TO READ: Luke 1:5-25
January 23
Once in a Lifetime
... View MoreTO READ: Luke 1:5-25
January 23
Once in a Lifetime
But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! For God has heard your prayer, and your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son! And you are to name him John. . . . He will precede the coming of the Lord, preparing the people for his arrival.”Luke 1:13, 17b
Most people never get to meet the president or the queen. Most athletes never make it to the Super Bowl, the World Cup Final, the Wimbledon Championship, or the Olympics. Should they be fortunate enough to receive that kind of opportunity, they savor it, for they know it may be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Zechariah the priest had one of those experiences when he was picked to burn incense on the altar in Jerusalem’s temple. There were approximately eight thousand priests in Israel at the time. They were divided into “divisions” that rotated the duties of the Temple, including the burning of incense morning and evening—part of a tradition dating back to the days of Aaron, the first high priest (see Exod. 30:7-8). Individual priests were chosen out of the division by casting lots. One day, old Zechariah’s name was called for this most sacred of tasks. It was his once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. No doubt Zechariah entered the holy place with a mix of exhilaration and trepidation. He was part of a venerable tradition, and he was as close to the Holy of Holies as any man other than the High Priest would ever be allowed to go. The awesomeness of God’s presence would be well nigh overpowering for him. And then it happened!
The angel Gabriel met him beside the altar and said, “God has heard your prayer” (Luke 1:13). Zechariah could have been forgiven if he had asked “Which prayer?” but immediately he was told about the impending birth of a son in his old age. Now a once-in-a-lifetime experience had suddenly turned into a once-in-a-hundred-lifetimes experience! This son’s dramatic birth was only the prelude to a dramatic life devoted to a ministry which would “make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (1:17).
Zechariah asked what probably seem to us to be perfectly understandable questions, but the angel interpreted them as evidence of unbelief (1:18-21)! Then he was made mute, presumably so that he could not express his unbelief until it was obvious that God had done what he had promised to do.
Most people haven’t seen angels—or at least they haven’t recognized them as such. And most have not received as direct a message from the Lord as did Zechariah. But all God’s people have been called to a relationship with the Lord and to an avenue of service for him. For some, the experience was dramatic and unforgettable; for others, less so. But for all it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, never to be forgotten, always to be cherished.
🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Malachi 2:1-12
January 21
The Call to Faithfulness
... View MoreTO READ: Malachi 2:1-12
January 21
The Call to Faithfulness
“The priests’ lips should guard knowledge, and people should go to them for instruction, for the priests are the messengers of the lord Almighty. But not you! You have left God’s paths. Your ‘guidance’ has caused many to stumble into sin. You have corrupted the covenant I made with the Levites,” says the lord Almighty.Malachi 2:7-8
The only mutiny in the long, illustrious history of England’s Royal Navy took place in 1933. The seamen’s wages had been cut in a desperate political move to head off the effects of the nationwide depression. In retaliation, the seamen attacked their officers. But the men of the Royal Marines defended their officers against the rest of the crew. As a result, to this day the Marines are quartered on board ship between the officers and the crew, to act as the officers’ guards and to maintain the security of the ship. In Britain’s navy today, this is mainly symbolic, but it symbolizes a reward for faithfulness. It is a source of pride and a great factor in the unusual esprit de corps of the Royal Marines.
When King David’s son Absalom staged a mutiny against his father, many of the king’s men went over to the side of the young revolutionary. But Zadok the priest remained faithful and protected the king (see 2 Sam. 15:1-37). As a result, he and his descendants were rewarded by being appointed as the priests in Jerusalem right up through the time of the Exile (see Ezek. 44:15ffff). No doubt they accepted this position with great pride and, as faithful men, they endeavored to fulfill their roles.
It comes as a great surprise, therefore, to read what Malachi had to say about the priests in his day, after Israel returned from exile. He reminded the priests of their privileged position and their profound responsibilities. They had been called to greatly reverence the Lord, to stand “in awe” of him, to pass on to the people “all the truth they received,” to live “good and righteous lives” before the people, and to turn “many from lives of sin.” They were called “to guard knowledge” and to function as “messengers of the Lord Almighty” (Mal. 2:5-7).
But something had gone wrong. They had “corrupted the covenant” (2:8), they had failed to live in obedience, and they had “shown partiality in [their] interpretation of the law” (2:9). As a result, their “ ‘guidance’ [had] caused many to stumble into sin” (2:8). This was a monumental disaster for Israel, and God did not treat it lightly. The faithful men had become unfaithful.
Peter wrote that Christians are now “a kingdom of priests” (1 Pet. 2:9). That means that we have access to the Father through the Son, that we should offer sacrifices to God consisting of praise, and that we are called to live in a manner befitting our high standing. This requires faithfulness—like Marines standing at their posts.
🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Jeremiah 23:23-32
January 20
Dream and Dreamers
... View MoreTO READ: Jeremiah 23:23-32
January 20
Dream and Dreamers
“Let these false prophets tell their dreams, but let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word. There is a difference between chaff and wheat!”Jeremiah 23:28
Ayoung man was preparing to assist missionaries in Europe. Shortly before he was due to leave for his assignment, he had a dream so vivid that he could describe it in detail. He had seen a beach with a boat drawn up on the sand and a young man sitting in the shade of the boat. The dreamer was so impressed that he felt constrained to change his plans and spend the summer in another country. This he did, and one day that summer he came across a beach that he recognized as the one in his dream. There on the beach was the boat and the young man who was in his dream. They engaged in conversation. The young man by the boat asked questions concerning spiritual matters and that day professed faith in Christ. The last report of him was that he was actively involved in a local fellowship of believers. God can and does communicate to us in dreams!
But beware! Jeremiah knew only too well that dreamers who profess to have a message from the Lord should not necessarily be accepted at face value. There are some who claim to have a message from God who, in actuality, have no such thing. Instead, they are seeking to authenticate their own imaginations and investing their own ideas with divine sanction. If we believe the fabrications, it can result in profound spiritual confusion when it is later discovered that they were lies.
The problem is, how do you differentiate between a genuine, revealed message from God and the product of a wicked or vain imagination? The key is to test what is said against Scripture. Jeremiah was told by the Lord, “Let these false prophets tell their dreams, but let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word. There is a difference between chaff and wheat” (Jer. 23:28).
The more familiar we are with what God has to say in the Bible, the less likelihood there will be of our being led astray by “smooth-tongued prophets” (23:31). Once you’ve tasted wheat, you’ll quickly recognize chaff. (Once you’ve tasted corn, you’ll quickly recognize the cob!) Carefully studying Scripture and deliberately applying its truths to our lives may seem unglamorous and mundane compared to receiving dramatic revelations and making imaginative predictions. But there are enough warnings in Scripture about false prophets, their lies, and their ultimate fate (23:39-40) to put us constantly on guard.
The Scriptures are so powerful and winsome, so life-giving and refreshing that we will relish them as the staple diet for spiritual nourishment. And should the Lord on occasion give a special dream—that’s dessert!
🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Isaiah 32:1-8
January 19
Heroes and Celebrities
... View MoreTO READ: Isaiah 32:1-8
January 19
Heroes and Celebrities
Look, a righteous king is coming! And honest princes will rule under him. . . . In that day ungodly fools will not be heroes. Wealthy cheaters will not be respected as outstanding citizens. Everyone will recognize ungodly fools for what they are.Isaiah 32:1, 5-6a
Where have all the heroes gone? What happened to the Lincolns and the Washingtons, the Roosevelts and the Churchills? Where are men of courage, principle, and integrity, who operate with vision, drive, and initiative, and whose achievements are plain to see, beneficial, and far-reaching? What happened to the great athletes who played through their pain, who believed they were role models to the young, and who invested their lives in their communities, playing for one team all their careers? People talk about the death of God. But what about the death of heroes?
Os Guinness, in his book The Call, cites three reasons for the conspicuous absence of heroes. First, we live in a cynical age that respects nothing and reveres nobody. Guinness wrote, “As modern people, we look not for the golden aura but for the feet of clay, not for the stirring example but for the cynical motive.”1 Second, we see fewer heroes for the very simple reason that there aren’t as many around! We have traded heroes for celebrities. As everybody knows, celebrities are just people who are famous for being well-known. It is not that they have achieved anything of profound significance or have invested their lives in some noble venture that will change the lot of humanity for the better. They just happened to be around doing something when the lights came on and the cameras started to roll. Third, we are lacking in heroes because we have lost sight of God as an active participant in human lives. So we lack the ability to see God calling men to live for him and his cause, which transcends anything humans can envisage. Having such a calling gave men’s lives grandeur and nobility of purpose, with the result that many became true heroes.
In Isaiah’s time it wasn’t so much that they lacked heroes. It was a matter of the people regarding “ungodly fools” as heroes. Perhaps that is nearer the truth of the situation in our culture. There is no shortage of celebrities who are considered “heroes,” whose words are recorded with awe and whose actions are followed with slavish devotion. It is just that so many of them are such incredibly ungodly fools! And people haven’t realized it yet!
The prophet looked forward to a day in the future when “ungodly fools will no longer be heroes. Wealthy cheaters will not be respected as outstanding citizens” (Isa. 32:5). It would be a time when their society would be turned right side up! Good would be recognized as good and evil as evil, and foolishness would be recognized as foolishness and accomplishment as accomplishment.
That day will finally come when the “Righteous King” (32:1) arrives to establish his kingdom. In the interim, God’s people need to recognize that in today’s world, any fool can become a “hero,” but in God’s economy a real hero is no fool!
Os Guinness, The Call.
🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Isaiah 30:8-17
January 17
Quietness and Confidence
... View MoreTO READ: Isaiah 30:8-17
January 17
Quietness and Confidence
The Sovereign lord, the Holy One of Israel, says, “Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it.”Isaiah 30:15
When activists see that something needs fixing, they fix it. They see a problem, identify a solution, establish a strategic plan, create a budget and goals, and move into action. Obstacles are defined as problems to be solved and problems are seen as opportunities. The can-do spirit reigns, and optimism is the only legitimate attitude. In less time than it actually takes, everything will be on track.
Jerusalem in Isaiah’s time had its share of activists. The problem was a man called Sennacherib who had a mighty Assyrian army at his disposal. And Jerusalem was in his sights! The solution to the problem was the amassing of enough power to counter the Assyrians. The Egyptians were close at hand, and a strategic alliance with them was suggested. This would be costly, but pack animals could be sent immediately with the necessary bribes and gifts (Isa. 30:6-7). If Egypt could be counted on to cooperate, the problem was solved. No problem!
Meanwhile, back in Jerusalem, Isaiah was holding forth! Isaiah was convinced that Egypt was worthless as a source of help—a “Harmless Dragon” with big teeth but no bite. Isaiah warned that sending ambassadors with pack animals loaded with gifts was a waste of time and money and that, if Judah persisted in this “solution,” it was only a matter of time until everything would collapse “like a bulging wall that bursts and falls” (30:13). Isaiah’s strategic plan, by contrast, was very simple. He had received it from the Lord, who said, “Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength” (30:15).
Activists do not see the wisdom of “quietness and confidence.” Their doctrine is, “God helps those who help themselves,” even though they are usually so confident in their own abilities that the help of God is rarely seen as significant unless things get really out of hand! The Jerusalem activists were not at all responsive! “Shut up! We don’t want any more of your reports,” they shouted at Isaiah (30:10). They added, “We have heard more than enough about your ‘Holy One of Israel.’ We are tired of listening to what he has to say” (30:11).
Is any of this relevant? The Lord certainly thought so, because he told Isaiah, “Write down these words concerning Egypt. They will then stand until the end of time as a witness” (30:8). In other words, look at what eventually happened to Jerusalem, as Isaiah said it would, and learn the lesson which applies “to the end of time.”
The lesson is this: In every situation, turn to the Lord, quietly and confidently, and expect him to work! And he will!
🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Mark 4:21-25
January 13
Never Stop Learning
... View MoreTO READ: Mark 4:21-25
January 13
Never Stop Learning
“To those who are open to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But to those who are not listening, even what they have will be taken away from them.”Mark 4:25
People often talk about “where they received their education.” They usually mean “where they went to school.” Speaking of receiving an education in these terms suggests that an education is complete once graduation has been achieved. It also assumes that while people are in college they are busy being educated, while quite often they have insufficient time to attend classes without interrupting their social life! Peter Drucker, the management expert, said that an educated person is someone who has learned how to learn and never stops learning. Perhaps we should not talk about where we received an education but about how our education is progressing.
This was the thrust of Jesus’ teaching about the lamp, the basket, and the bed (Mark 4:21). When a light “comes” into a room it is not promptly placed under a basket or a bed. The purpose of light is to be seen and to make sight possible. To hide a lamp would be counterproductive. It would not only fail in its objective of lighting the room, but the law of unintended consequences would apply: The lamp would light the house—on fire!
Jesus’ next saying is “Everything that is now hidden or secret will eventually be brought to light” (4:22). This suggests that while the objective of bringing light is not to hide it, that is precisely what happened in his ministry! The hidden things will be revealed, but only to those who take the trouble to listen.
There is no problem in ascertaining what Jesus expected people to listen to and what the secret is that would be revealed: “the secret about the Kingdom of God” (4:11). Jesus was telling his disciples that, in his own coming into the world, there had been a great revelation of God’s purposes and his kingdom, but there was still much more to be revealed—the lamp was still under the bucket and the bed. His disciples must constantly be open to new discoveries of his plans and purposes. In other words, they must not stop learning!
Jesus promised, ”To those who are open to my teaching, more understanding will be given” (4:25). In other words, those who listen to what Jesus tells them receive even more insight into God’s eternal purposes. But Jesus also warned, “To those who are not listening, even what they have will be taken away from them.” Those who do not pursue God’s self-revelation find the little they had learned slowly disappears.
God has no intention of leaving the message of the kingdom under a bed. He puts it out in the open where Christian disciples never stop learning. And they never graduate.
🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Mark 3:7-19
January 10
The Crowd and the Core
... View MoreTO READ: Mark 3:7-19
January 10
The Crowd and the Core
Afterward Jesus went up on a mountain and called the one she wanted to go with him. And they came to him.Mark 3:13
When crowds are drawn together, either by something sensational or by the offer of something free, they can be extremely difficult to handle! Then the inner drive of the individual to be first, to see all there is to see, or to get all there is to get, multiplied by a few thousand becomes a practically irresistible force. They can be very fickle, too. If they receive what they are seeking, they can be adulatory, while if they are denied or disappointed, they may become ugly in a flash.
The “huge crowd” (Mark 3:7) that followed Jesus as he headed for the lake was liable to get out of hand, and Jesus knew it. People were eager to touch him in a quest for healing, but there were also many deranged people and people driven by demonic forces. No doubt some of Jesus’ avowed enemies were in the crowd, too. In other words, the situation was potentially explosive. So Jesus quietly asked the disciples to ensure that a boat was made available “in case he was crowded off the beach” (3:9).
When the day’s ministry passed without incident, Jesus made his way into the hills and “called the ones he wanted to go with him” (3:13), so that they might become “his regular companions” (3:14). In all probability they had little idea what Jesus expected of them, but they soon found out. First and foremost, he was looking for “a few good men” who would put a personal relationship with him at the top of their agenda. So “they came to him” (3:13)—not to an institution, not to a movement, but to a person who would capture their hearts, change their lives, and become their reason for being. He became their Savior, their Lord, their friend, their leader—their very life. This was their calling, and to this they responded.
The center of the disciples’ call was to companionship with Jesus, but the circumference was a commission to serve the world. They would be given the task of spreading the message of Christ, fired by their personal experience of him, preaching his kingdom in ever widening circles to the ends of the earth (see Matt. 28:18-20; Acts 1:8). This commission was not without cost, however, since many of them died a martyr’s death.
Jesus had his crowds, but he worked primarily through a core group. There is fickleness in a crowd, but faithfulness in the core—with the sad exception of Judas Iscariot. There is momentum in a mob that can easily get out of control, while there is drive and direction in a dedicated nucleus that is not easily diverted from its purpose. Where there is no dedicated core, the crowd rules—how unruly! Where there is a committed core, the core controls the action. Jesus showed us that truth and the church dare not forget it! In a world where bigger is often automatically regarded as better, the church should not forget that it is not difficult to attract a crowd of spectators. The real challenge is to call out a core of committed believers.
#Jesusfirst 🙏✝️👑
TO READ: Isaiah 7:1-9
January 7
Don’t Panic, Keep Calm
... View MoreTO READ: Isaiah 7:1-9
January 7
Don’t Panic, Keep Calm
“Israel is no stronger than its capital, Samaria. And Samaria is no stronger than its king, Pekah son of Remaliah. You do not believe me? If you want me to protect you, learn to believe what I say.”Isaiah 7:9
When King David and his son, King Solomon, had passed away, their magnificent kingdom split in two—Israel to the north, and Judah to the south. During that period, the Assyrians became the dominant force in the region. To combat them, Israel formed an alliance with Aram (Syria). But Judah declined to go along and actually showed signs of siding with Assyria. This prompted Israel and Aram to attack Judah, but they were unable to capture Jerusalem. The inhabitants of Jerusalem “trembled with fear, just as trees shake in a storm” (Isa. 7:2). And with good reason, because the northern allies threatened to attack again, intent on capturing Jerusalem, overthrowing the king, and installing their own ruler.
Isaiah lived in Jerusalem, and he was instructed to go speak to Ahaz, the frightened king of Judah. He took with him his son, whose odd name (Shear-jashub) meant “a remnant shall return.” The boy’s name was a message of both good news and bad news. The good news was that whatever happened a remnant would survive. The bad news? It would be a remnant, and it would be returning!
The Lord gave Isaiah a message for Ahaz: “Tell him to stop worrying. Tell him he doesn’t need to fear the fierce anger of those two burned-out embers” (7:4). The embers in question were the king of Israel and the king of Aram, along with their forces. No doubt not worrying was easier said than done, but it was God’s message nevertheless. So King Ahaz was presented with two alternatives: He could seek a political solution to his predicament—a treaty with Assyria, which would frighten off the northern kings and preserve him from Assyrian attack. Or he could choose a spiritual solution and trust that the Lord would intervene on his behalf and protect Ahaz’s kingdom from harm.
Should he seek a political solution or a spiritual solution? Probably none of us is called to make such a decision about such an important matter—the fate of the state—but we do find ourselves in predicaments where a decision needs to be made. The choices often appear to be either to make a deal or to trust the Lord! Easy answers are usually not available in such situations. Yet there is one thing that we can learn from Ahaz’s predicament. The Lord told him through Isaiah, “If you want me to protect you, learn to believe what I say” (7:9). The key is knowing what the Lord is saying, or has said, about a situation. If there are clear instructions, do what God says. If he says “do nothing except trust me,” then that is the way to go. In other cases, God’s instruction may be to take a certain course of action.
Trusting God to act on our behalf may seem more heavenly-minded than of earthly use, but it does have the advantage of turning out right every time!
🙏✝️👑
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