I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you of these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star. – Revelation 22:16 The bright morning star. What emotions does this week’s name evoke in you? Wonder? Hope? Gratitude for the grandeur of creation? Me too. Or maybe confusion and a tiny bit of unease? Me too. Why? I don’t know about you, but every time Jesus declares, “I AM,” it gives me the shivers, like the sound waves caused a ripple in the fabric of the cosmos. But this name, as beautiful as it is, has given me pause. Does…

So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic. – Isaiah 28:16 (NIV) This verse reminds me of Greg Koukl’s catchphrase, “Never read a Bible verse.” It’s a great verse, to be sure, but in context, it means so much more. The prophet Isaiah is in a dispute with the religious leaders. Earlier in the chapter, they boast about having made a covenant with death to keep them safe from the coming scourge. Assyria’s threat loomed, and Judea’s leaders turned to false…

A stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. – Psalm 118:22 Jesus, the Cornerstone on which our faith, our hope, our salvation, and our very existence depend, was rejected. He knew full well everything he would suffer and the slap in the face he would receive from those who should have recognized him, yet he endured it all for us. You may have noticed a pattern in this study – many of the names we studied in the Old Testament have parallels in the New. Such is the case today, and we have more to come. Back in April, we studied The Lord is My Rock as well as…

We’re taking a deeper dive into Jesus’s name for this week – The Word. The image above is a poor illustration of Revelation 1 and 19. The AI bot was shaking its head, saying, “I don’t think you want a sword sticking out of his mouth. That’s just weird.” No argument there. I tried to find a picture of a stained glass window I saw once that depicted Jesus on a horse with a sword sticking out of his mouth. My search didn’t turn up what I wanted. Just as well. It was weird.  The facts remain: John saw Jesus with a sword sticking out of his mouth. We will,…

This week’s name, The Word, is so much more than a name. It’s the very essence of Jesus. John tells us about this Word. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. -John 1:1-3 The Word was God. How can God Incarnate be The Word? Ya got me. I mean, I love words, but the dictionary isn’t God. So what does this mean? Let’s get rid of the pronouns in John 1:1-3.…