Reflections and meditations about the Bible by Peter DeHaan, PhD.
Jesus Uses Narrative to Inform Us About His Father’s Kingdom Jesus uses parables—“an earthly story with a heavenly meaning,” as I learned in Sunday school—to teach us about the kingdom of God. We are part of the kingdom of God, and we need to do a better job of acting like it. Since Jesus talks […]
Paul’s Letter to the Romans Opens With 3 Traits for Us to Ponder Paul begins his letter to the church in Rome by giving them an overview of his situation. He shares three characteristics about himself, his mission, and his calling. Though he does this to establish credibility for his message, and thereby encourage the […]
Ananias Obeys God to Heal Saul Who Wants to Arrest Him I like the story of Saul’s conversion in the book of Acts, turning him from a murderous bigot into a passionate follower of Jesus. A flash of light, a voice from heaven. It has all the makings of a great story. In this account, […]
Paul Warns Titus to Stay Away From Unprofitable and Useless Things Paul, the superstar missionary, writes to his protégé Titus, who Paul left on the island of Crete to wrap up the work he started. As Paul’s letters go, it’s a short one. But he packs it with practical information that any pastor could use. […]
Paul Sends Timothy to Check on the Church in Thessalonica The missionary Paul and his crew wonder how things are going with the church they started in the city of Thessalonica. He can’t send them an email, follow them on social media, or give them a call. His only option is to dispatch someone to […]
Our Response to Resistance Determines the Outcomes We Realize In the beginning of the book of Ezra we have the story of Zerubbabel, who under direction of King Cyrus, begins to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. His job is a noble one and backed by the full support of the Persian Empire and all that […]
Amon Did Evil in the Eyes of God and Did Not Humble Himself A reoccurring phrase in the books of 1 and 2 Kings and 1 and 2 Chronicles is about people who “did evil in the eyes of the Lord.” In these four books it appears thirty-two times, including eight times in 2 Chronicles. […]
King Rehoboam Made the Costly Mistake of Listening to His Friend’s Advice Rehoboam succeeds his father, Solomon, as king. He inherits a sweet situation of a nation experiencing peace, enjoying power, and basking in wealth. It is his merely to maintain. His detractor, Jeroboam, goes before him and asks for a reprieve for the people […]
Pursue Christian Unity The last thing Jesus does before his arrest and execution is to pray. The last part of his prayer is for the unity of his future followers (John 17:20-26). Yet two thousand years later, we still wait for Papa to answer this imperative request from his Son. We are not one, far […]
Some Things are More Important Than Religious Practices: Focus on What Matters Most I plan to fast one day a week. While I’m not as consistent as I would like, I follow through more often than I miss. Fasting is a spiritual act of worship for me. It better connects me with God and sharpens […]