Bart Byl on 1 Samuel 5.

Series: Waiting for the Kingdom (1 Samuel)

God turns his defeat and capture into a victory tour over the Philistines and their gods. God does not need his worshippers to prop him up: he will make every false god bow to him. So why are we anxiously trying to build his kingdom? God is capable of fighting his own battles—nowhere more than in the cross and resurrection of Jesus.

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Bart Byl on 1 Samuel 4.

Series: Waiting for the Kingdom (1 Samuel)

God would rather let Israel defeated and the ark to be captured to than be coerced by his people. God is sovereign and free, and cannot be controlled by spiritual/religious manipulation. You can’t manipulate God—and you don’t need to.

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Bart Byl on 1 Samuel 3.

Series: Waiting for the Kingdom (1 Samuel)

God takes the first step in national renewal by calling Samuel to speak his word to Eli and to Israel. The word of God speaks in the darkness: are you listening?

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Bart Byl on 1 Samuel 2:13–36.

Series: Waiting for the Kingdom (1 Samuel)

God has provided his faithful priest to intercede for us: don't treat his sacrifice with contempt.

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Bart Byl on 1 Peter 5:6–14.

Series: Stand Firm in Grace (1 Peter)

Peter exhorts his readers to stand firm in faith against Satan, knowing that their future is safe in the hands of God. We are called to trust God in humbling ourselves, casting our anxieties upon God; to be alert and resist the devil’s attacks, and to look beyond suffer to the eternal glory we have in Christ.

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Bart Byl on 1 Peter 5:1–5.

Series: Stand Firm in Grace (1 Peter)

Peter exhorts elders to shepherd the flock like and for Jesus, the people to submit, and everyone to be humble towards each other. The under-shepherds honour Christ by caring for his flock; the sheep honour Christ by recognizing his voice in their shepherds.

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Bart Byl on 1 Peter 4:12–19.

Series: Stand Firm in Grace (1 Peter)

We suffer persecution because it is a privilege to bear Christ's name, to suffer with him, and to rejoice in the coming revelation of his glory.

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Bart Byl on 1 Peter 4:1–11.

Series: Stand Firm in Grace (1 Peter)

Christ's determination to suffer for us steels us to suffer for the will of God. He is judge and saviour of the living and the dead. We love, forgive, welcome, and serve one another as Christ has done all those things for us.

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Bart Byl on 1 Peter 3:8–22.

Series: Stand Firm in Grace (1 Peter)

Peter urges his readers to love each other and bless even their enemies who cause them to suffer. This arises out of revering Christ as Lord, who died for our sins and triumphed over all the powers of evil.

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Bart Byl on 1 Peter 2:11-25.

Series: Stand Firm in Grace (1 Peter)

Christians are free in Christ, free not to indulge themselves but to submit to authority so God is glorified by a watching world. If this submission brings suffering, it is the footsteps of Christ we are following.

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