God's power is absolute. It's without limit and unrivaled. Nothing can stop God, thwart God, hinder God, delay God. God's power is infinite. And because God's power is unstoppable, His promises are unbreakable. Greg shows how this passage contributes to our understanding of biblical theology -how the miracle of this passage is escalated in the incarnation of Jesus-, systematic theology -how this passage highlights God's omnipotence-, and practical theology -how to respond to infertility-.

The main point here in the record of Sodom's destruction is that God-the same God who has set in motion a plan to save people of every nation through Abraham's offspring-is a perfectly just judge of sinners. God judges justly. Further, as Jesus and his apostles taught, God's judgment on Sodom is the normal way God's judgment works- it's not an unusual judgment for unusually bad people. So, why hasn't what God did to Sodom been more common to other cities throughout history- It's God's sheer mercy. It's not because we're fundamentally better.

Concubinage and circumcision. As odd as it might initially seem that these two foundational chapters of the Bible -Genesis 16-17- focus on ancient customs, these two chapters are full of instruction for everyone of us. They especially teach us about possibility of a believer's failure, they disclose the beauty of God's grace to outcasts, they demonstrate the powerful motivation of God's assured love, and they encourage us to get back up after falling.

In these four chapters God makes a covenant to bless Abram and the world through him--and Abram trusts God and keeps trusting God's covenant promises through delay, failure, and suffering. What does this have to do with you-

God is the great -Blesser- of All Nations. At the tower of Babel he split rebellious humanity into many nations because he had a plan to bless all the nations through Abram's offspring. So, although humanity is sinful, God is committed, not to exterminating the nations like he justly did in chapters 6-9, but to blessing all nations through Jesus. When you look at the confusion in the world today, do you have God's heart for the nations- Does the confusion remind you of your heart problem, God's gracious judgment at Babel, and his plan to save people of every language through Jesus-

You can be constantly joyful because God will most certainly rescue you from every trial. But how does this psalm really apply to anyone- It applies to you if you've never spoken a lie. It applies to you if you've never broken a bone in your life. Okay, so maybe its truth isn't really for you...or is it- How can someone like you joyfully sing the promises of this psalm-

The main point of Psalm 32 is this- Happy are those who repent- miserable are those who stubbornly do not. Repentance leads to happiness, but stubbornness leads to misery. After explaining that main idea, Greg offers six applications--three for those who have not repented, and three for those who have.

Joy can be illusive. Like a thick fog moving in over Lake Erie, the enduring pain and sorrow of our trials can threaten to engulf our joy. There are so many robbers that attempt to steal our joy-the list of joy robbers is seemingly endless. If you've lost your joy, how do you find it again-

The Bible's account of the flood is clearly not a kiddie story appropriate for cute wallpaper in the nursery. The account of the flood is not about a smiling obedient man who likes construction and animals, sailing and rainbows. The flood reveals how God feels about sinful humanity and what God does to rebellious humanity. As Gordon Wenham put it bluntly, -Genesis is trying to explain what God is really like.- This passage teaches that the Lord is humanity's sovereign judge, and, although he's obligated to save no one, he graciously provides a narrow way.

As John Davis put it, reading Genesis 5 is like walking through a cemetery. -And he died- is the constant drumbeat. Yet, in this chapter, one man's life stands out and directs every dying person to where satisfying and eternal life can be found.