January 29, 2015
This Davidic psalm begins with an announcement of God’s ownership of everything and everyone. Believing that God is owner and that we are stewards, servants of God caring for His creation, is a life-changing principle. Many Christians claim to believe this, yet they behave as if their stuff is really “their” stuff. One of the great sins of American Christianity is the idolatry of materialism. Our happiness is attached to our possessions. This is the sin of greed. What is the antidote? Giving. Live a life of the open hand, tithing from your first fruits and giving sacrificially to any need that the Spirit shows you. In this way, you acknowledge God’s ownership and your stewardship.
January 28, 2015
Peter asked Jesus whether we should put a limit on forgiveness. Jesus answered with a parable concerning a king and his subject who owed him “ten thousand talents” (A “talent” was a unit of gold weighing around 75 pounds. One talent was equal to about 16 years’ wages). The king forgave his subject completely, erasing his debt. But the subject’s heart was unchanged. He immediately went out and put in prison one who owed him only “one hundred denarii” (A “denarii” was a Roman coin made of about 4 grams of silver. It was considered a day’s wages). The point of the parable seems to be that God has forgiven us a debt much greater than any could ever repay, therefore we should always forgive because we have been forgiven so much. Our capacity for the forgiveness of others is drawn from God’s limitless supply of forgiveness for us. We are to love and forgive unconditionally, as God through Christ has loved and forgiven us.
January 27, 2015
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, 2015
God revealed His Name to Moses at the burning bush. The Name was so holy to the Jews that they didn’t say it aloud. In the Hebrew Bible it was written YHWH but they said “Adonai” (Lord) when reading it. The four-letter Name was called the “Tetragrammaton” and was probably pronounced “Yahweh,” or in the English speaking world, “Jehovah.” English speaking Jews today will often write the Name like “G-d” to continue their tradition of respect. Notice that God’s Name is “I AM,” not “I WAS,” or “I WILL BE.” His Name reveals that He is eternally present, outside of time, and self-existent. God revealed Himself to Moses through a burning bush. Today, we have the ultimate revelation of God through Jesus Christ.
January 25, 2015
Jesus had many hard sayings, but the teaching concerning His suffering, death and resurrection was the hardest for the disciples to receive. Bold Peter even attempted to rebuke Jesus for saying such things. But Jesus put him in his place with, “Get behind Me, Satan!” Poor Peter went from Peter the confessor, to Peter the transgressor in a matter of moments. One minute, he was listening to God’s voice, recognizing Jesus as the “Christ, the Son of the Living God.” And the next minute, he was under Satan’s influence, trying to dissuade Jesus from His ultimate purpose. Jesus tried to prepare the disciples for the cross and the empty tomb, but only the sight of His resurrected body and the sound of His voice was able to convince them of its truth. They finally understood that Jesus “must go” to the cross, the tomb and be raised again on the third day in order to redeem us and reconcile us to God.
January 24, 2015
On his deathbed, Israel (Jacob) blesses (prophesies over) each of his sons. This blessing over Judah is one of the clearest Messianic prophecies that the Christ would be born to the line of Judah. From that day forward the tribe of Judah took the image of the lion as its symbol, flying it on a banner above their camp. The “scepter” indeed came to the tribe of Judah when David became king. Yet, the description that it “shall not depart” speaks of an eternal king. “Shiloh” (Hebrew for “He whose it is”) is Jesus, the Lion of Judah, the Messiah, the Christ, Son of Man, Son of God and King over all, “and to him shall be the obedience of the people.”
January 23, 2015
David’s 19th psalm is a theological and poetic masterpiece! He begins with the doctrine of general revelation, that the “heavens declare the glory of God,” proclaiming Him as Creator of all. Next, he describes the doctrine of specific revelation, that God has spoken and given us His law and “testimony,” so that we may know His will. Finally, he closes the psalm with the doctrine of redemption, that God is the only One who can help us with our sin problem. We have a “sure testimony” from our God. He has declared His glories from the heavens and revealed His salvation through His written Word and finally, through His Son, the Incarnate Word of God, Jesus.
January 22, 2015
Perhaps you’ve heard someone say, “If you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat.” This mantra is offered to encourage us to have a risk-taking kind of faith like Peter’s. Yet, it overlooks Peter’s first step. His first step wasn’t to get his feet wet. His first step was to ask permission from Jesus to join Him on the sea. Peter asked to walk on the water to Jesus. And Jesus said, “Come.” So, during the 4th watch of the night (3-6AM), Peter got to practice his gait on the Galilee. What unexpected joy awaits those who will follow Jesus wherever He leads!
January 21, 2015
The people of Nazareth were offended at the authority of Jesus’ teachings because of their familiarity with him. They knew his family. They had seen him grow up. “Who does he think he is coming back home preaching to us?” They thought.
Two ways we might relate to this passage:
One, we might relate to the Nazarenes. We sometimes respond without respect to Christ because of familiarity. We’ve been believers for a long time, so we feel we’ve heard it all before. We’ve sung all the songs. Listened to all the sermons. Attended all the holiday events. We lose sight of our “first love.” We become like the people of Nazareth. And we do not see Jesus do mighty works in our lives because of our unbelief.
Two, we might relate to Jesus. We sometimes experience rejection from our family and friends when we bring Jesus home with us. We are able to share our testimony of faith with strangers and see them accept Christ, but our own family members act offended when we offer the same to them. Like Jesus, we have no honor in our own house.
How do you relate to this passage?
January 20, 2015
Joseph is a christological type. In this verse we see that he began his public ministry at the age of 30, just as Jesus did. We also see that it was always God’s plan for Joseph to be in a position to save his brethren, as the dreams of his youth 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 seems that his suffering was what 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, for God has a plan.