May It Be To Me As You Have Said
Psalm 73:13-20
New International Version 1984
13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure;
in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.
14 All day long I have been plagued;
I have been punished every morning.
15 If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
I would have betrayed your children.
16 When I tried to understand all this,
it was oppressive to me
17 till I entered the sanctuary of God;
then I understood their final destiny.
18 Surely you place them on slippery ground;
you cast them down to ruin.
19 How suddenly are they destroyed,
completely swept away by terrors!
20 As a dream when one awakes,
so when you arise, O Lord,
you will despise them as fantasies.
Reflections:
Note even though the psalmist was tempted to think his devotion to God was in vain, he was able to check that thought and not carry through with his sin. See Matthew Henry’s commentary on this subject, “Note, It is bad to think ill, but it is worse to speak it, for that is giving the evil thought an imprimatur—a sanction; it is allowing it, giving consent to it, and publishing it for the infection of others. But it is a good sign that we repent of the evil imagination of the heart if we suppress it, and the error remains with ourselves. If therefore thou hast been so foolish as to think evil, be so wise as to lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and let it go no further.”
Just because we have a thought something, does not mean we have to act on it. A little while later he says, “We should think twice before we act once.” That is a good one to remember as we go about our day today. Finally, as he enters the sanctuary of God he understands their (the ones he was tempted to envy because of their apparent prosperity while living a life apart from God!) final destiny. Going to a church is a place to re-calibrate our thought life, and be reminded of who we are, who God is, and how God is sovereign over all things. We are reminded that the day of Lord will come quickly as the psalmist says, “As a dream when one awakes when you arise O Lord”, and the fate of those who trusted in something other than God will be final.
Numbers 26:25-56
51 The total number of the men of Israel was 601,730. 52 The Lord said to Moses, 53 “The land is to be allotted to them as an inheritance based on the number of names. 54 To a larger group give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group a smaller one; each is to receive its inheritance according to the number of those listed. 55 Be sure that the land is distributed by lot. What each group inherits will be according to the names for its ancestral tribe. 56 Each inheritance is to be distributed by lot among the larger and smaller groups.”
Reflections: Though this would seem to be just a listing of the twelve tribes and their numbers, a couple of things should be noticed. While the total number is relatively the same 601,000 vs 603,000 (roughly), nine of the tribes had increased, including the 3 tribes of Judah (where Jesus the Messiah would come from), and three had decreased two significantly Ephraim and Simeon. We see detailed the sins of some of those in both those tribes but clearly the consequences were meted out in a lesser inheritance in the Promised Land.
This reminds us of the New Testament principle that Jesus teaches, to who much is given much is required. And those who are faithful in a little will be given more, while those who are unfaithful in a little, even what they have will be taken from them. As God has blessed us and given us a spiritual inheritance, we can enlarge our territory by being faithful with the gifts and calling He has given us to advance His kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. As you are faithful with what God has given you, you will be given more responsibility. This is both a challenge and an opportunity!
Luke 1:26-38
The Birth of Jesus Foretold
26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” 34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[a] the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God.” 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
Reflections: Of course these are famous verses, but let us not pass over the fact that Jesus was a descendant of David through Joseph’s line and from Mary’s line. This connects us to the promises of the Old Testament, where the Messiah would come from. Also, it mentions the house of Jacob, which was in reference to all of Israel over which David reigned, and through which He would be a blessing to all the nations, Jews and Gentiles. This kingdom unlike the kingdom of Israel that fell in 722 b.c. and 586 b.c. would last forever and would include all people.
We see too again today Luke’s emphasis on the Holy Spirit. When Mary is afraid of this massive task, the angel comforts her by saying, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” What a great reminder to us today that anything we are called to do, including continue to bear the Son of God in our lives and on our lips, will be aided by the Holy Spirit guiding us and empowering us. When we discover our calling that God has for us we might be tempted to say, “How can this be because I ______” you fill in the blank! But when God calls us He empowers us!
May we have the same response of this blessed young virgin Mary, a mere teenager, as she responds in faith by saying, “May it be to me as you have said!” As you hear God’s call on your life may you respond with the same words based on the same promises that God will be with you as you carry it out!
Just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord. Jeremiah 31:28
Jesus began to speak in parables. "A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower; then he leased it to tenants and went to another country." Mark 12:1
Guide and Guardian, we hear your call to tend the vineyard, bearing fruit for the entire world as you have taught by your example. Keep watch over us as we serve in your name. Amen.
New International Version 1984
13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure;
in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.
14 All day long I have been plagued;
I have been punished every morning.
15 If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
I would have betrayed your children.
16 When I tried to understand all this,
it was oppressive to me
17 till I entered the sanctuary of God;
then I understood their final destiny.
18 Surely you place them on slippery ground;
you cast them down to ruin.
19 How suddenly are they destroyed,
completely swept away by terrors!
20 As a dream when one awakes,
so when you arise, O Lord,
you will despise them as fantasies.
Reflections:
Note even though the psalmist was tempted to think his devotion to God was in vain, he was able to check that thought and not carry through with his sin. See Matthew Henry’s commentary on this subject, “Note, It is bad to think ill, but it is worse to speak it, for that is giving the evil thought an imprimatur—a sanction; it is allowing it, giving consent to it, and publishing it for the infection of others. But it is a good sign that we repent of the evil imagination of the heart if we suppress it, and the error remains with ourselves. If therefore thou hast been so foolish as to think evil, be so wise as to lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and let it go no further.”
Just because we have a thought something, does not mean we have to act on it. A little while later he says, “We should think twice before we act once.” That is a good one to remember as we go about our day today. Finally, as he enters the sanctuary of God he understands their (the ones he was tempted to envy because of their apparent prosperity while living a life apart from God!) final destiny. Going to a church is a place to re-calibrate our thought life, and be reminded of who we are, who God is, and how God is sovereign over all things. We are reminded that the day of Lord will come quickly as the psalmist says, “As a dream when one awakes when you arise O Lord”, and the fate of those who trusted in something other than God will be final.
Numbers 26:25-56
51 The total number of the men of Israel was 601,730. 52 The Lord said to Moses, 53 “The land is to be allotted to them as an inheritance based on the number of names. 54 To a larger group give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group a smaller one; each is to receive its inheritance according to the number of those listed. 55 Be sure that the land is distributed by lot. What each group inherits will be according to the names for its ancestral tribe. 56 Each inheritance is to be distributed by lot among the larger and smaller groups.”
Reflections: Though this would seem to be just a listing of the twelve tribes and their numbers, a couple of things should be noticed. While the total number is relatively the same 601,000 vs 603,000 (roughly), nine of the tribes had increased, including the 3 tribes of Judah (where Jesus the Messiah would come from), and three had decreased two significantly Ephraim and Simeon. We see detailed the sins of some of those in both those tribes but clearly the consequences were meted out in a lesser inheritance in the Promised Land.
This reminds us of the New Testament principle that Jesus teaches, to who much is given much is required. And those who are faithful in a little will be given more, while those who are unfaithful in a little, even what they have will be taken from them. As God has blessed us and given us a spiritual inheritance, we can enlarge our territory by being faithful with the gifts and calling He has given us to advance His kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. As you are faithful with what God has given you, you will be given more responsibility. This is both a challenge and an opportunity!
Luke 1:26-38
The Birth of Jesus Foretold
26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” 34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[a] the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God.” 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
Reflections: Of course these are famous verses, but let us not pass over the fact that Jesus was a descendant of David through Joseph’s line and from Mary’s line. This connects us to the promises of the Old Testament, where the Messiah would come from. Also, it mentions the house of Jacob, which was in reference to all of Israel over which David reigned, and through which He would be a blessing to all the nations, Jews and Gentiles. This kingdom unlike the kingdom of Israel that fell in 722 b.c. and 586 b.c. would last forever and would include all people.
We see too again today Luke’s emphasis on the Holy Spirit. When Mary is afraid of this massive task, the angel comforts her by saying, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” What a great reminder to us today that anything we are called to do, including continue to bear the Son of God in our lives and on our lips, will be aided by the Holy Spirit guiding us and empowering us. When we discover our calling that God has for us we might be tempted to say, “How can this be because I ______” you fill in the blank! But when God calls us He empowers us!
May we have the same response of this blessed young virgin Mary, a mere teenager, as she responds in faith by saying, “May it be to me as you have said!” As you hear God’s call on your life may you respond with the same words based on the same promises that God will be with you as you carry it out!
Just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord. Jeremiah 31:28
Jesus began to speak in parables. "A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower; then he leased it to tenants and went to another country." Mark 12:1
Guide and Guardian, we hear your call to tend the vineyard, bearing fruit for the entire world as you have taught by your example. Keep watch over us as we serve in your name. Amen.
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