Brothers, God has put in us from birth a desire to protect. That is standard equipment for men. When a man is protecting his family, it is a picture that makes sense and fits with the reality of God’s divine plan. When a woman is left to fend for herself or she tries to assume the role as protector of her household, it is a pitiful sight, one that brings shame and makes us shake our heads in bewi...  Read More

Paul said to the Colossian church, “Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” It starts and ends with Christ because He is Lord. He is all. Christ is preeminent. The goal of our ministry and indeed our very lives, is to know Him and grow in Him to maturity. That was Paul’s passion, that every church and every member of ...  Read More

It has been argued that Colossians 1:15-20 was an early hymn or poem the church knew well and recited or sang regularly, for it is a summary of the preeminence of Christ in all things. It starts with the critical truth about Christ, that “He is the image of the invisible God.” Image is the word from which we get icon. It is a representation. We can look online and find a famous person we don’t kno...  Read More

The primacy of prayer is in view in the first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Paul wrote that since he had heard of the faith of the Colossians, he had been praying for them without ceasing. The Apostle was in prison and could not go to the church in Colosse but he knew that even if he could, his greater work was prayer. And he could do that from anywhere, with or without chains. Somet...  Read More

 Paul wrote to the Colossian church, “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.” Remember, Paul is in a Roman prison cell as he writes this letter and he is filled with rejoicing. Most people only rejoice when their circ...  Read More

Ben Sasse, former Senator from Nebraska, is dying with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. But he is fighting to stay alive as long as the Lord allows. He is writing, he is podcasting, and he is continuing to love his wife and his daughters of 24 and 22. And he has a son. He said in a recent podcast, “Our wonderful providential surprise is a decade younger…our boy is 14. And when you get a precise date on ...  Read More

“I commend to you our sister Phoebe.” That’s how Paul started the end of his letter to the Romans. In Paul’s personal greetings, he mentioned 29 people and commended them for their work in the gospel. Phoebe was first. Then, “Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thank...  Read More

The answer is simple: whatever we are sowing, whatever we are cultivating, that is what’s growing. Paul said in Galatians, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” Some see this as connected to his admonition before that, to pay the laborer (those who teach the Word) his wages. But others see it as a reference to walking in the Spirit. Both are import...  Read More

In Galatians, Paul answers the question, “Why did Christ set us free?” For freedom Christ has set us free. That is an indicative, a settled truth. We have been set free by Christ. It is followed by an imperative, a command. “Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” You are free in Christ. And in Christ, you are to remain free. That will take effort, but that effort is ...  Read More

In Luke’s gospel account, the women at the empty tomb were asked a question they could not answer. The angels said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” It’s a great question! But the truth is, they didn’t seek the living among the dead. They sought the dead. They were looking for a dead body.  The angels asked a question that strikes at the very heart of where most people find the...  Read More

Remember that great old gospel song that started, “Would you be free from the burden of sin, there’s power in the blood, power in the blood, Would you o’er evil a victory win, there’s wonderful power in the blood!” Paul starts off this section with an even older hit. “There’s Power in the Law.” Have you heard this one? It goes like this. “Would you throw off all the freedom of grace, there’s power...  Read More

“But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.” Paul wrote that in his first letter to the church in Corinth. Notice that this is NOT a command but a statement, a fact: every man is the head of his household. As some have said, you can be a bonehead, a meathead, a musclehead, an airhead or a knucklehead…but you ...  Read More