Gideon finds himself from the weakest clan and least in his family (v.15), and yet God still uses him because it is the Lord who will be with him (v16). Before going to fight a battle, God calls Gideon to tear down the altar of a false god that Gideon’s own father built. Scholars believe this first task of Gideon is important because of two things. First and foremost, it shows how serious God is about “no other gods before Him.” In order for Gideon to have success in fighting against the enemy, God needs to be first.  Read More

Welcome to Week 4 of the Experiencing God Reading Plan! This reading plan is designed to partner with Compassion Christian Church’s sermon series of the same name, which you can find information about right here. During this series, it is our hope that you will begin to experience the ways in which God is moving in your life and in the lives of those around you. Because the truth is, God is always at work in every detail. It is in our day to day lives that we forget to take the time to stop, reflect, and recognize the blessings, promises, and peace that God is providing for us  Read More

Highlight Jesus knows that the end of his earthly ministry is here, which means that the words recorded in John 17 are in a way Jesus’ last words. Last words reveal priorities and concerns, both of which Jesus now puts before His Father in prayer.  Read More

Highlight John 8 contains one of the great identification statements of Jesus: “I am the Light of the World.” (v12) John Calvin wrote in his set of commentaries that “It is a most beautiful title of Christ when he is called the light of the world. We are all blind by nature, but a remedy is offered to rescue and free us from the darkness and make us partakers of the true light. And this blessing is not offered just to one here or there, for Christ says that he is the light of the whole world.”  Read More

Highlight John, the author of the Book of John, gives us a hint at the significance of the story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand in v4 when he tells us that “the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near.” The importance of this timing is that Passover was the religious festival when Jews remembered their great prophet Moses and the works that God did to free His people through Moses. One of the acts of provision performed through Moses was the giving of manna from heaven, bread that was miraculously given every day while the Jewish people were homeless in the wilderness. But the people wouldn’t have only looked back at Moses, but also forward to the fulfillment of the promise that one day God would send another prophet like Moses, who would come as an anointed king (Messiah) to lead God’s people into the ultimate Promised Land.  Read More

Highlight When we read the accounts of Jesus’ life, it can sometimes catch us off guard what events trigger people wanting to kill him. John 5 includes one of those events, where apparently Jesus healing someone on the Sabbath invoked extreme levels of anger. To understand why the response was extreme, it is important to understand what argument Jesus is making for his authority to be able to heal on the Sabbath in vv16-17.  Read More