Monday, January 9th
(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.
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.
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