Meet Me in the Word: Bible Study with Pastor Tim

Send Tim a note How should we understand the violence and conquest we find in the Bible? Is this all just about one group of people deciding that they’re fulfilling God’s destiny for them?  What about the cities and people they destroy… are they innocent casualties that got in Israel’s way? And was God okay with all that? We’ll look at Joshua 10:16-27 today, the part of the story where Joshua puts...

Send Tim a note We’re in Romans 6:15-23, the part of Paul’s letter where he talks about how we use our freedom and the results of who we serve. He quickly debunks the myth that we can do whatever we’d like just because we have righteousness through grace instead of the Law.  If we want to grow spiritually, we need to recognize that the gospel is not an excuse to indulge.    Support the show For a...

Send Tim a note The more I read the Scriptures, the clearer it becomes that God is the real hero of the story. The people, even the ones we might consider to be heroes of the faith, show themselves to have questionable character. I appreciate them because amidst their poor choices along the way, they have a real relationship with God.  Our faith was never about trying to achieve perfection in orde...

Send Tim a note Why is hypocrisy easier to see in other people? Have you ever met a marriage counselor who doesn’t value their spouse?  A preacher who doesn’t believe?  A judge who takes bribes? It doesn’t matter how hypocrisy dresses up, it is always destructive for everyone involved. We’re in Matthew 7:1-6, the part of the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus challenged his listeners to take a deep lo...

Send Tim a note Psalm 20 is a royal or kingly psalm.  In this case, a blessing likely read to Israel’s soldiers shortly before going into battle. It’s a powerful and encouraging expression of God’s goodness and kindness toward his people.  How has blessing played a role in your own life? This psalm also challenges us to think about where we put our hope and trust.  You’re invited to take some enco...

Send Tim a note Did you know that God took all your shortcomings, quirks, and flaws into account when He called you into His purpose? Now you do.  While we don’t see that stated directly in the Scriptures, we do see it in the context of so many stories and the people in them .  Joshua and Israel are no exception.  It’s safe to say that they have been far from perfect in implementing God’s instruct...

Send Tim a note If you are a person of the resurrection, in other words you believe in Jesus, how does that change your life today? Our faith isn’t just about the afterlife, it’s about the power of God working in us moment by moment.  I believe the Spirit of God can truly move the pieces of our lives around until we are fully new.   I also believe that one of the main ways that happens is when we...

Send Tim a note This passage is WILD!  We'll take time to discuss what the sin of Sodom was but much more importantly, learn from Lot's experience.  While the moral of this story is often misunderstood, we can benefit in our relationship with God by paying attention to what's happening. Other scriptural references to Sodom: Ezekiel 16:49 Isaiah 1:10-17 Isaiah 3:9 Jeremiah 23:14 Lame...

Send Tim a note Have you thought about calming down?  Just don’t worry about it!  Giving that kind of advice will get you in trouble around my house.  Most of us don’t need to be told what we already want to do, we need the tools to be able to do it.  We’re in Matthew 6:25-34, the part of the sermon on the mount when Jesus talks to his listeners about their anxious hearts.  It turns out that “don’...

Send Tim a note If you were to take 3 minutes and write down words that you associate with Scripture, what would pop onto your page? We all have thoughts and feelings when it comes to Scripture, probably both positive and negative based on past experiences with it.  Even the way people talk about it or use it in our lives can shape our view of God's word. David offers us a beautiful way of un...

Send Tim a note Have you noticed how clever and resourceful con artists can be?  I hate it when they’re good at it and succeed!  I’ll be honest, while I’m mad at them, I’m usually mad at myself too for believing it.  I’m a smart guy, at least I thought I was!  Why couldn’t I see through their charade?  Probably because I was busy believing the best about everybody.  If you can relate to that feeli...

Send Tim a note Jesus offers us grace and forgiveness that far exceeds the magnitude of our sin. More than that, He also offers us a transformed life; a new life that releases us into freedom and gives us the power to change through that same grace. We’re in Romans 6:1-7, the part of the letter where Paul responds to the immense love of God that he talked about in chapter 5.  Support the show For...

Send Tim a note If you’ve ever reached that point where you ran out of hope that God would answer your prayer, you’re in good company.  Sometimes we know what God’s promises are, we’re just not sure they apply to us.   We’re in Genesis 18 today, the part of the story where Sarah has a very honest moment and then Abraham intercedes for people who have long since walked away from God. Support the sh...

Send Tim a note What do you think heaven will be like?  Do you ever let your imagination sort of drift into those possibilities?  Scripture does give us glimpses; descriptions and pictures of it that can help us and I feel like we should read them, in part to let ourselves get caught up in the hope of eternity with Christ.  You can read about that in Revelation 21, 22.  Our passage is  the part wh...

Send Tim a note If you were to look back over the course of your life and write a page or two of reflection, what would that look like? What would people come to understand about you and about how you view God? What about the main themes that show up in your story?   David wrote Psalm 18 in the later years of his life and we catch a glimpse as to how he understood himself and his relationship with...

Send Tim a note If you've ever been duped by someone, you know how embarrassing and consequential that can be. We'd all like to believe that we have good discernment and the ability to see through other people's deceptions but the truth is, people can be very clever. It turns out that our spiritual adversary operates in much the same way, occasionally coming at us bluntly but usuall...

Send Tim a note Have you ever been in a situation where things spiraled out of control? It’s a pretty helpless feeling when events are already in motion that you can’t stop.  You’re beyond the point of no return.  Our passage has an element of that at the beginning but then introduces us to The One who totally reversed the narrative and brought legitimate hope!  This isn't merely a situation...

Send Tim a note Who are you?  What are you doing here?  More importantly, who does God say you are?  And finally, what’s the purpose He’s given you? Each of those questions are reflected in the story of Abraham and Sarah. Their experience with promises, faith, doubt, and questions are all highly relatable to me.  How about you? Leaning into God for our identity can be the most transformative thing...

Send Tim a note Is there something in your life where you know you just need to shove out every single distraction and bring that to Jesus? What are you pleading with God about? We’re talking about fasting today in Matthew 6:16-18, the model that God has given us to do exactly that.  We take time to understand this passage but also to pull in from other examples as well as some (hopefully) helpful...

Send Tim a note When you think about God taking a deep dive into your heart and mind and looking around, what sort of response do you have?  I think it’s perfectly normal for us to hope that those one or two areas remain unseen and unsearched and yet the truth is, God already knows.  His intent, though, isn’t to look for flaws in order to condemn us. His desire is to heal us.  I believe one of the...

Send Tim a note Have you ever told your own faith story to yourself?  I know that sounds a little odd but I’m getting at the idea of actively remembering.  Joshua leads the people in doing what God had asked of them once they entered the land.  Their covenant with God was to be central to their lives and everything they did.  So how about us?  How are we remembering and renewing? Also, I get to te...

Send Tim a note How do you respond to people who continue to treat you poorly?  Our society has grabbed the term “toxic” to describe those people who are that constant problem in our lives. More often than not, the recommendation is to remove that person from your life if you can. Sometimes that is wisdom. Some people have shown their stripes and it would be foolish to believe they would behave in...

Send Tim a note This is the part of the story where our covenant couple (Abram & Sarai) go off-script and the results are not at all what they thought they would be. It's not all bad, though, because the LORD proves himself to be faithful even when his people behave... like people. If you're someone who feels cast aside, overlooked, or just plain used while someone else takes center...

Send Tim a note What have you been talking to God about lately?  What’s He been telling you?  Prayer really is an act of faith isn’t it?  We believe in this ability to communicate with our Creator and yet so many of us have big questions and in some cases, big opinions about it. We ask things like…   “Does it work?”  “Is there a right way?”  “Why don’t I seem to get an immediate response?”  “‘Pray...

Send Tim a note How do you evaluate whether your life is going well or not?  What do you tend to focus on? Tough moments reveal that people, institutions, our own health, and life in general will all let us down but we I believe we can have contentment in God.  That contentment can even become joy, not contrived or forced but genuine, honest delight. David writes Psalm 16 from a good time in his l...