“David turns to acting and proves convincing. He dabbles nonsense graffiti on the doors to the town gate (more maintenance for Gath’s Park and Recreation Department) and let his spit run down his beard. A little exposure to the constant scratching and soaking convinces Achish he’s got another crazy around him, as if, in his view, he doesn’t already have his quota of such folks. Apparently confinem...  Read More

Summary:Fear, whether dominating our lives or consistently present in the background, is part of human life. In Psalm 56, David wrestles with two voices—fear and faith. Fear is rooted in circumstances and focused on reasons to be afraid. Faith trusts God based on the knowledge of God through his word. Through faith, David knows God’s graciousness, greatness, justice, judgment, and care for him. Da...  Read More

“Among our ever-expanding troubles, fear and anxiety have pride of place. They are quintessential human issues. They are not so much problems that occasionally seize us; they are regular features of daily life that can be either quiet in the background or loud and dominating in the foreground. They say that we are powerless and weak, there are troubles ahead, things cherished at risk, and there is...  Read More

“The entire sacrificial system of the Old Testament was God's way of driving home to his people the horror of sin and the need for it to be punished - if not by the guilty one, then by an animal bearing that guilt. Yet the story of the Old Testament is a story of Israel's misusing the sacrificial system, using it to attempt to buy God off in a coldly transactional way rather than allowing it to mo...  Read More

"Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant?Let him who walks in darkness and has no lighttrust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God." Isaiah 50:10"Without faith it is impossible to please God for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he is the rewarder of those who earnestly seek him." Hebrews 1:6"There was a man in the land of Uz whose na...  Read More

Sermon Overview:In a world of often inexplicable suffering, it’s easy to doubt. We often do not know why intense or prolonged trials occur. When we doubt if God is really good, we can look back to Jesus where he proved his unchanging goodness to us through his life, death and resurrection on our behalf.Discussion Questions:1. Steve pointed out that doubt is not the same as unbelief and that doubt ...  Read More