January 28, 2016
From David’s famous shepherd psalm. Those that follow the Lord are led on right paths by Him. God does this for the sake of His own Name. God’s purpose is to make us righteous like His Son, who declared “I am the Good Shepherd” (John 10:11). In this leading, God cares more for our character than our comfort. He is not working in us for our pleasure, for our name, but for His Name. Therefore, we do not fear when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, because the Good Shepherd is with us, and His purpose is sure. God is making us like His Son (1 John 3:2).
January 27, 2016
When Moses made excuses about his inability to answer God’s call to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, God asked, “What’s in your hand?” Moses replied dismissively, “A rod” (A shepherd’s staff). It was not a sword to fight with, nor a priceless object to barter, but a piece of well-worn wood used in the daily work of a shepherd. Moses had spent the first 40 years of his life as a prince. He attempted to free his people in his own strength and became a murderer instead. Then, Moses spent the next 40 years hiding in the wilderness, working as a simple shepherd of sheep. God couldn’t use a proud prince, but a humble shepherd might be just the man for the job. God chose a humble shepherd like old Moses to lead His people to freedom. And as it turned out, the last 40 years shepherding weren’t a waste. God wanted to use the very thing Moses had in his hand.
What’s that in your hand? Have you considered using it for God?
January 26, 2016
This psalm of David begins by crying out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psa.22:1). And goes on to describe in great detail the crucifixion of Jesus. Written 1,000 years before Christ, long before the Romans or their cruel invention of crucifixion, this psalm is astounding in its prophetic power. Some commentators point out that there is even more detail here when one considers that the word translated “encircles” might also be translated “crowned,” describing the crown of thorns. Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 are the two most powerfully prophetic descriptions of the Suffering Servant who would come and die for our sins. Yet, when Jesus was treated just as David and Isaiah prophesied, only a few believed.
January 25, 2016
Today’s OT reading moves us from Genesis to Exodus. These two book names in the English translation of the Bible are taken from the Septuagint (Greek translation of the OT) and mean “Beginning” and “Going Out.” The original Hebrew names are “Bereshit” (בראשית – “In the beginning”) and “Shemot” (שמות – “Names”). In the Hebrew Bible, the names of books are taken from the first word in the book. Verse one of the book of Exodus begins with the “names” of the sons of Israel. Names are very important in the Bible. Although Shakespeare would disagree saying, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” The Bible places great significance on names. Perhaps because it reveals the names throughout the generations that lead up to the revelation of the greatest Name of all… Jesus (Acts 4:12, Phil. 2:9-11).
January 24, 2016
“Leaven” is the yeast that is added to bread dough to make it rise. It only takes a little to affect the whole. Although the disciples at first took the Lord literally and thought he spoke of bread, they finally realized he was warning against the teaching of the “Pharisees and Sadducees.” The teaching of the Pharisees was to be avoided because, although they believed the whole Hebrew Bible, they added to the law layer upon layer of tradition, until no one could keep it. Their “leaven” would lead to legalism. The Sadducees, on the other hand, denied much of the Hebrew Bible, affirming only the books of Moses. They were more interested in political power than in God’s power. Their “leaven” would lead to liberalism. Jesus warned his disciples to avoid both extremes.
January 23, 2016
Jesus contrasted the concern that the Pharisees had for clean hands with the real concern that they should have had for clean hearts. Water can wash dirty hands, but what will make dirty hearts clean? What will wash away the sin that is rooted in the human heart? Only the blood of Jesus (1 John 1:7, Rev. 1:5).
January 22, 2016
Judah, the fourth son of Jacob’s twelve, now acts as spokesman. This is an early indication of Judah’s rise to leadership. Reuben, the eldest, lost his birthright through sexual misconduct with Jacob’s concubine Bilhah (Gen. 35:22), and the bloody revenge taken by Simeon (son #2) and Levi (son #3) following the rape of Dinah (Gen. 34), led to Jacob’s curse over them (Gen. 49). Judah, who had been against killing Joseph, now offers himself as ransom for his brother, Benjamin (Gen. 44:33). Even though Joseph is their rescuer during this time of famine, Judah is the brother whom Jacob later blesses as the “lion’s cub” and the one to whom the “scepter shall not depart,” speaking of his later kingship (Gen.49). Judah is the tribe to which King David and King Jesus are born.
January 21, 2016
This was Herod the “Tetrarch” (“ruler of a quarter”), not Herod the Great. He was one of the sons of Herod the Great, and was better known as “Antipas.” After the death of Herod the Great, his sons went before Tiberius Caesar to plea their case for their father’s throne, for their kingdom was ultimately under Roman rule. Tiberius subdivided Herod’s kingdom into a tetrarchy and gave Antipas rule over Galilee and Perea. Herod Antipas later divorced his wife and took his brother’s (Herod Philip II) wife, Herodias, as his wife. She was not only his brother’s wife, but also his niece (“Herodias” was Herod the Great’s granddaughter). John the Baptist publicly rebuked Antipas for this sinful union. Antipas, perhaps fearing anarchy in his kingdom from John’s preaching, and at the urging of his wife and her daughter, imprisoned and later beheaded John. It was this Herod, Herod Antipas, that now feared that Jesus was in fact John the Baptist raised from the dead. The contrast between this puppet king of the Jews and the true king, Jesus, Son of David, Son of God is striking. Yet, the choice still remains today for us. Which king will you choose? The world’s puppet king or the One True King, Jesus?
January 20, 2016
Joseph is a christological type. His story foreshadows the story of Christ. Just as Christ began his public ministry at the age of 30, so did Joseph’s public work. God’s plan for Joseph to be in a position to save his brethren, as the dreams of his youth predicted, were now being fulfilled. His brothers do bow before him. I wonder if Joseph felt that all the years of enslavement and imprisonment were now worth it. For it was his suffering that God used to elevate him to this place of ministry, not only to save his brothers, but the whole hungry world. Are you going through a time of suffering? Don’t waste the pain. God has promised to cause all things to work together for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). Persevere and believe. God has a plan.
January 19, 2016
After the ugly sexual sins of the previous chapter, it’s refreshing to see Joseph resisting temptation and maintaining his purity. Yet, surprisingly he is not immediately rewarded, but falsely accused and imprisoned for it. The world doesn’t reward righteousness, but God does. And even though Joseph was fallen from favored son to household slave, and then from slave to prisoner, God had not left him. In the midst of his low estate, God was with Joseph. No matter the circumstance, God gave Joseph favor before those in authority over him. And Joseph was found faithful in every place, so that in the fulness of time, God elevated him to the right hand of Egypt’s royal throne.