David Peake

Is the Bible to govern the church’s belief and practice or are we free to do as we choose? Most people recognize some standard of authority in their life but the source of that governance is what is in question. In today’s broadcast of Let the Bible Speak, we look at some of the things people who profess Christianity look to as a standard of authority and we pose the question: Do we need BIBLE authority for what the church believes, says, and does?

He was the grandson of Abraham and a chosen son, but Jacob’s life was far from exemplary. After fleeing from his enraged brother Esau, Jacob, the deceiver, had an encounter with God at a place he named Bethe, the House of God. Despite the commitments he made to the Lord that night, a sinful heart led him far away from that place. It took many years and many hard lessons learned, but at last a weary and broken Jacob listened to the Lord and went “back to Bethel.” In this broadcast of Let the Bible Speak, learn how we, like Jacob, can easily get away from God’s house. Is God calling you back to your own Bethel?

A failed family; a compromised preacher; and now a wayward tribe. In the Book of Judges, the phrase “every man did what was right in his own eyes” describes the chaotic and morally ambiguous period in Israel’s history when there was no central leadership, leading people to follow their own desires rather than God’s law. This lack of guidance influenced the tribe of Dan as they sought land and encountered Laish, a peaceful and isolated city. Rather than seeking God’s will, the Danites acted out of self-interest, attacking and taking over Laish for themselves. They also adopted idolatrous practices, bringing a graven image from Micah’s house and setting up their own priesthood. In the last part of our series “Strange Times”, we see how disregarding God’s law led to moral compromise and the adoption of false worship, undermining Israel’s covenantal identity.

In the story of Micah and a young Levite in the Book of Judges, the spiritual decay of a family is validated by a compromised and corrupted religious leader. In this broadcast of Let the Bible Speak, we continue our series “Strange Times” by seeing the consequences of spiritual leaders not standing up and speaking out against sin and error.