March 9

Mark 14:23-25

Then He took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it.  "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many", He said to them.  "I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God".

There are four cups of wine that are drank at the Passover service and in order to grasp this scene we have to go back to Exodus 6:6-7.  Therefore, say to the Israelites: 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. 7 I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.

The Passover service is the retelling of the story of Exodus. The first cup we drink represents the cup of sanctification.  The second represents the cup of deliverance.  In this passage, Jesus is celebrating the Passover with His disciples. The first two cups have been passed around the table and the proper prayers were said over them according to Passover tradition. The third cup represents the cup of deliverance.  This is the cup that Jesus picked up and passed around for His disciples to drink from. All through our reading we have learned that covenants are sealed by the blood of sacrifice.  At the Exodus, the homes of the Israelites were protected by the lambs blood strategically being placed on the door posts in the outline of a cross. Here, we see Jesus revealing to His disciples that it is His blood that will ultimately be poured out for the redemption of many. The disciples couldn't see at the time that what Jesus was telling them was that only His blood could redeem us. Only He can make us right with God. He is our sacrificial Lamb.  The prayer over the first glass of wine is " Blessed are Thou, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Creator of the fruit of the vine"  The last verse is very interesting because Jesus says that He won't drink again from "the fruit of the vine" until He drinks it anew in the Kingdom of God. So one question, on my list of many, to ask Him when we meet in Heaven is if he drank that fourth cup of wine at the Passover table.  Perhaps we will all partake in the fourth cup together when we meet in heaven and sit at His Table. 

Randi

Marcy 7: Of obedience. Period.

Numbers 8:1-9:23

Mark 13:14-37

Psalm 50:1-23

Proverbs 10:29-30

Num 9:6-8 - But some of them could not celebrate the Passover on that day because they were ceremonially unclean on account of a dead body.  So they came to Moses and Aaron that same day and said to Moses, "we have become unclean because of a dead body, but why should we be kept from presenting the Lord's offering with the other Israelites at the appointed time?"  Moses answered them, "Wait until I find out what the Lord commands concerning you."

Num 9:17-23 - Whenever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped.  At the Lord's command the Israelites set out, and at His command they encamped.  As long as the cloud stayed over the tabernacle, they remained in camp.  When the cloud remained over the tabernacle a long time, the Israelites obeyed the Lord's order and did not set out.  Sometimes the cloud was over the tabernacle only a few days; at the Lord's command they would encamp, and then at His command they would set out.  Sometimes the cloud stayed only from evening till morning, and when it lifted in the morning, they set out. Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out.  Whether the cloud stayed over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out; but when it lifted, they would set out.  At the Lord's command they encamped, and at the Lord's command they set out.  they obeyed the Lord's order, in accordance with His command through Moses.

I was struck by obedience, in the many ways it was represented in today's readings.  And I was struck at how society's definition, and my definition, of obedience has changed so much.  Consider the second of the excerpts above: when it came to setting up or striking camp, leaving or staying, for the Israelites in the desert, God's word stood alone - not just supreme, alone.  When He told them to go, they went; when He told them to stop, they stopped - and only for as long as He said, be it for the day or the year.  There were no questions, no "why?"  or "why not?".  There was just obedience.

The first excerpt I found even more remarkable. The Israelites who, because of ceremonial uncleanliness, were unable to celebrate the Passover, WANTED to do so.  They could have spared themselves the trouble of the sacrifice, they could have said "well, God said not to do it, so we won't".  But they didn't - their appreciation for the Lord was such that, when told they could not, they complained!  They didn't complain and say "hey, we want to do a good thing, so we're going to do it anyway!"  They didn't complain and demand that Moses grant them approval to celebrate the Passover.  No, they complained...and then they left it to God.  And Moses himself, a man accustomed to speaking with God and who could very well have presumed to know what God would have said - Moses did not presume to know God's mind - His response was "wait until I find out what the Lord commands concerning you."

So much sin appears to be committed today under the guise of good intentions - I know I have often compounded my guilt by justifying disobedience with good intentions.  I pray that, amidst a world where self reigns, and the gratification of self seems to be the greatest objective, that  I - we - learn to have such a close relationship with God as did the Israelites, and that we learn to be as obedient as they (once) were.

Saturday, March 4, 2016

Saturday, March 5, 2016

"'Well said, teacher,' the man replied. 'You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.' …[Jesus] said to him, 'You are not far from the kingdom of God.'" (Mark 12:32-34)

The Pharisees and Sadducees were constantly trying to "catch" Jesus saying something false or contradictory to the Scriptures. They knew the words of the law very well - it was in their heads - but they couldn't seem to get it down to their hearts. They were good at living FOR God - doing things for His love and approval, like sacrificing bulls on the altar. However, they were not very good at living FROM God - doing things because of His love. That's why they had such a difficult time with Jesus. He always taught the Scriptures from the heart-level, the way that God had always intended them. The Scriptures weren't just a bunch of rules - they were a way of life that had a very clear Center - Love.

"We love because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19)

Love did not originate with us, but rather with God. His goal was to share His abundance of love with us and then for us to share that love with each other. Imagine you're at the beach. You dive into the waves, get soaking wet, and then, running out of the water, you give a long hug to someone who is bone dry. Very soon you'll both be wet. I believe that is what the Lord intended when He gave us these Greatest Commandments. He wanted us to dive into His ocean of love, get soaked and then go soak others. The teacher of the law seemed to agree with this. So, why did Jesus say, "You are not far from the kingdom of God"? What else did he need to "do"? Receive.

"Anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it" (Luke 18:17).

Receiving the kingdom is what separates the modern day "hippie," who is all about peace and love, from the Christ-follower. God created us to receive and to give His love, but we cannot do it unless we make Jesus Christ to be our Lord, our Champion, our Leader, and our King. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Jesus. And, without coming to the Father we never encounter real, unadulterated, pure Love. "God [the Father] is Love" (1 John 4:16).

I don't know where you are in your relationship with God today. Maybe you still struggle with living FOR God rather than FROM God. Maybe you like the idea of God's love, but struggle with God's leading. Whatever your situation, you are not far from the kingdom of God! Receive the truth, that God loves you in spite of every reason you think He shouldn't (Romans 5:8); that His leading and His love come from the same heart (Psalm 23).

Lord, help us to receive your love fully so that we can give your love freely. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

March 4

March 4 2016

Mark 12:10-11 Haven't you read this scripture: "'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?"

Jesus is in a battle with the political and religious heavy weights of his day. They are throwing the same verbal jabs at him as the politicians of today. They are waiting for him to slip up in one of his responses and then they are going to place that as the headlines in the "Jerusalem Times" newspaper the next morning.  

But Jesus is fighting back. He just shared a parable that indicted them as conspirators and then pronounced a prophetic word that sealed their eternal destinies. This word is so powerful that it also seals our destiny. This word is about Jesus himself. Either He is the capstone or He is a crushing stone. If Jesus is the capstone He is the last brick in the building, this symbolizes that Jesus completes our lives. Often this stone was of different material than the rest of the stones. Jesus was rejected by the religious people of his day because He was different. He didn't fit their preconceptions or play the game by the rules they made up.

So if Jesus irritates you. If His words are hard and don't fit into your worldview, your plans, your sexual orientation, if you find his teaching narrow and restrictive, Jesus will become a crushing stone.

But if Jesus becomes the very top of your life, if he guides and directs everything you are and all that you do, He is your capstone. If you live under His authority and His guidance then He completes your life, not complicates it.

The decision is yours and the outcome is your destiny. Choose wisely. 

--

"Multiplying leaders to change the world"

Thursday, March 3

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2016

Leviticus 27:14 – Numbers 1:54

Mark 11:1–26

Psalm 46:1–11

Proverbs 10:23

 

 

“God is our refuge and strength,

                an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way

                and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,

though its waters roar and foam

                and the mountains quake with their surging.” (Psalm 46:1–3)

 

“The Lord Almighty is with us;

    the God of Jacob is our fortress.” (Psalm 46:7)

 

“He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;

    I will be exalted among the nations,

    I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10)

 

 

Today’s psalm proclaims several great truths surrounding God’s sovereignty over nature and the nations, all of which lead to greater devotion and humble faith.

 

The psalmist describes God as our “refuge and strength,” our resting place in the face of great strife.  The Scriptures and reality provide many examples of natural disasters and tumult within and between nations.  This volatility makes us realize that, without God’s intervention, we would be extremely vulnerable and points us to our supreme need for our Rock and Redeemer.  When we welcome God’s presence “with us,” He becomes our “fortress.”

 

We could only rightly trust a strong, faithful, and benevolent God, Who holds sway over the present and the future.  The Scriptures and our own lives of faith testify to these truths.  While it takes faith to trust God, we realize through experience that trusting Him in the small things leads us to trust Him more deeply at the macro level.

 

How does this trust come about?  In v. 10, the psalmist explains that it comes through a listening, observant study of God’s sovereignty.  God calls us to “be still” in His presence, to rest before Him.  As we do, we will understand the magnitude of God’s power and concern.

 

The truths from Psalm 46 tie to Psalm 73:23–26, which provides solace and strength for me in times of doubt or frustration.  We must know of our Father’s love and His all-sufficiency in every need.  Asaph, the psalmist there, gives us a great insight into the truths we recognize in being still before our Father:

 

“Yet I am always with you;

    you hold me by my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel,

    and afterward you will take me into glory.

Whom have I in heaven but you?

    And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

My flesh and my heart may fail,

    but God is the strength of my heart

    and my portion forever.”

 

 

May we embrace God as “the strength of my heart/ and my portion forever.”  We need His presence urgently to make it through each day – and especially those moments of challenge, where we recognize that nothing or no one could stand in for Him.

 

 

Lord God, thank You for being our refuge and our help.  We desperately need Your presence today and always.  Help us to be still before You and comprehend more of Your awesome strength and holiness.  Reveal Your power to us and bring us closer to Your side so that we may walk through moments of peace or turmoil with confidence and joy.  We embrace You as our great God and Protector.  We love You and worship You forever.  In Jesus’s Name, amen.

 

Rich Mullins, “Calling Out Your Name”:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaNwTYJrYtA

 

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March 2

Leviticus 26:13

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high

The people of Israel were set free and delivered by the hand of God.  I could only imagine their excitement and the feeling of being lifted out of their burden while they took their first steps out of Egypt and into their freedom.  There was a danger though, because even though they were no longer slaves in Egypt, their minds were still held captive in slavery which left them vulnerable to slip into old patterns of behavior such as idol worshiping.  As I read this I realized that we are so much like the people of Israel.  We too have been set free, but without an awareness of our freedom, we run the risk of slipping back into captivity.  The passage in Luke 4:18 tells of Jesus announcing His mission statement in the temple as He read from scripture Isaiah 61:1 "He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners..."  The chains of slavery that bound us to our past along with our sins have been broken in Jesus Name. Jesus paid a very heavy price for that freedom and the bars of our yoke have been lifted and we now have been enabled to walk with our heads high as children of God, covered in the blood of His Son.  If we put anything else above that truth we are believing a lie and, like the people of Israel, our minds will be held captive in slavery.  If only the people of Israel would have stepped out in faith and received the freedom they were given they would not keep returning to worship false idols. If only we would as well.  "Go, your faith has healed you" Jesus said to the blind man (Mark 10:52).  Like the blind man, we too have been told to "GO" and walk in faith, with our heads held high, knowing that Jesus is carrying the bars of our yoke.





Randi

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Mark 10:13-31

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."

After reading this excerpt, I wished I could go back in time. I always believed in God, but accepting Him as my Lord and Savior did not come until later in life. And, like most people, I would go back and forth in my commitment. I feel that if I had been a "born again" Christian when my children were little, I could have given them more of an understanding about how important a personal relationship with Jesus really is. Children are so impressionable and eager to learn. If we can be a Godly example, they will learn what we exhibit in our everyday lives. Even though time may have slipped by, it is never too late to share our belief and encourage our children, no matter how old they may be, that all things are possible through Christ who gives us strength.

Lord, I pray for all of our children, that they may come to know and love You as their best friend. A friend who will never leave them or forsake them when everyone else may walk away. Father, I pray that you soften their hearts and fill them with a desire to want to know You and to not be swayed by the things or possessions of this world that man finds so desirable. Less is more, but knowing You Lord, there is no greater thing.