Nathan Whitley's Blog, page 11
June 17, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Esther 6-10
Haman approached King Xerxes and said, “There is a certain race of people scattered through all the provinces of your empire who keep themselves separate from everyone else. Their laws are different from those of any other people, and they refuse to obey the laws of the king. So it is not in the king’s interest to let them live. If it please the king, issue a decree that they be destroyed, and I will give 10,000 large sacks of silver to the government administrators to be deposited in the royal ...
June 16, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Esther 1-5
Though the book of Esther is only ten chapters in length, it’s teeming with significance and importance. The events of the book took place during the reign of Xerxes (also called Ahasuerus), king of Persia. The timeline of these events place it between Zerubbabel rebuilding the Temple, and the arrival of Ezra. While there was a remnant of Jews who returned to Jerusalem, the book of Esther is concerned with the remainder of Jews who stayed in Persia (formerly Babylon) and the surrounding regions....
The Christian Social Media Post
1. Will this post honor and glorify Jesus? (1 Cor. 10:31).
2. Will this post bring shame to Christ’s name? (Lev. 19:12 NLT).
3. Will this post offend a brother or sister in Christ? (Pro. 18:19).
4. Will this post, whether true or false, wound someone’s conscience? (1 Cor. 8:7-13).
5. Will this post offend my neighbors or will it harm my witness in the community? (Matt. 22:39; Php. 2:13; 1 Tim. 3:7).
6. Will ...
June 15, 2020
I Am The True Vine
“I Am the True Vine, and my Father is the Vinedresser” (John 15:1)
Israel, in the Old Testament, was referred to as a vine. Psalm 80:8 states, “You brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it.” Israel was the vine that was brought out of Egypt and eventually drove out the inhabitants of Canaan, which would eventually become Israel’s territory. The prophet Isaiah compared Israel as God’s vineyard (Isa. 5:1-7). The metaphor described God planting the vineyard, building a ...
June 14, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Nehemiah 12-13
After the walls had been built and there had been some improvement with Israel’s spirituality, Nehemiah noticed something very strange: “And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and they could not speak the language of Judah, but only the language of each people” (Neh. 13:24).
The people of Israel had married themselves to foreign peoples such as Ashdod, Ammonites, and Moabites. The Israelites were not to marry or mix with heathen people. But that wasn’t the only problem. Nehemia...
June 13, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Nehemiah 10-11
Once the people heard Ezra and the Levites expound the Word of God, they repented of their sins, and prepared themselves to enter into covenant with God (Neh. 9:38). This was a serious matter. The people had just heard the history of their ancestors how they were constantly rebellious and disobedient (Neh. 9:26-28). Would they be like their forefathers and be unfaithful to the Lord? Or would they be faithful to the Lord as He had been faithful to them throughout their history?
“They clave to the...
June 11, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Nehemiah 8-9
Zerubbabel successfully rebuilt the Temple. Ezra reestablished worship. Nehemiah accomplished the extensive task of reconstructing Jerusalem’s walls. The next undertaking for Ezra and Nehemiah was to rebuild the people. The Temple, the worship, and the walls were meaningless if Jerusalem’s inhabitants remained broken. The Judeans were taken into Babylonian captivity due to their perpetual backsliding. It didn’t matter how beautiful the Temple was, how organized the sacrifices were, or how fortif...
June 10, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Nehemiah 7
The rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls only took fifty-two days to complete (Neh. 6:15). Nehemiah could have sat back and relaxed after accomplishing such an amazing task. However, that’s not what happened. “And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God” (Neh. 6:16). Despite the walls being rebuilt, there were still enemies loo...
June 8, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Nehemiah 4-6
Nehemiah’s task of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem was intimidating. Some estimate the city’s circumference at that time was between one and half to two and miles. Not only were the walls in ruins, but the myriad of city gates were desolate too.
Thankfully, Nehemiah didn’t have to work alone. The people of Jerusalem, leaders and laymen, immediately got to work. Keep in mind that the people neither built nor bought new block for the walls. They had to repair the broken down and charred block...
June 7, 2020
Daily Readings in the Bible Nehemiah 1-3
Thirteen years had passed since Ezra’s return to Jerusalem. Though Zerubbabel had rebuilt the Temple and there had been some reform under Ezra’s spiritual leadership, the city remained destitute. A remnant of Jews remained in Persia (formerly Babylon). Of those that remained was Nehemiah, a cupbearer for king Artaxerxes. One of Nehemiah’s brothers returned to Persia with bad news after visiting Jerusalem: “The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction a...
