“Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands” (Psalm 63:3-4). God’s glory is revealed in the praises of His people. When we lift our voices in praise to God, He is honored, and we are blessed. However, God’s blessings are not always material in nature. The richest people are those who have developed an intimate relationship with the Savior through personal prayer and praise. Praise was a hallmark of David’s life. As a young man, he learned to worship God through songs of praise that expressed his deep devotion to the Lord. While his brothers may have enjoyed the comforts of home, David was confined to tending the family’s sheep. But it was there, in lonely pastures, that David wrote his greatest songs of praise to the Lord. David wrote: Where can I go from your Spirit? […]

“فَإِذْ لَنَا أَيُّهَا الإِخْوَةُ ثِقَةٌ بِالدُّخُولِ إِلَى «الأَقْدَاسِ» بِدَمِ يَسُوعَ، طَرِيقًا كَرَّسَهُ لَنَا حَدِيثًا حَيًّا، بِالْحِجَابِ، … لِنَتَقَدَّمْ بِقَلْبٍ صَادِق” (عبرانيين 10: 19-20 ، 22). نحن ندعوها الجمعة العظيمة، ولكن لأولئك الذين اختبروها، يكون الإسم الأفضل لها هو الجمعة الرهيبة. في ذلك اليوم، عندما أصبحت أداة الموت والتعذيب عرشاً لملك الملوك، نام تلاميذ يسوع بينما عانى مخلصهم من الألم الذهني لدرجة أن عَرَقه كان يتساقط على الأرض كقطرات دم. ثم قام الزعماء الدينيون بالرشوة والخداع والكذب لينصبوا الشَرَك ليسوع، متسببين في ارتعاد تلاميذه – أصدقائه – حتى أنهم أنكروا وتركوا مخلصهم. لقد تحمل يسوع محاكمة مُزيفة مليئة بالسخرية والمخالفات والمآسي. تعرض يسوع، الله المُتجسد، للصفع والطعن والضرب والبصق عليه، وعانى من ألم جسدي يفوق الوصف. لكن لا شيء مما تحمله المسيح يُمكن أن يُقارن بغضب الله الذي سُكب عليه من أجل خطايا العالم. خطاياك وخطاياي – دفع يسوع ثمنها جميعاً يوم الجمعة العظيمة. اقرأ لوقا 22: 39-46. يخبرنا كاتب رسالة العبرانيين أنه “مِنْ أَجْلِ السُّرُورِ الْمَوْضُوعِ أَمَامَهُ، احْتَمَلَ الصَّلِيبَ مُسْتَهِينًا […]

“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Psalm 16:11). God is the absolute authority and ruler over His creation. Neither a hair nor a sparrow fall apart from God’s will (see Matthew 10:29-30). Without infinite, unchanging power and authority, God’s other attributes would be conditional. If God were not all-powerful, His love could be affected, or changed, by outside forces. Thankfully, we serve a God whose love is perfect and eternal; it is not affected by anything outside His will. We know from Romans 8:28 that “God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Even though we do not know everything we may want to know about the Lord, in Scripture He has revealed what we need to know about His attributes and desires. First and foremost is that He loves us: […]