Knowable Word - Bible study help

Observation is a Means, Not an End

October 22, 2021 By Peter Krol

When it comes to OIA Bible study, observation is the method’s beginning, not the method’s end. I find people can often get distracted from this point in one of two ways.

Distraction #1: Ending with Observation

When you develop the skills of mature observation, you can start to feel like a superhero. You’ll start seeing things the people around you don’t take time to see. You learn to identify parts of speech, sentence structure, and train of thought. Skilled observation can be quite thrilling, and it tends to receive praise. This is a good thing, because careful observation of God’s word ought to be something people find praiseworthy.

But the danger is that the thrill and the praise become your food and drink. When you train your senses to observe the Scriptures closely, you will probably start finding things that nobody in your immediate circle has found before. And you can quickly form an addiction to the dopamine released in the process.

This may result in doing even more observation, getting better and better at it. People start looking to you for insight, and they ask you for the final word on any questions they have. Sometimes this delight in observation can provide an escape from the painful labor of interpretation, or the uncomfortable humility required for application. You can also avoid having to draw conclusions about anything the text might mean, or any ways it may be speaking into your culture or community, by keeping your sights trained simply on what it says.

Perhaps this distraction resonates with your own proclivity. Or maybe your struggle goes in a different direction.

Distraction #2: Failing to Make Use of Observation as a Means

Maybe you are more tempted to skip observation to get to the good stuff faster. Your understanding of “the good stuff” could be focused on either interpretation (we have to get our doctrine in order, after all) or application (what good are we if we are not practical, right?). Either way, you try not to get bogged down by grammatical minutiae or pesky questions about big picture and train of thought.

Maybe you come to the Bible under the expectation that it must move you to some specific and inspiring action steps right here and now. Or maybe you teach others, and you feel you have failed if they don’t deliver something mind-blowing and practical quickly enough. Maybe you’ve trained yourself to spend more time looking up cross-references than discovering the structure and climax or chief conclusion of the text at hand. Maybe you’ve presumed that good teachers should aspire to preach or teach 300 sermons/sessions on Romans, and so you’re constantly bouncing away from your abbreviated text in order to fill the air space with fully fleshed-out theological or ethical reflections.

Conclusion

The answer to the second distraction is to realize (and believe in your bones) that without observation, you cannot interpret or apply. At least, not in alignment with the will of God recorded in Scripture. Observation lays the foundation for all else. If your observation is poor, your interpretation won’t be any better, and your application will fall to the ground. Any power your conclusions or instructions might have comes more from your personal persuasiveness or charisma than from the Spirit of God.

The answer to the first distraction is to realize (and believe in your bones) that your purpose in Bible study is not to impress people or thrill yourself. Your purpose is to help people—beginning with yourself—know God through his Son Jesus Christ and be transformed into the image of Christ by the Spirit who inspired this text. Observation lays the foundation for all else. If observation is your end game, it’s like living your spiritual life on a cement slab in a half-acre plot, without erecting the rest of the house. You’re ready for a tempest to rise against you, but the wifi doesn’t really work.

With trained and habitual observation, we plug into the power of God found in Scripture. We’re thereby locked and loaded for productive interpretation and application to help lead people to their Creator and King.

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Three Good Things About Difficult Bible Passages

October 20, 2021 By Peter Krol

L.T. Greer has a brief piece to help us when we come up against a difficult passage. Instead of yielding to the temptation to skip or ignore it, he encourages us to see how God might use it. He offers the following list of “Three Good Things About Difficult Bible Passages”:

We learn about veracity of the Bible.
We learn about our church’s relationship to the Bible.
We learn about our own biases.

See his article for an explanation of these points, which I find rather compelling and motivating.

Check it out!

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2 Thessalonians: Recovering Hope

October 15, 2021 By Peter Krol

Written a matter of months after the first letter, Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonian church came in the wake of news about their discouragement amid affliction. They have suffered tremendous opposition from the local Jews (1 Thess 2:14-16, Acts 17:5-10), likely with excessive pressure to renounce Christ. The Christian movement was still trying to show itself as essentially Jewish, in full obedience to the fulfillment of the Hebrew Scriptures, yet such pressure would be devastating. Especially when impostors abound, seeking to alarm the disciples over having missed the Day of the Lord. Paul writes into this situation to praise their success and help them regain what they have lost.

Literary Markers

Just as with his first letter, Paul marks his sections by means of logical connector phrases and major shifts in topic. In many ways, this second letter parallels the first. After the salutation (2 Thess 1:1-2) and extended thanksgiving (2 Thess 1:3-12), Paul takes up the matters of his relationship with these people (signaled by “now concerning the coming” in 2 Thess 2:1-17) and their relationships with God and each other (signaled by “Finally, then, brothers” in 2 Thess 3:1). As with many of Paul’s other letters, 1 Thessalonians ends with a closing benediction and greeting (2 Thess 3:16-18). This letter contains a handwritten postscript (2 Thess 3:17-18) to demonstrate its authenticity, in contrast to other letters they’ve received “seeming to be from us” (2 Thess 2:2).

Salutation and thanksgiving – 2 Thess 1:1-12
Paul’s relationship with the Thessalonians – 2 Thess 2:1-17
The Thessalonians’ relationship with God and each other – 2 Thess 3:1-15
Benediction and closing – 2 Thess 3:16-18

Part 1 Walkthrough

While Paul’s first letter offered extensive thanks for their abundance of basic Christian virtue: faith, love, and hope (1 Thess 1:2-3), his thanksgiving in this second letter has a noteworthy omission:

We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.
2 Thessalonians 1:3-4

Some commentators read the virtue of hope into 2 Thess 1:4 (compare with “steadfastness of hope” in 1 Thess 1:3), but I find the insinuation unpersuasive. If Paul wanted to commend them for their hope, he could easily have done so, as he did in the first letter. Instead the contrast with the first letter’s thanksgiving makes the absence of hope rather glaring. And this absence is fully consistent with the rest of the second letter’s argument, which is all about helping them to recover their hope.

Step 1 for recovering hope amid affliction: Reimagine your affliction such that your perspective on it lines up with God’s. This opposition you are under is not evidence of your unworthiness, shame, and failure. It is “evidence of the righteous judgment of God”—against those who afflict you (2 Thess 1:5-8). This affliction is your calling. It is something of which God is making you worthy (2 Thess 1:11-12). It is something that ought to inspire your hope.

Part 2 Walkthrough

Step 2 for recovering hope amid affliction: Don’t allow deception to alarm you, but allow the truth to comfort you. Many false and deceptive ideas abound regarding the coming of Jesus and the Day of the Lord. None of them ought to shake or alarm you (2 Thess 2:1-3). Paul had already taught these people what to look for (2 Thess 2:5-6)—sadly there are many details they then knew but we today do not. But the main idea is clear: God judges people, in part, by subjection them to delusions; he makes others firm and holy by his Spirit enabling them to believe the truth (2 Thess 2:11-15).

What end does Paul desire for them in light of this battle between truth and deception?

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.
2 Thess 2:16-17

He wants them to remember God’s love for them, so his eternal comfort and good hope may comfort them and spur them to do and speak what is good. Your Christian life is an outflow of a firmly recovered hope.

Part 3 Walkthrough

The first outcome of a recovered hope is every good word: In particular, they will pray as those with hope (2 Thess 3:1-2). They will speak of God not as a deviant manipulator, but as a faithful supporter and protector (2 Thess 3:3). They will be directed to speak of God’s love and Christ’s steadfastness on their behalf (2 Thess 3:5).

The second outcome of a recovered hope is every good work: In particular, they will labor as those with hope (2 Thess 3:6-15). They will work hard and not succumb to the idleness of despair. They will warn and admonish those brothers who fail to live out this hope along with them. They will trust their labor is not in vain, and they will not grow weary in doing good (2 Thess 3:13). There is always hope that it is worth it.

Part 4 Walkthrough

In writing these things, Paul is not wishing more affliction upon them. He is not suggesting that a mature Christian perspective on the world is one of embracing and seeking out as much affliction or opposition as possible. No, what Paul wants more than that is for the Lord of peace himself to grant them peace (2 Thess 3:16). At all times. In every way. Such is what blossoms where the Lord plants his life-giving presence.

Paul wants them to recover their hope so they and he can remain in the work, with as few obstacles as possible, of proclaiming the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Thess 3:18). May this be your and my work as well, and the fruit of God’s eternal comfort and good hope available to us in Christ.

Conclusion

Have you wilted under opposition for your faith in Christ? How can you regain the hope that it is worth it in the end? Reimagine your affliction so you can see and label it the way God does. Hold fast to the truth and reject the world’s delusions. Allow God’s comfort to direct you to his love, motivating you in every good work and word. Don’t give up; it will all be worth it.

Interpretive Outline

Thanksgiving to God for abundant faith and love, along with a new perspective offered on affliction – 2 Thess 1:1-12
What difference truth vs. deception makes with respect to regaining hope for the future – 2 Thess 2:1-17
The outcomes of a recovered hope, in every good word and work – 2 Thess 3:1-15
Prayers for peace and grace – 2 Thess 3:16-18

This post is part of a series of interpretive overviews of the books of the Bible.

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An Honest Look at the Scriptures

October 13, 2021 By Peter Krol

One of my greatest privileges at this blog is getting to share the space with one of my longest and closest friends, the sage essayist and mathematician, Ryan Higginbottom. Ryan also blogs at his own site A Small Work. If you haven’t been following him there, you really ought to consider it.

Ryan recently composed a wonderful piece called “The Weight and Wound of the Word,” a brief reflection on the piercing swordplay of Scripture well worth your time. Here is a taste:

While many today look to the Bible for comfort or inspiration, an honest look at the Scriptures reveals that not all of it was given for these purposes. If we randomly dip a ladle into the depths of Ezekiel, the brew that emerges is more likely to be sharp than sweet…
Some—perhaps much—of the Bible was given not for our comfort but for our discomfort. The Scriptures are profitable for reproof and correction, after all; they provoke, unsettle, and rebuke us. Far from harsh, this is a sign of God’s love. It is damaging for our souls—indeed, for our humanity—to turn against God in rebellion. The fact that he steers us away from sin and back to himself is evidence of his care.

Ryan goes on to describe some particular ways we may be prone to dulling the sharp edges of Scripture, thereby throwing ourselves in front of the Holy Spirit’s bulldozer. This is well worth your time and consideration.

Check it out!

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How to Help Others Apply the Bible

October 11, 2021 By Ryan Higginbottom

The church is a body, linked together in union to Jesus Christ. We need one another.

At Knowable Word, though we aim to help ordinary Christians learn to study the Bible for themselves, we do not expect or desire any believer to cut themselves off from from the body. As we need one another in general, we also need one another in Bible study.

We encourage Christians, as they are able and have opportunity, to study the Bible with other believers. Fellow disciples can offer great help in the observation and interpretation phases of examining the Scriptures. But, frankly, there are books, videos, and other resources that can offer significant help with these phases. Christian community fills an irreplaceable role when it comes to application.

I’ve previously written about how to apply the Bible in community, and in that article I focused on peer relationships. Therefore, most of this post will focus on helping others to apply the Bible as a teacher or leader.

Helping as a Friend

Application is the most personal stage of Bible study. The way a person takes a Scriptural truth and works it out has much to do with the specifics of their life—their relationships, their history, their fears, their pressures. This is where friends are essential; when others know the details of our lives, they can show us the shaded corners of our garden that are overrun with weeds. This mostly happens through longer conversations and patient questions.

A one-on-one friendship in which each person wants the best for the other is pure gold for a follower of Jesus. This is love. This is a rare opportunity to help another person believe, trust, and obey the Lord.

If you are blessed with such a friendship, thank God! And be willing to both offer and accept suggestions about Bible application in this context. If you do not have such a friendship in your life, pray earnestly that God would provide.

Helping as a Leader

Those who teach or lead others in the church have the blessing (and responsibility) to help with Bible application. While this is a natural and expected part of Bible study, it can be difficult for leaders to find their groove.

Most teachers are comfortable talking about observation and interpretation—that’s their bread and jam. But application is tough. It’s personal, as we’ve mentioned, and it’s often last, meaning it frequently gets cut in favor of earlier material. My sense is that teachers are much less practiced when it comes to bringing application in for a landing.

I see at least three ways for a leader to help others apply the Bible. The order below is not necessarily my suggested order during a class or study, merely the most natural way to discuss the options in this article. Additionally, any one attempt at encouraging application need not involve all three of these suggestions. (I’d propose a thorough mixture over time, however.)

Ask Application Questions

When it is time to turn to application in a Bible study, questions are natural. The intention here is to provoke others to consider areas where the main point of your Bible passage might have some corrective use.

When a leader knows their group well, targeted questions provide traction. There may be common situations for the group (a transition or event at church) or known experiences within the group (illnesses, difficult relationships, loss of work) that are ripe for questions to spark prayerful contemplation.

For an article-length example of application questions, see 40 Application Questions From Isaiah 40.

Give Personal Examples

When a teacher gives application examples from their own life, it serves at least two purposes. It moves the idea of application from vague to specific, and it shows that the leader has been affected by the very Scriptures they are urging their group to consider.

My friend’s application will likely not be mine. But when that friend tells me about the way God is helping them to obey the Scriptures, it gives me hope that I will find that same help in my life.

Give Application Suggestions

This strategy is like scattering seed on the ground. A teacher throws out suggestions for applications and sees where they may take root.

If a leader has applied the Bible themselves, they likely have considered a lot of applications before the class or meeting. The more specific a suggestion, the better. One of these suggestions may inspire a similar (or wildly different) application in a group member.

Conclusion

There are as many ways to faithfully apply the Bible as there are Christians reading the text. Having conversations with other believers about this application is like adding Miracle-Gro to the soil of a Christian’s life.

Once we realize just how much we need each other, we can joyfully and humbly embrace the privilege of bringing God’s Word to bear in one another’s lives.

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1 Thessalonians: A Community of Faith, Love, and Hope

October 8, 2021 By Peter Krol

Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonian church is one of his earliest known writings, likely preceded only by Galatians. As he was still cutting his teeth on this business of writing letters to churches, it shouldn’t surprise us that he’d want to ground them in the basics of church life. Do Paul’s basics line up with what you consider the basics of membership in your church?

Literary Markers

As a piece of persuasive discourse, 1 Thessalonians marks its main sections through logical connector phrases and major shifts in topic. After the salutation (1 Thess 1:1) and extended thanksgiving (1 Thess 1:2-10), Paul takes up the matters of his relationship with these people (signaled by “for you yourselves know” in 1 Thess 2:1) and their relationships with God and each other (signaled by “Finally, then, brothers” in 1 Thess 4:1). As with many of Paul’s other letters, 1 Thessalonians ends with a closing benediction and greeting (1 Thess 5:23-28).

Salutation and thanksgiving – 1 Thess 1:1-10
Paul’s relationship with the Thessalonians – 1 Thess 2:1-3:13
The Thessalonians’ relationship with God and each other – 1 Thess 4:1-5:22
Benediction and closing – 1 Thess 5:23-28

Part 1 Walkthrough

The beginning and ending of Paul’s letters typically give us the best clues as to his intentions and main point, and 1 Thessalonians is no exception. His thanksgiving for these people introduces the triple-layered theme that saturates the letter:

We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thess 1:2-3)

Faith, love, hope. We’re generally more familiar with these virtues in a different order from Paul’s later writing (faith, hope, love – see 1 Cor 13:13). But early in his career—and as we’ll see repeatedly throughout this letter—Paul’s thinking followed an initial pattern of faith, love, hope.

First is faith, which Paul unpacks in the opening chapter. He speaks of what “we know” (1 Thess 1:4), and then of what “you know” (1 Thess 1:5b), before waxing eloquently about this church’s faith in God, which has “gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything” (1 Thess 1:8). This church, clearly, is one characterized by its faith.

Part 2 Walkthrough

Paul recounts the history of his relationship with the Thessalonian church, but it all has a purpose. He’s not simply recording their origin story for the church’s anniversary picnic or memory book. He has a point to make. An argument.

And that argument comes to light at the very end of the section.

Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. (1 Thess 3:11-13)

Here are Paul’s wishes for these people. He wants them to grow in faith, recognizing and trusting that God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ is the one directing them. He wants them to abound in love for one another and for all. And he wants them to have much hope as they look to the future when Jesus will establish their hearts blameless in holiness. The same three things he gave thanks for in chapter 1 are the very things he wants them to not only continue in but abound in from this day forward. You’re doing well, and keep it on going!

Going back over the section, we ought to see his description of their relationship reinforcing this trifold prayer.

First, he explains how he himself sought to help those he loved among them. He used words (1 Thess 2:1-7). He used more than words (1 Thess 2:8-12). And he gave copious thanks for worthy progress (1 Thess 2:13-16). Or viewed another way, he inspired their faith through the words of the gospel (1 Thess 2:1-7). He showed them the love of a father for his children (1 Thess 2:8-12). And he observed their stalwart hope despite all they were suffering (1 Thess 2:13-16).

Second, he defends his prolonged absence since his untimely departure from them. Paul’s heart emerges in this defense as he speaks vulnerably about his driving motivation:

We sent Timothy to establish and exhort you in your faith (1 Thess 3:2).
I sent to learn about your faith (1 Thess 3:5).
Timothy has brought good news about your faith and love (1 Thess 3:6).
We have been comforted about you through your faith (1 Thess 3:7).
We wish to see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith (1 Thess 3:10).

Why does he care so much about their faith and their love? Because they are his hope and joy (1 Thess 2:19-20). Now we really live, if you are standing fast in the Lord (1 Thess 3:8).

The history of Paul’s relationship with these people is one of witnessing their faith, love, and hope, in imitation of Paul’s own faith, love, and hope, with the intention of further inflaming both their and his continued faith, love, and hope.

Part 3 Walkthrough

Paul moves on to practical matters, expounding on what it might look like to abound in faith, love, and hope, for these folks in this place at this time.

First, he discusses sexual immorality (1 Thess 4:1-8). And the way he discusses it makes it out to be primarily a matter of faith. That is, how does your belief about God shape your sexual ethic? If you trust that God is an avenger (1 Thess 4:6), you will turn away from the passion of lust like the Gentiles who don’t know him. And if you trust that God is a giver of his Holy Spirit (1 Thess 4:8), you won’t presume he’s holding out on you but will find motivation to walk in a way that pleases him.

Second, he discusses brotherly love (1 Thess 4:9-12). Which has to do with further developing the virtue of, well, love. It is something they are already very good at but are urged to practice more and more.

Third, he discusses how to look appropriately to the future and grieve as those who have hope (1 Thess 4:13-5:11).

He sums up his instruction with the metaphor of donning armor—the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of hope for salvation (1 Thess 5:8)—before concluding with a series of highly practical requests (1 Thess 5:12-22).

Part 4 Walkthrough

In closing, Paul wishes that God would sanctify them completely. To fill them out and make them whole. To complete his work in them. To take their great success in faith, love, and hope and make it abound even more, until the day when Jesus returns to judge all and keep his own people blameless in the presence of his Father.

Conclusion

The Thessalonian church was doing a great job in these “basics” of faith, love, and hope. Yet there’s always room to grow even further into these virtues. Such is the way of Christian maturity. How is your local community doing at these foundational principles of the Christian walk? Do Paul’s basics line up with what you consider the basics of membership in your church?

Interpretive Outline

Thanksgiving to God for overflowing faith, love, and hope – 1 Thess 1:1-10
Ministry founded on faith, love, and hope – 1 Thess 2:1-3:13
Excelling still more in faith, love, and hope – 1 Thess 4:1-5:22
Asking God for more faith, love, and hope – 1 Thess 5:23-28

This post is part of a series of interpretive overviews of the books of the Bible.

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Let the Bible Speak!

October 6, 2021 By Peter Krol

I appreciate this brief word from Amy K. Hall on the need to teach what the Bible says before attempting to teach how it applies. As she writes:

Remember that the Bible is primarily there to show us who God is and what Christ has done for us, giving us a 2,000-year history of his works, revealing his character, our purpose and need, and his solution. Sometimes, people who are teaching the Bible try much too hard to be brilliant, giving us their own insights into life rather than letting the brilliance of the Bible speak for itself. Let the Bible speak! I would rather hear one halting, inexperienced speaker show me God in a text of the Bible than hear 1,000 polished pastors give me their three-point, alliterated instructions for life, which are often only loosely based on the actual text.

Check it out!

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Context Matters: The Man of Lawlessness

October 1, 2021 By Peter Krol

Perhaps you’ve heard of the Man of Lawlessness, otherwise known as the lawless one, who “opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God” (2 Thess 2:4). Sometimes connected with the Beast of Revelation and the Antichrist of John’s letters, this mysterious figure appears in a rather difficult passage, which is certainly to be numbered among those writings of Paul which are hard to understand (2 Peter 3:15-16). Yet the figure has become something of a staple in Christian fiction and end-times theology. What are we to make of him?

We always need to pay attention to the context of our favorite verses and phrases. When we learn to read the Bible for what it is—and not just as a code to crack—we may find it has a deeper or different meaning than we’ve assumed.

The Immediate Context

Notice how Paul explicitly introduces this character to his readers:

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself…
2 Thessalonians 2:1-4

Please take a close look once again: “Now concerning the coming of … Jesus … and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed…”

So we may have great confidence that Paul is writing about the coming of Jesus and our being gathered together to him. There is much disagreement over what exactly those things mean, along with when and how they take place. But there ought to be no disagreement whatsoever regarding why Paul is writing about these events. That is, he wants to prevent his readers from being shaken or alarmed. He wants to correct the deception that abounds in Christian teaching and writing regarding these events. He wants to make sure his audience, the church at Thessalonica, knows what to look for before the coming of Jesus or gathering of the saints can take place. And this foreknowledge, when truthfully presented, will neither shake them up nor alarm them.

Therefore we can confidently conclude that, sadly, this passage has been used for centuries, contrary to its stated purpose, to create alarm among those who love the Lord Jesus. Whatever conclusions we may draw about the identity or timing of this Man of Lawlessness and his rebellion, any use of this text that provokes shaken minds or alarmed spirits among Christian brothers and sisters is a deception and a misuse of the text in direct violation of its context.

Let us ensure that the sensational but unclear parts of this text do not overshadow the abundantly clear comfort being offered to believers in Christ through it.

The Broader Context

And the broader context points in precisely the same direction.

Paul’s first letter begins with thanks to God for the people’s “work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess 1:2-3). This triple theme of faith, love, and hope can be traced through the letter as Paul’s chief focus. You are doing well in these three areas; now excel still more. (See my upcoming interpretive overview of 1 Thessalonians for more detail.)

But by the time he writes his second letter, only a few months later, something is missing. The object of his thanks is now that their “faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one” of them for one another is increasing (2 Thess 1:3). Some commentators have tried to identify the presence of hope in the following sentence (“Therefore we ourselves boast … about your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions” – 2 Thess 1:4), but it is telling that Paul now links their steadfastness not with hope—which was so prominent in the first letter—but with faith. Instead, Paul seems to remind them of the hope which was once theirs and could be yet again:

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

In many ways, the brief letter of 2 Thessalonians is about regaining hope, receiving its comfort through grace. The church was once characterized by faith, love, and hope. They have continued abounding in the first two; they now need to regain the comfort of the third.

And Paul’s teaching on the Man of Lawlessness is delivered with this purpose in mind. Not to shake them up or alarm them, but to deliver to them eternal comfort and good hope through grace that they might be established in every good work and word.

Conclusion

We ought to be careful not to be seduced by sensational topics, lest we miss the express purpose for which the Lord has revealed such things to us. As Paul had said while he was with them (2 Thess 2:5): Yes, the man of lawlessness and his rebellion must come before the day of the Lord. This is not to alarm you but to comfort you, so you know you haven’t missed it.

Context matters.

For more examples of why context matters, click here.

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You Need Only Two for a Small Group

September 29, 2021 By Peter Krol

Laura Denny has some encouraging thoughts on the usefulness of studying the Bible one-on-one.

First of all, one-on-one Bible study opens up opportunities to study the Bible with someone who may not be able to fit into a larger group. Consider those whose schedule is not conducive to a weekly study, who may have social anxiety or concerns, or those who are housebound (like many of us experienced this past year!). If someone is new to the idea of Bible study, they also may be more likely to say yes to an invite if it’s just you, someone they’re comfortable with already.
While larger groups may have the advantage of more input and interaction, a one-on-one setting provides more opportunity—in time and attention—for asking questions and fully understanding difficult ideas and passages. I’m less afraid to admit that I came up completely blank on an answer, or that I’m really struggling to understand or agree with something I’m learning, if it’s to only one person and not a whole group. Yet I also found I’m more likely to put more thought and effort into my study and come up with more thorough answers when I know there’s only two of us in the group.

Check it out!

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Psalm 90: A Brief Life, Our Eternal God, and Unending Joy

September 27, 2021 By Ryan Higginbottom

Some psalms are on everyone’s list of favorites. They contain poignant phrases and urgent cries that resonate deeply with our own hearts.

Sometimes we love these psalms—or portions of these psalms—without looking at them carefully. Today we’ll take a close look at Psalm 90.

Our Sovereign God is Everlasting

This is the only Psalm attributed to Moses, and he wrote the whole psalm as a corporate prayer addressed directly to God.

The theme of time is inescapable in Psalm 90, showing up in nearly every verse. To avoid cluttering this article with these observational details, I’ve put that list in this document here.

God has been his people’s “dwelling place in all generations” (Ps 90:1). This is personal. He is God and has been God even before he created the world (Ps 90:2). So while God is certainly the creator, he is more than the creator.

God created man from dust and calls him back at the end of life. This God is in control of the span of human days (Ps 90:3).

Time does not function for God the way it does for us. A thousand years for God is like a day (Ps 90:4). He sweeps millennia away like a dream (Ps 90:5); they rise and fall as quickly as the morning and evening (Ps 90:6).

Our Short Life, in View of God’s Wrath

The middle of Psalm 90 is unsettling, because Moses makes frequent mention of God’s wrath. God’s “anger” or “wrath” appears five times in Psalm 90:7–11.

God’s anger troubles his people (Ps 90:7). But the reason for God’s wrath is not mysterious.

You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence. (Psalm 90:8)

Because our sins are obvious to God, “our days pass away under [his] wrath” (Ps 90:9). Though we may live to be seventy or eighty, our years are “toil and trouble,” and “they are soon gone” (Ps 90:10). With God’s perspective on time, our lives are a blink on the horizon.

Moses brings us around the corner of somberness in verse 11. Many consider God’s wrath, but who does so according to the fear of the Lord? (See Ps 90:11). This posture, and not one of mere terror before God, leads to a proper, sober application of the truth of a brief life. “So teach us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Ps 90:12). Notably, this is Moses’s first request in this prayer.

God’s Favor Makes All the Difference

While verses 7–12 show us the brevity of life in view of God’s wrath, verses 13–17 point to the mercy of God.

Moses longs for God’s nearness, for the mercy of his return (Ps 90:13). The psalm then explains what such a return would mean for God’s people.

God is not only angry at sin, he is known for his steadfast love. This steadfast love, once shown to his people, would sustain them with joy all of their days (Ps 90:14). Though there has been affliction and evil—think of all Moses and the Israelites experienced in Egypt!—God is able to bring them unending gladness (Ps 90:15).

With this as the backdrop—God’s return, bringing his satisfying, steadfast love to his people—Moses turns to pray about the Israelites’ work in the world. He asks God to show his work and his “glorious power” to his servants and their children (Ps 90:16). Then, in light of God’s work, and if his favor is upon them, can his people pray about their own work in the world: “Establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!” (Ps 90:17)

Application From a Favorite Psalm

In this psalm, God’s people praise God for his sovereign, eternal nature and they consider their own time-bound lives. They consider God’s anger toward sin and his steadfast love. So, what is Moses’s main point in writing this psalm?

In our brief lives, we must seek our satisfaction in the steadfast love of the everlasting God.

What are some possible applications? As we consider our brief time on earth, we should number our days. This means we should celebrate birthdays with both joy and sobriety. We should hold our years loosely. At the start of each day we should commit our upcoming hours to the Lord, and we should return thanks to him as each day comes to a close.

If that was an inward application, here’s an outward one. We can help our friends consider their work in light of the Lord’s work. In our churches, we can regularly celebrate God’s work in our communities, we can pray for his ongoing favor, and we can ask him to establish the work of our hands.

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