Thursday, March 31st

As a Police Officer I have done things that I wish I never had to do. I’ve been a nameless face to many persons worst day of their life. I’ve held the hand of a young lady as she passed from this life unto the next. I’ve stored a lot of memories that, left to my own purposes, I would rather erase. Chief among these memories was a “run” that I made when I was still a uniformed officer. It was early 2006 and I happened to be right by a home where a father had found his son dead of what appeared to be a suicide. The son was only 16 years old.

I wish I could go back to that day and call in sick. I saw the young man. Without giving unnecessary details he was in a state of near undress. His father had placed him on the floor and was knelt down over him experiencing a type of pain and suffering that I never ever want to witness again as long as I live; much less experience myself. It was in this moment of pain that the teenager’s father turned, looked me in the eye and asked if it was too late to get a priest to come and administer last rites. What was I to say?

There were a lot of theologically true statements that I could have made to the father at that moment. I could have pointed to the holiness of God and the wretchedness of sin. I could have explained that it is appointed a man to die once and then the judgment. Both statements would have been as true as anything that was ever said. However neither one was what I believed God wanted me to do. I just put my arm around the man and allowed myself to cry with him.

Job 25 and 26 are the two shortest chapters in the book. In the midst of Job’s pain, Bildad the Shuhite speaks a few scathing yet true words about God’s holiness and man’s sinful presence before Him. Then Job responds. I believe I can paraphrase Job. He in essence says, “I know God is Holy and while my “guilt” did not cause my situation; I know that I am not innocent. However right now; I just need a real friend.” Job doesn’t need a spiritual detective… he needs a loving brother.

Truth is always of the utmost importance. However we as believers must let the Holy Spirit lead our speech if we are going to be “truthful encouragers.” Let us each examine ourselves and ask if we counsel out of our own knowledge, or do we let God’s loving truth speak through us? “Lord, let my words be Your words… and my thoughts be Your thoughts.”

Tuesday 1 Samuel 11-15

I am so, so sorry that I am late in posting the tuesday blog! I have failed you, but I hope that you have noticed that I am tardy and that you are keeping up with the blog as well as the reading through the Bible in 2011.

In I Samuel 11, we see that King Saul is an encourager to the people of Israel as they are discouraged and disheartened against the Ammonites and the threats that they are communicating against Jabesh Gilead. His encouragement is a reminder that sometimes all we need to attack the enemies that we are facing is an encouragement from someone around us to not give up.

In I Samuel 12, Samuel reminds the people of Israel that they must followw the Lord are they are doomed to repeat their past. If they disobey they remove the hand of God's blessings and bring upon them pain, but if they obey their is blessing. they have a choice and he encouraged them to obey and follow the Lord under King Saul.

In I Samuel 13. we find the 1st battle mentioned under King Saul as he faced the phillistines. We kind that King Saul could not handle the process of waiting. This is a process that many people fail at. Ultimately, King Saul acted rashly as he could not wait on Samuel to come to him and took on Samuel's responsibility. For this reason Saul's kingdom would not last within his family, but because of his actions the kingdom would not stay within Saul's family.

In I Samuel 14, we see King Saul's son Jonathan and his armor bearer who had great loyalty towards Jonathan. Their courage and loyalty brought great destruction to the Phillistines and great glory to the Lord. We also find that King Saul is still making rash statemnets about what the Israelite army is to do and not do. His rule to not eat until the Phillistines were defeated or else there would be death had nor Godly or Biblical merit whatsoever.

In I Samuel 15, we see a very specific set of instructions given to King Saul from the Lord through the Prophet Samuel as Saul was to go to face the Amalekites and kill everyone taking nothing. King Saul goes to battle and wins, but his obedience is partial and he attempts to pass off his partial obedience as complete obedience to the Prophet Samuel. How many times have we wanted our partial obedience to be seen as complete obedience? The Prophet Samuel confronts the king and at the point that the king can't ignore the truth any longer he states,

But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you as king." I Samuel 15:22-23

What God is looking for from His followers is our obedience even when its is hard and even when it makes no sense. We are to obey. To not obey is to rebel. May we not forget the lesson from King Saul as he lost the kingdom for his family and for himself.

Genesis 48-50

To recap our last few blogs:

1. God tells Joseph that he will reign over his family.
2. Brothers decide to kill him but instead sell him into slavery.
3. Joseph is sold a second time as a slave to a high ranking family in Egypt.
4. Joesph is falsely accused and put in prison.
5. Joseph interprets a dream for a fellow inmate.
6. Joseph gets out of prison to interpret Pharaoh's dream
7. Joseph gets put in charge of all of Egypt.
8. Joseph's family comes to Egypt to escape the famine.
9. Joseph helps and forgives his brothers and family.
10. Joseph is restored to his father.

Dreamer to death threat to sold to sold again to slavery to leader to prisoner to dream interpretor to Prime Minister to brother and son again.

yowsa! that's a lot of moves in a lot of time in very little Scripture.

That brings us up to the closing chapters of Genesis.

I want to focus on one part of one verse. We look at Joseph's life and see evil after evil thrown upon him by his family and other people. He's abused and discarded like livestock. He isn't treated like a loved one, he's treated like an enemy. He's plotted against by people who, when it comes right down to it, just plain hate him. They mean him harm and desire his downfall. They actually have meetings in order to plot how they can destroy his life and end his existence.

So how on earth, after all of that, can Joseph say,

"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good...?"

How can this man look at his brothers, who actually tried to kill him and sold him into bondage as a slave, and say to them that he means them no hard and that he forgives them?

Simply, Joseph believed God. He actually took God's Word seriously to heart. When God showed made a promise to him, Joseph took it to heart and counted on it as a fact of life. Joseph, like Job, could look at everything that was done to him and faithful and assuredly say with Job,

"For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and at the last he will stand upon the earth.
And after my skin has been thus destroyed,
yet in my flesh I shall see God," (Job 19:25-26)

People whose faith is surely in the Lord, who have the Rock of Salvation to stand upon, who are firmly rooted in Christ Jesus are simply, and ultimately, unmovable.

They are unmovable.

The devil and his minions and the whole world can throw whatever they wish at them and even though pain and sorrow and suffering come, they will stand until the end.

This is why in Revelation 2:10, our Lord Jesus says,

"Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life."

Christ isn't promising the crown of life to people who might get it if they stand firm. He's saying in effect, those who get the crown are the ones who stood firm, who were faithful until the end, until death.

There's something different about those who stand firm even unto death:

"...you were sealed for the day of redemption." (Ephesians 4:30)

If, you have been born again, (you've turned from your sin by placing your faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ) you have been sealed for the day of redemption and you are untouchable when it comes to eternity. The Apostle Paul goes further saying that even though,

"For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:36-39)

If you're born into God's family, if you're an adopted child of the Father, nothing can separate you from God and His goodness.

do you believe that? Do you really believe that? I'm convinced if we really believe those words, then, come hell or high water, we will remain unshakable in our faith and in our lives.

And now, may we be a people who stand secure and firm in our faith and know fully and can say, with Joseph, "when the world means us harm and evil, the Lord means us good."

Sunday March 27, 2011

1 Corinthians 9 & 10
In today’s reading we encounter Paul giving an example of the difference between spiritual maturity and immaturity. In chapter 9 Paul illustrated this contrast by using the concern of some believers regarding his authority and whether if he had the same rights as other apostles. Paul first responded by giving his credentials as he stated his encounter with Jesus Christ and God’s command for him to spread the Good News. Paul next established that he chose to forego his rights of being supported, not in order to boast but to exemplify his understanding that God gave him a responsibility to communicate the Gospel. Paul calls on believers, even in today’s time, to understand the sacrifices they must make in order to serve God effectively. The apostle goes on to illustrate that with spiritual maturity one should seek ways to reach others with the God News. Five points to effective evangelism are taken from this scripture: 1) find common ground 2) don’t be indifferent or judgmental 3) be sensitive to others needs or perspective 4) look to share the word and 5) talk at their level.
In chap 10, Paul addressed spiritual immaturity by illustrating the poor attitudes and disobedience of the early Israelites. Their poor choices were done even though they were united under Moses and had God’s presence right before them. He pointed out that idolatry and sexual immorality destroyed many in the desert. In making it relevant to the people, Paul warned them about abusing their new freedom, found in believing in Jesus Christ. He went back to the question about eating meat used in idol ceremonies. Paul urged that believers were not able to do whatever they wanted. The actions of followers of Christ should be focused on building others up not causing confusion or animosity. One of the greatest statements is found in this chapter, as Paul summed up, “whatever you do, do it for the glory of God”.
It is sometimes said there is a fine line between freedom and anarchy. As Christians we need to be mindful that in accepting Christ as our Savior, it does not give us a free pass to act a certain way, to talk down to people, watch or read certain material or participate in certain activities. On the contrary, we are to be born anew and be a light onto others. We are to mature in our relationship with Christ.

Saturday, March 26

I don't know about anyone else but I sometimes have a hard time reading through the gospel books, one after the other, because of the repetition of so many of the stories. I have found myself scanning instead of reading because I feel I already know the story. With that said, I want to encourage everyone to keep reading! No keep scanning, but truly reading as we work our way through Mark. Pray that God show you something new in these same stories. Mark wrote in a very different way than Matthew and so make it your focus to find new truths in these passages.

With that said, let's look at a small portion of Mark 3. WeIn verse 5 we see Jesus get angry at the hardened hearts of the people. I think we often picture Jesus as this always happy, nice guy but we need to also take note of the example he displays for us here. He got angry at the people's unwillingness to reach out to others and show love. I think in our society we have become content with the way the world has gone and yet we should be angry that people are standing against our God and should be doing something about it! I think that while this is just one verse in the two chapters we read for today, it is a verse that speaks volumes of our need to stand up for Jesus in a society that isn't!

Friday, March 25, 2011

Today we conclude our reading of the book of Isaiah. In these last 5 chapters, the prophet Isaiah gives hope to His people. Chapter 62 provides the reader with hope for the future. God will bring salvation to Zion. Then Isaiah focuses on the Lord's Vengeance on the enemies of Jerusalem. It is vital that God's people remain prayerful and supportive of Israel even now. Isaiah 63:15 begins a prayer for mercy. This is followed by a prophetic statement of how Israel will reject God's work and the Gentiles will welcome it. But God will continue to call His people Israel back to Him (verse 8). Isaish continues in verses 17 -25 to uses images to paint a magnificent poetic picture to describe the joys of the world to come. He describes a new heaven and a new earth. Lastly chapter 66 calls for all to humble themselves and present themselves with a constrite spirit. so that God will look with pleasure upon His people. How would you describe your heart today? Next week we begin the book of Jeremiah.

Thursday, March 24th

There is a promise for the lost that if they will seek the Lord; they will find him. That is so very true. But for some people who are in relationship with the Lord there can be a period of silence. I’ve heard it called “the dark night of the soul.” No answer from God.

Look closely at Job 23 and 24 for the true source of Job’s pain and complaint. It’s not, “My wealth is gone.” It’s not, “My kids are gone.” It’s not even a complaint about the sores that cover his body. The ultimate source of Job’s pain: “God I cannot hear your voice, I cannot see your hand.”

Job goes through a laundry list of woes taking place all over the land. There’s stealing, robbery, the poor are being oppressed and people are losing their children. Job wants God to whisper. Job wants God to shout. Job just wants to know the presence of the Lord. Through this whole ordeal I believe that God’s perceived silence has been Job’s deepest hurt.

But Job is in such a relationship with God that even through silence he has confidence that when the Lord speaks; it will be for Job’s benefit. “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.” (Job 23:10) Job is holding fast to a day of redemption and restoration even if he knows that the world around him is not making sense.

My Father is always at work. Sometimes I see His work plainly. Sometimes I hear His voice clearly. Sometimes I struggle to see or hear anything. But I know He is at work. How He gets you and I from where we are to where He wants us to be; is often times far above our heads. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

1 Samuel 6-10

This blog is by Bryce, Pastor Bobby is on a well deserved family trip. Take a few moments before you read this and pray for them.

We are a people who love to celebrate ourselves. Whether it's our success or our esteem or our connections or just our very lives, we simply love being made much of.

We simply hate to hear that we are not the most valuable thing in life. Most people think culture drives how we live, I disagree:

I think we drive what the culture is. And if that is true, we have many disparaging and unholy problems that add to the constant corruption and horrible atmosphere of our world.

There's a reason why many young women like songs by popular artist Ke$ha. (A singer's name that incorporates a dollar sign in her name, I'll leave that commentary for another time) She sings about complete control of her life to whatever her whim and appetites desire. She militantly muses about living a life that is wholly self-centered and egotistical.

Ke$ha is a culmination of what happens when a child grows up hearing that their self-esteem and personal dreams and goals are her gods. (sadly, many churches teach this aberrant, self-centered doctrine , just look at how many sermons about achieving your goals and dreams there are in modern "evangelical churches)

It's easy to pick on Ke$sha isn't it. She's popular and eccentric and a very easy target. However, my beef isn't with Ke$sha because the Apostle Paul says we're not supposed to judge those outside of the faith. So let's turn to the text of the day.

At the end of 1 Samuel 7, the nation of Israel is at peace and being taught the Word of God by the prophet Samuel. They become a very prosperous nation and they become very discontent.

Read that line again: THEY BECOME A VERY PROSPEROUS NATION AND THEY BECOME A VERY DISCONTENT NATION.

Our modern way of life pleads with us that the opposite is true. We want to believe that prosperity breeds contentment. But the opposite is usually true: The more we have the more we want.

So Israel becomes discontent with the system of governing that God sets up and asks Samuel for a king to rule over them. Samuel is upset with this request and prays to the Lord. The Lord responds,

"Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them." (1 Samuel 8:7-9)

The root of the issue is not that they didn't like Samuel or the way he was running things. The root of the matter was their rebellious heart towards their God. The people didn't want God ruling over them, they wanted to rule themselves by having a human king over them.

In chapter 9 we meet the man who would be king, Saul, an impressive man. The people wanted him to be king, their ruler also because other nations had kings over them. Note well, brothers and sisters, Israel's insistence upon being like other nations. Books have been written in the Christian world about how friendship with the World is a positive thing. About how being well liked and respected by the culture is actually the way to reach the culture for Christ.

The Bible absolutely disagrees with that line of reasoning,

"You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." (James 4:4)

If you want to become an enemy of God, become friends with the world, become like the world. You may be told that you are reaching people (and your church may get bigger), but what you're really doing is fighting God. And in that battle, you lose... every time.

Simply put, a person that doesn't live a holy life will NOT experience persecution and will be accepted by the world because they are impostors that look like Christians. How do I know this?

"Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived." (2 Timothy 3:12-13)

One lesson from this passage is that we, as Christians, are far more like the nation of Israel at this time that we might like to admit. We are not content with our lives in Jesus. We long for more stuff. We switch churches when things don't go our way or someone offends us with a small offense. We deny that our sinful natures lead us to make more decisions than does our Spirit-led nature.

It should be understood that when God granted the prayer of the people for a king, he was granting judgment on them, not blessing. Their desire for a king was ultimately a rejection of God and His ways. God's ways lead to life, but the Bible says,

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death." (Proverbs 14:12)

Dear friend, perhaps today is the day for you to repent of your sin and place your faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps today is the day when you trust in God to be your true King. Perhaps today is the day we turn from our rebellion that is glorified and made our god like in Ke$ha's song lyrics. Perhaps today is the day when, unlike the nation of Israel in 1 Samuel, you submit yourself to the rule of God and confess Jesus Christ as Lord.

1 Samuel 6-10

We are a people who love to celebrate ourselves. Whether it's our success or our esteem or our connections or just our very lives, we simply love being made much of.

We simply hate to hear that we are not the most valuable thing in life. Most people think culture drives how we live, I disagree:

I think we drive what the culture is. And if that is true, we have many disparaging and unholy problems that add to the constant corruption and horrible atmosphere of our world.

There's a reason why many young women like songs by popular artist Ke$ha. (A singer's name that incorporates a dollar sign in her name, I'll leave that commentary for another time) She sings about complete control of her life to whatever her whim and appetites desire. She militantly muses about living a life that is wholly self-centered and egotistical.

Ke$ha is a culmination of what happens when a child grows up hearing that their self-esteem and personal dreams and goals are her gods. (sadly, many churches teach this aberrant, self-centered doctrine , just look at how many sermons about achieving your goals and dreams there are in modern "evangelical churches)

It's easy to pick on Ke$sha isn't it. She's popular and eccentric and a very easy target. However, my beef isn't with Ke$sha because the Apostle Paul says we're not supposed to judge those outside of the faith. So let's turn to the text of the day.

At the end of 1 Samuel 7, the nation of Israel is at peace and being taught the Word of God by the prophet Samuel. They become a very prosperous nation and they become very discontent.

Read that line again: THEY BECOME A VERY PROSPEROUS NATION AND THEY BECOME A VERY DISCONTENT NATION.

Our modern way of life pleads with us that the opposite is true. We want to believe that prosperity breeds contentment. But the opposite is usually true: The more we have the more we want.

So Israel becomes discontent with the system of governing that God sets up and asks Samuel for a king to rule over them. Samuel is upset with this request and prays to the Lord. The Lord responds,

"Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them." (1 Samuel 8:7-9)

The root of the issue is not that they didn't like Samuel or the way he was running things. The root of the matter was their rebellious heart towards their God. The people didn't want God ruling over them, they wanted to rule themselves by having a human king over them.

In chapter 9 we meet the man who would be king, Saul, an impressive man. The people wanted him to be king, their ruler also because other nations had kings over them. Note well, brothers and sisters, Israel's insistence upon being like other nations. Books have been written in the Christian world about how friendship with the World is a positive thing. About how being well liked and respected by the culture is actually the way to reach the culture for Christ.

The Bible absolutely disagrees with that line of reasoning,

"You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." (James 4:4)

If you want to become an enemy of God, become friends with the world, become like the world. You may be told that you are reaching people (and your church may get bigger), but what you're really doing is fighting God. And in that battle, you lose... every time.

Simply put, a person that doesn't live a holy life will NOT experience persecution and will be accepted by the world because they are impostors that look like Christians. How do I know this?

"Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived." (2 Timothy 3:12-13)

One lesson from this passage is that we, as Christians, are far more like the nation of Israel at this time that we might like to admit. We are not content with our lives in Jesus. We long for more stuff. We switch churches when things don't go our way or someone offends us with a small offense. We deny that our sinful natures lead us to make more decisions than does our Spirit-led nature.

It should be understood that when God granted the prayer of the people for a king, he was granting judgment on them, not blessing. Their desire for a king was ultimately a rejection of God and His ways. God's ways lead to life, but the Bible says,

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death." (Proverbs 14:12)

Dear friend, perhaps today is the day for you to repent of your sin and place your faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps today is the day when you trust in God to be your true King. Perhaps today is the day we turn from our rebellion that is glorified and made our god like in Ke$ha's song lyrics. Perhaps today is the day when, unlike the nation of Israel in 1 Samuel, you submit yourself to the rule of God and confess Jesus Christ as Lord.

Sunday March 20, 2011

1 Corinthians 7 & 8

Today’s reading is truly difficult to break down in a quick blog. Chapter 7 deals with marriage and chapter 8 deals with monitoring “freedoms”. Both topics stir up emotions and doubts. Both topics cause division within the body of the church. The biggest problem seems to be a person knowing where the line is drawn between complying with God’s will vs. their own wants. Whether if it is the privileges or restrictions that pertain to these scriptures, one must remember that the Lord’s will supercedes our desires. Paul points out, in both of these chapters that our obedience to God has a direct effect on those around us whether if we are aware of it or not.

The question to ask from this reading is, How is my behavior or situation leading others towards Christ?

In chapter 7, Paul switched his attention to responding to particular questions that were asked in a letter. In first focusing on marriage, Paul addressed the need for some to get married in order to avoid sexual immorality and lust. Paul proceeded to discuss the permanence of this institution by stating certain behaviors were a command from God. This gives reference from Genesis 2, Malachi 2:14-16 and Matthew 19:4-6. The apostle noted that Christians were to remain in the marriage in order to assist those in the family in knowing Christ. He did however state that divorce was acceptable if the non-believer left. In continuing to address the matter, Paul urged for people to remain single if possible. Some reasons may have been do to the threatening times ahead and Jesus’ triumphant return. Throughout the chapter, Paul’s wish is for everyone, regardless of marriage or single life, to establish a focused relationship with the LORD.

In chap 8, Paul addressed the issue of eating food used in idol worship. He quickly broadens the issue to illustrate Christians responsibility towards loving others. Paul wanted them to understand, as he often mentioned, that being obedient to God is not solely in knowing the law but rather expressing love for brothers in Christ, Mark (12:29-31). The apostle first, minimized the other deities by pointing out the one true LORD Jesus Christ and how God created everything. He next emphasized that believers are responsible for monitoring their freedoms and how they impact others. So often in our life we engage in behaviors that we deem harmless and fun. We should take note that these behaviors do not cause young believers to be “destroyed” or made confused. Often conflict comes when we know things we enjoy do not lift Christ up.

What freedom should you take note of today?

Saturday, March 19

Today we began our reading of the second Gospel, Mark. The book of Mark doesn't begin with a description of Jesus' or John's births. It doesn't talk about Mary and Elizabeth, or list the genealogy of Christ. Instead Mark begins with a look at Jesus' followers.

Mark 1 starts with a description of John the Baptist. We see that John is the fulfillment of the prophecy found in Isaiah about a messanger that will prepare the way for Christ. But more than just an explanation of him being the fulfillment of this prophecy, Mark begins with a description of John himself.

Mark 1:4-8 tells of John as, "baptizing in the wilderness" and "proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." John is described as "clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey." He recognizes that "after me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie."
John is a man who gave his entire life to his ministry. But even this dedication did not steer him from recognizing that he is not greater than the Christ. John sets a great example of complete dedication to Jesus.

Mark 1:16-20 tells of Jesus calling his disciples. As he passed along the Sea of Galilee, Jesus sees Simon and Andrew and tells them to follow him. They dropped their nets and immediately followed Jesus. The same happened when Jesus passed by James and John. These four men dropped their lives to follow after Jesus.
John the Baptist dedicated his entire life to proclaiming the name of Jesus and the disciples gave up everything to do the same.

The rest of chapter 1 and 2 go on to tell all about the ministry of Jesus and his many miracles. But I think it is important for us to focus on the followers of Christ. They set an example for us that I wonder do we mimic. Have we given up our lives to follow and serve Jesus or have we just given up our Sundays? I think it is a question that every believer must ask themselves.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Isaiah 56 - 66 has the theme of "How to Prepare for the Coming Glory." In fact Isaiah 56 points out who will receive this glory -- the coming Messiah. He states that the eunuch and the foreigner will both be included with God's chosen. This is a major new truth for the Israelites.
To them a eunuch had no hope because they were physically blemished and the foreigner was gentile/heathen. However Isaiah says that the Lord will save not only the eunuch but also the foreigner.

Israel looked down on both groups of people, but God states "The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, I will gather yet others to him beside those already gathered." (verse 8)

This is the first truth of this section of Scripture. The second truth is also found in Isaiah 56:9-12. Here the prophet condemns the shepherds (leaders) of Israel. He describes them as lazy/silent dogs who love to dream, slumber, and take from God's people.

The future of Israel is discussed. Then in Chapter 61 we see what the Messiah will do when he comes. It is this passage that Jesus quoted from in Luke 4 and declared he was the Messiah. The EVS Study Bible states that the Messiah will preach into existence his new, liberated people, who will pray into existence his new, redeemed world. Is this not what Jesus did?

Thursday, March 17th

“God does what He wants to do and sometimes I don’t get it.”

To be honest that sums up the way I feel a lot of times. Right now there are thousands of dead and missing in Japan. On top of the damage done by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and terrible tsunami, Japan faces the threat of radiation poisoning from leaking nuclear reactors. “Hello… God… Are you there??!!”

Believe you me; God is aware of what is happening in Japan. It didn’t slip by Him. Before I became a believer in Jesus Christ I used to wrestle with a God who just did what He wanted to do. If said circumstance didn’t go the way that I would have had it go then God either was not in control or more cruel than I could ever imagine.

What arrogance there is in that way of thinking! If God’s ways are not higher than my ways; if His thoughts are not higher than my thoughts… then He is not worth worshipping. Praise God that He is greater and more in control than I could ever imagine. Sometimes I just have to accept that I don’t understand “His ways.” That usually happens in life when we don’t have the big picture.

Job didn’t have the big picture and he wrestled with it (Job 21). Job’s friends didn’t have the big picture but that just tried to fill in the missing scenes for themselves from what they believed about God (Job 22). How about you? How big is your God? How wise is your God? How loving is He? I pray that you understand Him as bigger, wiser and more loving than you; and therefore you can rest in knowing that, just like in Job’s day, He’s got the whole world in his hands.

Tuesday, March 15

Just a head's up...this isn't Bobby!!! Bobby is out of town and so he has asked me (Jenni) to do today's blog for him. Hope you're not disappointed :)

I must admit that in seeing what I got to blog on today, I was a bit excited. I love 1 Samuel 1-2! I know that we are reading chapters 1-5 today so forgive me if my focus stays in just these first two chapters.

Immediately in chapter one we are introduced to a man named Elkanah. We are also introduced to his two wives: Peninnah and Hannah. Hannah is a woman that I think many of us can relate to at times. She was bullied, she was unhappy, she didn't have the desire of her heart, and yet she took all this before God. Hannah didn't lay out a wish list before God. She didn't make demands to Him. Hannah simply and humbly laid her desires out before God and He listened.

Where I know I have trouble relating to Hannah is in her response to God's blessing. Hannah, who was barren, is given a son and she presents Him back to the Lord. A child is all that Hannah wanted and yet now that she has one, she gives Him back to God. How many of us truly give the blessings we have been given by God back to Him? And how many of us do it with rejoicing? Cause that is exactly what Hannah did! Not only did she take her son Samuel to live and be raised by Eli, the priest, but she then offered up a prayer to God that begins with, "My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high..."

It is later as we continue to read in today's chapters and also in the upcoming weeks, that we will see how the Lord calls Samuel to His service and how he is used by God in amazing ways. I think it's amazing to see how such a well known man of God can be traced back to a humble woman's cry before God...prayer is powerful!

Genesis 40-43

So last week in Genesis we read that:

1. God tells Joseph that he will reign over his family.
2. Brothers decide to kill him but instead sell him into slavery.
3. Joseph is sold a second time as a slave to a high ranking family in Egypt.

What happens next is more apparently sad news:

"Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there." (Genesis 39:1)

Joseph was sold as a slave. That's pretty awful news for Joseph. He doesn't have rights. He is now property. He is owned. But,

"The LORD was with Joseph..." (Genesis 39:2)

How often do we look at the first verse of a chapter in our lives and forget that there's more than one verse? As believers, many times we seem to focus on the negative aspect of a situation and forget, "The Lord is with..."

We read the first part, (bad news) but we forget the main part (God is here).

I read the other day, "Jesus plus nothing equals everything."

Do you believe that? Jesus plus nothing equals everything.

Joseph gets sold into slavery. But becomes successful in his master's house.

Potiphar, Joseph's owner, becomes very successful and blessed because,

"The Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake..."

God was with Joseph in his slavery and Joseph gets put in charge of all of Potiphar's house. He makes decisions for everything. He's in charge. He's the man.

Then more bad news. Joseph had the same problem I have,

"Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance."

LOL I'm just kidding. But the Bible does say that. Joseph was a good looking dude.

So good looking in fact that Potiphar's wife decides that she wants to sleep with Joseph. Joseph refuses. She tries over and over for a time and he still refuses.

Eventually, she accuses him of trying to seduce her (which is a lie) and Potiphar gets very angry at Joseph and throws him in prison. Which is where are story picks back up this week.

Joseph is in prison and two of the King's (Pharaoh's) servants gets put in prison with him. The servants have two dreams and Joseph interprets them for them: one servant will eventually get restored to his post and the other will be hanged.

Eventually, the two servants get out of jail and go back to work for Pharaoh.

Joseph has been in prison for about 10 years at this point when the Pharaoh has a dream that no one can interpret. One of the servants who was in prison with Joseph remembers that Joseph can interpret dreams and tells the king,

"When Pharaoh was angry with his servants and put me and the chief baker in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, we dreamed on the same night, he and I, each having a dream with its own interpretation. A young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. When we told him, he interpreted our dreams to us, giving an interpretation to each man according to his dream. And as he interpreted to us, so it came about. I was restored to my office, and the baker was hanged." (Genesis 41:10-13)

So Pharaoh sends for Joseph to be brought out of jail and to him to interpret his dream. Joseph shaves and showers to get the prison stank off and is brought to the king. Pharaoh asks if Joseph can tell him what his dream means. Joseph says that he can't, but that God can and will.

Pharaoh tells him the dream and Joseph interprets it and Pharaoh is pleased. So much so in fact that Pharaoh appoints Joseph as the main leader in Egypt, answering only to Pharaoh in authority.

So Joseph goes from slave, to prisoner, to interpretor, to Prime Minister in this section of Scripture.

What happens next is incredible, but we'll have to wait until next time.

peace,
bryce

Sunday March 13, 2011

1 Corinthians 5 & 6
Stand UP!

Today’s reading covers a Christian’s responsibility for standing up for the principles Jesus laid down for us. In our walk through life, we all can account for an occurrence where we noticed another Christian was saying or performing behavior that was blatant sin or was contradictory to the Lord’s will. How often have we intervened “in the correct manner”? How often have we wondered if we had the “credentials” to confront these believers? How often do we consider how our inaction affects the body of the church? These were the pressing issues Paul addressed in chap 5 and chap 6; as he confronted the incestuous behavior of a member of the church and Christians not elevating themselves to build up the body of the church.

In chap 5, Paul first admonished the believers for allowing an incestuous behavior to occur. One of the issues, Paul was already dealing with was the Corinthians’ spiritual immaturity. He urged for the offender to be removed from the church and handed over to Satan. This action would cause the believer to cease his wrong doing and repent; whether if it was through isolation or afflictions from his sinful behavior. Inevitably he would return to Christ. Why is it important that we act? Paul illustrated through the example of yeast that the smallest allowance of flagrant sin will cause confusion, a lack of spiritual development and church division. As the body of Christ, we are to lift one another up through prayer, encouragement and fellowship. As with Paul, it is up to all of us to help maintain the body and one way to accomplish this is by disassociating with those who would seek its destruction.

In looking at chap 6, Paul deals with smaller behaviors that may cause a division of the body. He starts with reprimanding the believers for utilizing the secular world to decide disputes. In an effort to increase their spiritual maturity, Paul elevates the role of a believer as he stated, they will judge the world and even the angels. Paul wanted to make clear that by engaging in legal pursuits, believers were subjecting themselves to world decisions, engaging in selfish behavior and distracted Christians from building each other up. To conclude this message, Paul reemphasized the various sins that Christians must avoid. He especially stressed their need to flee from sexual immorality. He wanted the readers to know that our bodies are temples for God that was bought with the blood of Jesus.
In April, Northwoods will host a family conference that will focus on purity. As with these two chapters, it is vital that we comply with Paul’s directions to address flagrant sin and behaviors that may cause believers to stumble. It is our responsibility to STAND UP for principles outlined by Jesus Christ.

Saturday, March 12

Today's reading wraps up our reading of the book of Matthew (26-28). And it focuses us in on the plot to kill Jesus, Jesus' annointing and betrayal, the institution of the Lord's Supper, Peter's denial, Christ's death and resurrection, and still more. There is a whole lot packed into these three chapters and I want to just look at a small but greatly important portion.

As the middle school minister at NorthWoods, we have been studying the Gospel message for the past several weeks with the students. I have realized during this time how much Christians too often turn the Gospel into something it's not. And so that is what I would like us to look at...the Gospel message. In chapter 27-28, we see the Gospel message laid out for us. Christ died for our sins (verses 45-50), He was buried (verses 57-60), and His resurrection (ch 28:1-10). Here in all it's simplicity is the Gospel message that can change lives! The Gospel message wasn't just meant to be discussed every Easter but was meant to be received, shared, and shared some more all year long.
Also found within these chapters was the institution of the Lord's Supper. Tomorrow at both campuses we will be having the Lord's Supper. This is a time of remembrance. I want to encourage everyone to not only remember what the Lord has done for us by way of the Gospel message but to also take the time too reflect on how this sacrifice has and is impacting our lives. Are we sharing this amazing message with those around us? Have we received this amazing gift? Does the teachings of God saturate every aspect of our daily lives?

Thursday, March 10th

I love symphonic band music. (Nerd alert!!) Most people probably do not know that about me. I spent years of my life playing in punk and metal bands (that’s a different blog for a different day) but few things get me stirred up like a great piece of symphony. I especially like the music of David Holsinger. Holsinger is a composer with a signature sound. He is the master of what I call the “build up and release.” In one particular piece entitled “To Tame the Perilous Skies,” Holsinger creates a musical tension of different voices all calling out their various melodies with great power. The tension builds to a crescendo until; the bottom just drops out. All that remains is a sustained chord in the high woodwinds. To me it always sounds like a voice of truth singing out in triumph over all the voices whose purpose is only to unsettle the soul. However, it is the tension that makes the “release” that much more beautiful; that much more heart stopping and memorable.

I liken much of Job chapter 19 to those last few moments in “To Tame the Perilous Skies.” Job lets each of the voices sing out; each one creating a dissonance against the other. For the first 7 verses Job highlights the bad theology of his three companions. Then verses 8 through 12 are a harsh melody in which Job lets his heart “sing out” towards God. Job is hurt and does not hide it. Then Job layers on a counterpoint in which he cries out about how this situation has affected his relationship with others. He is a stranger and an unknown man to all who see him. All those voices… all those emotions… all building towards a release. And what will be that release? Rage towards God? Denial of His power? Giving up on life or on his relationship with Jehovah? No… it’s verse 25. “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth.” It’s voice of truth that silences all other “melodies and instruments.” It is the exhale.

Unfortunately for Job the “symphony” is not yet done. Truth has sung out strong; but lies are still trying steal the show. Zophar the Naamathite conducts those twisted thoughts on God in chapter 20. Zophar follows suite with his other friends in applying what they believe about God, to Job’s situation. Keeping in mind that Job’s “situation” is one that started in the heavens and its purpose has not yet been revealed.

My prayer today for my life and for yours in that the “still, small voice” of our loving Father is the voice that will soon and very soon subdue all the other voices that try to take center stage in our lives. His ways are higher than our ways. Sing over us today, O Lord.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Isaiah 51 give us three incentives for obeying the voice of the Lord. The first incentive is found in verses 1-3 and states that if God could make a great nation from one barren couple (Abraham and Sarah), then he can revive any barren situation. The second incentive is found in verses 4-6 and states that the truth of the Lord is going out to the nations with a saving power that will outlast the universe. In short our salvation is forever. The third incentive is found in verses 7-8 and states that although the servants of the Lord are reviled, they will also be eternally vindicated.



Isaiah 52 reminds us that we are to be sharing the "good news." Sharing our faith and witnessing to the lost is beautiful to the Lord. Unfortunately most believers have not experience this truth. Sharing our faith needs to become a priority in every believer.



Isaiah 53 deals with Jesus the Messiah and Suffering Servant. Words like: borne our griefs, carried our sorrows, stricken, afficted, wounded, crushed, oppressed, and bore our sins are found in this chapter. It is a chapter that every believer needs to read three or four times a year to be reminded of what Jesus did for us.



Isaiah 55 reminds us that God's thoughts are not our thoughts and we should be a people of joy.

As you read these chapters, search your heart and ask the Lord for direction. Then ask what are these verses saying to me?

Psalm 27, 28, 29

Some theologians believe Psalm 27 was written in 2 parts. Verses 1-6 when life was good and David felt God was answering His prayers. Verses 7-12 when David felt God was hiding from Him and life had become difficult. And then, verses 13-14 when he put the 2 parts together. Just like David, we too have good days and bad days - but when we experience the bad days or longer periods of bad days, we must remember the times we have felt his faithfulness. Just as David remembered in Psalm 27:14 - we must wait for the Lord, because one day he will give us help. If we believe this, it will make us strong.

In Psalm 28 we hear David crying out for no other help but for God to hear him and answer. Messiah was a term that was used to describe the King in that day and then later on, it meant God's special servant and last of all, JESUS. In verses 1-5 we hear David's prayer for help and continuing in verses 6-9 we see the praise and thanks to God for His answer to prayer and help.

Linda doesn't like storms at all, but I love a night that is full of lightning, thunder and pouring rain. In Psalm 29 a large storm is happening and David not only sees the storm that is actually happening in his presence, but he sees and is awestruck at God's power and majesty. The lightening, thunder, rain and winds.
We need to remember that God has our life, secure in Him. And he is the same God that displays His power and glory all around. So next time you're in a storm - stop and see God.

Tuesday March 8, 2011

The Book of Ruth is extrememly different than the Book of Judges. There is not more blood and guts; instead there is love, romance and a picture of the faithfulness and love of the Lord. In chapter 1, the story begins with a famine and this Israelite family moves to Moab for food but in the meantime while in Moab the father of the family dies along with the two grown sons leaving three widows. Naomi, the mother of the family, encourages her daughter-in-laws to stay behind in Moab and one does but the other reveals a deep love and commitment for Naomi. So deep of a love that when Naomi sees it that she simply says nothing but allows her to come with her. Ruth has entered the scene of this grand story. This commitment to Naomi had to have been a great encouragement as Naomi goes back to Bethlehem she is not traveling alone but has someone who is bearing the burden of life with her.

In Chapter 2, there are to "chance happenings" that happen within the first five verses: first, Ruth goes out to get grain for her and Naomi and she happens to come across the field of Boaz, a strapping - good looking fella who is related to her in such a way that he would be a possible legal Kinsman redeemer, or in other words a future mate and second Boaz "happened" to see Ruth and she evidently thought she was a knock out. Boaz saw not simply her outward beauty but her inward beauty as he understood the way that she had treated her mother-in-law Naomi and he made sure that he took "extra" care of her in the field.

In Ruth 3-4, we see that Naomi turns into eharmony as she tells Ruth where to go in order to come into contact with Boaz and she gives specific direction in how to reveal her interets in Boaz. Boaz communicated his interest in Ruth and the need in going after a kinsman redeemer that is closer in relation to Ruth than what he is to make sure that he could redeem, marry, Ruth without being against the law. Boaz goes to the kinsman redeemer that is closer than he but the kinsman redeemer finds out that the price is too high to pay. Boaz thereby is able to pay the price for Ruth and they end the story getting married with God blessing them with children. I notice that the book starts with famine and death but it ends with a marriage and the blessing of children

Genesis 36-39

"Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors, But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him."

So the story goes today:

The father has a favorite son. That son gets doted on a bit more than the others. That son tells the truth about his brothers, even when it's bad news.

Therefore:

Joseph's brothers hated him. They couldn't speak to him without wanting to hurt him.

This sounds to me like a normal family! Sibling rivalry. Then things get worse.

Joseph has a dream. In his dream he sees himself being put in authority of his whole family, including his brothers. Being the youngest brother meant that Joseph would never be in charge of his brothers, naturally speaking. His place was last.

But nonetheless, God gives him a dream that one day he will be ruling over his family. So Joseph, being the younger brother and always taking hateful words from his siblings, decides to tell them about this awesome dream he has.

Their response is typical and expected,

"they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words."

Hey guys, I know you hate me because Dad loves me more than you. I know you're jealous of my super fly coat. That's cool. Oh, by the way...I'm gonna be your ruler one day. One day you're gonna bow down before me.

It's not necessarily a stress free environment. I'm sure you parents can see the tension between brothers here.

So one day, their dad sends Joseph to check up on the brothers who are tending his sheep. After all, Joseph has told on them before when they weren't doing what they were supposed to do, so he knows Joseph will tell him the truth.

His brothers see him coming and say,

"Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams."

Not a big deal....just murdering their brother and blaming an animal. But notice that last line, "we will see what will become of his dreams."

This story has now become bigger. Now, probably without even knowing it, these evil brothers are trying to mess up God's redemptive history for mankind. Now their getting in God's path for their brother. (not really a safe place to be)

One of the brothers, Reuben, says at this point that they shouldn't kill him. He rescues Joseph from their hands and tells them to throw him in a pit instead of killing him. (he wanted to come back later and rescue Joseph from the pit)

Well, what ends up happening is the brothers decide to sell Joseph as a slave to a caravan passing by. Reuben comes back to get Joseph out of the pit and he's gone. The brothers come up with a plan to make it look like a wild beast kills Joseph and make their dad that he's dead. Joseph at this point is sold to the Egyptians.

To recap:

1. God tells Joseph that he will reign over his family.
2. Brothers decide to kill him but instead sell him into slavery.
3. Joseph is sold a second time as a slave to a high ranking family in Egypt.

Not really how Joseph probably thought this dream would come to fruition. One could easily believe that God had forgotten his promise or changed His mind completely.

How is your life right now? Have things taken a turn for the worse? Do your current circumstances seem like God's plan was either wrong for your or that someone that is against you is messing God's plan up?

Does life seem unfair?

Joseph is a great example of how the world's view of success and God's view of success are almost always diametrically opposed to one another.

To find out what happens, we'll have to wait until next week.

Grace,
Bryce

Sunday March 6, 2011

1 Corinthians 3 & 4

For today’s reading, call it what you want, a “polite” reprimand, a dressing down or just putting the followers in their place. Paul, in these two chapters is out to address the division of the church. Paul continued to confront believers who were falling into a corrupt world. In looking at chap 3 and 4, the underlying issue was man’s dependence on worldly knowledge. From the previous chapter, this reliance prevented the revelation of God’s plan through the Holy Spirit; thus impeding spiritual growth.

Paul continued in chap. 3, to stress this issue of spiritual immaturity along with the use spiritual gifts and the genuine contribution towards building the Kingdom. Paul addressed these issues through the illustrations of a farming and construction. Paul first wanted to make clear that people have various gifts that God has given them to minister to others. However, it is only through God that people become believers (the planter/waterier illustration). Second, Paul pointed out that believers are to build on the foundation of Jesus Christ and are to be active in contributing to the life of the church. Paul urged that in the end, genuine service would be rewarded (builder illustration).

In chapter 4, Paul focused on the image of humility. In an attempt to dissuade the followers from worldly thinking, Paul used the image of the apostles being sacrificial servants. He contrasted their idea of being rich in life to his of being hungry, ridiculed patient and hard working. This I why Paul calls on them to imitate him, as opposed to worldly leaders. His desire was for them to move away from worldly behavior and be more like Christ. Similarly in (Matt 10:23-25), Jesus reminds the disciples that they are to be prepared for persecution. Since he was treated ill by the world they should expect the same; the servant is no better than the master.

What makes today’s reading so great is that many aspects can be drawn from it, to utilize in our own time. Some of the questions I asked my self, after reading these chapters were:
1) What level is my spiritual maturity at?
2) Am I using the gifts God gave me, to bring others to Jesus?
3) What actions and attitudes do I display that show Christ is my foundation?
4) Can people see my humble heart?
5) Can people see my imitation of Christ in my daily walk?

Saturday, March 5

First I would like to apologize for not blogging last Saturday. I want to take a second to look over those passages from last week...Matthew 20-22.
In chapter 20 we see a great picture of how we should live as followers of Christ. We must become last. Twice we see people questionig how things should be done. First in the vineyard as the workers are paid and then the mother of the Sons of Zebedee asking about who is the greatest. We are shown that we must become the least. We truly must place others above ourselves in order to follow the direction of our Lord.
In chapter 21, one particular part stood out to me. We see more than once that Jesus is praised, the people saying, "Hosanna in the highest." They laid out branches for him and led Him into the city. I wonder how often we give Jesus the praise that He truly deserves from us.
In chapter 22, we see that Gos has invited all to the feast. That is such a wonderful tought to remember. God doesn't offer his kingdom just to royalty but to all. We just have to accept the invitation.


For this week we looked at Matthew 23-25. In this passage we find one of my favorite Scripture passages: Matthew 25:31-46. Here we see a command of how we must live. We must love others!
This week there was a great focus on the end times and I think that I could write a whole huge blog on the end times. They are indeed important but I think that we must truly spend more time focusing on our need to be loving! There is a serious lack of love in our world and we as Christ's followers must step up to the plate and love others!

Isaiah 45 declares that Cyrus the Great, King of Persia, will one day destroy the Babylonian Empire. The uniqueness of this is that Cyrus does not exist yet. God is foretelling the future.
He declares what He will do through one who does not know Him. Hear the Lord...

"I call you by your name,
I name you, though you do not know me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I equip you, though you do not know me,
that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness,
I make well-being and create calamity,
I am the Lord, who does all these things."

Isaiah continues to declare the fall of Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar ruled Babylon for 43 years. Throughout his reign Babylon grew in greatness. Nebuchadnezzar honored the Lord Most High due to Daniel. After his death came three kings that did not honor the Lord Most High. Thus, just as God used Nebuchadnezzar to punish his people Israel, God used Cyrus to punish the Babylonians.

We must always remember that God is Sovereign over all things including history. He knows what is coming. He establishes His will over all history. Nothing surprises Him. Not the events in the Middle East nor the events in America. We must trust Him.

Thursday, March 3rd

“Ready yet?” Translation… “Is it ready yet?” My son has learned to ask this question when Mommy brings home a pineapple. He loves pineapple. I could take it or leave it. It took my son’s love for pineapple for me to learn that just because the fruit has been purchased and transported home does not necessarily mean that it is “ready.” The pineapple has to go through a process. I’m still not really sure how you know it’s ready.

As we look at Job chapter 17 you may be thinking, “What in world has this man read that made him think about pineapple?” It’s not about pineapple, or any other kind of fruit for that matter, but about the ripening or readying process. The first four words of the chapter let me know that Job’s spirit, his heart, is ripe… it is ready for God to do something awesome. How do I know that? Job says that his spirit is “broken.” Brokenness is how you know the human spirit is “ready.”

Along those same lines slide down and look at verse 11. Job’s plans are undone. The things he wanted to do have been tossed into the proverbial trash. This is another marker of a person primed to be used by God in a great way.

In chapter 18 I imagine that Bildad is doing what I have done far too many times. When Job started speaking Bildad stopped listening and starting thinking about his “come back.” Ever done that… or is it just me? Bildad has the opportunity to see that Job is poised for blessing from the Lord. However I believe he didn’t even hear a word that Job just said. Nearly everything that Bildad says in the following verses is absolutely true. So what’s the problem? Timing; God will judge unrighteousness. Wickedness will be punished; in his timing. Meanwhile the godly may (will) suffer and the wicked may prosper. We are not to look at the circumstances surrounding a person’s life and assume to know what God is doing.

So what about your heart? What about your spirit? Is it ready? Could God be in the process of readying you through brokenness? His methods are greater than ours; may we be a people willing to seek the benefits of brokenness.

Psalm 24,25,26

Psalm 24

God owns everything, because God made everything. First he made the seas. Then he made the dry land. In verse 4 "clean hands and a pure heart" means righteous. It means God has forgiven these people. Our hearts are inside us. Only God sees inside us. Only he knows if we are clean inside. The Jews believed that God was their king. They believed that he went everywhere with the ark. They carried the ark through the gates. This was a picture to the Jews. It was a picture of God as king of Jerusalem. The psalm calls God "the king of glory" 4 times.

Psalm 25

When two people agree, we say that they have made an agreement. Another word for agreement is covenant. This is the word that Christians use for the agreement between God and his people.

There were 2 sides to the covenant: God's side and the Jews' side. God promised to take care of the Jews if they continued to love him and be his servants. God kept his side of the covenant but the Jews didn't. So God said, that there must be a new covenant. This happened when Jesus came to the earth. Jesus made the new covenant with his body and his blood. (Jesus said, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood". Luke 22:20)

Psalm 26

Only God can make us whole and righteous (blameless). We become right with God, or honest to God, when we become Christians. We ask God to excuse us and we promise to become his people. We ask God to forgive us and he does.

Washing of hands was to show that they had not done murder. We find the same idea in verse 6 - here, it is not murder, but anything that is wrong.

In verse 9 - David means that when he dies he does not want to be with sinners. He wants to be free, he wants to be with God in heaven, not with sinners. The flat place in verse 12 is a safe place.

Tuesday March 1, 2011

In Judges 17-18, I see the pervasive, sad actions of the Levites. The Levites are to be God's representatives much as our modern day pastors. Yet we see a Levite that can be bought and will serve for an individual rather than for the Lord Jehovah and to a nation. We even see that he tolerates graven images made that people worshipped which goes directly against the 10 commandments that was passed to the nation of Israel from Mt. Sinai. When he is brought out of the home of the Ephraimite and starts serving in the tribe of Dan we see that because of his example they continue to set up the graven image and worship it.

In Judges 19-21, I wish that Ed was the blogger. I know for sure in this very difficult story that we see an ugly, evil depravity that has come across the nation of Israel. We see a Levite that is in Gibeah, in the tribe of Benjamin, with his virgin daughter and concubine. We see that the men in Gibeah want to have sexual relations with him and ultimately the host gave them his concubine and they raped her. She is sent back in twelve pieces. I do not know why - except that it would not be forgotten what they did to her. The rest of the nation of Israel took vengeance against Gibeah. The battle against Gibeah and the tribe of Benjamin was costly to everyone. It cost the loss of many lives on both sides. We can never underestimate the cost of sin as it is ugly all the way around. The one thing that I will say in closing about this passage is that because this story is included in the scriptures is partially proof to me of the validity of scriptures. This is not a story that we as humans would naturally have told, but it is included within the canon of scriptures revealing the depravity of man and the pervasiveness of sin.