit to be at work so that Christians can know God more. Paul’s thankfulness […]

Jacob expects a conflict with Esau but instead ends up wrestling with an unknown assailant, who can clearly best him at any moment. But when that moment comes, Jacob will […]

What is a Christian to do with the imprecatory Psalms? Are they to be read and sung today, and if so, with what understanding? Jim Cassidy talks about how to […]

As Jacob continues toward Canaan in obedience to God’s call, he comes up against another significant obstacle: Esau is coming to meet him Genesis 32:1–12—preparing for conflict with a small […]

This episode looks at the testing of Jesus that comes on the heels of his baptism. At his baptism, the Father declares “This is my beloved Son, with whom I […]

Psalm 2 speaks of rebellious kings conspiring together against the Lord and his anointed. But the outcome of such conspiracies is clear. The Son will have the earth as his […]

In Eph 1:11–14 the Apostle Paul describes the glorious heavenly inheritance of the Christian. He seeks to encourage the Ephesian Christians—many of whom had given up earthly glory—by reminding them […]

The narrative portions of Scripture serve to highlight the paradigm established by Genesis 3:15. In the story of Jacob and Laban we see primarily not a conflict between two human […]

We embark on a study through a new book—Psalms. Jim Cassidy provides some important interpretive principles which he illustrates through a consideration of Psalm 1. Written for Israel, a nation […]

The baptism of Jesus is a pivotal event in the life of Christ and in all of redemptive history. In this episode, we explore its significance, seek to answer the […]

Jacob exhibits his faith as he responds in obedience to the Lord’s command to return to the land of his fathers. He had made a vow before the Lord, and […]

Repentance today is a byword. It conjures up images of a religious fanatic standing on a street corner with a cheap megaphone that more obscures the sound than amplifies it. […]

In this episode we see how John, the last prophet of the Old Covenant, transitions us to the New Covenant era by announcing the arrival of the LORD in the […]

Hosea 13 contains mostly words of rebuke and condemnation. But there is good news there as well. The Lord rebukes his son, Israel, whom he called out of Egypt, for […]

We look at the significance of a trio of prophecies: the flight to Egypt, Jeremiah’s prophecy of the weeping of Rachel, and that “he would be called a Nazarene.” Matthew […]

What does Paul mean when he says that all things in heaven and earth will be united in Christ? The apostle moves from what Christ did on the cross for […]

Redemption is the work of the Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This Pauline trinitarian emphasis is something that may be somewhat lacking in modern preaching, but is essential […]

The Lord pronounces an indictment upon Israel and convicts her of her sins. He also calls her to repentance and to return to him. The coming judgment in exile reminds […]

How do you preach a passage as speckled and mottled as this one? We look at a text that at first glance has nothing to say about Christ and see […]

Hosea prophesied that God would call his son out of Egypt. Of course, that was long after the Exodus. But here in Chapter 11 the Exodus serves as a motif […]

The apostle Paul uses the metaphor of a building to describe the people of God. What is the significance of this metaphor, and what are the implications of that, particularly […]

What does it mean to be predestined, and to what end does God predestine his people? Robert Arendale joins us again in an exposition of this important passage, including a […]

This section of Genesis showcases an alarming lack of dependence upon God, which results in deception and contention in Jacob’s family. Here we see the foundation laid for much of […]

The Apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Ephesus to remind them of the “unsearchable riches” of Christ (3:8).  That is, he writes to remind the Christians living in that […]

Jacob’s search for a bride parallels two other searches, all of which point us to Christ who offers the water of life and becomes a servant to secure his bride. […]

In Hosea 10 the prophet likens Israel to a vineyard and and garden – but not a very fruitful one. In fact, her covenants with the nations has given rise […]

Occasionally the New Testament provides a direct connection to the words of the Old, pointing like a bright beacon to the person of Christ. We find that is the case […]

Although Jacob and Esau both show themselves unworthy to inherit the covenant promises, we see, through two theological paradigms—the offspring and the land—that God Almighty will lead his people to […]

Matthew’s account of the visit of the Magi is not exactly the story as we know it from our cultural Christmas traditions. The response of these wisemen to the birth […]

In today’s episode we look at Matthew’s account of the genesis of Jesus. In this account of his birth story Matthew draws our attention to the particular perspective of Joseph, […]