Daily Help 2025 – Q2

Daily Help for Bible-Reading Men
and Their Families

There’s more than enough of the word of God in each daily portion below to feed the whole family all day long. Don’t overeat; just eat until you’re full, and then go work it off so you don’t just get fat. Always eat the “Basics,” and let the “Extras” be extra. If I ever miss setting this table, you can always find the ingredients to lay it yourself in the Bible Reader’s Toolkit.

***

Thursday, June 12, 2025
Daily Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Daily Extras

Before you open your Bible this morning, quell any riots you may have in your heart as much as you can. Then, reading your Bible should bring even more peace.

***

Wednesday, June 11, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute.
  • What’s New on the Website: This morning I posted the next video in the weekly series: Biblical Living: 3) Decision-Making and Marriage 1 of 2 (12:01). However, I am not going to notify you of new videos in this way going forward. Why? Since YouTube has a “subscribe” function which offers notification options, you can subscribe to my YouTube channel to be notified directly of my videos as they are released, and/or you can periodically check the channel home page. Also, I am moving this section of Daily Help – “What’s New on the Website” – to the bottom of this “Welcome to the Website” page. Not only does that seem a more appropriate place for such notifications, I also want to more clearly focus Daily Help on fostering your daily Bible reading (PDTs, FDTs, and ODTs). This is because while I’m happy when you are interested in new material I am producing, I don’t want to distract you in the least from making the Bible the primary focus of your devotional reading. For example, if you’re pressed for time, I’d rather you read something the apostles’ wrote than something I wrote. Happy Bible reading always!

***

Tuesday, June 10, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute.
  • What’s New on the Website: Regarding what I wrote in this space yesterday, see the reader comment at the bottom of this page.

***

Monday, June 9, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute.
  • What’s New on the Website: A couple of days ago, I wrote to you in this space that, because of the new Daily Help format, I’ll have more time to write new content and integrate it into the existing content. The second part of that hope – the integration process – is the much more difficult one to achieve. It even makes the first part difficult because even to write new content, I have to figure out where on the website I’m going to place it. I have struggled for decades with how to present to others the truths that the Lord has shown me. That task has not become any easier with time. I’m not complaining; it’s just a continuing sign of just how generous the Lord has been. 
    • Jeremiah 33:6 ‘…I will reveal to them an abundance of peace and truth.
    • Malachi 3:10 “…test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.
  • I’m trying to achieve a balance between supplying a person all I can…without creating in that person a dependency on me. There’s also a balance to be achieved in not overwhelming a newcomer with material while not depriving the person who desperately wants more than a little. My problems, not yours – but my mention of them may help you understand what might otherwise be inscrutable and frustrating website management on my part.

***

Sunday, June 8, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute.
  • What’s New on the Website: This morning I posted the next video in the weekly series Bible Studies: 3) Acts 1:3 (11:10).

***

Saturday, June 7, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Friday, June 6, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute.
  • What’s New on the Website: I began altering the format of this Daily Help page in mid-April and the project reached its current stage around the first of May. It has been stable since then. I recognize that the transition has imposed some inconvenience on you (e.g. clicking and scrolling), and I regret that aspect. However, I hope that by now most of you take the new approach in stride. I myself use the new features every morning and have learned to be comfortable with it. Also, of course, I am giving you more choices as to how much, and which parts, of the Old Testament you try to tackle with each passing year. Most importantly, because I have now made all these links permanent, I no longer have to manually copy, paste, and check them day after day year after year. That means I’ll have more time to write new content and integrate it into the existing content for you.

***

Thursday, June 5, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio Capsule, and Video Minute.
  • Current Events: Planned Parenthood has been sidestepping parents, transing kids. “Planned Parenthood has been manipulating contraception laws to provide sex-change drugs to minors without their parents’ consent. The organization has been categorizing cross-sex hormones as contraceptives, allowing minors to consent independently. Such clever categorization reveals how radical activist organizations manipulate medical terminology to get around parental protections.”

***

Wednesday, June 4, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • What’s New on the Website: This morning I posted the next video in the new weekly series that I announced in this space last week: Biblical Living: 2) Raising Children (12:31)

***

Tuesday, June 3, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Monday, June 2, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Christ in American History:  Here’s a question I put to ChatGPT recently: “Were Harvard, Yale, and Princeton founded as schools for ministers?” I asked knowing that the correct answer would be (or at least should be) “yes,” but what I didn’t know was that the secularization of Harvard led to the creation of Yale, and that the secularization of Yale led to the creation of Princeton. Read for yourself:
    • Yes, Harvard, Yale, and Princeton were originally founded with the aim of training ministers and clergy, particularly for the Puritan and other Protestant religious traditions that were prominent in colonial America.
      • Harvard University (founded in 1636) was established by the Massachusetts Bay Colony with the purpose of training ministers. The initial motivation was to ensure a well-educated clergy to serve the colony’s Puritan population. The college’s first leader, Reverend Henry Dunster, emphasized the importance of preparing students for the ministry, and Harvard’s early curriculum was focused on theology, Latin, Greek, and the classics.
      • Yale University (founded in 1701) was created by a group of Congregationalist ministers in Connecticut. Like Harvard, it was intended to train ministers, especially after tensions arose with Harvard’s growing secularism. Yale’s founders wanted to ensure that young men were educated in the principles of Puritanism and Christianity. The university’s early curriculum was strongly religious, with a focus on preparing students for the clergy.
      • Princeton University (founded in 1746) was established by New Jersey Presbyterians who wanted to provide an alternative to the growing influence of Congregationalism at Harvard and Yale. Its original goal was to train Presbyterian ministers. Like the other two institutions, Princeton’s early curriculum was focused on theology and preparing students for religious leadership.
    • Over time, these schools became more secular and expanded their academic offerings to include a wide range of disciplines, but their origins in training ministers played a significant role in shaping their early development.

***

Sunday, June 1, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Saturday, May 31, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Friday, May 30, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Q&A: How long should I make my PDT? Long enough to find 1) peace of mind, and 2) hope for the day.

***

Thursday, May 29, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10; 1 Chr 12:32): Citing Gallup as its source, ChatGPT reports the following statistics: “As of the most recent data from a Gallup poll conducted in May 2024, 24% of American adults accept the scientific theory of evolution, believing that humans evolved from less advanced forms of life over millions of years without God’s involvement. In contrast, 37% adhere to a creationist view, believing that God created humans in their present form within the last 10,000 years. Additionally, 34% believe in a combination of both theories, stating that humans evolved but with God’s guidance. These findings indicate that while a majority of Americans believe in some form of evolution, a significant portion still holds creationist views, reflecting ongoing debates about human origins in the United States.” – The 34% who “believe in a combination of both theories” don’t understand that the two theories are mutually exclusive. That is, these two views cannot be reconciled because evolution needs billions of years in order to be a viable explanation for the universe in which we live – and evolutionary theorists will be the first to admit this. Therefore, to say that you believe both is an incoherent view to hold. Does this mean that people saying they believe both views don’t understand evolution or that they don’t understand the Bible or that they don’t understand either?

***

Wednesday, May 28, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Tuesday, May 27, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Current Events: And the beat goes on…the Right cranking out memes to own the Libs while the Libs pass laws reducing the Right’s rights. The latest: “Washington Governor Signs Bill Limiting Parents’ Rights In Schools.” (DailyCaller) “The new law’s supporters believe its changes will protect children’s safety and privacy, keeping information such as sexual orientation and gender identity from being revealed to parents, according to KOMO News.”

***

Monday, May 26, 2025
Memorial Day
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Sunday, May 25, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • What’s New on the Website: 
    • This morning I posted the first video in an additional weekly video series The Acts of the Apostles: 1) Introduction (12:03) Acts is the “hinge” book of the New Testament – the four Gospels coming before it and 22 letters (epistles) coming after it. Covering Acts verse by verse will help us “bring together” the entire New Testament. And, of course, understanding the New Testament is the only to ever understand the Old Testament.
    • I have been producing a daily video minute for almost a year now. Going forward, I’m going to recycle these 365 clips each year rather than continue to produce more new ones. My purpose for these “shorts” (as YouTube calls them) wasn’t so much to teach but to put a face on the website – to personalize it for people who don’t have any other way of knowing me, while making a quick point. I’m going to use the freed-up time to produce more video teaching. For the foreseeable future, that means producing three videos per week of 8-10 minutes each:
      • On Saturdays – The “Bible Basics” series that you have been seeing will continue, though it will be slightly shortened in length – down from 15 minutes each. (This is general teaching on the Bible, how it’s put together, how to use it effectively, etc.)
      • On Sundays – The new series on the Acts of the Apostles introduced above.
      • On Wednesdays – A new “Biblical Living” series, the first of which you’ll see this Wednesday. (It will draw from the Bible principles for living in our current time and place – that is, America in the 2020’s.)

***

Saturday, May 24, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Friday, May 23, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Current Events: George Barna’s Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University has released the latest installment of its American Worldview Inventory. Report 6: “Americans Possess Contradictory and Unbiblical Views about Moral Truth,” is available here. My summary of the report is that Ben Shapiro’s catchy saying – “Facts don’t care about your feelings” – isn’t catching on. Below are some highlights lowlights of Barna’s findings. (Then read the Bible…and find truth.)
    • Two-thirds of adults reject absolute moral truth—including 69% of Catholics and 61% of mainline Protestants. Even half of theologically-identified, born-again Christians (considered to be spiritually conservative and a cornerstone of evangelical Christianity)—admit to rejecting absolute moral truth.
    • Emotions are the new compass. Three out of four adults (74%) say feelings—not Scripture, science, or tradition—determine right from wrong. That is a tacit admission that we—and neither God nor any other external source—are the sole or primary judge of truth in our lives.
    • Moral pluralism is now mainstream. Nearly six out of 10 people believe conflicting moral views can all be right. Even among those with a biblical worldview, 23% buy into that contradiction.
    • Almost half of Americans argue that the constant shift of cultural views proves moral absolutes don’t exist. Nearly half (45%) say that because moral ideas change over time and across cultures, moral absolutes can’t exist.
    • Even lying is acceptable. One-third of adults say lying to protect their reputation or interests is morally defensible.

***

Thursday, May 22, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Wednesday, May 21, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Christ in American History: Further to yesterday’s point in this space, Daniel Dreisbach goes on to set up a quotation of Wilson Carey McWilliams, a widely-respected American political scientist who taught at Rutgers University for thirty years and was also a visiting professor at Harvard, Yale, and elsewhere before he died in 2005. McWilliams wrote, “Insofar as early North American colonies were established to be Bible commonwealths and biblical language, themes, and principles pervaded seventeenth- and eighteenth-century political and legal thought, then ‘that increasing unfamiliarity with the Bible,’ Wilson Carey McWilliams lamented, ‘makes it harder and harder for Americans to understand their origins and their mores, or to put words to their experiences. … Lacking knowledge of the Bible, Americans are likely to be literally inarticulate, unable to relate themselves to American life and culture as a whole’.” (Source: Reading the Bible with the Founding Fathers by Daniel L. Dreisbach, Oxford University Press, 2017, page 19.) – It is this profound difference between early Americans and current Americans that we need to understand if we are ever to get our country – or at least ourselves – back on track.

***

Tuesday, May 20, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Christ in American History: Why do I write on the subject of Jesus Christ and the Bible in American History? As Daniel Dreisbach says: “Twenty-first-century Americans are less familiar with the Bible and less influenced by and articulate in discussing biblical ideas than their seventeenth- and eighteenth-century forebears.”  (Source: Reading the Bible with the Founding Fathers by Daniel L. Dreisbach, Oxford University Press, 2017, pages 18.) – Ya think?!

***

Monday, May 19, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Current Events: Even Axios has joined the ranks of other news outlets reporting that “Young men are leading a religious resurgence.” They cite Pew Research and Ryan Burge’s analysis of it. “We’ve seen the plateau of non-religion in America,” says Ryan Burge, a political scientist at Eastern Illinois University. “Gen Z is not that much less religious than their parents, and that’s a big deal.” Generally speaking, the conclusions of this article are consistent with the Barna Research Group conclusions I reported in this space yesterday.

***

Sunday, May 18, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Current Events: Barna Research Group reports “New Research: Belief in Jesus Rises, Fueled by Younger Adults,” which includes some interesting and informative graphs. (George Barna founded Barna Research Group in 1984 and sold it in 2009; he and this group that still bears his name now work independently. This is their work, not his.)

***

Saturday, May 17, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Friday, May 16, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Thursday, May 15, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Note to self: Articles like this intensify my sense of urgency about spreading awareness of Christ and the duty of men.

***

Wednesday, May 14, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Overflow, as well as Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video.
  • Note to Self: Further to the point I made in this space yesterday, the Holy Spirit is, in effect, God’s voice. In biblical times, the Holy Spirit spoke to special men; but in modern times, the Holy Spirit speaks to everyone (Acts 2:18; Joel 2:29; Rom 14:17). Therefore, I need to keep my ears open for the word of the Lord today that might come from someone else’s lips or writing. Sometimes people can be speaking for the Lord without even knowing that’s what they’re doing (Matt 21:15-16).

***

Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audio, Video, and Overflow.
  • Note to Self: I read the Bible first thing in the morning because I’ve learned it’s better to begin a day with His thoughts than with my own. It’s not that I think reading the Bible is the only way to hear God, but it’s hard for me to think of a surer way to hear Him. For example, when “it is written” by proven men of God like the prophets and the apostles, a word from the Lord is harder to doubt or deny. And seeing it on a page makes for a sound foundation to anything else I hope to hear from God that day – whether in my heart during prayer time or in my physical ears when I’m with others who may on occasion speak for Him. Therefore, when I have the written word, I am better positioned to receive the spoken word; but if I ignore the written word, I eventually even lose my grasp of that. (Matt 13:12 “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.”)

***

Monday, May 12, 2025
Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audio, Video, and Overflow
  • 2 Corinthians 11:3 But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.

***

Sunday, May 11, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 18:1 He who separates himself seeks his own desire…

(Stay one with the Lord; i.e., walk in the spirit always.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audio, Video, and Overflow
  • What’s New on the Website: “Overflow” returned to active duty at link just above.

***

Saturday, May 10, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Job 42:5 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear;
But now my eye sees You;

(Notice how this pattern applies to us: we hear the gospel, and, believing it, “see” Jesus in His glory – which, if we continue in this, is walking in the spirit.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material

***

Friday, May 9, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Genesis 33:10 Jacob said [to Esau], “No, please, if now I have found favor in your sight,
then take my present from my hand,
for I see your face as one sees the face of God, and you have received me favorably.

(God has a face…and it’s turned in our direction!)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audio, and Video
  • Christ in American History: Historian Mark Noll stated in a 2006 lecture at the Library of Congress, “The Bible and its use remain the most seriously understudied important subject in American history, as in the West more generally.” As if in response, historian Daniel L. Dreisbach says of his book Reading the Bible with the Founding Fathers (2017), “it is my hope that casting a light on the Bible’s often ignored place in late eighteenth-century political and legal thought will provide a more complete picture of the ideas that contributed to the founding.” (Source: Reading the Bible with the Founding Fathers by Daniel L. Dreisbach, Oxford University Press, 2017, page 18 and fn 36.) – The problem with Americans today is not just that they are secular, but also that they seem to think that America was intended to be secular. Creating a secular country was the farthest thing possible from the founders’ minds. Consider the following words from the closing paragraph of our Declaration of Independence: “We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions…And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” This declaration of independence can therefore rightly be considered also a prayer for independence. Are we to think that turning our back on the One to whom the founders prayed is going to prolong that same protection?

***

Thursday, May 8, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 58:2 …They delight in the nearness of God.

(Indeed, we delight in walking in the spirit.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Current Events: “Parental Rights” has become a tricky issue. It can be used to protect a parent’s right to teach the Bible to children; it can also be used to protect a parent’s right to teach children that gender is a choice. This dilemma brings to mind a couple of profound statements – one made by America’s second president, and the other made by one of today’s most celebrated intellectuals (who recently left atheism to embrace Christianity). John Adams was making essentially the same point in the 18th century that Ayaan Hirsi Ali is making in the 21st century: that the laws of a nation rest on the beliefs of its citizens. If the foundation is removed or compromised, what rests atop it cannot stand. That makes not just parental rights, but all sorts of issues, very difficult – if not impossible – to navigate.
    • “Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” – John Adams, 1798
    • “In Europe, Christianity remains, despite decades of secularization, the crucial operating system of society – without it, the apps don’t work.” – Ayaan Hirsi Ali, 2025

***

Wednesday, May 7, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Psalm 139:3 You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.

(How’d we ever get the idea no one up there was watching?)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Christ in American History: This will be the fourth and last day we’ll talk about Abraham Lincoln’s faith in the Bible. This additional paragraph from Nathan Hatch speaks to the likely sources of Lincoln’s view: “Lincoln’s own faith was too personal for us to know exactly how he came to this starkly individual view of sola scriptura. But we do know that as a boy his family belonged to a Separatist Baptist Church which tolerated “No creed but the Bible”; that he could not abide the rage of competing sects in frontier Illinois; and that he was hardly willing to subject his own independence of thought in matters religious to the will of another. What we also know is that Lincoln grew up in a culture where the maxim “No creed but the Bible” held powerful sway. Any number of denominations, sects, movements, and individuals between 1800 and 1850 claimed to be restoring a pristine biblical Christianity free from all human devices. In this sense, Lincoln, that most biblical of Presidents, was also as American as apple pie in the way he went about extracting meaning from the Bible.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 60.)

***

Tuesday, May 6, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Psalm 139:2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.

(Why do we keep forgetting this?)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Christ in American History: This is the third day in a row I have reported to you in this space about Abraham Lincoln and his view of the Bible and faith. I think you may find today’s chunk of history the most interesting; I certainly did. I’ll let Nathan Hatch take up where he left off yesterday: “Lincoln defended the Bible, used it, and allowed its categories to frame his expression. Yet his biblicism went even a step farther. He called for a Christianity exclusively biblical that had no place for clergy, denominations, confessions, or creeds. What he came to affirm was a faith drawn from the Scriptures without human mediation. Having come to religious certainty by  studying the Bible for himself, Lincoln had little use for “man-made creeds and dogmas.” He confessed in 1846: “I am not a member of any Christian church, but I have never denied the truth of the Scriptures.” Lincoln believed that the Bible alone offered the high road to the knowledge of God and his world – the Bible without historical, theological, or institutional signposts.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 59.) – I have long known that Lincoln thought highly of Jesus and the Bible, but only when I became familiar with Hatch’s essay a couple of months ago did I come to realize just how kindred a soul Lincoln was for me.

***

Monday, May 5, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Psalm 139:1 O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

(Acknowledging this as true equates to walking in the spirit – which is living by faith.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Christ in American History: Today, I’m going to build on what I reported to you about Abraham Lincoln in this space yesterday. Specifically, today I want to report that Lincoln’s attitude toward the Bible, communicated in the quote yesterday, was not shallow or sporadic in his life. Nathan Hatch, former president of Wake Forest University, has written: “In a profound sense Abraham Lincoln was a man of the Book. He never assumed responsibility for teaching the Bible, as did…[Sunday School teacher] Jimmy Carter, and could not rival the theological expertise of the Presbyterian minister’s son, Woodrow Wilson, but Lincoln’s character did manifest a dominant strand of biblical thought and rhythm. Something of a skeptic as a young man, he came in maturity to defend the Bible as absolutely true – ‘God’s best gift to man.’ He possessed a rare command of biblical detail, searched its pages for personal strength, displayed its characters and settings even in his humor, and, in time of national crisis, drew upon its themes to explain the meaning of slavery, civil war, and emancipation.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 59.)

***

Sunday, May 4, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Genesis 32:30 So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said,
“I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.”

(That God sees us as we are and doesn’t put an end to us on the spot is a sign of His amazing patience and unquenchable hope.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Christ in American History: President Abraham Lincoln said that the Bible was “the best gift God has ever given to man.” I asked Perplexity AI to give me specifics about the quote. I’ve copied and pasted its answer in the bullets below. (Perplexity AI footnotes its online sources; I’ve included those footnotes.) I’m passing on this information to you because I’m guessing it is not taught in public schools nor have I ever heard it mentioned in news media references to the First Amendment or to Lincoln. Moreover, American presidents are no longer allowed to speak this way. In fact, I wonder how much longer it will be before facts such as those below are erased from AI memory banks – or, at the very least, tagged as “extremist.”
  • My question: “When, where, and how did Abraham Lincoln say that the Bible was God’s best gift to man?”
  • Perplexity AI’s Answer:
    • When and Where:
      • Abraham Lincoln made his famous statement about the Bible being “the best gift God has given to man” on September 7, 1864, in the White House. The occasion was a presentation ceremony in which a delegation of African Americans from Baltimore, Maryland, presented him with a specially bound copy of the Bible as a token of gratitude for his leadership and the Emancipation Proclamation 1 2 3.
    • How (Context and Exact Words):
      • During the presentation, Lincoln responded with brief remarks. He expressed his appreciation for the gift and then stated:
      • “In regard to this Great Book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this Book. But for it we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man’s welfare, here and hereafter, are to be found portrayed in it.”1 2 3 4
      • Lincoln’s words reflected his deep respect for the Bible’s moral and spiritual guidance, and this statement has since become one of the most frequently cited affirmations of his religious sentiment.
    • Summary: This statement is widely referenced in Lincoln biographies and historical accounts as a succinct summary of his view on the Bible’s importance.

***

Saturday, May 3, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Judges 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel;
everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

(If doing right in our own eyes was enough, we wouldn’t need to do what is right in His eyes.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen one of these plans for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Weekly Video: Bible Basics: 8) The New Testament’s Authors (14:53)
  • Current Events: We need to understand what’s going on in our culture in order to help ourselves and our children navigate life. Here are five important observations of the current culture from demographer George Barna’s latest research (Report #5 of 2025), dated May 1, 2025:
    • Christian affiliation is shrinking. In just five years, the share of adults identifying as Christian fell from 72% to 66%—a loss of about 15 million adults.
    • Non-Christian faiths and “no-faith” segments are growing. Buddhism grew by 56%, Judaism by 21%, Islam by 12%, and the no-faith population now outnumbers Catholics.
    • Moral relativism dominates. Two-thirds of Americans (66%) deny the existence of absolute moral truth. And even a majority within the Church reject absolute truth.
    • Feelings are now the leading guide to moral decisions. Three-quarters of Americans (74%) rely primarily on emotions to determine right and wrong.
    • The Bible is no longer the default source of truth. Less than one in five adults (18%) consistently turn to Scripture for moral and spiritual guidance.

***

Friday, May 2, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 16:2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight,
But the LORD weighs the motives.

(I wonder what percentage of good deeds are done with good motives? Probably not as high as we’d like to think.)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • What’s New on the Website: As you can see immediately below (“Daily Extras”), for the purpose of streamlining this page so as not to overwhelm newcomers, as well as to make myself more productive, I’m offloading to a separate page content that repeats from one year to the next. There will be other verses of the day, whose identity and utility I will explain as I add them. I don’t expect every person to consume all the content I produce all the time. Rather, I’m providing options which are both for different people and for the same people at different times. For example, you may want to different verse of the day next year than the one you focused on this year.
  • Daily Extras: Verse of the Day, Audios, and Videos
  • Christ in American History: In writing about America’s regard for the Bible from 1776 through 1865, Mark Noll says, “The great reform movements of the day sought to inculcate a biblical righteousness into the social fabric.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 40.) – What, pray tell, are “the great reform movements” of our day? And where are current efforts “to inculcate a biblical righteousness into the social fabric” taking place? Early America and late America can hardly be considered the same country.

***

Thursday, May 1, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

2 Chronicles 14:2 [King] Asa did good and right in the sight of the LORD his God…

(That’s the place to do it!)

Bible Reading

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Supporting Material
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matthew 19:30 “But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.” – Why would you want to be a big shot on earth if it’s going to make you a little shot in heaven – especially given that earth is temporary and heaven is permanent? One of the many things that the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus teaches us is that our ultimate field position on earth doesn’t really matter; what matters is the heavenly field position our performance on earth will gain us. Jesus ended His earthly life at the bottom…but it secured Him a position at the top for eternity. As He played for long-term field position, so also should we.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Isaiah 60:1-3 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 1:1 “Theophilus” (1:12)
  • Christ in American History: Here’s more from Mark Noll on early America’s religious sensibilities: “As had been the case in the colonial period, national leaders proclaimed days of fasting and thanksgiving, at which ministers regularly expounded texts of Scripture. During the Civil War, for example, Jefferson Davis called for nine national days of fasting in the Confederacy, and Abraham Lincoln proclaimed four days of thanksgiving for the Union.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 40.) – Modern American presidents lack that sort of religious zeal but have issued perfunctory annual proclamations of thanksgiving in November and prayer in May. Oh, and there was annually a Day of Transgender Visibility in March of 2021 through March of 2024.  

***

Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Psalm 5:11 …let all who take refuge in You be glad…And may You shelter them…

(We have good reason to be glad: our Refuge and Shelter is keeping an eye on us.)

Basics

Choose one of the following plans and stick to it. If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Psalm 45:6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; / A scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your kingdom. – In Hebrews 1:8, the apostle Paul indicates that this psalm – and specifically this very line – was directed to the Messiah. Think about that for a minute.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: David as a Type of Christ – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ and Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 1:1 “I composed” (0:50)
  • Christ in American History: You may recall that American evangelical historian Mark Noll wrote, “it would be hard to imagine a nation more thoroughly biblical than the United States between the American Revolution and the Civil War.” One of the many and varied ways Noll demonstrated this was to call attention to the fact that 12 of the first 17 US presidents – that is, from Washington through Lincoln – had a first name that appeared in the King James Bible. That’s 71% of the total. By contrast, only 17% of the presidents since then have had a biblical first name. That’s quite the flip! (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, pp. 39-40 and fn 13 on p. 53.)

***

Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Genesis 28:16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said,
“Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.”

(I can relate! Walking in the spirit is waking up to reality.)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. – A secular mind is conformed to the world; it does not walk in the spirit.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Micah 7:7-9 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ and Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 1:1 “The first account” (0:45)
  • Christ in American History: More from respected historian Mark Noll: “Benjamin Franklin proposed in 1776 that the Continental Congress make the national seal an image of Moses leading Israel to safety through the Red Sea. Thomas Jefferson’s suggestion was for a depiction of Israel led by the pillar of cloud and fire through the wilderness.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 40.) – This historical fact is all the more amazing when you consider that Franklin and Jefferson were two of the least devout of America’s most prominent founders when “devout” is defined in terms of traditional, orthodox Christianity. Abjectly sad to say, modern America is the spiritual and moral opposite of early America.

***

Monday, April 28, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 6:1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death
I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted,
with the train of His robe filling the temple.

(What Isaiah saw in that year, we see every year that we are walking in the spirit.)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 19:14 But Jesus said, “Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” – Jesus was stressing to his fellow Jews that the way of Messiah was dramatically easier to understand than the way of Moses. Even a child could follow it.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Coming One – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ and Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 1:1 The Acts of the Apostles (0:54)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: All of the past week’s pomp and circumstance surrounding the pope’s funeral and the selection of his successor – including daily worldwide news coverage – makes one wonder what could ever cause people to think that this is the sort of thing Jesus came to create.

***

Sunday, April 27, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 3:16 …whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.

(Being turned away from the Lord is like living life with a blindfold over your eyes. Turning to the Lord is walking in the spirit.)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Psalm 45:2 You are fairer than the sons of men; / Grace is poured upon Your lips; / Therefore God has blessed You forever. – A thousand years before humanity would begin to experience the grace of Jesus Christ, that grace was prophesied in this psalm.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Malachi 4:2 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ and Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: The Bible is like a tree (0:53)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: In this space over the last couple of days, we’ve seen descriptions of Bible society activity in early 1800’s America. For comparison purposes, here’s a look at Bible society activity in modern-day America: it’s the American Bible Society’s most recent Annual State of the Bible Report. And here is a two-minute video clip summarizing the results: Bible Usage Insights from State of the Bible 2025.
  • What’s New on the Website: I have now recorded and uploaded all the remaining chapters  of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage. This means that seven of my twelve books now have an audio version. Not all of these books lend themselves to audio, so this might be my high water mark.

***

Saturday, April 26, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Genesis 16:13 Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her,
“You are a God who sees”…

(That’s why it is wise to walk in the spirit. If He were blind or inattentive, we might have an excuse to walk in the flesh.)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Roman 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. – The life you live is the worship you offer Him.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as God’s Chosen One – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ and Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:19 (0:58)
  • Weekly Video: Bible Basics: 7) The New Testament’s Order (14:55)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Christ in American History: Further to the point made in this space yesterday about the widespread activities of Bible societies in early America to which even Thomas Jefferson donated money, “The Monroe County (New York) Bible Society illustrated the thoroughness with which such groups could work by giving a Bible to each of the county’s 1200 households that an 1824 census had shown to be without the Scriptures.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 40.) – Other sources estimate that the total number of households in that county at that time were in the 6,000-7,000 range. This means that only 17-20% of the households in that county were without a Bible before the percentage was taken to 0 by the county’s own Bible society. I’ve never heard of county-level Bible societies even existing in modern America – much less, accomplishing goals like this.
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 10 – Satan’s Motives Versus Human Motives) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Friday, April 25, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Acts 5:4 “While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own?
And after it was sold, was it not under your control?
Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart?
You have not lied to men but to God.”

(Those who walk in the spirit understand that there is no such thing as “getting away with a lie.”)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 18:20 “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.” – Notice that Jesus did not say, “…I am there in their pope or pastor.”
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Psalm 27:1-6 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ and Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:18 (1:00)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Christ in American History: So biblical was America during its early days that even the “un-evangelical” Thomas Jefferson contributed $50 to the efforts of Bible societies to place a copy of the Scriptures in the hands of every citizen. (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 40.)
  • What’s New on the Website: One more word on why I center my Bible reading plans on Christ in the way I do – that is, by excluding the OT in Plan One, and keeping it to ⅓ of the reading in the other plans. It’s not that Jesus is largely absent from the OT. On the contrary, He’s all over it. (That’s why FJOT is a thing.) It’s that one has to reach and maintain a hardy understanding of the NT perspective on Christ in order to recognize the many different ways in which the OT speaks of Him.

***

Thursday, April 24, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign:
Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son,
and she will call His name Immanuel.

(“Immanuel” means “God with us.” Only God knew just how much meaning this phrase would ultimately convey.
Think about it…and walk in the spirit!)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Psalm 41:9 Even my close friend in whom I trusted, / Who ate my bread, / Has lifted up his heel against me. – In this verse, King David – who lived around 1000 BC – was speaking of the past, the present, and the future. That is, he was simultaneously 1) referring back to Satan’s betrayal of God, 2) describing his own experience with Absalom, and 3) prophesying Judas Iscariot’s betrayal of Messiah.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Boaz as a Type of Christ – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:17 (1:13)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Thoughts of Others: How the presence and quality of fathers affects belief in God (Source: Wintery Knight and Paul Copan.) – Where you see “goes to church,” substitute “reads the Bible in the home, both privately and with the family.”
  • What’s New on the Website: This is now the second day you’ve seen the four Bible reading plans presented together and in the same way. This is what I meant last week when I said that you would understand better what I was seeking to accomplish once you saw all the plans presented together. Specifically, you can see that the daily New Testament readings are identical in all four plans; that is, no matter which plan you follow, you will be reading the same two NT chapters each day. Therefore, the only difference in each plan is the OT chapter being read each day. This allows you to also see the progression in difficulty from one plan to the next. The consistent emphasis of all four plans is to spend more time on the NT. Since this is where Jesus is more easily and clearly seen, that’s what makes the plans Christ-centered.

***

Wednesday, April 23, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Exodus 17:7 He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us, or not?”

(Yes, He’s among us. Let’s not make the same mistake these ancient Israelites did.)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start. (If you want to stick with the plan we’ve been following since January 1st, that’s Plan Three).

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Romans 11:32 For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all. – Today’s church leaders would have us believe that these words from Paul should be interpreted to mean: “For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to some.”
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Deuteronomy 18:15-22 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:16 (0:52)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: George Barna’s latest research shows that “Millions Admit They Could Be Persuaded That God Exists—Under the Right Conditions” – I have more in mind than persuading people of God’s existence – (I want to convince them to honor and obey Him) – but I’ll take this as a starting point!
  • What’s New on the Website: You can see above that I have now completed the transition from one Bible reading plan to four Bible reading plans. Included in that transition is a new format for 1) identifying the chapters to be read each day, and 2) accessing the written and audio reading companions associated with those chapters. I hope for you it’s like the road construction project has been completed, and the work crews have moved on to other projects, so that the highway is now smooth sailing.

***

Tuesday, April 22, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 2:1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

(That grace is apprehended by walking in the spirit, not in the flesh.)

Basics

Which Bible reading plan are you on? If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can learn what makes them distinctive at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

(Existing Bible Reading Plan)

  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 23 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: Titus 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Joshua 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 18:2-4 And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” – No room for know-it-alls in the kingdom of God!
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as a Stone of Stumbling – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:15 (1:17)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: Why Iranians Are Rejecting Islam And Embracing Christianity (Source: Religion Unplugged)
  • What’s New on the Website: Today, I added above the final year of Plan Four – the Bible reading plan that covers the entire Bible, but takes three years to do so. Tomorrow, I will convert the plan we have been following since January 1 of this year – and which will be called “Plan Three” going forward – to the new format you see me using for the newer plans.

***

Monday, April 21, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 1:1 …the promise of life in Christ Jesus,

(John 10:10 “…I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”)

Today’s Bible Reading

If you have not yet chosen a reading plan for reading the Bible from the new ones available, you can do that at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

(Existing Bible Reading Plan)
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 2 Timothy 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Joshua 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 40:8 I delight to do Your will, O my God; / Your Law is within my heart. – King David wrote this verse, and it was true of him – but not nearly so true as it would be of his descendant the Messiah.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 2 Timothy 3:14-17 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:14 (0:49)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Another Sign of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10; 1 Chr 12:32): Even as recently as the mid-20th century in America, Easter Monday was often treated as a work holiday in order to allow extended families time to travel back home after having gathered together to celebrate Easter. Times have changed.
  • What’s New on the Website: Today, I added above the second year of Plan Four – the Bible reading plan that covers the entire Bible, but takes three years to do so. Tomorrow, I intend to add the third year of this plan. The day after that, I intend to convert the existing plan (the one we have been following since January 1 of this year) to the new format you see used for the other plans. I wanted you to have four different plans to choose from. One size does not fit all.

***

Sunday, April 20, 2025
Easter Sunday
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 3:14-15 …DO NOT FEAR THEIR INTIMIDATION, AND DO NOT BE TROUBLED,
but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts…

(Peter apparently thinks that if we are intimidated and troubled, we must not be walking in the spirit.)

Today’s Bible Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need…for the rest of your life.)

If you have not yet chosen a reading plan for reading the Bible from the new ones available, you can do that at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

(Existing Bible Reading Plan)
  • This is the plan we’ve been following since January 1:
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 2 Timothy 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Joshua 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)

Plan Four: The Entire Bible – Year 1 of 3, Year 2 of 3, Year 3 of 3

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. – Biblical faith does not exist on its own. It’s in someone and something. The someone is Christ and the something is His word.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as a Star – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Acts 17:13 (0:52)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: Russia’s Putin declares unilateral Easter ceasefire in Ukraine (Source: Reuters) – The world has been turned upside down since the 1950’s. The former stronghold of godless communism now invokes Christianity while America flies pride flags.
  • What’s New on the Website: Today, I added above the first year of Plan Four – the Bible reading plan that covers the entire Bible, but takes three years to do so. Over the next few days, I will add the second and third years of this plan. And then I will convert the existing plan (the one we have been following since January 1 of this year) to the new format you see used for the other plans. I wanted you to have four different plans to choose from. One size does not fit all.

***

Saturday, April 19, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

1 Pet 2:4 And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men,
but is choice and precious in the sight of God,

(There is no way of “coming to Him” apart from walking in the spirit.)

Today’s Bible Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need…for the rest of your life.)

If you have not yet chosen a reading plan for reading the Bible from the new ones available, you can do that at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Here are the first two new plans in the new format. Even if you’re going to stick with the plan I’ve been providing since January (New Testament + History), please check these new ones out. This new format will allow you to access the Written Reading Companion (i.e. Bible Study Notes) by clicking on the name of the book. Similarly, you can access the Audio Reading Companion by clicking on the chapter number.

Plan One: New Testament Only

Plan Two: New Testament + Psalms

Plan Three: New Testament + History

(Existing Bible Reading Plan)
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 2 Timothy 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Joshua 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” = “He is no fool who gives away what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.”
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 2 Timothy 2:8-10 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Underlining Your Bible (1:17)
  • Weekly Video: Bible Basics: 6) The New Testament’s Table of Contents (14:48)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Christ in American History: Now That Trump Is President, He Can Remind America That Christ Is King (Source: The Daily Signal)
  • What’s New on the Website: More on the additional Bible reading plans: There is a progression in the reading difficulty of each of the four new plans (keep in mind that Plan Three is the one you’ve been following since January.) Plan One is the easiest because it’s NT and it’s only two chapters. Plans Two through Four are all three chapters each. Psalms (Plan Two) is the easiest section of the OT for NT readers to grasp. History (Plan Three) harder to read than Psalms but easier than dealing with every chapter of the OT (Plan Four) which, of course, includes the minutia of Moses’ law and extended genealogies. The progression in difficulty, however, is not the only consideration. What’s important is finding Jesus in your OT reading. This is a rewarding challenge in all three of the plans that include a chapter from the Old Testament. You should gravitate to the plan that seems to offer you the most promise of revealing Christ. In the long run, that’s not necessarily going to be the least demanding on the most demanding.

***

Friday, April 18, 2025
(Good Friday – Bad for Him, Good for Us)
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Rev 21:8 “But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

(The “second death” is avoided by walking in the spirit; it’s the path God has given us for finding grace in the midst of judgment.)

Today’s Bible Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need…for the rest of your life.)

If you have not yet chosen a reading plan for reading the Bible from the new ones available, you can do that at: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

Here is the first new plan in the new format. Even if you’re going to stick with your existing plan, please check this new one out. This new format will allow you to access the Written Reading Companion (i.e. Bible Study Notes) by clicking on the name of the book. Similarly, you can access the Audio Reading Companion by clicking on the chapter number.

Plan One – Two New Testament Chapters Per Day

Existing Bible Reading Plan
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 2 Timothy 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Joshua 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 38:15 For I hope in You, O LORD; / You will answer, O Lord my God. – For humanity today, these words are directed not to some generic God, but to Jesus Christ our Lord. This is because Messiah did not tarry; He came!
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Abraham as a Type of Jesus Christ – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Bible Use v Bible Abuse (1:19)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Christ in American History: Imagine something like the following taking place in 21st century America. Historian Mark Noll reports, “[Between the American Revolution and the Civil War, [Church D]enominational bodies took steps to preserve the integrity of published Bibles, as when Massachiesetts Congregationalists and Baptists petitioned Congress in 1790 to regulate the accuracy of printed Bibles.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 39.)
  • What’s New on the Website: The process to produce the four new Bible reading plans in the new format has turned out to be more tedious and time-consuming than I expected. That’s why you only see the one plan (Plan One) linked above so far. All the rest are available, but currently only in the pdf format. As I am able to produce the others in the new format over the next 2-4 weeks I will post them as I finish each one. In the meantime, please take a look at the new format even though it’s for a plan you may not use. It will help me if you stress test it. Let me know what you think. All feedback is good…even when it’s bad.

***

Thursday, April 17, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Exodus 15:26 …do what is right in His sight…

(In the kingdom of God we are not judged by a jury of our peers; rather, we are judged by a righteous Lord.)

Today’s Bible Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need…for the rest of your life.)

If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can do that here: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start. Or you can use the one below.

My hope for the new plans is to have every daily entry hyperlinked to both the written and audio reading companions – the book name (such as “Matt” linked to the written companion) and the chapter number (such as “15”) linked to the audio companion. However, until I can achieve that, I’ll continue posting on this page the plan I have been posting.

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Timothy 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Joshua 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; – This is not merely a decision to be made; it is a life to be lived. To declare Jesus to be Lord while continuing to live as before is nonsensical.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Luke 6:46-49 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Ephesians 4:3 (0:25)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Christ in American History: It wasn’t just the founding fathers of America who relied on the Bible, it was the everyday folks as well.  As historian Mark Noll reports, “The cadences of [the King James version of the Bible] informed the writing of the elite and the speech of the humble.” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 39) – Noll is an effective writer. Note that every word of this description does useful work: “informed the writing of the elite and the speech of the humble.” Note also that the contrast between “elite” and “humble” is reinforced in the contrast between “writing” and “speech.”
  • What’s New on the Website: More on the additional Bible reading plans: My Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plans – four in number – all have two NT chapters (one from the Gospels and the other from the rest of the NT) as their core. The first plan consists only of those two chapters. Each of the remaining three plans add a third chapter. Either comes from Psalms, from the historical narrative of the OT, or else from the entirety of the OT (taking three years to cover all 929 of them). (The plan with the historical narrative as the third chapter is the plan we have been following ever since the beginning of this year.) You may not understand why you also need the Psalms plan and the entire OT plan, but – sooner or later – you will.

***

Wednesday, April 16, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Mark 1:14-15 …Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

(If the kingdom of God was “at hand” back then, how can it still be at hand 20 centuries later? It either came long ago or it’s not coming. I put my money on Jesus knowing what He was talking about.)

Today’s Bible Chapter Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need.)

If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can do that here: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start. Or you can use the one below.

My hope for the new plans (all rendered in pdf) is to have every daily entry hyperlinked to both the written and audio reading companions – the book name (such as “Matt” linked to the written companion) and the chapter number (such as “15”) linked to the audio companion. However, until I can achieve that, I’ll continue posting on this page the plan I have been posting.

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Timothy 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Deuteronomy 34 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 16:25 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” – Messiah has a life all His own, and He’ll take your life for His in a straight-up trade. You’re never going to find a better bargain than that!
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as a Shield – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Some Believe; Some Don’t (0:32)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Christ in American History: As “Christian” as the early American nation was, there were many who wanted it to be even more Christian. Historian Mark Noll writes,  “One of the ways that Noah Webster (1758-1843), premier wordsmith of the new [American] nation, [who published his American Dictionary of the English Language in 1828], attempted to reform the country’s educational system was to organize early schooling around the reading of his own distinctly American translation of the Bible [in 1833].” (Source: The Bible in America: Essays in Cultural History, edited by Nathan O. Hatch and Mark A. Noll, p. 39.)
  • What’s New on the Website: More on the additional Bible reading plans: Even though the OT dwarfs the NT in size, that doesn’t mean we can just ignore the OT. For one thing, Jesus declared it to be the word of God. For another, it does teach about Christ – just in a less explicit way. In fact, so greatly does the OT speak of Christ that the apostles had no need of a NT! Rather, the NT came to be only because churches wanted to preserve for themselves and their posterity the apostles’ understanding of the OT. Therefore, the best way to rightly understand the OT is to read it through the lens of the NT. And, therefore, to stay centered on Christ, we first need to understand the New Testament and only then begin – gradually – to read the Old Testament.

***

Tuesday, April 15, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:3 …God…has caused us to be born again…through the resurrection of Jesus Christ…

(The expression “born again” helps to convey that it’s a whole new life we’re seeking to live through Jesus Christ.)

Today’s Bible Chapter Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need.)

If you have not yet chosen a plan for reading the Bible, you can do that here: A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

My hope for the new plans (all rendered in pdf) is to have every daily entry hyperlinked to the written and audio reading companions – the book name (such as “Matt” linked to the written companion) and the chapter number (such as “15”) linked to the audio companion. However, until I can achieve that, I’ll continue posting on this page what I have been posting.

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Timothy 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Deuteronomy 28 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 34:19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, / But the LORD delivers him out of them all. – Of course, this statement applies to all who live righteously, but its most notable fulfillment was seen in the life of Messiah.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Hebrews 5:7-9 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Being Noble-Minded (0:35)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Thoughts of Others: “What do we mean when we speak of the Bible? Our English word comes from the ancient Greek word biblion (plural, biblia), which means “scroll” or “book.” It is related to the Greek word biblos, the name given to Egyptian papyrus shipped from the Phoenician port city of Byblos to Greece. Over time, ancient Jews and early Christians began to use the word biblia, or Bible, to refer to a specific collection of writings that they deemed sacred. Common synonyms for the Bible include Scripture, Holy Writ, the Word of God, and the Good Book.” – The World’s Greatest Book (2023), edited by Lawrence Schiffman and Jerry Pattengale
  • What’s New on the Website: The most difficult aspect of creating a Christ-centered Bible reading plan is how to handle the Old Testament. To construct a Bible reading plan that centers on Jesus Christ requires that the plan focus more on the chapters of the Bible that are more explicit about Him. That means emphasizing the New Testament. But 78% of the Bible is Old Testament! This creates a tension between learning the Bible and learning Jesus. What you are seeing in real time is my attempts to manage that tension.

***

Monday, April 14, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

James 1:6-8 …the one who doubts is…a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

(Walking in the flesh and walking in the spirit are mutually-exclusive ways to live.)

Today’s Bible Chapter Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need.)

(Reading Companions: written / audio – These reading companions are complementary, not identical.)

For some time, I have felt the need to provide some variation to the Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan that I have been presenting to you here each morning. Bible readers are at different places in their understanding and I have felt that, in addition to the plan we’ve been following, I needed to provide some options that work better for people who want to move at either slower or faster paces as they work their way to better understanding the Bible. While I don’t pretend to have created a plan perfectly suited to every person, I can now offer four Christ-Centered Reading Plans. You can choose the plan you like best, and you can change to one of the other plans anytime you want – the most likely time being the start of a new calendar year.

These new plans will mean that I won’t be specifying the chapters we’re reading on this page. You’ll get that from the plan itself. If you want to continue on the plan we’ve been on, just choose the plan that is highlighted in orange. You’ll find all the plans at A Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan: Quick Start.

If you’re short on time this morning and would prefer to check out the plans later, our three chapters for today according to the plan we’ve been using are Matthew 15, 1 Timothy 3, and Deuteronomy 6.)

Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Here’s a godly way for us to respond to Paul’s declaration of faith: Hebrews 13:7 Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as a Rock of Offense – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Thessalonica and Berea (0:47)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Thoughts of Others: “The book to read is not the one which thinks for you, but the one which makes you think. No book in the world equals the Bible for that.” – Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)

***

Sunday, April 13, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Heb 10:22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

(We can’t walk in the spirit with an unwashed conscience.)

Today’s Bible Chapter Readings

(2 or 3 chapters a day is all you need.)

(Reading Companions: written / audio – These resources are complementary, not identical.)

(The Bible Reading Plan I follow – and present to you below – is a Christ-Centered Bible Reading Plan.)

  • The Apostles (New Testament):
    • 1st Reading: Matthew 14 – (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
    • 2nd Reading: 1 Timothy 2 – (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • The Prophets (Old Testament): (This is for those who choose to read a third chapter)
    • 3rd Reading: Choose One (If you don’t know which to choose, either just stick with two chapters or else choose BRP3.)
      • BRP3: (A one-year plan of reading all the Psalms twice in a year.)
      • BRP4: Deuteronomy 5 – (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
      • BRP5: (A three-year plan for reading the entire Old Testament.)
        • BRP5a: (Year One)
        • BRP5b: (Year Two)
        • BRP5c: (Year Three)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 16:24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” – That is, following Jesus means denying our self-interests and living for His interests just as He denied His self-interests and lived for the interests of His Father in heaven. In other words: 2 Cor 5:15 and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in John 4:39-42 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Synagogues and Churches (1:18)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • A Sign of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10; 1 Chr 12:32): Found on the internet: “Major academic publishers tacitly update style guides: ‘BCE/CE format preferred for all historical publications’.” It’s not really news…but it is a fresh reminder of the dangerous place at which we as a culture have arrived. We are seeking to erase Christ from our calendars!
  • What’s New on the Website: I hope the changes you see under “Today’s Bible Chapter Readings” above are self-explanatory. I’ll start plugging the actual book and chapter citations for the two new choices tomorrow. Since one of the new choices will be to read the book of Psalms in order, I’m removing the “Timed Psalter” link from this page; you will still be able to find the link to it in Bible Reader’s Toolkit. Overall, my goal is to provide more options to readers while simultaneously simplifying this page. This is a process that will take more than a few days to complete.

***

Saturday, April 12, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Col 3:9-10 Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him–

(The “old self” lives to self; that is, he walks in the flesh. The “new self” lives to Christ; that is, he walks in the spirit.)

Today’s Bible Chapter Readings

(Reading Companions: written / audio – These versions are complementary, not identical.)

  • The Apostles (New Testament):
    • 1st Reading: Matthew 13 – (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
    • 2nd Reading: 1 Timothy 1 – (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • The Prophets (Old Testament):
    • 3rd Reading: Choose One
      • BRP3:
      • BRP4: Deuteronomy 4 – (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
      • BRP5:
        • BRP5a:
        • BRP5b:
        • BRP5c:
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 31:5 Into Your hand I commit my spirit; / You have ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth. – Jesus recited the first half of this verse while hanging on the cross: Luke 23:46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.” Having said this, He breathed His last. – Stephen said something similar when he was being stoned to death: Acts 7:59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Abel as a Type of Jesus Christ – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Cosa Nostra (1:03)
  • Weekly Video: Bible Basics: 5) The Bible’s Table of Contents (14:52)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: Some of what’s going on in state legislatures these days are not exactly signs of revival in the land.
  • What’s New on the Website: Further to what I wrote in this space yesterday, what you see above in the section identifying the daily chapters for Bible reading is my making room for other optional Old Testament reading plans. For those of you who have been reading along with me so far this year, there will be no change required of you. But new people joining will have some different options for Old Testament reading. You old-timers can change any time you want – whether now or in 2026 or in some later year – or not change ever. I’ll give more specifics about the options tomorrow. For today, I just wanted to reveal the new format in such a way as to emphasize what will be continuing.

***

Friday, April 11, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Rom 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

(If the world only knew where it stood…everyone would walk in the spirit.)

Today’s Bible Chapter Readings
  • Reading Companions: written / audio (These versions are complementary, not identical.)
  • The Apostles (NT):
    • 1st Reading: Matthew 12 – (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
    • 2nd Reading: 2 Thessalonians 3 – (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • The Prophets (OT):
    • 3rd Reading: Deuteronomy 3 – (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Rom 8:32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? – If He gave us Himself, what could He possibly have held back?
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Pursue Righteousness (0:35)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: I admire Megyn Kelly for a number of reasons, but I can’t support her recent complaint about young men who find young women willing to have children and stay home with them more attractive than young women who prefer careers outside the home. Katy Faust succinctly explains why Megyn is wrong on this point. If you want a longer, but equally effective, rebuttal to Megyn, see this video (21:43) from Matt Walsh.
  • What’s New on the Website: You may have noticed above that I changed the way that the written and audio “reading companions” are presented. This prepares the way for some additional options I’m going to be adding to Daily Help for those who may want a little more help reading the Old Testament. More on that tomorrow.

***

Thursday, April 10, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

1 Chronicles 16:11 Seek the LORD and His strength;
Seek His face continually.

(See if you can make Him smile. That’s what walking in the spirit is all about.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 2 Thessalonians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Deuteronomy 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras

***

Wednesday, April 9, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Genesis 45:7 “God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth,
and to keep you alive by a great deliverance.

(In speaking of himself to his brothers, Joseph is foreshadowing the greatest deliverance of all which is in Jesus by faith
– which is walking in the spirit.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 2 Thessalonians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Deuteronomy 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 22:1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? / Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. – David wrote these words. His most famous descendant recited them in His darkest moment. The 22nd psalm amplified what Job had said long before: Job 13:15 “Though He slay me, / I will hope in Him. / Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him. – Let us therefore be like Jacob who came before Job, and who similarly wrestled with God…and found favor.
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Acts 4:11-12 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Daily Help (0:30)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Bible-Reading Tips: This tip is just a reminder for most of you. Even though we’re reading a condensed version of the Old Testament covering only its history, there are still chapters and passages that are tedious to read and even to pronounce – like those we’ve recently been going through in Numbers. Do not let difficult Old Testament chapters bog you down. Learn to skim. Spend the majority of your PDT on the New Testament and Jesus. Only dwell on the Old Testament passage when it reveals more of Jesus to you (#FJOT). (Even the New Testament has some difficult chapters – such as many of those in Revelation. Apply the same reading strategy. If something is too hard to chew, don’t break a tooth trying.)
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 8 – The Old Testament Standard for Marriage) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

1 John 3:20 …God is greater than our heart and knows all things.

(Otherwise it would make no sense to walk in the spirit.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 36 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Rom 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? – Not God.
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as Moses’ Bronze Serpent – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: George Barna (1:12)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Thoughts of Others: Further to the Matt Walsh video clip I linked for you in this space a couple of days ago, consider that the esteemed Soviet dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn wrote a famous essay in 1974 titled “Live Not by Lies.” In it, he urged individuals to refuse to participate in the lies of a totalitarian regime. Propaganda should not be accepted as if it were true. If you call a he a she, you have become complicit in propagating falsehood. You have borne false witness. Live not by lies.
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 7 – Violations of Marriage) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Monday, April 7, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

1 Tim 5:3-4 Honor widows who are widows indeed…for this is acceptable in the sight of God.

(The path to a virtuous life is learning what is and isn’t acceptable to God.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 35 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 15:11 “It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.” – What Isaiah saw in his generation, Jesus saw in His, and we see in ours: Isaiah 6:5 Then I said, “…I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips…”
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Philippians 2:9-11 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: “Shepherds for Sale” (0:38)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Current Events: Is the stock market going up or down today? I don’t know. Is Jesus Lord of heaven and earth today? Now that I know! Isaiah prophesied of the times in which we live: Is 33:6 And He will be the stability of your times, / A wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; / The fear of the LORD is his treasure.
  • What’s New on the Website: I have revised BRP3 OT/c (the condensed Old Testament focused on its history). The changes don’t affect anything we’ve read from this plan so far this year. The version I’m replacing had 263 days dedicated to OT history with the remaining 102 days given to the 150 Psalms (obviously reading more than one psalm about a third of those days). The revised version has 313 days dedicated to OT history (the additional chapters are achieved primarily by pulling more from major and minor prophets to supplement the historical books), and the remaining 52 days given to Luke-Acts which, of course, continues the historical timeline with NT history. The new version also eliminates the doubling up on chapters on some days; there’s only one chapter assigned for each of the 365 days of the year. I think this revised plan better accomplishes the goal of extracting history from the Old Testament; and the addition of NT history will give it context.

***

Sunday, April 6, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Matt 6:18 …your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

(Just because your Father in heaven can’t be seen doesn’t mean that He can’t see.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 34 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 19:14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart / Be acceptable in Your sight, / O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer. – Why should we pray this Old Testament prayer? Because the New Testament says this: Luke 6:45 “The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.”
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Adam as a Type of Jesus Christ – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: “America’s Sins Lay at the Feet of Its Men” (1:06)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Thoughts of Others: This video clip (1:46) of Matt Walsh speaking to the California State Assembly is one of the clearest and most succinct statements on the issue of transgenderism that I have heard. Transgenderism seeks to make liars of all of us.
  • What’s New on the Website: I revised BRP3 OT/c (the condensed Old Testament focused on its history). The changes don’t affect anything we’ve read from this plan so far this year. The version I’m replacing had 263 days dedicated to OT history with the remaining 102 days given to the 150 Psalms (obviously reading more than one psalm about a third of those days). The revised version has 313 days dedicated to OT history (the additional chapters are achieved primarily by pulling more from major and minor prophets to supplment the historical books) and the remaining 52 days given to Luke-Acts which, of course, continues the historical timeline with NT history – with one chapter a day for each of the 365 days of the year. I think this revision will give every Bible reader a better grasp of the Bible’s history while keeping the reading to one chapter per day.

***

Saturday, April 5, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 4:22-24 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

(Your old self walked in the flesh; your new self walks in the spirit.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 33 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. )
Extras

***

Friday, April 4, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Rom 5:10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

(If Jesus is living, we should walk in the spirit; if He’s not, we’d be wasting our time.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 32 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 13:45-46 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.” – The Bible is filled with heroes: Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Daniel, and many more. But Jesus is the hero of all heroes.
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Witness – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: How do you test a religion? (0:06)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10; 1 Chr 12:32): Is “Andrew Jackson’s southern magnolia tree is dying (will be removed) at White House” a sign of the times? – I can’t say, but I do remember that Andrew Jackson said of the Bible, “That book, sir, is the rock upon which this republic rests.” No viable presidential candidate from either political party would dare make so bold a statement as this in our time. Thus, you could rightly say “this is no longer Andrew Jackson’s White House.”
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 5 – Beginning to Honor Marriage) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Thursday, April 3, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1:10 …an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth…

(We might as well walk in the spirit because what you read above has been our reality ever since the Second Coming.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: Colossians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 31 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. We’re skipping Numbers 28-30 because those chapters contain details of Moses’ law rather than historical narrative.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Ps 16:10 For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; / Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. – According to the apostle Peter, King David (who lived a thousand years before Peter) wrote this verse prophesying of that his descendant the Messiah would be raised from the dead. I say this because Peter quoted part of this psalm on the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem and then said to the assembled crowd: Acts 2:30 “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that GOD HAD SWORN TO HIM WITH AN OATH TO SEAT one OF HIS DESCENDANTS ON HIS THRONE, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that HE WAS NEITHER ABANDONED TO HADES, NOR DID His flesh SUFFER DECAY.”
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Peter 2:21-24 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: Best-selling Christian authors in ancient times? (0:52)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10; 1 Chr 12:32): The trend in statistics for when young couples marry that I gave you in this space yesterday explains why America, if for no other reason, is facing such a bleak future. It’s our “watchmen on the wall” who are supposed to notice such things and call our attention to them. Where have our watchmen been the last fifty years? I remember in the 1960’s it was all the rage for watchmen to point out the perils of over-population. I remember as a teenager reading the mass-market paperback The Population Bomb by Paul Ehrlich. Shouldn’t there be watchmen in our time pointing out the perils of under-population to the masses? I think there are a few, but they’re not getting the attention that the Paul Ehrlichs got.
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 4 – The Well-Being of Society) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Wednesday, April 2, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Luke 1:38 And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord;
may it be done to me according to your word.”
And the angel departed from her.

(That’s her faith talking. In that moment, she was walking in the spirit.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: Colossians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 27 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year. We’re skipping Numbers 26 because it consists primarily of census data rather than historical narrative.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Rom 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. – Like a loving father, God does not condemn us…but does correct and discipline us.
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ, the Son of God – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: This is a time for strong men (0:13)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10; 1 Chr 12:32): My wife and I were married in 1972 at age 20. (I had graduated college the week before and she only had only one year left until graduation. We had our first child at 23. Our experience was not unusual. In 1972, the average age at first marriage in the United States was 21 for women and 23 for men. By 2009, those numbers had risen to 26 for women and 28 for men. By 2023, they had reached 29 for women and 31 for men. (Sources: Brainly and US Census Bureau) Given the trendlines, it’s reasonable to assume that both numbers are in the low 30’s at this time – meaning a delay of a decade when compared to my wife’s and my generation. Alas, that decade happens to be prime time for child-bearing from a biological point of view, given that women in their 20’s are at their most fertile and most physically-resilient levels. Moreover, what is called “advanced maternal age,” when risk factors for pregnancy and childbirth begin to rise, begins at 35. You don’t have to think long to recognize that any society will contract and collapse if people continue postponing the starting of their families until their early 30’s when they only have a very few years to conceive safely.
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 3 – The Well-Being of Children) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Tuesday, April 1, 2025
Repent, for the kingdom of God is here and now in Jesus Christ.

Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your inner room,
close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret,
and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”

(For people used to going to a temple, this was quite a change that Jesus was proposing.
People are still trying to get used to it.)

Essentials
  • Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
    • The Apostles (NT):
      • 1st Reading: Matthew 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
      • 2nd Reading: Colossians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
    • The Prophets (OT):
      • 3rd Reading: Numbers 25 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focusing primarily on its history – once a year.)
Extras
  • Messianic Verse of the Day: Matt 12:30 “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” – Contrast with this: Luke 9:49-50 John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name; and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow along with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him; for he who is not against you is for you.” – See the difference? What matters is where people stand with Jesus – not where they stand with us. That’s why the apostles could say: 2 Cor 4:5 For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake.
  • A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is limited.
  • A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Matthew 5:10-12 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living. (All audio capsules: Audio Capsules of Jesus Christ; Audio Capsules of the Name of the Lord.)
  • Daily Video Minute: God has only designed 3 human institutions (1:04)
  • Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
  • Thoughts of Others: I recently wrote that I feel like we’re living in “an age of liars and lying.” Then, just a day or two ago, I was listening to the highly respected 77-year-old University of Chicago professor and expert on international relations, John Mearsheimer, who was opining on geopolitical hotspots, related diplomacy, and the false narratives that are increasingly put forth. All of a sudden, he punctuated his remarks with this diatribe: “I’ll tell you, I often think about what’s happened to the concept of truth in our society. People just lie all the time. They deceive all the time. They spin all the time. You don’t know what to believe anymore. This is a tragic situation…The level of dishonesty in our society is really just stunning.” This is especially significant because Mearsheimer is not known for having religious or spiritual views. As best I can tell, he has always delivered his views in strictly secular and non-emotional terms. Even here, he’s still being secular. But even an honest secular man has to be taken aback by the level of lying in modern culture.
  • What’s New on the Website: I recorded and uploaded another chapter (Chapter 2 – The Design of Family) of the audio version of The Honor of Marriage.

***

Previous Editions:
—Daily Help 2025 – Q1
—Daily Help 2024 – Q4
—Daily Help 2024 – Q3
—Daily Help 2024 – Q2
—Daily Help 2024 – Q1
—Daily Help 2023 – Aug 23 through Dec 31
—Author’s Journal 2023 – Jan 1 through Aug 22
—Author’s Journal 2022
—Author’s Journal 2021

Question or Comment