Bible Reading Plan

Jesus invites three of His closest disciples—Peter, James, and John—to go up with Him up a high mountain to pray. Suddenly His face and clothing become dazzling white, and the great prophets Elijah and Moses appear beside him. While this was an amazing encounter, the trouble with mountaintop experiences is that they are a very…

Near the end of their three years together, Jesus asked His men, “Who do people say that I am?”  After they shared the crowd’s views, Jesus asked His disciples the same question. Peter quickly declared that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus affirms Peter’s correct response and states that He…

When the disciples witness Jesus walking on water in the midst of the storm, it is Peter who shouts, “Lord, if it’s You, tell me to come to You on the water.” Jesus affirms his request with one simple word, “Come.” We learn several things from Peter’s stormy encounter with Jesus. Peter didn’t impulsively and…

Simon made his living netting fish in Lake Galilee to sell in the market where he lived. When his brother Andrew introduced him to Jesus, Jesus gave Simon a significant nickname. It’s the one by which we know him today, the “Rock,” promising stability and strength. Jesus later climbed into Peter’s fishing boat to preach.…

Malachi’s book closes with five areas where we are forced to make monumental decisions. (1) Will you render service to others? Malachi showed that service distinguishes the righteous from the wicked. (2) Will you revere God? God is not to be trifled with. He is a consuming fire, and we should tremble in His presence.…

In Malachi’s day, the people had become bored with God. Their worship had turned from relational to ritual. As a result, they offered blemished sacrifices; the priests had become unfaithful; divorce was commonplace and easy; their words wearied God; businessmen were defrauding their workers, cheating their customers and taking advantage of widows, orphans and aliens.…

Honoring commitments impacts all dimensions of life. The people of Judah, with the priests leading the way, had failed to keep their covenant agreement with God. They treated God with disrespect, dishonoring His name. They treated sacred things as common. They turned away from God’s Law, disobeying His commandments. Malachi provides a stern rebuke. He…

Malachi wrote this book to Jews who thought they were following God. And yet God was displeased with them. The priests were corrupt—they were not teaching God’s Word and were presenting polluted offerings to God. The people had ceased giving their tithes to God and their marriages were in shambles. And yet, they all would…

One of today’s most challenging issues is trying to balance grace and truth. Whether on issues of sexuality, race, politics, or a host of other “hot button” issues, Jesus followers struggle to relationally navigate how to love people in our polarized world. What makes this so difficult is that some Christian beliefs or truths are…

We desperately need truth in our lives. Truth refers to the legal demands on humanity that God’s character requires and the absolute law He established in His Word. At some point in our lives, we all need someone as gracious as Jesus to tell us this truth—you are not okay. You do not need to…