In 1 Peter 2:11, the Apostle Peter describes Christians as spiritual “sojourners and exiles” heading to their heavenly home. Living in a sinful world, it is expected that Christians will face trials. For that reason, Peter said “do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though...
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Of all the things that the book of Daniel can teach us—how to be faithful to God amidst all the pressures of living in a pluralistic society, how to pray, how to act with humility, integrity, and resolve, and how to navigate our anxiety and suffering—perhaps one of the most overlooked and underappreciated lessons Daniel...
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Midway through the book of Daniel, everything changes. Nice, well-ordered stories that have fed generations of Sunday School kids suddenly give way to seemingly bizarre visions with strange imagery and uncertain interpretation. Daniel 1–6 are incredibly helpful for us in that they model a kind of belief in God, a type of posture toward the...
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Christianity has always – like any global movement – had different flavors. Those flavors are often thought of as denominations, but denominations themselves mask a range of variation in how we express our Christianity – cultural variation, theological variation, and almost any other “-al variation” out there. At a time when one flavor of Christianity...
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I loved reading the stories of Israel as a child: the heroism of David, the wisdom and fall of his son, the never-ending cycle of good and bad kings, and God’s prophets who reminded his people of his faithfulness through it all. I would always get excited when we got closer to reading about Israel’s...
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Jeremiah 29 instructed the Israelites in exile in Babylon to live and work for the good of the pagan society in which they were immersed. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel give pictures of Israelites who tried to do just that, including both their successes and their challenges. The Babylonian (and later...
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