The Family Bible Journey Podcast

Corinthian clay jars were anything but ordinary. Their incerdibly fine texture and workmanship made them highly prized by ancient mariners. You never knew what treasure was hidden inside. For many reasons, this parable spoke volumes to the Corinthian Christians whom Paul portrays as jars of clay.

Watching a sunrise, from predawn darkness to full light of mid day, gives us a beautiful and fitting image of God's wisdom at work in our lives. As our hearts and minds are enlightened with His love, our lives are blessed with an awareness of God's presence that transforms our lives and blesses all around us.

My grandma highlighted these verses from Proverbs 3 in the Bible she gave me when I was in middle school. This gives us opportunity to reflect on the legacy of faith that many listeners seek to leave for their children through their own family Bible journal and journey.

According to Greek tradition and mythology, mere mortals had scant chance at attaining the divine. In this chapter, Paul explains how the Holy Spirit working in us brings us ever closer to God and His glory. 

Wisdom doesn't prevent all suffering, but it does protect us from much unnecessary suffering. Believe it or not, rates of transmission of sexually transmitted diseases are much lower for those who abstain from premarital or extramarital sex. It's common sense for those who know the Lord and seek to walk in His Wisdom, even if it's uncommon in our day and age. Instead of doing wrong, and wondering...

The Proverbs are a collection of wise sayings, mostly of Solomon, the wisest man to ever live. Wisdom teaches godliness. The same God Who authored the natural laws that hold all things together shares insight into life that we can only recieve through faith. Thus, we seek the Lord in these chapters, to learn from Him who we are, and how we are to live.

In the ancient Olympic games, only one winner was crowned, and led in "victorious procession" while all the other competitors left as losers. All the praise and adulation given these ancient athletes, the great glory they garnered through their athletic prowess, Paul uses to encourage the Corinthian believers. We too will be led in triumphant procession in Christ. Not be cause of our great perform...

The psalms conclude with fitting songs of praise sung by the angels, heavenly host, us, and all of creation. We will forever thank God for His goodness to us and finally enjoy the life He's created us to live, in unbroken fellowship and communion with Him and all who are in heaven with us.

Ever long for someone that you love, who, for whatever reason, you are seperated from? In this longing, you have felt a thimbleful of God's love and longing for you! In light of such unfathomable love, we will praise Him both now and forever.

Paul uses the disappointment the Corinthians expressed towards him as a contrast to God's unfailing love for them. The Greek gods were notoriously fickle towards their subjects. Our God, to the contrary, is always favorable towards us because of the love we have received from Him.

How often do we think of God as a kind God? Those of us who know His goodness and kindness, we call to Him in love. The peace of knowing His kindness and love allows the godly to close their earthly eyes in death, looking forward to being welcomed by the God Who is always kind to us.

These three psalms of praise fit nicely into the psalter as reflections of the faithful person as this earthly life draws to a close. The entire psalter is a reflection on God's enduring faithfulness throughout life. As the book draws near its conclusion, we praise God for His unending goodness.

Just as the Corinthians were encouraged to prepare for Paul's return, we also are preparing for Christ's return. When we invest in His kingdom, we look forward with joy to see how our "investments" paid off in the eternal well-being of others.

Towards the end of the psalms, in the middle of psalms of pure praise, we have our last Messianic psalm, a psalm of deliverance. Here we confront the evil of lies. We learn how God delivered His Son Jesus from lying lips and how He promises to rescue us from the same.

God loves you even when you don't love yourself! He made you and knows you inside and out. This classic psalm extols Him for His wisdom and love.

When we set our hearts and minds on things above, we are practicing for eternity. It is good for us to pursue godliness for the sake of those we serve. There is also the blessing of knowing that godly love gives us a preview of heaven.

Paul's legendary words, "if there is no resurrection, then we are of all people to be pitied," are recorded in this chapter. We learn how the reality of the physical resurrection of the death transforms every aspect of this life, while giving us unwavering hope for the next.

In these psalms, we are reminded that God's love endures forever! It is the reason for every good thing we enjoy, and the source of the redemption we've received from God.

Like a small child, in a mother's lap, are those who know the love of our Heavenly Father! These psalms remind us of the perfect peace we have in Christ Jesus. If God is for us, there's nothing that the world can do to take away our eternal peace and joy!

The ancient Greeks had a deep tradition of prophecy, focused on the Pythia, Apollo's spokeswoman at Delphi. No surprise then, that the Corinthian Christians got a little confused about the role of prophecy in the life of the Church. We will work to understand, and untangle their mess, so that we can be clear about the role of prophecy in the Church today.

When we gather in worship, we receive God's eternal blessings. We are made more aware of His eternal love and purpose. If this wasn't reason enough to love the Lord, He also invites us to share in His work, knowing that when we do, the work of our hands will endure forever.

The psalms of ascent were likely sung by throngs of worshippers who processed to the Temple twice a year for Passover and the Day of Atonement. They celebrate God's redemption. We join in these praises, knowing that God's promised salvation is for now and forever!

The great love chapter of the Bible expounds on the blessings of "agape" love. The Cornithian understanding of love was polluted by temple prostitution, where worshippers had sex to honor Aphrodite the goddess of "love." Here we learn of God's more excellent love.

How many thousands of people and countless TV shows feature people giving up all they have to find gold or other buried treasure? Too many. Instead of wasting our time and lives looking for lost loot, let us spend our time mining the blessings of God's Word and Wisdom!

Not only is this the longest psalm and chapter in the Bible, it is a treasure of world literature. It is a 176 verse acrostic psalm, beautifully inspired to extol the blessings of God' Word in our lives.