Our lives are all about Christ. He alone saved us by His substitutionary death, burial and resurrection. He has made us to be accepted in the beloved. Through Him we have equal and instant access in the the presence of our Father to make our requests made known. We are awaiting His soon return to take us to be with Him for all eternity. Until then …

Nehemiah’s term as governor in Jerusalem concluded at the end of chapter 12. He returned to Persia and continued to serve King Artaxerxes as a cupbearer. No doubt this was a difficult transition for him. However, when he journeyed East from Jerusalem, he left having been prospered by God to see the walls of Jerusalem restored and the people revived…

Our focus is key to accomplishing God's plan for our lives. When Peter's focus was on self and circumstances, Jesus helped him to adjust his focus in a tender moment on the shore of Galilee. Let's allow Jesus to help us in the same way! Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or where…

The restoration of the city of Jerusalem and the people of Jerusalem was truly a wonderful work of God. God placed the burden on Nehemiah’s heart, Nehemiah shared it with the elders of Jerusalem and then the people. There was a surge of unity and teamwork as they rebuilt the walls out of the rubble in just fifty-two days. The momentum from this gre…

If you were aware of a threat on your life in a particular city or place, would you go there? The obvious answer is, “No!” However, that is exactly what our Savior did. As He neared the end of His three years of earthly ministry in the regions of Judea, Samaria and Galilee, He set His face toward Jerusalem. He willingly journeyed there with His dis…

Have you ever wondered if personal revival in your relationship with God is possible? Yes it is and the answer is found in God's Word! Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to leave us a 5-star revi…

Jerusalem had been a city in reproach, but now was well on its way to being a shining city on a hill once again. This was the work God had put into Nehemiah’s heart. The walls had been rebuilt providing them security and the hearts of the people were being revived by the Word of God providing them stability. While these steps were vital and in many…

After Nehemiah had led the rebuilding of the two and a half miles of walls surrounding the city of Jerusalem in just fifty-two days, he turned his attention to the spiritual restoration of the people. He understood that the success of Jerusalem would not be guaranteed by the new walls, but by a renewed commitment to God and His Word. As we come to …

Christ is fully God and believers are complete in Him. All that is needed for salvation is Christ. Paul is trying to fortify the Colossians believers against the heresy that they needed more than Christ for salvation. He continues by helping them to understand that the fullness of the forgiveness that they had in Christ. Thanks for joining us for t…

Nehemiah could have returned to Persia to his comfortable lifestyle and job, but he remained to continue to personally lead Israel in a spiritual renewal. After a week of reading the Word of God and remembering His faithfulness in the wilderness, we find the nation seeking the Lord in prayer and confession. They honored the Lord with their obedienc…

Nehemiah could have returned to Persia to his comfortable lifestyle and job, but he remained to continue to personally lead Israel in a spiritual renewal. After a week of reading the Word of God and remembering His faithfulness in the wilderness, we find the nation seeking the Lord in prayer and confession. They honored the Lord with their obedienc…

The Colossians had been urged to keep walking in Christ. If they would do so, they would be rooted and built up in Christ, stablished in the Gospel and abounding with thanksgiving. As they would walk daily in Christ, they needed to be aware of philosophies and empty deceptions that would manipulate them away from all they had in Jesus Christ. May w…

The walls around Jerusalem have been rebuilt under the bold, faith filled leadership of Nehemiah. However, the work of God was not merely stonework, it was people work. Nehemiah helped the people by appointing leaders, assessing the citizenship of Jerusalem to ensure and led the people in acts of personal worship to the Lord. The restoration contin…

Follow Jesus from the Upper Room to Golgotha. Notice the rejection He faced from every imaginable direction. Isaiah 53:3 tells us that "He is despised and rejected of men...." Why did He have to endure all of this? He endured in so that man could be reconciled with the Father. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subsc…

Can you remember a time you were in desperate need of help? You were out of strength and had no ability to help yourself. Maybe it during a season of sickness. Perhaps it was during a car accident or a in the midst of a mental breakdown. The helplessness we feel in those moments is terrifying. As we remember the torturous death and triumphant resur…

Paul continued to disciple the Colossians believers so that they would be able to stand strong in the face of the the false teachers. He would help them to understand that Christ was all they needed for salvation and for sanctified living. In the same way they had received Christ, they needed to continue to walk with Christ every day. This would fo…

The walls around Jerusalem have been rebuilt under the bold, faith filled leadership of Nehemiah. However, the work of God was not merely stonework, it was people work. Nehemiah helped the people by appointing leaders, assessing the citizenship of Jerusalem to ensure and led the people in acts of personal worship to the Lord. The restoration contin…

Could it be that the reason that the people around us are not seeing Christ in us is that we stopped experiencing Christ. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to leave us a 5-star review and share …

Paul is continuing to teach the Colossians about what authentic ministry really is. He continues by revealing his heart for them and demonstrates to all of us the authentic heart of a ministry. May we have this same heart for our fellow believers and those God has given us to lead. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to …

Since Nehemiah first heard about the condition of Jerusalem and the people, it had been about eight months. Even though there was an incredible amount of opposition from the enemies of God surrounding Jerusalem, the walls were complete and the ten gates were installed. Nehemiah remained focused on God and continually sought Him for strength to acco…

How is your stand for Christ? Paul gave vital instruction to believers about how to stand. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to leave us a 5-star review and share this podcast with your friends.…

Nehemiah and the people of Jerusalem have been working diligently as a team to rebuild the two and a half miles of broken down walls surrounding Jerusalem. For seventy-two years, the people had been living in a city that was vulnerable to enemy attack and disrespected by the surrounding nations. Now, the walls have been built! All that was left to …

Paul's pray for the Philippian believers was meaningful and a worthy example for our prayer for one another. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to leave us a 5-star review and share this podcast …

The Colossians believers had been afflicted by the so called ministries of the false teachers. They had diminished the person of Christ and caused uncertainty within the new church. Paul was writing them to help ground them in the truth about Christ. He desired to fortify them against future influence from the false teachers by emphasizing what is …

As Nehemiah and the teams of laborers were nearing completion of the walls around Jerusalem, the opposition from the enemies in the surrounding regions intensified. Much of the opposition was directed at Nehemiah. The enemies came against him with multiple tactics trying frantically to stop the great work that was being accomplished. With Nehemiah …

Believers in the first century faced the constant winds of doctrines just like we do today. In the city of Colossi, the church was being afflicted by teachers who were suggesting that Christ was not all that they needed for salvation and living a life that was pleasing to God. They did not totally deny the person of Christ, they did demote Him in t…

Nehemiah and the people have been working wholeheartedly on the rebuildingof the two and a half miles of stone wall around the city of Jerusalem. God wasenabling them marvelously and giving them success even though the challengeswere meany. They have faced multiple menacing threats from their enemies inall the regions surrounding them. They navigat…

Your marriage is valuable and worth investment. We invite you to participate in the Living United Couples Retreat in Cincinnati, Ohio on March 21-22, 2025 REGISTER TODAY

What drives your life? The pursuit of pleasure will always bring about discord, disappointment, distance and disloyalty. Yet, God has a strong desire to bring us back to Himself. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, ple…

The Colossians need to be strengthen as a church in their understanding of Christ and all things that He had commanded. They were being afflicted by false teacher who had demoted Christ. They taught that they needed more than Christ to please God. Paul started by reminding them of the truth of the Gospel that had changed their lives. He continued b…

The walls around Jerusalem were being built with stunning efficiency. The scheme that the enemies of the Lord’s work and God’s people had been exposed and thwarted. The people have been strengthened by God to continue in the work. In the midst of all these victories, a difficult challenge arose that truly would threaten the success of the work. It …

Paul wrote to the Philippian believers to encourage them to have unity. This message is still just as relevant today. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to leave us a 5-star review and share this…

As Paul reminds the Colossians believers of the truth of the Gospel that had radically changed their lives, he also noted how the Gospel had come to them. All of us sit here tonight because the Gospel came to us. How did it come to you? How will it get to the next person? Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe …

Nehemiah and the people Jerusalem were halfway into the massive building project of rebuilding walls of Jerusalem. More than forty teams of workers had been working tirelessly to restore nearly two and a half miles of walls so that the city would again be protected and taken seriously. However, the burden of the work was growing heavier and the ene…

This psalm was written when David was fleeing from Saul and hid in a cave probably at Engedi on the. west bank of the Dead Sea. The psalm’s title “Al- task-heth” means “Destroy Not.” There are four of these psalms; 57, 58, 59 and 75. The psalm is divided into two parts ending with a refrain in verses 5 and 11. Download Notes Thanks for joining us f…

It is the truth and clarity of the gospel that gives us a firm footing in the face of heresies. It is the truth that sets us free. Sometimes we wonder if we need to know all the ins and outs of errant doctrines in order to counteract them. This is not the case! We simply must know the truth. We need to be reminded of the truth. Thanks for joining u…

No matter the project we undertake, there are challenges that test our resolve. This was certainly the case for Nehemiah and the willing-hearted men and women of Jerusalem. God had put it in Nehemiah’s heart to rebuild the walls of the city so that the city would no longer be an international shame and that God’s name would be magnified. As Nehemia…

One of the most beloved passages of Scripture reminds that our God leads his people beside still waters. God is always leading His people. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:” (John 10:27) Oftentimes we struggle to rest in and respond to the leading of God in our lives. In order to help us all follow the lead o…

Jesus wanted believers to remember His sacrifice for them until He would return. This is the reason He instructed His followers to observe the Lord's Table. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to …

We have all faced projects that were larger than we could handle on our own. That was the case for Nehemiah. He had relocated from Persia to Jerusalem because God had put it in his heart to rebuild the walls around the city of Jerusalem. It was a massive undertaking! The walls had been lying in ruin for over one hundred and forty years. After Nehem…

Jesus made careful plans in order to minister to the woman at the well in Samaria. Let's learn three essentials from the Christ for ministering to people. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, please don't hesitate to le…

As the churches of the first century were planted from Jerusalem to the uttermost parts of the world, commons challenges of persecution and heresy quickly developed. Satan does not plant, he seeks pluck up and plunder. The church at Colosse was planted by a faithful minister of Christ, Epaphras (1:17). Paul had received report about this church whi…

Have you ever been faced with a project that seemed overwhelming? Did you find that you had more questions than answers, more needs than provision and more tasks than time? Nehemiah was certainly in that position! The rebuilding of the walls in Jerusalem was a gigantic undertaking. However, as Nehemiah sought the God of Heaven for strength, God gav…

The walls around Jerusalem had been lying in ruing for over one hundred and forty years since the destruction of Judah by King Nebuchadnezzar. A remnant had returned from Babylon to the Jerusalem around seventy years before the time of today’s text. They had rebuilt the temple under the order of King Cyrus, but for various reasons the walls remaine…

Nehemiah had received word in Persia, while serving King Artaxerxes, that the walls around the city of Jerusalem were still lying in ruin. This troubled him. A city without walls was a city without respect. The temple in Jerusalem had been rebuilt, but the walls were still in heaps. Nehemiah sensed direction from the LORD to return to Jerusalem and…

There are many memories from the past that nag for our present attention. The Bible provides us with practical, actionable encouragement for believers to help us to focus forward. Thanks for joining us for this episode and please take a moment to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoy this content, pl…

Have you ever had to search for something for days, even weeks? Perhaps it was a lost possession, a piece of information or a needed job? Searching requires an incredible amount of effort. The wise men of Matthew chapter two embarked on a wonderful search for Jesus Christ. Their search was diligent, full of faith in the pieces Scripture they had, a…

The church at Thessalonica was about a year old and had faced much persecution and were being perplexed by false teachers. They specifically were teach that the day of the Lord was already come. This caused questions believers who had died and what would happen to them. It also caused some believers to quit their jobs and lazily await the second co…

What would you do if God gave you an assignment that literally changed everything about your life? Would you run? Would you hesitate? Would you simply submit to His will? In contrast to all the busyness and noise of this season we are being reminded of that Jesus is the reason for the season. For the follower of Christ, Jesus ought to be the reason…

Life is not necessarily easy. In fact it can be very difficult. However, the decisions we make can cause it to be better or worse. Solomon provides his son, Rehoboam with a principle of life. Following God brings about favor while sinning against God cause difficulty in every arena of life. Lets gains some divine wisdom so that we can avoid the unn…