My Journey Through The Bible

Psalms 36 – 38

Psalm 36 is one of those Psalms that I read a few times to get. David hits many subjects on both the negative and positive end of one’s relationship with God. You have at least 3 themes of wisdom, praise and prayer in this one. When you look at wisdom, in verses 1-4 he uses a negative example, so I tend to reread passages like this to ensure I understand it fully.

Verse 36:9is a great illustration that gets a person thinking:

For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light do we see light.

God is the provider of life and light on both a spiritual and physical level. You can look at this two ways, one is literal with God providing life and light. The other is a spiritual level where our spirit lives with God and we shine God’s light as we become more connected with Him through Jesus.

Psalm 37 is a much easier Psalm to read, and is one of the most quoted, especially verse 37:4:

Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

I hear this quoted and twisted into the “Prosperity Gospel” more often than not. The other twist is if we are NOT getting the “desires ofheart” than we must not be delighting ourselves in the Lord correctly. This becomes a sticky subject with many as our hearts desires are often not given to us. Then this becomes another sticky subject with questioning our desires, if we are not getting them then they must not be of the Lord.

The round robin argument gets greater when you look at David and his life. He had more wealth than any other and was living a lush life. He eventually retreated into this life of luxury and when he stopped leading his men into battle, he sinned with Bathsheba. So although he delighted himself with the Lord, he was not always with the Lord.

God must have known a possible outcome of David’s wealth was his straying from His will, so was he right with giving David his desires? Again when you churn on this it will make your head spin, especially when you try to apply it to your own personal life. Why are my desires of wealth not being given to me? Am I not “delighting” the Lord correctly?

When you get to the nuts and bolts, David wrote this on his experience and almost shows his arrogance. He knows he “delights in the Lord” and is wealthy beyond his wildest dreams, so he has made the “if, then, else” connection and wrote it down. He didn’t consider the lives of his subjects, many of whom I am sure desired wealth and delighted in the Lord yet were poor. Also, when we think about our “delights”, notice how they changes are we start to get them! Especially as a young child, how many times did we say “if I get that I will not ask for anything else” when we desired something? Now, how many times have you said that to God?

In your reading dwell on verse 37:29 and think about how Jesus said the meek will inherit the earth. Also, verse 38:1 and how we ask God to rebuke us without anger, yet often that’s the state we are in when we do “rebuking”. Jesus said be slow to anger just for this reason so passion does not distort the punishment. When reading Psalms, think about how they get filtered into Jesus’ teaching and how He clarifies them with Parables.

1 Samuel 11 – 15

Saul never seemed to accept the title of king as we see in verse 11:5 where he is working the fields:

Now, behold, Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen. And Saul said, “What is wrong with the people, that they are weeping?” So they told him the news of the men of Jabesh.

When you think of a king or a president the last image most get is plowing a field. We imagine them in a more prominent position. This is partially because Saul never really accepted the anointing of king. When he was presented to the people they found him hiding in the luggage and not accepting the responsibility.

Now one could argue that Jesus is King and one of his last acts was washing his disciple’s feet. He was never a proud man who assumed a throne to rule, he worked with the people and not above the people. Now where an earthly king needs to assume a role of leader, God does not. He is above all and there is no questioning that, so what he desires is a one on one relationship. Unlike a king who could never talk with all his subjects, God can interact with all of us at the same time. Not that is awesome when you think about it.

Verse 12:20 has Samuel giving the people some important insight:

And Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart.

Jesus said the greatest commandment is love the Lord with all your heart. To love the Lord is to serve Him with all your heart. How many of us decide to “love” God and do nothing in service? I know more often than not I am guilty of this! See Samuel knows if we love God and serve Him, our attentions will remain on Him and not the world.

One side story in chapter 14 is Jonathan eating honey while Saul made a vow for the people to eat nothing:

Then Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land. See how my eyes have become bright because I tasted a little of this honey.

Granted this is Saul making a vow, but isn’t it interesting how this sounds similar to the story of Adam and Eve? Granted one is God’s rule and the other is Saul’s, both had a similar result. Sorry for the tangent but found that interesting.

Saul’s anointing ends in chapter 15 where he battles the Amalekites, yet does not destroy everything as God commanded. This caused the “riff” between him and God, thus removing his anointing of king. In verses 15:22 & 23 the Lord lays out His problem with Saul:

22 And Samuel said,

“Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to listen than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has also rejected you from being king.”

Sometimes the Lord wants obedience before the rituals of being Godly. Saul did what he thought would be good in the eyes of the Lord, and failed before the Lord for not obeying his orders. As we mature the idea to “think for yourself” becomes important. The last thing you need is your parent’s guidance in your 50’s! So thinking on your own is important, but at the same time we need to know when to listen and when to think. In this case Saul needed to listen, yet his “thinking” cost him his anointing as king.

Know when you need to think on your own and when God’s command needs to be obeyed. Technically as a Christian you don’t need to obey any of the Law, you are forgiven. But if you kill a man, you will pay the consequences. If you lie, they will eventually come back and bite you. If you eat pork, you will not be feeding your body with the best food available. Although eating pork is not a sin, you see there are consequences in going outside God’s Law. Saul’s was losing his position as king. What will your loss be? Think about that next time you decide to drift.

Genesis 48 – 50

As I was doing research for this morning I found an interesting parallel to Joseph and Jesus. Granted Joseph was not the final sacrifice for our sins, but it was interesting to see the parallels. I am not going into the full details, but you should dig in and find a chart that shows the parallels. One of the parallels we notice in this chapter was how his father loved him as in verse 48:11:

And Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.”

Before he died Jacob finally got a chance to see his son was not dead and that he had grandchildren. Interesting how Jacob blesses his youngest as the first, but he did this on purpose and as history shows his “tribe” was the dominant tribe of the 10 northern ones. So it was interesting how Jacob could “see” this in the young grandchildren.

Verse 49:9 & 10 is where Jacob blesses Judah, the head of the tribe David, Solomon and Jesus came from:

9 Judah is a lion’s cub;
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He stooped down; he crouched as a lion
and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?
10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him;
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

The significance of this blessing shows the foreknowledge of something big from this tribe. God will give us glimpses into the future, some of which will happen and some may happen. I wonder if the nation of Israel had remained faithful if David and later Jesus would have been necessary.

Verse 50:20 shows the final correlation between Joseph and Jesus:

As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.

As Joseph was reflecting with what his brothers did to him, they were remorseful. Yet Joseph showed them how because of that good came and the nation was saved. The same can be said about Jesus who died, yet his death saved the world. As you read the parallels like this you will be amazed at the similarities between these two men.

1 Corinthians 7 – 8

Paul is one of those writers that get taken out of context more often than other writers in the Bible. Part because he touches on some difficult subjects, but also because he tends to write in extremes as see in verse 7:4:

4 For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.

Often this disintegrates into “me, me, me” and forgets the other part. We want the other to be subservient to ourselves but not the other way around. We must be aware of both halves to this equation, because it doesn’t work if it is one way. See Paul likes to keep things extreme, but as you see it’s that way for both parties.

Even if you are not married, think of the times you wanted so much for the other party to agree with you. We get thinking “they should agree” and forget that we have become closed minded. That’s where Jesus wants us, doing His will and not ours. If we cannot learn to do this with someone we love and can see, how will we ever be truly able with someone who most never physically see?

Verse 7:17 goes into being led by the Lord:

17 Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches.

The key here is discernment between the Lord’s will and your own. We often get distracted in this world; somehow we may answer a “calling” and then try to form it into how we want it to be. When I was younger and racing I felt a calling to start a ministry to the racers, since Sunday was the only time we raced and that kept all of us away from church. I took that and made a deal that I would do this on the nationals so it would be in front of many. Guess what, hindsight being 20/20 I believe God wanted me to prove myself first before getting the “glory” of racing the nationals.

Think about it what’s the worst thing for a non-believer to see? A “crappy” believer!! I needed to be “forged” before I was going to be allowed into the big time. I was trying to make my “calling” on my own terms not on Gods. I may never had been to the “big show”, but I ignored what I should have done to do what I wanted to do.

Now one thing that we tend to do as Christians is judge others, even in our own faith. Verse 8:13 does a good job explaining this:

Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

Consider that the Baptists don’t drink, while Wesleyans do. If a Wesleyan were to “hang” with a fellow Baptist drinking would not be part of the activities, since it would make the Baptist “stumble.” Who cares if the “interpretation” of “drunkard” is one who drinks anything verses one who gets hammered; the key is one’s interpretation says it’s wrong. We need to respect that. Heck I don’t like to eat pork based on the Law, but if I am visiting a friend who serves pork I would not refuse based on Biblical reasons. I would eat and enjoy their meal. It’s not like one serving of pork is going to kill a person.

Mark 3 – 4

I often wonder if the “Sabbath” was intended to be a specific day or an idea that you need to rest at least one day a week. In verse 3:4 Jesus asks if nothing should be done:

And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent.

See the Pharisees had become so legalistic that many of the guidelines within the “Law” had become hard and fast rules to them. Their silence meant Jesus was asking the right questions to get them out of this hard and fast set of rules and get more the “spirit” of the Law. Sure we have to set aside a day of worship and rest, but what exactly does that mean?

Is God specific that it should be Saturday or Sunday? Or again is it a concept of rest? Think about it pastors work almost all day on Sunday, when should they “rest”? When is their “Sabbath”?

Verse 4:8 ends one of my favorite parables, the Parable of the Sower:

And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

This is one of those stories that get preach on all the time. You basically are being shown that the “word” you share with people may fall on different soil. Some will take it quickly and die, while other will flourish. Churches that do regular “altar calls” must see this all the time. Often I wonder if it’s a numbers game at this point and not a salvation game. Reason I say this is the numbers the large churches “save” they cannot follow up physically on each and every one.

So many get saved in a fit of passion and then wither away from the world they had live in taking over. Sure the “once saved always saved” mantra gets used, but really what good is it to have a person living for God a week or so in their life. This actually reflects more poorly on the church since you have people on the outside point at the hypocrites and ignoring the joy.

Verse 4:41 is a final thought to everyone who has discovered Jesus:

And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

Do you by faith believe in Jesus or not, if so than this stuff should seem “normal” to you. I know in everyday life I see God’s hand constantly and dismiss it. My most recent problem is cramping claves when I run, sometimes within a half mile. Not to get into the whys, I had to run last night and within ¼ a mile I was cramping. I needed to go further and prayed as I was pulling up. The cramp quickly subsided and I was able to continue till I reached my goal. See in an instant God showed up, and this is “normal”! You just need to have faith and not be surprised!!

Isaiah 62 – 66

To this day, as showing in 62:1, Isaiah continues to hail the coming salvation through his written word:

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet,
until her righteousness goes forth as brightness,
and her salvation as a burning torch.

Isaiah wants us all to prepare for the coming salvation, and be ready. For us it’s simple, because as Isaiah foretold in many places the coming of Jesus and his eventual death (chapter 53), we have easy access to the salvation promised. Unfortunately most do not accept this salvation although it’s simple, the idea one even needs it is foreign to many. As we share our faith me must be aware of this and not hit people with the salvation message right from the start. Show them what they are missing first, then share Jesus as they ask, otherwise it will be forced and rejected.

We always talk about the end times and what that actually means, Isaiah describes the “Day of Vengeance” in chapter 63. Verse 63:6 gives you some insight to the end times according to Isaiah:

I trampled down the peoples in my anger;
I made them drunk in my wrath,
and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”

Interesting how Isaiah uses making them drunk before killing them. I wonder if this is showing mercy, whereas drunkards they will not feel much. Definitely better than a lake of fire where the unsaved eternally burn! Interesting right after the part about vengeance Isaiah give us hope where 63:9 he shows his love:

In all their affliction he was afflicted,
and the angel of his presence saved them;
in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;
he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

As I have said before you cannot be everywhere and in everything and not be affected by pain and suffering. He especially understands our pain and actually experiences it with us. Also, this passage almost implies the salvation of the unsaved, how ironic would that be! Think about how many “Bible thumpers” have gotten on the soap box preaching about how you will die in a lake of fire and in the end God shows mercy. That would be so “God” and we would be like the Prodigal Sons brother wondering why!

Now don’t get me wrong, don’t think you should reject God and party till the grave. No there is too much joy and happiness right now, that everyone should want to join in on the party here on earth. Also, even Isaiah talks about the Judgment facing us all, like in most of Chapter 65.

The one common thread throughout the Bible is one who is humble seems to please God, see that last lines of verse 66:2 for an illustration:

But this is the one to whom I will look:
he who is humble and contrite in spirit
and trembles at my word.

God wants us humble and not puffed up, He knows that will eventually work on people hearts. As I have told you many times, when I personally get proud is when God tends to humble me quickly. It seemed whenever I got into myself too much, I would “crash and burn” quickly. It’s when I put God first that things tended to go fine.

One last thing to ponder is how in chapter 65 Isaiah describes “heavens” and not just one “heaven”. What is he talking about here? I have heard many descriptions of this where heaven is in three parts, the earth, space and God’s presence. Interesting that since space contains the sun and Lucifer is the “Morning Star” which implies the sun or some other bright celestial body. This then implies that the “second heaven” is his domain and the “lake of fire” may well be the actual sun. Things to ponder as we go out today.

Job 23 – 24

Have to be honest here; Job is not my favorite book. Sure it ends on a high note, but leading up to the end it’s horrible. Even still the restoration does not include his children lost. Sure he has new ones, but it’s like his offspring are like cattle. One dies just replace it with another and all will be good. To me it would not matter if the numbers were huge, it would be impossible to recover from the loss of my children.

With that said, verse 23:1 gives us a view into Job’s torment:

“Today also my complaint is bitter;
my hand is heavy on account of my groaning.

He has every right to complain bitterly, everything is gone and he is a mess. Through all this he does not blame God, just complains to God. We all tend to have things “go south” in our lives, sometimes they are out of our control, others they are by our own hands. Take this economic collapse for many it was an over extension of debt load and their world collapsed when the bubble popped. That would be partially their fault since it’s not Biblical to buy on credit. Others were caught in the collapse and lost a bunch, but since they were honorable and saved their money things were not all that bad.

Both instance bad happened and started out of the “control” of the individual. The one who was caught up in the “market” of credit hurt bad. The other hurt because the economy took a turn for the worse, but they were able to handle the years of lack. This is like the story of Joseph who stored during times of good to cover the famine that happened. Good and bad will happen in the world, it’s just you who has to manage the downfall. On the other hand Job is being tormented by Satan, so this is beyond anyone’s control or fault.

The hope continues in verse 23:10 where he realizes the end result will be good:

But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.

Gold gets refined and worked in a very brutal method to create something beautiful. It’s hammered and extracted from the ground, then the “ore” is heated to remove the impurities. Once it’s ready for use it must be hammered and twisted to gain the final shape of jewelry. That is the process that Job is comparing his current circumstances.

Doesn’t matter if God is doing the work or life is doing the work, we all need to learn and understand the process. If life has taken a turn and you feel like the heat is turned on. Use this as an opportunity to get the impurities out of your life. For me this economic collapse has opened my eyes to the problems of debt. My goal has been to kill it off as best I can so the next time we don’t get crushed in the melee.

See Job can teach us a bunch on how to handle the bumps and hiccups in life. Most of the time we don’t need to blame God, but look inward to refine our hearts. When the external invades, we must have faith that this will refine us as well. Either way as long as our hearts are open to God’s instruction we will come out of any crisis in ok shape … at least mentally!!

Psalms 33 – 35

David, who has been known to be very musical, in verse 33:3 suggests singing to show your love for the Lord:

Sing to him a new song;
play skilfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

I personally love to sing and have visions of being on stage; the only thing holding me back is my voice and lack of rhythm. But that does not stop the shower singing or when I am alone! David knows that music and worship is one of the ways we connect with God. The music conjures up emotions and gets us connected to God on a different level.

One argues that music naturally wells up emotions and therefore it’s just that “feeling” we get that appears to be us connecting with God. I argue that it’s exactly those emotions and feelings that connect us with God and music helps us get there quicker. Often we dismiss the emotional part of our relationship with God, but that is the plane of connection most need to develop more. Sure we cannot rely on emotions alone, knowledge is important, but that may be the missing component of prayer.

Think about this do you pray for something or pray as if it’s already been? One argues that the petition is done on an emotion or feeling of “lack” since we are praying “for” something. On the other hand if we pray something as if God has or will honor the request, we are in a feeling of thankfulness. This is just a thought about how you handle your connection with God and how David is teaching us to do so.

Verse 34:1 shows David blessing the Lord at all times:

I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

This is something we tend to reverse often, as in we tend to ask for the Lord to continually bless us. David again touches into a way to connect with God through a spirit of thankfulness. One could argue that in David’s abundance it’s easy to give thanks, but they often forget the times living in caves and hiding from Saul. David realized it’s more important to “bless” God than the other way around.

David asks for “vengeance” in verse 35:26 against people who are against him:

Let them be put to shame and disappointed altogether
who rejoice at my calamity!
Let them be clothed with shame and dishonour
who magnify themselves against me!

Although David is a “Godly” man he still shows human emotions. Jesus taught us to love our enemies, while David is asking for shame upon his. This is where the “human” side of David is shown and not necessarily to be used as a Biblical example. Sometimes I wonder if the reason Jesus wanted us to love is the vengeance emotion is negative and often leads to negative consequences. Again we get into feelings and their effect on our lives. So try to monitor your “feelings” this week and arrest the negative ones while embracing the positive and then notice the difference.

1 Samuel 6 – 10

As you read through this one thing to notice that although the Philistines are returning the Ark with a guilt offering, they still are hostile towards the Israelites. Shortly after this time Samuel the prophet or seer judges Israel. During this time he judged fairly but as he aged his son’s took over the “family business”. Verse 8:3 shows they did not follow their father:

Yet his sons did not walk in his ways but turned aside after gain. They took bribes and perverted justice.

We have seen this throughout history, even prior judges, but this time the people demanded a king. For whatever reason the Lord God was not enough, they wanted a human to rule like the other nations surrounding them. Samuel questioned God and in verse 8:7 got his response:

And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.

Samuel then warned the people over the problems with one king reigning over them. They will be used as labor, tormented, taxed and take your best. The people rejected these warnings and still asked for a king. So the Lord grants this request.

Saul became the first chosen king of Israel. Chapter 9 tells the story of how God presents this man to Samuel to be declared king. This journey all started with some lost donkeys and ended with Saul king. Verse 9:16 was a vision Samuel had before Saul arrived:

“Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have seen my people, because their cry has come to me.”

This becomes one of those stories in the Bible that one often looks at in amazement. God tells Samuel what is about to happen and how to respond. Wouldn’t you love God to do this for you? There was no guessing, just doing.

One would think it was simple, Samuel anointed Saul and one would assume he would take command, but we see in verse 10:22 his response was different:

they enquired again of the LORD, “Is there a man still to come?” and the LORD said, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.”

Instead of assuming the position with honor, he ran and hid. Sure he may had been humble and did not feel worthy, but I think he was overwhelmed. Have you ever been there? Bills keep coming and you cannot control them. Or your relationship is falling apart and there is nothing you can do. Or your health took a turn for the worse. Or this list can continue for days, but in this case Saul was overwhelmed with the responsibility of having to lead a nation.

I can only compare this to having a child. In a moment your life goes from carefree to being responsible for a human life to raise and care for as they become adults. Some of us grab on to this honor while other run away. Granted fathers usually have almost a year to prepare, unlike Saul who appears to have only a few days. Imagine now having to be responsible for an entire nation, it’s daunting. So think of Saul and his hiding when you face major hurdles, sometimes you just can hide and had better just do what is required.

Genesis 44 – 47

At this point Joseph is playing with his brothers and in verse 44:1 & 2 he actually sets a trap for them:

1 Then he commanded the steward of his house, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his sack, 2 and put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, with his money for the grain.” And he did as Joseph told him.

I never understood the logic behind why Joseph did this and just not welcomed his brothers in the first place, but that’s the story. See after they left Joseph sent his guards out to expose his set up. His brothers of course were surprised and plead mercy on their return.

Verse 45:8 really is the key to Joseph’s story:

So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.

Everything leading up to his position with the Pharaoh was not so great. Sure he had a brief moment before his jailing to have a good position, but for the most his life was bad. His brothers sold him into slavery and he was jailed much of the time. This is a great story of how life may not be rosy all the time, but God will often make the best of bad situations.

If Joseph’s original vision of his brothers bowing before him instantly came true it would not have the same impact. We always want to take the easy path, especially today with the “easy button” where we just want everything now. Instant gratification ends up getting people in more trouble than not, the current financial mess is the perfect example. Instead of saving for their desires and stashing some for a “rainy day”, we spent and borrowed so when the “rainy day” came everyone was broke which caused a financial “tail spin.”

Verse 46:3 has God talking to Jacob:

Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation.

As with God being involved in Joseph’s life, Jacob is being called to Egypt under the protection of his son. I always read these stories and wish God would talk directly to me, but then forget all the times His hand has been on my life. Sure I have had mess ups and problems, but for the most part that was my doing.

I often wonder if Joseph has not been sold into slavery, would the Israelites have survived the famine. Would Joseph have made sure his family stored up provisions prior? Or was God’s plan all along to place him in Egypt where he could save more? Think about it the dream that foretold the famine was the Pharaoh’s dream and if Joseph had not been there to interpret, the famine may have come with no preparation. God never said life would be easy without trials, but notice He tends to make the best out of bad things.

1 Corinthians 5 – 6

These chapters get to the heart of “immorality” as it applies to sex. Sex is one of those subjects people tend to avoid or not explore too deep because it hits home for many. How many child molesters come out of the “clergy”? Or how many times do we hear of infidelity in pastors families? I know many public scandals get scattered over the front page to make it seem to the average “Joe” that the church is full of sick hypocrites.

Verse 5:1 starts off by saying clean up your own house before going on a witch hunt for perverts:

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father’s wife.

Interesting how these “Christians” can have “immorality” worse than pagans, makes you wonder. Unfortunately we are held to a higher standard in the world, not only because of the shed blood of Jesus, but because of the reflection to the body of Christ. If the church can’t live up to the “morals” Jesus talked, why should anyone even try?

Verse 5:11 with the subsequent verses makes sense to someone wanting to witness:

But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.

When you think about it we are to bring people into the body of Christ who sin, so they can get forgiveness and everlasting life, but Paul implied we cannot associate with them. He explains it in these verses that we should reject the hypocrite so not to tarnish the image of the church.

Verse 6:9 & 10 always is used for lambasting the homosexual community, but never gets turned inward:

9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practise homosexuality 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Like a laze we hone in on the homosexual part and miss the rest. We don’t even consider the car we idolize or the porn we watch or the extra drink we have, the list could go on forever. I could quickly go on a “tangent” about drinking and how “drunkards” are bad but not necessarily drinking, but that’s for another day.

The reason Paul focuses on sexual immorality more is because it defiles all bodies involved. Verse 6:18 goes into detail on what this means:

Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.

See this is the main point where this goes further than hurting yourself or others. See once you join in sexual relations you become one with that person. If that act one of love between a married couple that’s one thing, but a sinful act imprints on both parties forever. They “myth” of casual sex has been blown out of proportion because if you explore it deeper “casual” usually applies to one party. Even then the memory of that casual encounter is held on to, not to mention the hurt from the other party.

Sex is one of those difficult subjects that once you apply Jesus’ standard of lusting in the heart being just as bad shows we all fall short. Because of this we rarely talk about it because of shame. On the flip side many stories become more of a “brag-a-mony” and less helpful for seeing the person’s walk to Jesus. Like with eating and monetary Laws, the covenant of sexual relations in marriage, if followed, makes life much easier and rewarding in the long run.

Will not be posting for a few days … sorry again.

chuck

Mark 1 – 2

Mark gives us a “Readers Digest” version of Jesus’ early life with no details of his birth and a quick synopsis of His temptation. Even his description of John the Baptist is very concise. He wrote this in Greek, not the traditional Aramaic, and often he describes the Jewish customs which implies the audience was for Gentiles and not Jews. One must go into Mark’s writing know that he often leaves out points which others often highlight.

Verse 2:7 had John the Baptist describing the coming of Jesus:

And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.

He is talking about Jesus and His authority over all people. As we continue and he baptizes Jesus, notice when God addresses Him, Mark implies only Jesus saw this. This often is used to highlight the “Messianic Secret” which is a theme in Mark that Jesus never claimed to be the Messiah. Again some underlying knowledge one can use in reading the rest of Mark.

And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

When you think about this they just left work never to return. Imagine doing that today, you get the country music versions of “Take This Job and Shove It” as an image, but rarely do we see someone leaving to follow Jesus. If they do it’s very well planned out. So put yourself in their shoes, if a man came to you and said leave it all behind and follow me, would you?

If I would have witnessed things like in verse 1:34 maybe I would do it without question:

And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

But this appears to be after these men joined him. Now I have heard this was common practice for a rabbi to select disciples and it was an accepted honor to leave. So that would establish some logic and justification for not doing it today, but when called how does one answer now? Would you give 2 weeks, 30 days for your home, sell your things or just leave it all to rot?

Verse 2:8 Jesus was with some scribes that questioned Him, but only in their minds:

And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts?

Did He know their thoughts or just figured that is what they would think? Either way it shows His divinity or His incredible ability to read people.

The final point which caught my eye was in verse 2:27 where he answers the questions of the Sabbath:

And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

Jesus often used the Hebraic Law to show hypocrisy in the leaders of the time and also show how through the years the intent had been lost. See the Sabbath was not for God, but because man needed to rest. It is a time to worship and reconnect with God, but it was not so God would feel good but so we could recover from the week and draw our attention back to God. Don’t get caught up in the legalism of many detonations, lean the truth from the Bible and live it daily.

Isaiah 56 – 61

Verse 56:1 give us really all we need to follow throughout the days:

Thus says the LORD:
“Keep justice, and do righteousness,
for soon my salvation will come,
and my deliverance be revealed

Simple concepts to live by, just follow the rules, stay between the “lines” and do what is right. Now think about how we mess them up almost each and every day! Personally it is difficult to stay on track each day; I will often write this “thought” and then completely do the opposite. When Paul says pray continually, this is why. Our connection with God should not be a 6 – 7am thing or a Sunday only thing, but all day every day we should be filled with the spirit of God.

Even when we take a time to be “holy” and say fast Isaiah warns us in verse 58:3 of being complacent:

‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.

We take a day that is “holy” and often forget what it is about. Christmas was set aside to celebrate our Lord’s birth. But it has been succumbed to the materialism of this world and the focus is no longer the birth of Jesus. We take Easter and make it about bunnies and even go so far as to claim it’s a pagan festival of fertility. We really don’t need those days like we don’t need to fast, but they are times to refocus our attention on God, especially if we have drifted away.

We like to talk about “spiritual warfare” and putting on our armor, verse 59:17 Isaiah goes into just that:

He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and a helmet of salvation on his head;
he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,
and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.

Ephesians 6 give the “warrior” more protection, but this is the source of that dress. People often dismiss this battle with evil and get lulled into a belief that this is not necessary. I can’t really say how, but I personally know this is not just flowery imagery for a fictitious battle but is needed for real. The evil one works so often to lull us into a false sense of security and then POW he has got you. Wear this armor daily and pray it, because one day you will face a demon and need to slay it, be prepared!!

Verse 61:3 is another one of those “figurative” passages we need to follow with passion:

to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.

See an oak is strong and well rooted; I saw one large one that has grown at almost a 45 degree angle! Thick and healthy with no signs of falling! How do we become solid oaks for God and “rooted” in Christ? I assume you have completed the first step of accepting Jesus as your savior, believing in what he did and said and finally confessing your sins. Then become a sponge and soak every bit of the word you can through reading, studies and worship. Once you do this the pain of life is known as temporary and you may rejoice no matter what your condition.

Job 21 – 22

Job gets right to the defense and asks the question many Christian’s todays ask; Why do evil people proper? Verses 21:7 – 9 Job gets specific:

7 Why do the wicked live,
reach old age, and grow mighty in power?
8 Their offspring are established in their presence,
and their descendants before their eyes.
9 Their houses are safe from fear,
and no rod of God is upon them.

I often look through the lands and see many people who are taking advantage of the people for their own profit, yet God seems to allow this. Often times we think God is mad at us because of today’s issues. Often times He may be upset, most of the time it’s either resulting from our own drift from Biblical principles or just stuff happening in the world. We cannot not save, like Joseph had the people of Egypt do, in times of prosperity and complain that God is mad in times of lack.

Good and bad things will happen. The earth’s design means there will be times of drought and we should prepare. Many of God’s “Laws” are not to make us more “holy” but to protect us and have us live a fruitful life in an ever changing world.

Now Job through this book has friends who are ready to chime in with their half-truths, like in 22:2 where Eliphaz asks some pointed questions:

“Can a man be profitable to God?
Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself.

These are partial truths which leave out important points. We can never be profitable to God, since He controls everything and actually transcends stuff. At the same time we can please God through our actions, remember the widow’s mite? She gave noting to the rich man, but God saw she gave all she had and was pleased. We cannot be profitable, but we can be pleasing.

The second half-truth is we have to be wise to make money. We can all point to a fool who is rich beyond our wildest imagination. Our key is to be wise and honest so we have the opportunity to be “profitable” to ourselves. There are no guarantees in the Bible that say follow God and you will be rich. Where it implies that you will be rich, it does not define it as “earthly” wealth. We could be rich in spirit, yet poor as the widow while being wise.

Verse 22:23 shows that Eliphaz has not clue on the workings of God:

If you return to the Almighty you will be built up;
if you remove injustice far from your tents,

This implies if you go to God there will be great blessings. Again this may or may not be true. I know some people who love God and live it daily in their walk, yet they are “poor”. When one goes to impoverished nations this is wildly apparent where you see people struggling for their “daily bread” yet they are so rich in the spirit of God and love Him so.

They key here is to live in the light of God, strive for what you desire. One quick key is how to pray, see we often believe praying “for” something is they secret to getting our “desires”. Jesus said in Matthew 21:22:

And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.

Think about it when you ask “for” something you are acknowledging the lack thereof and often get just that. We need to look at how we pray because if we have faith we need to pray in a thankful way as if we already have it. This is where the quantum world meets the real world and Job’s friends suddenly may have a point.

Psalms 30 – 32

How many times does verse 30:2 happen in your life?

O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,
and you have healed me.

I hear people asking for help often, I have done so with my finances, legs and back often in my life. I have never experienced spontaneous healing, but often wonder if I am going about it the wrong way. I believe for this to take place we need a fundamental shift in how we actually pray.

If you get the opportunity read the Isaiah Effect by Gregg Braden, there he describes a “rain man” who got rain. He asked how did he “pray for rain” and get it to work. His response was perfect, where he said “I prayed rain”. See praying “for” something has us in a mindset of placing our energies on the lack thereof, where he prayed as if it was always there. See it’s a subtle shift in ones focus, which David had obviously discovered.

Verse 30:5 tells us the emotions of the moment are unavoidable, but never let them carry past that moment:

For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favour is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.

David uses God as an example where He may get upset in a moment, but it only lasts a brief time. Life is not always “sunshine and blue skies”, we are going to have tough times ahead. The key is not to let the negative consume us, give the emotion its moment and then release it. We need to focus on joy to remain in a constant connection with God.

Now I passed by verse 31:5 and was reminded of Jesus’ death on the cross:

Into your hand I commit my spirit;
you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.

We don’t have to die before we can commit our spirit to God; no Jesus had his entire existence. David did also, where he found the secret to being connected to God and that is through more than just words, but feeling and emotions. Feelings and emotions come and go throughout our lives, but David found that remaining in them connect him directly to God. This is an odd concept to digest in a short reading; the Isaiah Effect explains it more fully. Learn to focus your energies away from the negative and towards the positive.

Verse 32:11 ends this reading with encouragement:

Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

The forgiveness of the Lord is something we don’t really take to heart. David is saying be glad and rejoice not because we live a blameless life but because we are forgiven! We do not need to keep beating ourselves up for sinning since the price had already been paid. Now that does not excuse the one who keeps sinning, remember the woman at the well. When he called her out, he told her to stop sinning and be forgiven. We can’t keep running to the computer for porn or some other addiction then beg for forgiveness only to wade back into the next day.

This is a tough subject when you look at it this way. We are forgiven and should be glad, but we are not blessed when our sins are repetitive. I believe when you get into the addictions, a person needs to be glad they have forgiveness, but also work towards escaping the bondage of their sin. Then you can really be glad and rejoice!

1 Samuel 1 – 5

The chapter starts with the birth of Samuel to Hannah who before had been barren. Before she became pregnant she had pledged the child to the Lord. Once Samuel was weaned he was placed in the care of Eli, the judge of the time. Hannah had a prayer of thanks where verse 2:2 rang out to me:

“There is none holy like the LORD;
there is none besides you;
there is no rock like our God.

We sing songs and recite prayers that say this but do we really believe this? I know the idea of one “entity” managing the universe is difficult to grasp. I really think part of the problem is we tend to “personify” God and that limits our ability to think of Him on a grand scale.

Even as I write these “Thoughts” I personify God with a gender by calling God “Him”. We can conceptualize God as energy, but that is difficult since “energy” is not a simple concept. I don’t want to try to figure out who God is in one paragraph and we are shifting away from Samuel’s calling. As you might assume, there are great things in store for a child given to God.

Chapter 3 starts with the Lord calling Samuel and he assumed that Eli was calling him. Once Eli recognized this was a calling from God, he guided Samuel in answering Him. Verse 3:11 is the Lord speaking to Samuel:

Then the LORD said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle.

God tells Samuel of his disgust for Eli and his sons. Because of the boys disregard for anything holy and Eli’s lack of guidance the Lord told Samuel that he would kill them. He did in chapter 4 with the battle against the Philistines where Eli’s sons are killed and they lose the Ark. At word of this Eli dies.

Have to wonder how the young Samuel felt when the prophecy that he told Eli came true. I know that hearing from God directly would freak me out and make me think I was nuts. Also, having the message come true would take a while to settle in since it would prove the source. Just thinking how cool that would be and at the same time the immense responsibility it would be.

The Philistines suddenly had their hands full with the Ark. Every town they put it had problems with people dying or getting tumors. This spoil of war became a “hot potato” as it got bounced from town to town. In the last verse, verse 5:12, the Ark is in Ekron and they did not want it there:

The men who did not die were struck with tumours, and the cry of the city went up to heaven.

Here you have seen what was done before and then it’s their turn. The Philistines need to return it, but at the same time they realize it gives the Israelites power against them. I am sure they did not realize that the only reason they won was to punish Eli and his sons. I think about Indian Jones when the Germans opened the Ark and everyone who gazed upon God’s glory was melted. Sounds like Hollywood got something right for a change.

Genesis 40 – 43

Joseph was put in jail because of Pharaoh’s wife, who had lied about their meeting. While in jail, he met some of Pharaoh’s workers who had been jailed. Verse 40:22 is the depiction of the bakers dream:

But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.

We hear of dreams coming true often, in this case it was the end for the baker. I wonder if the “dream” showed the baker a possible outcome, or if it was definite? Think about this a bit, was God giving the baker a warning to repent?

My favorite story in the Bible that shows these “visions” are not definite is from the book of Jonah. Here Jonah had a vision of Nineveh’s destruction. He did as God told him and finally warned the people. He got popcorn and waited on a hill to watch the destruction. Instead they repented and God spared Nineveh. The people were told the future and made a choice that ended up sparing them.

Now I bring up this story, because did the baker have an opportunity to beg for mercy or did he not believe the interpretation? Could the baker have spared himself or would this have been a definite? In verse 41:32, Joseph describes a point where the dreams become a factual representation of the future:

And the doubling of Pharaoh’s dream means that the thing is fixed by God, and God will shortly bring it about.

As we continue to read we see that the interpretation Joseph made thrust him into power, and the events that the dreams warned ended up happening. But because Joseph was faithful in his duties, Egypt had more than enough to survive. He helped other people because of this and some were his brothers.

Remember Joseph’s two dreams of the 11 stalks and the 11 stars all bowing? Two dreams with the same meaning. The result was a long and ugly path for Joseph which ended in the fulfillment of this vision. Everyone seems to think that the path God desires for us is an easy one, one only needs to turn to Genesis or Exodus to see that is not always the case. God tends to forge us to strengthen our spirit and soul, and unfortunately that means a bunch of heat and pounding!

We see Joseph being sold into slavery, tossed into jail and even through all this, God works to display His glory. If it had gone the “easy” way, Joseph would have gotten the credit. But God knew things would be greater if his brothers met Joseph this way where there would be no question of God’s vision or work in this instance.

Now one would think that Joseph would be hard and cold to his brothers who sold him to slavery, but in verse 43:30 Joseph showed emotion:

Then Joseph hurried out, for his compassion grew warm for his brother, and he sought a place to weep. And he entered his chamber and wept there.

Even when you would think he would disown his brothers and punish them, he is overwhelmed with emotion and compassion. This is another example of where family is everything and although you may have pain and disdain for a family member, that bond is “almost” inseparable. Even in extreme cases of abuse and torture from a family member some love still exists. As I get older I see friends come and go, but the family remains there through everything.

1 Corinthians 3 – 4

Have you ever wondered why some churches never seem to move past the basics? Verse 3:2-3 get into this, in a way:

2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?

See often we just keep in the basics and never explore further. Often churches cannot go further, because they have to deal with the majority. Unfortunately, the “majority” Christians think the “milk” is all they need and never go any further. They let their human emotions run their lives and not try to expand further.

Think about it, Jesus said in John 14:12 that we will do “greater works than these”! If after 10 years you are still raising your hand when they ask who prayed the “Sinners Prayer” and accepted Christ, then maybe you need get deeper finally! Jesus said we would do “greater works”! So, let’s see – he healed the sick, made the lame walk, made the blind see and raised the dead. Why are we not doing “greater works” than those?

Honestly I think something is lost in translation or we are doing this but passing it off as “science”! See you salvation is safe as long as it’s built on the foundation, but when we are tested with fire determines our resolve. See verse 3:15 for clarity on this:

If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

So we need to go learn, find mentors and dive in. We really need to expand and study more. Don’t just listen to what others have to say but read and learn. I want to hear of the blind seeing or the lame walking, but on something other than from TV evangelist trying to get money. We will be tested and if we put straw on the foundation of Jesus it will burn, on the other hand a precious metal will be refined!!

Verse 4:10 teaches us that humility is what we need, he views himself as a fool and not wise:

We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honour, but we in disrepute.

He says this yet his writings are the foundation of almost all the Christian churches. See we can’t get too full of our knowledge but rather be humble and continue to try to learn. Until you raise your first dead person, there is still more that can be learned. The message is simple, but the understanding is complex. That is why we never stop learning.

Mathew 26 – 28

The reading today starts with Jesus preparing to die and ends with his resurrection. It’s an amazing story, but at the same time I noticed some things that were interesting and not usually pointed out. The first story is in verse 26:7 & 8 where Jesus is anointed by expensive oil:

7 a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. 8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste?”

Most discussions focus on John’s description of this event where the “woman” is Mary and Judas is singled out as the disciple. Interestingly in both Mark and Matthew the story has no names and Judas was not the only one complaining. I wonder if John felt guilty for rebuking Jesus for letting “expensive” oil be used on Him?

The beauty here is you get to see accounts of the same thing from different eyes. In this case Judas may have been the instigator, but it appears everyone else agreed. How many times have we done that? Someone else starts something and we agree, often when in the end we are shown we were wrong. Sometimes we need to dig below the surface to understand the true reasons before we condemn an act.

Verse 26:41 really hit home for me:

Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

This really smacks me down since more often than not I find my “flesh” winning. In this case sleepiness won over being faithful to Jesus. It seems easy, just stay up and pray but when you’re tired sleep often wins. Plus they most likely didn’t understand the importance of what was about to happen, even though they had been told. I personally find this mostly in prayer where they become only words with no feeling or emotion.

As we move through the familiar story of Jesus’ crucifixion, verse 27:19 reminds me of a story:

Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream.”

This is amazing when you thing even with people not of God, He still uses them for his message. What if Pilate listened to his wife and let Jesus live? Would he have just been sacrificed later or would that have changed history forever? See this is one of those points where people decisions affect the world and history. The old “what if” story happens throughout our lives and history.

Often we look at Biblical prophecies like the one of Jesus and wonder if the outcome could have been different or did God force this one? I often look at the story of Jonah and Nineveh. Here Jonah had a vision, told the people and then to his surprise they repented and the vision did not come true. I believe many prophecies are just like this, it’s a possible outcome based on what man has done before. There is a decision point in which man either continues down the path of destruction or they change the prophecy.

The last thing I want to look at is verse 27:51:

And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.

This is significant only if you have a deep understanding of the temple and what the curtain guarded. This was the “most holy” place where only a few had access to God. This verse is unbelievably significant because it show mankind that access to God is no longer limited to a few, it’s open to everyone. The curtain was torn “from top to bottom” which means God did the tearing. You now can access God directly without a temple, altar or church!! How cool is that? Now it’s just learning how to tap into that unbelievable power with more than just your words.

Isaiah 51 – 55

As we return to Isaiah I look at this book with new insight having read the Isaiah Effect by Gregg Braden. I don’t want to get too into the book but it gave me some new insights to reading prophecies and praying. I suggest getting a copy and digging in.

Often Isaiah gives simple instructions, like in verse 51:6, which tells us to acknowledge the Lord:

Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
for the heavens vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;

See here Isaiah is telling us to focus on God as this world will wear out. Now he is foretelling the impending doom on our world or making note that nothing ever lasts in this world? No matter what the ultimate meaning is with this verse the key is acknowledge the Lord and dwell in Him and not the stuff of this world.

One thing that people often miss from salvation is this is something that is free; it’s a gift for which nothing is owed. Verse 52:3 reminds us of our God given right to this gift:

For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.”

See today we often look at “rights” as things we want that cost others. See there are some “inalienable rights” that God has granted us, the right to pursue happiness and the right to free speech. He did not give us a right to other people’s property! Now in this case the people of Israel were sold for nothing and there rights were removed, at the same time their salvation was paid at the same price. See their slavery was not a right to the Egyptians, it COST the Israelites their lives, but salvation is a right since it actually offer them peace at no cost to anyone else. See those God given rights are something that can never be taken away and will never cost anyone else for your rights.

Now as I read chapters 52 and 53 I start to see the prophecies of Jesus, like how verse 53:7 talks about his death:

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.

See when Isaiah wrote this the people did not have Jesus, whereas today we read this and can have an “aha moment”. We see this in the light of Jesus’ suffering on the cross and realize that Isaiah had a vision of what was to come. As we look at prophecies we see possible outcomes, with Jesus I often wonder if He was one of those must happen and not a possibility.

Verses 54:9-10 gives us hope that the “End Times” may not happen:

9 “This is like the days of Noah to me:
as I swore that the waters of Noah
should no more go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,
and will not rebuke you.
10 For the mountains may depart
and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”
says the LORD, who has compassion on you.

We often wonder if this promise means the world will not be destroyed or that we will be removed from this world before it is. I assume this supports those who believe in the “rapture” where all believers will be bodily removed before the destruction of the earth. What will happen I have no idea, I just know that if something is “going” down the prophecies tend to point to the times we are in today. Will “it” happen and can we stop “it” from happening? Those are questions that get a resounding “maybe” since there are things we can do, but as mankind will we.

Job 19 – 20

Job is one of those tough books that one must really think about in order to understand. Here you have a man who is stuck by some awful problems and God allows Satan to do this just to prove Job’s strength of conviction. I can’t help but wonder what is being allowed to happen in our lives! Again I don’t believe God is allowing this to happen, most of the time it’s either our own actions that cause misery or just life. Verse 19:4, Job states that this his problems are not because of sin:

And even if it be true that I have erred,
my error remains with myself.

He reminds his friends that his sin’s should not have caused pain to others or the loss of anyone else life. We get down to the nuts and bolts of the Job’s point in verse 19:25 where he points out his sin is forgotten:

For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and at the last he will stand upon the earth.

Our Redeemer took flesh in Jesus and is what we rest our grace on. Job realizes there is no way he can do it on his own and one must interceded for his salvation. He knows the gap between us and God is too great, but we are in need of that redemptive salvation trough Jesus. He had a “process” to go through, but his salvation he knew the sins were forgiven.

His “friend” Zophar keeps “piling on” in verse 20:7 so to say:

he will perish for ever like his own dung;
those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’

How would you like to be compared to poo? What kind of friends are these that would say these type things? When reading these verses I though immediately of Shakespeare and Frost’s Poem “Out, Out” where death is coldly dealt with. Where death “signifies nothing” and we are “heard no more”. That is the “hope” people with no faith have, but these men are supposedly men of God and they sound like they have not belief in the promises.

Remember no matter what happens on this earth our soul’s or energy will always continue. We just have to decide if it will be a pleasant eternity or a crappy one like Zophar thinks!

Psalms 27 – 29

Fear is something we all deal with and have to overcome throughout our lives. Verse 27:1 starts with some encouraging words:

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

That is so easy to say when helping a friend, but so difficult to hear when you are freaked out. I have heard all my life, if you have fear you don’t trust the Lord. This verse affirms this, but at the same time I have a tough time stomaching this many times. It’s difficult to live with faith that all things will be cool when things are spiraling out of control.

I still struggle with fear as our finances continue to be very difficult and present circumstances look crazy on the personal side. Fear is normal and healthy when you are facing immediate danger, but when you let it run your life that is a problem. We need to let faith control the fear of something we cannot control.

A good example of this is fear the world will end in December of 2012. Sure the Mayan calendar says it’s the end and many other “prophets” point to this year of being the end time, but we don’t need to dwell on this and let the fear control our every day. Think about it verse 27:3 shows what David faced:

Though an army encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;
though war arise against me,
yet I will be confident.

Think about it David calmed his fears with the Lord facing armies, we should be able to calm them facing fear of a possible future and not imminent danger. With this we must look at David’s example of strength in verse 28:1:

To you, O LORD, I call;
my rock, be not deaf to me,
lest, if you be silent to me,
I become like those who go down to the pit.

David realizes God is his “strength” and his “shield” in life and to use them often. If we learn to tap into that power, we will never have fear! See David’s heart “trusts” and therefore he is “helped” along the way. When you start to recognize God is in your life you will have a better handle on dealing with fear.

The big key is calling on the Lord and not just hoping it will happen. If you look at David’s story, he fails when he does not consult God. But not just with David, you see this throughout the Bible. When taking the Promised Land’s after leaving Egypt, they had success when they asked God, but failed miserably when they did it on their own. See at the first hint of fear you should be prompted to hit the floor and pray. Then you can tap in the the Lord’s strength and conquer this fear!!

Ruth 1 – 4

This is another one of those stories in the Bible that gives us some history but also an example of faithfulness. Here a book of the Bible is devoted to a person whom is not Jewish born, but married into the faith. Now the key comes at the end and I will spoil it now but Ruth is the great grandmother of David. Which as you know is the lineage of Jesus. Maybe this is why Jesus is the savior of all and not just the Jewish people? Something you may ponder while reading on.

Now we can get into the nuts and bolts of the problems with this story as Ruth was not able to enter the tabernacle by the law. Also the Jewish people were expressly forbidden to marry the people of Moab. One could continue on questions like this, but the key I see is God’s working through her faithfulness to start the line of Jesus, through an improbable person.

See Ruth’s husband died who was the son of Naomi and this gave her freedom to return to her family in Moab. Verse 1:14 was the turning point for Ruth and if you think of it the world:

The then lifted up their voice and wept again. And Oprah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

Ruth remained faithful to her husband’s mother in her time of need since she would have been all alone. So she followed her back to Bethlehem and lives with her. During this time she meets a man named Boaz and an interesting relationship starts. He helps her gather more from the fields to help the family. Then during this time in verse 3:4 Naomi instructs Ruth to go sleep at Boaz’s feet:

But when he lies down, observe where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do. And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”

Unlike many of the Old stories, Boaz did not “have his way” with Ruth, but rather honored her and eventually married her. This is a great example of the faithful honoring of God’s laws with these two, and from it the world has been blessed. So read this story and understand the ultimate implications not only to Ruth, but to the world.

If Ruth had not been faithful to Naomi and honorable with Boaz there is a high likelihood, the savior of the world would not exist. We see in this story how God works amazingly in with the most unlikely of people. Also we get to see that this work may have been done generations before us.

Genesis 36 – 39

This starts the story of Joseph which is an incredible one when you read it in full. It starts with envy of brothers because of their fathers love. In verse 37:3 it is obvious who is favored in the family:

Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors.

One play I remember from the name having never seen it was “Joseph and His Technicolor Dream Coat.” At the time I had no idea who Joseph was and why he had a colorful coat. I also didn’t get the dream thing either, but as life always does decades later I read the story and all is clear. Now I actually want to see the show just to get an see how accurate the story is portrayed.

Anyway Joseph has two dreams, both of which have his brothers bowing to him. The first happened in verse 37:7 where Joseph has a dream about sheaf’s bowing to his:

Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.

Needless to say this and the next one which has his father and mother also bowing to him, that made everyone a bit on edge with their brother. Imagine the youngest in the family getting all the glory and honor. That was unheard of in those days and is very difficult to comprehend today. So they brothers plotted to kill him.

This unraveled since many of the brothers did not want to kill him, so they ended up selling him off to slavery. Now he eventually gets sold off to Egypt and he honored the Lord as seen in 39:2:

The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master.

Even here his life was not easy as his maters wife tried and tried to seduce him. One time she got some of his garments to which she claimed he tried to rape her. At this his master tossed him in jail and as we see in verse 39:21 he prospered:

But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

The reading ends with “And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.” How would you like that? The “Midas touch” but better since it’s blessed by God and not really a curse. No wonder his brothers were jealous, I am sure this didn’t just start when he was sold. No success is an attitude that is always there. Hard work and honoring God is the key, once there success follows.

Now I cannot leave these chapters without mentioning some of the side stories. Chapter 36 is solely dedicated to telling of Esau’s descendents. It’s very dry with little insight to knowing God, just a history of Esau. The other story is disturbing and not to get into it too much, Judah ends up getting his daughter-in-law pregnant. It is told in chapter 38 and again is one of those odd stories that I don’t get, but is “history” and therefore significant to finding out how we got to where we are today. I guess it bothers me because it takes away from the amazing story of Joseph.

1 Corinthians 1 – 2

Paul appeals to the less intellectual side of us in his writing. Prior it was the belief that God was only understood by wise and leaned people. Paul cracks that mold by saying it’s really simple. Verse 1:20 asks the question of who really knows God:

Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.

See we can get all wrapped up in the theology and underlying meaning of the Word and who God is. But in reality He is very simple yet complex at the same time. We can understand him in a simple prayer or spend years gathering the same enlightened meaning.

God never intended to push us away by being way to difficult to understand, heck I am sure when I get into my pseudo scientific/quantum explanation of God it turns many off who know God through love. Or even worse we get on or technical mumbo jumbo talk about God and that will quickly turn off a new believer. See God’s intent is shown in verse 1:27:

But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.

See the idea that we need some noble learned person to teach the Gospel is beyond what God had intended. See He is proving that it’s simple by teaching through those that appear as weak fools. The key is when presenting the Gospel to others is not to get into the nitty gritty, but to speak to their hearts about what God is about. Just keep it simple and show them how God will help their needs.

I think one of the mistakes we make in talking about God to the unreached is going right into hell fire and sin. People know what’s right and what is wrong, but really don’t understand the concept of God and hell. So show them how God applies in their life today, keep it in terms they understand and know. You don’t need to boast of your vast knowledge of Christ, but how Christ will help them in every day life.

Once we get to understand God, verse 2:7 shows us he opens our hearts to wisdom needed to really get to know Him:

But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.

I talk with people who are new to Christ and often I can get as much wisdom from them as I can from a scholar. For some reason they often see God as He is and not how we want to form Him. So they have a fresh insight that we often miss. This of a child and how they notice things we often miss. See where we have learned to filter out the “noise” they have not and can see things differently. See it’s not that the sunset was not there, or the chirping bird was silent before, we just filtered out things. Often someone new in Christ does not have those filters applied to their view of God and they can see things we overlooked. So take today and open your mind and eyes to all the glory God has before you!!

Matthew 23 – 25

Hypocrites are a big deal to Jesus, you know the ones who preach one thing and do another. Jesus is saying do as “I” do, not as they do. The Pharisees are all doing the do as I say, not as I do bit and in verse 23:3 Jesus calls them on this:

so practice and observe whatever they tell you – but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice.

I can point to hundreds of times when that was the case with my own life. I can remember getting ready for church and spewing anger only to change like a chameleon when we got to church. I would get ugly and then take everyone to a place that preached what peace. What a hypocrite I was!!

Now Jesus continues with the “seven woes” to the Pharisees, verse 23:27 is just one:

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and unlceanness.

Just like I was (and I pray it’s past tense) when I would get angry with everyone. We have to learn to “practice what we preach” and expect it from ourselves first. Again we must learn to forgive as we expect to be forgiven. I cannot stress to you how important it is to live what you profess, so many are watching your every move.

Jesus moves into prophecies about the end times. Verse 24:8 gives an analogy which we need to embrace:

All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.

I have only been present at two births and really understand this analogy. Both times I watch my wife writhe in pain as she pushed this small child out of her body. I watch each head distort, in what could only be painful, as they entered the world. The pain and agony were instantly gone at the sight of this new born wonder and a peace fell over the room that transcended anything I have ever experienced. This is what Jesus was talking about in the end times; it will suck for a while but be well worth it in the end.

The final point Jesus made was how we treat others. Sure if someone is of stature or seems ok, we are more than happy to help them out and give them a break. But if they are poor and filthy lets step aside and let someone else deal with the problem. Verse 25:35 & 40 says how we treat people reflects directly on Jesus:

35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me. … 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers you did it to me.’

The key here is you never know who you are helping. There is a reality show where the CEO gets into the trenches and works as a new hire at their stores. It’s interesting how people treat a person when they are a lowly new hire verses when they are the CEO. We need to treat everyone as a CEO and not as a underling. Again do to others as you expect others to do to you!! This is the infamous “Golden Rule” which is not actually in the Bible, although it’s a derivation of the Lord’s Prayer.

Isaiah 45 – 50

Some great reading this morning with seeing God for whom He really is. Verse 45:6 starts by showing God as compared to the sun:

that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other.

Through this reading today I keep going back to the conservation of energy and how we are much like God in our souls. These bodies are not the image of God but rather our souls, or the conscious energy that drives this meat suit. God is the conscious energy that drives the universe that we can tap into. How cool is that?

Now if we look at God this way it is much easier to understand God that some old guy in the clouds that somehow is everywhere and knows everything while sitting on a throne. For some reason we need to personify God, I think Isaiah is trying to bust that in these chapter. Rather if we view God as conscious energy, we see a God who can be everywhere, know everything, never be created or destroyed and pass through many forms.

The recurring theme in these chapters is God is the one and only, “there is no other” besides Him. Verse 46:8 & 9 continue this theme:

8 Remember this and stand firm,
recall it to mind, you transgressors,
9 remember the former things of old;
for I am God and there is no other;
I am God and there is no other like me,

See today we tend to dismiss this as a culture and not acknowledge God. We have let science and science fiction open the idea there is no God. Ironically, when you start putting the pieces together in science it actually explains God even better. See I look at the never ending questions in science and proof there is a God. Like explain the eye, that was more “engineering” than random. How did our brains just randomly start using the heart to pump blood to our lungs that bring in air to provide life to our flesh?

Sure evolution is one theory on how this happened, but it does not explain how it happened. It just takes probability out to some huge number and says that could happen. It has never been proven or has ever happened in recorded history, but for some reason it has become scientific “fact” and not a theory. Although this primordial ooze idea does not work in the lab with scientists consciously trying to play God.

Now I am not saying we did not “evolve” or we just created from dust, which is the same thing as evolutionists say only without God, I am saying there is a driving force or energy that “created” this mess we live in today. That my friend is God! Bet you never thought that Isaiah would prove God through science!!

Job 17 – 18

Need to dive into Ecclesiastes after this reading for some lighter complaining. Job asks where is his hope in God. What would you think after living Jobs blight? I know my hope would be dwindling. I honestly don’t think I would blame God, just my hope in restoration would be dim at that point.

Job 17:3 – 4 show his feelings about his friends and possibly how God is feeling about him:

3 Lay down a pledge for me with yourself;
who is there who will put up security for me?
4 Since you have closed their hearts to understanding,
therefore you will not let them triumph.

I wonder what he means by using the word “triumph” here? Is he focusing on them succeeding at changing his heart or at them failing in life? I am not sure here, but would assume it’s protecting Job from the words of his friends.

How many times have we needed this advice? Often my friends took me down foolish paths that I knew were wrong. A few times I would say no and not follow the fools; but most of the time I was foolishly following. How I wish we could learn from Job and notice folly and ask God to protect ourselves from it.

Verse 17:12 is Jobs comment about light and evil:

They make night into day;
‘The light,’ they say, ‘is near to the darkness.’

Often we look at evil and it seems ok, because it resides so close to the darkness. It often times gets confused with good. Job focuses on God who does bring the night into day! Jesus used many analogies about light in his preaching! We are the light of the world! We don’t need to go under a bushel to hide our faith, but shine God’s love through our bodies.

Interestingly Bildad throws Job’s words back in his face in verse 18:5:

Indeed, the light of the wicked is put out,
and the flame of the fire does not shine.

Many times we don’t see this, we see the wicked shine or appear to shine. Often what I viewed as success of the people doing wrong things ends up being a myth or façade. If I got close I would notice their life was a mess and really nothing to envy. We need to realize that life isn’t about stuff, but about people. As much as the stuff will fade and crumble, people live on forever; just not in our bodies. Can get into a long discussion about conservation of energy to prove the afterlife, but just go on faith that we will continue after death.

The key to focus on with Job is no matter how bad his life may get, he complains to God not blame God. We often think our sin is the fault or God is punishing us, when reality it’s just life. Often we mess up in our sins and although God has forgiven us the consequences linger on for a long time. In Job’s case it was just life throwing a curve at him, granted this curve was thrown by Satan himself. Just focus on God and all things will work out for the best. He promises this!!

Psalms 24 – 26

The Psalms always have a way of speaking to me and giving me hope. David is a man who God was recognizable all his life. Granted he flubbed it a few times, but overall you could see God’s finger. Even with that assistance, in verse 25:4 David asks for help again:

Lead me in your truth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation,
for you I wait all the day long.

How many of us really get this? Do we ask for God to lead us or just give to us? I know I am guilty of this often, where my prayers become a litany of demands for this and that. Instead we should learn to live in harmony with God, asking more His will than ours.

The Lord ’s Prayer is clear “thy will be done.” How often do we ask for this, other than in saying the Lord’s Prayer? We tend to bind our problems us and present them to the Lord with a solution we deem fit. Then often times we are disappointed on the resulting solution from God. I know I am guilty of this! I plot and plan exactly how a problem should be handled, and then more often than not find God’s solution was different than mine and worked better.

Now with asking God for leadership, verse 26:2 asks for God to test us:

Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
test my heart and my mind.

Would you ask this of God? Often we feel our trial and tribulations are great as it is, imagine asking for MORE? This would be asking God to pile on the problems! I wonder where David was in this time. Was he hiding from Saul, leading armies into battle, committing sin with Bathsheba or dealing with the aftermath? Either way asking God to test ones heart during any of this is bold.

As bold as it is, I feel this is my prayer today. I want to see if I am really following God the way he desires or if I am spinning out of control in the wrong direction. Is my heart really for God or is it for my own aggrandizement? Does my heart desire the salvation of others or just my own? Do I really love others as myself? Answer these and see if you feel the need to join David’s quest for righteousness.

Interestingly David ends this in verse 26:12 with a promise to God:

My food stands on level ground;
in my great assembly I will bless the Lord.

David is bold here with this promise. Is this something we ever thing about? How does one “bless the Lord” anyway? It obviously isn’t the world’s view of riches and fame! No we need to really look at how we honor God in how we live our lives. Sometimes a blessing is more than something, but rather an action. Honoring God with first fruits is the reflex of “blessing” God, but how about helping a down and out person? Jesus was clear in Matthew 25 that when you help the least, you are helping Him. How about praise and worship or being thankful for your life? Think of how you can “bless the Lord” today and DO IT!

Judges 17 – 21

Sometimes I read and cannot get everything into one thought, other times I read and read just to get something, and other times I get little to nothing. This is one of those times. The story is starts with Micah and how he finds money taken from his mother, who then makes “household gods” and continues. Micah hires his own personal priest and the story goes on. Verse 17:6 seems to be the theme for the ending of Judges:

In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

This is where mankind always tends to break down and our connection with God dissolves. We somehow drift quickly from the teachings of God, Moses and Jesus only to form our own rules and ideas of right and wrong. Society has done this as we end Judges by doing wicked things.

The story continues where the people of Dan remove the priest from Micah’s home to have him serve others for the greater good. Then the story gets very strange where the priest finds a concubine, who is also called his wife. Then he travels to Gibeah, bypassing other towns that were not of Israel, only to have a mob try to rape him. They end up raping and killing his wife, who is then divided into twelve parts and scattered throughout the land as a reminder of the wickedness they have turned to.

During this period the people rise up to punish the wicked from the tribe of Benjamin and almost wipe them away. The story continues to get odd as in 21:6 the people who just conquered these men now have compassion for them:

And the people of Israel had compassion for Benjamin their brother and said, “One tribe is cut off from Israel this day”

They continue to restore the tribe by allowing them to take wives. This again is odd as women from Shiloh are dancing in the fields and the men just run and grab one. Wonder how that would work today? I can only imagine, yet some still seem to pick their wives in the same manner, never getting to know them or understand if there is a true match “made in heaven”.

Not sure how these stories apply to today until I read the last verse 21:25 which repeats the first verse I highlighted:

In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

Maybe that is the key here that we should learn, don’t drift from God or things get mighty strange. Look at what is happening today! We are taking compassion and understanding to allow things that are morally wrong. We get pieces of scripture thrown back at us to demonstrate how un-Godly our beliefs are. Then we fold and allow the decay to continue where everyone is doing what their “feel” is right. The Bible is clear on moral truths and when we stop studying them; this allows us to be manipulated into believing sins are ok with God. The Bible is not a suggestive guide to mold society; it’s a long proven example of what God expects. We are doing nothing new! The only thing that changes is the tools we use to do evil.

Genesis 32 – 35

We get more of the history of Jacob and the twelve tribes of Israel. It is fascinating when you dig into the beginnings of this great nation and see how God works with them through many difficult times. One fun story that got my attention was when Jacob was wrestling with a man that ended up being God. Reason this story caught my eye was because the man touched Jacobs hip and dislocated it.

I read that description as I sit in pain from a hip problem, so it opened my eyes to this section. Verse 34:26 has Jacob in pain not letting go:

Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

I wonder how much I could do in the pain I am in right now and my hip is just out of place. Here Jacob is locked with God, in pain and he has the energy to keep fighting. We should all take Jacob as an example to never stop wresting for what is right. No matter how much pain, discomfort or misery we are in we should never stop fighting FOR God, not with God. Unless of course, like Jacob, we know that we are right with God and just need to prove our will.

During this time Jacob has been worried about meeting his brother Esau. The “sibling rivalry” is great between these two so when they finally met in 33:4 the emotion finally broke and they wept:

But Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him and they wept.

As they grew up the rivalry for the birth right and the blessing was great. Although Esau felt betrayed by his brother, after the years he let “bygones be bygones” and expressed his love. This is a great example of family bonds. No matter what happens in the world the bond of the family is much greater than any other. You will discover that the love for your “kin” will override so many failures and faults.

We tend to get lost in our immediate world and often perceived conflicts are what breaks us free. Don’t lose touch with the family since as you grow you will find they are more and more the strongest bond you will ever know. This is where the bond of God is so great, each of us has that bond with Him. We need to keep exploring that bond for the rest of our lives. Like that love of a father, we may not like what He does or says, but we find out it’s all out of love.

As you finish out the reading notice that Isaac dies, I find this interesting since he was 180 years old! I don’t know what I would do with myself if I lived that long. The first 50 seem like a long time so far. I could not imagine what I would see in the next 130 years!! I often wonder if their “year” was different or the people actually lived longer then.

Romans 15 – 16

Paul starts this chapter solid in 15:1 by making sure we understand we are responsible to help all the church:

We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the fallings of the weak and not to please ourselves.

One can read this passage in two ways, from a view of one who considers themselves strong and one who considers themselves weak. I personally feel mixed, where with some I am strong and others I am very weak. So in all honestly we need to all view this from both view points since our goal is to constantly grow in Christ. See we need to realize when it’s necessary to guide and to follow.

Often I get all high and mighty thinking I know it all only to get quickly humbled by someone who seems “junior” to my “experience”. I believe the key is to humble yourself before others so you can learn and others need to humble themselves so you can teach. Often I find myself in a situation where I will read something in the morning and be able to apply it to my day. Granted if I get to quote scripture I get boastful often because I will point out I read it that morning. At the same time that may inspire others to start a morning devotional.

Paul wishes us to live in harmony in verse 15:5 and mentions endurance:

May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus.

I found it interesting that “endurance” was used here, which tells me none of this was ever intended to be “easy.” We don’t have the “easy button” that we can press to solve our problems. No the world is much too complex to really understand exactly what God has in store for us. There are so many other factors that hinder the “easy button” ever really showing up in our lives. Even those who appear to have it easy, are dealing with tons of issues, they just hide them better than others.

Everything is out in the open with me, so when I am flying high on “easy street” you know it and when I am off the beaten path you know it also. If you catch me on my “low” you will notice my faith is still strong. I realize that this is the way life is and no matter the source of my problems, I know God is with me through it all.

Paul ends Romans with a warning about division in the church. There would be one holy church if that was the case. But Charles Spurgeon saw something wrong with his original church as did John Wesley and a host of other great minds in Christianity. Sure they all have a fundamental belief that Jesus’ death on the cross brought us salvation, but they differ after that. Verse 16:17 spells it out:

I appeal to you, brothers, to watch for those who cause division and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.

But the key to know what is truly of God is to know the Bible and to absorb it daily. I think most of the churches really only differ in the “pathway” they choose. Many people connect with God in different ways, some through service, some through worship and others through deep theological study. Either way the key is know which differences are Biblically just between the ones that are scripturally wrong. This requires work so you do not get fooled. So read, pray, study and discuss to learn the truth.

Matthew 20 – 22

We open with a story of laborers in the vineyards, where everyone gets paid the same if they worked a full day or not. The grumblings of the workers who put in a full day are loud and the master answers in verse 20:15 – 16:

15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity? 16 So the last will be first and the first last.

There are so many levels of discussion here from how we interact with God to how we interact with each other. First we need to look at the basis of this parable which is envy. One of the Ten Commandments addresses this issue and Jesus is touching on it here, we need to watch our coveting. We need not worry about how our deal is worse or better than the ones before or after us, but that we are working for what we agreed.

The other avenue Jesus is exploring and most likely the more significant is the one of the order in salvation. He want to be sure we understand there is no order, each who accepts Jesus earns the same, no matter if they were saved at a young age and preached to their death or a drunken murder who found Jesus on his death bed. Both will enjoy equal in the gifts of God, without question to motive. NOTE – this does not mean sin till you’re about to die, because you will not know the day or time so be prepared.

Later in 20:26-27 Jesus answers the mother wishing her offspring a position of honor in the kingdom:

26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must first be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave.

I love these analogies because it tends to put me in my place. More often than not, I tend to think highly of my accomplishments and want more prestige. But in reality we need to all serve before ever expecting to be exalted into a position of importance. David was that way, he was a faithful servant until he obeyed and struck down the giant. Jesus was God and the last act he did before dying on the cross was washing his disciple’s feet. We need to first serve without the expectations of anything more, then trust God if it goes further.

The reading ends with Jesus answering the two greatest commandments in 22:37-39:

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

This is easy to say but difficult to actually do, I mean really love a God that is difficult to understand and comprehend. In this case the word love is “agape” or in verb tense “agapao” which in literal translation means be totally consumed with or committed to God. I know I have been that way for times of my life, but on a long term, day by day, it’s difficult to honestly say I have been. Not because I don’t believe, but I allow the everyday trials and tribulations to consume my life and thoughts. Often I forget God in the equation other than my daily devotional, which becomes more of a quick chant and formality than a time with God.

Kind of like how we often treat our parents as teens, yes we all have been rude to them. We take their presence for granted and just be consumed with our life and friends. It’s not different than most of our time with God, we so often forget He is with us and has our backs, even if we royally mess up. Fortunately, like our parents God’s love will overlook our ignoring Him. Not that He will get upset if we ignore Him for too long, but it’s more because of a longing for the relationship than actually anger. This is much like us, I will get mad when I get ignored by my children, but will immediately forget it all when they finally acknowledge me in a text or a visit. Live for God and love Him, he will return the favor.

Isaiah 40 – 44

The first chapter of this reading seems to foretell Jesus some 700 years before he walks this earth. Verse 40:3 describes John the Baptist:

A voice cries; In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord;
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

This is where the prophecies get exciting when there is no question who they are talking about or what this is predicting in the future. We get to see the history be told before it actually happens and then spring to the New Testament to see it happen. That is just amazing when you think about it and makes one think of the odds this could have happened. When you look at this verse say evolution happening the odds are so much more likely that Jesus is who he said he is verses us growing from primordial ooze.

Verse 40:31 is one of the more famous lines from Isaiah’s writing:

but they who waid for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.

That gives me strength to know that I am not alone and with God’s help anything is possible. We can fly or run without getting tired, if we have faith. Many question if this is not where we end after death, since flying now requires some “manmade” device.

As we move through the reading I find another uplifting verse in 41:10 where Isaiah says:

Fear not for I am with you;
be not dismayed for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold your with my rigd your with my righteous right hand.

How many of us actually “fear not” and fully trust in the Lord? I know I miss the mark more than I can say. I fret over every little thing, and with almost 100% success my worries were a waste of time. I am not saying things were all the way I wanted or expected, but they ended up in the right place. Granted it may have taken years to be able to track back and see the workings, but they are always there!

Enjoy more uplifting words in Isaiah writings like in 44:8 where he says:

Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel
And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts;
I am the first and I am the last;
Besides me there is no God.

We could spend days parsing out verses in this reading, but suffice it to say this is it in a nutshell. There is no other God than the one described in this book!!

Job 15 – 16

We return to the back and forth between Job and his “friends.” No matter how bad or good it seems to get for people we all tend to push those results on God. When things are good, we thank God for His blessing. When thing go wrong we tend to believe God is punishing us for something we may or may not have consciously done wrong. Verse 15:4 tends to show the worlds view on suffering:

But you are doing away with the fear of God
And hindering mediation before God

It is natural to assign blame for problems, in Job’s case it was not sin but Satan whom caused his problem. More often than not our afflictions are often a result of just sh&^ happening. I don’t believe God is micro-managing everyone’s lives to the point of punishing us for our sins. The other side of the equation is problems that are a result of sin, but not a punishment for our sins.

The old saying “you made your bed, not you must sleep in it” comes to mind. We get ourselves into this mindset that God punishes us FOR our sins, when in reality we are punished BY our sins. Granted in Job’s case this is more Satan being a butt-head, we cannot think that God is some maniacal punisher waiting for our next wrong move.

God is not ready to cast down fire from the heavens or give us a spanking, but that does not mean he does not from time to time. No, like Job’s friends, we tend to try to find fault in the cause of our problems. I have known many Godly people who have suffered like Job, because things happen and not because they were bad.

Job replies back in verse 16:2 to make sure these boneheads understand they are wrong:

I have heard many such things;
miserable comforters are you all.

Sometimes we tend to say things we shouldn’t or have no clue about, like Job’s friends. I think we need to learn from Job’s friends and learn not to open our mouths with our opinion unless really asked or needed. Many time our “comforting” friends is just listening to them vent and not provide “color commentary” on the side. At the same time if we see our friends “self destructing” we should step in, but not like a judgmental self-righteous fool, but as a caring loving friend.

So learn to be Godly and not judgmental!

Will be posting at weird times … so don’t fret;-) Be normal again soon!

Psalm 21 – 23

Wow what a difference between these three Psalms where one is about thanks and joy, the other is about abandonment and the last is about God’s guidance. Verse 21:2 emphasizes David’s thanks for the gifts God has given him:

You have given him his heart’s desire
and have not withheld the request of his lips.

I know for a fact not of us can say this when you consider our “desires” and wants. I think there is a delay on God’s giving, because we actually need a throttle to control our hearts. Could you imagine if all our immediate desires were given to us? It would be a mess, we see this often where we get what we want to later find out how destructive it actually is in our lives. I think when God does this, He is giving us a reminder that we need to develop our desires before actually getting them.

Interesting how a Psalm of David rejoicing for God’s love and provision is followed so quickly by one of despair. This Psalm starts right out with Verse 22:1 and David’s questions to God:

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

These words should look familiar to you and the ones Jesus spoke on the cross. See these were two men, one close to God and one actually of God, who at the time wondered where God was in their lives. So when you say “God is not here” you have some heavy hitters who have said the same words.

In verse 22:9, David is one of the few who have compared our relationship to God as with one of a mother:

Yet you are he who took me from the womb;
you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts.

As young believers we need to start at God’s breasts and get milk or simple spiritual foods to grow. As we mature we move to more solid food and get our spiritual nourishment from that. As we God and explore God gives us more to grow with Him and through Him.

You know even when David feels God has abandoned him, verse 22:22 -23 shows us that he will still praise God:

22 I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23 You who fear the LORD, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him,
and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!

For some reason, Psalm 23 is one of the most read at funerals. It talks about walking through the “shadow of death” so many feel it’s the soul passing into eternity. Verse 23:1 is something we all need to live:

The Lord is my Shepard; I shall not want.

If we have total faith in God this should be true, no matter where we are in life. We should have faith that God will provide. Now does this mean we just relax and think we need to do nothing? Nope! The reason is because doing that will eventually lead us to homelessness. We need to function and live within society, but have faith God will meet our needs and desires as we work.

Remember “I will fear no evil” should be your mantra! Respect it, but with God all things are possible!! Have faith and roll with life!

And tired!! I never knew what that meant until this past month, with the climax hopefully done but expecting more. Maybe some day it can make these pages, but this morning I ask for prayers for myself, Katy and our new adoptive daughter.

Judges 12 – 16

The reading starts with Jephthah’s conflict with Ephraim. This is one of those internal squabbles which cost the lives of 42,000 of their brothers. I am not sure I understand why this happened, as in verse 12:3 where Jephthah questions them also:

And when I saw that you would not save me, I took my life in my hand and crossed over against the Ammonites, and the LORD gave them into my hand. Why then have you come up to me this day to fight against me?”

Here men of Israel are fighting because of pride mostly. There may have been treaties that were violated, but either way this is an odd story.

Starting in chapter 13 we start the story of Samson. In verses 13:3 – 5 an angel of the Lord came to Samson’s mother and told her what would happen:

3 And the angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are barren and have not borne children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. 4 Therefore be careful and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, 5 for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”

The story goes on and becomes strong and powerful. He does as he was promised and frees the people from the Philistines. Throughout they give example after example of his strength and wisdom, yet after all this his secret is lost to a woman in 16:15 after three failed attempts:

And she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you’, when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told me where your great strength lies.”

I don’t understand men, logic and love. Here Samson is lied to three times, where he tells her the wrong secret to his strength. Each time Delilah does what he said would remove his strength and sets him up for an ambush. He breaks free and defeats the ambush. The only saying “fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me,” comes to mind here. But Samson gets fooled four times, not just one other time.

Samson with his strength gone gets captured and his eyes are gouged out. He was brought before the Philistines and ridiculed. In one final move he was brought to the middle of the structure and prayed to the Lord in verse 16:30:

And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he had killed during his life.

In a final sacrifice he destroys the building and all who were in it, fulfilling his “destiny” to free Israel from the Philistines. What do you get from these stories? Live in harmony with your brothers and don’t trust a woman. Kidding on the woman comment!! Really the story of Samson shows us the power of God channeled through one person. Also, it shows how one can so easily throw logic and their faith out the window because of earthly love. We need to protect ourselves from that problem at all times. I am seeing it in our house now, where our spiritual lives are being radically changed by someone we love and are adopting. Our “normal” worship is being interrupted by problems that arise and need to be addressed at that moment.

Genesis 28 – 31

Jacob’s story continues as he starts his quest for a wife. He followed his father’s guide and found a wife. Now prior to this his brother Esau marries an Ishmaelite woman, whose offspring becomes the nation of Edom. Who we later find is a problem in the future for Israel. So you can see the roots of conflict in the Middle East run thousands of years. Although Jesus was to be the connecting “glue” to heal this conflict, Christianity has only splintered off to become another group vying for the “Holy Lands.”

During his quest for a wife Jacob has the famous “Jacob’s ladder” dream in 28:12 he describes the dream:

And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!

This is one of those dreams that you can take it for what it says or dig ultra-deep into a derived meaning of the rungs, our relationship to God, changing of the guard for Jacob between Israel angels and Canaan angles, or a few others. Or you could just take it as it was written that angels ascend and descend into our lives each and every day. I tend to take many of these visions and dreams more for their surface value than deeper spiritual meaning but at the same time God may use these to help us dig deeper into understanding Him. In this case I tend towards the simple explanation.

Jacob quickly finds a wife in Rachel, and then he prayed for a sign and got it, confirming she was “the one.” Yet when asking for her hand he volunteers for 7 years of servitude with her father. This is one of those stories that gets strange to me. After the 7 years Laban gives his eldest daughter Leah and not Rachel. So Jacob works another 7 years as described in verse 29:30:

So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years.

In this story the Lord saw Leah was “hated” and he allowed her to have children. That is one of those things I don’t understand, if someone is “hated” why did he conceive children with her? Is this more Biblical evidence that even a Godly man like Jacob is a sex crazed pig that would sleep with anyone, including someone he “hated”? I don’t understand this relationship, yet it happened this way.

Notice the next section describes the children Jacob had with Leah and Rachael. Notice there are 11 sons; Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulon and Joseph. Notice how they match the 11 of the 12 tribes, Benjamin shall be born later to fill out the heads of the 12 tribes. The only thing that bothers me about this story is the fact that there are 4 mothers in this story, Rachael, Leah, and their respective servants.

The remainder of the reading is Jacob trying to leave Laban and return to his homeland. During this time he cannot stop being prosperous and succeeding, which arises jealously of Laban’s sons. Jacob just keeps doing his thing until finally he flees, yet still Laban pursues. Finally the chapter ends 31:55 with Laban leaving:

Early in the morning Laban arose and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned home.

Again this is an interesting story which should be used mostly for historical reference and less about how we should live our daily lives. Unless you pull how faithful Jacob is in serving his term with Laban. This is a great example of honor and character, where he did what he said. He could have easily just left with Rachael and lived happily ever after. Through this we see how faithful persistence shall return the end “goal” for you, assuming it’s God’s will.

Romans 13 – 14

Roman’s is one of those books that often has people turned on their heads. Paul not only point out the obvious, but also the subtitle aspects to life. In these chapters he explores many aspects of our living in society and with others. First he looks at our position and the people who rule over us, be it bosses or presidents or kings. Verse 13:1 spells it out very clearly:

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.

Paul later says pay taxes that are owed and others that are due monies. Now I read this and immediately think of the Godly men who founded this nation in direct opposition to Paul’s writings here. Now I know you can’t always take a passage and boldly apply it to every situation, but all that was happening is they were being taxes more than they wanted.

The next thing Paul reiterates is Jesus’ statement on the “greatest commandment” that love covers all aspects. In this case Paul uses the Greek word agape to describe the love he is talking about. So this isn’t the 60’s kind of free love or having sex with anyone that’s around, but rather the selfless love you have for a family member. With this it’s easy to follow the law since your actions will only benefit others and not do harm. Verse 13:10 sums up the way one acts in agape love:

Love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

This is why Jesus emphasized this so much, since really we tend to turn our love inward and do what is desired for ourselves. This is something I fight with constantly as far as desiring my own wellness over that of others. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think there is anything wrong with desiring a better life or cool things; it’s when they become more important than others that this tends to “melt down”.

Paul then dives into how each of us interpret our faith in 14:1:

As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions.

Often times we in the church get wrapped up into our doctrine and feel it’s sinful that others do not follow ours. Drinking is a perfect example where the Baptist church we were members of did not say drinking was a sin, but part of their doctrine was do not drink. 12 Stone, on the other hand, has a much more open policy, where drinking is ok for the congregation. Think about how many times Jesus drank with his disciples.

Now the point isn’t to parse doctrine and determine who is right or not, but to realize some people by faith decide not to drink while others feel it is ok. There is nothing wrong or sinful about either position, where the sin comes in is being judgmental over the other’s doctrine. I especially see this judgment over the doctrine of the Mormons or the Jehovah Witnesses. I know people in both churches very well and have cut to the chase with them on scriptural issues. They both believe Jesus was the son of God, died on the cross for our sins and was buried and rose on the third day. After this it’s all details on doctrine. I don’t judge their faith, because they faithfully believe their doctrine is in faithful obedience to God’s word. Once the basics are covered, I don’t worry about it too much, it’s “different strokes for different folks.”

The key is don’t cause others to stumble or question their faith past the basics. Verses 18 & 19 lay out how we should act with others:

18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual up building.

If everyone focused on building other ups and not destroying their brothers, to make them feel superior, our world would be a much simpler place to live in. So focus on the lost, and not on changing someone’s faith to more closely match yours. Notice Paul uses the food laws in both of these sections to illustrate the point that it doesn’t matter if you eat pork or not, don’t use that to cause others to question and stumble along their faith walk. Be steadfast in your faith, but not self-righteous or judgmental.

Matthew 17 – 19

Sometimes scripture makes complete and total sense and other times it confuses me. These chapters do both. We tend to look at God through two view points, one is through the eyes of a poor person receiving blessings in heaven and the other is a person receiving blessings here on earth.

Before we dissect the idea of our finances and God, let’s look at how Jesus was presented to Peter, James and John in verse 17:5:

He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”

They fell on their faces in awe, but were quickly told by Jesus to “rise, and have no fear.” We need to be in awe that Jesus is God’s “beloved Son,” but at the same time be able to function and do the work of God. We need to honor Him, but not get stuck in the glory and become apoplectic. Often times we do this where we spend more time on our faces worshiping the Lord and less time doing His work.

Ever notice how as children we accepted things more on faith than as adults. When our parents said it was so, we had faith that it was. As we got older, our rebellious nature kicks in and we start to question things. I am not saying that is not good, but we must apply faith like a child to have glory in heaven, as shown in 18:3 & 4:

and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

As we turn our faith as a child and as we mature, God reveals himself to us so our faith becomes more fact filled. My belief God is real started as a faithful journey and now has become solid fact in my brain. I entered the relationship early on with faith that all this stuff was true.

There are so many parables that have lasting impact in these chapter, one needs to dwell on each one. The parable of “the Unforgiving Servant” is one that hits me in more ways than one, first I look at it was a way we deal with finances. If we are blessed or receive forgiveness we need to “pay it forward” in order to show thanks for that gift. First the man was effectively given a clean slate and could move forward. The first thing he did was not pay that forward and return the favor, this cost him dearly in the end.

Verse 18:35 sums up the way God deals with us:

So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” from the “Lord’s Prayer” is a pivotal point Jesus wants to make here. We need to understand “forgiveness” in the heart and demonstrate here in this world, before we can expect God to grant the same to us. This haunts me more than most things since I hold onto pain and angst for long periods of time without realizing it or sometimes even showing it.

Jesus ends these chapters with the parable of the “Rich Man” in 19:16-30. This is one that is difficult for me to comprehend since Jesus is asking this man to sell it all and give it away. As much benevolence I may appear to show, I can submit to 10% but am struggling with everything. I think the point here is not literally doing this, but to not allow money to be the controlling interest in your life. Sure it “implies” that the poor shall be more important than the rich in heaven, as said in verse 36:

But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

Notice the word “many” and not all. The key here is if you are well off, don’t think it’s all for you and about you. Give freely and use your resources in IMPACT others for the benefit of the kingdom. (Interestingly, I just noticed my shirt this morning has the word IMPACT boldly printed on it) Talk to the “few” and you will find the more they give, the more they seem to get. It’s a very common theme in scripture and in life.

Isaiah 34 – 39

Isaiah starts in these chapters with describing the judgment of all the nations of the lands. Verse 34:2 opens this dialog:

For the LORD is enraged against all the nations,
and furious against all their host;
he has devoted them to destruction, has given them over for slaughter.

The key here is “all” since no one seems to get away with this one. I often wonder if we are living in these times today. You watch the news and we are in a world of hurt economically and politically. Nations are rioting, famine is rampant, spending is out of control, disease is spread rapidly and wars can be fought in seconds. Are “all nations” described in this verse describing our world today?

See prophetic writings can drive one batty if they try to apply them to your world today. The prophecy is ugly throughout this chapter and can either be looked at as today or one can try to parse history to find the match before, either way it’s not pretty.

The next chapter talks about the aftermath and how reason returns. I often wonder if that will ever happen with mankind! Verses 35:5 & 6 describe something that started with Jesus:

5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
6 then shall the lame man leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.
For waters break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;

What Jesus started is how the world is described in the future. Where Jesus made a few see and walk, Isaiah’s vision promises that for everyone. Again I feel we are trying to apply human attributes to the “afterlife.” We do this with God so He can fit into a picture that we can understand, but we miss the glory of it all by doing this. Our spirits will be free to see and roam because we will no longer be bound by frail bodies! Is Isaiah really describing life after death and not the demise of the world?

Hezekiah had a great prayer later in verses 37:16 & 17:

“O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth. 17 Incline your ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes, O LORD, and see; and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God.

We often forget the glory and power of God. How often do you consider him your “friend” more than the creator of everything? I know I take prayer casual way too often. I pray like I am whining to my mother and not presenting my petition to the Highest of Highs! I think we all need a rest like this from time to time and realize God is not our “bro” that will fix things when we need Him, but rather the King of ages and creator of all. Give Him glory first, then get into the mundane details of your day, which God loves to talk about! How cool is that!

Later in this reading Isaiah tells Hezekiah that his life will be extended. Later Hezekiah shows everything to an envoy from Babylon and Isaiah tells him this was an error. Isaiah continued and told him they would strip his kingdom of everything! In an odd twist Hezekiah’s response in 39:8 was unexpected:

Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, “The word of the LORD that you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “There will be peace and security in my days.”

If you were told you would lose it all, would this be your response? It should be! Really you think about it, all Hezekiah has lost is stuff … and maybe a son or two! The key here is to praise God in the good and the bad; we cannot control the outcome here on earth, only the outcome after death! Keeping your eye on the prize and not on the stuff is the key to remaining content in God’s creation.

Job 13 – 14

Job continues to plead his case before his friends and God. He immediately attacks them in verses 13:4 & 5:

4 As for you, you whitewash with lies;
worthless physicians are you all.
5 Oh that you would keep silent,
and it would be your wisdom!

Have you ever been where the last thing you need to hear is your friends wrong advice? Often times we get swept up in listening to them and ignoring the lesions learned through our reading and studying the Word of God. I hear this often throughout my life and many times from trusted or responsible sources. Often my sanity goes into question and I often wonder what is right in this world? But then I fall back on scripture to determine the right path.

As Job continues forward he is starting to prepare a case to present before God in verse 13:18:

Behold, I have prepared my case;
I know that I shall be in the right.

Having personally prepared many cases before the courts, my confidence was like Job’s, but often my preparation and execution were flawed. My cases were before man, I can’t imagine trying to ensure my case was complete before God, although can assume God will give more grace for errors in the documents.

Job has a distorted view of life having dealt with so much misery as seen in verses 14:1 & 2:

1 “Man who is born of a woman
is few of days and full of trouble.
2 He comes out like a flower and withers;
he flees like a shadow and continues not.

What a bleak view of life, especially how blessed he was before his problems started. Sure we are born and then we die, but what happens in between is special. Sure sometimes life just sucks, but more often than not it’s wonderful. We get to experience sensations that only God could imagine. Breathing fresh mountain air or getting a cool sea breeze on your face are just samples of the wonders we get to experience. Sure life may be short, but enjoy the gift while you are here.

I think the crux of Job’s complaint comes clear in verses 14:16 & 17:

16 For then you would number my steps;
you would not keep watch over my sin;
17 my transgression would be sealed up in a bag,
and you would cover over my iniquity.

This becomes clearer and much easier since the blood sacrifice of Jesus removed the need for constant sacrifices. God is not keeping track of each time we get out of line. God does not have a score card with our name that determines our relationship with him. He “bags” up our sins and forgets them. We just have to accept that we have done them and confess them before God.

Now this does not end the consequence of the sin, just God keeping it over our heads. If this were the case one could become a thief or a murderer and just confess the crime before the resulting harm came. Sin is like Newton’s third law of motion, “for every force there is an equal and opposite force.” Or for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Unfortunately the third law is not perfect as respect to sin, but there are consequences to our actions we must accept.

Psalm 18 – 20

David is praying and praising God for three things, stability, the Law and trustworthiness. If we had the same interaction David had with God we may be able to say these prayers with more devotion, but at the same time we may be just not aware. I read many of these stories where God is so intertwined into people’s lives that there is no question on God’s involvement. Granted we have extremes like Moses, where the seas part, but for the most part we long for a similar relationship as David has with God.

Verse 18:2 starts the David’s pray with something we all really need to believe in our hearts:

The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

These words imply David understands that God is not ever going to leave his side. How about you? Do you feel God is with you all the time as your “rock” or is your relationship “on again, off again?” I think we often get this idea God is not with us all the time and has bigger fish to fry. I mean David was the anointed king of Israel and I am just a lowly engineer in a small company.

See this is where we miss the mark, thinking God is not with us all the time. God cannot be “omnipresent” and not be here, NOW!! I think verses 18:25-27 capture what God actually does:

25 With the merciful you show yourself merciful;
with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
26 with the purified you show yourself pure;
and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
27 For you save a humble people,
but the haughty eyes you bring down.

If we are not aware, looking for or expecting God we tend never to find God. At the same time so tend to over find God in everything, but that is another subject altogether. I think if we are cognizant of God is our lives, we will become connected with Him in a greater fashion. Once we acknowledge God is with us always, the idea of being “merciful” and “blameless” becomes easier.

Verse 19:7 talks about the Law:

The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple;

I know in New Testament time we tend not to acknowledge the Law, unless it comes to tithing. But we really need to acknowledge the law as being an awesome guide, not just for money, but for life. Granted Jesus fulfilled the sacrifices by his death on the cross, but that does not mean we stop sacrificing. We just don’t need to kill animals to atone for our sins, just be a living sacrifice in helping others. Jesus was preparing to be hung on a cross, and the first thing He does with his disciples is was their feet.

We have a tough time with considering the “law of the Lord” being “perfect.” Since there is so much that says we can ignore it, but look at the food laws. Science has proven that the dietary laws are the best diet for the human body. It has us avoid foods that could contain toxins and use them as garbage processors, like pork and shrimp. But read “The Makers Diet” by Jordan Ruben to convince you this statement is true.

Verse 20:1 seems to be the big request of most of us:

May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble!
May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!

Most of the time, for me at least, this prayer gets turned inward. I want answers and I want protection in my times of trouble. Again I think when we feel alone and needing God’s help, it’s just we are not 100% on board. Think about your “image” of God and then imagine Him being in your face AND the face of every other person today as well as the entire universe. No if your image of God is not there; then maybe you are missing the mark. God is so far beyond our human comprehension that we must accept something that may seem farfetched to most. Once we “buy in” 100% then we can experience God like David, as our “rock!”

Judges 7 – 11

The reading today starts with Gideon and his 300 men going into battle. My mind immediately drifts to the movie “300” where 300 fighting Spartans sacrificed themselves in a devastating battle where they fought huge numbers of Persians for many days. Although the movie had mythical creatures, the actually historical battle raged in 480BC. Interesting this story of Gideon happened around 1100BC or about 600 years earlier. The difference between the two stories is Gideon was victorious, where the Spartans died and became a symbol of courage.

Verse 11:7 gives the Lords blessing to the men going into battle:

And the LORD said to Gideon, “With the 300 men who lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand, and let all the others go every man to his home.”

From that point Gideon conquers Midian, Zebah and Zaimunna with these 300 men showing God’s blessing on their conquests, since they were overcoming insurmountable odds. God did not want them to win with a large force of 32,000 men that they originally started with. No God wanted there to be no question of His involvement in this conquest.

After this great achievement in verse 8:22 the people asked Gideon to rule over them:

Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, you and your son and your grandson also, for you have saved us from the hand of Midian.”

His response in 8:23 showed Gideon knew the source of his fame:

Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the LORD will rule over you.”

The saddest part of this story was when Gideon died the people quickly turned from God and “whored after the Baals and made Baal-berith their god.” (8:33) This amazes me how one nation can flip so easily, but at the same time Moses was on the mountain for 40 days and came back to a mess. This actually shows we are wired to worship God; we just often get confused on who is God and what is just an idol. Our nation today is moving from God at a rapid rate and making things the “gods” of our lives. Don’t let that happen to you.

This disobedience continues in verse 10:6:

The people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. And they forsook the LORD and did not serve him.

This continues with the pattern of drifting from God. This is something that we tend to do without thinking when we separate ourselves from a body of believers. It’s easy to do as people live without that reminder. Often we reject churches because of scandal and think we will find God on feelings along. Suddenly the “if it feels good do it” mentally twists God’s intention for your life and has you “feeling” yourself don’t some dangerous rabbit trails.

We end the reading with Jephthah’s tragic vow with God. See he wants victory and makes a vow in verses 11:30 & 31:

And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, 31 then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the LORD’s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.”

This should be a shining example of don’t make deals with God, humbly accept His blessings. In this case the first person out of the door was his only child, his daughter. The chapter ends with him sacrificing her. Many studies imply this “sacrifice” was keeping her a virgin, the text just says he kept his vow. We see in the above verse that was a “burnt offering”, which implies she was killed to honor the vow.

I think of the story of Rumpelstiltskin, where he would grant wishes with a price. Often the price was much more “costly” than the wish that was granted. I think God is showing us not to make deals without careful consideration of the possible consequences. We could ask for the world, but what good is the world if it costs you your true love? This is another story that can be used as an example for one to think things through.

Genesis 24 – 27

The Bible has many parts to it like historical studies as we see here. One of the problems with reading these is we tend to blur the lines of what is written as something more than what it is intended. These chapters give an account of Isaac, his wife Rebekah and their two children Jacob and Esau. Often we read Biblical stories and try to apply something more than what it is.

We must remember much of the Bible, especially much of the Old Testament, has many historical stories so one can understand the roots of our faith. There are also many spiritual truths which a derived from these stories, along with promises from God. Finally many of these stories are there as examples for how we should live our lives.

Now we read the story of Abraham and how he “found” a wife for Isaac. Verse 24:45 & 46 is a recounting of how the servants chose Rebekah as the wife of Isaac:

45 “Before I had finished speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her water jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46 She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels drink also.

This is an example on how God MAY answer prayers and not an example of how fathers need to select their offspring’s spouses. But when you dig into this story, it’s not full of examples, truths or prophecies, but just a story about how things happened.

I love the story of Esau and Jacob more from the aspect of a bad example of how things really should not be done. Esau was a proud manly man, while Jacob was more of a thinker and homebody. Jacob took advantage of Esau more than once during their lives, stealing his birthright and his blessing. Verse 25:34 ends the story with Jacob winning:

Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

This is often preached on how Esau was living in the here and now, while ignoring the future. Jacob took advantage of that and took what was rightfully Esau’s. This is the ultimate in sibling rivalry! I look at this as what we should not be doing! When you get down to it family is all you really have. Your father, mother, brothers and sisters are it when you think about it. So where rivalry is good for advancing the family, it should not be used to destroy each other. But that’s my take on this story.

In chapter 26 God renews his promise to Abraham with Isaac. But I notice something in this chapter where Isaac repeats a lie his father did, claiming Rebekah as his sister. Verse 9 is the lie being found out:

So Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, she is your wife. How then could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought, ‘Lest I die because of her.’”

Again if you have faith that God will protect you, why lie? This shows me an example of what not to do more than something of spiritual significance.

We end with Jacob deceiving his father and getting Esau’s blessing. Again this to me is messed up. Rebekah conspires with Jacob to trick his father into giving him the blessing. To me this again is more useful as a bad example than something of theological importance. Verse 24 has Jacob flat out break a commandment:

He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.”

Again when reading the Bible, especially the Old Testament, don’t take stories like these and build a church with Jacob as the cornerstone. It’s not ok to lie to your father to better your position, while screwing you brother over who is faithfully doing what his father asked. It is though what happened and needs to be told so we can understand the history of our faith.

Romans 11 – 12

Paul likes to use horticulture in his writing as many of the people he is talking with are farmers. In chapter 11 he uses the illustration of grafting to illustrate the body of Christ. I found two interesting comments here first in verse 11:11:

So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous.

This dove tails into grafting of Jew’s who believe in Christ into the good root, but I find it interesting that God now allows Gentiles into the fold to make the chosen people jealous. This always seems odd to me that our inclusion was to make the nation of Israel jealous and as Paul implies not for our personal salvation. I know Jesus was here to save the world and not just the Israelites, but Paul implies an almost shallow God involved in petty games.

The other point is in verse 11:23:

And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again.

This tells me we can never be too broken from the love of Jesus not to miss being joined with the body of Christ. If you really think about salvation in Jesus this is a key verse, because it says once we believe, we WILL be grafted in. That is so cool that someone who rejects the teachings of Jesus can change just by flipping the switch to “believe”.

I love 12:1-2:

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

I could write a whole bunch on just these verses! We are to present ourselves as sacrifices to God, not in death but in our actions. Sacrificing is not God’s way to punish us, but something we should look forward to do. What exactly does this mean? Is it giving an hour each day to study? Or helping the old lady down the street mow her lawn? Or is it all of the above and then some?

This is something you have to decide for yourself, but use Jesus as a model on this. He was getting ready to hang on the cross and gathers with his 12 closest friends beforehand. Instead of lamenting his pending doom, he first washed their feet. His service was to them and not the other way. At the same time, if someone helps you don’t reject it like Peter initially did when Jesus went to wash his feet. Be thankful and ensure you “pay it forward!”

Verses 4 – 8 describe the body of Christ and each as they function. We often ignore our “gifts” and think someone else will handle that aspect. I did one of those online tests and found I would make a good “coach” or “small group leader”. This was ok, but I hated speaking before others, even small gatherings, so I let others do the work and sat quietly in small groups happy as a clam. We need to take that step, as I did, and follow our spiritual gifts! Accept what you are and not what you want to be, where I wanted to prophesize and heal people, I found my role to be less glamorous.

Verses 12:9-21 get into the characteristics of a Christian and present a model to what we should strive for in our lives. Unfortunately this is not a selective list, where you can pick and choose the attributes you wish. When 12:16 says: “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them,” it means just that. We need to do the hard stuff in these verses, not just the easy ones.

Where the previous list of gifts was a selective list and was never intended for one person to do all, this list is a do all list! Don’t miss the blessings of God by rejecting some of these “marks”. We must strive to check off all this list and accept only partial completion.

Matthew 14 – 16

Today’s reading starts off with one of the more twisted stories on the death of John the Baptist. He was in prison for chastising Herod for what I can only assume is having an affair with his brother’s wife, Herodias. Her daughter danced before Herod and “pleased” him, which prompted the promise that ended with John the Baptist’s beheading. This was against Herod’s best judgment, but he allowed his privates to run his life.

Jesus feed 5000 in chapter 14 and then 4000 in chapter 15 and both times the disciples question his ability to do this. I often wonder why they questioned this the second time, they had more bread and less people! Plus they saw this happen before. My question is are they really that forgetful?

Verse 15:7 caught my eye as Jesus was rebuking the Pharisees for twisting the law of honoring your father AND mother:

You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

Then he quotes Isaiah 29:13, which interestingly we talked about yesterday. The “gist” of the scripture is how we often say one thing and do another. This reminds me of a famous “father” quote that fathers have used for generations to their children; “Do as I SAY, not as I DO!”

Verses 15:10-20 go into the food laws and how what goes in a person is digested and expelled and does not defile the eater. Peter and his vision in Acts 10 of eating unclean food, which says it’s ok to eat these foods. The point being the legalism behind the food laws created a man made “sin”. Verse 18 really holds the key to what Jesus was saying:

But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.

See what comes out of one’s mouth really shows what is in your heart. Yes, you can follow the law to the letter, but unless your heart is there your words will display what is really the underling motive. The Pharisees thought so highly of themselves they consider their world holier than God’s by changing the meaning of one of the 10 commandments.

It amazes me how many people watch these miracles and hears the words of Jesus, yet many still do not believe. Verse 16:4 Jesus says the “sign” that will make people believe:

An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.

This took some thinking about, but the “sign of Jonah” Jesus is talking about is when he was swallowed by the giant fish for three days and spat out before Nineveh. I really like the story of Jonah and never really saw it from this perspective. Jesus is foretelling his death and resurrection, which is symbolized in Jonah’s time in the fish. Everyone thought he was gone, yet he returned to finish his business!

The final verse I want to explore is 16:26:

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

This digs deep at my heart since I focus so much on money and purging debt. Unfortunately if I had followed biblical financial principles of sharing 10% with the needy, saving 10% and living off the rest while not getting in debt, I would not be in the position I am today. This is the most important lesion my parents taught me that I can give you children; spend less than you make and keep doing it.

But where this scripture digs deep for me is my focus more often than naught gets dragged to finances and less to God. God does not want us to be destitute, but He does not want our attention or focus removed from him.