December 9, 2017
“Blessed.” One experiencing a condition of total joy and contentment under God’s umbrella of care.
“Fears the Lord.” One who has such awe and reverence for the Lord that they seek His pleasure and approval above all others including themselves.
However, by implication, the one who does not fear the Lord, but fears man instead, will not experience the blessing of God. For they will live as people-pleasers, always enslaved by the opinions of others.
As Christ-followers, we do not fear the Father’s wrath, for Christ has taken our punishment. But we are motivated by His great love that moves us to desire pleasing Him above all others. Fearing the Lord, we experience His blessing.
December 8, 2017
Those who are obedient to “go forth” in sowing even while shedding tears of hardship, will one day “rejoice” in the day of harvest. As the apostle Paul wrote, “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart” (Gal. 6:9).
Don’t dig up in doubt what you planted by faith. Keep sowing!
December 8, 2017
The Lord spoke through the prophet Hosea reminding Israel of His love and how He had brought them out of Egypt. Yet, here He used the phrase “my son,” which made the verse not only a reminder of God’s expressed love in the past, but also His intended manifestation of love in the future. For this is one of many Messianic prophecies fulfilled in Christ, showing God’s love in sending His Son (John 3:16).
The gospel of Matthew quoted this verse from Hosea when recounting the Christmas story. For it was fulfilled when Joseph obeyed the angel’s instruction to carry Jesus to Egypt to avoid Herod’s murderous plan and then to return after Herod’s death (Matt. 2:15).
The Bible is primarily about God. It is a love story and Christ is its lead character.
December 6, 2017
Love is the great motivator for obedience. Not duty, nor fear, but love. And not just any kind of love, but God’s kind of “agape” love, which is both unconditional and sacrificial. So love motivates obedience and then obedience becomes the evidence of that love.
What is love? That we obey Christ’s command (John 14:15). And what is Christ’s command? That we love one another just as He loved us (John 13:34-35).
December 5, 2017
“In Him,” namely, “in Christ,” we have confidence before the Father. For this reason Hebrews teaches us to “come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16). And the apostle Paul writes that in Christ “we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him” (Eph. 3:12).
In Christ, we are God’s children. Everything that is Christ’s, is now ours. The currency of the kingdom is asking. As James taught, “You have not because you ask not” (James 4:2). And as Jesus taught, let us, “Ask, seek, knock” (Matt. 7:7-8). So, ask!
Yet, let us pray according to God’s will, for this is how Christ Himself prayed, saying, “Not my will, but Thine be done” (Luke 22:42).
December 4, 2017
If we have any claim to love, it originates with God, who first loved us. This love is most fully demonstrated in the sending of His Son as the “propitiation for our sins,” dying on the cross for us. For in the cross we see the intersection of God’s love demonstrated and God’s justice satisfied. Our sin called for death, but God’s love answered the call, sending Jesus to die in our place. That God sent Jesus shows His love. That He offered Jesus as the “propitiation for our sins” shows His righteousness. As the apostle Paul wrote of Christ, “whom God set forth as a propitiation… to demonstrate His righteousness” (Rom. 3:25).
Propitiation is about covering and satisfaction. Christ’s sacrifice both covers our sin and satisfies the proper demands of a righteous God for judgment on sin. God’s righteousness required that He judge sin. God’s love moved Him to send His Son to pay the price for our sin.
December 3, 2017
A good reminder especially during the Christmas season. Don’t sit on your “worldly goods” while your brother is in need. If you have the love of God in you, then you will not “shut up your heart” and look away. You will give. Because love, God’s kind of “agape” love, always gives.
December 2, 2017
“In the first year” of Darius’ reign, Daniel was moved to make a careful study of the “books” of Scripture. Surely the sudden shift of world domination by the Babylonians, to the now conquering Persians, made him wonder how it would affect the future of Israel. As he studied the book of Jeremiah, he began to understand that the Lord’s “seventy years” of “desolations” for Jerusalem were nearing an end (see Jer. 25:11-12). The seventy years of captivity was God’s discipline for not keeping the Sabbath Year (Lev. 25:4), allowing the land to rest from planting every seven years. Since they had not obeyed the Sabbath Year for 490 years (490/7 = 70), God rested the land Himself for seventy years (2 Chron. 36:20-21).
The understanding that Daniel derived from his careful Bible study drove him to his knees in prayers of confession and repentance on behalf of his people. He began to see the light at the end of the tunnel. He made supplication to the Lord that He might “turn” His “anger” and “fury” away from Jerusalem (Dan. 9:16). And the Lord answered Daniel’s prayers. For that same year, Cyrus the Great (Possibly another name for Darius. Or Darius served under Cyrus) would be moved by the Lord to make a decree allowing the Jews to return to Jerusalem (2 Chron. 36:22-23).
We can learn much about discerning the will of God from Daniel. Bible study with much prayer is key for those that would hear direction from the Lord.
December 1, 2017
It is interesting to see the angel Gabriel mentioned in our Old Testament reading on this first day of December. For he will also be of great interest to us as we read the gospel accounts of Christ’s birth during this Christmas season. There are only two angels named in the Bible (excluding the fallen one, Lucifer). They are Michael, the archangel of God and Gabriel, who acts as God’s messenger. The name “Gabriel” means “Strong Man of God.” He described himself to Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, like this: “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news” (Luke 1:19). Gabriel is recorded as bearing God’s messages to Daniel (Dan. 8:16, 9:21), to Zechariah (Luke 1:19), to Mary (Luke 1:26), and although his name is not given, to Joseph (Matt. 1:20).
There was something about Gabriel’s presence that struck fear in each human encounter. Perhaps it was the lingering presence of God that still clung to his person as it once did to Moses after he came down from Mt. Sinai. His purpose was specific each time. Give the addressee the message and make sure they “understand” it.
December 1, 2017
Light. It reveals that which darkness conceals. It heals that which shadows the soul. It gives life to those who live by it. It is glorious, causing every color in the spectrum to be uniquely reflected in those who walk in its radiance.
How can we know this “light?” Listen to these words of Jesus, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).