July 14, 2026
We Need Friends
Reflecting on Ecclesiastes, Proverbs, and the words of Jesus, this article shows how loyal friends comfort, strengthen, and lift us up—and why Christ remains our truest friend.
Articles for tag: Solomon
June 30, 2026
Living Beneath the Line of Despair
Ecclesiastes confronts the search for meaning by showing how education, pleasure, possessions, and work fall short when life is viewed apart from God.
November 1, 2021
Serving God in the Second Half
By Laura McKillip Wood Amy and Terry Ruff visited a friend soon after arriving in Ghana. During that visit, the Ruffs struck up a conversation with another guest. As they got to know one another, the man told the Ruffs, “You need to meet my friend, Solomon*.” He gave Solomon’s phone number to Amy and Terry, and they called him to set up a meeting. Solomon told the couple where to drive and said he would wait for them by the side of the road. After driving several hours, the Ruffs repeatedly thought they had reached the rendezvous site, but
July 1, 2021
Thursday Is Hero Day
Thursdays are a special time in our house. That’s the day we’ve set aside for grandchildren. . . .
June 28, 2021
JULY 4 | APPLICATION
Why does evening come before morning in the Genesis narrative? Maybe, in part, to remind us that God is always a step ahead.
June 14, 2021
JUNE 20 | DISCOVERY
A cursory reading of these passages might give you the impression David was bragging about himself or claiming self-righteousness, but neither is the case. . . . What evidence of David’s humility do you see?
May 24, 2021
May 30 | City of David Founded
David’s reign would be centralized in Jerusalem and the presence of God would be located there as in no other city.
January 17, 2021
Jan 24 | Singular Servants
In this latter half of Matthew 6, Jesus employed at least 18 different metaphors or images to drive home his point. He spoke of treasures, moths, vermin, and thieves. He spoke of eyes, light, darkness, masters, money . . .
August 19, 2019
Lesson for August 25, 2019: Lift Up One Another (Ecclesiastes 4:7-12)
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 9 (weeks 32-35; August 18—September 8, 2019) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ________ Lesson Aim: We are better when we have each other to care for and to care for us. ________ By Mark Scott Ecclesiastes is full of sound advice: know what really matters in life, redeem pleasure, use time wisely, be judicious with your words, think properly about wealth, act well toward
February 26, 2019
IN THE ARENA: Should Churches Embrace and Utilize Debt? (YES)
By Matt Merold There are benefits that come when a church uses debt. Rich and wise Solomon, who wrote some of the strongest warnings against debt, took out a 20-year loan of sorts to help build God’s temple (1 Kings 9:10, 11). Certainly the Bible cautions us about being in debt. Scripture describes what may happen if we borrow money and fail to pay it back. Most of the counsel about financial debt in Scripture paints a picture of the rich exploiting the poor. However, it doesn’t say much about those who calculate the cost, take out a loan, and
March 19, 2018
Lesson for March 25, 2018: Keep My Statutes and Ordinances (2 Chronicles 7:12-22)
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in issue no. 9–12 (March 4–25, 2018) of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott Praise should not be divorced from obedience. To praise God and then not obey God is hypocrisy. That was the problem on Palm Sunday. On Sunday the crowd said, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Matthew 21:9), but by Friday the same crowd said, “Let him be crucified!”
October 16, 2017
Lesson for October 22, 2017: God’s Covenant with David (2 Samuel 7:1-6, 8-10, 12-16)
Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the October 15, 2017. issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott In Florence, Italy stands the magnificent marble statue of King David. Michelangelo completed it in 1504, and it stands 17 feet high on top of its base. It is ginormous. But King David himself was taller still in regard to God”s covenant with his people. Five hundred years had passed since the events in
December 11, 2016
Mystery, Model, Hope
By Chad Ragsdale Difficult to comprehend, frustrating to explain, the fact that God became flesh is central to our faith. And he did it through the birth of a baby to a virgin. Sometimes I wonder what Christmas at Job”s house would have been like. Holidays can be especially difficult for families living in the wake of tragedy. The songs, parties, and decorations might have the opposite of their intended effect. Rather than inspiring goodwill and joy, they only amplify loss and grief. So try to imagine living through Job”s unimaginable loss while also navigating the joy, festivity, and family
October 17, 2015
Gut Check
By Eddie Lowen Pixar”s movie Inside Out is clever. It”s about an 11-year-old girl whose family moves from Minnesota to San Francisco. The genius of the film is its vivid and humorous portrayal of the memories, thoughts, and emotions that compete to control the girl”s behavior. If I had to select one word to capture all three of those elements””memory, thought, and emotion””I”d choose the word instinct. How good are your instincts? Let me guess: pretty good. As you read my question, you thought, I trust my gut. My instincts are above average. That”s the problem. Everyone thinks his or
June 26, 2015
From Generation to Generation
By Jon Weatherly How can the older generation pass along its faith to the younger? History””even biblical history””shows this is always a perilous proposition. And yet here we are, all these millennia later, still lifting up his name. A review of the Bible”s record can encourage us that it will be true again long after we have passed. I am a baby boomer, barely. Too young for Woodstock or the Vietnam draft, I watched from the safety of childhood and early adolescence as older boomers turned on, tuned in, and dropped out to create the infamous generation gap. Today, as
August 27, 2014
The Thread that Leads to God
By Jim Tune In Modern Man in Search of a Soul, Carl Jung wrote these penetrating words: “About a third of my cases are suffering from no clinically definable neurosis, but from the senselessness and the emptiness in their lives. This can be described as the general neurosis of our time.” The late philosopher and author Francis Schaeffer said, “The damnation of this generation is that it doesn’t know that it has any meaning at all.” Solomon put it this way: “Everything is meaningless. . . . I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all
August 29, 2011
Lesson for Sept. 4, 2011: Pursuing Righteousness (Proverbs 3)
This week”s treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson (for September 4) is written by Cheryl Frey, a freelance proofreader and editor from Rochester, New York. ____________ Pursuing Righteousness (Proverbs 3) By Cheryl Frey Have you been watching the price of gold and silver lately? A year ago gold was selling at about $1,200 an ounce, and as of this writing, it”s slightly over $1,600; that”s an increase of approximately 33 percent. Silver”s rise has been even more impressive. It”s gone from under $20 an ounce to almost $40 in a year, a 100 percent increase. So what does this
April 5, 2011
Words Matter
By J.K. Jones God longs for us to know him, so he uses ordinary words to reveal his extraordinary self. And the written Word of God, Old and New Testament Scripture, was fleshed out and made known through the Living Word of God, Jesus. Many of us have heard all the arguments and defenses about words not really mattering. We can recall some of the more famous lines from our childhood: “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me.” “It is not what you say that counts but what you do.” “Talk is cheap.” In
December 4, 2005
Listen to the Flip Side
By Cora Alley When I was a “groovy” teen in the 1960s, I used to save up every cent I could beg, borrow, or earn to buy the latest singles that came out on those saucer-sized 45 rpm records. I would gingerly lift the ebony disc out of its protective paper sleeve and place it on the turntable on my record player that looked like a square hatbox with a handle. After listening to my treasured song over and over until cries of protest came from every corner of the house, I would pick the record up and carefully reinsert
