Brad Hoffman, Author at Olive Tree Blog

Dictionaries

What is Shalom?

If you’ve ever tried to learn another language then you know, and maybe dread, the tall stack of vocabulary cards. Even if you only know one language, there were times you learned new words and their meanings: how to spell them, how to pronounce them, how to define them, how…

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Study Bibles

Faith, Love, and Hope in the Thessalonian Church

Paul begins his first letter to the Thessalonians by giving thanks to God for their “work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in [the] Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 1:3). These three characteristics gave evidence to the “power” of the Holy Spirit witnessed by Paul in the…

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Commentaries

Testing the Lord of Hosts

The prophet Malachi charged the post-exilic people of Israel with robbing God by refusing to bring their tithes and contributions into His house. They were keeping for themselves what legally and covenantally belonged to God. In response, the Lord invited the people to test him, to see “if [He] will…

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Commentaries

More People = More Problems or Opportunities?

Church growth can be difficult. Where do we put all these people? How can they connect with others? How can we ensure they’re being cared for and shepherded? Where did they come from? If this growth doesn’t bring with it a growth in maturity, then the difficulty is that much…

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Commentaries

The Capture and Return of the Ark

“And the ark of God was taken” (1 Sam 4:11, 17, 19, 21). Although this was just part of what was shared with Eli after the Israelites were defeated by the Philistines, it was the most devastating news. Let’s learn more about the account of the capture and return of…

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Commentaries

Peter’s Letter to the Elect Exiles of the Diaspora

While we may not all be well-versed in the epistolary conventions of the 1st century world, we can at least appreciate the ways in which the New Testament authors address their recipients. These authors address the recipients as the “church of God” or “saints” or a “true child in the…

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Dictionaries

The Baker Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words

If you’re as book obsessed as us, then you know the truth of the preacher’s statement at the end of Ecclesiastes. “Of making many books there is no end” (Eccl. 12:12).There’s always another book and you simply can’t read all of them. Our desire, though, is to make as many…

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Commentaries

Paul’s Joy in the Advance of the Gospel

When the church in Philippi heard of Paul’s imprisonment, they undoubtedly assumed this would hinder the work God was doing through him. Having partnered with him in his ministry (cf. Phil. 4:14–18), they must have worried the fruit of his ministry was ending. But in a shocking twist, God providentially…

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Study Bibles

The Need for Strength and Courage

Have you ever faced a task so daunting you were unsure it would be possible to complete? Or have you been in such a difficult situation that you didn’t think you had the necessary resources to succeed? While none of us “is adequate for these things” (2 Cor. 2:16), we…

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Study Bibles

Reflections and Challenges from Scripture by A.W. Tozer

The first book I read after becoming a Christian (besides the Bible) was The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer. This book affected my understanding of God profoundly and helped feed the flame to know God and his Word. I would go on to read several more books written…

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