by Matthew Borgstrom | May 11, 2021 | Uncategorized
As Moses recounts multiple examples of Israel’s complaining in Deut. 9:22-23, who is the object of Israel’s complaint or criticism or groaning? Oftentimes the text says it’s aimed at Moses, but the Lord takes it as a direct attack on himself. Likewise, who is...
by Matthew Borgstrom | May 6, 2021 | Uncategorized
In Deuteronomy 9:7, Moses states: Remember, do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness; from the day that you left the land of Egypt until you arrived at this place, you have been rebellious against the Lord. In giving...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Apr 28, 2021 | Uncategorized
For those who do acknowledge that all salvation is by grace alone and have trusted in Christ alone for a righteous standing before God, you must believe that God is for you in your sanctification. Just as God was committed to bring Israel into the promise land, as...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Apr 23, 2021 | Uncategorized
How exactly did he go before Israel to humble their enemies, according to what Moses writes in Deut. 9:3? One way is portrayed in Joshua 2:9 when Rahab explains to the spies why she protected them– the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Apr 16, 2021 | Uncategorized
When one is truly captivated by God’s word, there is a love that causes an abhorrence of all things contrary to it, as portrayed in Ps. 119:163. In other words, because biblical love infers a committed relationship, when we love the word, we are committed to what the...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Apr 6, 2021 | Uncategorized
Upon arriving at Psalm 49:15, we come to one of the greatest contrasts in Scripture, marked by the phrase—But God. Even though man cannot redeem another’s soul because the ransom price is too high (vv.7-9), God can certainly do it. Take note of the certainty and...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Mar 30, 2021 | Uncategorized
Notice a statement in the 2nd line of Ps. 119:153 that is repeated all over this Psalm. His refusal to forget God’s word serves as the ground of his request in the 1st line. Now we need to be careful in our interpretation of this verse. The Psalmist is not putting...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Mar 23, 2021 | Uncategorized
The Psalmist concludes the Nun stanza in Ps. 119:112 with this wonderful expression that is essential for sanctification. The Psalmist has inclined his heart to do God’s commandments forever and ever. He’s not interested in a few days of godly living or a few weeks or...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Mar 19, 2021 | Uncategorized
In Ps. 119:71, we arrive at another use of the word good in the stanza. The Psalmist has been able to testify that the Lord has done good to him and that he is good and does good and now he brings those truths into his circumstance—My affliction was good for me. In...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Mar 19, 2021 | Uncategorized
In light of the joy the Psalmist expresses over the word in Ps. 119:14, it’s no wonder that in v.15, the Psalmist directs his mind to and constantly mutters the truth and pays close attention to walk in God’s ways. This meditation is directed towards God’s precepts,...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Mar 3, 2021 | Uncategorized
Why does the Psalmist in Psalm 118 find the Lord’s discipline great evidence of the Lord’s lovingkindness? Because the alternative to not being disciplined in a season of sin is to be left in it and not brought back out of it. Accordingly, the author of...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Mar 3, 2021 | Uncategorized
Psalm 118:8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord Than to trust in man. 9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord Than to trust in princes. Upon facing the prospect of impending judgment, the people of Israel were tempted to trust in other nations and would make...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Feb 15, 2021 | Uncategorized
In Ps. 115:4, the Psalmist explains that the nations’ idols (their objects of worship) are manufactured by man’s hands through the fabrication of things the one, true God has created, like gold and silver. These idols need to be spruced up to look good to the eyes of...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Feb 10, 2021 | Uncategorized
So how are we to think about God’s reign as it relates to our present time and as it relates to the future reign of the final David, who is the Messiah? This is a question of utter importance right now for there are many Christians who deny the straightforward sense...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Feb 5, 2021 | Uncategorized
Love is the overarching principle in matters of conscience and all things in body life (Rom. 13:8-10), so if love is neglected, souls can be destroyed. More specifically, our goal can never be to get someone to push past their conscience, even if we seek to lovingly...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Jan 29, 2021 | Uncategorized
In the final verse of the first section in Romans 14 (v.12), Paul revisits the content of the end of v.10, which mentions standing before the judgment seat of God. He does this by referring to our individual accountability before the Lord. In light of that, here’s...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Jan 22, 2021 | Uncategorized
In the 2nd line of Ps. 103:8, David writes that Yahweh is slow to anger. It’s an interesting Hebrew phrase, which literally reads, long-nosed. It means it takes a long time to reach a flaring up of the nostrils. The opposite of this is similar to when we describe...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Jan 13, 2021 | Uncategorized
In Psalm 103:2, David beckons his soul to refrain from forgetting God’s benefits. But what are the factors that might lead us to forget his benefits? Ironically, it’s in times of great prosperity and adversity. In prosperity, we have the tendency to become...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Jan 6, 2021 | Uncategorized
In Psalm 96:2, the Psalmist gives a call for all the earth to bless God’s name and then the remainder of v.2 and all of v.3 further describe this act of blessing his name. First, the people are to proclaim or announce his salvation—the deliverance that he brings...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Dec 23, 2020 | Uncategorized
There are 3 words in Ps. 95:6 that all have a similar connotation to them if, for instance, you were approaching a king in his court—prostrating oneself, bowing down, and kneeling. These terms demonstrate an utter respect and dependence on the One who is the recipient...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Dec 17, 2020 | Uncategorized
Moses’ response to contemplating the truths contained in Ps. 90:1-11 is expressed at the beginning of v.12—Teach us or make known to us how to count our days. He’s not asking for a divine math tutor, but instead, as the NET translates—to rightly consider our...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Nov 28, 2020 | Uncategorized
In Psalm 86:1, David pleads with the Lord: Incline your ear, or in other words, bend down your ear to me and respond to my prayer. Why?-“Because I am afflicted or lowly or weak and I’m also needy, requiring outside help.” All prayer should begin here. This...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Nov 20, 2020 | Uncategorized
Amidst all these expressions of the privilege and joy of worshipping God in Psalm 84, there arises an all too common, but honest question: What if I don’t view worship as a joyful privilege? You might attest to these thoughts: “Worship feels more like a chore than a...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Nov 12, 2020 | Uncategorized
In Ps.73:16, Asaph describes the spiritual battle he was entrenched in and then further expands upon it in vv.21-22. He knew he was drawing horrible conclusions and it was causing him to grow bitter and lose clarity. Thus, he had major conflict in his soul. So in...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Nov 6, 2020 | Uncategorized
If we carefully consider the end of the 1st line of Ps.63:1, we can easily discern that David’s disposition of earnestly seeking God is in direct opposition to the fatalism that sounds like this: “I’m stuck and I can’t do anything until I feel close to God.” That is...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Oct 30, 2020 | Uncategorized
Ps. 56:3 can be most literally translated—In a day that I may fear, I will put my trust in You. This verse serves as a commitment to fight fear with faith and is fulfilled in v.4. Notice the different verb tenses in v.4—”I have trusted in God [and so] I won’t...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Oct 23, 2020 | Uncategorized
The accuracy of our understanding of salvation and the redemption involved in that salvation is completely dependent on the accuracy of our understanding of man’s condition prior to being redeemed. To demonstrate that turn to John 8, where Jesus has an interesting...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Oct 16, 2020 | Uncategorized
Upon reaching the end of Titus 2:13, it is helpful to ask this question: How can grace teach us to live holy lives in the present by awaiting the Lord’s coming?One answer comes in 1 John 3:2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Oct 5, 2020 | Uncategorized
According to Titus 2:8, possessing the characteristics in vv.7-8 will lead Titus to be above reproach or beyond a legitimate accusation. Keep in mind that the entire package must be present in one’s teaching in order to receive this level of credibility. The motive,...
by Matthew Borgstrom | Oct 1, 2020 | Uncategorized
Not only does Titus 2 command all of us to pursue this quality of sober-mindedness, it commands us to help others develop it as well. This feature of the text makes it very unique in all of Scripture, for it clearly puts forth that to be sober-minded about Christian...
