Friday, January 28, 2011

Week 5: Resting in God's Mercy

This week's Bible readings unfold as follows:

* Romans 9-10 (epistles)
* Genesis 16-19 (the Law)
* Joshua 21-24 (history)
* Psalm 12-14 (psalms)
* Job 9-10 (poetry)
* Isaiah 23-28 (prophecy)
* Matthew 11-13 (gospels)

Scripture
The passage that ties this week's Bible readings together comes from our gospel selection (Matthew 11-13) in which Jesus says to us, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" (11:28-30).

Observation
The readings this week cover a variety of people, places, and times. But there's a unifying theme that runs through most of what we read.

We see it in Paul's reflection on God's sovereignty and human salvation (Romans 9-10).

It appears again in Genesis 16-19 in which we see God's merciful deliverance of Lot and his family before destroying Sodom and Gomorrah.

It is evident in God's renewing of his covenant with Israel (Joshua 21-24).

This unifying theme is underscored again in the words of the Psalmist:
I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord
for he has been good to me.
Psalm 13:5-6

In the midst of his suffering, Job cries out for it:

If only there were someone to arbitrate
between us,
to lay his hand upon us both.
someone to remove God's rod from me,
so that his terror would frighten me
no more.
Then I would speak up without fear of
him
but as it now stands with me, I
cannot.
Job 9:33-35

And Isaiah, speaking directly to God, describes it this way:
You will keep in perfect peace
those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust in you.
Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock
eternal.
Isaiah 26:3-4

The theme is trusting and thereby resting in God's unfailing mercy.

Jesus is our mediator, our arbiter, as Job put it. Because of Jesus we can "approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

Application
As we read these beautiful sections of Scripture this week, let's make a point of trusting that God is with us every single moment...whether we are awake or asleep; whether we are thinking about this fact or not. But let's strive to be more conscious of the fact that we are yoked to Jesus. We are forever connected. When we trust in this truth, we find rest for our souls...and the stress of life will simply not have the power to keep its stranglehold on us.

Prayer
O Lord, thank you for your unfailing love that keeps us steadfast in your presence. Thank you for Jesus with whom through your grace we are yoked and for whose sake we live eternal life even now. Amen.

Have a blessed week!

Faithfully,
Chuck

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Week 4: Taking the initiative...

The reading plan for week 4 is as follows:

* Sunday (epistles): Romans 7-8
* Monday (the Law): Genesis 12-15
* Tuesday (history): Joshua 16-20
* Wednesday (psalms): Psalms 9-11
* Thursday (poetry): Job 7-8
* Friday (prophecy): Isaiah 18-22
* Saturday (gospels): Matthew 8-10

Some great passages this week, including Genesis 15 where Abram unconditionally trusts God, and God therefore calls him 'righteous'. Also included are two great chapters from Romans, where Paul acknowledges his own weakness and his need for a savior.

This week's SOAP exercise, however, is taken from lesser-known book of Joshua:

Scripture: Joshua 18:1-3
Now that the land was under Israelite control, the entire Israelite assembly gathered at Shiloh and set up the Tabernacle. But there remained seven tribes who had not yet been allotted their inheritance. Then Joshua asked them, "How long are you going to wait before taking possession of the remaining land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given to you?"

Observation:
In this passage we see that Israel had taken control of the land of Canaan. However, 'taking control' merely meant 'occupied'. They had not yet casted out all the inhabitants of the land and possess it for themselves, to live and thrive there, the way God had commanded. Seven of the 12 tribes were still waiting on something. From this text it appears that they did not take initiative themselves. They were just waiting for Joshua to give them orders, kind of like children who don't do their chores unless they are told/forced by their parents.

We know from chapter 13:1 that Joshua was already an old man. He had seen and experienced it all... including God's miracles. You can see his irritation and sarcasm when he asks: "How long are you going to wait..."?

Application:
From time to time I find myself in a similar situation, where I'm spiritually passive, almost lethargic. I know God has commanded me to take some action (like the Israelites were commanded to take ownership of the land), but I wait for something else to happen or someone else to encourage or force me to do it. This is not good. I need to be pro-active and take ownership and control of the things God wants me to do.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I know I'm weak and oftentimes wait on others to take initiative to build your kingdom. Help me to discern your will for my life, the tasks you have laid before me, and give me the strength and will-power to execute it to your honor and glory. In Jesus name. Amen.

Have a great week.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Week 3: Serving the right Master

This week the reading plan is as follows:

* Sunday (epistles): Romans 5-6
* Monday (the Law): Genesis 8-11
* Tuesday (history): Joshua 11-15
* Wednesday (psalms): Psalms 6-8
* Thursday (poetry): Job 5-6
* Friday (prophecy): Isaiah 12-17
* Saturday (gospels): Matthew 5-7

Several times in the past months we've talked about the S.O.A.P. method for journaling. SOAP stands for: Scripture, Observation, Application and Prayer. As you read your bible daily, we encourage you to use the SOAP method to journal:

1) select one verse (or section) that really grabs your attention that day;
2) make some simple observations about the text (for example by asking yourself questions like 'Why', 'Who', 'When', 'Where', 'What', 'How', etc.)
3) make an application for yourself, based on the observations you made
4) close your time with a simple prayer, such as asking God to help you follow through on your application

Here's a SOAP example based on this week's reading.

Scriptures:

Romans 6:16
"Don't you realize that whatever you choose to obey becomes your master? You can choose sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God and receive his approval. ... 18.Now you are free from sin, your old master, and you have become slaves to your new master, righteousness."

Matthew 6:24
"No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

Observation:
These verses from the letter of Paul to the Romans, and the words of Jesus in Matthew 6:24 stood out to me today. They are both linked together. Paul is saying that before we knew Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we were servants (slaves) to this master called "sin". Basically, without fully knowing it, we were slaves of sin, trapped in a destructive lifestyle that would ultimately lead to eternal death. But when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we no longer were slaves to sin, but rather slaves (servants) of Jesus Christ, and a lifestyle of righteousness that comes with that.

Jesus is saying similar things in Matthew 5-7, his famous sermon on Mt. of Olives, also known as the 'beatitudes'. He is calling everyone to obey God and serve Him. Do away with your old sinful lifestyle, and give your life to Him. In Matthew 6:24 Jesus makes it very clear that we cannot choose both: once we serve God in our new lifestyle, we cannot hold on to our old sinful lifestyle. We cannot serve two masters. Instead we have to CHOOSE.

The apostle Paul also emphasizes that we have to choose: choose sin which leads to death, or choose to obey God. It's a choice that we have to make.

Application:
If I look at my own life, too often I find myself trying to serve two (or more) masters. I try to serve God, but I also try to please many of the other masters in my life, like people, money, sinful behavior. These words from both Paul and Jesus himself are a call to action for me, to get rid of the other masters, which means to not SERVE them like a slave, but only be committed to Jesus Christ as the only master in my life.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I acknowledge that too often I try to serve too many masters. You know that it is not my intent, but rather a left-over of my old selfish lifestyle. I pray that you help me to become more and more committed to you alone, and make your son Jesus Christ the only master in my life. In his name I pray, amen.

Have a great week as you serve our Lord.

In Him,
Dick

Friday, January 7, 2011

Week 2: God's Faithfulness

Now that the Christmas tree is out of the house, and ornaments, lights, and assorted decorations are stowed neatly in their places, the New Year is starting to feel "normal." And we hope that "normal" includes daily Bible readings as you make your way through 2011.

This time around, to keep things interesting, we will be jumping each day to different sections of Scripture. Scholars often construe the Bible along the lines of seven distinct literary genres: (1) epistles, (2) the Law, (3) history, (4) psalms, (5) poetry, (6) prophecy, and (7) gospels.

The readings each week will follow the same order, starting with a reading from the epistles on Sunday and ending with a gospel reading on Saturday.

This week's readings are as follows:

*Sunday (epistles): Romans 3-4
*Monday (the Law): Genesis 4-7
*Tuesday (history): Joshua 6-10
*Wednesday (psalms): Psalms 3-5
*Thursday (poetry): Job 3-4
*Friday (prophecy): Isaiah 7-11
*Saturday (gospels): Matthew 3-4

One key theme that appears in this week's readings is the faithfulness of God.

Though none of us is without sin (Rom. 3:23), God faithfully and freely justifies us "by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus" (3:24).

When human sin reached the point of no return, God faithfully devised a way to preserve the human race through Noah and his offspring (Gen. 4-7).

When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, God faithfully went before them, toppling the walls of Jericho (Josh. 6).

No matter how many foes stood against him, David could proclaim, "You are a shield around me, O Lord; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the Lord I cry aloud, and he answers me from his holy hill" (Psa. 3:3-4).

Job is at the front end of his sufferings in this week's readings. But when we get to the end of the story, we will see a faithful God restoring Job's estate.

Isaiah promises a deliverer: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel" (7:14). We know who that is!

And in our Gospel reading, we see Jesus faithfully enduring temptation after 40 days of fasting in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11).

What these readings show us is that God loves us unendingly. He wants us to trust him with every part of our lives...even those parts that require his grace and forgiveness (especially those parts!).

As you read through these sections of Scripture, remember that God is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. God is in the saving, healing, forgiving, and loving business. And you are the object of his greatest affection!

O Lord, thank you for being faithful to us...even when we falter. Thank you for making us your children through the saving work of Jesus Christ. Thank you for sending Christ to face temptation and endure the cross...all to give us the gift we could never deserve: the gift of everlasting life with you. Amen.

Have a great week!

Faithfully,
Chuck

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Week One- Beginnings!

Sorry for the late post- we have been investigating different ways to approcah this "Read ther Bible in One Year" concept. The web has so many different plans to do this, but we found one that intrigued us and would like to get going on this immediately. This is a 52 week plan as opposed to a calendar year plan- each day is a reading from a different aspect of the Bible (listed in parenthesis). We are a couple of days behind, so there is a little catch up, so here goes...

Sunday (Epistles): Romans 1-2
Monday (The Law): Genesis 1-3
Tuesday (History): Joshua 1-5
Wednesday (Psalms): Psalms 1-2
Thursday (Poetry): Job 1-2
Friday (Prophecy): Isaiah 1-6
Saturday (Gospels): Matthew 1-2

This will help keep the reading fresh each day...

The highlights for this week are the Creation in Genesis, the march of Israel into the Promised Land, and the birth of Jesus.

While these events seem to be un-correlated, each of them represents a beginning of some sort: the beginning of the Earth, the beginning of the nation of Israel as a sovereign nation and the beginning of our salvation through Jesus Christ.

Please post yout thoughts or comments accordingly so we can either answer questions or jump in on the conversation!

In Him,

Mike, Dick & Chuck