Passage, Paragraph, and Prayer
Episodes
468 episodes
Worthy of Being Sung (Psalm 119:172)
The character and nature of God’s word makes it necessary that it be put to music and sung.
Infertility—A Unique Opportunity for Love (Genesis 11:29–30)
In the last Genesis devotion, we began considering some scriptural ways to deal with infertility, and we focused on prayer. In this devotion we consider one either key piece of scriptural advice: Turn outward, not inward.
Praise—A Fruit of Christian Doctrine (Psalm 119:171)
What is a praise song? Psalm 119:171 helps to teach us that praise is a fruit of Christian teaching. We are better equipped to praise God the more we are taught God’s word.
Infertility—One of the Best Prayer Schools (Genesis 11:29–30)
In this devotion we begin to consider a couple scriptural ways to deal with infertility. The first and most important way is to pray, and to pray boldly and persistently. In fact, infertility is one of the best schools in which God teaches us h...
Would You Do Me a Favor, Lord? (Psalm 119:170)
In Psalm 119:170, the psalmist pleads with God to do him a favor. What does it mean to ask God to us a favor, and on what basis can and should we do so?
Infertility—A Painful Problem (Genesis 11:29–30)
“Now Sarai was barren; she had no children” (Gen. 11:30). This is one sentence, but it packs a wallop for those who can relate to it. In this devotion, we consider what it was like to be infertile back in Abram’s day, and what it’s like now.
Crying Loudly for Understanding (Psalm 119:169)
In Psalm 119:169, the psalmist describes the believer’s loud cry to the Lord, begging for understanding. It is the type of cry that cannot be faked. Do we desire understanding and instruction that much?
The Daughters of Haran (Genesis 11:27–29)
Moses tells us that Haran, the son of Terah and brother of Abram, was known as “the father of Milcah and the father of Yiscah,” as if this were something commonly said about him as a sort of claim to fame. Milcah would eventually become the gra...
All Our Ways Are Known to God (Psalm 119:168)
All your ways are known to God. Does that comfort you, or terrify you? The answer to that question depends on whether you know and treasure God’s precepts and testimonies.
The Account of…Terah? (Genesis 11:27–28)
Moses calls his sixth account “the account of Terah.” Yet Terah will only be mentioned four times in the fourteen chapters that make up this account, not to mention that the main human character of this account is clearly Abram or Abraham. So w...
Treasuring God’s Testimonies (Psalm 119:167)
The psalmist says his soul treasures God’s testimonies. What does that mean? This devotion is basically brought to you by the late fourth century preacher, John Chrysostom.
Shorter Lifespans After the Flood (Genesis 11:10, 11, 24–26)
Just as we noted the abnormally long lifespans back in Genesis 5, before the Flood, so we can’t help but note the shrinking lifespans after the Flood here in Genesis 11.
Beautiful Summary of the Christian Life (Psalm 119:166)
In this devotion we break down the beautiful description of the Christian life the psalmist gives in Psalm 119:166.
Names and Meanings from Shem to Abram (Genesis 11:15–26)
Back in Genesis 5, we noted that the meanings of the names of the men in the line of the Messiah from Adam to Noah seemed either to lament mankind’s fallen condition, or to anticipate the Seed of the woman who would undo the damage of sin. By c...
The Benefits of Loving God’s Law (Psalm 119:165)
What are the benefits of loving and cherishing God’s word?
Variant Readings (Genesis 11:10–15)
In this episode, Pastor Biebert talks about the somewhat difficult subject of variant readings in the Scriptures.
Seven Times a Day (Psalm 119:164)
The psalmist says he praises God seven times a day for the decrees of his righteousness. Is he referring to a specific prayer schedule we ought to set up? Or is he wanting to teach us something much more valuable and important?
Introducing the Fifth Account (Genesis 11:10–11)
Genesis 11:10 begins the fifth of the ten “accounts” that make up the book of Genesis. In this account Moses takes us from Shem, the son of Noah, to Abram, the great father of faith with whom the Lord would take his gospel revelation to a new l...
Abominable Falsehood (Psalm 119:163)
In Psalm 119:163, the psalmist urges us to ask: Do I love truth and hate falsehood and want my life and beliefs to conform more and more with the truth? Or do I have some presuppositions and views that are simply non-negotiable?Music Cre...
Where Was the Tower of Babel? (Genesis 11:8–9)
This episode is not meant to make any definitive statement about the location of the Tower of Babel. It is merely meant to help listeners to think critically about common assumptions made about its location. It also gives us an opportunity to p...
The Joy of God’s Promises (Psalm 119:162)
Can you imagine stumbling upon great spoils or treasure of some kind, so that you were suddenly, instantly rich? How much joy would that give you? Do you realize that you already have an even greater treasure the provides a source of even great...
God’s Purpose in Confusing Human Language (Genesis 11:8–9)
What did the Lord’s confusion of human language accomplish, apart from the physical result of scattering humanity over the face of the whole earth? What good came out of it?Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen...
Whom Do You Fear More? (Psalm 119:161)
We’ve made it to the twenty-first stanza of Psalm 119. The psalmist begins this stanza by confronting us with the question: Whom do you fear more—mortal earthly rulers or the eternal God of the universe?Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bac...
Judgment Tempered with Mercy (Genesis 11:6–8)
God did not just confuse everyone’s language randomly and form the people into new groups arbitrarily. He still let the people taste of his mercy.Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jes...
The Sum of God’s Word (Psalm 119:160)
The psalmist concludes the twentieth stanza of Psalm 119 by stating, literally, that “the head of [God’s] word is truth.” What does he mean by that?Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4