Daily Bread 2012 by Pastor Mike Anderson

God is With You!!!

2012-02-10T10:34:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:

Psalm 22:9-21
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm22&version=NIV
Genesis: 39
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis39&version=NIV
Matthew 13:47-58
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew13&version=NIV

Psalm 22:9 Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you, even at my mother’s breast.
10 From birth I was cast on you;
from my mother’s womb you have been my God.
11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help

Genesis 39:20 But while Joseph was there in the prison, 21 the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

Matthew 13 - A Prophet Without Honor
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.

Doing the work of God can often be a lonely business! There are times when we feel depressed, discouraged and even rejected in ministry. It is good to know we are not alone in this experience. King David expresses the strength he finds that when all have deserted him, he knows that God has been with him since he was in his mother’s womb and has been his God since his youth. As we continue the story of Joseph, he winds up in prison, as Potiphar’s wife falsely accuses him of attacking her. Far away from his father Jacob, and his brothers who despised him because of his favored status with his dad, he sits alone in prison with only the knowledge that God was with him and would provide favor to him.

Finally, in the Gospel story we see even Jesus felt rejected and alone, especially in his hometown. Despite the power he showed in healing people and the authoritative teaching he gave in the synagogue, they rejected him because of his humble upbringing. Their pride could not get past the fact that he was not among the cultural elite. And because of their lack of faith, he could not do any miracles there. These stories remind us that following God and Jesus do not guarantee success from a worldly point of view. Though God will never leave or forsake us, sometimes the world will.

In spite of bad circumstances, God will work all things together for good in His timing and in His ways. This is the journey of faith. We see that power of David, Joseph and Jesus is knowing that their identity is rooted in their relationship with the God the Father. And we see that God uses them each powerfully as they stay faithful to the course God has for them. Where is God challenging you to stay faithful despite some adverse circumstances?

Creator God, thank you for the earthly lineage of our Lord Jesus Christ! As we study his life's journey, may his words abide within us as we gather fruits worthy to be harvested in his kingdom! Amen.

Not Forsaken

2012-02-09T08:29:00.000-08:00

see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

• Psalm 22:1-8 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm22&version=NIV
• Genesis 38 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis38&version=NIV
• Matthew 13:36-46 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew13&version=NIV
Thoughts for the Day:

In today’s readings we see the cry of King David, which would be echoed by Jesus on the cross, “Oh God, Oh God why have you forsaken me.” David is reaching out to God and trying to trust in Him, who has been so faithful to his ancestors, and despite his current situation. Though people around him mock him and hurl insults at him, he knows God will deliver Him in the end.

In our passage in Genesis, we see the story of Tamar, a story of grief as Tamar has lost two husbands, and her father in law, Judah, has lost his wife. When Judah had recovered from his grief, in his lust he slept with a prostitute, who was situated beside the side of the road and sure enough she became pregnant with twins. When the time came for her to give birth, Tamar’s deception was exposed, but when Judah went to condemn her, she had evidence that he was the father. Judah’s realizes his own sin, and takes her into his house. As she gives birth to her long awaited sons, Perez, outduels his brother in the womb and comes out first. Do you remember his grandfather’s duels with his twin (Jacob and Esau)? Out of all of this comes the one who will be the leading clan in the nation of Judah, and an ancestor of the Great King David, and eventually Jesus.

Finally, in our Gospel passage Jesus is explaining the parable of the weeds and the wheat to the disciples, reminding them that things are not always as they appear to be. The eventual separation of the weeds and the wheat at the harvest time (end of the earth) will be God’s role not ours. In the meantime they will grow together. But the important thing to remember is not who is in or out, but to focus on the building of the kingdom, the pearl of great price.

Where do you feel forsaken by God? Do you feel like Tamar, that you would like to take things into your own hands to make sure your destiny is secure? Has the Kingdom of God become your pearl of great price and are you willing to sell everything in this life to find it?

Prayer for the Day: God, help us to be always kindhearted to one another so others will see your light shining within us and glorify your holy name. Amen.

The Tiniest Seed

2012-02-08T07:13:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:
Psalm 21
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm21&version=NIV
Genesis: 37
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis37&version=NIV
Matthew 13:24-35
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew13&version=NIV

Psalm 21

1 The king rejoices in your strength, LORD.
How great is his joy in the victories you give!
2 You have granted him his heart’s desire
and have not withheld the request of his lips.
3 You came to greet him with rich blessings
and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.
4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him—
length of days, for ever and ever.
5 Through the victories you gave, his glory is great;
you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.
6 Surely you have granted him unending blessings
and made him glad with the joy of your presence.
7 For the king trusts in the LORD;
through the unfailing love of the Most High
he will not be shaken.

King David reflects on the success he has, as the King over Israel. He recognizes that all of the victories come from the strength of the Lord. At the heart of it all is his trust in the Lord, whose steadfast love has caused him to not be shaken. David was king over Israel at the heights of its glory as a state that was led by God through a human ruler, who obeyed God and ruled with God’s authority. We call this a theocracy. Unfortunately Israel’s heyday is short lived and the David’s son, Solomon, though the wisest man in the world, would turn from the wisdom that David had relied so heavily on as its king, who was a man after God’s own heart. Though we live in a democracy today, where the state/government is separated from the church, we can still pray for our president and those elected to lead our country that they would do so with God’s wisdom and strength.

Genesis 37
Joseph’s Dreams

1 Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.
2 This is the account of Jacob’s family line. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.

3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.5 Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”8 His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.9 Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
10 When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.

Today we begin the incredible story of Joseph, Jacob’s 11th son. As Jacob loved Joseph more than the other brothers, he made him an ornamental (often called coat of many colors but in reality it was more of a supervisor’s coat with long sleeves) coat. Joseph had dreams where his brothers bowed down to him, and another dream where his brothers and mom and dad bowed down to him. This made the brothers hate him even more, and even his dad was a little miffed at him.

Joseph begin the journey from being the center of his universe where it is all about him, “I had a dream, you all bowed down to me etc..), to a place where God can take the center stage and spotlight and use him powerfully in the salvation story. In the coming chapters, starting with today when his brothers leave him for dead and then mercifully sell him into slavery, we will see that God is with Joseph despite his travails. It is a powerful story of God’s redemption.

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:

“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”

Jesus continues to teach using parables, earthly stories that unlock heavenly and kingdom meaning. The parables today teach about how the kingdom of heaven works or becomes effective. Two of them use an agricultural metaphor and then cooking analogy. The idea is that the seeds of the kingdom are planted and grow though often not seen to the human eye. As it grows in multiplies and works its way through the whole dough, so that in the end the thing that has been created has transformed the original form. Or the tree that starts as such a small tiny seed now is a flourishing that provides shade and resting place for God’s Creation.

It is a good reminder for anyone who is trying to make a difference and effect change for kingdom growth. As we faithfully plant seeds and till the garden, the growth will come. We can create conditions for growth and cultivate those conditions, but it is only God who causes the growth. This keeps us humble and reliant on God, but reminds us still to do the work of casting the seeds and working the garden knowing that God provides the growth of the kingdom and in His timing.

It reminds me of the commentary Martin Luther makes on the Lord’s Prayer when he states, “God’s kingdom will surely come without our asking, but might we pray that the kingdom of God would come through us.”

Eternal and ever-loving God, shine your light within our hearts. We thank you for Jesus Christ, the corner-stone, and for the Holy Spirit with whom you have allowed us to dwell. May we grow within the realm of the triune God! Amen.

The Good Seed

2012-02-07T07:57:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:

Psalm 20
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm20&version=NIV
Genesis: 36:9-43
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis36&version=NIV
Matthew 13:10-23
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew13&version=NIV

Psalm 20
For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
2 May he send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.
3 May he remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
4 May he give you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
5 May we shout for joy over your victory
and lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the LORD grant all your requests.
6 Now this I know:
The LORD gives victory to his anointed.
He answers him from his heavenly sanctuary
with the victorious power of his right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
8 They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.
9 LORD, give victory to the king!
Answer us when we call!

The psalmist begins by petitioning the Lord to hear the cries and answer those who are children of the covenant of Jacob. Zion was a term that meant the nation of Israel as it was led by the one true God. I love verse 4 when it says, “May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.” How often do you think of God giving you the desires of your heart? This assumes the desires of your heart stem from a relationship with God and you begin to want the things that He wants.

The psalm ends with the confidence knowing that God gives victory to those He has called and chosen, which he calls “his anointed”. We often use oil in baptism to christen a young child in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There is a sense in which Baptism sets apart a person for a life in Christ, surrounded by Christ and anointed by Christ in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Have you ever thought of yourself as anointed? Take some time to mark yourself with the sign of the cross this morning and remember whose you are, and that you too are called to represent His name to the world.

Genesis 39:40 These were the chiefs descended from Esau, by name, according to their clans and regions: Timna, Alvah, Jetheth, 41 Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon, 42 Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, 43 Magdiel and Iram. These were the chiefs of Edom, according to their settlements in the land they occupied. This is the family line of Esau, the father of the Edomites.

We see that just as God has promised He blessed Esau and his family and they became a great nation. While in this generation we see that Esau’s and Jacob’s descendants are separated and at peace, later there will be strife between these two nations that descended from Issac son of Abraham.

Matthew 13:18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Jesus’ main teaching style when preaching to the crowds was speaking in parables. A parable used an earthly analogy (often in farming terms like this one which those in this society would have readily understood) but containing a deeper metaphorical spiritual truth or reality. When the disciples asked him about this, he said that he spoke in parables so that those who were called would hear the message and understand. But others would only see the earthly meaning, and make no spiritual application in regard to the kingdom expansion. For those seeking the power of the kingdom, they would make application and grow exponentially, but others either through the power of the evil one or other factors would not bear the fruit intended by the seed.

Importantly, we see the purpose of God’s Word is to bear fruit and reproduce itself. As we hear God’s Word it is not meant for us alone, but also to multiply and reach others. As the Scripture says, “God’s Word does not return void.” Meaning God’s Word has the power to change lives and then change more lives. As you seek God in His Word each, it will not return void. God has called us into relationship with Him through His Son, who was the complete revelation of God’s Word and His Purposes.

As we not only read about and meditate on His Word, but also understand it and put it into practice we will be like the good seed that yields, hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. That is my prayer for you and for me that we might hear, understand and multiply what has been so graciously given to us.

Lord of heaven and earth, you are high above all creation. You continue to provide for us the sustenance needed to sustain our lives. May we live lives worthy of the peace that Jesus brings to all humankind! Amen.

The Perfect Way

2012-02-06T08:39:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:

Psalm 19:7-14
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm19&version=NIV
Genesis: 35:1-36:8
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis35&version=NIV
Matthew 12:46-13:9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew12&version=NIV

Psalm 19:7-14

New International Version (NIV)

7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the LORD are firm,
and all of them are righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the honeycomb.
11 By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 But who can discern their own errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.
14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

The psalmist lifts up six aspects, or characteristics of God’s Word. It is: perfect, radiant, trustworthy, right, pure, and firm. As someone has said, “You don’t break God’s Word, you break yourself against it.” Meaning God’s Word is like a Rock. Because it is truth it never changes. Jesus who himself said, “I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life.” Meaning, just like God’s word never changes, Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever!

As we keep God’s Word there is great hope. There is one problem, because we have a sinful nature, we are always breaking God’s Word in rebelling. The psalmist says that the Word helps us to discern when we have erred, and corrects us and keeps us back on the right path. He asks God to keep him from willful sins, so that they may not rule over him. I.e. becoming addicted! God wants to set us free from our sinful nature and the Good News is with the coming of Jesus, that is exactly what he did.

Genesis 35
Jacob Returns to Bethel
1 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”
2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3 Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem. 5 Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.
6 Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. 7 There he built an altar, and he called the place El Bethel, because it was there that God revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

Jacob returns to his Father’s land and on the way the people purge themselves of all their foreign gods they picked up in Paddan Aram. They build an altar as a memorial of the place where God had blessed him so greatly, and also caused the reconciliation with his brother Esau to take place. Instead of being the deceiver, Jacob is now living out his transformation as a new person, Israel. He will be a model for the nation of Israel, being one, as God is one. We also see today the death of Rachel his favored wife as she is giving birth to Benjamin, their 12th son. So as Jacob’s transformation becomes complete, so does the family of Israel with its 12 sons, representing the eventual 12 tribes of Israel.

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers
46 While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.”48 He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

Without disrespecting his family of origin, Jesus describes a new kind of family. The covenant family of God made up of all those who believe in the Father, through the Son, in the power of the Spirit. As we become one with God (Covenant) through God’s gracious gift of His Son, in whom we receive and become children of God, our behavior becomes reflective of our new identity. Jesus describes this as doing the will of my Father. Though Jesus never dishonored his mom and dad and in fact provides for them until the end, His mission was to do the will of the Father all the way to the cross. In fact, the biggest trial in Jesus’ life came in the garden when he realized God’s will was for Him to go to the cross for the sins of the world. His prayer became, “If it is possible Father, please take this cup from me, but not my will but yours be done.”

As you start out a new week, reflect on who you are which is always the basis for what you do. May all of our actions and words this week reflect the will of the Father, as we live out our callings as His sons and daughters by His Spirit.

Father God, thank you for being attentive to the cry of your people! Guide us to the path which will help us to refrain from wrongdoings so we may glory with our brothers and sisters in your kingdom's light. Amen.

More Than Words....

2012-02-04T10:24:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:

Psalm 19:1-6
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm19&version=NIV
Genesis: 34
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis34&version=NIV
Matthew 12:33-45
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew12&version=NIV

Psalm 19
1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
5 It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

This is a psalm about the glory of Creation. It portrays Creation as if it has a personality and has human qualities. And indeed the heavens declare, or make known the glory of God. They are an ongoing testimony to how great God is. All of Creation speaks of God’s glory and how powerful He is. As the song “How Great Thou Art” sings,

“O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made.
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.”

See this link to see the incredible history of this tune. It was written by a Swede in 1885 originally as a poem, and then popularized by George Beverly Shea in the Billy Graham Crusades in the 50’s. It was our grandparent’s favorite hymn of the age!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Great_Thou_Art_%28hymn%29#English_translations

Genesis 34:24 All the men who went out of the city gate agreed with Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male in the city was circumcised.

25 Three days later, while all of them were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, took their swords and attacked the unsuspecting city, killing every male. 26 They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword and took Dinah from Shechem’s house and left. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city where[c] their sister had been defiled. 28 They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields. 29 They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children, taking as plunder everything in the houses. 30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble on me by making me obnoxious to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people living in this land. We are few in number, and if they join forces against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.” 31 But they replied, “Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?”

While Shechem’s rape of Dinah is deplorable, what Simeon and Levi do in exacting revenge is even more deplorable. Using the guise of circumcision as a means of intermingling with Hamor’s family, the boys carry out a ruthless and godless attack. Though they are right in being furious with the rape of their sister, their response in taking judgment into their own hands, which alone belongs to God, is obviously wrong. In addition, the retribution they exact is far in excess of the violence against their sister.

Jacob’s recognizes that this is not of God, and chastises his sons. Unfortunately much like their Father’s deceit, this act of violence will also come back to haunt the sons of Jacob for generations to come.

Matthew 12:43 “When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. 45 Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation.”

This is another one of those confusing passages. But if we put into the context of what we know from other passage in the bible, we can interpret it soundly. We know we are created in God’s image, and that is good. But we also know with the Fall that we are born of Adam and inherit a sinful nature. The sinful nature is ruled by sin, death and the power of the devil. When a person is born again, they are born of the Spirit, and the Spirit takes residency of a person’s entire being. They are heirs with Christ of everything that is God’s and have his power and authority to live by.

We are spiritual beings, and as Paul says in Ephesians 6, our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers of this present darkness. As a believer, the deposit of the Holy Spirit has been given to you, and you are completely God’s property. While Satan and his demons can try to afflict you, they can never take back ownership of one of God’s children. Jesus has bought us with a price, his own precious blood. We are covenant children of God, and we are one with Him and with Christ. If we are in Christ, we don’t have to worry about the powers of darkness, just be aware of them and realize that greater He that is in you, than he that is in the world.

But for an unbeliever, they are susceptible to the spiritual powers of darkness. While they are made in God’s image and loved by God, they are vulnerable to spiritual attack and occupation by enemy forces. When we see horrible acts of violence done through people who are made in God’s image, we see the power of evil at work. That is why it is important to pray and be aware of the evil one’s schemes. It is why we pray in the prayer Jesus taught us, “Deliver us from the evil one.” We have been delivered from him in we are in Christ, yet we will battle him until Jesus returns, and his destination in hell is sealed forever. It also gives us more impetus to pray for lost people that they can become part of God’s eternal family as well.

Lord God, as you gather your children from the ends of the earth, may we remain faithful. We know our final place will be with you in your heavenly kingdom! Amen.

Friday, January 3rd

2012-02-03T10:34:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts

Readings for Today:

Psalm 18:46-50
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
Genesis: 32:22-33:20
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis32&version=NIV
Matthew 12:22-32
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew12&version=NIV

46 The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock!
Exalted be God my Savior!
47 He is the God who avenges me,
who subdues nations under me,
48 who saves me from my enemies.
You exalted me above my foes;
from a violent man you rescued me.
49 Therefore I will praise you, LORD, among the nations;
I will sing the praises of your name.
50 He gives his king great victories;
he shows unfailing love to his anointed,
to David and to his descendants forever.

This Psalm reminds me of the song we used to sing in Youth Ministry that went something like, “The Lord liveth and blessed be the rock, and may the God of my salvation be exalted!” It is so cool to take these ancient psalms and put them into modern form and use for our worship today. As we praise God, the Scriptures say “He inhabits the praises of his people”. This is something people of every age can do.

Whether it is the pre-schoolers in chapel who sing, “Zaccheus was a wee little man and a wee little man was he. He climbed up in a sycamore tree the Lord he wanted to see. And as the Lord passed by that that day he looked up in the tree and he said, ‘Zaccheus you come down for I’m going to your house today.” Or singing Amazing grace with someone in their 80’s or 90’s., you don’t have to be in church to praise the Lord, you can do it anytime, anywhere! In your car, on your run or as you are doing the dishes. As we praise the Lord continually His name will be on our lips and in our hearts and we can make a joyful noise to the Lord!

Genesis 33
Jacob Meets Esau
1 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men; so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two female servants. 2 He put the female servants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother.4 But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept. 5 Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. “Who are these with you?” he asked. Jacob answered, “They are the children God has graciously given your servant.”6 Then the female servants and their children approached and bowed down. 7 Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down. Last of all came Joseph and Rachel, and they too bowed down. 8 Esau asked, “What’s the meaning of all these flocks and herds I met?” “To find favor in your eyes, my lord,” he said. 9 But Esau said, “I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself.” 10 “No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favor in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably. 11 Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need.” And because Jacob insisted, Esau accepted it. 12 Then Esau said, “Let us be on our way; I’ll accompany you.”

Jacob reunites with his brother Esau. You can tell he is quite nervous about this encounter as he sends his wives and kids in waves, starting with the two female servants and ending with Rachel and Joseph who he wants to protect. Jacob offers the flocks and herds as a peace offering, but Esau lets Jacob know that God has given him plenty as well. If we remember when they were born, although the Promise of the Covenant was to come through Jacob, he also promised to make Esau and great nation.

And what Jacob thought would turn out to be a nasty encounter is more like a “love fest”. Esau meets Jacob’s peace offering with grace upon grace. They both realize that all they have is from God, which lowers the sense of entitlement and opens their hearts to be generous to each other. At the heart of most financial arguments is both a sense of entitlement and a fear that one will never have enough. Both Jacob and Esau have learned that all they have is from the LORD, so they are able to be generous thus reconciling their relationship.

Who do you need to reconcile with today? As we realize all we have is from God anyways it is easy to let go of material things and realize that relationships are more important, especially in God’s eyes.

Matthew 12:30 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

After healing the blind and mute man, who was demon possessed, the Pharisees continue to try and dismiss that Jesus is the Son of God. They accuse him of casting out demons in Satan’s power vs. God’s power. Jesus has had enough of the Pharisees rejection, and clearly states that they have crossed the line. They have broken the second commandment and taken the Lord’s name in vain. They have attributed God’s work to Satan, which Jesus calls blasphemy. And then he says that this sin will not be forgiven! This is one of those challenging verses that is hard to interpret, but let’s take a look at it.

If we take a logical view it helps. For one, no one can come to God through Jesus without the power of the Holy Spirit. As Martin Luther said in the Small Catechism in regard to the Third Article of the Creed dealing with the Holy Spirit, “I cannot by my own effort or understanding come to know Jesus as Lord. But the Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, and sanctified me in the one true Faith. Just as he calls, enlightens and gathers the whole Christian earth and keeps it in Jesus Christ in the one true faith.”

So logically then if one blasphemes the Holy Spirit there is no power to come to faith and without faith in Jesus, forgiveness is impossible. Indeed it is the power of the Holy Spirit that allows us to confess Jesus as Lord, and empower our witness in the world to stand up for Jesus and live in His power and authority as a son or daughter of God!

Where is God calling you to be bolder in Your faith? Remember it is not by your own effort that you accomplish this, but in God’s power as you yield more and more to His leadership in your life.

Creator God, your steadfast love endures forever. We pray you will infuse us with the strength and power of the Holy Spirit as we boldly approach your throne of grace, asking forgiveness for our sins. Amen.

Thursday, February 2nd

2012-02-02T10:19:00.000-08:00

see www.moravian.org/daily_texts

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 18:37-45
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
• Genesis 32:1-21
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis32&version=NIV
• Matthew 12:9-21
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew12&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Psalm 18:37-45

37 I pursued my enemies and overtook them;
I did not turn back till they were destroyed.
38 I crushed them so that they could not rise;
they fell beneath my feet.
39 You armed me with strength for battle;
you humbled my adversaries before me.
40 You made my enemies turn their backs in flight,
and I destroyed my foes.
41 They cried for help, but there was no one to save them—
to the LORD, but he did not answer.
42 I beat them as fine as windblown dust;
I trampled them like mud in the streets.
43 You have delivered me from the attacks of the people;
you have made me the head of nations.
People I did not know now serve me,
44 foreigners cower before me;
as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.
45 They all lose heart;
they come trembling from their strongholds.

David speaks with great authority as he defeated his enemies. Our enemies are often not physical threats, but can be spiritual powers opposed against us as we try to step out in Jesus’ name to advance the kingdom. Jesus has given us spiritual capital to oppose our enemies who try block or thwart God from doing what he wants to do. The bottom line is we don’t have to fear any spiritual power that is opposed to God. Greater is He who is within you than he that is in the world. As Martin Luther says in the great hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”,

Though hoards of devils fill the land
All threat’ning to devour us,
We tremble not, unmoved we stand;
They cannot overpower us.
Let this world’s tyrant rage;
In battle we’ll engage!
His might is doomed to fail;
God’s judgment must prevail!
One little word subdues him.” (Taken from LBW, 1978)

Genesis 32
Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau
1 Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim. 3 Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. 4 He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my lord Esau: ‘Your servant Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban and have remained there till now. 5 I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants. Now I am sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.’” 6 When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 7 In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. 8 He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.” 9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, LORD, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps. 11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12 But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’”

As Jacob awaits his reunion with brother Esau, he is afraid that Esau might take revenge on him. First, he prays to God and you see the change of his character in his humble reliance on God to deliver him from his brother. He acknowledges that all of his increase in flocks and people in his camp have come from God’s hand, not his own. He is afraid his brother will attack him, so he prepares a peace offering and is prepared to share his wealth with his brother.

Here, at the end of chapter 32, is also the famous passage where Jacob spent the night wrestling with God, who appeared through the form of an angel, or as it is translated “a man”. Jacob thinks it is God for he says, “I have seen the face of God yet his life was spared.” At this point Jacob’s name is changed from “Jacob” to “Israel”. From “deceiver” to “one who struggles with God”. To show this was more than just a spiritual encounter, Jacob’s hip went out of socket and walked with a limp for the rest of his life.

Have you ever wrestled with God? Apparently it is okay to struggle with God. Often we struggle with God in our prayer life, wrestling with him over why he hasn’t answered our cries for help for us, or the people we love. Jacob’s story seems to imply that this is an okay thing to do, and God meets us in that place and often leaves an indelible impression on us!

Matthew 12:9-21

9 Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, 10 and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to bring charges against Jesus, they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”11 He said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”13 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. 14 But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.
God’s Chosen Servant 15 Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. A large crowd followed him, and he healed all who were ill.

Jesus preached to the crowds and taught in the synagogues, where the Jews worshiped. It so happened that a man with a diseased hand showed up in church. The Pharisees saw it as another opportunity to catch Jesus in a trap. If he didn’t heal the man, they could accuse of him of lacking compassion. If he did heal him, they could accuse him of breaking the Sabbath law of no work on the Sabbath.

Jesus sees their intentions and puts it back in their laps. He asks them if one of their sheep fell into a pit on the Sabbath, would they not rescue it? Then, he teaches them that the essence of the Sabbath is to do things that are God pleasing. It is a time to set apart as worship of God, but that doesn’t exclude us from doing things God would want us to do. In another passage he teaches, “the Sabbath is made for man, not man made for the Sabbath.” Meaning the Sabbath is for us. A time to commune with God, have fellowship with each other, and yes if called, to help someone out with a word of healing or compassion.

How is your Sabbath going lately? Do you have a time for rest? Each day. Each week. Each season. We live in a world that values productivity, but often at the expense of health. The health of our family, our lives, and our relationships with God and others. In Jesus, we see the appropriate balance of time with Father, time with his friends in fellowship, and times of ministering God’s love to the world. As we look to have a balanced life of work, rest and time with those we love, Jesus is a healthy model to follow!

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your cleansing power. May we follow in the footsteps of our ancestors as we look to you for guidance! We praise you together with the Holy Spirit for anointing us with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. Amen.

My Yoke is Easy and My Burden is Light

2012-02-01T08:07:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Wednesday, February 1st

Readings for Today:
Psalm 18:30-36
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
Genesis: 31:22-55
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis31&version=NIV
Matthew 11:25-12:8
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew11&version=NIV

Psalm 18:30-36

30 As for God, his way is perfect:
The LORD’s word is flawless;
he shields all who take refuge in him.
31 For who is God besides the LORD?
And who is the Rock except our God?
32 It is God who arms me with strength
and keeps my way secure.
33 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he causes me to stand on the heights.
34 He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35 You make your saving help my shield,
and your right hand sustains me;
your help has made me great.
36 You provide a broad path for my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way.

The psalmist reflects on the all-sufficiency of God. His Word is flawless it never fails to accomplish what it sets out to do. As we find our refuge in Him, we are secure and do not have to worry. God keeps, makes, trains and provides. Notice all the focus is on God and not on us. It is even God who makes us great. In a world that lives by the song “I did it my way”, this psalm reminds us that is only by God’s way that we can accomplish all that God intends for us. In what ways do you need to acknowledge God’s way is better than your own? Will try His way today?

43 Laban answered Jacob, “The women are my daughters, the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks. All you see is mine. Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about the children they have borne? 44 Come now, let’s make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us.” 45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46 He said to his relatives, “Gather some stones.” So they took stones and piled them in a heap, and they ate there by the heap. 47 Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed. 48 Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me today.” That is why it was called Galeed. 49 It was also called Mizpah, because he said, “May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other. 50 If you mistreat my daughters or if you take any wives besides my daughters, even though no one is with us, remember that God is a witness between you and me.”51 Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is this heap, and here is this pillar I have set up between you and me. 52 This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap and pillar to my side to harm me. 53 May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob took an oath in the name of the Fear of his father Isaac. 54 He offered a sacrifice there in the hill country and invited his relatives to a meal. After they had eaten, they spent the night there.55 Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them.

The crazy story of Jacob’s dealings with his Uncle Laban come to an end today. By the grace of God, Laban does not find the household gods that Rachel had stolen, which would have caused further controversy. Laban can see that God has been with Jacob, and has been warned in a dream not to try and stop him, so they agree to cut a covenant. They gather some stones as a physical remembrance of the deal they make.

The terms of the deal are that Jacob with not mistreat Laban’s daugthers and granddaughters, and boundary line that separates them acts as a barrier to protect them from each other. Not optimal, but an otherwise suitable ending to a stormy relationship. Despite all the human foibles in this story, we see God continues to honor the covenant made through Abraham and Issac. Jacob’s character is starting to come around as he lives into his identity as a son of the covenant, and carries out God’s kingdom purpose albeit in a circuitous way.

The Father Revealed in the Son

25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 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. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Now we come to some of my favorite verses in the whole bible. Jesus relays that all things have been given to him by His Father, and He has now revealed them to us (little children). The sense is that what Jesus has revealed is best accepted as a little child, full of faith in their parents. Then Jesus offers the invitation of all time, “Come unto me all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Then the challenge, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Could it be true that the Christian life is easy? I think we usually think of it as hard. And is that because we make it hard? The yoke of the oxen was perfectly fit so the oxen would not have to strain unnecessarily to pull the load. Jesus has fashioned a yoke for us to follow him which is perfectly fit for us. If we feel it is a burden following Jesus, there is a good chance we have something wrong. We have the wrong yoke. Likely we are trying to carry the burden ourselves, especially the burden of our sin. If we are tired or heavy laden, there is a good chance we are relying on self all too much.

Do you need rest? Are you tired? Are you tired of pulling all the load? Accept Jesus’ invitation this morning. Come into him and lay your burden on him. He has already carried your burden to the cross and paid for it all, forever. You can walk in freedom knowing He has done it for you. As you follow Him His commands are not burdensome, because we are walking in the easy yoke of discipleship. This is a foreign concept to many Christians. The great need in the church today is to teach and model the easy yoke of discipleship. There are many who are weary and burdened and in need of the rest that only Jesus can bring!

Almighty God, we are mindful of your steadfast love and protection over our lives. Thank you for acting on our behalf as we journey through life. May we always feel secure in your haven of love. Amen.

Tuesday January 31st

2012-01-31T08:05:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Tuesday, January 31st

Readings for Today:
Psalm 18:25-29
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
Genesis: 30:25-31:21
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis30&version=NIV
Matthew 11:11-24
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew11&version=NIV

Psalm 18:25-29

New International Version (NIV)

25 To the faithful you show yourself faithful,
to the blameless you show yourself blameless,
26 to the pure you show yourself pure,
but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.
27 You save the humble
but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.
28 You, LORD, keep my lamp burning;
my God turns my darkness into light.
29 With your help I can advance against a troop;
with my God I can scale a wall.

The psalmist reminds us that as we seek the Lord in humility that God will always be faithful to us. We can always count on the Lord being there for us as we serve Him in all of our ways. It is God who is our fuel for doing what is right, and he keeps our lamps burning on into the night. It is with God’s strength that we can overcome the obstacles in our life that try to prevent us from bringing forth His kingdom. As we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness all will be provided for us. All of these sure promises God has given us enable us to be faithful, pure and blameless before Him by His Spirit which is working within us to cultivate all of these qualities.

Genesis 31
Jacob Flees From Laban
1 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, “Jacob has taken everything our father owned and has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.” 2 And Jacob noticed that Laban’s attitude toward him was not what it had been.3 Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”4 So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. 5 He said to them, “I see that your father’s attitude toward me is not what it was before, but the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know that I’ve worked for your father with all my strength, 7 yet your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm me. 8 If he said, ‘The speckled ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, ‘The streaked ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore streaked young. 9 So God has taken away your father’s livestock and has given them to me. but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.

The conniving and deceiving follows Jacob with him to Laban’s household. We even see Jacob matching Laban’s scheming by placing the poplar tree white branches out in front of the feeding trough with the result that the when the young were born they were streaked or speckled. But in spite of all these events, God blesses Jacob’s share of the flocks tremendously and comes through on His promise to bless Jacob and make him prosperous.

The poplar branch experiment is just one way that it is made unmistakeably clear to Laban that Jacob’s success is because God is with him. Laban of course realizes this and does not want to let go of his blessed son-in-law, but God has other plans that will be sure to come to pass. The result we can see is that when we try to go against God’s will, all kinds of calamity comes about.

Even Rachel, Laban’s daughter, gets into the act by deceiving him and taking the household gods. This will cause more problems down the road. The bottom line is that God’s will comes to pass, but not without lots of consequences because of human control and intervention that makes the road very bumpy.

Matthew 11:16 “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:

17 “‘We played the pipe for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’

18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”

We see that in spite of all that Jesus was doing to bring in the kingdom, including many miracles and healings, there will still some who did not receive him. The people found ways to rationalize away what happened. In John, they said “he has a demon” because of John’s austere lifestyle, and when Jesus came they said, “Here is a glutton and drunkard” because Jesus hung out with sinners.

When people want to stay in control they will do anything to deny the truth. We will see this throughout Jesus’ ministry that some were open to repent (remember this means have a change of mind that leads to a change of action), and others refused the truth and used intellectual means to explain away what is clearly happening.

Still today there are those who will not accept the truth even if it is right in front of them. This reminds us that it is only God who can change a human heart, though he still calls us to live out the Gospel in word and deed. This also reminds us that we are not in control, and this is a good thing.

Heavenly Father, it's hard for us to face the brutal truth that we often ignore you. We separate ourselves from you. We withhold our hearts from the very one who created them. Forgive us and receive us, we pray. Amen.

Monday, January 30th

2012-01-30T10:13:00.001-08:00

Happy 52nd Anniversary Mom and Dad!!! You are a great example to me of God's covenant love and faithfulness!

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Monday, January 30

Readings for Today:
Psalm 18:16-24
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
Genesis: 29:15-30:24
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis29&version=NIV
Matthew 11:1-10
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew11&version=NIV

Psalm 18:16 He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
17 He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the LORD was my support.
19 He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.
20 The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.
21 For I have kept the ways of the LORD;
I am not guilty of turning from my God.
22 All his laws are before me;
I have not turned away from his decrees.
23 I have been blameless before him
and have kept myself from sin.
24 The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

David recounts how God reached down from on high and took hold of him and drew him from the deep. He realizes that it is only from the all-powerful One that he can be delivered from those enemies that are more powerful than him. As the LORD confronted these powers and dealt with them, David was brought into a spacious place where he felt the LORD’s delight.

While David is speaking of a literal enemy, we can all relate to his struggle, if only in a figurative way. We all face enemies every day, even from within. God wants to deliver us from all of our enemies, such as addiction, pride, sloth, and perfectionism. As we acknowledge that we cannot slay these enemies in our own will power and might, God comes to rescue us and bring us to a spacious place, where we feel His delight!

Genesis 29:15-30:24

New International Version (NIV)
15 Laban said to him, “Just because you are a relative of mine, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah had weak (or delicate) eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful. 18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”19 Laban said, “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.”22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast. 23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to her. 24 And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant. 25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn’t I? Why have you deceived me?” 26 Laban replied, “It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. 27 Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work.”

For a great explanation of this story of Jacob and his obtaining Leah and Rachel as his two wives read from this link:

http://bible.org/seriespage/i-led-two-wives-genesis-291-30

There is a great sense of irony in this story, as the deceiver Jacob who receives the blessing and birthright from his father through devious means, is deceived by his Uncle Laban. It was standard in those days for a man to bring a small amount of money (dowry) to purchase a man’s daughter. Since Jacob left home and his father sent him on his way, Jacob had to work for seven years to receive Laban’s daughter, because he didn’t have the money to just buy her out as was the custom in those days.

As the article suggests, Jacob still was prideful in how he went out meeting Rachel and preferred Rachel over Leah primarily for attraction purposes. We often picture Leah as homely, and yet the Hebrew word for “weak” also has the translation “delicate”. Importantly as we trace the birth line of Jesus, He comes through the line of Leah and through her son, Judah and not through Rachel. Though Rachel’s first son who came after a long time of waiting and much consternation on her part, is Joseph, who will also play a big part in the salvation story, it is through Leah whom the covenant promise continues.

Although some may feel sorry for Jacob for having to wait 14 years, others might say it is a consequence of his deception. Yet throughout the story, we see God’s grace is upon him and his offspring, despite all his bad choices.

Matthew 11:7 As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written:

“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’

11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Verse 11 tells us that the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John the Baptist! Does Jesus mean to diminish the role of the messenger John the Baptist, who was sent ahead to prepare the way for him per the Old Testament prophecy in Malachi? I think not, but Jesus was preparing His people for the new way the kingdom was coming into existence through his Him and in the power of the Holy Spirit. His preparation of the disciples was to be messengers of the kingdom in a greater way than John because of the role and scope of their work.

While John announced the coming of Jesus and the kingdom with the words, “Repent the kingdom of God is at hand”, the disciples would soon be the living out the kingdom flowing through them in the power of the Holy Spirit. God continues to empower us in the working out of the kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven on earth, as we not only pray the Lord’s prayer but operate in its power! Today in our daily prayer, we pray for God’s kingdom to come by way of healing those who are sick. I certainly see my share of sickness as a pastor, and I am sure you do too! But remember the power we have to pray for those who are sick in Jesus name. While we don’t control of the outcome of who is healed and who isn’t, we have the opportunity to pray in the power and authority of Jesus’ name.

God of wellness, we know fear when disease strikes us hard. We seek cures from doctors and pray for healing. Most of all, we lay our lives in your hands. Make us whole in spirit and touch our bodies. Amen.

Saturday, January 28th

2012-01-28T09:46:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:

Psalm 18:7-15
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
Genesis 28:10-29:14
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis27&version=NIV
Matthew 10:26-42
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew10&version=NIV

Psalm 18:7 The earth trembled and quaked,
and the foundations of the mountains shook;
they trembled because he was angry.
8 Smoke rose from his nostrils;
consuming fire came from his mouth,
burning coals blazed out of it.
9 He parted the heavens and came down;
dark clouds were under his feet.
10 He mounted the cherubim and flew;
he soared on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—
the dark rain clouds of the sky.
12 Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced,
with hailstones and bolts of lightning.
13 The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.
14 He shot his arrows and scattered the enemy,
with great bolts of lightning he routed them.
15 The valleys of the sea were exposed
and the foundations of the earth laid bare
at your rebuke, LORD,
at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

As David cries out to the Lord, he describes the Lord’s response. As his prayer rises as incense to the holy temple, God’s answer shakes the earth, as He comes down on earth to intercede. All of the elements that showed the power of the Almighty emerge such as: the dark clouds, the brightness of His presence, hailstones, bolts of thunder and the lightning that routes the enemy. At God’s very word, David’s oppressors are scattered along with all of Creation.

We often don’t stop to think of the sheer power of our prayer as the Almighty One is moved to answer our cries and heaven itself is opened up. As lift up your prayers today, remember to lift up the praises to the One who is all powerful and made the mountains, valleys, ocean and sea.

Jacob Arrives in Paddan Aram
Genesis 28:1 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples. 2 There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well. The stone over the mouth of the well was large. 3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone away from the well’s mouth and water the sheep. Then they would return the stone to its place over the mouth of the well. 4 Jacob asked the shepherds, “My brothers, where are you from?” “We’re from Harran,” they replied. 5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?” “Yes, we know him,” they answered. 6 Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?” “Yes, he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.” 7 “Look,” he said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.” 8 “We can’t,” they replied, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.” 9 While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherd. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban, and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle’s sheep. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. 12 He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah. So she ran and told her father. 13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he hurried to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob told him all these things. 14 Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood.”

As Jacob takes his journey to his father and grandfather’s homeland to find a wife, he has a powerful dream in which he sees a ladder or stairway to heaven with angels coming up and down out of heaven. In his dream, the Lord is at the top of the ladder and promises the ground he is lying on to him and descendants to honor the Covenant he made with Abraham.

In the morning, Jacob takes the stone he was lying on (that must have been comfortable) and erects and altar, and then makes a vow to the Lord that the Lord will be His God. The stone would be a reminder of the Covenant, and also Jacob would give God a tenth of all he had. Remember Abraham had given a tenth of the spoils of war to the King Melchizedek. And the place was called “Bethel”, which means house of God. We can begin to see the transformation of Jacob, as he goes from deceiving to get the blessing, to responding in faith to God.

Then, in the reading above, we see the confidence with which Jacob has as God’s covenant son, as he meets Rachel much in the same way as Issac met Rebekah. Along comes old Uncle Laban, who recognizes his sister’s son, and realizes this is his own flesh and blood. When Jacob meets Rachel he kisses her (quite a first date), perhaps remembering the story his dad, Issac had told him of how he met Rebekah. It doesn’t get much better than this!

Matthew10:28 “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.32 “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven. 34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn

“‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
36 a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’

37 “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.40 “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. 42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.”

Jesus continues to teach the disciples on the cost of following him. These are challenging verses for sure. As Jesus brings this challenge, he first reminds them of their identity as sons of God. If God takes care of the sparrows, how much more will he protect them? Even the very number of hairs of their heads are known by the Father.

But then he reminds them that he did not come to bring peace but a sword, and that following him may even mean putting their relationship with Him above family. Does this mean Jesus is anti-family? Absolutely not, Jesus honored his family in obedience to the 4th commandment until the end. But he also realized that sometimes families would be divided over him, as they still are today. The main point I believe is that we are to honor God above all else. Part of that means to honor our father and mother, and yet if our family is asking us to do something that would dishonor God, then we need to follow God first.

Finally, Jesus gives them a huge promise as they go out to do what he did. He tells them that the treatment they receive will be rewarded exactly as if it were him. Meaning anyone who welcomed them would be like welcoming him. Since they were representing Him in His authority and power in obedience to His call, anyone who would welcome them would be welcomed and rewarded as if they were receiving Jesus.

This gives new meaning to anything we do in Jesus’ name, and reminds us that all we do we do as an ambassador of the King. This is quite a high calling don’t you think??!!

Divine teacher, just as you are the truth and the life, you are also the way. Teach us to walk in your path. We desire to reflect your image. Guide us so we will encounter you within our souls. Amen.

Friday, January 27th

2012-01-27T12:04:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:
Psalm 18:1-6
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm18&version=NIV
Genesis 27:30-28:9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis27&version=NIV
Matthew 10:17-25
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew10&version=NIV

Psalm 18 For the director of music. Of David the servant of the LORD. He sang to the LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.

1 I love you, LORD, my strength.
2 The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3 I called to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
and I have been saved from my enemies.
4 The cords of death entangled me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
5 The cords of the grave coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I called to the LORD;
I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came before him, into his ears.

You can see David’s heart for praise, which all starts from his personal relationship with Him and in the words, “I love you Lord, my strength.” Then, he recounts why he is able have so much trust in the Lord by lifting up all the metaphors that describes power and sovereignty. He calls God His, “Rock”, “Shield”, “Horn” and “Stronghold”.

When we feel powerless, we can turn to our all-powerful God. When we don’t see the answers to life’s problems, we can turn to the all-knowing God. When we feel afraid and alone, we can know that God is always with us because He is always present with us and only a prayer away. What a great truth to celebrate that our God is an awesome God, and He desires nothing more than to be with us in every situation and the one in whom we call out in our distress.

Genesis 28

1 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman. 2 Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel. Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. 4 May he give you and your descendants the
blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.” 5 Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and he went to Paddan Aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.

Even though Issac does not like being tricked and Esau even more so, his word of blessing and the giving of the birthright was done and were irrevocable. As this causes more friction to the point where Esau starts to plot revenge on his brother, Issac sends Jacob back to his homeland, where his servant found Rebekah, his eventual wife. And, in fact, he sends Jacob back to Uncle Laban, who tried to bargain with the servant to keep his daughter a little longer.

Just as Issac married a first cousin, so will Jacob eventually. In some states in the U.S. (26 to be exact this is marrying a 1st cousin is considered incest), but with a careful read of Leviticus, 1st cousin marriage is not considered incest, or sexual immoral, though many other relationships within family are. If you would like to read more about this distinction see this link:

http://www.cousincouples.com/?page=religion

The bottom line is the blessing given to Issac is passed on to Jacob, albeit in strange circumstances, reminding us that God’s ways are higher than our ways and often confound human logic.

Matthew 10:17-25

17 Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. 18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.21 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 23 When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.24 “The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!

As Jesus has given his disciples power and authority to make disciples and bring in His kingdom, Jesus also warns them that just as he suffered in bringing in God’s kingdom, so would they. But he lets them know that as they are suffering for His name, it will also be a moment where the Spirit will speak through them and witness to Jesus.

As we follow Jesus as his disciples, he reminds us that no student is above his teacher. This theology challenges a theology of “glory and prosperity”, which falsely teaches that being a disciple means you will always have success and material prosperity. Jesus didn’t have it, and tells his disciples that they will undergo many of the trials he did. That doesn’t mean that God can’t bless us with material possessions, as we see many faithful Christians who God has blessed who use their resources to advance the kingdom. But where these modern theologies get off base, is when they teach that everyone who is a Christian will be blessed with material prosperity. That is only for God to decide, and it shouldn’t surprise us when we face trials in this world as our Lord did.

But we must remember in the end, that God uses all things to His glory and even when Paul was on trial and in prison at the end of Acts, it is a chance for him to proclaim the gospel to kings and emperors for God’s glory!

Heavenly Protector, when we are threatened by the world around us, watch over us. When our fears weaken us, be our strength. When discouragement squelches the joy of life, shine your light into our lives and into your world. Amen.

Thursday, January 26th

2012-01-26T17:51:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:
Psalm 17:8-15
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm17&version=NIV
Genesis 27-19
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis27&version=NIV
Matthew 10:1-16
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew10&version=NIV

Psalm 17:8 Keep me as the apple of your eye;
hide me in the shadow of your wings
9 from the wicked who are out to destroy me,
from my mortal enemies who surround me.
10 They close up their callous hearts,
and their mouths speak with arrogance.
11 They have tracked me down, they now surround me,
with eyes alert, to throw me to the ground.
12 They are like a lion hungry for prey,
like a fierce lion crouching in cover.
13 Rise up, LORD, confront them, bring them down;
with your sword rescue me from the wicked.
14 By your hand save me from such people, LORD,
from those of this world whose reward is in this life.
May what you have stored up for the wicked fill their bellies;
may their children gorge themselves on it,
and may there be leftovers for their little ones.
15 As for me, I will be vindicated and will see your face;
when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

We often say of our kids, “They are the apple of our eye”, meaning they are our pride and joy. The psalmist reminds us this morning that we are the apple of God’s eye, and that in the shadow of His wings we find protection and provision. Though this will not prevent bad things from happening to us, we can know that one day we will see God and be like Him. As we live in the shadow of His wings, each trouble this life brings us brings us more and more closer to His likeness and a longing to be home with Him.

Genesis 27

1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” he answered. 2 Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death. 3 Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. 4 Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die.”5 Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country to hunt game and bring it back, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the LORD before I die.’ 8 Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: 9 Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. 10 Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies.”

We often forget that the origin of Jacob receiving his blessing from His father and that it was based in both his and his mother’s deception. Rebekah, who tried to manage the process and take the place of God, manipulates the situation, which will cause enmity between Jacob and Esau (whose people became the Edomites) the rest of their lives, and on into subsequent generations. Jacob’s name means “deceiver”, or literally “heal grabber”. It had already been pronounced by God, in keeping the Covenant promise, that the elder would serve the younger, but Rebekah and Jacob did not trust God’s promises and it caused a lot of problems.

Matthew 10
Jesus Sends Out the Twelve
1 Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

Matthew 10 starts a big change in the ministry of Jesus. Up to this point, he has principally been about three things: teaching in the synagogue, preaching to the crowds the good news about the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. In Matthew 9:35, as he looked out at the crowds he realized that they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Now he calls his 12 disciples out of the world to do exactly what he has been doing. Importantly he gives them the power and authority to carry it out. Notice he tells them to go first to the lost sheep of Israel. Later, he will personally commission Paul to be the apostle to the Gentiles (non-Jews). As a disciple of Jesus, do you feel his authority and power? How does it make you feel to think about doing the things Jesus and his disciples did?

God of all riches, there are many things that distract us by their glitter-enticing things and treasures that promise much. We desire to serve only you. We give you our hearts, our lives, our wealth. Amen.

Wednesday, January 25th

2012-01-25T08:32:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:
Psalm 17:1-7
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm17&version=NIV
Genesis 26
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis26&version=NIV
Matthew 9:17-38
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew9&version=NIV

Psalm 17
A prayer of David.

1 Hear me, LORD, my plea is just;
listen to my cry.
Hear my prayer—
it does not rise from deceitful lips.
2 Let my vindication come from you;
may your eyes see what is right.
3 Though you probe my heart,
though you examine me at night and test me,
you will find that I have planned no evil;
my mouth has not transgressed.
4 Though people tried to bribe me,
I have kept myself from the ways of the violent
through what your lips have commanded.
5 My steps have held to your paths;
my feet have not stumbled.
6 I call on you, my God, for you will answer me;
turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.
7 Show me the wonders of your great love,
you who save by your right hand

Today we see King David pouring his heart out to God and his desire for God to hear his prayers. We see his trust in God and his own reflection on his own heart and life. As we come before God each day in prayer it is always a good time for a “heart-check”. To confess is literally “to say the same thing before God”. Meaning a time of honesty, after all you can’t fool God so why try? The value of daily prayer is keeping short accounts with your Maker. There is also a clarity in our prayer life when we have done our business with God first, and then receive His forgiveness for the things we have done wrong and the good we have failed to do. I know I was reminded this morning of a situation where I went I probably went a little overboard on.

Genesis 26
Isaac and Abimelek
1 Now there was a famine in the land—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines in Gerar. 2 The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. 3 Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. 4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring[a] all nations on earth will be blessed,[b] 5 because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.” 6 So Isaac stayed in Gerar.7 When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.”8 When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelek king of the Philistines looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. 9 So Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.”

Issac continues to live out the Covenant promise that God had made to Abraham and encounter similar trials and the temptation to trust in his own wisdom instead of God’s clear provision and protection. Similar to his dad he attempts to deceive Abimelek and his men by saying his wife is his sister. Although God has promised Issac protection he goes to his own ways and his plan goes sideways when the king sees Issac and Rebekah together. And yes the bible doesn’t spare the details! The bottom line is Abimelek sees that God is with Issac and instead of being hostile he wants to cut a deal with him and go into partnership with him because he is shrewd man and sees God’s blessing on Issac’s life in all he does. But after a while as Issac’s flocks and wells increase exponentially he becomes a threat to the Philistines so he moves on to a new place.

When there are famines in your life are you tempted to go back to your old ways of trusting in self rather than God. God makes us His promise that he is with us in the good and bad times, and yet it is in the bad times when our trust in his provision is most challenged. May we hear the promise God re-affirmed in Isaac’s life, “Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”

Matthew 9 The Workers Are Few
35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Matthew 9:35-38 marks a parenthetic end to the first phase of Jesus’ ministry. It is a summary of how God’s kingdom came through Jesus as he taught, proclaimed the good news of the kingdom, and then demonstrated the power of the kingdom by healing every disease and sickness. As Jesus sees the huge need and that he is only one person, he prays to His father to send more workers into the harvest field.

In the next chapter we will see the next phase of Jesus’ ministry as he equips his disciples to do all the things he was doing. As we look out on our world today, Jesus sees the crowds in our world and that they are harassed and helpless and like sheep without a shepherd. He looks for workers like me and you to go out and bring a harvest into His kingdom through the power of the Church.

Faithful God, when we feel the weakest, you become our strength. You send your presence through those who come to us - sometimes angels, sometimes each other. Thank you for the nearness we feel this day through your servants. Amen.

Moravian Daily Texts for The Day 1/24/12

2012-01-24T07:58:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:
Psalm 16:7-11
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm16&version=NIV
Genesis 25
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis25&version=NIV
Matthew 9:14-26
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew9&version=NIV

Psalm 16
A miktam of David.

7 I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

In David, we see a man who walked with God. We see his focus in two very important matters. One, he is a man of constant praise. His life is one of adoring God and lifting up all the benefits of who God is. Second, he keeps his eyes on the Lord. His focus in on God and who He and not his inherent limitations. Then we see the result of his walk with God. He is secure and knows that his life both now and forever is accounted for. He also trusts the God will direct him in the paths of life. As he walks with God we see that he is full of joy and pleasure. David inspires us to a closer walk with God and knowing him personally and realizing that following God is a whole life proposition with all that we are body, mind and soul.

21 Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The LORD answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23 The LORD said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.”

24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. 26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.

In Genesis 25, we see the death of the patriarch Abraham, the man of faith who first received God’s covenant. Abraham was faithful to keep God’s covenant and God was faithful to bless his descendants even Ishmael and his twelve sons who were all tribal rulers. We also see true the prophecy made about them, that they lived in hostility with all their neighbors.

And then we see the covenant fulfilled through Issac and Rebekah, who we learned about yesterday, the daughter of Bethuel, the Aramean. Issac was in similar situation as his father, Abraham, as he and Rebekah were childless. But as he prayed to the Lord she became pregnant. Then as she became pregnant twins “she inquired of the Lord, why is this happening.” God spoke to her (how we don’t know) that older (Esau) would serve the younger (Jacob) – even if there age was only seconds apart.

Why was this so? We don’t know. God chooses Jacob, but not Esau. Is that fair? I guess it depends on whose vantage point you are looking at. Does God as Creator have the right to fashion and use His Creation for His purposes? Should we accept God’s purposes or question them? Seems arbitrary but then again God had to pick one of them to accomplish His purposes.

Jesus Questioned About Fasting

14 Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?”15 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.16 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. 17 Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Is Jesus against fasting? No. But as we see in other situations he re-defines the spiritual disciplines as activities so that the accomplish what they were intended for. They meant to bring us into a deeper fellowship with the Father and the Son in the power of the Spirit. We fast to get off the treadmill of life and commune with our Father. We abstain from earthly pleasures not because they are bad, but to become more spiritually in tune with what the Father is saying to us and also to enjoy fellowship with Him. Jesus is the New Wine and so a new wineskin is needed to contain all that He is and contains.

The church is in a sense a wineskin. We hold Jesus and offer Him to the world. When the church gets away from this primary purpose it can become old and cracked and the very thing it is for “holding the wine” can be lost if it forgets this.

Prayer: God of fellowship in Christ, bless us in our congregations, in oursharing, in our unity in the Spirit. Call us together as the body of Christ. Save us from walking our journeys isolated from each other.
Amen.

Moravian Daily Texts for The Day 1/23/12

2012-01-23T10:26:00.000-08:00

www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

Readings for Today:
Psalm 16
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm16&version=NIV
Genesis 24:26-66
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis24&version=NIV
Matthew 9:1-13
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew9&version=NIV

Psalm 16
A miktam of David.

1 Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.
5 LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
7 I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful[b] one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

This is one of the truly beautiful psalms of David. I put this psalm to memory when I first started my Christian walk and it has served me well all of my life. Here the psalmist recounts the multiplication of sorrows for those who run after other gods, as compared to the joy he finds in God’s presence and the eternal pleasures that await him. The other benefits to making the Lord is sole portion and keeping his eyes on Him at all times even during the night, is a strong sense that He will not be shaken and his body which dwells secure, which gladdens his heart and causes him to rejoice. The psalmist describes in short why following God is the only way to go, as every part of his life confirms this.

Genesis: 24
42 “When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘LORD, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come. 43 See, I am standing beside this spring. If a young woman comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,” 44 and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the LORD has chosen for my master’s son.’ 45 “Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’46 “She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’ So I drank, and she watered the camels also

We see the confirmation of the “fleece” Abraham’s servant had set out regarding the woman who would become Isaac’s wife. Abraham had given him a “tall task” but important the servant prays to the Lord for success on his journey. Specifically though he conditions his prayer with a request that the woman that God would have picked would when he asks her for a drink, water his camels too (no small task as camels get really thirsty!) And sure enough as soon as he is done praying Rebekah comes out with a jar on her shoulder. When the servant asks her for a drink she gives him one and says, “I will water your camels too!” You talk about confirmation it doesn’t get much better than that.

Have you ever prayed like that? Asking God for a specific sign for you to know that God would grant you success? What would that be like? If you have a story about this please let me know.

The Calling of Matthew
9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

As Jesus continues his ministry of healing, today he heals a paralytic; whose friends brought him on a mat. Jesus not only heals the man but announces the forgiveness of sins to him and his friends whose faith brought him there. The teachers of the law are offended and question Jesus’ authority. Jesus then informs that one of the purposes of Jesus’ healing ministry is to show where He gets his authority. The same authority that announces healing, also announces for forgiveness, for these are both things that only God could do. It reminds us that when are acting in God’s authority and power as His sons and daughters, that we can pray for healing and announce forgiveness for sins to each other in Jesus’ name.

Finally, Jesus calls Matthew, the tax collector. You probably know that tax collectors were some of the most hated people of the time. But Jesus saw Matthew’s heart and invited him to follow him. When others who were also categorized as sinners saw this, them came to the party as well. When questioned by the Pharisees of his association with these types Jesus reminds them that is the sick who need a doctor, not the healthy. These people acknowledged their need for a Savior, and were healed, but the Pharisees in the self-righteousness did not see any need for spiritual healing.

Prayer: The Gospel is your gift, O Savior - the good news of your deliverance from despair. We are astonished that you do this for us who often failto be faithful to you. We give you thanks throughout this day. Amen.

Moravian Daily Texts for The Day 1/21/12

2012-01-21T11:27:00.000-08:00

see www.moravian.org

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 15
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm15&version=NIV
• Genesis 23:1-24:25
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis23&version=NIV
• Matthew 8:23-34
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew8&version=NIV

Psalm 15, A psalm of David.
1 LORD, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain
2 The one whose walk is blameless,
who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from their heart;
3 whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to a neighbor,
and casts no slur on others;
4 who despises a vile person
but honors those who fear the LORD;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
and does not change their mind;
5 who lends money to the poor without interest;
who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
Whoever does these things
will never be shaken.

The psalmist lifts up the holiness of God and what it means to come into God’s presence. Since there was no temple in David’s time, the people worshipped in the tent, or tabernacle; where God dwelt by His Spirit. There is also reference to the holy mountain in Moses’ time where the Israelites received the Law and Ten Commandments. When Moses came down from the mountain his face was shining like the sun as a result of being close to God.

The prerequisite to come into God’s presence is holiness, as God is 100% holy. Verses 2-5 explain some of the ways we can lead a holy, or “set apart”, life. As we walk in God’s way as the verse concludes, we will never be shaken. Why? Because the truth sets us free and liberates us from the bondage to self and the world. Later we will learn that the only possible we can measure up to the righteous requirements of the Law is through Christ and in the power of His Spirit.

Genesis 24:42 “When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘LORD, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come. 43 See, I am standing beside this spring. If a young woman comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,” 44 and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the LORD has chosen for my master’s son.’45 “Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’ 46 “She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’ So I drank, and she watered the camels also. 47 “I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’
“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’ “Then I put the ring in her nose and the bracelets on her arms, 48 and I bowed down and worshiped the LORD. I praised the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son. 49 Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”50 Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the LORD; we can say nothing to you one way or the other. 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has directed.”

In Genesis 23 and 24, we see the Covenant promise moving into the next generation. Sarah has died, and Abraham buys a double cave from Ephron the Hittite in the Land of Canaan. While Ephron wants to give him the deed to the property, Abraham is insistent on buying the property so it will be in his name and family line. This is significant because it is a sign of his trusting in the God’s covenant promise that the Israelites would live in the Promised Land. Abraham wanted to buy the land for burial for both he and his wife (and later others too), as a sign as this is where his future progeny would live.

The next order of business is to find a wife for his son Issac, as he knows his time is coming near too. Specifically, he prohibits his servant from finding a wife for him in the land of Canaan, but sends him back to his home country. When the servant doubts how this will happen, Abraham assures him that an angel will help in the process. Sure enough, when the servant gets back there he prays to the LORD and asks him to reveal Issac’s future wife. He asks for a sign with the women who comes out that she would not only draw water for him, but also his camels. Sure enough Rebekah, who is the daughter of Abraham’s brother Nahor, comes out and does exactly what the servant asked for.

The servant gives her two bracelets and a golden nose ring and goes to her house. After some bartering with her brother Laban (who will hear more from later) and her mom (it appears her father Bethuel may have died), he agrees to give Rebekah to return with the servant. They conclude, “This is from the Lord”. In the morning they reconsider but they ask Rebekah and she says, “I will go”.

What an incredible story of God’s covenant promise being lived out and the trust these people had that this was from the Lord. After all can you imagine letting your daughter go off to a foreign country with a stranger you had just met?

Jesus Restores Two Demon-Possessed Men
28 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. 29 “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”30 Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”32 He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. 33 Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

Jesus continues to demonstrate the power of the kingdom. In the two stories today, Jesus shows his authority both over the forces of nature and spiritual powers. When the storm arises on the Sea of Galilee, Jesus speaks to the wind and the waves and they obey. Then in the story above, Jesus tells the demons who have possessed two men to go into the pigs. The pigs then rush into the water to their death, but the men are free of bondage.

Instead of realizing that they are in the presence of God, the townspeople are more worried about their livestock, so they plead with him to leave the region. The same power that caused Rebekah and her family to realize that Abraham’s servant was from God, come through Jesus who continues to show the world what God’s kingdom is like when it comes to earth.

Where might God be calling you to step out and trust one of His promises like Rebekah did in leaving her family to fulfill God’s purposes? It is always scary to trust God in these matters, but our faith comes alive when our actions show who we are truly trusting Him!

Prayer for the Day: Eternal God, your promises for our future fill us with excitement. We spend this day, tomorrow and the next day with you. You have promised to keep us for all eternity. Your glory fills our hearts. Amen.

Moravian Daily Texts for The Day 1/20/12

2012-01-20T13:05:00.000-08:00

• Psalm 14
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm14&version=NIV
• Genesis 22
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis22&version=NIV
• Matthew 8:5-22
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew8&version=NIV

Psalm 14
1 The fool says in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;
there is no one who does good.
2 The LORD looks down from heaven
on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,
any who seek God.
3 All have turned away, all have become corrupt;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.
4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?
They devour my people as though eating bread;
they never call on the LORD.
5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
for God is present in the company of the righteous.
6 You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor,
but the LORD is their refuge.
7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restores his people,
let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

The psalmist says the God looks down to see if there are any who understand and seek God. He concludes that all have turned away, and there is no one who does good. Paul picks up on this theme in Romans 3:11, and concludes in Romans 3:28, “We have all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory. “

You might say wait a minute “I’m a good person”, and you probably are in some respect, but what is your standard? God’s standard is perfection and if we are true and look into it through that lens, we will see we all fall short of perfection. That is the definition of the word “sin”, missing the mark, not hitting the “bulls-eye” every time. We all miss the mark. But at the end of the psalm, the psalmist expresses hope that God will restore His people and salvation for Israel (and for us!) will come out of Zion (another name for Israel in its redeemed state!)

Genesis 22
Abraham Tested
1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied.2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” 3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.” 6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied, “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” 8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

It is impossible to imagine what this must have been like for Abraham to offer his only and long awaited son, the son of the promise of God. As Abraham prepared for the burnt offering with the wood and the fire, Issac speaks these chilling words, “The fire and wood are here, but where is the burnt offering?” I am sure Abraham choked out his answer, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering!”

You can imagine the horror in young Issac’s eyes as his dad ties him on top of the wood. Then, as he draws the knife to offer His son in sacrifice the angels breaks in and says, “Abraham, Abraham!” One can’t conceive how glad Abraham is to hear those words. As the angel applauds his incredible faith, a ram is caught in the thicket for the sacrifice instead of his son. This is a foreshadowing of the Lamb of God, who will be our substitute on the altar of wood that formed the cross. Abraham shows complete, radical trust in God’s covenant to provide, and God affirms through the angel that Abraham’s descendants will be as numerous as the sands of the seashore and the stars in the sky.

Matthew 5:5-The Faith of the Centurion
5 When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. 6 “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”7 Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”8 The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. 11 I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.

As Jesus finishes the Sermon on the Mount, where he taught on what the kingdom of God looked like and how we as his followers might enter into a kingdom kind of life. Now he demonstrates it through healing and deliverance of those who are sick and demon possessed. We see the faith of the Roman Centurion, who was mid-level leader in the Roman army of about 100 soldiers (though century can also mean “tribe” or “troup”). Though he was a man well acquainted with authority, he recognized the supreme authority of Jesus and had faith to say, “Just say the word and my servant will be healed.”

We see healing happening on two levels here. The healing of the man who has come to faith in Jesus, and also his servant, who is healed as a result of his faith and trust in Jesus’ word. Without even being there or touching the servant, Jesus heals him in that moment.

Today we see that although none of us are necessarily good, we can receive God’s approval through faith and trusting in God’s promises like Abraham and this Roman Centurion. One of them a Jew the other one a Gentile, but both justified by faith in God and Jesus! What are you relying on for your justification? Have you come to realize you fall short of the glory of God? As we put our trust and believe in Jesus we will be healed in that very moment too!

Prayer for the Day: Christ, you taught us to pray and to forgive. Our weak desire to forgive
can sometimes undermine our prayers. Teach us the ministry of mercy so our prayers before you can give us life. Amen.

Thursday, January 19th

2012-01-19T15:10:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:

• Psalm 13
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm13&version=NIV
• Genesis 21
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis21&version=NIV
• Matthew 7:24-8:4
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew7&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Psalm 13
1 How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?
3 Look on me and answer, LORD my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.
5 But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
6 I will sing the LORD’s praise,
for he has been good to me.

Not many of us like to wait in life, and that is true in our relationship with the LORD as well. Here we see the psalmist wondering why God has not come to his aid sooner. In the process of waiting, he must wrestle with wondering why his enemy is being allowed to triumph. While this is probably a literal enemy, by application we can translate it as the figurative ones we battle as well. In the end though, we see his trust in God’s unfailing love and his heart can actually rejoice (that is quite amazing) in God’s certain salvation/deliverance. In his rejoicing he can sing a song of God’s goodness. This is quite a testimony. What a thing to be able to sing a song of rejoicing in the middle of waiting for God to deliver on His promises.

Genesis 21
14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob. 17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” 19 Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

As Hagar leaves Abraham’s house with her son, Ishmael, Abraham gives them some food and a skin of water. One would wonder what they were going to do after that as that is not too much to send your boy off with. When the water ran out, Hagar was left waiting and wondering what would happen to her boy. God had promised Abraham in verse 13 that He would make Ishmael into a great nation too, but she probably did not know that. But as she waited an angel visited her and reminded her of the promise God made to Abraham. As she opened her eyes, the provision of a watering well appeared and the waiting was over. God would be with Ishmael all the days of his life. God would provide and deliver on His promises.

Matthew 27 The Wise and Foolish Builders

24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Yesterday in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reminded his followers that the way was narrow that leads to life and few find it. On the contrary, broad is the road to destruction and many find it. Today, he ends the sermon with these words about the wise and foolish man. As we discussed in our men’s bible this morning, the narrow way is often not as easy in the short term, but in the long term pays big dividends. The broad way is easy and popular, but in the end there is great loss. This passage above sums up the difference, for when the rain falls and the floods rise, those who have taken the narrow way and build their foundation on the rock of God’s Word will be safe. Whereas those who took the broad way and blew off God’s instructions will be in for a quite a great crash!

We have seen great crashes in the stock market and what they do to those who have put their trust in their portfolio! While that is a big hit, there is a bigger hit for those who have built their life on the sand of human wisdom and self-absorption. As you read God’s word each day and put it into practice, you will be a wise person and be at peace knowing that whatever comes your way, you are on a solid foundation, and that foundation is faith in Jesus Christ!

Prayer for the Day: Merciful God, forgive us when we become distracted today by our tasks and appointments. We desire to keep you in the center of our lives, but the demands on us make that hard. We pray for your help. Amen.

Wednesday, January 18th

2012-01-18T10:35:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:

• Psalm 12
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm12&version=NIV
• Genesis 19:30-20:18
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis19&version=NIV
• Matthew 7:13-23
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew7&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

6 And the words of the LORD are flawless,
like silver purified in a crucible,
like gold refined seven times.
7 You, LORD, will keep the needy safe
and will protect us forever from the wicked,
8 who freely strut about
when what is vile is honored by the human race.

The psalmist continues to bemoan the human condition. He is worn out by people not living up to what they have said and it appears that gossip and flattery were just as present in his day as in ours. I.e. There is nothing new under the sun. But the Psalmist turns to God’s words for inspiration and hope. For God’s words are flawless like a precious metal that has been refined through the fire. Through God’s Word he is assured that God will vindicate the cause of those who seek to be more like God than the ways of the world.

Genesis 19:34 The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I slept with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.” 35 So they got their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.36 So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father. 37 The older daughter had a son, and she named him Moab[g]; he is the father of the Moabites of today. 38 The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the Ammonites of today.

Lot’s daughters in a similar fashion as Sarai, wanting Abram to have son, sleep with their father in order to preserve their family line. This was something clearly prohibited in Jewish Law. In their fear, they disobeyed God and deceived their father. As a result, their offspring would later become the Ammonites and Moabites, who later warred against the offspring of Jacob’s (Israel’s) descendants. Instead of trusting that God would provide, again we see human nature and wanting to be in control wins the day. The result is less than God’s desires for Lot’s family tree.

The Narrow and Wide Gates
Matthew 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

This is a challenging passage because we must weigh these words with the “broadness” of God’s heart. We know that God’s desire is that all people would be saved and He has provided a way for all people to be saved. For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that whoever would believe in Him would not perish but have eternal life.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me.” What is narrow about this way is that it is defined by God and not us. The biggest challenge we have is in admitting that God has a better way than I have. Our whole lives we will fight this battle about His way or our way, because we like to be in control. And yet the great paradox in life is that in surrendering our life, we find it. In dying to being in control, we truly become free. As we choose the narrow way of following Jesus, we see the broad, eternal and abundant life that comes to those who trust in Him.

Have you found the way? Are you living in it? In what ways is the “broad road” calling you to come down its road? Are you in fellowship with others who are in the Way? Jesus loves you and has done everything possible for you to experience this way, now trust and walk in it and you will see His promises come to life!

Prayer for the Day: O Savior, you are Lord over our doubts and our confidence, our questions and our convictions. You are with us when our faith trembles and when
your light fills our souls. Thank you for your faithfulness. Amen.

Tuesday January 17th

2012-01-17T08:35:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:

• Psalm 11
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm11&version=NIV
• Genesis 19:1-29
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis19&version=NIV
• Matthew 7:1-12
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew7&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:
4 The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD is on his heavenly throne.
He observes everyone on earth;
his eyes examine them.
5 The LORD examines the righteous,
but the wicked, those who love violence,
he hates with a passion.
6 On the wicked he will rain
fiery coals and burning sulfur;
a scorching wind will be their lot.
7 For the LORD is righteous,
he loves justice;
the upright will see his face.

Although it seems like God is far away and we often wonder how involved he is in our lives, the psalmist today reminds us that God observes “everyone” on earth. There is a saying that character is described as “who you are when no one is looking”. That is a helpful reminder, but even more helpful is the fact that God is always looking. He sees us in our comings and goings, and he sees our victories and successes. He is always with us as our Father in Heaven.

Genesis 19:23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the LORD. 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace. 29 So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

Genesis 19 brings another dark time in the history of mankind. As Lot provides hospitality for the two angels that have come as agents of God’s justice, the men of the town surround Lot’s house and want to have their way with the angels, such is their perversity. The two men warn Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”

As Lot, his wife and two daughter escape to the city of Zoar, his wife is turns back and is turned to stone. She and the two son in-laws fail to heed the angels warning and the result is not good.

There is a part in all of us that wants to dabble in the things of the world. But we too are told in Thessalonians to flee from immorality. As we were told yesterday in Matthew 6:33 we are reminded to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. Where are you being tempted to take Your eyes off of what God is doing? What things in the world cause you to want to look back instead of looking forward to the heavenly prize in Christ Jesus?

Ask, Seek, Knock
Matthew 7:7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 9“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

As Jesus continues to describe what life in the kingdom looks like in the Sermon of the Mount, he teaches his disciples not spend their time judging others, but instead to focus on the kingdom coming through them. He teaches them how to pray in the process of asking, seeking and finding.

We see a process of prayer where God invites us into a relationship with him and how he gives good gifts to His children who seek him and knock until the door is opened. Of course, God could just give us good gifts without us asking, but the process here draws into a trusting relationship whereby we seek God through prayer and listening for God’s will.

Part of God’s joy in giving us good gifts, is the process whereby we come to him, seek him and knock until the door is opened for His kingdom to flow through us. Where have you been asking, seeking and knocking? Has the door opened yet? What would that look like and how would that strengthen your trust in God as your heavenly Father?

Prayer for the Day: Lord, you are high and lifted up. Your glory fills our lives. We pray the experiences of this day will deepen our faith in you. Help us to keep our lives centered on you. Amen.

Monday, January 16th

2012-01-16T07:32:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 10:12-18
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm10&version=NIV
• Genesis 18
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis18&version=NIV
• Matthew 6:19-34
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew6&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:
14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;
you consider their grief and take it in hand.
The victims commit themselves to you;
you are the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked man;
call the evildoer to account for his wickedness
that would not otherwise be found out.

Oftentimes those being afflicted feel as if the LORD is far from them, but God hears their cries. Much like Joseph, who was in prison for 12 long years, God heard his voice and eventually vindicated him. Though it appears that evil sometimes wins the day, in the long scheme of things, evil is found out and dealt with.

Genesis 18:9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him.“ There, in the tent,” he said.10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. 11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?” 13 Then the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.” But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

When the angels of the LORD visit Abraham and Sarah and tell them that in a year she will bear Abraham a son, she laughed to herself. Of course the angels caught it, even though Sarah thought she was getting away with something. Despite the divine appearance, Sarah is limited by her human understanding. Of course, if we were in Sarah’s shoes, at ninety, we would have probably done the same thing. Has God ever told you He was going to do something in your life that was laughable? Sometimes God’s plan are so beyond what we could accomplish in our own natural strength, they seem humorous to us, but not too God.

Do Not Worry
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Today’s Gospel from Matthew deals with worry. Is there any among us who doesn’t have a worry problem? Since Jesus says, “Do not worry”, I guess then worry is a sin. Seems harsh, as it is so natural to our human condition, but at its root worry is a lack of trust in God. Worry doubts God’s provision for our lives. And as the passage says, it is not very productive. Who us by worrying has done anything to solve situation we are worrying about.

But instead as an antidote to worry, Jesus tells us to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. I guess if we were to worry about anything it would be about what God is concerned about. As we seek God first and what He wants to accomplish here on earth, the rest will fall in place. This is the promise for today. What are you worrying about? How can seeking God’s kingdom and righteous help you replace your focus.

Prayer for the Day: Our Father in heaven, the things we cherish more than we cherish you, things we make our life's priorities are precious to us. Forgive us when we invent our own gods to serve. Amen.

Saturday, January 15th

2012-01-14T07:58:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 10:1-11
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm10&version=NIV
• Genesis 16,17
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis16&version=NIV
• Matthew 6:5-18
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew6&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Psalm 10:1-4
1 Why, LORD, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,
who are caught in the schemes he devises.
3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart;
he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.
4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;
in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

The psalmist wonders why God stands far off when there is so much wickedness on the earth. He describes the man whose life is lived out incessantly trying to fulfill only their immediate wants/desires. This person is so filled with thoughts about themselves, that there is no room for God. While it seems as though this person is not accountable, one day he will be.

Genesis 17:1-8 The Covenant of Circumcision
1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. 2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

In chapter 16, Abram listens to his wife Sarai, who is still childless and calls his maidservant Hagar and to have a son through her, who will be named Ishmael. Instead of waiting for God to fulfill His covenant promise, Abram and Sarai take matters into their own hands. Sarai becomes bitter at Hagar and sends her away, but God still promises to bless her and Abram’s son, Ishmael. Ishmael will be blessed, and 12 sons will come from his offspring, but later there will be rivalry between the offspring of Ishmael and the promised Son, Issac. In the midst of Abram and Sarai’s distrust of the Covenant, we see God’s grace in taking care of Hagar and Ishmael.

Now in chapter 17, 13 years later, Abram and Sarai are still waiting for a son of their own. The LORD appears to Abram to renew the Covenant He had made with Abram in chapter 12 and 15. Importantly, the LORD tells Abram that this will be an everlasting covenant and nations and kings will come from Abram’s offspring. As God has made this covenant with Abram, for his part God asks Abram to circumcise everyone in his household including his servants. No small ask!

Abram trusts God even in his old age, and has his whole household circumcised (including himself at age 99) as a sign of this renewed covenant. He also takes a letter out of His Divine Name (YHWH) and gives one “H” to Abram to give him the name “Abraham” (which means Father of many nations) and to Sarai to make her name “Sarah” (which means mother of many nations and kings). Although Abram laughs at God’s promise of a Son and only wishes that Ishmael (now 13) would be taken care of, in obedience he does what God asks of him.

Giving to the Needy
Matthew 6:6-13 “6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”

As Jesus continues to describe life in the kingdom, he teaches the disciples and the crowds about the value of spiritual disciplines like “prayer” and “fasting”. Disciplines are those things that help us to connect with God and live by His power in our lives. Importantly they are not to be used to bring attention to ourselves. In fact, Jesus says we should pray in secret so as to avoid bringing attention to ourselves in our practice of the disciplines.

Then, Jesus gives us a model for prayer, which is every bit as relevant today, as it was back then. The Lord’s Prayer is a simple, but powerful prayer. It begins with adoration of who God is. Then our prayer is that God’s kingdom would come on earth as it is in heaven. Surely God sends His kingdom in His way and timing, but He tells us to pray for it to come as well. Jesus also says we should ask for today’s “Daily Bread”. God wants us to come to him for our daily needs. There is a prayer of confession for our transgressions, or debts, and a commitment to forgive others as we have been forgiven. Finally, we ask the LORD not to lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (as translated plainly “evil”). Though we can expand on each of these petitions, that about covers it, doesn’t it!

So today’s readings start with the Psalmist who wonders why those who do evil get away with it. Then Abraham who is wondering just how God is going to give him a son at such an old age. And it concludes with a prayer asking for God’s kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven, and to give us just enough for today, trusting our tomorrows with the One who gives us today!

What do you need to pray for today? Ask God to provide for your daily bread and then expect His kingdom to come one day at a time!

Prayer for the Day: Thank you, Holy Spirit, for instilling in us passion and joy for the tasks of going and proclaiming. You've sent us because you love us and we go because we love you. Guide us in this mission today. Amen.

Friday, January 13th

2012-01-13T11:20:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm9&version=NIV
• Genesis 14,15
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis14&version=NIV
• Matthew 5:43-6:4
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew5&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Psalm9:11
Sing the praises of the LORD, enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations what he has done.
12 For he who avenges blood remembers;
he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.
13 LORD, see how my enemies persecute me!
Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,
14 that I may declare your praises
in the gates of Daughter Zion,
and there rejoice in your salvation.

After Abram honors God by giving King Melchizedek (a priest/king like Jesus was!) a tenth of all of the spoils of war, the King tries to give Abram some of it back but Abram denies it. Abram says that he has made an oath to God, and besides he didn’t anyone to say an earthly king had made him rich. He wanted to proclaim that is was only through God’s provision and blessing that he had become rich.

Shortly after this, the LORD appears to Abram in a vision and reminds him that the LORD is His great reward. Abram questions the LORD since he still has no child, but the LORD tells him to look up at the sky and count the stars a sign of his future offspring. Abram believes the LORD and it is credited to Him as Righteousness. Notice our righteousness can only come from trusting or believing in God’s promises. Paul will pick up on this in Romans.

Abram is still wondering how this is going to happen, so God makes another Covenant with Abram. Abram hears the words he longs to hear, “Bring me a heifer”. Meaning God’s promise would be sealed in a covenant in which Abram offers his prime, mature (3 years old) heifers, goats and rams and this would be Abram’s word becoming flesh. As you will see at the end of the chapter, the LORD confirms the Covenant by passing through the sacrificed animals through the corrider of blood in the smoking firepot and blazing torch, thus confirming the Covenant. Now Abram and the LORD are one forever!

The LORD’s Covenant With Abram
Genesis 15:1 After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision:
“Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”2 But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”4 Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” 5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. 7 He also said to him, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” 8 But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?” 9 So the LORD said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.”

Jesus continues to teach his disciples and the crowds what it looks like to be an ambassador of the kingdom. Importantly when they do good things it is not to receive attention from others. But yet he urges them to do their good deeds in secret so that only their Heavenly Father will see what they are doing. This will help them from being prideful and be a reminder that they are not doing these things to be noticed by man but by the LORD!

Giving to the Needy
Matthew 6:1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Are you able to trust in God’s promises like Abram? As we do God will call us to respond by offering ourselves as a living sacrifice, by the way we live and give. As we live a life in Covenant with God, our good deeds flow out of our identity of being sons and daughter of the King. He has given us all that is His, and now we can give back not to earn our identity but because of who we are in Him.

Prayer for the Day: Our Creator, how amazing it is that you have embedded in our hearts the
same power you used in creation! You make us children of light. Come near us this day as we ponder the face of Christ. Amen.

Thursday, January 12th

2012-01-12T14:02:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm9&version=NIV
• Genesis 12:10-13:18
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis12&version=NIV
• Matthew 5:27-42
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew5&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Psalm 9
7 The LORD reigns forever;
he has established his throne for judgment.
8 He rules the world in righteousness
and judges the peoples with equity.
9 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name trust in you,
for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you

The psalmist places his trust in God, who reigns forever and is refuge for the oppressed. Often the hardest time of trusting God is when we see the injustice in the world and feel helpless to do anything about it. The psalmist today re-affirms that God never will forsake those who trust in Him.

Abram in Egypt
10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. 11 As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me but will let you live. 13 Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.”

Speaking of trust, we see that Abram’s trust is shaken in God when they go down to Egypt due to a famine. Instead of trusting in the Covenant God has made with him, he lies about Sarai being his sister, instead of his wife. Because she was unmarried, Pharoah wanted to make her part of his harem, since she was so beautiful. If Abram would have said she was his wife, worse could have happened.

Bottom line though is that God had promised Abram that his offspring would bless the whole world, so Abram lacked trust in God’s promises. Before we are too hard on Abram, we realize that he was in a very tough situation and feared for his own life, and yet later Abram will trust in God enough to sacrifice his long awaited son, Issac.

Adultery
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

As Jesus continues to teach what the kingdom of God looks like in practical matters such as marriage, divorce, and making oaths (promises) he often begins “You have heard it said…” Jesus already has said he did not come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it, and now he gives some practical applications of how to honor the Spirit of the Law, not just the letter.

Because of human nature, we will often try to construct the minimum ways to obey a law with the least amount of effort or sacrifice. Jesus takes a common struggle, like lust, and shows that it is really a “heart” struggle before it becomes a full blown act of infidelity. Jesus teaches that behaviors are a reflection of an inward, spiritual reality. Eventual the good and bad we do is a reflection what is going on in our heart, where the will resides.

Today’s passages are all about trust. The psalmist trusting in God’s justice with those who were evil, Abram trusting in God’s promises for protection of His wife, and you and I trusting in God rather than lustful desires to satisfy our soul. What are you trusting in lately? As you trust in God He will renew your heart in His glorious light!

Prayer for the Day: God of creating light, you were in the beginning before anything existed. You continue to create. All that you touch becomes new and sacred. Thank you for the light in us and for making us new today. Amen.

Wednesday, January 11th

2012-01-11T13:24:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 8
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm8&version=NIV
• Genesis 11:10-12:9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis11&version=NIV
• Matthew 5:17-26
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew5&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Today our psalmist marvels at the majesty of the Lord and then marvels at the fact that as we consider God’s Creation, we realize that as human beings we are the crown of His Creation because we have been made in His image. As the passage says we are made just a little lower than the angels. And indeed God has made us co-rulers with Him and shared His glory with us by letting us rule over the things He has made.

1 LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens.2Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. 3 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? 5 You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor.

With all the things that went wrong with the Noah project, God re-starts His plan for all Creation through a covenant with Abram, the son of Terah. The call of Abram called him to leave his own country and go to the Promised Land, the land of Canaan. And with that call came the promise that God would make Abram into a great nation. Abram would be blessed so that he could be a blessing and through all the people of the earth would be blessed through him. Abram was 75 years old when he received the 2nd covenant that God made with us. (The first one being that God made with Noah that He would never again destroy the people on the earth through a flood!)

The Call of Abram
1 The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. 2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

As continues to teach on the Sermon on the Mount, he makes it clear what the Kingdom breaking into our world looks like and and what it doesn’t look like. He makes it clear that it doesn’t mean erasing the Law that the Israelites had been given through Moses, but that He had come to fulfill the Law. Meaning the Law had been given through Moses (by way of Abram) but now the people would have a new power to be able to actually fulfill the Law through Jesus.
Verse 20 can be a challenging verse as one might read into to it that we have to do more stuff to enter into God’s kingdom, but we will learn that our righteousness does not come by trying harder to be righteous but to be in a relationship with the One who is righteous, thus obtaining a righteousness that comes by faith. The Pharisees and teachers of the Law, knew the Law, but had no power to actually fulfill what it meant for their lives. Jesus came to bring this power to all who would receive Him.

The Fulfillment of the Law
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Prayer for the Day: God of creating light, you were in the beginning before anything existed. You continue to create. All that you touch becomes new and sacred. Thank you for the light in us and for making us new today. Amen.

Tuesday January 10th

2012-01-10T08:22:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:

• Psalm 7:10-17
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm7&version=NIV
• Genesis 10:1-11:9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis10&version=NIV
• Matthew 5:1-16
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew5&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:

Today our psalmist again reaffirms that his trust and protection are with the Lord, who is his shield. He doesn’t need to worry about taking matters of justice into his own hands, because God will punish those who are pregnant with evil. Importantly though for those bent on evil, we see that God is willing to relent if they turn from their ways.

Psalm 7:10 My shield is God Most High,
who saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a righteous judge,
a God who displays his wrath every day.
12 If he does not relent,
he will sharpen his sword;
he will bend and string his bow.

In Genesis today we see that as the descendants of Noah’s sons begin to gather in one place, their intent was to build a “name” for themselves. The Lord sees that in their hearts they are trying to put their trust in themselves, rather than Him, and so He scatters them and confuses their language. The name “Babel”, which we still use today (i.e. babbler), means “confusion” in Hebrew. It is also the name for the city of Babylon, which would be a place that opposed God’s purposes throughout Israel’s history, and is the home for modern day Iraq (located approximately 45 miles South of Bagdad).

Genesis 11:3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. 6 The LORD said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”8 So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth."

Finally, in Matthew 5, we see the famous “Sermon on the Mount” teaching given by Jesus to the crowds, by way of his disciples. In this passage, we see the upside/down nature of God’s kingdom. I.e. “Blessed” are the meek, the poor in spirit, and those who are persecuted. Jesus shows that the kingdom often comes in ways that are unexpected. The term for “blessed” can also mean “happy ”. “Happy” meaning, not in a superficial way, but truly joyous! As we live out God’s kingdom values, as God’s children, we will not be building a tower for ourselves but His kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. The kingdom is built each day, as we live out the values Jesus expresses in the Beatitudes.

Take a moment to reflect on the “Beatitudes”, or might we say “be-attitudes”, or “attitudes” of “being”! What “be-attitude” do you need to focus on today. Mercy? Humility? Peacemaker? Purity? As you seek out these attitudes as God gives you the grace and power to do you, will find true happiness, which the bible calls, “blessedness”.

Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. 14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Prayer for the Day: Forgive us, our Redeemer, when we take on a show of piety but not a heart of piety. Create in us a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within us. Restore to us the joy of salvation. Amen.

Monday, January 9th

2012-01-09T08:56:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 7:1-9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm7&version=NIV
• Genesis 9
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis9&version=NIV
• Matthew 4:12-25
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew4&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:
In today’s reading we see the conflict between God’s purposes and the darkness that is in the world. In Psalm 7 the psalmist writes, “1 LORD my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me,2 or they will tear me apart like a lion and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me.”

We know that David, who as king faced the wrath of the nations, had to rely on God to justify his cause. We see his trust in God, despite the presence of evil all around him. Clearly his trust is in God, His shield. Then, in Genesis, we see the first covenant God makes with human beings through Noah and his sons.

God makes a promise that He will never again will he destroy all life through the waters of a flood. God says this to Noah,

“7 As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it. 8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9 “I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you 10 and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. 11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

We will see throughout the bible that God is a God of covenant. This is the first of several covenants God will make with His people, as a foreshadowing of the covenant He will make through His Son. In each covenant there was a sign of the Promise God has made. In the Covenant with Noah, the sign is a “rainbow” in the sky. With the promise there is an earthly element, as a reassurance or reminder of what God has promised. We will also see this pattern through the rest of bible as well. For faith needs something to cling to.

As Jesus emerges from the wilderness testing, after His baptism, His earthly ministry begins with these words, “17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

The same kingdom that David was fighting to bring in, has now come with a new availability for all those who have been called. Jesus’ message is to “repent”, which means “turn around”, “open your eyes,” because God’s kingdom has come near. In fact, God’s kingdom has come in the person of Jesus. After he calls his first disciples, we see the evidence of the kingdom right away as the sick and diseased and demon possessed are delivered from the kingdom of darkness and set free by Jesus, the author and perfecter of life.

God’s kingdom continues to come to those who repent of trusting in themselves, and turn to Jesus for forgiveness and then the power to life the life God called us to. As you begin your week take a moment to remember who you are called to be and the power and authority you have as God’s sons and daughters as you go out into the world today.

Prayer for the Day: Lord, we know of the cruelties of war shown to us vividly in video clips. Yet, we are unable and sometimes unwilling to be peacemakers. O God, come and save us. Be our Prince of peace. Amen.

Daily Bread 2012 Saturday January 7th

2012-01-07T08:35:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 6
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm6&version=NIV
• Genesis 7:11-8:22
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis7&version=NIV
• Matthew 4:1-11
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew4&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:
Today we hear the psalmist crying out to God. He states, “6 I am worn out from my groaning. All night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears. 7 My eyes grow weak with sorrow; they fail because of all my foes. 8 Away from me, all you who do evil,for the LORD has heard my weeping.9 The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer. 10 All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and anguish; they will turn back and suddenly be put to shame.” We see that within his struggle against his foe he has a quiet confidence in the Lord’s deliverance. He has assurance that the LORD has heard and accepted his prayer and will act accordingly.

Yesterday in our book of beginnings, “Genesis”, we saw that God was sorry he had made human beings and how every inclination of their heart was evil, so he brought a flood to judge all the earth in it except for Noah and his family who were blameless. And chapter 7 tells us that it rained for forty days and nights, and then waters flooded the earth for 150 days. But then it says God “remembered” Noah (I’ll bet Noah was grateful for that as it was probably getting pretty stuffy inside that Ark) and the waters started to subside. Notice they started, it didn’t happen all at once.

Then after another forty days it says,
“6 After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark 7 and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. 8 Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. 9 But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. 10 He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11 When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. 12 He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.”

Roughly speaking the whole process took a year. We don’t often stop and think of what that year must have been like for Noah and his three sons and daughters and all those animals. Would they survive? Why was it taking so long? Would they ever see dry land? Like the psalmist I’m sure they cried out with groaning day and night for deliverance. And sure enough when the dove came back with a freshly plucked olive leaf they had evidence that God would keep His promises. The Word made flesh.

And as we see in our 4th chapter of the gospel of Matthew, our LORD was not immune to suffering. Right out of the shoot after His glorious baptism where the Spirit came upon Him He is sent/driven by that same Spirit into the desert for a time of testing. (So much for the baptismal party!)

And we hear of this scene in the desert of testing,
“1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
There is an interesting word play on the word for “tempt”, it is rooted in the same word for testing. While the devil wanted to get Jesus to succumb to his temptation to trust in him versus God, Jesus was being tested to make sure He relied on God’s Word above all else. After 40 days I’m sure those stones looked mighty tasty (like hot cooked oven bread with butter running off), but Jesus remembered what was written, “That man does not live on bread alone, but every Word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The devil tries two other tactics to get Jesus to trust in something other than the Word, but Jesus is not biting, but this will not be the last time the Son of Man will be tested just as we are every day.

The psalmist, Noah, and Jesus all must wait on the Lord and trust in His Word above all else despite situations that drive them to give up their trust. What trial(s) are you going through today, and how can our forefathers in the faith help you to endure and trust that in time God’s will provide the freshly plucked olive leaf as evidence that He will provide! Today we pray for those who might feel as God has forgotten them, hoping it will be an olive leaf for them to endure in their trial.

Prayer for the Day: God who answers prayers, hear the voices of billions crying out for
deliverance. We join those abused, ravaged by war or steeped in poverty, in prayer. Hear our prayers for them and for ourselves. May your kingdom come to this world. Amen.

Friday, January 6th

2012-01-06T12:48:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Happy Epiphany Day of our Lord!

Readings for Today:

• Psalm 5
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm5&version=NIV
• Genesis 6:1-7:10
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis6&version=NIV
• Matthew 3
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew3&version=NIV

Thoughts for the Day:
As begin again today we are reminded in Psalm 5 of the daily rhythm of prayer. The psalmist writes, “2 Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.3 In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”

What a great way to start our day to lay our requests before the Lord, and then wait for Him to answer us. Most of us don’t like to wait, but part of the gift of patience is being able to wait on the Lord. We live in a society of instant gratification, so this can be a challenge for most of us.

We see this propensity to instant gratification loud in clear in the account of Noah and His generation. The writer of Genesis says this about them,

“5 The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. 6 The LORD regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7 So the LORD said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.”

This was a very dark time in human history where every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. God regretted what He made everyone but one man, Noah, who found favor with God because he walked with God and was righteous. Through Noah and his family (his three sons and their wives) the story of God’s redemption was kept alive.

Finally, in Matthew 3, we a new prophet on the scene who will announce a new era of God’s kingdom coming here on earth as it is in heaven. Here is the account of John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin. 1 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’”

Up until this time God’s kingdom had come on specific people, at specific times, for specific purposes. Now John is announcing a new availability of the kingdom that would come in the person of Jesus. The “kingdom has come near” does not give near enough force for the actual words used by Matthew. The more accurate rendering is that the kingdom of God had broke through in a violent way, and come to heaven in all its fullness. And this kingdom came in the form of a new King, the Messiah. John’s announcement was to prepare the way or “repent”. Meaning, turn around see the opportunity that is before you, you will now be able to participate in God’s kingdom in a newer, fuller way!

Prayer for the Day: You are the light of the world. You are the light of our souls. Create
in us a desire to do your will. Enable us to love you through our obedience. Let your light shine through us. Amen.

Thursday January 5th

2012-01-05T08:58:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 4
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm4&version=NIV
• Genesis 5
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis5&version=NIV
• Matthew 2:13-23
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+2&version=NIV

Thoughts for The Day:

As we begin day 4 of the daily reading plan, we start out with Psalm 4, which has the title below for the “Director of Music”. At the end we also see the word “Selah”. The Hebrew word is difficult to translate/understand but is commonly understand as “stop/listen”. Since this Psalms were often played as part of the worship service, there were times left to stop and listen to what God was saying, which was accompanied by “Amen”, which means “indeed, or so be it”. It is a good reminder that as we read God’s Word and have times or prayer and praise, we should stop and listen and pause for reflection on what God is saying to us!

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.
“1 Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress;
have mercy on me and hear my prayer. 2 How long will you people turn my glory into shame?
How long will you love delusions and seek false gods. Selah”

In chapter 5, in Genesis, we see the author giving us a genealogy from Adam to Noah, and within this time frame there are 10 generations. Within this we see a man named Enoch who apparently walked with God with great intimacy and integrity. The text says,

“23 Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. 24 Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.”

Apparently God’s relationship was so great with Enoch that He decided He needed him in heaven. The language in the Hebrew intimates integrity, intimacy and obedience. The word “walk” was one of intimacy similar to the intimacy between a man and a woman. Faithfulness was a word that describes God’s relationship with His covenant people. Enoch is one of the first persons who responds to God’s faithfulness with His own obedience and faithfulness to God. This is a great example of what will come in the person of Jesus.

In our Gospel lesson, we see again how the worldly king’s thirst for power, seeks to eradicate the future coming King. But Joseph, who is obedient to his dreams, keeps the Christ child out of harm’s way. Even as he goes back to Israel his native land, the king there is not much better than King Herod, his predecessor. So again being warned in a dream, Joseph takes Jesus to Galilee in a town called Nazareth, thus fulfilling the prophecy that Jesus would be called a “Nazarene”.

“21So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, 23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.”

Take time to stop and listen to what God is saying to you. As you listen to God and respond you will increase your intimacy with God, and as we say, “develop a walk with God”. This is the purpose reading the bible, so we can develop greater friendship with God and get in the habit of listening to Him and responding in obedience to what He is saying to us. It certainly worked for Joseph as he raised the Son of God and it will work for us too!

Prayer for the Day: God, the world is so enticing to us - we want to taste everything. Our minds are cluttered with desire. You alone are worthy of our desire and worship. Today we devote ourselves wholly to you. Amen.

Daily Bread 2012 - Wednesday, January 4th

2012-01-04T07:29:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 3 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%203&version=NIV
• Genesis 3,4 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%203&version=NIV
• Matthew 2:1-12 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+2&version=NIV

Thoughts for The Day:
As we begin day 3 in our study of the bible, we see a change in the turn of events. While the Creation story was accented that everything was good in chapters 3 and 4 we see the effects of the Fall. Genesis 3 describes it beginning in this way,

“1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

The Fall starts with doubting God’s promises and thinking that we can provide for ourselves. It also comes from “trespassing” or stepping over the boundaries God has given for us. Instead of trusting that God had given them everything they needed the man and woman listen to the doubting voice of the serpent and when they eat of the tree they are not supposed they are naked and now fearing God instead of enjoying His fellowship in the cool of the garden.

We see the enmity between man’s purposes again in Psalm 3 where David writes about how the nations have taken their stand against God’s anointed. This is prophecy of Jesus who will be the king of kings yet rejected by the nations. As Israel’s first king, David too would get a glimpse of the suffering that can come with trying to bring about God’s purposes.

"1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,3 “Let us break their chainsand throw off their shackles.”

As we head to our Gospel story, Matthew recounts the birth of Christ and how the powers that be, instead of welcoming the king of Kings, try to eliminate him. Fortunately the Magi listen to the voice of God in a dream and don’t play into Herod’s evil plans. Instead they worship the King and offer him gifts fitting of a king.

9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

As we seek to live out God’s purposes today as God’s covenant children, there will be opposition as well. Just as Cain hated Abel’s fitting offering, and Herod despised the Magi’s gifts for the real King, our enemy does not want us to worship God but him. But as we worship God rightly for who He is and offer Him our gifts, we like the Magi will be given direction so we can walk in the truth and not be harmed.

Prayer for the Day: Holy Spirit, you have created in us a desire for holiness and a hunger for the sacred. Nothing blesses us more than to follow your guidance. Let your will be done in us as it is in Heaven. Amen.

Tuesday January 3rd

2012-01-03T07:23:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today:
• Psalm 2
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%201&version=NIV
• Genesis 2:4-25
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%201&version=NIV
• Matthew 1:18-25
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+1&version=NIV

Thoughts for The Day:
So we begin day 2 of our journey through God’s Word together, I am glad you are along for the ride. As we go through the bible this year, I will be looking at the twin themes of Covenant and Kingdom. Covenant is about our relationship with God, which He initiated through the sending of His Son. And Kingdom is about our responsibility to represent Him in the world. I think you will find this “dual lens” by which to view the Scriptures very helpful as we discern how the Scriptures apply to us today.

Today we see echoes of the Covenant and Kingdom theme in Psalm 2:7-8 where the psalmist states, “He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father. Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.” This is referring to the Messiah who would become the Son of God and as ruler of the nations. Psalm 2 reflects the fact that the kings and rulers of the earth have power but it is all under the ultimate reign of God through Jesus.

In Genesis 2, we see a second account of Creation focusing on how God has caused man (Hebrew is “Adam”) to be formed from the dust of the ground and breathed life into him. Importantly God gives Adam the opportunity to name the animals of the Creation thus allowing man to participate in the Creation process. Genesis 2:19-20 says this about the whole experience, “Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.”

We don’t often stop and think of the magnitude of these verses and what they might mean for us today. In the New Testament, we will learn also of the authority and power God has given us as His sons and daughters bring about his reign and rule through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Finally, in our Gospel lesson in Matthew 1 we see the miraculous way into which the Son of God came into the world through the “immaculate conception”. God uses human beings, Mary through who Jesus was born, and Joseph’s faithfulness to become his father to become one of us.

So we see throughout the Scriptures today God’s initiative to come into our world and use us to help him bring about His purposes. The exciting thing we will discover is that God is still bringing out His purposes to come to pass through people like you and me. Today we thank those who have gone before us to share the Good News with us and may we as faithful as them in passing on the Good News.

Prayer for the Day: God of all ages, thank you for grandparents, parents, elders in the
church and community and pastors with age and experience. They teach us so much and give us great strength. We feel your presence in their existence among us. Amen.

Daily Bread 2012 - Monday January 2nd

2012-01-02T08:00:00.000-08:00

(see www.moravian.org/daily_texts/ for more info on Daily Texts I will be using each day)

Readings for Today: (you can cut and paste these lessons to go online to read or of course read from your own bible!)

• Psalm 1
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%201&version=NIV

• Genesis 1-2:17
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%201&version=NIV

• Matthew 1:1-17
www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+1&version=NIV

Thoughts for The Day:
Today is a day of new beginnings. Like the old saying goes, “Today is the first day of the rest of your life.” We cannot change the past we can only learn from it. I am excited for a new year to walk through the bible with you. As Psalm 1 says:

“1 Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.”

Instead of saying “Happy New Years”, we should have a “Blessed New Year” because that is what God intends for the person who is committed to following His ways. My prayer is that as we begin each day in God’s word and meditate on it then day and night, we will be like that tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in season. Notice it says “seasons”, there will be times of more fruitfulness and less fruitfulness, but the promise of God is that as we stay planted in God’s Word we will be fruitful.

The other readings for today focus on “New Beginnings” too! In Genesis 1, we see how the world began and how God’s creation culminated in the crown of His Creation in Genesis 1:27 when the writer says, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

In the next chapter, we see that God had provided everything for the first humans according to His permissive will, but gave just one command to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In Genesis 2:16-17 the author writes, “And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

In our New Testament lesson today, the first Gospel according to Matthew starts with the genealogy of Jesus focusing particularly on the fact that Jesus descended from the lines of David and Abraham. Since God is a God of Covenant (a promise being two parties together as one), we see that the promises in the Old Testament to both Abraham and David are the basis for sending His Son to fulfill the purpose God had since the beginning of Creation.

We see the fact that all of this was in God’s timing in the fact our Gospel writer says in Matthew 1:17 says, “Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ.”

As we begin a New Year we see God’s faithfulness in the past and this reminds and assures us that He will be faithful to His people in the future. May you live each day this year planted in God’s Word and putting Your hope in His promises. I look forward to a great year together I pray you will make this a priority each day and through be like that tree planted in streams of water that yields its fruit in season and in whatever you do you will prosper!

Prayer for the Day: God of our future, things will happen this year which we can not
foresee. Some may delight us, and others may cause us grief. At year'send, we will look back and know you were with us. "Great is thy faithfulness!" Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 22

2011-12-30T09:31:00.000-08:00

Revelation 22
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.

What Does This Mean?

Congrats if you have been able to stick with reading through the whole New Testament this year. Even if you haven’t been able to read every day, I hope this Daily Bread helped you to be in God’s Word this year more than last year. Remember it is progress not perfection! Next year, I will be using he Moravian Daily Texts as a basis for the Daily Bread. You can sign up for the daily email at the link below, but I will still be providing some reflections on the readings each day as well. They will give an Old and New Testament reading for each day, plus a Psalm and Prayer and excerpts from a few old hymns that relate to the Daily Watchword as well. Check out the website to see the history of this tradition it is pretty cool

http://www.moravian.org/daily_texts/

As we finish the book of Revelation to the 7 Churches in Asia Minor, we see a glorious description of what heaven will look like in verses 1-5, where we see the Garden of Eden restored. It is great to reflect on what heaven will be like as we deal with the trials of living on the earth as we know it today. It gives us great hope of the glory that has been prepared for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.

In these final verses above Jesus, himself warns us not to take away from the words of this prophecy. There is also an invitation that all who are thirsty would come and drink of the living waters that lead to eternal life. Finally, our New Testament closes with the words, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people.” The Greek word for “Come Lord Jesus” is “Maranatha”. What a great prayer, “Come Lord Jesus”.

May that be the prayer on our lips and hearts this day as we finish off 2011, and look forward to 2012. My prayer is that I will continue to live in the grace our Lord Jesus Christ has given me and be ready for the day He will return. Importantly as we live out our faith we do it together in the community of faith. This community happens in our local churches, it happens via technology like this where we share a word of the Lord and share prayers even over the internet. It happens when people gather in their lunchroom to pray for someone in need, or on the football field after the game to give thanks to the Lord from whom every perfect gift comes from.

May God bless you this New Year and may God grant you the grace to persevere in your faith and grow in the knowledge of His Son in the power of the Holy Spirit more and more as the Day approaches.

If you would to continue to receive the Daily Bread in 2012 you don’t have to do anything, if you would like to discontinue I can take you off the mailing list no problem!

God bless you and yours in 2012 and beyond!

Pastor Mike

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 21

2011-12-29T08:29:00.000-08:00

A New Heaven and a New Earth
1 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.

What Does This Mean?

After all the negative calamity and judgment of the preceding chapters, we are now given the hope of the restoration of all things through the new heaven and earth that comes down from heaven. Notice too there is no longer any sea. Water is also a motif for judgment in the bible, and now there is no longer any judgment.

We also see the physical reality of heaven as the Holy City, called the “New Jerusalem”, which comes down out of heaven prepared for her husband. And in this new reality God has a different relationship with His Bride, the Church. While we worship God now by faith because He is out of sight, then God himself will be with us and will be our God. In the new order and new Creation there are no more tears, crying, or pain. Everything is made new, truly new. The passage ends signaling this is the final scene in God’s salvation history, and shows that God is the author and perfecter of all things. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

What Does This Mean For Us?

This is the hope we have as believers that despite our current struggles and pains, that one day all sickness, pain and mourning will be wiped away, and we will be in God’s presence forever. If anyone has had a glimpse of God’s presence or felt the power of the Holy Spirit in this life, one can only imagine what it will be on that day.

Though we will all have an end to our mortal lives, there is a bigger, grander story that is being played out. For those whose names are written in the book of life, for those who have trusted in the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, this is what we have to look forward to. For all who suffer in this life it gives you hope that your suffering will not last forever, but one day you will be out of pain and you will enjoy life and God as they were meant to be enjoyed.

If for some reason you do not know if your name is written in the book of life, or do not have confidence in this, believe in the Good News and trust in Jesus as Your Savior. Jesus has already done everything you need to be made right in God’s eyes, believe in the truth that sets you free both in this life and the life to come.

Jesus, we thank you for the precious gift you gave us by coming to earth and dying for our sins. As we look forward to that day when all tears and mourning will pass away and a new heaven and earth will be ours as we will dwell with you and the Father forever. We are encouraged by this great hope we have in Christ to persevere despite our light and momentary afflictions. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 20

2011-12-28T09:17:00.000-08:00

The Thousand Years (also called the Millennium)
1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.

4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

What Does This Mean?

(Taken from IVP Commentary) “Nine times out of ten, when people ask, "How do you interpret the book of Revelation?" what they mean is, "How do you interpret Revelation 20:1-10?" They want to know whether an approach is "premillennial," "amillennial" or "postmillennial," to use the jargon by which some evangelical institutions (and even individuals) define themselves. Although how we interpret these verses says little or nothing about how we interpret the book as a whole, our interpretation of them tends to become the litmus test by which our interpretation of the whole book is measured and classified.”

To summarize these positions briefly, a “pre-millennialist” believes Jesus’ second coming comes before the 1,000 reign of Christ, where Satan is temporarily defeated. A post-millennialist’s viewpoint is that Jesus’ second coming will come after this literal reign. The a-millennialist believes this language is more figurative language, and therefore does not believe in a literal 1,000 reign of Christ. They would argue that John’s millennium is just another name for the age in which we now live, in which Jesus’ reigns by virtue of his resurrection and ascension. Accordingly, Christ will return at the end of this present age. This is another variation of pre-millennialism.

Another specific form of pre-millennialism, that has gained a lot of attention over the past 50 years, is called called “dispensationalism”, based on the teachings of John Nelson Darby. This view divides history into “seven eras”, or “dispensations” culminating in a final era where the kingdom will be realized as the temple in Jerusalem is rebuilt. Modern day proponents of this view are Charles Ryrie, John Walvoord, and probably the most well-known is Hal Lindsay. Lindsay wrote the book “the Late Great Planet Earth”, which described some of the events in the political world in the 70’s as pre-cursors to the second coming of Christ.

What Does This Mean For Us?

There are many debates about these things one needs to take into account the context in which this book was written. The church was facing much persecution and trying to figure out what role “eschatology” (the study of the end times) played into what was happening to them. We also know throughout the ages many in the church have felt like we were in the end times. I.e. Lindsay’s, The Late Great Planet Earth.

While all the theories have some merit, there are a couple of conclusions I think we can make. One Jesus hasn’t returned yet. With the descriptions of the great and promised glory that the book of Revelation uses describing His return, it is unlikely that this has happened yet. Two, we minister in an era between his first coming and second coming, as we anticipate His return. ( I guess this would make me technically Pre-Millennialist) Jesus has come once to establish His kingdom on earth through the Church, and has given the Church power through the Holy Spirit to expand His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

Yet, we see that there is still another power at work in the world, which tries to thwart God’s kingdom and its advancement. With what we see going on in the world it seems unlikely that Jesus is reigning in anyway, or bringing peace on earth except through the power of the Church to which He gave the keys to the kingdom (the power to announce the forgiveness of sins).

Finally, if we conclude he hasn’t returned yet, what does it mean that He is coming soon? As I have always said and at risk of being trite or cliché, Jesus’ coming for each of us is the day we die. While he may return before that, chances are with the amount of people/nations who have not yet even heard the Gospel, that it may be a while. That being said, Jesus could come back tonight, so we always are prepared for His return by living a life worthy of our calling. If we are doing our best by the Spirit’s power to live a life worthy of our calling as His sons and daughter through our faith in Jesus and our Baptism into the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; we can be confident at any time He chooses to return or call us home.

Jesus, we know you are coming soon so help us to prepare for Your coming by living a life worthy of the calling you have given us. We know you are with us as we continue to make disciples on earth and you have given us Your power and authority to carry out Your purposes until the time is right for Your return. Protect us from the evil one and help us to usher in Your kingdom on earth as it is heaven until that day. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 19

2011-12-27T16:17:00.000-08:00

Daily Bread 2011 – Revelation 19

6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:
“Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and be glad
and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready.
8 Fine linen, bright and clean,
was given her to wear.”
(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)
9 Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”

What Does This Mean?

While chapter 18 dealt mostly with the Fall of Babylon, chapter 19 goes into the final judgment and coming of the Lord. In the verses that follow after this is described as the “white horse” whose rider is called “faithful and true”. In the above passage there is great rejoicing over the wedding of the lamb and his bride, which has made herself ready.

We know from other passages that the bride of Christ is none other than the Church, whose clothes have been made white through the righteousness of Christ. As John fell at his feet to worship the angel, the angel quickly reminded him that he was only a fellow servant with those who hold true to the testimony of Jesus. This is the Spirit of prophecy which calls for the truth.

What Does This Mean For Us?

As we receive communion each week at church, often we will refer this to this as the Lord’s Supper, which is a foretaste of the feast to come. Jesus has invited us to the supper by what He has done on the cross. As we come forward for Communion our faith is in what He has accomplished. We can come to the throne of God with the white linen through our faith in what He has done alone.

Again the focus is on worship of God. As we worship God in Spirit and Truth, we are brought into God’s presence and set free. This is the same truth Jesus brought us as Prophet, Priest and King. In the end of the chapter, we see the beginning of His kingdom being fully realized on earth as it is in heaven. The forces of good led by Jesus, overcome the beast and the kings of this earth, because Jesus is the Word made flesh and His truth is like a sharp sword that cuts down the enemy. To confess is to “tell the truth” and one day every knee will bow (in worship to the Truth) and every tongue will confess (in acknowledgment of the Truth) that Jesus Christ is Lord of Lords and King of Kings. This is where we are headed in these last chapters and blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!

Jesus, we know that one day you will come again in great and promised glory. For now we worship you in Spirit and Truth. We come to church each week to hear the prophecy of Jesus the voice of Truth and then take the bread and the wine as a foretaste of the feast to come, in Your Holy Name, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 18

2011-12-27T11:59:00.000-08:00

Warning to Escape Babylon’s Judgment
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
“‘Come out of her, my people,’
so that you will not share in her sins,
so that you will not receive any of her plagues;
5 for her sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her crimes.
6 Give back to her as she has given;
pay her back double for what she has done.
Pour her a double portion from her own cup.
7 Give her as much torment and grief
as the glory and luxury she gave herself.
In her heart she boasts,
‘I sit enthroned as queen.
I am not a widow;
I will never mourn.’
8 Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her:
death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.

What Does This Mean?

Although Babylon is spoken of here figuratively, most commentators think this is relating to the Roman Empire. The first of these commands sums up what most of the book of Revelation has been about. “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in any of her sins.” This is similar to what Paul teaches to the believers in Corinth that they too need not associate in the immorality of that city.

Importantly, we see in this chapter that though it would appear if Babylon had gotten away with all of its iniquities, there will be day when their wrongdoing would be accounted for. And in this passage the judgment that accompanies this is even “doubled”! So just as the righteous things believers do to multiply God’s kingdom here on earth will one day be recognized, the snowballing effect of evil is also present. The bottom line is nothing escapes God’s eyes and this makes it even more significant, when we realize that even though God remembers everything we do, He will remember our sins no more according to the grace that is our in Christ Jesus.

What Does This Mean For Us?

There are two extremes to avoid here. One is that a person only hangs out with other Christians because they are afraid that they will we get caught up in the sins of the world. The other one is that they become so a part of the world that there is difference between their life or lifestyle and that of an unbeliever. When Israel got in trouble was when they started emulating the practices of the world, instead of sticking to God’s Word which was clear and simple and revealed to them through the Law and the Promises. I.e. The Ten Commandments

Paul says it clearly in Romans 12:1-2, “I urge you brothers and sister by the mercy of God to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, which is holy and acceptable to God. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind; so that you might prove what the will of God is, what is good, acceptable and perfect.” As we become transformed by the grace of God, by the renewing of our minds through the power of the Holy Spirit, we become the salt and light of the world! Then we can reflect God’s image and His love for all people. As we are transformed, there is less likelihood that we will be conformed to the world’s designs.

Jesus, we offer ourselves to you. We see the values that dominate our culture and how they are at odds with your values. Change us from the inside out as we read Your Word and follow Your ways by the power of the Holy Spirit who sets us apart for Your purposes here on earth! Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 17

2011-12-23T05:00:00.000-08:00

12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

What Does This Mean?
Most of chapter 17 focuses on the beast, the prostitute who serves and is under the beast’s authority, and then also these ten kings whose purpose is to give power and authority to the beast. The woman is identified as Babylon, the great mother of prostitutes and of abominations of the earth. And while there is plenty of sexual immorality, the two main things associated with the woman are the deception of the people of the earth and the cause of the blood of the saints.

So while these forces against God, which we might call “anti-Christs”, because they are trying to block out the purposes of God and become an obstacle for true believers; have power it is limited in scope and severity. Just as God uses people for His purposes in bringing in the light, God allows these other earthly and heavenly figures to have purpose as well.

But ultimately while these forces oppose God and try to deceive and finally kill the saints; in the end the Lamb (Jesus) will overcome them because He is the Lord of lords and the King of kings. All earthly power and authority for good and evil derives itself from God’s own power and the power of His Son, who rules forever and ever at His right hand. (This is why our Creed that we recite is so important!)

What Does This Mean For Us?
It means as believers we will continue to fight against forces allied and arrayed against God, but the victory will be ours someday. Also, the authority we have is in the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Our own authority is derived from Jesus’ power, as Jesus has given us His power to execute His plans on the earth. That is why the first part of the Great Commission is so important even though sometimes it is left out. Listen again to these words from Matthew 28, “18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Listen to how Paul states this is Colossians 2, “9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.”
While we will continue to see evil powers at work in the world, let us remember that “Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.” There is a reason I capitalize the “He” that is in you, and lower case the “he” that is in the world, because there is more power and authority in “He that is in YOU!!”

Jesus, thank you for giving us your power and authority to live out your purposes. Help us claim Your Word of Truth as we live out of our lives and confront the powers that stand against you in Your name, the name that is above all names! Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 16

2011-12-22T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Seven Bowls of God’s Wrath
1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.”2 The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. 3 The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea died. 4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood. 5 Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: “You are just in these judgments, you who are and who were, the Holy One, because you have so judged; 6 for they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.” 7 And I heard the altar respond: “Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments.”8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him. 10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. Men gnawed their tongues in agony 11 and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. 13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.15 “Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.”16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. 19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21 From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.

What Does This Mean?

As we survey this final judgment of God, as symbolized by the seven bowls of God’s wrath, we can see similarities to previous judgments and also differences. With the first three bowls, we see that all of Creation is affected: the lands, the seas, and the rivers and springs. Unlike the first series of judgments, these judgments also have effects on humans. I.e. painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. Then, there is a brief interlude where the angels announce that these judgments are just, and in part retribution for the blood shed by the martyrs.

Then, as the four, fifth and sixth angels are brought out, there is scorching fire and also the judgment of the beast begins. From the sixth angel, the Euphrates is dried up, and kings of the earth begin to assemble for a final battle at a place called Armageddon. Though there is not literal place like this found in the bible, it means literally the “mount of Megiddo”. Since this is a plain and not a mountain it is taken to be a figurative place where the final judgment/battle will take place. Note too, when the fifth angel pours out the bowl judging the beast, men curse God in agony and refuse to repent. This would suggest there was still time for repentance.

In Verse 15, we are interrupted by the voice of Jesus who says, “Behold I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes on.” This language is reminiscent of other passages regarding the end times, where Jesus warns that He will come like a thief in the night, and the clothes are a reminder of the white robes of righteousness that come for those who are saved by grace.

Finally, there is a voice that calls out, “It is done”, presumably God and/or Jesus announcing the final judgment. This is an enormous earthquake that splits the great city (Jerusalem) into threes, and also pronounces judgment on Babylon, the great power that captured Jerusalem and the Southern Kingdom in 586 B.C.

What Does This Mean?

As God began in Genesis revealing himself through Creation with the sun, moon, stars and seas and rivers, so the judgment ends with these things. And while the crown of God’s creation are human beings made in His image, so too human beings who do not repent and acknowledge God as the Creator and Redeemer are subject to the same judgment.

While the earth was created to hold all of God’s Creation, now it is split into 3 parts and a cause of destruction not life. This, of course, is a precursor to a new heaven and new earth, but for now we only see the severity of the judgment of what God has made and now He is taking away.

It might be easy for us to get bitter at God for judgment, but when you think that He created it all in the beginning it lends itself to the conclusion that God can and will bring it to an end in His time and in His ways. Importantly, throughout this we see that there is hope for those who are in Christ, and even for those who aren’t in Christ, there is time to repent. God is merciful and desires for all to come to a knowledge of the truth, but for those who refuse there will be a day of judgment.

This is sobering and reminds us not only be grateful for God’s grace, but to pray for lost people who matter to God and should matter to us. There are many ways to reach to people with God’s love and share the Gospel not only in words but deeds. You may be the only person who an unbeliever might listen to when it comes to matters of faith. That is why the bible tells us to always be prepared to give an answer for the hope we have within us and to do so with gentleness and respect.

Jesus we know you will come like a thief in the night, help us to be prepared and dressed in the clothes you have put on us. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 15

2011-12-21T05:00:00.000-08:00

Seven Angels With Seven Plagues
1 I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues—last, because with them God’s wrath is completed. 2 And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They held harps given them by God 3 and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb:

“Great and marvelous are your deeds,
Lord God Almighty.
Just and true are your ways,
King of the ages.
4 Who will not fear you, O Lord,
and bring glory to your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship before you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

What Does This Mean?

One of the challenges in the book of Revelation is that certain scenes recall earlier depictions, and one wonders if, for instance, this is new series of judgments, or referring the past scenes of chapters 4, 8, 12, and 14. The passage seems to indicate that these are similar judgments, but are not the last judgments. And now instead of the prayers of the saints (likely to include the 144,000 martyrs of the previous chapter) rising up to heaven as in chapter 8, now those who have conquered the beast are in heaven and singing songs of deliverance reminiscent of Moses God’s servant in the Old Testament.

This gives us insight into one of the things we will be doing in heaven, worshipping God in the fullness of the knowledge of who He is. The fire in the scene may well represent the fire of judgment that these martyrs have escaped out of, which is symbolism for God’s judgment in other passages. Finally, they are singing a “new song”, which is referenced in the previous chapter in 14:2-3. Having gone through the fire, they are able to sing the new song of deliverance that Moses sang when he went through the Red Sea.

What Does This Mean For Us?

Although we all struggle in this life with circumstances and our old and stubborn sinful nature that seems to plague us despite our best efforts to lead a life pleasing to God, there is an aspect of worship in which we celebrate the victory is ours over our enemy. The enemy has been defeated and one day his defeat will be final. As we look forward to this day, our new song will be one of deliverance.

Though we cannot always see this deliverance, this book helps us to anticipate the final victory we will have one day. As we sing, “One day every tongue will confess you as Lord, one day every knee will bow, but still the greatest treasure remains for those who gladly choose Him now.” The power of worship, which is why it is important to be consistent in our attendance, is that we sing of the victory that is ours in Christ. As we worship in Spirit and in Truth, we are declaring what things will be like, and it is truly a foretaste of the feast that will come. The next time you come to a worship service have this mindset and see if it doesn’t change the way you experience worship.

Heavenly Father, you are so amazing and there are not words to describe your power and glory and might, but you give us glimpse of your glory as we gather in Your name. Help us to neglect meeting together to hear Your Word and worship the One who was, and is and is to come. Give us glimpses of your glory so that this hope will help us to persevere when we are challenged with the many trials of this world. In Your Son’ s name, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 14

2011-12-20T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Lamb and the 144,000

1 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. 3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.

What Does This Means?

This is one of the places where interpretation of the numbers and symbols of this book becomes very tricky, and we must be careful to be sound in it. Some have gone as far as to say that there are only a literal 144,000 that will make it into heaven. (Such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses – Watchtower Organization). For the fact that these 144,000 have not defiled themselves with women, others use those who have been celibate as a lithmus test. Finally many believe the 144,000 to be those who have been martyred for their faith which could confirm the impressions of ch. 7.

Since they are mentioned as “firstfruits” in verse 4, they mustn’t be seen as the totality of those who are saved which would untenable for many other reasons anyways. Another figurative way to take this passage is since 12 is the number of completeness and 12,000 is another fuller expression of it, the full number of Jews which make up the 12 tribes of Israel could be a representation of the first-fruits of salvation, though the context of the qualifications previously mentioned seems to make this doubtful.

What Does This Mean For Us?

This is a case where we must be extremely careful not to interpret beyond what we are given in the text, and also what is taught in the rest of the bible. Clearly throughout the bible, there is ample evidence that there will people from every, nation, tribe and people group gathered back to God in the end through Christ who will come again to judge the living and the dead. Clearly there will be both Jews and Gentiles, who will be the first fruits of this harvest that is to come.

While there are passages that give special mention to martyrs and the faith they have to give up their live for the sake of the gospel, it does not diminish the salvation that all believers receive in Christ. In fact throughout the bible we are called to “give up” our lives and follow Jesus. Whether we become literal martyrs or not, is not for us to decide, we are only called to be His witnesses whenever the Holy Spirit calls us to give a reason for the hope we have within us. It shouldn’t take a number to get us motivated to share the Gospel with others, but as we have been forgiven much, we love much. We share the hope of the Gospel out of our conviction and our own need for God’s grace, as well as wanting to extend that grace to those we love and those God’s call us to share this same grace with.

Jesus, thank you for purchasing us by your life giving sacrifice at the cross. As we have received this indescribable gift, may we be willing to share it will all whom you call us to share it with. We give thanks for those who have gone before us, especially those who were willing to give up their whole lives for the sake of the gospel. May they inspire us to greater levels of service to You who belongs all glory and praise forever and ever. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 13

2011-12-19T11:14:00.001-08:00

Revelation 13
1 And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.

The Beast out of the Sea

And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast. 4 Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?”5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months. 6 He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. 8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world. 9 He who has an ear, let him hear.10 If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.

What Does This Mean?

John returns to the vision he has seen, as opposed to the visions from heaven in chapters 11-12. This time he sees a beast coming out of the sea, who is given authority by the dragon. There are resemblances between the dragon and beast in terms of the real power it is given, as symbolized by the ten horns, seven heads, and ten crowds.

Although the beast has some power, in the cosmic realm it is not the same power as God has, yet those on the earth whose names are not written in the book of life worship the beast as if it is God. As part of its reign, he is given power to make war against the saints and even conquer them. We do see that the beast has a fatal wound on one of its head, a foreshadowing that the beast’s power is limited. Through Christ’s death on the cross and resurrection, the beast was dealt a mortal blow and his time is limited. The number for the beast is 666, one less the number for God 777.

Some in history connect the “conquering of the saints” by the beast with the persecution of the Church starting with the Roman emperor Nero. His eventual slaying would then correspond to one of the mortal wounds of the beast. But one must be careful with such subjective interpretations, and keep the teaching to a more universal application. The key verse in the end is, “This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.” The error we might make is to fight fire with fire, or try to avenge our own cause, and yet the victory is ours in Christ. God will avenge and enact His power and authority in the end.

What Does This Mean For Us?

As just mentioned, it is hard for us when we see evil proliferating in the world around us to leave justice in God’s hands. While we are called to speak out against evil and fight for justice, ultimately it will be God who justifies our cause. Listen to these New Testament verses that back that up:

“17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”(Proverbs 25:21-22) 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:17-21

As we shall see as we finish the book of Revelation, Jesus Christ has overcome the devil and all his empty promises. The victory is ours in Christ, and yet we wait patiently for God’s finalization of His kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. So though our battle is not over, we know its outcome and that gives us the perseverance and patience to endure to the end. Remember this as you face your own battles, spiritual and otherwise, in this life. God’s purposes will come to pass in your life it is assured through Jesus Christ our Lord!!

Jesus, give us faith to persevere and trust in Your promises which we know are true, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 12

2011-12-16T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Woman and the Dragon – Revelation 12
1 A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads. 4 His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

What Does This Mean?
Chapter 12 starts the second half of the Revelation, and follows the two brief interludes in chapters 10 and 11. In this scene, a woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet and a 12 crown stars on her head, gives birth to a son, a male child who will rule the nations with an iron scepter. This is language consistent with the birth of Jesus. (see Revelation 2 and Psalm 2). But another sign appeared as well, an enormous red dragon with seven heads and seven crowns. Notice he has power too, but not as much as the woman. The dragon attempted to devour the child the moment it was born but was unsuccessful.

Then there is a scene of a cosmic battle in heaven between the forces of evil led by the dragon and the Michael and his angels. With his defeat the dragon (then referred to as the ancient serpent – see Genesis 3 and/or the devil or Satan) was hurled out of heaven and his angels with him. After the dragon is hurled to the earth, he tries to pursue the woman and her offspring and yet is unsuccessful. It is then that we see her offspring defined as those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus (another reference to the early Christian martyrs who died for their faith).

What Does This Mean For Us?
Paul tells us in Ephesians 6 that our battle as believers is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers of this present darkness. We should not be surprised at some of the gross evil we see in the world. Though we can’t blame everything on Satan, as some of it is just some of the bad choices we have made guided by our own sinful nature; as the passage alludes to, Satan and his flock are still on the earth. And as it says in verse 12, “He is filled with fury because his time is short.”

Notice that Satan spends his time on those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus. He isn’t going to waste his time on “lukewarm Christians”. Since his power and abilities are limited he will try to be strategic about who he battles. I don’t write this to make you scared or anxious, but to inform you of the reality we face as believers in the time in between Jesus first coming, in which he defeated Satan on the cross and in His resurrection and his final coming where Satan will defeated once and for all. Importantly as the passage says, “As believers we know have the power that comes from the salvation Jesus has purchased for us and authority as sons and daughters of God.” (see verse 10) As Paul instructs us in Ephesians 6, we fight spiritual battles with spiritual weapons. Importantly two of our biggest weapons are prayer and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. God’s Word has power and authority because it is the truth about God and the victory he has accomplished through the Son.

God we realize the battle before us has already been won on the cross, yet we know there is a time where we must still battle our enemy. Gird us with your weapons of truth and righteousness and the power of the Holy Spirit through Your Word, as we listen to it and obey it! Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 11

2011-12-15T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Seventh Trumpet
15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said:
“The kingdom of the world has become
the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah,
and he will reign for ever and ever.”
16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying:
“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
the One who is and who was,
because you have taken your great power
and have begun to reign.
18 The nations were angry,
and your wrath has come.
The time has come for judging the dead,
and for rewarding your servants the prophets
and your people who revere your name,
both great and small—
and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

What Does This Mean?

In this second interlude, John see two witnesses who are given the power to give testimony (same word for the word martyr), and to prophesy with the authority and power of God. The two olive trees and two lamps are imagery of the Holy Spirit. The olive trees bring oil, the same which is used for anointing, and the lamps light into the world. This is the same role as the Holy Spirit does when we prophesy in His name.

But in the middle of the testimony the great beast is unleashed from the bottom of the Abyss and attacks and kills them. Their bodies lay in the open square, presumably in the holy city of Jerusalem, though there is some debate over this. (as it says where the Lord was crucified). But after 3 ½ days (the number 3 ½ is used a lot in these chapters, both in years and in days. They are half of seven the complete number) this same Spirit revives the two witnesses and brings them to heaven.

Finally we see the seventh and last trumpet blown with voices from heaven that said, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord, his Messiah.” As the twenty four elders give worship to God they say, “You have taken your great power and begun to reign.” The time of judgment has come and God’s reign from heaven is being directly instituted straight from heaven.

What Does This Mean For Us?

We minister in between kingdoms, for Jesus has come but His kingdom has not yet been realized fully. We see glimpses of God’s kingdom, when a lost person is found, a sick person is healed, or broken relationships are restored. There will be a day that all of God’s kingdom values of reconciliation, restoration and wholeness will be completely restored here on earth. Where there are no more tears, sadness or sickness. For those who are in Christ this final restoration will be a time of great and promised glory. Our faith will become sight and we will be in God’s presence. There will be no distinction between heaven and earth.

But for now we live by faith, and we live in a world that is not run by God’s values. As the Church we can be God’s witnesses and if need be suffer for our testimony as it is likely the world will not accept our testimony, much like the two witnesses in the passage. And yet God has a bigger plan and one day the just will counted and given the kingdom of our Father and the Son in the power of the Spirit.

But today, one day at a time we can live with the expectation that God’s kingdom will continue to come on earth so that all will have the opportunity to know God through His Son. That is our mission until He returns!

Jesus, give us your power as we seek to be faithful to be your witnesses in the world. Give us courage and boldness like the two witnesses in the story to proclaim your message to the nations and every tribe and people group. In Your name, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 10

2011-12-14T05:00:00.000-08:00

Daily Bread 2011 – Revelation 10
8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: “Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”9 So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.’” 10 I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. 11 Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”

What Does This Mean?
In chapters 10 and 11, there is a brief interlude to the trumpets and judgments we have heard about in the last couple of chapters. Another mighty angel comes down from heaven and has almost divine characteristics, though it is clear the angel is not Jesus. At this point the angel announces that there will be no more delay in the judgment, but then a mysterious thing happens. John is commanded by the voice from heaven to take the scroll and eat it. As he eats it, it tastes sweet in his mouth but then turns sour in his stomach.

This is likely to mean that the message had gone from these visions from angels, to a command for John to preach the message himself. Though the message and its divine origin was sweet to John, John knew that it would not necessarily be a sweet message to those his hearers. John had suffered under the persecution of the end of the first century, and was probably discouraged. This new revelation and his experience of it, was a new sense of call in his life and a time of renewal.

What Does This Mean For Us?
Sometimes it is a sweet experience for us to read the bible and sense God’s presence and calling in our lives as we listen to His voice speaking to us. Since the bible is inspired as God’s Word, when we read it we come in contact with God’s revelation and His purposes in Jesus Christ. But though it may be sweet as we read it, as we live it out and possibly suffer persecution for our faith, sometimes the sweetness in our personal relationship can be soured as we try to share our faith with the world.

Oftentimes Christians can be misunderstood and even though one may have good intentions to either share God’s word or live it out, following God’s Word and His Son, Jesus can lead to suffering. The bible says in James, “Do not be surprised when you face trials of many kinds. The testing of your faith will produce a mature and complete faith.” James 1 Or the book of Romans tells us the suffering of this world is not to be compared with the glory that will be revealed in us when Jesus returns. Romans 8:18

As you read God’s Word, expect God to speak to You. As you hear God’s voice it is sweet, and yet applying and living out God’s word can be challenging, and it might not always be a sweet experience at first, but in the end God’s Word will set us and others free by His power.

Jesus, as we read Your word may we digest everything you have said and be careful to do all you have called us to do. May we be your living letters in the world looking for those who practice what they read. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011- Revelation 9

2011-12-13T05:00:00.000-08:00

Response to the 6th Trumpet
20 The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. 21 Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts.

What Does This Mean?
As the fifth and sixth trumpets are blown, two terrible things begin to happen. At the sound of the fifth trumpet a star fell from heaven that opened the shaft to the Abyss, where death and destruction and apparently lots more demonic forces were let loose. This was symbolized by locusts. Not ordinary locusts that had been seen in biblical times destroying crops et al, but locusts which had the power to torment but not kill anyone whose forehead had not been sealed with mark of God. They were given power to torment for five months and then this woe was past.
Notice this is the exact opposite of Luke’s description of the power and authority the disciples had over scorpions, snakes in the gospel. (see Luke 10:19) The power was reversed and these creatures now have the authority.

Next came the sixth trumpet, which brought four angels who had been held at the Euphrates River (the cradle of civilization) for this very time and hour. They numbered over 200 million, and were given power to kill a third of mankind. Then in the verses above stunningly we see that even though all of this happened, the people who were left did not repent (or turn from) their vices but continue to worship demons and idols and practice immorality.

What Does This Mean For Us?
Although this is quite a graphic and disturbing scene, what amazes me is the stubbornness of the people who do not turn from their evil ways. It seems unimaginable and yet maybe it is more realistic than we think. After all, today we see people who become addicted to drugs, alcohol and other things; and despite losing everything including family and friends, they return to their vice. Indeed the power of evil in the world and in our hearts is deceitful above all else.

This should make us more aware of the evil around us, and motivate us to avoid and shun evil at all costs. Sometimes we dabble in things of the world and think, well no big deal. Often I believe the devil does want us to get caught in big sins that would reach the evening news, but gets us to dabble in little endeavors that are outside the scope of what God has called us to do and be about.

As we are reminded about our own penchant for evil, it reminds us how great God’s grace is to save us from all of this. As we see these illustrations of judgment remember that those who are in Christ will escape all of this judgment. On that day we will have joy and thanksgiving beyond measure. But still this should spur us into action for those who still are not in Christ. It should motivate us to reach out to lost people who are oblivious that one day there will be a judgment. This doesn’t have to be scary or “in your face”, but a gentle sharing of our love for people and the great news that in Christ we are set free both in this life and in the life to come!

Jesus thank you for saving us from these things that will come in the last days. Teach us to say no to things that would entice us to get involved with the spirits of this world that are not of you. Help us to cling to and rely on the grace that is ours through life, death and resurrection. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 8

2011-12-12T10:11:00.001-08:00

The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer
1 When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. 3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. 4 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

What Does This Mean?
Following the Seven Seals, there are Seven Trumpets which begin to announce the judgments upon the earth. In chapter 8, we see the first four judgments, which wreak havoc on God’s Creation. I.e. The trees, grass, mountains, rivers, springs, sun, moon and stars. Notice it is not complete judgment, but limited to one third of the area.

Importantly, as John starts this series of judgments, there is a half hour of silence in heaven. Why? Because of the prayers of the saints had risen as incense before God. One wonders how much worse the judgment would have been if those prayers had not been offered. Also, notice that while mercy comes from the altar of God, so does judgment. The chapter ends on the ominous note that the next three trumpets and next three angels will bring a much more severe and complete judgment. Also notice that some of the imagery is related to the judgments God poured out on Egypt in Moses’ time. See Exodus 19:17

What Does This Mean For Us?
Sometimes I think we take for granted all the beauty of the earth and God’s creation. Living in Southern California, not only do I get to take in the beauty of the mountains, but also the Pacific Ocean. As I look out on to the ocean, as the sun is setting, it seems endless and infinite, like God. Every once in a while we will have fires started in the hills, and at night it is quite a breath taking scene. One can only imagine what John is describing here as the judgment starts with God’s Creation.

Take a moment over the next few days to give thanks for God’s creation. Today it is raining in Southern California, and I give thanks for the cleansing rain which will put some humidity back in the air, and also be good for the ground and plants and trees. Let’s try not to take for granted the awesome grandeur of God’s Creation but give thanks for it every day!

Heavenly Father, when I survey the sun, the moon and the stars what is man that you are mindful of us. You made us a little lower than the angels and have given us dominion over your Creation. May be good stewards and use Your Creation wisely. We lift up our prayers like incense to you the Maker of Heaven and Earth. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 7

2011-12-09T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Great Multitude in White Robes
9 After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” 11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

What Does This Mean?
At the beginning of Revelation 7, there is a pregnant pause signaling that something momentous is about to happen. Since six of the seven seals have been opened, we know the stage is set for the Seventh Seal. As the angels begin the work of the Seventh Seal, the first thing is to seal the foreheads of 144,000 who would not be harmed in the tribulation.

A lot of people take this number literally over the years and some have even said that only 144,000 will be saved. Of course verse 9 gives further clarification when it describes the scene in heaven where great multitudes that no one can count were standing before the throne (of God) and in front of the Lamb (Jesus). They are joined by multitudes of angels who are also standing around the throne and the elders and four creatures worshipping God as well. Quite a scene! Of course what are they all doing…worshipping God and giving him the praise and honor He deserves.

What Does This Mean For Us?
Just as we are not to try and predict the day or hour of Jesus’ return, we also should not try to predict how many will be saved in that day. We know from 1 Timothy 2:4, that God desires all people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. Therefore, it makes it pretty unlikely that only 144,000 would be saved. Since it relates to the twelve tribes of Israel and because “12” is the number of completeness, it could be an analogy that the perfect amount of Jews will be saved. We know God’s promise started with the Israelites, and He promises that His call will stand with them to be saved in the end. How that happens is not ours to judge.

The bottom line is that in heaven there will be people from every tribe, nation, people and language. That about covers it all! There are still many people groups to reach in our world that don’t even have the gospel translated into their own native tongue, so we know there is a lot of work to do. So the challenge I have for you today is how are you helping the Gospel to be spread globally? How are you helping every nation and tribe to be able to hear the Good News? One way is to support your church’s mission teams, and/or there are also many organizations that work to translate the bible into every tongue (Like Wycliffe, or the Joshua Project). Pray about ways you can support the global mission of spreading the Good News either through your local church or a mission or bible translating organization.

Heavenly Father, we know that one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that you are Lord. Help us to work to give every man, woman and child a chance to encounter a relationship with You through Your Son, Jesus. In His Name we pray, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 6

2011-12-08T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Seals
1 I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword.5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds[a] of wheat for a day’s wages,[b] and six pounds[c] of barley for a day’s wages,[d] and do not damage the oil and the wine!”7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.

What Does This Mean?
Today, in chapter 6, we begin to see the judgment of the Lord. This is often called “judgment day”, or “the day of the Lord”. The opening of the seven seals by the Lamb (Jesus) is the beginning of the end. In the gospels you hear sayings from Jesus like, “You will see wars, famines and desolation that causes men and women to flee to the mountains” (see Mark 13, Luke 21), and these first four seals are consistent with some of the calamities that will happen in the end times.

Many think the white horse is Jesus, but most conclude that it is someone who appears to be working for God as typified by “white”, and yet since it is the beginning of the judgments most like it is what Jesus referred to when he said, “False prophets are the first sign of the beginning of the end”. Mark 13 The fifth seal refers to those who were slain because of the Word of God (aka “martyrs” which means witnesses), and their longing for the end to come and receive their vindication. Finally, the sixth seal represents some of the cosmic upheaval and turbulence that all the earth and heaven and stars will undergo in the last days. As we can see these events affect every possible aspect of God’s Creation.

What Does This Mean For Us?
“Some years ago, a young man named Vernon Howell, a.k.a. David Koresh, together with over a hundred followers, held police and federal agents at bay outside a heavily armed compound near Waco, Texas. The story had a tragic ending. Koresh believed he was Christ, the Lamb of God and the only one able to open the seven seals and bring about the end of the world. Clearly, the ancient images of Revelation command people's attention today. Yet they are disturbingly subject to the uses and abuses of the human imagination. To the would-be interpreter, whether scholarly, pastoral or prophetic, these images should carry a warning label: Danger. Handle with care.” (IVP Commentary)

So as we can see there are two ways to handle these precious revelations about the end. We can either think we are Christ or God and use them to control others, or use them to get ready and be in focus with God’s purposes in our lives, so we will be ready at any time for these events to take place. Many could argue that some of these things are happening already. Obviously we have wars, earthquakes and famines in many areas of the world. We see false apostles masquerading as the truth all the time. So sure we could be in the last days, but the main thing is are we about the things God has called us to be about.
There is no time like today to take stock of your life and ask the question, “Am I ready for Jesus to return….today????”

Jesus we know we are ready because of what you have done for us on the cross and as we receive your great gift and respond to it by living according to Your Word, we can bear fruit that lasts. Jesus bring our lives into focus in terms of who we are as Your sons and daughters, and how we can represent you to a world that needs to get ready for your second coming. In Jesus’ name and in His power, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 5

2011-12-07T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Scroll and the Lamb
1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. 8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

What Does This Mean?
As the vision of John continues, notice the break from ch. 4 where there was endless worship and praise of the One who sits on the Throne. And then, in ch. 5, we are introduced to the Scroll and the Lamb. At first John wept and wept because no one was able to open the scroll, but then the elders directed Him to the Lamb, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the root of David. These were key words for the Jewish Messiah.

But the image changes from a Lion to a Lamb, who looks as if he had been slain, which stands in the center of the throne. Notice it takes a similar position and receives similar worship to the One who sits on the Throne. This is imagery and positioning of both the Father (the Creator) and the Son (the Lamb who redeems!) is helpful in defining the Trinity as God in Three Persons. And this Lamb had power and authority to open up the scroll. Finally, we see the prayers of the saints in golden bowls full of incense. This reminds us of the prayers of the all the saints which rise up as incense before God. (Cf. Psalm 141:2)

What Does This Mean For Us?
This is a reminder that though Jesus came in a human form and died on a cross, He is raised in glory and to be worship as God. We see the One on the Throne as the Transcendent Creator and in the center of the Throne is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is also where we get some of the language in our Creed of: “Who sits at the right hand of the Father and will come to judge the living and dead.” Part of what we will learn is that the scrolls contain the judgment that had been reserved for the last day.

Finally, we see that the prayers of the saints come to the throne and are a part of what goes on in heaven. Sometimes we pray and wonder if our prayers are heard, but this gives us a sense of the magnitude of every prayer offered in the name of the Lamb sent to the Heavenly Father through the power of the Spirit. Along with that we see this language, “Because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,and they will reign on the earth.”

This is the part of where Martin Luther got his language of the “priesthood of all believers”. Meaning once we have been saved and purchased by Christ, we are little priests and part of God’s plan to bring in His kingdom by helping others come to Christ and become right with God!

Jesus we recognize you as both the Lion and the Lamb. You were the Lamb of God who was slain and took away the sins of the world, and you are the roaring Lion who has been given power and authority and sits at the right hand of the Father. You will come again in great and promised glory. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 4

2011-12-06T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Throne in Heaven
1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. 3 And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne. 4 Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. 5 From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God. 6 Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal.

What Does This Mean?
When we wonder what heaven might look like this gives us a glimpse. As you can see, it is one of brilliance, awesomeness and glory. Many have said that more than anything the book of Revelation is about worship. We can see from this passage why someone might come to this conclusion. One of the things we might glean from this, is that even though we are not exactly sure what we are going to be doing in heaven, there is a good chance it will have to do with worship. And worship in a way we have never seen it before. (Compare Ezekiel 1 for a similar description except that John’s description has more to do with the throne and the majesty and power of the one sitting on it!)

“What started as a heavenly tableau unfolding step by step before John's eyes now becomes a scene of active worship and proclamation. The use of verbs in the present tense, beginning in verse 5, and the phrase day and night in verse 8 give the impression that this is no longer something John saw once in a vision, but a ritual in heaven repeating itself over and over again without rest or interruption. The throne is suddenly alive with living creatures hailing the anonymous someone seated on it as the Lord God Almighty (compare 1:8).” (IVP Commentary)

What Does This Mean For Us?
As we get a glimpse of what heaven and heaven’s throne might be like, it may well cause us to imagine more about who we are praying to during our prayer time. As we worship on Sundays or any day, we might envision the one we worship and the reverence for which the Seven Spirits, and the Four Living Creatures ascribe to the One who was, and is and is to come. In our move to make God more “imminent”, we can make the mistake of making Him ordinary or common. These visions draw us back to the grandeur and awesomeness of God’s power and majesty.

While we don’t need to be afraid of God, we should fear God. Let me explain. Of course as we have said “Perfect love casts out all fear”, so we don’t need to be afraid of God in that sense. But we should fear God in terms of the reverence and awe we give to Him. When we come into His presence, we should remember we are coming into the Presence of the One who created all things, and at whose Hand all things came into existence, including us. In our busy world and lives it is easy to lose sight of this fact and mystery.

The only real way to appreciate and give God the respect He is due is to spend time in worship of Him each day. The Psalms are a great place to consider all of God’s benefits, and to literally fall down before His throne to praise His name. If this is what we are going to be doing in heaven all day, it makes sense to start practicing now!

Heavenly Father, you are awesome. Thank you for this vision of Your throne which is surrounded by thousands of angels singing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 3

2011-12-05T11:15:00.000-08:00

To the Church in Philadelphia
7 “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9 I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. 13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

What Does This Mean?
In Revelation 2, we see an example of church that had been faithful, and the apostle encourages them to “keep on keeping on”. Importantly he says that God has given them an “open door that no one can shut”. This is an amazing promise of God’s blessing upon this church, and the opening of a “spiritual door” for God to break through. God sees their hard work and faithfulness and promises them that their efforts are not in vain. Importantly, He will provide the open doors for breakthrough.

He has harsh words for the Jews who are teaching another doctrine calling them from the “synagogue of Satan”. These were those who distorting the gospel of grace towards their own ends. John also describes a crown that they will receive if they hold on are faithful to God’s word despite all the temptation around them. This is not the reward in the sense of earning one’s salvation, but the reward for being faithful to the end, that all who persevere and trust in Christ til the end will receive.

What Does This Mean For Us?
I really love this idea of the “open door”. In fact, there are churches called, “the Church of the Open Door” today. There are times in life where God shuts the door on a ministry. Paul was fond of saying in his missionary travels that God had shut the door in one area, but opened the door in another. We all know ministry can create weariness, but there are always glimpses of God’s kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven. These are the open doors that remind us that God is in charge and our labors will not be in vain.

Sometimes as we are laboring in the Vineyard we do not see what God is doing. Often there can be days, months, or years where we do not see the fruit of the harvest. But as we are faithful and as God provides the open door, there will be a harvest of God’s work and fruit of the work Holy Spirit. Where are you tempted to cave to the pressure around you? How do you detect/discern the open doors God has given you?

Jesus keep us faithful to the end we know that there is laid up for us a crown of glory that will never fade away. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 2

2011-12-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

To the Church in Ephesus
1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: 2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

What Does This Mean?

This is the first of the 7 churches and the words to it from him who holds the seven stars in his hand (Jesus). The Church in Ephesus was one of the most prominent 1st century churches. The apostle Paul spent three years there teaching and building them up, before handing over the reins to Timothy. Because Ephesus was in a highly commercial city with lots of travel through its area, there was lot of pagan influence. As was mentioned in the previous books of 1, 2 and 3 John and Jude toward the end of the 1st century many false teachers started to infiltrate the church denying among other things the divinity of Christ. They distorted the gospel by saying that since we were forgiven we could do whatever we wanted in the body, since it was evil anyways.

Their knowledge of God and Christ was more based on head knowledge than true conversion and being born of the Spirit. This is often called “antinomianism”. (Antinomianism: A belief that is based upon a recognition of the mercy of God as the ground of salvation, but it makes the fatal mistake that man can freely partake in sin because the Law of God is no longer binding.)

What Does This Mean For Us?

Importantly though they did well to fight this early heresy, they had forgotten their first love. They were concerned with deeds and that is why they were doing those deeds, out of love and response to God’s great love for them. They started doing a lot of stuff for God but forgetting why, and also forgetting just how far they had fallen and needed God’s grace.

So the question today is have you forgotten your first love? Have you forgotten why you are a Christian? When you do things for God is it motivated by the great grace He has given you or something else? Is there any part of antinomianism in you? Meaning do you the grace of God as an excuse for sinning? Because of our human nature there will always be this tendency in us and it is good to see it before it takes root in our lives!

Jesus, thank you for your great love for us. Help us to remember the first time we understood what You had done for us and realized amazing grace how sweet the sound. Help us to walk in the truth and recognize the error around us and speak the truth in love to those who are teaching outside of You. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 1

2011-12-01T05:00:00.000-08:00

John’s Vision of Christ
9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. 15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.19 “Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. 20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

What Does This Mean?
Today we begin our study of the Revelation. Notice it is not “Revelations”, as many people mispronounce. It is the Revelation that John received on the island of Patmos, which he was on due to his proclamation of the gospel. Importantly though, this Revelation comes to us through the words of the apostle John, clearly he acknowledges this is the revelation of Jesus Christ from the Father. Though the Revelation was for the Seven Churches in Asia Minor which encapsulated John’s oversight, it is timeless for churches of all time as we anticipate Jesus’ return with an expectancy that should bring us joy not fear.
The IVP Commentary has wonderfully put this concept into words as to the sense that the end is near so I have copied their thoughts on this precious last book of the bible.

“Much of the flavor and excitement of the book of Revelation is traceable to this fervent conviction that the end of the world is near. Many Christian readers and preachers today downplay that conviction in light of the fact that nineteen hundred years have passed, and the expected end has not come. Christians tend to get nervous about any implication that the Bible might be mistaken. Yet a great deal is lost when the striking words soon and the time is near are not given their proper force. The conviction that the end of the world is near is what makes the book of Revelation larger than life.

Anyone who has faced the prospect of imminent death, whether from illness or accident, and then recovered knows how precious life then seems. The colors of the world are brighter and its contrasts sharper. Everything around us is etched more deeply than before in our senses and in our memories. When we assume that life will go on forever, one day often blurs into another, but when we are reminded that it has an end, every moment and every perception can come alive. Samuel Johnson once said that the prospect of one's own imminent death "wonderfully concentrates the mind." (IVP Commentary)

What Does This Mean For Us?
As we journey though this exciting book, which is a foretaste of the feast to come, I invite you to consider all its meaning as we wonderfully concentrate our mind on things that will really matter in the end. Some take the study of end times (called “eschatology”) as an excuse to remove themselves from the world to just wait to be taken to heaven. And yet we will be challenged in this book to live out our days until Jesus decides to return with purpose and an expectant joy of when He will return.

The concept that Jesus will come soon should however also create in us an urgency to be about the things Jesus has commanded us to be about. As we study each of the seven churches there will likely be something in each church for us to learn from. Though we live out our faith as individuals, we also live it out in the context of a Christian community, usually the local church we are a part of it. So the Revelation is a call both to individual expectancy and faithfulness, but also a wake up call for the Church to be about the business Jesus has called us to be faithful to until the end despite the certain opposition the world will bring. I pray the Revelation will wonderfully concentrate all our minds to God’s purposes and how we can be certain that we are ready for Jesus’ return by our faithfulness to His call on our lives in the power of the Holy Spirit. As John describes his image of Jesus it will be quite an amazing and awe inspiring moment when we come into our Lord’s presence, as he has now be raised in eternal glory and power and waits for His bride to return to Him!

Jesus, as we await your return may we heed the words of this book as revealed through Your apostle John but every bit as written to us today. Send Your Spirit so we can do all things through your power and might, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - Jude 1

2011-11-30T05:00:00.000-08:00

A Call to Persevere
17 But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. 18 They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.” 19 These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. 20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. 22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

What Does This Mean?
Jude the brother of James (the main leader of the church at Jerusalem) writes this short letter to those who are “loved”, “called” and “kept” in Jesus Christ. “Kept” and the imperative “keep” in v. 21 above, imply the main purpose of this short letter, which was for the early believers to keep the doctrinal integrity from the moral threats he graphically describes. (Asbury Commentary)

The main threat was that there were those who slipped into the church who were teaching that God’s grace gave them license for all sorts of immorality, which denied the sovereignty and lordship of Jesus. These also claimed to have dreams, which they used to reject authority and do what they wanted. Jude cites several Old Testament examples of those who had tasted God’s grace, and yet rebelled following their own desires. He also quotes from the apocryphal literature (writings between the end of the Old Testament and the New Testament approximately 500 B.C. to 50 A.D.), which was not regarded as part of the canon on the bible by the early church. For this reason some wanted to exclude this book of Jude from the New Testament canon, but the majority felt it should be included so it was.

Importantly Jude lifts us that these early believers should contend for the “faith” that was once and for all entrusted to God’s holy people. This assumes a reliable tradition that must be delivered and received in each generation, with its focus on proclaiming Jesus as both sovereign and Lord. Meaning Jesus was God, and He also sits at the right hand of the Father and will come to judge the living and the dead (from our Apostle’s Creed).

What Does This Mean For Us Today?
Specifically it means we need to guard the doctrine of faith God has entrusted to us as well. Today there are many opponents of the Gospel that reject the Lordship and divinity of Jesus, saying he was only a prophet like other prophets. At the heart of the Christian faith is the proclamation, “Jesus is Lord”. Jesus is Lord over all Creation and He will come again someday. And Jesus is also Lord of our lives, so that all we do is subject to His Lordship and teaching.

Generally it means we too must watch out for any way that we cheapen God’s grace to justify sin in our lives. Because of our human nature and inherent sinfulness, there will always be the tendency to fall back into old patterns that described us before we were saved and rationalize them by saying, “Well I’m forgiven so it doesn’t matter.” No, we are forgiven so it does matter. It matters how we live our lives not to justify ourselves but to show Jesus is Lord of our lives and our lives and how we live them are as importantly as our words we say. This is an important concept for the 21st century to think about and live out.

Jesus we pray that if we have received You as Lord that you will continue to protect and keep us in the true faith by Your Holy Spirit. Help us also to contend for the faith that your apostles proclaimed and the church has fought for throughout the centuries. In Your Name, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 3 John

2011-11-29T05:00:00.000-08:00

Daily Bread 2011 – 3 John

1 The Elder,To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.

What Does This Mean?

In this third letter of John, this time it is addressed to Gaius, someone who the author, the elder, knows well. It has many marks of a letter written in that time in history including: a greeting, personal affirmations and thanksgiving to the recipient. In this case, the elder is uplifting Gaius for welcoming some missionaries who were traveling in the Johannine community spreading the gospel. For the sake of the Name, these missionaries went out; and for the sake of the Name, Gaius welcomed them in.

Contrary to Gaius, another member of the church, Diotrophes, did not welcome anyone into his church. He even spread lies about what the Elder and other churches were doing. Contrary to the hospitality of Gaius, Diotrophes was more interested in his own tribe than the greater mission of Christ. What a stark contrast in the attitudes of these two churches and its leaders! For the Elder, the Gaius’ example brought him great joy to see they were living out the truth, whereas the former Diotrophes, needed to be confronted for his bad actions and attitudes.

What Does This Mean For Us?

It was Jesus who said, “When you welcome in the stranger, you welcome in me!” When you feed those who are homeless, or care for those imprisoned; you are really touching him. It is impossible for any one ministry, missions group, or church to reach the whole world with the Gospel. The only way it would be possible if all these groups worked together for the sake of God’s kingdom coming here on earth as it is in heaven.

It is all too easy in church organization to get so caught up in our individual ministries that we often forget to remember those ministering in other parts of the world. Practically speaking, every church should give a portion of its own offerings to other local and global efforts to spread the Gospel. This models that we are not all about just taking in for ourselves, but we give outside our four walls. As we connect with other missions, ministries and missionaries; we get a sense of what God is doing throughout the world. As we pray for others and support them financially and otherwise, we are fulfilling the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations (people groups!).

God help us to have a God sized vision for our ministries, welcoming the stranger and supporting other efforts to bring the Gospel to the whole world. We know we have been blessed to be a blessing to others and we will give an account of how we have handled all the gracious resources you have entrusted us with! Amen.

2 John 1

2011-11-28T16:28:00.001-08:00

Daily Bread 2011 – 2 John 1

1 The elder, To the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I only, but also all who know the truth— 2 because of the truth, which lives in us and will be with us forever: 3 Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love. 4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

What Does This Mean?

The writer of this short letter of 2 John is very similar to the writing of the 1 John. Specifically it is concerned about the false teachers that were infiltrating the church, and teaching that Jesus did not come in the flesh. Meaning he was some sort of spirit being but not really human. Importantly the writer uplifts the relationship between truth and love. They are not exclusive, and in fact both are important for the integrity of the Church, the body of Christ.

Truth is not just abstract intellectual concepts, but the Truth which comes from knowing God, which when we are obedient to it sets us free. Of course Jesus said, “I am the Truth” reminding us that following Jesus and His teachings is following the Truth. Closely linked with the Truth is Love. After all the Truth is that God’s loves us, and Jesus showed us the complete extent of God’s love by dying for us. As we obey God’s commands the chief one is to love Him and love others with the same love He has showed us.

When John refers to the “dear lady and her children”, he means the church which is also called the “Bride of Christ” in other places in the bible (see Ephesians) and its members. The elder is the leader of the church charged with teaching the Church in truth and in love. The elder was an overseer making sure that the correct doctrines about Jesus were taught. Apparently some false teachers had left the church and were teaching new doctrines about the nature of Christ that denied his true humanity. The reason that is so important is that Jesus took on human flesh so he could die for us. Jesus’ sacrifice involved real suffering as a substitution for us for the sins of all people. Jesus felt every part of the crucifixion, as any human would and was also raised from dead in a resurrected body. These are truths we need to preserve and are at the essence of the “teaching” John describes that we must uphold.

What Does This Mean For Us?

Truth is not something to be used to wield over others, but is lived out in love. There will be times speaking the truth will bring confrontation. At the heart of sin are lies and deceit, and those in sin will try to cover up their sin by lying and being deceptive. But speaking the truth to someone who is living outside of God’s truth is the most loving thing we can do for someone. For if someone is living outside of God’s truth their future will only be full of pain and hardship.

As we live together in the fellowship and community of the church, this is a primary place we live the truth out in obedience, loving each other as Christ has loved us. It will also mean at times speaking the truth in love to a brother or sister who has strayed. Of course, we need to remember to be humble and also that we are all prone to falling to sin so as not to become proud about this. And in all of this, we have the Holy Spirit as our helper and guide who convicts us and others in the body about sin, so that we can repent and return to the truth. As the Spirit speaks to us about Truth, we can either listen to Him or ignore Him. How is the Spirit calling you to walk in obedience to the Truth and with love toward the world today? Do you have a group you meet with that helps you to process what God is saying to you and what you are going to do about it? We all need each other in this process of living in the Truth and in Love.

Jesus, thank you for modeling for us walking in the Truth, and walking in obedience to God’s command to love others. Send us your Spirit to us so we can be sure of when we are straying from the Truth and be alert for False Teacher who would lead us astray. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 John 5

2011-11-25T05:00:00.000-08:00

Concluding Affirmations
13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

What Does This Mean?
We see John’s ultimate purpose in writing His gospel and also his letters to the churches. He says that he writes these things that those who believe in the Son of God may know they have eternal life. Notice it did not say “hope they have eternal life”, but “know they have eternal life”. God does not want us to go through life wondering where we are going to spend the rest of our eternity. The bible calls this “confidence”.

Some might say, “Well how can you know for sure you are going to heaven.” The appropriate answer is because of what Jesus has done for us and our faith in what He did on the cross. Christianity is not a scorecard that at the end of the day we will total up our points and hope to make it into heaven. Christianity is a card that has a stamp on it that says, “Paid in full by the blood of Jesus.”

And then the John goes on to tell us that the same confidence we have in “knowing” that we have eternal life is also applicable to our prayers we ask according to God’s will. Importantly we do not ask for anything but anything according to His will. As we read the scripture and listen to the Holy Spirit we learn to ask things according to His will and we know God will hear us.

What Does This Mean For Us?
It means God does not want us to worry about where we will end up after we die. God wants us to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we are headed to an eternity with the Father and the Son and the Saints. As we are confident in our destination we can be bold in praying according to God’s will know He will hear us and act.

Let me ask you a question that is a very important one. Please don’t go to bed without having confidence in your answer. If you were to die tonight would you have full confidence that you are going to go to heaven? If the answer is yes, thank God that He has given you belief in His Son. If you are not sure, do you want to be? Believe in God’s Son Jesus. Believe in His name and trust in Him for your eternal life. Ask Jesus to come into Your life and be born again in the power of the Spirit. God will always answer that prayer because that is why He made you to have fellowship with Him and to be with Him and enjoy Him forever.

Heavenly Father I pray for anyone out there today/tonight who does not have the confidence of where they will spend eternity. I pray that you might give them faith to believe in Your Son for the forgiveness of all their sins and that they might receive the Holy Spirit and be born again into Your Holy Family. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer or want to pray it, let me know I would love to pray with you some time as you wish. 

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 John 4

2011-11-24T05:00:00.000-08:00

1 John 4
17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 19 We love because he first loved us.

What Does This Mean?
This is one of the most beautiful passages in all scripture. Again we see the process of transformation takes place through the power of love. We hear the most magnificent verse, “Perfect love casts out all fear.” Whenever we fear as human beings it is always a result of not understanding God’s “perfect love” for us. There is fear in perfect love, because most fear stems from a fear of failing, rejection or even bodily harm. And yet if we know the God of the universe loves us, we really have nothing to fear. If God is for us who can be against us!

Fear has to do with punishment. Love can discipline, but it is always out of a perfect love that desires the best for the other person. God disciplines those whom he loves. God is love, so that if we have the Spirit of God in us, this is the same love that sent Jesus to the world. This is the same love that Jesus chose when he went to the cross. This is the same love that raised Jesus from the dead in God’s power. The only thing we would need to fear is the day of judgment, but if we are in Christ we can have confidence because of what He has done for us.

What Does This Mean For Us?
It means most profoundly we can live with boldness and courage. We can have courage knowing that He has overcome the world, and greater is He that is in us that He that is the world. Yes, we will be challenged. Yes, our enemy will try to dissuade and discourage us. Yes, we will all fall. Yes, we will all have times of doubting God’s love. And yet, in our hearts the Spirit testifies that we are God’s, and He loves us no matter what and nothing will separate us from the love of God not even death.

What a great promise for you to hang on to. God loves you no matter what, and you don’t have to be afraid because perfect love casts out all fear. I would suggest the next time you feel fearful or anxious to meditate on those words. Perfect love casts out all fear. Fear not for I am with you, says the Lord. I will be with you and redeem you and I will call you by name, child you are mine. Though you walk through waters I will be there, and you will not be harmed. No way! Fear not for I am with you, says the Lord.

Gracious God thank you for the courage you give us to live confidently knowing that greater is He that is in us than He that is in the world. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 John 3

2011-11-23T05:00:00.000-08:00

1 John 3
1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

What Does This Mean?
At the heart of receiving God’s love is becoming His child. Born not of natural means, but born of the Spirit. John says, “And that is what we are!” Although other Christians will have a kindred Spirit with you, just as there is a natural kindred spirit between a brother and sister; those without the Spirit will not understand or detect it.

Just like a child grows up to be like his or her parents, because they have their DNA in them, so a child of God grows up to be like His Father in heaven and like His Son, Jesus. Why? Because God’s Spirit lives in us and transforming us into his likeness as we allow Him to in the power of the Spirit. And this process will be complete when Jesus calls us home to become a permanent part of God’s family. As we meet Jesus face to face, the transformation process will be over because we will be in presence and we will see him as he is, and be a perfect reflection of his handiwork. This is our hope as Christians, and as we strive after it in His power it purifies us.

What Does This Mean For Us?
It means that how we live for God has everything to do with how we see ourselves in God. As we realize our identity is shaped by our new calling in our new family, we begin to change. Our identity shapes our obedience. Most people obey in order to receive an identity. In a gang you have to do all sorts of crazy things to become part of the family. They are called this an “initiation”.

But God initiates us into His family through His Son Jesus. Jesus came to create and redeem the children of God by making peace on the cross. Jesus makes it possible for us to be initiated into God’s holy family. Baptism is the sign of that initiation as the sign of our being born again of the water and the Spirit. The church is the place where the family gathers to remind themselves of who they are in Christ and to have fellowship that is a foretaste of the fellowship we will enjoy in heaven with all the saints. We can see Jesus in each other as God is shaping and molding us to love one another and lay down our lives for each other as Jesus did for us!

Father, thank you for your great love that we should be called Your children. Thank you for sending Jesus to initiate us into your family by your grace and mercy and through faith and being baptized. Set us apart for you oh Lord. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 John 2

2011-11-22T05:00:00.000-08:00

Love and Hatred for Fellow Believers
3 We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4 Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.”

What Does This Mean?
In the 2nd chapter, the apostle explains the relationship between obedience and our relationship with the Father. One of the heresies of the Gnostic movement was the “antinomian” (anti-nomian means anti-law or “nom”) heresy. They felt since they were forgiven they could do whatever they wanted. They said God’s commands didn’t apply to them anymore because they were under grace and not the Law. Basically, they were living in the flesh and trying to use the doctrine of justification by grace to rationalize their licentious lifestyle.

The apostle challenges the young community and says that even though we are saved by grace, that doesn’t give them the right to abolish the law. Although we are not saved by observing or living up to the Law (which we could never do anyways!), that doesn’t give us the right to just do whatever we want to do. This is what the world sees as “hypocrisy”. Meaning we say we are Christian, but then we disregard God’s laws and commands. Though we are not justified by observing the Law, we are not above it either, as it is holy and just.

What Does This Mean For Us?
Oftentimes the word “obedience” gets confused with the word “legalism”. Obedience is a natural response from our hearts having been saved by God’s grace. Legalism is bondage to the Law trying to do things to win God’s approval. Obedience is doing the right things, because we have God’s approval. There is a huge misunderstanding in the Church over these concepts and the result is a very shallow Christianity, with not much potency.

To obey God’s Word is to trust God, that God’s Word is good for us. At the heart of our relationship with God is trusting that He knows what is best for us. God’s commands are not burdensome, but they actually free us from ourselves to live life to its fullest. When we stop trying to earn God’s love through obedience, but respond instead because of His love for us, this is a whole new way of relating to God. And as the passage concludes this is to live like Jesus did, who relied on God’s Word for every move He made. You might paraphrase the last verse to say, “Whoever claims to be Christian must live like Jesus did.” We know that because of the gift of the Holy Spirit we can live like Jesus did and do the things He did. This is what makes a Christian a Christian, not perfect yet and yet we know what our goal is.

Jesus, continue to perfect us so that we might respond to your great love in obedience to all you have commanded us to do. We know your commands are not burdensome but lead to life to its fullest in loving you and learning how to love others like you did. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 John 1

2011-11-21T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Incarnation of the Word of Life
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.

What Does This Mean?
We begin 1 John with a similar passage to the gospel of John 1. The apostle John, who was part of the inner circle of Jesus’ disciples, proclaims what he (we=the apostles) has seen, heard and touched. This tips us off to one of the main purposes of the first epistle of John. By now (toward the end of the first century or possibly into the early 2nd century) the church is fighting the major heresy it will fight called “Gnosticism”.

There were a couple of different versions of this heresy, but at its heart it denied the divinity of Jesus and the sanctity of the human body. That is why John is so resolute about describing his experience of the human Jesus that he heard, saw and touched. Remember Thomas, the doubter, needed to put his hands in Jesus’ side to confirm he was truly Risen. What more proof do you need than that?

What Does This Mean For Us?
The important thing for us theologically is that Jesus came and became human so that he could make sacrifice for our sins. If Jesus didn’t die in the flesh and be raised in a new body, than there is no forgiveness of sins. Importantly John says, “We proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and has appeared to us.” Some people talk about the resurrection being just a spiritual metaphor for eternal life, but Jesus confirms the reality of eternal life and bodily resurrection, something we affirm in our Creed every Sunday. We say I believe in the “resurrection of the dead.”

John will continue through his letter to the early church to affirm Jesus came in a body as the Word made flesh. This is the same Word that in the beginning was with the Father creating everything, and the same Word which will come again to judge the living and the dead. Finally, John says that our Fellowship (lit. “koinonia”) is with the Father and the Son. The reason that Jesus came down to earth in the flesh was to restore our relationship to the Father, through the Son. As we have a living, breathing relationship with the Father and the Son our (and their) joy is made complete or perfect!!

Father, we thank you for the Fellowship we have as a result of Your Son coming to earth and dying and be raised from the dead. This is the same fellowship we will enjoy with you throughout eternity. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 2 Peter 3

2011-11-18T05:00:00.000-08:00

8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

What Does This Mean?
In 2 Peter, one of the author’s main concerns is that the believers would not be ready for the return of the Lord. The Day of the Lord is spoken of throughout the Old and New Testament as a day of judgment and reckoning. In the Old Testament many associated it with the coming of the Messiah, and the new kingdom He would set up. Although Jesus’ coming was certainly a day of the Lord, it is not the final day of the Lord; when Jesus will return a final time.

There were some scoffers who were saying, “Since Jesus had not come back yet and you have been talking about it, why worry about it. Eat, drink, be merry!” The author reminds the reader to beware that God’s timing is not like our timing. While we often live only in the moment and are often not able to plan for the future, God is outside of space and time. One thing is for sure, when the Lord comes it will be swift and for those who aren’t prepared it will not be good.

Yet as believers, we can depend on God’s promises and not worry about His coming. As we are abiding in Him and living in step with the Spirit, we can have peace and know we are covered in Christ. But yet we see God’s urgency in others coming to faith and how His patience is related to His love for all people.

What Does This Mean For Us?
In one sense we should be at peace knowing we are God’s child and we are completely covered by His grace, and yet we should also have a sense of urgency and be bold in our invitation and challenge to others. We live in the in between time frame, where Jesus has come already, yet not finished the work of His kingdom. In the meantime He has called us to be part of the Church which is about bringing God’s kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

Listen to how Nicky Gumbel, creator of the Alpha Course puts it. “The battle is not over yet. On the Cross Satan, the Devil, was defeated, demoralized. The Cross and the Resurrection are the decisive moment in history. But the Devil was not destroyed. There will come a moment when he is destroyed, when Jesus returns. If you like, it’s a bit like the difference between D Day and VE Day. D Day was the decisive moment of the Second World War, 6 June 1944. That determined the outcome of the war. There was no real doubt about the future of it, but it wasn’t over—the mopping-up operations continued until VE Day on 8 May 1945, when the war in Europe was over. And in a sense we live between D Day and VE Day.” (Alpha Talk on How Can I Resist Evil, N Gumbel)

Jesus prepare us for your eventual return. May we be at work in the Vineyard using the gifts we have been given to draw people to Your Father’s love in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 2 Peter 2

2011-11-17T05:00:00.000-08:00

False Teachers and Their Destruction
1 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

What Does This Mean?
The author gets to the heart of the issue he sees in the church. As Christianity began to grow, cults that looked like Christianity and even mentioned Jesus in their teaching, started to emerge. To be a good heresy the teaching must look like the truth. But in the end, its demise is that it denies that Jesus is Lord. While they may flourish for a while and fool some people, ultimately their destruction will be swift. Yesterday, I talked about the heresy where the body was denied any pleasure and the key to knowing God was an ascetism that sought to deny the body and connect with the Divine Spirit and become like God.

Another variation of that heresy said that since the body was bad, you might as well indulge in revelry, lust and greed because the body is perishing anyways. You can see the inherent problem in that type of teaching. Since these teachers were seen to have the keys of knowledge, they exploited people into trusting them financially as well.

What Does This Mean For Us?
The focus on the heresy in this book is an argument for a later date and that the apostle Peter was not author of this book. Irenaeus declares in his treatise "Against Heresies" (180 A.D.) that Gnostic movements subjected all morality to the caprice of the individual, and made any fixed rule of faith impossible.

Today, we have false teachers in the church as well. Their message is follow Jesus you will get everything you want in life. You will have health, wealth and prosperity. Granted following Jesus will give us what we need in this life, but it is not always linked to a bigger net worth. I say this a little tongue in cheek, because we do not that God we know we can’t out-give God. But there is the slippery slope of preaching that becoming a Christian will give you everything you want in life. Jesus called us to pick up our cross and follow Him. In losing our life, we would find it. We would find it by dying to ourselves and living for God and others.

Heavenly Father help us to be wise in who we listen to and may we always test everything according to Your Word. Guard our churches from false teaching, and guard our hearts from cheapening your grace, but instead live lives worthy of your calling. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 2 Peter 1

2011-11-16T05:00:00.000-08:00

Confirming One’s Calling and Election
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

What Does This Mean?
In the first verses of 2 Peter, the author claims to be the apostle Peter. There are not many examples of external evidence (early church fathers) who cite the apostle Peter as the author. 2 Peter struggled to gain acceptance into the New Testament canon (books that make up the final version of the New Testament), but by and large was accepted by the Church to make the final canon because of the internal evidence that Peter was the author. Many felt that the author used Peter’s name as a pseudo writer, but the style of the writing is so different from 1 Peter, than many doubt it was the apostle but probably one of his disciples.

Nonetheless, 2 Peter urges us to make our calling and election more sure and emphasizes how important knowledge is to be able to recognize false teaching. By that time false teachers had started to infiltrate (depending on authorship which changes the dating of the book) the Church. In this short book the word “knowledge is used” 16 times. The book is written to believers everywhere in the early church and for them to grow in their holiness and character (sanctification).

What Does This Mean For Us?
The author starts with the fact that we have been given everything we need to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Through participation and belief in God’s promises, we can grow in that grace and knowledge and participate in the Divine Nature. This is not to be confused with the Gnostic heresy that we become like “little gods”. The heresy of Gnosticism denied the flesh, and set up a dualism where the flesh was bad and the spirit was good. Therefore we needed to deny the body, and connect with spirit we can become our own god.

The difference in Christianity is that when we are born again, we are born of the Spirit and become part of God’s family. We are new creation in Christ, but we are not God. We have the ability to become more Christ-like, as we grow in grace and knowledge of Jesus. Of course this is not head knowledge only, but transformation of our attitudes, behaviors and in our relationships in empowered by the Holy Spirit who lives in us. This is the sense in which participation in these promises, make us participants in the Divine Nature. This is also probably one of the reasons many of the early church fathers struggled with 2 Peter, because of the nature of these verses, but taken in light of the rest of the Scripture it can be applied properly.

Jesus, thank you for the grace that is ours in Jesus through the power of the Spirit. Help us to grow in that grace and the knowledge of Jesus as we become more like you in thought, word and deed. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 Peter 5

2011-11-15T05:00:00.000-08:00

To the Elders and the Flock
1 To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2 Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

What Does This Mean?
As Peter counsels the church, he turns to the leaders, the elders, who he also calls “shepherds”. The elders/overseers main job was to shepherd the sheep, by being an example to the flock. Just as the power in Jesus’ leadership was in his willingness to submit to the Father and serve others without regard for personal gain, so the best leaders exhibit “servant leadership”. As we say, “leadership has its privileges we get to serve!”

The best way to disciple others is being by being a disciple yourself. You can’t lead someone where you are unwilling to go. When Jesus said “follow me”, he was leading by example. He was demonstrating through His life how to follow the Father in the power of the Spirit. And God doesn’t need people to be shepherds, it is a privilege. Those who enter ministry should do it out of a sense of calling, and a willing heart, not for any other reason especially greed.

What Does This Mean For Us?
It means now more than ever. The church needs leaders/shepherds whose primary qualification for leadership is they are a Christ-follower themselves. Also, we see that in order to truly accomplish the mission of making disciples, there needs to be a laboratory for learning. Discipleship happens “life on life” with one person investing His life in another one on one, or in small groups. Jesus’ the greatest disciple-maker and shepherd of all time, could only handle 12 persons and even one of his didn’t make it through.

Often in the church we get so caught up in programs that try to satisfy a consumer mindset that we don’t have time to make disciples. We have that backwards. What the church needs is not more programs to keep people happy, but more shepherds leading people in the example of Christ. Not easy work, but worth it in the end when Jesus, our Chief Shepherd comes to give these faithful shepherds a crown of glory that will never fade away.

Jesus, thank you for being a Good Shepherd who was willing to lay down His life for His sheep. Send faithful shepherds to be examples to every church until You return in glory. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 Peter 4

2011-11-14T05:00:00.000-08:00

Suffering for Being a Christian
12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.

What Does This Mean?
The Christians in Peter’s day were undergoing persecution and Peter writes to encourage them and similar to what James’ says in James 1 he states, “Don’t be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come to test you as something strange is happening to you.” But instead be joyous that you are participating in the sufferings of Christ.

It is one thing to suffer for doing bad things, but quite another to suffer for doing good things in Jesus’ name. Peter makes two precious promises. One is that one day we will be thankful that we were able to persevere through such trials when Jesus returns. Though we don’t always understand why we are going through trials, one day we will understand as their purpose will be revealed. Secondly, as we withstand the storms of life, God is with us in an unusual way.

Just as the Spirit was with Jesus as he underwent suffering, so when we go through trials it is an opportunity to realize that just as Jesus suffered for doing good things, when we suffer God’s Spirit is upon us instilling in us the same attitude of Christ. Note that this suffering is the result of the human sinful condition, as those who oppose Christ are inflicting this suffering on the Church as a result of their rejection of God’s Son.

What Does This Mean For Us?
At face value it means what it says, we shouldn’t be surprised when we face trials and in fact we should expect it. You will hear from time to time people saying if you follow God you will be successful in all you do. Just last night I heard Rae Lewis from the Ravens say that a receiver caught a touchdown pass because he believed God would bless him in that way. That is tricky. In one sense God does want to bless us, but does that mean we will be successful in a worldly sense like scoring game winning touchdowns. I admire Rae Lewis’ boldness to proclaim God in a world that often fails to give God credit for anything, but I wonder about the theology behind his statement.

I guess we have to define what success means and who is defining it. Were the early disciples, most of who were killed for their proclamation of Jesus as Lord, successful. It depends on how you are determining success. In the world’s eyes no, but in God’s eyes they were faithful to the point of be willing to sacrifice everything, including their lives. As you face trials or difficulties in this life, do you automatically assume God has withdrawn His blessing or hand, or do you see it as an invitation to participate in the sufferings of our Lord and Savior? As Paul says in Romans 8, “The sufferings of this life are not worthy to be compared to the glory that is in Christ Jesus.”

Jesus, help us to count it all joy when we face various kinds of trials since we know the testing of our faith will cause Your Spirit to rest upon us. Help us to realize that you know what we are going through, and in fact use our trials to refine our faith so we may be mature and complete and lacking in nothing, as we await Your return. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 Peter 3

2011-11-11T05:00:00.000-08:00

Wives and Husbands
1 Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. 4 Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.

What Does This Mean?
In bible study it is always very important to understand the context of the passage written. For instance in this passage we need to go back to start of this section back in chapter 2, which said, “13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority.” Peter goes on to talk about slaves submitting to their masters not because they had to because in submission to God. Then he says that wives should be submissive to their husbands, which was also the cultural norm of his day. These were all givens in that society, but Peter urges them to do it now not because the culture demanded it but in submission to God and in light of the example of Jesus. This is also the meaning of the term “weaker vessel”, in respect to the power given to male and females in the Middle-Eastern culture.

But what Peter does is to add the husband’s mutual submission, likewise as Paul says in Ephesians, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” As Jesus taught on marriage, he redefined it in a society where men could divorce women for almost any reason. Jesus teaches men that they should stay in their marriage and submit to and respect their wives out of their submission to Christ. This was radical in Jesus’ day to teach the men these concepts.

If you would like some more in depth of the cultural norms in Jesus’ day and how radical Jesus’ teaching was, especially in regard to men see this link:

http://bible.org/seriespage/obligations-christian-husbands-their-wives-1-peter-37

What Does This Mean For Us?
Jesus teachings on how men and women should relate to each other in the covenant of marriage has extreme relevance for us today. Jesus teaches us that our love for each other is shown by laying down our lives for each other, and is a response to His great love. Therefore, in whatever role the husband and the wife play in terms of household duties, they both are to submit to each other out of reverence for Christ. In Jesus’ day this was the norm for women who had little to no rights in terms of society, but Jesus calls men to serve their wives similarly.
Husbands and wives should have mutual respect for each other and learn about to appreciate and celebrate the differences between men and women. We are equal in God’s eyes, but not the same. We are both children of God, and we have both been bought with a price, Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for both of us.

If this is our presumption going into marriage, though there are certain to be difficulties as in all human relationships because of our inherent sinfulness, we can stem the tide of divorce among Christian couples. The Christian divorce rate is the same as in the world, because we have failed to challenge and teach couples (and specifically men) the biblical basis for marriage. This is the marriage covenant we make to each other in God’s eyes and in front of the Christian community to love each other as Christ loved the Church laying down his life for it. I feel the Church needs to provide more help to couples in the Church to help them understand the marriage covenant and how we honor it as a natural product of God’s covenant with us.

Jesus, help us to honor our spouses out of submission to Christ. Strengthen the marriages in the Church as a testimony the truth of these teachings that will draw people to discover the covenant love you have in Your Son. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - 1 Peter 2

2011-11-10T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Living Stone and a Chosen People
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

What Does This Mean?
Peter uses imagery and a metaphor that would have struck a chord with the Israelites. In the Old Testament, God was described as “the Rock” on which the temple was built. The tabernacle in which God dwelt had many regulations, as the High Priest came in once a year to offer sacrifices for the people. Only the Most High Priest could come into God’s presence.

But Peter describes a new house, a “spiritual house”, into which all believers in Jesus are built into using the image of “living stones”. Just like the law which was written on rock tablets were now engraved on their hearts, so now the temple was a living edifice built on the priesthood of all believers. God has called all who believe out of the world to build the church, which is not made out of stone but on the confession of faith. Just as Simon, was renamed “Peter”, because of his rock-like confession, so on this confession Jesus is building His Church and the gates of Hades shall not overcome it.

What Does This Mean For Us?
Do you have a local church that you belong to out of which can continue this royal priesthood? God’s kingdom, His Royal Rule, needs local priests (men and women) who will intercede and be vessels of God’s grace, love and mercy through the local church. As we gather each Sunday we are literally the living temple of God, the body of Christ. Every church that gathers in Jesus’ name in the world is a “living stone” being built into a kingdom that begins here and will be realized in totality when Jesus returns in great and promised glory.

So the question becomes are you in that process of being set apart to be used by God for such a great purpose? If you are not connected to a local church and using your gifts to build His body, you are missing out on the chance to make a huge impact for God’s kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for the great privilege and calling we have to be your agents of Your grace and mercy in the world. We want to continue to build on and in the house you have created with Jesus as the cornerstone! In His name, Amen.

Daily Bread - 1 Peter 1

2011-11-09T05:00:00.000-08:00

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

What Does This Mean?
In this short introduction to the book of 1 Peter, we see more about the apostle Peter and his being sent as an apostle to the tribes of Israel. We Peter is an apostle, one of the original 12 sent by Jesus with His full authority to bring about God’s purposes subsequent to Jesus’ resurrection. To God’s elect means to those who are called and chosen to represent God. When God calls someone He gives them everything they need to fulfill the purpose He called them to. Notice it God’s initiative in calling these folks. In this case it is to those who were scattered in the Babylonian invasion of 586 B.C. and these Christian Jews were dispersed throughout Asia Minor (modern day Turkey).

Notice too the Trinitarian language in these opening verses. Called by the Father, Sanctified by the Spirit, and sprinkled with the blood of Christ. It was God’s plan from the beginning to call us, save us, and set us apart from the world to usher in His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Since these early Christians were being persecuted, Peter needed to remind them on their heavenly inheritance and who they were (identity). He also needed to remind them that God would be faithful and their inheritance was secure despite the bad external conditions they found themselves in. This book is a great encouragement to anyone going through trials or tribulations.

What Does This Mean For Us?
As we struggle with life situations and to be faithful to the call God has on our lives, we must remember that God initiated this call on our lives and God will be faithful to see us through until the end. A little later in verses 7-9 Peter compares these fiery trials to gold which is refined by fire to make it even purer in quality. Indeed our faith becomes more pure as we go through trials and cling to God’s promises no matter what. In God’s foreknowledge everything that happens to us is used in the process of refining our character through even difficult times.

As you face challenges in your life it is helpful to know that God is in charge and He who called you will be faithful to help you persevere. The refiners fire will help all of us as we get ready for the return of Christ when our calling will be complete. For now we must fight the temptation to say, “Why me?” when storms come our way. Being a Christian doesn’t protect you from bad circumstances but instead within in them we can rely on God even more heavily. Instead of turning to idols to get us through hard times, we can turn to the power of the Spirit which is more than willing to give us what we need to withstand any hardship. Where do you need to turn to God, so that His refining work can continue its course so you will be mature and complete and lacking in nothing?

God, even though we don’t enjoy trials we can count it as joy that our trials are obtaining for us an eternal glory that can never be taken from us. Refine us and help us to rely on Your Spirit and the sacrifice of Your Son that has delivered us once and for all from the sin of the world. Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - James 5

2011-11-08T05:00:00.000-08:00

The Prayer of Faith
13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

What Does This Mean? James teaches us many things about living out our Christian faith, even in the midst of adversity. At the end of chapter 5, he urges the Christian church to not to forget to pray when they are going through various kinds of trials. He also reminds them to sing songs of praise when things are going well and they are happy. So often we go to God only when we need things (as we should), but forget to thank Him when things are going well.
Then, he makes some pretty incredible promises about praying over the sick in the congregation. If anyone is sick, he tells them to call the elders to pray over the person and anoint them with oil, as a sign of the Holy Spirit. Then, he makes the bold claim that the prayers of a righteous person are powerful and effective and the sick person will be made well. Interestingly he says, if they have sinned they will be forgiven. He then admonishes them to confess their sins to one another, so that they will be healed. Notice he doesn’t say just confess them to the priest or pastor.

What Does This Mean For Us?
These teachings could mean a lot for us, and even lead us down the wrong path theologically and practically, if we don’t interpret them rightly. Like for instance, if a friend was found to have cancer and you immediately told them to confess what they did wrong so they could be healed this would not be good. We all know that sin has its consequences and these include physical, emotional and spiritual consequences, but it would be wrong to assume that every sickness is the result of a person’s individual sin. Yes, sin, sickness, disease and even death are all due to the Fall of humankind, but it would not be right to blame people for sickness as a result of their sin.

Notice it says, “If they have sinned, they will be forgiven”. Meaning not every sickness is a consequence of someone’s personal sin. More importantly today’s passage lifts up two important truths that the body of Christ must celebrate and learn how to practice more effectively. One, we can pray for each other when someone is sick, and through faith bring about healing through our prayers. Though only God dictates who, how and when people are healed, God has clearly in many places in Scripture called us to pray for the sick. I have personally seen many people healed through healing prayers offered in the name of Jesus.

Secondly, it is common practice in the early church for the people to confess their sins to each other. Notice there is no need for this to be only the priest or pastor, but we are all called to confess to one another and hear the confessions of others. Martin Luther called this, “the priesthood of all believers” and added that we are all “little Christ’s”. Meaning we are called to love each other and forgive each other in Jesus’ name by the same Spirit of Christ that dwells within us. Is there a sin you need to confess? Are there people in your life that you can call and say, “Brother/sister I need to come clean with some stuff in my life, will you listen?”

There is no need to wait until Sunday to confess your sins to God and/or to another brother or sister in Christ. God has designed us to function like this in His body.

Father, we thank you for sending Jesus to forgive us of all of our sins. As we live life together in community, in the body of Christ, may we be a “priesthood of all believers” in You. Convict us of our need to pray for the sick and hear the confessions of others and offer the same forgiveness we ourselves have received through You. In Your name, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - James 4

2011-11-07T05:00:00.000-08:00

Submit Yourselves to God
1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.4 You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you.

What Does This Mean?
As the church has been displaced because of difficulties, James (the brother of Jesus and a prominent member of the early church) writes this letter to correct some of the early practices in the church. Among those were people who reasoned, “Since we are saved by grace it doesn’t matter what we do, after all we’re forgiven.” Paul reasons against this in the book of Romans, as James does here as well.

In the first couple of verses, he gives some real practical instruction about what causes fights among us. What is it? Our own attitude of “I want what I want when I want it.” He is confronting an attitude of entitlement that we see quite pervasive today as well. He is also confronting an attitude that sees God as a just a means to get what I want. Bottom line is that James is confronting a “worldliness” that has crept into the Church. Perhaps due to the trials they were under, or the fact that they had been displaced, but James wants them to get back to an authentic relationship with God. He gives them an incredible promise that we would do well to remember, “Come near to God and He will come near to you!”

When we authentically seek God on His terms, not just so we can get what we want when we want it, God gives us His grace and His very presence. This is what we really need more than anything.

What Does This Mean For Us?
These passages remind us how zealous God is to have all of us. God doesn’t just want us on Sunday mornings, or when we are in bible study, He wants all of us all the time. Just like the Christians in the early 1st century, we also have desires that battle within us. The bible calls this, “our flesh”. Our fleshly desires are always warring against what God wants to do in us and through us, by His Spirit. James says, “This Spirit that lives within us envies intensely.” Once we are God’s child by faith and are baptized, we are now part of God’s family. We have a new identity. The old has gone the new has come. God has residency within us.

What this also means is the Holy Spirit who is your guide and comforter, is also your “convicter”. Meaning when you start to stray, the Holy Spirit will remind you of who you are and that you don’t need to go there. Of course we can quench the Spirit, but as we listen to the Spirit there is life and freedom and we begin to mature and become more like Christ. This is the Christian life that begins when one comes to faith and ends when Jesus takes us home. We all need strong leaders like James’ that calls us back to the way of life we first started when we professed Jesus as Lord. Do you have someone in your life asking you the hard questions?

Gracious God, we pray for the power of the Spirit in our lives to conform more to Your desire for us, than the desires inside of us that often cause us to me more in love what the world says that what you say. Change our hearts and lives as we draw near to you, and we know you will draw near to us, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Daily Bread 2011 - James 3

2011-11-04T05:00:00.000-07:00

Taming the Tongue
1 Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

What Does This Mean?
Today, James turns his attention to the power of the tongue. He begins by reminding teachers they will be accountable for what they teach. This is a good reminder for anyone who presumes to teach for the Lord of how important a task they undertake. As we have all discovered at one time or another in our lives, once you say something you can’t take it back. I’m sure our politicians know this reality better than anyone, especially on the campaign trail.
In chapter 1, we were reminded to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger. Why? Because God wants to protect us from being quick-tongued. James uses the metaphor of our words being “like sparks that can set off forest fires”. One little word can set in motion the blaze that can do lots of damage. And then as Jesus teaches in the Sermon of the Mount, our words reveal our true heart condition. For the words we use are really a reflection of our hearts. As James says, “Can out of the same mouth come praising and cursing?”

What Does This Mean For Us?
This means the way we speak, the language we use, and how we use it reflect our true spiritual condition. Out of the overflow of the heart come our words. If we have a bitter heart, bitter words will come out! If our heart is filled with joy and praise, this will naturally spill out. Though we all have the choice of the words we will use and it is a matter of self-control, the only way to truly be in control is to be operating out of the power of the Spirit. Indeed the last fruit of the Spirit is “self-control”.

If your language does not reflect who you would like to be, there is a good chance your heart is need of some transformation. James says, “A salt spring cannot produce fresh water!” James urges us to pray to God to give His wisdom as a governor on how to use our words. And God’s wisdom yields these results: “Wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.” James 3:17-18

Gracious God send Your Holy Spirit and renew our hearts, so the words that come out of our mouths come out of hearts overflowing with your love and mercy. Then the world will know that we are from you and not saying one thing and uttering another. In Your Son’s name, Amen.