August 8: Of Paul and the F-Bomb



Ezra 7:1-8:20

1 Corinthians 4:1-21

Psalm 30:1-12

Proverbs 20:28-30

"10 We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored!"

In today's NT reading I know Paul is trying to address the divisions and immorality in the Corinthian church.  But I can't quite focus on that - instead, I am focused on how angry and frustrated he seems to be.  I suspect language during Biblical times was a bit less rude and direct than is possible today, so extrapolating from what he said in the quote above, I think today he might have dropped the f-bomb.

Why is this encouraging?  Because, if you are like me, you are often tempted to think that, having received the Holy Spirit, you now expect yourself to be the picture of faith, peacefulness and joy, unruffled by circumstance, able to sleep in the boat during the storm the way Christ did, knowing His father was - our Father is - in control.

Peaceful despite circumstances?  Yeah, right.

While perhaps not as frequently, I still find myself losing my temper with my circumstances.  I am inpatient, frustrated, angry.  And to no credit to myself, I let it show.  And I find myself frustrated and discouraged at not measuring up to the idealized standards I think the disciples have set.

But wait: verses like the one above, or the one where Paul tells people to go all the way and cut their genitalia off (Galatians 5:12 if you don't believe me), or the one where Paul and Peter quarrel - these give me the reminder that no,'I am not expected to be perfect.  And when I lose it, I can come back to God, Who will never have left me anyway. 

Father, it's tempting to burden myself with the impossible expectation of perfection.  Thank you for the reminder that Paul, Peter and the others were still human, and prone to human failings, and that You do not expect perfection, and You still love us when we fall.  May this stupid expectation never discourage us from returning to you when we sin.

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August 7: Of Persecution, Pandemic, Power and Peace

Ezra 4:24-6:22
1 Corinthians 3:5-23
Psalm 29:1-11
Proverbs 20:26-27

"Thus the work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia." - Ezra 4:24

Put yourself in the shoes, the hearts and the minds of the remnant who, having rebuilt their lives in exile, decided to take up the offer of Cyrus, king of Persia, and leave all that once again and return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple.  Imagine, if you will, the excitement, the certainty they were doing God's will; such certainty, in fact, that they solicited, and received, freewill offerings of silver and gold, goods and livestock - an abundance that seemed to confirm God was with them.  

And then, midstride, Cyrus dies - and those who oppose the reconstruction seem to get the upper hand.  They convince Darius, Cyrus's successor, that the the reconstruction is unauthorized, and confirms that the Jews seek to rebuild power and pose a threat to the throne.  You can almost hear the same complaining Moses heard when the Israelites were asking why they hadn't remained in Egypt.  

The thing is, it's precisely when things don't look good that we have the opportunity to decide who God is to us; if who He is depends on our circumstances, or our circumstances depend on who He is.  

"Do not interfere with the work on this temple of God...their expenses are to be fully paid out of the royal treasury...whatever is needed - must be given them daily without fail..." - Ezra 6:7, 8, 9

I don't know how the remnant reacted to the news, other than the letter written to confirm the order to rebuild the temple.  What I do know is that God took what they thought they had away...just so He could make it better.   And I believe God is ALWAYS that way.  Just when we think it is as good as it could possibly be, He shows up, and He shows off - so long as we let Him.  

If you are like me, you can think back on your life and see all these times when you were scared, devastated even, that good things had taken a turn for the worse.  And if you are like me, you can look back on those incidents today and realize that not only was God in control, He took what you had and made it so much better than you imagined.  

Father, things are tough these days: pandemic, riots, unemployment.  Things looked so good - and then they didn't.  Give us the hearts to know You are in control of our circumstances, and not the other way around; give us the peace with the knowledge that You make all things good. 

Thursday, August 6

THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 2020

"The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words." (1 Corinthians 2:10b-13)


From the two Biblical letters to the Corinthians and other sources, we understand that this early church received tremendous spiritual anointing, but struggled with obedience. In Chapters 2 and 3 here, Paul discusses how the presence of the Holy Spirit in a believer's life unlocks the potential for understanding spiritual truth.

He begins this argument back in Chapter by highlighting: "the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." Without spiritual enlightenment, many of God's messages remain "foolishness." Without the enlivening Spirit and His power to reveal, the world remains disconnected from God and unwilling to accept His wisdom and power.

We understand from the Scriptures that the Holy Spirit comes to live in each Christ-follower, representing a "deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession -- to the praise of his glory." (Ephesians 1:14)

In these verses, Paul establishes that believers may subsequently reduce the effectiveness of the Holy Spirit's work in their lives, however. He refers to the "spiritual" person vs. the "carnal" or "worldly" person. The dividing line appears to be priority and Lordship, manifested through obedience. For the Christ-follower, we are called to prioritize spiritual revelation and to seek God, the source of all truth. From that prioritization, our hearts will be rightly aligned and focused on living obediently, to the praise of God's magnificent glory.

Would you like to hear God's voice and direction for your life more clearly? Please seek Him today though reading the Scriptures. Put Him first in your heart and home. Allow Him to guide and direct you. Expect Him to deliver on His promise to never leave you or forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5)


Lord God, thank You for sending Your Holy Spirit to guide and direct us. Help us to structure our priorities so that You will reign supreme. Give us greater revelation of Your wisdom, and open the eyes of heart to understand Your truth. Give us a clean heart and mind to obey You fully. In Jesus's mighty Name, amen.


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August 5

1 Chronicles 1:18 - "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who being saved it is the power of God"

 Paul begins here by dividing the world into two groups of people: those who are perishing and those who are being saved. The ones being saved are destined to spend eternity with God, and the ones who aren't, well we know what happens to them and it is to those people the message of the cross is foolishness. Interestingly enough the original Greek word used here for foolishness is mōria, from the same root word forming English words such as moron. What I believe Paul is saying is that to the unsaved world, those who are blind to who Jesus is and have no spiritual awakening through the power of Holy Spirit, the people who preach the gospel look like idiots. If you think about it, back in Paul's day, even after Jesus's crucifixion, the cross remained in widespread use by the Romans as a means of public execution. It was a symbol of shameful crimes and powerlessness before the irresistible Roman empire, so why would anyone choose to subject themselves to that? It wasn't that the Greeks and Romans were atheists. In truth, they believed in all kinds of gods and sorted them by the power they wielded over nature and humanity. They just didn't believe Jesus was who He said He was. Therefore, the cross of Christ was foolish to the pagan culture because Jesus Christ was rejected by His own people and crucified like any other common criminal and from the Greek and Roman perspective, that was no way to worship God. Now for those touched by the Spirit who believed and put their faith in Christ, the cross was understood to be God's most powerful act. The thin line between what seems foolish to some and truth to others lies in seeing that God's Son did not lose a fight with the Jewish leaders or the Roman government. He wasn't overpowered or outmatched. God the Father sacrificed His Son Jesus for human sin. Jesus, in spite of limitless power and authority, gave up His life to cover the sins of those who were perishing. For those who don't see it, they are still perishing. To those who receive this truth, they find hope in Jesus knowing that they will spend eternity with God. I know who I'm praying for. If you are praying for perishing loved ones, please let me know. I will stand in prayer with you. 

Bible Blog Post - August 2, 2020

2 Chronicles 32:1-33:13

Romans 15:23-16:9

Psalm 25:16-22

Proverbs 20:16-18

God knows what is in our hearts, and He loves us enough to test us when needed.  Our true character comes out during these times, and we are each given opportunities for tremendous growth in our lifetime and throughout each storm that we go through.  This weekend, I listened to a song that talked about how we can be in a storm, but the storm doesn't have to be in us.  It really stood out to me and brought me comfort.  No matter what life throws at us, no matter what storm we are in, we can be so filled with God that the storm doesn't have a chance of entering us and dismantling our peace.  By reading the Bible and growing in our faith, we are also growing our resilience.  

In 2 Chronicles 32, Hezekiah secured himself in his faith and trust in the Lord, and the Lord favored him and the people of Judah.  Sennacherib was waging war against Judah, and trying to discourage and deceive the people.  He told them that gods from other lands had not been victorious over his predecessors, and that the God of Israel would be no different.  However, Hezekiah deflected Sennacherib's words and encouraged his people to trust in God.  Hezekiah and Isaiah called out to the Lord and prayed about what was occurring.  Then, an angel was sent down to destroy the fighting men from the Assyrian army and Sennacherib went home in defeat.

People may ridicule you, they may threaten you and your surroundings, they may try to turn others against you, they may try to get you to doubt your father and your creator, but no matter what opposition we may face, we can stand in full confidence knowing that we are loved and protected by the most high God.

Dear Lord, please help us to hear Your truth and not be deceived by our circumstances or surroundings.  Please guide us during our bible readings and help us to gain the clarity and wisdom that you intend for us to have.  Your Word is our navigation system for life.  As we lean into you and give you our full trust, we will be better able to stay on the course that you have laid out for us.  

God, thank you for your loving Grace, and thank you for being our Heavenly Father.

Amen

August 1: Of Oopsies, Christians and NARPs

2 Chronicles 29:1-36

Romans 14:1-23

Psalm 24:1-10

Proverbs 20:12

First: Oopsies.  I used today's readings to write yesterday's blog.  The readings I listed yesterday were today's.  So today, I am going to try and reflect on yesterday's readings.  

Second: NARPs.  I first heard this term on an unofficial college visit with my older son, to see their swim team and get a tour.  They took us to the gym where we were astounded by the wealth of equipment - twenty of each station, iPads at each one to monitor workouts.  We asked the athletes if everyone could use the gym.  They said no, that one was for the athletes.  There was a second one for NARPs.  "Narps?" we asked.  "Non Athletic Regular People", they replied.  We had a chuckle about that.  

The funny thing is, the meant-in-jest derision towards those who weren't athletes conveyed by the student giving us the tour seemed wrong.  And I hope you will permit a father a moment of public pride - I am grateful all three of my children have such empathy for those not as strong or as fortunate.  The elder son is known to encourage teammates who aren't as strong in the water, or who might not be having a good day; the younger one is often working with classmates who don't understand the material as well as he does.  And my daughter has been there to be the strength for friends who were at the end of their rope.

Third: Christians.  My kids don't know it, but they are living the empathy Paul talks about in Romans 14:1-4.  I could learn from them, particularly in living out my faith the way Paul describes - accepting those whose faith is different, perhaps need different support than I do, especially those who are in a different, younger stage of their relationship with the Lord.  Rather than criticize, however well intentioned, I need to learn to simply be there for them, to be the gentle support they need.  

Father, sometimes as a Christian it is easy to get a swelled head, to think like the Pharisee who looked down at the tax collector in the temple.  Take away pride and arrogance, and in its place give me love and empathy.  Team home not to pass judgment, but instead be supportive of my brothers and sisters.  

July 31: Of Churchill and Hezekiah

2 Chronicles 30:1-31:21

Romans 15:1-22

Psalm 25:1-15

Proverbs 20:13-15

"We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender…"

In May of 1940, Britain needed a miracle to effect a retreat from the German attack across the channel from Dunkirk.  Germany was on the offensive, France had fallen, and Britain feared she would soon follow.  It was in that dark time that the PM, Winston Churchill, addressed Parliament.  He described their plight, then with his words, turned Britain from hopelessness and fear, to resolve and hope.  That renewal of spirit led, five years later, to Germany's surrender, and Allied victory.

Centuries earlier, Judah's King Hezekiah faced the same thing.  Judah was mired in defeat and despair, having been beaten by the Arameans, the Israelites and the Edomites, all because  the king's father had led Judah away from God during his sixteen-year reign.  Hezekiah described their plight, then with his words, exhorted Judah to turn from her sinful ways, and return to God.  That led to a great renewal in Judah, so much so the author of the book of Kings wrote in 2 Kings 18:5 that Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel.  There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him."

If you are like me, there are many times in your life you've found yourself mired in helplessness and despair.  You've found yourself in seemingly hopeless situations, problems that seem to have neither solution nor ending.  The good news is that we need neither Churchill nor Hezekiah.  Paul writes of "the God of hope" who can "fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you" - we - "may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit".

Where then do we find the words like those two men used to exhort us?  Today's psalm seems particularly apt: "I trust in You, do not let me be put to shame".  And "My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only He will release my feet from the snare".

Father, when things are tough, and all seems lost, remind us You are in control.  Exhort us with Your Word, strengthen our resolve, so we may one day see Your victory. 

PS - Happy birthday RG