Proverbs 27:20

Satan is always on the prowl looking for the weak that he may destroy them and their trust in God.

We need to learn to be content in abundance and in want in every aspect of our lives, relying on God to provide and trusting Him to do what we cannot. He alone provides our needs.

Hell and Destruction are used often in the Bible to describe the fearful aspect of death. They are like ravenous monsters. Compare this proverb with the image of Satan as a roaring lion. NKJ Bible.

Proverbs 27:20

20 Hell and Destruction are never full;

So the eyes of man are never satisfied.

Habakkuk 2:5

5 “Indeed, because he transgresses by wine,

He is a proud man,

And he does not stay at home.

Because he enlarges his desire as hell,

And he is like death, and cannot be satisfied,

He gathers to himself all nations

And heaps up for himself all peoples.

Habukkuk 2:5-8

God hates pride and arrogance. 

The Babylonians’ greed is as insatiable as the appetite of death.The Hebrew word used here, mashal, is the common term for a proverb. The taunt song was used as a derogatory proverbial chant against an object of scorn. Your creditors refers to those nations that suffered oppression at the hands of the Babylonians you shall be as plunder for them. Faithlife Bible.

This arrogant and boastful person is a personification of Babylon. The term hell is used here as a personification of death which, like a greedy person, is never satisfied. These peoples of the earth should have been gathered together before the Lord in holy worship; instead, they became morsels for the rapacious appetite of Babylon.

A woe oracle is an oracle of judgment consisting of two parts: a declaration of the wrong and a notice of impending judgment. The judgment usually applies the principle of the law of retaliation: a wrong would come back to haunt the wrongdoer.

The practice of pledging something as a guarantee for repayment was permitted under the Law, but with limitations to ensure the humane treatment of people. NKJ Bible.

Habakkuk 2:5–8 (NKJV)

Woe to the Wicked

⁵ “Indeed, because he transgresses by wine,

He is a proud man,

And he does not stay at home.

Because he enlarges his desire as hell,

And he is like death, and cannot be satisfied,

He gathers to himself all nations

And heaps up for himself all peoples.

⁶ “Will not all these take up a proverb against him,

And a taunting riddle against him, and say,

‘Woe to him who increases

What is not his—how long?

And to him who loads himself with many pledges’?

⁷ Will not your creditors rise up suddenly?

Will they not awaken who oppress you?

And you will become their booty.

⁸ Because you have plundered many nations,

All the remnant of the people shall plunder you,

Because of men’s blood

And the violence of the land and the city,

And of all who dwell in it.

Micah 2:4 (NKJV)

⁴ In that day one shall take up a proverb against you,

And lament with a bitter lamentation, saying:

‘We are utterly destroyed!

He has changed the heritage of my people;

How He has removed it from me!

To a turncoat He has divided our fields.’ ”

Proverbs 27:20 (NKJV)

²⁰ Hell and Destruction are never full;

So the eyes of man are never satisfied.

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

God calls whom He wills. 

He has always known those who will accept Him in Jesus! Church attendance is not based upon the teacher/pastor but on our love of Jesus Christ.We love because God first loved us and all who love are showing His attributes to the world we live in.

Paul founded the church at Corinth during his second missionary journey (probably around ad 51). Paul likely wrote the letter known as 1 Corinthians in ad 54–55 after he had received a report concerning the Corinthian believers quarreling and a letter from them that raised questions about spiritual gifts, collections, and marriage. Paul’s appointment to the office of apostle was God’s decision, not a person’s or group’s. Paul doesn’t need the affirmation of the Corinthians because God chose him. Paul thanks God for the Corinthian believers despite their immorality. He is thankful that they’ve come to Christ and are at least staying engaged with the Christian community; this provides the opportunity for God to work in them and through them. Spiritual gifts and salvation do not come from people but from Christ. This also shows that the believers belong to Christ now that they’ve entered into a relationship with Him. To Paul, the only life worth living is one for Christ—even at the cost of all things, including wealth and physical well-being. Paul is modeling a life that doesn’t revolve around economy but on a relationship with God and others. His life is focused on love as God is focused on love. Paul uses the Greek word koinōnia here—meaning “to fellowship” or “join together.” God intended for the Corinthian believers to join together because of Christ; instead, they focused on leaders and teachers, which (among many other things) caused division within their church. Faithlife Bible.

Corinth The Corinth which Paul knew had been founded as a Roman colony during the century before Christ. It was strategically located in the Roman province of Achaia on a narrow strip of land between the Aegean Sea and the Adriatic Sea, with two adjoining ports. Corinth’s location made it a center for trade routes passing from east to west, and the resulting prosperity brought both luxury and immorality. “To live like a Corinthian” meant to live in gross immorality, and many pagan temples located in Corinth encouraged this licentious way of life through temple prostitution. The letters Paul wrote to the believers in this city reveal the problems, pressures, and struggles of a church called out of a pagan society. Paul had founded the church in Corinth during an 18-month stay in the city (a.d. 51–52).

Thus in his greeting, Paul introduces his apostolic authority, the sanctification of his readers, and the unity of all believers, all major themes of the letter and concerns for the Corinthian believers. A local church of God is a group of people who identify themselves with God and gather together to worship and serve Him. The work of Jesus Christ makes a believer holy forever in God’s eyes. But in everyday living, sanctification involves small, daily changes. This is why Paul could call the Corinthian believers to become saints, even though the problems in their church testified that they were far from the goal of holiness.

The thanksgiving Paul offers to God for the Corinthians seems odd, considering the many problems the church was experiencing. However, Paul focuses his praise not on the troubled Corinthians but on the eternally faithful God. Paul does not praise the Corinthians for their good works as he does some other churches instead, he praises God who works in them. When we focus on people’s faults, hope soon wanes and discouragement follows. But when we concentrate on the Lord, even the darkest hours can be filled with praise. NKJ Bible.

1 Corinthians 1:1–9 (NKJV)

1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

² To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

³ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴ I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, ⁵ that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, ⁶ even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, ⁷ so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁸ who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 1:7 (NKJV)

⁷ To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Deuteronomy 7:9 (NKJV)

⁹ “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

Isaiah 49:7 (NKJV)

⁷ Thus says the Lord,

The Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One,

To Him whom man despises,

To Him whom the nation abhors,

To the Servant of rulers:

“Kings shall see and arise,

Princes also shall worship,

Because of the Lord who is faithful,

The Holy One of Israel;

And He has chosen You.”

John 6:28-29

Just B.E.L.I.E.V.E. in the salvation of Jesus Christ. 

Believe in His birth, His death and His resurrection that we could receive the gift of eternal life. The simplicity of the Gospel saves lives.

He died to sin so that we could live!

The only “work” necessary for salvation is faith in Jesus as the Messiah sent by God. Faithlife Bible.

John 6:28–29 (NKJV)

²⁸ Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”

²⁹ Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

Romans

We thrive in the unity of the Holy Spirit. One Body. One Church. Together we rise or we fall. Bound together in the love of Christ we conquer a multitude of sin. Grace by faith alone pleases God.

All of Paul’s other letters arise from a particular occasion and have a definite purpose. Romans is different; from the content it seems to have a much more general didactic aim. Having said this, it is possible to see at least three purposes Paul had in writing the book.

His first purpose was to prepare the Romans for his planned journey to Rome and later to Spain. His immediate itinerary involved a trip to Jerusalem, but his vision was toward the west. He clearly suggests that he expects assistance from them in his endeavor to carry the gospel to Spain. But if that had been his only purpose, a brief note would have been enough. Obviously Paul had more in mind.

A second purpose involved Paul’s understanding that the believers needed to “be established”. Paul wanted to give them a well-instructed faith. His letter is a kind of syllabus of Paul’s apostolic teaching. Romans is a masterful presentation of God’s plan of salvation for Jews and Gentiles.

The third purpose for the letter was pastoral. Paul wanted to exhort Jewish and Gentile believers to live in harmony. As in most of the early churches, the gospel brought different groups of people together who otherwise would have stayed apart, whether for reasons of nationality, status, or culture. Once they came together under one roof, the challenge was to preserve their oneness in Christ. Thus throughout the letter, Paul deals with problems arising from Jewish and Gentile differences.

He emphasizes what everyone shared. Since there is only one God, He is the God of both Jew and Gentile. Both groups are under sin, and both are saved through faith. Paul deals with the practical aspects of being together in one body. Paul hammers home his central theme: The righteous God justifies and ultimately glorifies both Jew and Gentile by grace through faith. NKJ Bible.

Romans 7:6 (NKJV)

⁶ But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Romans 8:28 (NKJV)

²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

1 Corinthians 9:22 (NKJV)

²² to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.

Daniel 4:1-3

To God be all praise and glory!

King of kings and Lord of lords!!!!

This section comprises the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar’s letter to his realm. It details his third and final encounter with the God of Israel, which resulted in the king’s humiliation and ultimate restoration. It begins by extolling the signs and wonders of the Most High God. On three occasions, the king witnessed the miraculous power of Israel’s God.

The Aramaic word for peace or prosperity is related to the Hebrew word shalom. It conveys the idea of overall welfare and health. Faithlife Bible.

These verses are a royal proclamation by Nebuchadnezzar concerning the God of Israel in which the king celebrated what God had done for him and extolled His power and universal dominion. NKJ Bible.

Daniel 4:1–3 (NKJV)

4 Nebuchadnezzar the king,

To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth:

Peace be multiplied to you.

² I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked for me.

³ How great are His signs,

And how mighty His wonders!

His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

And His dominion is from generation to generation.

2 Samuel 7:16 (NKJV)

¹⁶ And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”

Psalm 89:36 (NKJV)

³⁶ His seed shall endure forever,

And his throne as the sun before Me;

Psalm 89:37 (NKJV)

³⁷ It shall be established forever like the moon,

Even like the faithful witness in the sky.”

Selah

1 Peter 5:8-11

Ask for God’s guidance and rest in His assurance.

Peter alerts his audience to the devil’s constant threat to the people of God. Peter offers his audience a final word of comfort. He reminds them that God will empower and ultimately glorify those who remain steadfast in their faith under the weight of their present suffering. Faithlife Bible.

Be sober means to be self-disciplined, to think rationally and not foolishly. Be vigilant means to be alert to the spiritual pitfalls of life and take appropriate steps to make certain that we do not stumble. Satan is our avowed enemy. He never ceases from being hostile toward us; he is constantly accusing us before God Satan is both cunning and cruel. He attacks when least expected and desires to destroy completely those whom he attacks.

We are not commanded to run, but to resist—to fight rather than flee. Victory comes when we remain committed to God, because He is greater than our enemy.

Like a doctor setting a broken bone, God will mend our broken lives and make us whole. God will make our way stable, despite the instability we feel living in a world that inflicts suffering upon us. God will give us the ability to succeed in all that we do for Him. As a consequence of our facing the attacks of our enemy, God will build in us a firm foundation that will make us steadfast and immovable.

God is in control of all things both in this world and throughout eternity. NKJ Bible.

1 Peter 5:8–11 (NKJV)

⁸ Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. ⁹ Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. ¹⁰ But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. ¹¹ To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

1 Corinthians 1:9 (NKJV)

⁹ God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Thessalonians 2:12 (NKJV)

¹² that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

1 Timothy 6:12 (NKJV)

¹² Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Micah 2:3-5

All things, all events that take place on earth, are under the control of the Almighty. Rest in His peace and trust in His timing. 

The mistreatment of others has given these evildoers the impression that they are better than those upon whom they prey. The Hebrew text uses a term that usually refers to a proverb. In this context it is best seen as a derogatory proverbial chant against an object of scorn and ridicule, such as the foreign nations. Faithlife Bible.

While the wicked devised iniquity, God made some plans of His own. God would take the property rights from those who had seized them illegally and give them to people who were even more reprobate than they were. These words may have been a strong warning to Micah not to be like the lying prophets who counseled that all was well in the land. NKJ Bible.

Micah 2:3–5 (NKJV)

³ Therefore thus says the Lord:

“Behold, against this family I am devising disaster,

From which you cannot remove your necks;

Nor shall you walk haughtily,

For this is an evil time.

⁴ In that day one shall take up a proverb against you,

And lament with a bitter lamentation, saying:

‘We are utterly destroyed!

He has changed the heritage of my people;

How He has removed it from me!

To a turncoat He has divided our fields.’ ”

⁵ Therefore you will have no one to determine boundaries by lot

In the assembly of the Lord.

Amos 5:13 (NKJV)

¹³ Therefore the prudent keep silent at that time,

For it is an evil time.

Luke 11:45-54

Jesus fulfilled the law and in so doing allows us the freedom to understand, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the reasoning behind the law.The person He sets free is free from the burden of sin! Out of our love for His salvation we want to fulfill His command to love God above all and everyone as much as we do ourself.

Jesus applied His woes to lawyers as well as to the Pharisees. In everyday Greek, the term translated burdens refers to a ship’s cargo. The idea is that a heavy strain was being imposed on the people and yet, in the end, this burden did not bring them closer to God. Here Jesus rebuked the tradition that had grown up around the Law of Moses. The meaning of this phrase is debated. Was Jesus accusing the scribes of hypocrisy in not practicing what they taught and in making distinctions that freed them from obligations, as they did with oaths? Or was Jesus simply accusing the scribes of not offering aid and compassion to those who tried to follow their rules? The second interpretation is more likely, since the Pharisees were known for adhering to the Law. NKJ Bible.

Luke 11:45–54 (NKJV)

⁴⁵ Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, “Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also.”

⁴⁶ And He said, “Woe to you also, lawyers! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. ⁴⁷ Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. ⁴⁸ In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs. ⁴⁹ Therefore the wisdom of God also said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,’ ⁵⁰ that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, ⁵¹ from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.

⁵² “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”

⁵³ And as He said these things to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to assail Him vehemently, and to cross-examine Him about many things, ⁵⁴ lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him.

Matthew 23:4 (NKJV)

⁴ For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

Luke 22:19-20

Jesus gave His life in exchange for ours. His Body, His Blood, the only way to salvation. 

Anyone who believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.

This new Covenant fulfilled the old and allowed mere humans to enter into relationship with their God. This relationship was not  attainable before Christ in us. He is the hope of glory. Through the power of the Holy Spirit we will be raised at the last day and live eternally with God.

Jesus instructs His followers to commemorate His crucifixion and all the saving actions He accomplishes in His death. The early church continued this tradition. Jesus states that His imminent death enacts the new covenant centered on forgiveness. Faithlife Bible.

The bread of the Lord’s Supper represents the body of Jesus, offered on behalf of His disciples. The wine of the Lord’s Supper depicts the giving of life, a sacrifice of blood, which inaugurates the new covenant for those who respond to Jesus’ offer of salvation. This is the strongest substitutionary image in the Gospel of Luke: Jesus died on the Cross in our place and for our sins. NKJ BIble.

Luke 22:19–20 (NKJV)

¹⁹ And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

²⁰ Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.

Matthew 26:26 (NKJV)

²⁶ And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

Mark 14:22 (NKJV)

²² And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

1 Corinthians 10:16 (NKJV)

¹⁶ The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?

1 Corinthians 11:23 (NKJV)

²³ For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;

1 Corinthians 11:24 (NKJV)

²⁴ and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

Nahum 1:13-14

God protects those who place their total trust in Him! 

Through the power of the Holy Spirit He will break the bonds that hold you down and you will be free….truly free.

A yoke usually consisted of a single crossbar with leather or rope nooses placed around the animals’ necks. The yoke symbolizes submission to foreign oppression. Yahweh will break Assyria’s power and end its dominance of Judah. Faithlife Bible.

Here is an oracle of deliverance from God to His people. The present sense of safety and power that the enemy felt would not last; the past judgments of God on His nation would not continue. The Lord promised to break off the yoke that the enemy had placed on His people. NKJ Bible. 

Nahum 1:12–13 (NKJV)

¹² Thus says the Lord:

“Though they are safe, and likewise many,

Yet in this manner they will be cut down

When he passes through.

Though I have afflicted you,

I will afflict you no more;

¹³ For now I will break off his yoke from you,

And burst your bonds apart.”

Isaiah 10:17 (NKJV)

¹⁷ So the Light of Israel will be for a fire,

And his Holy One for a flame;

It will burn and devour

His thorns and his briers in one day.

Titus

Our good works are the natural outward expression of the deep love we have for God and the salvation provided in Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit is in us to direct us in the way we should go.

Out of the love, mercy and kindness He has shown us we love others.

As Titus struggles to help the church on the island of Crete, his experienced mentor, Paul, writes to give him advice. Paul had left Titus in Crete to appoint church leaders and to oppose false teachers. In this letter, Paul shows the connection between right belief and right action, emphasizing that God’s graciousness should prompt us to be godly people.

Titus

“Point man,” “pinch hitter,” “clutch player,” “go-getter.” These terms describe a person who can be counted on, someone who knows what to do and how to do it and who works tirelessly to get it done. Titus was that kind of person.

He had to be. Much of his work, like the apostle Paul’s, was dangerous, unpopular, difficult, and tiring. It involved traveling, introducing strangers to new ideas, constantly making new friends, consistently battling new enemies, and even deflecting threats on one’s life. The number of people who could share such a load was small, but the early church desperately needed them. Not just anyone could start and maintain a new church in a hostile world. Yet Titus rose to the challenge.

The believers in Crete lacked leadership and were suffering as a result. False teachers were taking advantage of the absence of sound doctrine. Judging from Paul’s exhortations, the harmony and morals of the young congregation were disrupted. Paul relied on Titus to help them establish their leadership and make up their other deficits. Their struggles are repeated in every age, and this letter is as relevant today as it was to Titus.

Paul may have planted a church on the island of Crete during a missionary trip after his first imprisonment in Rome, which ended about a.d. 62. When Paul departed from Crete, he left Titus behind to “set in order the things that [were] lacking” in the church.

Titus is mentioned numerous times in the New Testament as one of Paul’s most trusted assistants. He was a Greek and was converted by Paul. He assisted the apostle on some of his missionary journeys and went with him to the Jerusalem council. Paul mentioned Titus several times in 2 Corinthians. Titus carried the letter to Corinth. While at Corinth, Titus was entrusted with collecting funds from the Corinthian church. Later Titus went to Dalmatia at Paul’s request. Early church tradition says that Titus returned to Crete and spent the remainder of his life there.

Although Titus contains only 46 verses, it covers a wide range of topics. It is a key New Testament book for church organization, with its guidelines for elders, pastors, and other believers. Furthermore, it contains one of the clearest statements about God’s grace in all of the New Testament. It explicates the significance of Christ’s first and second coming. The book contributes to our understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit in salvation and the Christian life. But it is known most for its practical instruction about the roles of men, women, and servants and its instruction for dealing with false teaching. A church needs organization, sound doctrine, and good teaching to survive. In this letter, Paul gives Titus a succinct overview on how to lead a church.

Whereas the letters to Timothy emphasize sound doctrine, the letter to Titus emphasizes good works. There were influential people in the church who were motivated by personal interest and selfish gain. In his letter, Paul exposes the ways this was affecting the doctrine and practice of the church and urges Titus to champion purity, service, and kindness toward others. Paul reminds Titus that salvation is not based on our own “works of righteousness” but rather is the result of God’s work of kindness and love toward us. NKJ Bible.