Yana Jenay ConnerIn 2019, my Christian counselor broke up with me. We were discussing my anxiety woes and the constant work I was doing to experience the promise of Philippians 4:7. For the past few years, I had taken Paul’s words in Philippians 4:6 and worked them...
Mary JahnkeNo Hebrew word is an exact equivalent for the English term repentance. Repentance was expressed by a number of different actions that show a change in thinking and attitude toward sin and God.
Mikel Del RosarioHave you ever encountered difficult questions about God or the Bible while sharing your faith? If so, you already realize the importance of being able to give thoughtful responses to challenges like: “If God exists, why is there evil in the world?”...
Tobin Perry“Who is Jesus?” is one of the most frequently asked questions in human history. It’s likely more books have been written on the topic than any other. But it’s much more than just a popular topic. You literally can’t ask...
Christopher KouFor I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.—Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV) Who is God’s promise for? Casual readers of the Bible may read this popular verse and think, “Wow...
Christa ThrelfallRecently, I came across the life and work of Lemuel Haynes, the first Black man to be ordained as a minister in the United States. As a fellow New Englander, I was predisposed to like him. After reading some of his writings, my admiration was...
Dustin BattlesAlmost two years ago, I switched to the Christian Standard Bible (CSB) as my primary preaching and teaching translation for my church, Mercy Baptist Church in West Chester, Ohio. Last year I led our church to purchase CSB pew Bibles (though we use...
Robert ElmerWhen it comes to heaven, it’s easy to be confused by all the opinions. What is heaven like? Where is it? Who goes there, and why? Ask your neighbor, your dog groomer, or the person who delivers your mail. Or take a peek at social media. You might...
Logos StaffIs cursing a sin? Many Christians would instantly answer yes. But not so fast—it depends on what we mean by “cursing.” When you read the Bible, you’ll see that “cursing” and “swearing” mean something very...
Keith N. Smith Jr.It is natural at the turn of the seasons to reflect on the previous year. A question many of us may be asking during this time is: What’s next? What surprises await us in the coming year? The truth is that we don’t know what the coming year has in...
Ashley LyonThe word selah is prominent in the Psalms, occurring 71 times (as well as 3 in Habakkuk)— but what does it mean?
“Shh—I’m listening to your opinion of God!” If you, by some secretive means, were able to eavesdrop on the private conversations between my husband and me, you would get a pretty good gauge on the status of our marriage. Though it...
“The Bible says that our real problem is that every one of us is building our identity on something besides Jesus.”— Tim Keller Our identity in Christ may be simultaneously the most important and most ignored part of our spiritual growth...
Is there a sin so terrible it can’t be forgiven? If so, what is the unforgivable sin? The Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) all record Jesus’s teaching that the unforgivable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Matthew 12:31–32Mark...
Jessica ClarkIf spiritual disciplines are those practices which form us spiritually, there can be none so important as prayer—our conversation with God, our Lord and Creator. Yet this most simple and most important of the disciplines can sometimes be the hardest...
In the final hours of a hectic day, sometimes it’s all we can do to get the kids to bed, or rinse the dinner dishes, or whisper a quick prayer before crawling under the covers. And then the alarm is set for tomorrow, when we’ll do it all over again...
The alarm chimes and our busy day begins. Our to-do list is ready and our phone is fully charged. But wait! Are we forgetting something important? Here’s a collection of morning prayers, collected both from Scripture and from the sermons or...
I was staring at the back of The Man Sitting in Front of Me, the one who killed my little brother. First my sister, then my niece, stood and told the man what his act had taken from us. The murder had been vicious. My not quite thirty-eight-year-old...
Peter Krol“I need to hear a voice from heaven.” That’s what Robert, an atheist, told me after we met together to read the Bible for most of an academic year. We had studied John, Romans, and selections of the Old Testament to examine both the claims of Christ...
Katie FrenchI heard the word “discipleship” frequently growing up. My Bible teachers and pastors spoke on this topic, explaining how it bolsters the Christian life. However, not until recently did I hear the related phrase “spiritual formation.”...
Matthew BoffeyNo church leader wants to admit it, but for many of us it’s true: we still don’t have a sustainable habit for personal Bible study and prayer. Here are five ways forward—true for anyone, church leader or not. 1. Know your why In Man’s Search for...
Everybody has heard of the 12 Days of Christmas. In fact, we’ve all probably sung about them. But what are the 12 Days of Christmas, and who actually celebrates them? What are the 12 Days of Christmas? For more than 1,400 years, the 12 days of...
Admitting this makes me cringe: too often, I gallop through my Bible reading as if it’s another thing to mark off my to-do list. It’s better than not reading the Bible at all, but I’m missing out on so much as I rush by. To help with that, I tried...
John 1:16 reads, “For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” But what IS grace? The briefest definition of grace is “favor,” specifically “unmerited favor from God.” Put another way, it’s receiving what we don’t deserve. ...
Ryan PembertonRyan J. Pemberton—author of Called: My Journey to C. S. Lewis’s House and Back Again and coauthor of Walking with C. S. Lewis—explores Advent ideas for your worship community. For Pemberton, Advent is a beautiful, counter-cultural...
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Faithlife! Enjoy this excerpt from the Lexham Bible Dictionary (included free in Logos) about the role of thanksgiving in the early church. *** Thanksgiving played an important role in the life of the early...
Mark WardWatch Mark Ward’s full interview with Jonathan Leeman on the theology of love. Love is the most important commandment in the Bible. And the second most important. On love for God and neighbor hang both testaments. And at the center of the Bible...
Kay ArthurFor decades, Kay Arthur has devoted herself to mining the riches of the Word and guiding countless others to do the same. She’s championed the truth that every Christian can study the Bible for themselves, regardless of their background. The...
Many of us read Luke 2 at Christmastime, but what Scriptures can we read at Thanksgiving? Here are 54 Bible verses about thanksgiving and gratitude to meditate on during the holiday season or take turns reading around the table on Thanksgiving Day...
Bible Study MagazineReformation Day is October 31. In remembrance, keep reading to explore with David P. Barshinger how the Reformers offer us a model for Bible study. (Or dig deeper into Reformation exegesis with Reading Scripture with the Reformers or The Martin...