Christ?s lament over Jerusalem echoes God?s lament in Hosea 11: ?O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing? (Luke 13:34; cf. Matthew 23:37). As Deuteronomy 4:31 puts it, ?The Lord your God is a compassionate God? (NASB). Recognizing how compassionate God is toward us, how much more should we show compassion to others?

A story is told of a four-year-old who saw his neighbor, an elderly gentleman who?d recently lost his wife, crying. Seeing the man?s tears, the little boy went over and climbed on his lap and just sat there. His mother later asked what he had said to the man. ?Nothing,? the boy replied, ?I just helped him cry.?5 We may not realize it, but when we are distressed and suffering, God sits with us and helps us cry. Might you also do so for those suffering around you?

 The towering metal man in Nebuchadnezzar?s unique dream represents the kingdoms of men. At the end of this dream, the golden head, silver arms and chest, bronze belly, iron legs, and divided toes are obliterated entirely. God?s kingdom alone shall remain.

The multi-colored statue was crushed by the stone representing God?s eternal kingdom. That boulder is quarried from a mountain ?without hands,? meaning that no human influence lies behind it. It is wholly divine?a Rock of Ages. The prophecy comes from ?the great God [who] has made known to the king what will come to pass after this? (verse 45). No speculation is involved. This prediction does not come from some scary ghost speaking through an unconscious medium in a trance. No, it comes from God Almighty, as explained by his true prophet.

?The dream is certain,? Daniel declared, ?and its interpretation is sure? (verse 45). So far?just as Jesus Christ fulfilled prior biblical prophecies?even so have the rise and fall of mighty nations also verified the accuracy of Daniel?s interpretation in real history.

King Nebuchadnezzar recognized the truth when he heard it. The dream and its interpretation?coming through a humble Jewish prophet?ultimately came from God Himself, who is far above all magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, mediums, or palm readers. At the close of human history, the unstoppable Rock of His eternal kingdom will strike earth, ?break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever? (verse 44).

Four different accounts?written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John?all testify that Jesus lived and taught, and that He was publicly crucified by Roman soldiers during the reign of Pontius Pilate. After six hours of awful suffering on a cruel cross, soldiers ?came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead? (John 19:33). His body was taken off the cross, prepared for burial, and placed in a cold, clammy cave just outside the walls of Jerusalem (Matthew 27:57?61).

After Jesus? body was placed in that tomb, a great stone was rolled over its entrance (Matthew 27:60). Because His enemies wanted to make sure that His disciples did not remove that stone, steal His body, and then falsely claim that He was resurrected, they persuaded Pilate to post a Roman guard outside the cave (Matthew 27:62?66).

At that point, Jesus? remaining disciples were utterly downcast. Their Master was dead. But a short time later, something of such historical proportions happened that it suddenly transformed that devastated band of dejected Jews into fearless men and women willing to die for their faith.  

Prophecy is called a more sure word?which means it is something solid that we can rely on. Many prophecies exist in the Bible, but some of the most striking concern the earthly life of Jesus and were recorded centuries before their verifiable fulfillment. His birthplace, hometown, teachings, betrayal, suffering, and precise manner of death were not only predicted but accurately fulfilled in the pages of history.

No other religion can make such claims about its founder, or about anyone else for that matter. Wicca knows nothing like this in its magical teachings. Neither does Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism. It is a fact: there simply are not any plain, direct prophecies in the Koran, Hindu writings, Buddhist works, or New Age productions that predict definite events that have been verifiably fulfilled in real history. But the Bible has lots of these prophecies, and many were uniquely fulfilled by Jesus. The details are astounding.

As the church grew, the disciples realized they needed more help managing the needs of the church and the believers. The Jews helped the widows and the needy among their own people, but did not help those who had become Christians.

As the church grew, so did the burden on the disciples. To help, the Holy Spirit directed the disciples to appoint seven deacons to help look after the details of the church so the disciples could focus on spreading the gospel.

God values order. He expects the work of the church to be carried forward with thoroughness and organization, both on a local level and around the world. He has a part for every child, woman, and man to play and gifts His people with abilities that, if employed faithfully, will build the church and glorify Him.  

Jesus established His church with His own blood, so disloyalty to the church?God?s faithful people?is disloyalty to Jesus. Throughout this world?s history, Satan has attacked the church relentlessly. Christians have been tortured and killed for their faith, in ancient times and in the modern era.

As small as the church is in comparison to the population of the world, it is close to the heart of God. He loves to reveal His grace and power through its members as they help and bless others. Everyone who has Christ in his or her heart is a worker for God, and spiritual life flows out from them. 

In order to strengthen our confidence in God, Christ teaches us to address Him by a new name, a name entwined with the dearest associations of the human heart. He gives us the privilege of calling the infinite God our Father. This name, spoken to Him and of Him, is a sign of our love and trust toward Him, and a pledge of His regard and relationship to us. Spoken when asking His favor or blessing, it is as music in His ears. . . .

God regards us as His children. He has redeemed us out of the careless world and has chosen us to become members of the royal family, sons and daughters of the heavenly King. He invites us to trust in Him with a trust deeper and stronger than that of a child in his earthly father. Parents love their children, but the love of God is larger, broader, deeper, than human love can possibly be. It is immeasurable.?Christ?s Object Lessons, pp. 141, 142.

Does God not only give but also receive? Can God take pleasure in His people? Some theologians claim God only bestows value but cannot receive any value. God, then, takes no pleasure in creatures?God?s love (they claim) is independent of the appraisal, evaluation, or enjoyment of creatures.

There are three reasons typically given for this view. First, some believe God cannot be influenced or affected by anything outside Himself. Therefore, it is impossible for God to receive value. John Piper writes: ? ?God is love? is this: it belongs to the fullness of God?s nature that He cannot be served but must overflow in service to His creation. The very meaning of God is a being who cannot be enriched but always remains the enricher.?

Second, many claim pure love must be wholly self-sacrificial. Thus, love that receives value is considered selfish. This is linked to the popular view of agap? we encountered earlier in this book that God?s love is altogether ?indifferent to value.?

Third, even if God could receive value and it was not selfish to do so, everything humans do is tainted by sin, and humans are thus incapable of generating value or eliciting God?s delight.

So can God take pleasure in His people? Even if He can, would God?s receiving of love be selfish; shouldn?t He only give? Finally, could humans actually give anything to God? We will address these questions one by one. 

The Bible is a book filled with hope. Its stories are about people like you and me. Sometimes they were strong and conquered mightily for God. At other times they were weak and failed miserably, but in each of these instances God was there to give them hope to face tomorrow. The word ?hope? is used more than 125 times in the Bible. The apostle Paul, who faced so many challenging situations, used it more than 40 times. He was beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, and imprisoned, yet he was filled with hope. Writing to his friends living in Rome, he declared, ?Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit? (Romans 15:13). As we place our hope in a God who is bigger than any problem we ever face, our hearts are filled with ?joy and peace in believing.? The confidence that there is a God who loves us beyond what we can ever understand fills us with hope. 

To some degree, Peter?s story is the story of every Christian. We begin sincere, devoted, determined to serve God. Yet the power of the flesh is very strong. Before denying Christ, Peter cast out devils, healed the sick, and preached the gospel. Yet self was still strongly ruling in him.

I ask every reader, Do we realize how much of self rules in us? Once self is broken, God?s blessings will be seen tenfold more in and through us. We must be willing to earnestly pray the prayer of David; ?Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting? (Psalm 139:23, 24). We must let God work His brokenness in us. Such experiences are always very painful. I call them dark times; we don?t understand what God is doing. They may be times of sorrow and confusion. However, pride and self-serving are strong in every sinner. Only by God?s masterful guidance will any man or woman become Spirit-filled and Christ-centered rather than self-centered. 

John 3:16 is not a declaration that Jesus was literally "begotten" of God way back before coming to our world, nor that Jesus came into distinct existence chronologically after God. Rather, John 3:16 is telling us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the covenant promise foreshadowed in Israel's covenantal Sonship. The end goal of the biblical story is that God would have a faithful son, a son who would keep covenant with God and with humanity, a son who would become the source of many other faithful sons, reproducing the image of God within the wider human race. Jesus is God's Son in this sense. He is Adam as God meant Adam to be, Israel as God meant Israel to be, David as God meant David to be, humanity as God meant humanity to be.

Not until I reached my twenties did I realize life has a way of throwing curve balls at our dreams. From sickness and broken relationships to near-death experiences, I experienced it all. Yet, through it all, I learned to pick up the pieces and keep trusting God. Through the storms of life, I learned these four lessons:

First lesson: God has a plan. He wants us to know Him and love Him above all earthly possessions. God desires to give us eternal life, and that is better than gaining the entire world.

Second lesson: Material things do not indicate success, though some are necessary in life. Everything I sought was only temporary in the light of eternity.

Third lesson: God can heal us from the pain and disappointment of life. He is the God who heals, and He is ready to help us. He does not hold grudges because of yesterday?s failure.

Fourth lesson: God is enough; therefore, I am enough. Though we were made for relationships, they should not come before our relationship with our Creator. Unfulfilled dreams and broken promises can sometimes get in the way of trusting and believing God, but we can find peace and comfort in knowing God has a plan for us. His plans are always the best.