Making Promises (Vows)

Scripture is full of promises that people make to God and that God makes to people. Find out what some of these promises are and how they apply to our everyday lives. Vows are spoken promises made to God, and are often made in response to help received from… Read More

Sin

How does the Bible define sin? How do sinful human beings relate to God? Read more to find out. Sin is pictured in Genesis as beginning with Adam and Eve, who disobeyed God by eating fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 3:9). The… Read More

Second Coming

In the New Testament, Jesus promises that he will return. Read more about the context of the second coming and what it will mean for believers. This term is used to refer to the future time Christ will return to judge people and establish God’s kingdom. The term, “second… Read More

Resurrection

When people in ancient Israel died and were buried, it was believed that their souls went down and stayed in the dark underworld called “Sheol” or “Hades.” Later, when the people of Judah were in exile in Babylon about 600 years before Jesus was born, some prophets announced the… Read More

Day of the Lord

Throughout the Old Testament, the Day of the Lord, a time of punishment for the wicked and blessing for the righteous, brought hope to faithful Israelites. The “Day of the Lord” refers to a future time when the Lord will act in history to punish his enemies and to… Read More

Blood

In the ancient world, blood was a symbol of life and sacrifice. Consequently, it played an important role in the Old Testament sacrificial system. In the Bible, the power of life is understood to be present in blood. This is true of animals (Gen 9.4) and of humans (Lev… Read More

Angels

Angels are popular images in the modern world. But what does the Bible say about angels? Find out here. The word “angel” in English is based on the Greek word angelos, which means “messenger.” Most often in the Bible, this is exactly what angels do—bring messages from God to… Read More

Acts of Mercy

Justice, generosity, kindness. All of these ideas are involved in the biblical understanding of mercy. In the Bible, God’s people are encouraged to respond to God’s blessings by helping others and giving generously to the poor. The giving of gifts (alms) to the needy is strongly encouraged, and those… Read More

Redeemer (Redemption)

The word “redeemer” appeared in the Old Testament, but the idea carried over into the New Testament. Learn more about the background of this idea. In the Old Testament, a redeemer ( goel in Hebrew) was a person who bought back property or a house that had… Read More

Palestine

What area does Palestine refer to? How was it important in the Bible? Check out this article to find out more. Have you been wondering about the conflict in the Middle East and why it has been going on for so long? Learn more about Palestine and see if… Read More