In his book entitled, 101 Hymn Stories: Kregel Publications, 1982, page 52, Kenneth W. Osbeck records the following sad story of Robert Robinson (1735-1790), the author of one of the most beautiful hymns in hymnology, “O Thou Fount Of Every Blessing”:
As a young lawyer, Abraham Lincoln was called on to be the arbitrator in many disputes. On one occasion, two men had been arguing for hours about the correct proportion of the length of a man’s legs to the size of his body.
There’s an old fable that tells the story of two geese who were about to start southward on their annual autumn migration, when they were entreated by a frog to take him with them.
In Romans 1:31 KJV, Paul is describing the extreme wickedness of the Gentiles. Among other deficiencies, he said they were “without natural affection.”
Are we really serious about going to heaven? The story is told of a amateur golfer who once asked a local golf pro if taking golf lessons from him would guarantee a better score. The wise old pro replied, “Not until you get serious about golf!”
One of the most difficult of God’s commands is repentance (Luke 13:3; Acts 17:30). A simple definition of repentance is: A change of heart [attitude] resulting in a changed lifestyle. The man who would alter his lifestyle without altering his attitude faces an almost impossible task. On the other hand, changing the will not only […]
All three of the synoptic gospels record the parable of the rich young ruler (Matthew 19:16-22, Mark 10:17-22; Luke 18:18-23). Matthew’s account tells us the man was young, and Luke’s account notes that he was a ruler from a wealthy and socially prominent family. All three writers record that the young man was rich.
To the artist, He is the one altogether lovely (Song of Solomon 5:16). To the architect, He is the chief cornerstone (I Peter 2:6). To the astronomer, He is the sun of righteousness (Malachi 4:2).
Think you don’t have time to read the Bible? Have you ever thought about how much time it would take to read from Genesis to Revelation?
In Isaiah 1, we see a pronouncement of judgment by God upon Israel. Even though God had provided for their every need, the nation rebelled against God’s law and became corrupt and sinful. They are described as a person with open sores, with no ointment to heal them (Isaiah 1:1-6). Because of their sinful rebellion, […]
Henry Ford once stated, “You can do anything if you have enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is the yeast that makes your hopes rise to the stars. Enthusiasm is the spark in your eye, the swing in your gait, the grip of your
Well-known Bible scholar, Matthew Henry, once made the following comments after he had been robbed:
Looking up the meaning of words is a great way to increase our vocabulary. For example, the word “whodunit” means “detective story.” The most important detective story of all time is the question of creation.
In Revelation 20:1-2, the inspired writer John speaks of Satan being bound. However, 1 Peter 5:8 speaks of Satan walking about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.
When I donated blood a few years back, a nurse gave me a card to read while she withdrew blood from a vein in my arm. The card showed the following percentages of people who have different blood types:
Just up the road from our home is a field, with two horses in it. From a distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing. Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner […]
The story is told that in ancient China, the people desired security from the barbaric hordes to the north; so they built the Great Wall of China. It was so high they knew no one could climb over it and so thick that nothing could break it down.
In looking at the new birth, we see that there must first be a planter or father — one who begets. God is the originator of the “seed” which produces Christians (James 1:18) and the “seed” is “the word of God” (Luke 8:11).
Back in 1960, I viewed an interesting movie starring Kirk Douglas. In the movie, Douglas played a historical figure named Spartacus. Historians say that he was likely a Roman soldier who deserted, was recaptured, and then sold into slavery as a gladiator.
If we were to ask several people to draw a crooked line on a piece of paper, no two lines would be identical. The lesson is: There are many ways to be crooked, but only one way to be straight (cf. Matthew 7:13-14 KJV).