"Who or what we have faith in tells us a lot about ourselves. When people drive over a bridge they put their faith in the people who designed and built the bridge, that it will not fall. When we ride in an elevator we put our faith in action believing with confidence that the designers, the build...

"From the track record of human leadership, we can assume that it is hard to listen to the LORD when leading a country, or a large group of people. Even for those of us that don’t lead countries, following God with our whole hearts can be difficult. In today’s world, there are many different form...

"The descent of a nation is not pretty. In 2 Kings 17 we read that the kings of Israel had turned the people against the LORD and taught them to worship incorrectly. This is the main reason that the nation of Israel descended into sin and rebellion. The LORD is always moving in the world to let p...

"Josiah was a remarkable young king. When challenged by anyone who opposed him, his response was direct and pointed. He knew that God was with him because he was seeking the ways of the LORD. As Judah’s 18th king, Josiah made a deep and personal commitment to return the kingdom to the LORD God. H...

"It was the eleventh year of Judah’s 22nd king, Zedekiah. He was an evil king. Zedekiah resisted the Babylonians whom God had chosen to discipline Judah for their evil acts. There are more details in the Chronicles, which we will begin reading tomorrow. The Chronicles will go over the history of ...

"The books of 1 and 2 Chronicles cover the same period of time as 2 Samuel to 2 Kings, and give us an extensive list of family names. First Chronicles records the genealogies and looks at the reign of King David. Second Chronicles focuses on the kings of Judah who came after David up to the exile...

"It is critical that we hear God. In the time of the kings, God only spoke to a select few, such as King David and the prophet Nathan. Remember that today we live in a very different time in which God speaks to all of us through His Holy Spirit. Therefore, unlike the ancient kings, leadership is ...

"When Christians willfully do not do what God has commanded even though they know what He has commanded, nothing is more troubling. Christians are held to a higher standard with greater responsibility since we represent God to others on earth. That's why we, at Bible Discovery, make every effort ...

"We should not rewrite history just because we don’t like what happened. The past is true, whether we like it or not. In recent years, for instance, the way many of the men are remembered surrounding the civil war has changed because the attitude and focus of the culture has dramatically shifted....

"Although David had it in his heart to build a temple for the LORD, God did not permit him to build it because, as a man of war, he had shed blood. Instead, God assigned David’s son Solomon to build it. But David could, and did, fulfill all the requirements for the Temple to be built in resources...

"There is no question that King Solomon was industrious. However, he was preoccupied with building the LORD’s Kingdom as if it was his kingdom. From the beginning of his reign, Solomon was intimately involved with constructing Israel into a world power, that is before his heart was turned away fr...

"When we preach and teach God’s Word, it is critical that we make every effort to speak the truth, and not our ideas or opinions. The better we understand the Bible, the more we love the truth. We learn to digest what God is saying to us so that we can know Him better and become
what the LORD has...

"In a letter from Elijah to Judah’s King Jehoram, it was prophesied that this evil king would be struck with illnesses and eventually die of a disease of the intestines. Following his death, his youngest son Jehoahaz, also known as Ahaziah, became king in his place. Ahaziah’s mother was Athaliah,...

"There are twenty-two kings who reigned in Israel and Judah after Israel split. The thirteenth king of Judah was Jotham. He was twenty-five years old when he became king and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. The Bible says that Jotham did right in the eyes of the LORD and that “…he prepared ...

"Hezekiah was an amazing king of Judah. The nation of Judah was formed after Israel rebelled against Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, forming two new nations calling themselves Israel and Judah. This split of the nation had happened a few hundred years before Hezekiah’s reign.
Hezekiah was the 15th king ...

"After Hezekiah’s reign, Judah experienced a string of evil kings. Hezekiah’s son Manasseh came into power when he was twelve years old. The Bible outlines the evil that King Manasseh did. Eventually, Manasseh was humbled and corrected, but unfortunately the damage of his 55 years in power was do...

"The book of Nehemiah is the historical continuation of the book of Ezra. It records the restoration not only of Jerusalem under Nehemiah’s leadership, but also the restoration of the people. Nehemiah lived in ancient Persia and held the prestigious and trusted position of cup-bearer to the king....

"The most physically impressive part of a conquering war is to firmly take control of the enemy land. However, the most challenging and important part is then how to run the conquered land well. James 4 tells us that fights and wars come from the heart. Our battles come primarily from selfishness...

"One of the most quoted verses in my young years was the last part of verse 10 in Nehemiah 8. It says “… for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow for the joy of the LORD is your strength!” Many pastors and teachers would quote that verse not knowing the context it was from. This verse is f...

"As we read through the Bible, it is interesting to note that the names of the Levites operating in God’s sanctuary are often recorded. This is true when the exiles returned to Jerusalem, of the original Levites after the Exodus, and more. This tells me that God pays special attention to those wh...

"One of the challenges of being in exile is the very real danger of becoming a victim of hate. Hate is not something that should be natural to humans; it comes from our unchecked sin. In the book of Esther, we meet Hadassah, a young Jewish orphan who had been taken in and raised by her relative M...