Nathan Whitley's Blog, page 5

Daily Readings in the Bible Ecclesiastes 5-8

The Preacher (Solomon) began his search for purpose in wisdom (Ecc. 1:12-18). He thought, perhaps, that he would find meaning in knowledge and understanding.

At the beginning of Solomon’s reign, he petitioned the Lord for understanding in leading Israel (1 Kings 3:7-9). The Lord granted his request and gave him much more than he desired (1 Kings 3:10-14). After this, Solomon was considered the wisest man to live (1 Kings 3:28). God had given him wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and bread...

Daily Readings in the Bible Ecclesiastes 1-4

Ecclesiastes was penned at the hand of Israel’s King Solomon, the son of David (1:1). In the Hebrew, he calls himself “Qoheleth” which means “preacher” or “teacher.” The name Ecclesiastes comes from the Greek (not the Hebrew) and is a form of “ekklesia” which is the Greek word for “church” in the NT. Therefore, on a more specific note, Ecclesiastes refers to an assembly and Solomon is the Preacher addressing the congregation.

“Vanity of vanities, all is vanity,” says the Preacher. This phrase is...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 30-31

The book of Proverbs was written primarily for young men. A “son” is referred to no less than forty times in the book. Compare that to “daughter” not being mentioned at all. Of course everyone can learn and apply the wisdom from Proverbs. So when we get to the last chapter, it shouldn’t be any surprise that this portion was a lesson from a mother to a son (Prov. 31:1). 

Whoever King Lemuel was, he had a wise mother. I can attest to the blessing of having a wise mother. We can read of some of the...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 27-29

Never in my life have I been through a year like 2020. Nothing has been the same since the month of March when the shutdown began due to the pandemic. I’m sure the majority of us can relate that entire calendars have been upended. Nearly all of the events that we had scheduled have been cancelled. We hardly ever worried about something being cancelled before the pandemic, unless it was due to inclement weather.

“Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth” (Pro...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 24-26

My mother taught me several valuable lessons about relationships. One of those lessons was about not inviting yourself to someone’s house. Mother wouldn’t let me go anywhere if she thought I had invited myself rather than being invited. Her reasoning was that people treat invited guests different than they treat those who have invited themselves.

Another lesson she taught me was about over staying your welcome. Just because you were invited doesn’t mean you’re invited to stay forever. People and...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 22-23

According to the overall consensus of Proverbs you don’t have to be old in order to be wise. As I have written previously, many of the proverbs were written from the vantage point of a father who sought to instruct his young son (Pro. 1:8-19; 3:1-12; 4:1-27). The young man was to take his father’s advice that he might mature into manhood. The older man intended to teach and train the young man in the way that he should go with the hopes that when he grew older he would remember what he was taugh...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 19-21

Laziness is a plague that ruins lives, and societies. The book of Proverbs uses the word “sluggard” for the man who will not work or give any effort. The antithesis of the diligent man is the sluggard. The Hebrew word for “sluggard” is defined as a “lazy person, a person who is disinclined to work or exert himself.” In other words, they are sluggish, slothful, and undisciplined. Another translation says they are “lazy bones.” It gives the idea of someone who does not have the willpower to work. ...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 16-18

“A friend loveth at all times” (Proverbs 17:17). Friendship is an important topic in Scripture. Abraham was considered the friend of God (Isa. 41:8; Jam. 2:23). The Lord spoke with Moses face to face as friends would (Ex. 33:11). David and Jonathan were very close friends (1 Sam. 18:1-4). Jesus considered the disciples to be His friends (Jn. 15:15). Jesus’ enemies reviled Him because he was friends to publicans and sinners (Mt. 11:19).

Christians need to be reminded of the value of friendships. ...

Studies in Colossians: You Are Complete in Him

And you have been filled in Him (Colossians 2:10).

The doctrine of the believer’s union with Christ is a highly important, yet often neglected teaching. The New Testament employs two expressions to describe union with Christ. First, believers are in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17; John 15:4, 5, 7; 1 Cor. 15:22; 2 Cor. 12:2; Gal. 3:28; Eph. 1:4, 2:10; Phil. 3:9; 1 Thess. 4:16; 1 John 4:13). Second, Christ is in believers (Gal. 2:20; Col. 1:27; Rom. 8:10; 2 Cor. 13:5; Eph. 3:17). Jesus described our union wi...

Daily Readings in the Bible Proverbs 13-15

Scripture opens with God doing work. God created and worked to bring about all of creation. Each phase of God’s work was considered “good” (Gen. 1:4,10,12,18,21,25,31). Likewise, The book of Proverbs has much to say about work: “Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense” (Pro. 12:11).

“From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied with good, and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him” (Pro. 12:14). “The hand of the diligent will rule...