Author: joemarino (Page 17 of 54)

Ezra 4:6 – 24 | Words of the Enemy

November 28, 2021 / joemarino

At first glance the text we are studying is a little bit confusing with all its hard to pronounce names and even more confusing is the date range that is embedded within all the names of the kings that are mentioned. Look at the text real quick…

Ezra 4:1 – 5 | The Enemy

November 21, 2021 / joemarino

Adversity, opposition, and conflict are central to the Christian faith. From the moment we become a Christian, until the moment we stand in front of our Father in Heaven, we are immersed in a centuries-old war between the Adversary (Satan) and God, as our Heavenly Father labors to build his kingdom amidst enemy-occupied territory (Matt. 16:18).²

Ezra 3:6 – 13 | Building Something

November 14, 2021 / joemarino

This passage is all about the time, talent and treasure that Israel invested into laying the foundation of the temple in Jerusalem and it’s also about the response of the people once the foundation was finished. Have you ever set out to build something?

Ezra 1:1 – 11 | The Word of a King

October 8, 2021 / joemarino

As we begin our study of the book of Ezra, I want to make a few observations about this book as a whole and then move into asking some interpretive questions about the text before us today and wrap things up with some personal application.

Theology of Giving | Part III

October 3, 2021 / joemarino

This week is our fourth and final installment of our theology of giving series. In week one we examined Malachi 3:6 – 12 and we surveyed the character contrast between God and his people; God is consistently faithful while his people are consistently unfaithful. The problem we saw in week one is that God’s people were robbing him of the tithe he commanded them to give therefore God was calling them to repent and obey so that the watching world would see how blessed God’s people were.

Theology of Giving | Part II

September 26, 2021 / joemarino

I often hear people say that the New Testament does not talk about tithing or that Jesus never spoke about tithing. Typically, these kinds of uninformed statements are the lame attempt of someone trying to justify their belief that God doesn’t expect us to tithe because in their view, the Law from the Old Testament is null and void.

Theology of Giving | Part I

September 12, 2021 / joemarino

There are many acceptable reasons to preach on giving: to see giving increase; to help people understand what the Bible says about giving; to provide biblical instruction on stewardship or money management. There is nothing wrong with these goals. But these goals are secondary to the goal I have in mind.

Psalm 30 | We Praise God

September 5, 2021 / joemarino

When I read Psalm 30, I get the picture of someone singing a praise song to God for his deliverance, his compassion, his help, and his restoration. I get the sense that David knew deep down in his bones that he did not deserve to have God deliver him and restore him so compassionately or so helpfully. Nevertheless, this is what God does. God is in the business of taking really messy and really broken people and restoring their lives as he delivers them from their self-inflicted graves.

Psalm 29 | The Raging Storm

August 29, 2021 / joemarino

Psalm 29 is like watching the devastation of a raging storm from the safety of your front porch. Charles Spurgeon described Psalm 29 as a “Psalm that is meant to express the glory of God as heard in the pealing thunder, and seen in… [a] tornado…. These verses march to the tune of thunderbolts.”²

Psalm 24 | Questions About God

July 25, 2021 / joemarino

One of the commentaries I read on Psalm 24 this week grabbed ahold of the theme of the big questions we ask about God.² From the moment we are able to articulate complete sentences, we begin asking big questions about life.