Thursday January 5th
(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.
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.
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