Categories
Christian Living

The Valley of Dry Bones

Ezekiel Prophesies to Dry Bones and Breathes Life into Them

One of the most evocative images in the book of Ezekiel is him speaking to dry bones scattered before him. It’s a valley of dry bones.

The bones animate and reassemble. Tendons connect them. Flesh covers the skeletons. Breath enters these reconstituted bodies, mere corpses, and they live again.

It’s powerful imagery, the dead becoming alive. But what does it mean?

Fortunately, God explains it to Ezekiel

The bones represent the people of Israel. They are dried up. Their hope is gone. Cut off. Effectively, they are dead.

God will open their graves, resurrecting them to bring them home.

In addition to restoring their physical life, he will give them a spiritual life too. He will put his spirit in them. Then they will live. Truly live.

As with most prophecies, this one contains multiple applications.

Israel

The first is for his audience of that day, Israel. The people overflow with discouragement and are without hope. God reminds them that they can place their hope in him. He will restore them as a nation and bring them back from captivity and return them to the land he promised for them.

Jesus

We can also see this passage looking forward prophetically to Jesus. Consider two items: the prophecy of graves opening and God putting his spirit in his people so they can truly live.

When Jesus dies the curtain in the temple rips in half from top to bottom, symbolically allowing us to directly approach God. There is an earthquake and tombs break open.

Bodies of many holy people come to life. We don’t know who they are or have a count, just that there are many, and they lived holy lives (Matthew 27:51-53).

Next, consider Pentecost. Jesus’s squad waits in Jerusalem for the special gift that Papa will send them.

A violent wind sounds. Something like tongues of fire hover over each person. And the Holy Spirit fills them with supernatural power (Acts 2:1-4).

End Times

In John’s epic vision as recorded in the book of Revelation, we also see dead bodies become alive (Revelation 11:7-11 and Revelation 20:11-13), just like Ezekiel said.

To wrap things up, the Holy Spirit and Jesus invites them—and us—to come and receive the gift of life (Revelation 22:17).

These are some of the key things we can learn from Ezekiel and the valley of dry bones.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Ezekiel 37-39, and today’s post is on Ezekiel 37:13-14.]

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Peter DeHaan News

Peter DeHaan Releases Second Box Set

The Dear Theophilus series Books 1 through 5

The first five books in the popular Dear Theophilus series are now available in a convenient e-book box set. This Dear Theophilus box set includes:

  • Dear Theophilus: A 40-Day Devotional Exploring the Life of Jesus through the Gospel of Luke
  • Dear Theophilus Acts: 40 Devotional Insights for Today’s Church
  • Dear Theophilus Isaiah: 40 Prophetic Insights about Jesus, Justice, and Gentiles
  • Dear Theophilus Minor Prophets: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope
  • Dear Theophilus Job: 40 Insights About Moving from Despair to Deliverance
Dear Theophilus Books 1-5: Exploring Luke, Acts, Isaiah, the Minor Prophets, and Job

In Dear Theophilus Books 1–5: Exploring Luke, Acts, Isaiah, Job, and the Minor Prophets, lifetime student of the Bible and ABibleADay.com founder, Peter DeHaan, PhD., digs deep into the beloved Gospel of Luke to unearth 40 thought-provoking gems that can inform your beliefs and transform your life.

Next, he builds on that foundation by exploring 40 more jewels from the book of Acts.

Then, he examines Isaiah, the Minor Prophets, and the book of Job for 120 more nuggets of gold.

In this five-book box set treasure, you’ll discover:

  • The way Luke viewed God, and how his view might change your view
  • How Jesus’s followers in Acts met daily in people’s homes and public spaces, which ignited church growth
  • The parallels between the books of Isaiah and Revelation, about peace, woe, and salvation
  • The Minor Prophets’ place in the biblical timeline—because the Bible doesn’t list them chronologically
  • How the book of Job resembles a play and the way that can enlighten our understanding of suffering, Satan, and God’s sovereignty.

The Dear Theophilus series explores Scripture like you’ve never seen before. It’s part devotional, part bible study, and fully life changing.

Explore the powerful way the words of these books of the Bible can speak to you today, as you increase your understanding and grow in faith.

In Dear Theophilus Books 1–5, you’ll encounter eye-opening insights from passages you thought were familiar. Find fresh truths as you gain a broader appreciation of what the Bible says and how this ancient book is still relevant for us today.

Ideal for both individual and group study, these books includes Scripture references and questions inviting further discussion.

Get the Dear Theophilus Books 15 box set today to deepen your understanding of Jesus and his church.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Insights

From Haggai: Lessons about Priority

Discover More About Haggai

In the short book of Haggai, the central theme is that God’s house (the temple) needs to be rebuilt. It lay in ruins. But the people have not done so because they are focused on their own houses and comfort.

As far as God is concerned, their priorities are wrong. They’re putting themselves first and not concerned about him.

Three times God points this out, asking them to consider the quality of their lives. Things aren’t going well for them.

Their efforts fail to produce the results they want, their plans don’t work out the way they expect, and they lack what they need.

After Haggai delivers God’s message to the leaders and the people, their response is to rebuild the temple. Then God promises to bless them.

When their priorities were wrong, things went wrong. When their priorities became right, God’s blessings resulted.

Although the conclusion isn’t absolute, it’s worth considering that when things are going wrong, it might be because our priorities are misaligned with God’s will for our lives and his desire for how we act.

Instead of blaming God when our lives are dissappointing, we might do better to blame ourselves, and then work to fix our priorities. It starts by putting God first.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Haggai 1-2, and today’s post is on Haggai 1:2-4.]

Learn more about all twelve of the Bible’s Minor Prophets in Peter’s book, Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Peter DeHaan News

Book about the Minor Prophets

Book 4 in the Dear Theophilus Series

You may know about the prophet Jonah, the guy who spent a three-day time-out in the belly of a large fish, but what about some of the lesser-known prophets?

Do you know of Micah, Obadiah, or Malachi?

What about Nahum, Zephaniah, or Zechariah? Oh, my! The list goes on. It’s enough to make our minds spin.

Rounding out these twelve Minor Prophets are Amos, Hosea, Habakkuk, Haggai, and Joel.

The Bible includes the work of these twelve prophets who carry the unfortunate label of minor. It’s not that their work isn’t significant, it’s that their books are shorter.

If you’re like most people, you scarcely remember their names, let alone having ever read their books in the Bible.

It’s time we change this.

In the book Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets, you’ll discover:

  • The order of each prophet’s ministry (because the Bible doesn’t list them chronologically)
  • The significant messages they address
  • Their place in the biblical timeline
  • The umbrella of hope that outshines criticism of unfaithfulness and prophecies of punishment
  • The powerful way their words apply to us today

Return to Me is book four of the Dear Theophilus series. In it, you’ll get all this and more:

  • Thought-provoking insights that are part Bible study and part devotional
  • A deeper understanding of these lesser-known prophets
  • A greater appreciation of how the Old Testament informs our lives today

Let’s dive into the intriguing lives and ministries of these amazing messengers from God in the book Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets.

[Return to Me was originally published as Dear Theophilus, Minor Prophets.]

Learn more about all twelve of the Bible’s Minor Prophets in Peter’s book, Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Insights

Judgment and Punishment Will Come

God Doesn’t Give Empty Threats; He Will Do What He Says He Will Do

God has expectations for his people. The Old Testament of the Bible covers this. The first five books of the Bible, often called the Law of Moses, details God’s expectations.

He tells the people what to do and what not to do. If they obey, they’ll receive rewards and favor. If they disobey, they’ll face judgment and punishment.

Then we witness a recurring cycle in the Bible. The people turn from God and face difficulties. Then they turn back to him, and he embraces them.

We first see this cycle repeated in the book of Judges, and it carries forward throughout the rest of the Old Testament.

The prophets continue to address this. They call God’s people to turn toward him. If they don’t, judgment and punishment will follow. But the people don’t listen. Eventually God has had enough.

Their list of failures is long:

  • they worshiped other gods
  • they secretly did what they weren’t supposed to do
  • they built places of worship to other gods and burned incense to them
  • they made and worshiped idols
  • they didn’t trust God
  • they rejected God’s commands and covenant
  • they worshiped stars
  • they worshiped Baal
  • they sacrificed their children
  • they practiced divination
  • they sought omens (enchantments or magic spells)

Judgment and Punishment

After centuries of disobeying God and rejecting him, judgment and punishment finally falls on them. The Assyrians invade Israel and plunder the land. They exile most of the people.

The nation of Israel is no more. Only the tribe of Judah remains.

You’d think the people of Judah would see this and learn what will happen if they don’t give God their all. His warnings of judgment and punishment are for real. The prophets’ warnings aren’t empty words.

And for a while, the people of Judah do avoid God’s judgment and punishment. Yet they continue in the same cycle of turning from God and facing difficulties. Then repenting and embracing him—for a while.

Just as the prophets warned, judgment and punishment will come upon the people of Judah too. Babylon will conquer them and disperse them.

They’ll get a seventy-year timeout, scattered throughout the nation of Babylon. But then a remnant of the people will return, and they’ll get another chance.

Thank God for second chances. Thank God for delaying judgment and punishment to give us every opportunity to turn to him and put him first.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is 2 Kings 17-19, and today’s post is on 2 Kings 17:7-20.]

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Bible Insights

What is the Cost of Obeying God?

Jeremiah Said What God Told Him to Say and Suffered For It

Jeremiah’s time as a spokesman for God is filled with frustration. Not only do the people ignore what he tells them, they sometimes do exactly the opposite.

Though Jeremiah speaks God’s truth to his people, they criticize him for his negativity—even though he is merely relaying God’s own words to them. At various times they detain him, leave him to die, and try starving him.

In today’s passage their anger towards Jeremiah, as God’s messenger, erupts into a beating and then imprisonment in a jail made just for him.

Jeremiah likely wonders why God isn’t doing more to protect his faithful servant and keep him from harm.

Jeremiah may wish he had ignored God’s call for him to become a prophet or at least watered down God’s message in order to not inflame the people.

Though we don’t know what Jeremiah was thinking, we do know he obeyed God—and suffered for his obedience.

As God’s children, we want to believe he will always protect us when we serve him, but the Bible doesn’t show that to be the case.

Obedience doesn’t always equate to protection. Sometimes it results in persecution.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Jeremiah 35-37, and today’s post is on Jeremiah 37:15.]

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Christian Living

Are You Waiting For Christmas?

For a long time my wife has wanted a giant Christmas card to display in our yard during the holidays. She discussed the project with a local artist friend, but he moved before anything beyond talk ever happened.

Then we lost touch. The Christmas card vision languished but never died.

Then we met another artist. She and my wife agreed on a price, and my wife started saving her money. The artist began work on it, anticipating a Christmas unveiling. But other projects superseded our Christmas card.

The artist delivered it the following summer, just before we moved. The next Christmas we were between houses so the long-awaited Christmas card remained secluded for another year.

Christmas Card

That brings us to the present. It is advent. We have a house and we have the card, coinciding with Christmas for the first time. At long last my wife’s greeting card is on display, welcoming everyone who drives by. It was a long wait.

It was an even longer wait for the first Christmas. For centuries the prophets foretold of the coming Immanuel, the one who would be “God with us” (Matthew 1:23).

Year after year, decade after decade, they waited in anticipation for the promised one. Their advent lasted most of a millennia.

Finally he came, but most of the people who yearned for his arrival missed it.

They were expecting something else, someone else, not a tiny baby born in a barn to dirt-poor parents. After centuries of waiting for Christmas, it came and went with barely any notice

Before we criticize them too harshly we should pause for a moment of introspection.

Today we struggle with the same issue. The trappings of Christmas have ballooned out of proportion, overshadowing the baby who came to be God with us.

With the decorations, the parties, the presents, and the family traditions it’s easy to forget the real reason we celebrate.

It’s all about Jesus—or at least it should be.

Are you waiting for Christmas? Will Jesus be the center of your celebration?

May your Christmas be a joyous one.

Celebrate Christmas in a fresh way with The Advent of Jesus. It’s a forty-day devotional that prepares our hearts to celebrate the arrival of Jesus in an engaging read. Begin your Advent journey now and gain a greater sense of wonder for the season.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Bible Insights

Posts about the Minor Prophets

For the past several months, most of the ABibleADay posts have been about the minor prophets. Recall that they are called minor not because their prophecy is insignificant, but because their books are short!

Though more posts may be added in the future, there are no more planned at this time. See all posts about the twelve Minor Prophets:

  1. Hosea
  2. Joel
  3. Amos
  4. Obadiah
  5. Jonah
  6. Micah
  7. Nahum
  8. Habakkuk
  9. Zephaniah
  10. Haggai
  11. Zechariah
  12. Malachi

Learn more about all twelve of the Bible’s Minor Prophets in Peter’s book, Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Insights

Amos Protests and God Relents

Amos was a shepherd, called by God to be a prophet. His story is found in the book of Amos in the Bible.

Amos says what God tells him, but after a while, the people of Israel—the primary target of his God-given proclamations—get tired of Amos and what he says, telling him to be quiet and go back home. 

Interestingly, Peter, the disciple of Jesus, is given a similar warning by the authorities (Acts 4:18-20). Both Amos and Peter decline, insisting that they must do what God tells them to do.

At first Amos has no qualms about sharing God’s judgments regarding other nations, but he does eventually object. God shows Amos what will happen and Amos protests—and God relents. 

Similar things happen when both Abraham and Moses plead with God (Genesis 18:16-33 and Numbers 14:11-20).

God then gives Amos another stinging word. Amos protests and God again relents.

Then God gives Amos a third oracle. This time Amos says nothing.

I wonder if Amos gave up too soon. I wonder if we sometimes make the same mistake.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Amos 7-9 and today’s post is on Amos 7:1-9.]

Learn more about all twelve of the Bible’s Minor Prophets in Peter’s book, Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.