Study from God’s Word… Isaiah, Chapters 65 – 66; 2nd Chron. 19: 37 [Is. 37:38]; 2Chron 33: 10 - 17 … Passage for Reflection: 2nd Chronicles 33: 12 - 13… NIV 12 In his distress he [the evil king of Judah, Manasseh] sought the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. 13 And when he prayed to him, the LORD was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD is God.
My Journal for Today: We’ve been focusing on the prophesies and ministry of Isaiah during my devotional reading in The Daily Bible in Chronological Order and in the companion book, The Daily Bible Devotional by F. LaGard Smith, during these last weeks; and it has been a great restudy for me, … reminding me just how patient God was with his recalcitrant children in Israel and Judah; and how he sent Prophets, like Isaiah, to give His word to the people. Some listened and became part of the remnant of people led, along with the misfits, into captivity; and then ultimately redeemed and delivered by the One prophesied, … The Messiah.
And one such biblical snapshot of disobedience, God’s patience, and one man’s repentance was the story of Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, who became King of Judah after the obedient reign of Hezekiah. And as God’s word says [in 2nd Chron. 33: 2], “He (Manasseh) did evil in the sight of the Lord;” and for many years, early in his kingship, the young king undid almost all that his daddy had accomplished. And for his disobedience and unGodly leadership, God allowed Manasseh to be broken by captivity to the Babylonians to the point where Manasseh confessed and repented and turned, in prayer, to God. And God in His infinite mercy restored Manasseh to his kingship; and led him back to Jerusalem where he did all he could, in repentance, during his remaining years to rebuild what he had undone as king.
I don’t know about you; but I really identify with Manasseh. For over 20 years of my life, after I had gone off to college, I turned away from my upbringing in Christian roots. And God still loved and pursued me in spite of my disobedience, sinful living, and veritable mockery of my God. And God even led me into my own “Babylon,” so-to-speak, where I was taken captive by my flesh, the world, and Satan. But after all those years of abject rejection of God, the “Hound of Heaven” came after me and showed me that I could not hack my out a way in this life without Him. So, I confessed, repented, and sought the saving grace of God, just as did Manasseh. And just as The Lord, God, Yahweh, did with Manasseh, He brought me into a deep and abiding relationship with Himself; and because of that I fully expect one day to see, identify, and even befriend my Brother in Christ, Manasseh, in heaven. And that, I anticipate, being a really cool meeting.
Hey, if you’re reading along with me, let’s make a date to meet up with Manasseh in heaven and share stories of God’s redeeming grace through The Messiah. It will be a cool meeting for coffee one day in Glory, for sure!
My Prayer for Today: Lord, … thank you for reminding me and my friends of Your infinite mercy and patience in pursuing Your lost children. Amen
Showing posts with label mercy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mercy. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
2010 – June 19 – Good Cop, Bad Cop
Study from God’s Word… Hosea, Chapters 10 – 14; 2 Kgs 14: 17 [2Chron 25: 25]; 2Kgs 14: 18-20 [2Chron 25: 26-28]; 2Kgs 14: 21; 15: 1-2 [2Chron 16: 1, 3]; 2Kgs 15: 3 [2Chron 26: 4,5]; 2Kgs 15: 4; 2 Kgs 14: 22 [2Chron 26: 2]; 2Chron 26: 6-10, 15; 2Chron 26: 11-14 … Passage for Reflection: Hosea 11: 8 – 9 … NIV 8 "How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I treat you like Admah? How can I make you like Zeboiim? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused.
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim. For I am God, and not man — the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath.
My Journal for Today: Balance is one of the hallmarks of God’s character, which is evidenced by his infinite love balanced with His eternal wrath. God is the ultimate “Good Cop and Bad Cop,” which we’ve seen played out many times, haven’t we, in the cop dramas on TV? And as Christians we often have trouble achieving balance between such Godly characteristics as grace and law. Left to our own, we’d distort both ends of this Godly continuum; but the Lord has infinite balance even if we so often see as extremes.
And as I read through the remainder of the Book of Hosea and some other passages today from my Daily Bible in Chronological Order, I was struck by how often God had to be both “Good Cop” and “Bad Cop” with His chosen people in the Old Testament. Israel just couldn’t seem to get the concept that they had an all-powerful “Good Cop” on their side, … a God Who would treat them with incredible compassion and mercy; but their fleshly disobedience so often brought on God’s “Bad Cop” side, which had to be invoked – even though it was out of God’s love – to draw those recalcitrant Hebrews back into the Good Shepherd’s flock. God’s “Bad Cop” is always exercised by Him in love just as a parent will often have to lay a hand to a child’s backside to save him/her from destructive behavior. If you’re a parent or a grandparent, you hate at times being forced into the “bad cop” role; but you know you must be there in that role at times to save your kids from going places or doing things that could one day kill them or hurt them permanently.
And that was God being the “Bad Cop” at times with Israel; but as we read today, there were times when the “Good Cop” was very apparent; and God, the Eternal Father of His people, came shining through, … yes, even at times when we would see that God’s love and grace was tested to the limits … right to the edges of God, the “Good Cop.” It distresses me greatly to see men in the ministry where I am a Pastor, … men who just seem to be like one of my little grandkids, who, knowing where the limits/boundaries are will test out the reality of my love by just stepping over the edge of the boundaries, testing my “Bad Cop” side to see if I will do what I’ve said would be the consequences of disobedience.
And for those in Battle Plan Ministries, knowing that repeated sexual sin, especially in certain dangerous areas of behavior, can bring on death, some of the men in our ministry seem to be compulsively drawn to test out God, the “Good Cop,” to see if God, “the Bad Cop” will be consistent with the consequences of their disobedience. Unfortunately, as it is with our little granddaughter, granddad, the “Bad Cop,” sometimes has to get tough with his love; and God, in this role can be very tough as well with the consequences of our disobedience. And we’ve seen some that we know in prominent roles of ministry, like Ted Haggard, who have been laid low, testing the boundaries of God, the “Good Cop,” finding out that God, the “Bad Cop” is really there and His love can be very tough when disobedience becomes chronic, evident, and dangerous.
I hope that we all come to realize that courting the love and grace from God, the “Good Cop” is a much better strategy in life than testing out and trying to bring out God, the “Bad Cop.” Because ultimately there will be a time when God, the “Good Cop” will become God, the “Bad Cop;” and it is not a good deal to be there when that becomes reality for our lives.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I’ve experienced Your stick and Your hugs; and I’ve learned that the latter is what I seek. Amen
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim. For I am God, and not man — the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath.
My Journal for Today: Balance is one of the hallmarks of God’s character, which is evidenced by his infinite love balanced with His eternal wrath. God is the ultimate “Good Cop and Bad Cop,” which we’ve seen played out many times, haven’t we, in the cop dramas on TV? And as Christians we often have trouble achieving balance between such Godly characteristics as grace and law. Left to our own, we’d distort both ends of this Godly continuum; but the Lord has infinite balance even if we so often see as extremes.
And as I read through the remainder of the Book of Hosea and some other passages today from my Daily Bible in Chronological Order, I was struck by how often God had to be both “Good Cop” and “Bad Cop” with His chosen people in the Old Testament. Israel just couldn’t seem to get the concept that they had an all-powerful “Good Cop” on their side, … a God Who would treat them with incredible compassion and mercy; but their fleshly disobedience so often brought on God’s “Bad Cop” side, which had to be invoked – even though it was out of God’s love – to draw those recalcitrant Hebrews back into the Good Shepherd’s flock. God’s “Bad Cop” is always exercised by Him in love just as a parent will often have to lay a hand to a child’s backside to save him/her from destructive behavior. If you’re a parent or a grandparent, you hate at times being forced into the “bad cop” role; but you know you must be there in that role at times to save your kids from going places or doing things that could one day kill them or hurt them permanently.
And that was God being the “Bad Cop” at times with Israel; but as we read today, there were times when the “Good Cop” was very apparent; and God, the Eternal Father of His people, came shining through, … yes, even at times when we would see that God’s love and grace was tested to the limits … right to the edges of God, the “Good Cop.” It distresses me greatly to see men in the ministry where I am a Pastor, … men who just seem to be like one of my little grandkids, who, knowing where the limits/boundaries are will test out the reality of my love by just stepping over the edge of the boundaries, testing my “Bad Cop” side to see if I will do what I’ve said would be the consequences of disobedience.
And for those in Battle Plan Ministries, knowing that repeated sexual sin, especially in certain dangerous areas of behavior, can bring on death, some of the men in our ministry seem to be compulsively drawn to test out God, the “Good Cop,” to see if God, “the Bad Cop” will be consistent with the consequences of their disobedience. Unfortunately, as it is with our little granddaughter, granddad, the “Bad Cop,” sometimes has to get tough with his love; and God, in this role can be very tough as well with the consequences of our disobedience. And we’ve seen some that we know in prominent roles of ministry, like Ted Haggard, who have been laid low, testing the boundaries of God, the “Good Cop,” finding out that God, the “Bad Cop” is really there and His love can be very tough when disobedience becomes chronic, evident, and dangerous.
I hope that we all come to realize that courting the love and grace from God, the “Good Cop” is a much better strategy in life than testing out and trying to bring out God, the “Bad Cop.” Because ultimately there will be a time when God, the “Good Cop” will become God, the “Bad Cop;” and it is not a good deal to be there when that becomes reality for our lives.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I’ve experienced Your stick and Your hugs; and I’ve learned that the latter is what I seek. Amen
Friday, March 05, 2010
2010 – Mar. 5 – Acts of Compassion
Study from God’s Word… Lev 19: 9-10, 23: 22; Deut 24: 19-22, 24-25; Lev 25: 35-38; Deut 5: 16; Lev 19: 3a; Ex 21: 17; Lev 20: 9; Ex 21: 17; Lev 20: 9; Deut 21: 18-21; Lev 19: 32; Ex 22: 22-24; Ex 22: 21, 23: 9; Lev 19: 33-34; Lev 24: 22; Lev 19: 14; Lev 19: 16-18; Ex 23: 4-5; Deut 22: 1-4; Deut 5: 21; Deut 25: 4; Deut 22: 6-7; Deut 20: 1-20; Deut 23: 9-14; Deut 24: 5; Deut 21: 10-14; … Passage for Reflection: Deuteronomy 22: 6 – 7 … NIV 6 If you come across a bird's nest beside the road, either in a tree or on the ground, and the mother is sitting on the young or on the eggs, do not take the mother with the young. 7 You may take the young, but be sure to let the mother go, so that it may go well with you and you may have a long life.
My Journal for Today: Today’s study was a review of the Old Testament social welfare laws and principles God passed on to His people to aid them interacting with one another and promoting compassion, which is the focus virtue highlighted in today’s study verses. And when you, as I did, read these verses, you might have a tendency to say, “Well, … how quaint!” And we see that God cares even for His little birds; and then we extract the argument from the lesser to the greater … that if God so cares for birds the way He does, how much more does He care for you and me? And wow, in the Person of Christ we certainly see the answer to that one, don’t we?
In today’s study we see that structure, laws, and social principles were set in motion to provide for the poor, to help the handicapped, to honor the elderly (especially our parents), and even to take in foreigners when they were in need of accommodations. And F. LaGard Smith, in raising these issues, asks a couple of very pointed questions of his readers, “Can you even begin to imagine a world without daily acts of compassion? Indeed, what would you and I be like if we were devoid of compassion?”
And it was just yesterday, while I was going through my physical therapy in rehab after my shoulder surgery, the TV was on in the PT clinic; and I saw a segment from the Dr. Phil show (wow, such enlightenment!] where a Pediatrician had sexually abused over 100 little girls by taking advantage of them while he was examining them in his clinic; and there was another segment where three security guards in a shopping mall watched – and did nothing – to aid a young girl who was being pummeled by four other girls. And the question “Dr. Phil” was posing with his show was, “How can people act like this?” And there you and I have the answer to Dr. Smith’s question above. If the world was compassionless, anarchy would rule; and we’d see that the man with the biggest stick would rule.
And if we let – as a culture – the family degenerate into a structure God did not intend; or … we – as a people – are unwilling to take care of the Samaritan who is lying on the road, beaten down by the world [Luke 10: 25-37 - linked], we will become what I was viewing yesterday on that Dr. Phil show – a world devoid of compassion; and that my friends, would be sad, beyond measure, and personally intolerable. But that, my dear ones, is where we’re headed as mankind begins to live out what Paul wrote about in Romans 1: 18-32; and if we’re unwilling to live with compassion and promote caring love in our laws and culture, we will become an unlivable world.
So, as Dr. Smith asks today, ”Whose life might be uplifted today because of some compassion I might show?” A good question to move us to become what Christ would have us become … like Himself.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, Help me to live beyond self and to act like You toward my fellow man. Amen
My Journal for Today: Today’s study was a review of the Old Testament social welfare laws and principles God passed on to His people to aid them interacting with one another and promoting compassion, which is the focus virtue highlighted in today’s study verses. And when you, as I did, read these verses, you might have a tendency to say, “Well, … how quaint!” And we see that God cares even for His little birds; and then we extract the argument from the lesser to the greater … that if God so cares for birds the way He does, how much more does He care for you and me? And wow, in the Person of Christ we certainly see the answer to that one, don’t we?
In today’s study we see that structure, laws, and social principles were set in motion to provide for the poor, to help the handicapped, to honor the elderly (especially our parents), and even to take in foreigners when they were in need of accommodations. And F. LaGard Smith, in raising these issues, asks a couple of very pointed questions of his readers, “Can you even begin to imagine a world without daily acts of compassion? Indeed, what would you and I be like if we were devoid of compassion?”
And it was just yesterday, while I was going through my physical therapy in rehab after my shoulder surgery, the TV was on in the PT clinic; and I saw a segment from the Dr. Phil show (wow, such enlightenment!] where a Pediatrician had sexually abused over 100 little girls by taking advantage of them while he was examining them in his clinic; and there was another segment where three security guards in a shopping mall watched – and did nothing – to aid a young girl who was being pummeled by four other girls. And the question “Dr. Phil” was posing with his show was, “How can people act like this?” And there you and I have the answer to Dr. Smith’s question above. If the world was compassionless, anarchy would rule; and we’d see that the man with the biggest stick would rule.
And if we let – as a culture – the family degenerate into a structure God did not intend; or … we – as a people – are unwilling to take care of the Samaritan who is lying on the road, beaten down by the world [Luke 10: 25-37 - linked], we will become what I was viewing yesterday on that Dr. Phil show – a world devoid of compassion; and that my friends, would be sad, beyond measure, and personally intolerable. But that, my dear ones, is where we’re headed as mankind begins to live out what Paul wrote about in Romans 1: 18-32; and if we’re unwilling to live with compassion and promote caring love in our laws and culture, we will become an unlivable world.
So, as Dr. Smith asks today, ”Whose life might be uplifted today because of some compassion I might show?” A good question to move us to become what Christ would have us become … like Himself.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, Help me to live beyond self and to act like You toward my fellow man. Amen
Sunday, January 31, 2010
2010 Day 31. Jan. 31 – A God Who Relents
From Exodus 32-34 ... Specifically from Exod. 32:14 – Then the Lord relented and did not bring on His people the disaster He had promised.
My Devotional for Today: Go figure. God is a God who never lies [we can read and believe that from the passage in Numbers 23: 19, which states, God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
Okay, God doesn’t lie; but as we read today through Exodus 32 – 34, our God is influenced by the lives we live as His chosen people; and He is touched by the pleas of His anointed ones, like Moses, who came to Him as advocates for the people of God. And so we read today that God reminded Moses (and God’s people) of His covenant; but he spared those same people because of Moses’ plea; and because of the advocacy of this transformed man, Moses, God was willing to recast His Law a second time in stone and bring that word to His people once again.
And Dr. Smith today asks the crux of a question from this study. He writes, ”Have I (you as well) learned anything from a merciful God about when to keep my promises and when to change my mind?” And yes, I have answered that question in my own mind; but you, my friend, must answer it for yourself in God’s presence here today.
How often can God see inequity and blatant sinful living being perpetrated in His presence and for all the world to see; and then how many times will our Lord be merciful to allow mankind the latitude to repent in remorse for our sins? How many times?
I cannot answer that for you; and I certainly cannot answer that for God.
My Prayer for Today : Lord, my God, have mercy on us, Your sinful children. Amen
My Devotional for Today: Go figure. God is a God who never lies [we can read and believe that from the passage in Numbers 23: 19, which states, God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
Okay, God doesn’t lie; but as we read today through Exodus 32 – 34, our God is influenced by the lives we live as His chosen people; and He is touched by the pleas of His anointed ones, like Moses, who came to Him as advocates for the people of God. And so we read today that God reminded Moses (and God’s people) of His covenant; but he spared those same people because of Moses’ plea; and because of the advocacy of this transformed man, Moses, God was willing to recast His Law a second time in stone and bring that word to His people once again.
And Dr. Smith today asks the crux of a question from this study. He writes, ”Have I (you as well) learned anything from a merciful God about when to keep my promises and when to change my mind?” And yes, I have answered that question in my own mind; but you, my friend, must answer it for yourself in God’s presence here today.
How often can God see inequity and blatant sinful living being perpetrated in His presence and for all the world to see; and then how many times will our Lord be merciful to allow mankind the latitude to repent in remorse for our sins? How many times?
I cannot answer that for you; and I certainly cannot answer that for God.
My Prayer for Today : Lord, my God, have mercy on us, Your sinful children. Amen
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
2010 – Day 19. Jan. 19 – The Fine Art of Forgiveness
Study from Genesis 42 – 45; Passage for Reflection: Genesis 42: 15 … NIV And he [Joseph] kissed his brothers and wept over them. Afterward he brothers talked with him.
My Journal for Today: Well here we are in the story of Joseph where his brothers have learned that the brother whom they had mistreated and sold into slavery is now a big deal in Egypt; and they were terrified upon this being revealed. And we have seen Joseph take them through a number of scenarios before revealing himself. And finally the masks come off; and Joseph reveals himself, forgiving his brothers for the past wrongs.
My devotional author, Dr. Smith, speculates about why Joseph waited and put the brothers through what he did before revealing his identity. I had never really thought about that until this reading today. Have you? He says it might have been to give them the time they needed to see where they were and the power Joseph really had over their lives, giving much more impact to the forgiveness. It is also quite possible that the way the story unfolded, so dramatically, was for you and me in having this story as an example of God’s forgiveness of sinners like us. But nonetheless, the story does illustrate just how far God has gone (and will go) to forgive those who’re repentant and acknowledge their sin. Joseph, of course, in the story becomes a type of Jesus; and we know just how far God went with Him to forgive and save His family.
Pastor Smith makes a good point today that forgiveness is more an art than an exact science. Each case where forgiveness is called for is different because each sinner who needs forgiveness is different and each person who needs to forgive one who has wronged them is different. But there is one truth which overrides all; and that is that there is no wrong which cannot, and Smith adds, “should not”, be forgiven. If God can forgive me all those years I rejected Him, living a double-life of over 22 years of hidden sinful living; and if He can lavish His love and mercy on me, as He has, to the point of raising me to become an ordained minister of the Gospel, He can (and will) forgive anyone. I firmly believe that God, through Joseph’s patience and forbearance, shows anyone reading this story just how far He will go to give sinners a chance to be cleansed and justified in His eyes, … then lavishing His grace on us, which none of us deserve, we are allowed to be transformed to become like the One Who saved us. That’s what Joseph did for his brothers; and it’s what Jesus has done for me and for you.
Oh, … my Lord, … I have been such a man, like Joseph’s brothers, who wanted my brother, Jesus, out of my life. He was a Bother to me; and I wanted to kill Him. So I sold Him for selfishness to get rid of Him from my life. But He would not forget me; and He came after me … the “Hound of Heaven,” giving me the opportunity to repent and to change; and with His grace, I did. And like Joseph’s brothers, I became broken, acknowledging that my only hope was in the Person of my Savior. And I thank God for this rich and wonderful lesson in forgiveness which we read in the life of Joseph; and I pray that if we have someone in our lives who needs forgiveness that we pray for them and allow them the dignity of humility and repentance in this art of life we call forgiveness.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, if there be anyone I need to forgive, as You have forgiven me, make them known to me and give me the grace to forgive them. Amen
My Journal for Today: Well here we are in the story of Joseph where his brothers have learned that the brother whom they had mistreated and sold into slavery is now a big deal in Egypt; and they were terrified upon this being revealed. And we have seen Joseph take them through a number of scenarios before revealing himself. And finally the masks come off; and Joseph reveals himself, forgiving his brothers for the past wrongs.
My devotional author, Dr. Smith, speculates about why Joseph waited and put the brothers through what he did before revealing his identity. I had never really thought about that until this reading today. Have you? He says it might have been to give them the time they needed to see where they were and the power Joseph really had over their lives, giving much more impact to the forgiveness. It is also quite possible that the way the story unfolded, so dramatically, was for you and me in having this story as an example of God’s forgiveness of sinners like us. But nonetheless, the story does illustrate just how far God has gone (and will go) to forgive those who’re repentant and acknowledge their sin. Joseph, of course, in the story becomes a type of Jesus; and we know just how far God went with Him to forgive and save His family.
Pastor Smith makes a good point today that forgiveness is more an art than an exact science. Each case where forgiveness is called for is different because each sinner who needs forgiveness is different and each person who needs to forgive one who has wronged them is different. But there is one truth which overrides all; and that is that there is no wrong which cannot, and Smith adds, “should not”, be forgiven. If God can forgive me all those years I rejected Him, living a double-life of over 22 years of hidden sinful living; and if He can lavish His love and mercy on me, as He has, to the point of raising me to become an ordained minister of the Gospel, He can (and will) forgive anyone. I firmly believe that God, through Joseph’s patience and forbearance, shows anyone reading this story just how far He will go to give sinners a chance to be cleansed and justified in His eyes, … then lavishing His grace on us, which none of us deserve, we are allowed to be transformed to become like the One Who saved us. That’s what Joseph did for his brothers; and it’s what Jesus has done for me and for you.
Oh, … my Lord, … I have been such a man, like Joseph’s brothers, who wanted my brother, Jesus, out of my life. He was a Bother to me; and I wanted to kill Him. So I sold Him for selfishness to get rid of Him from my life. But He would not forget me; and He came after me … the “Hound of Heaven,” giving me the opportunity to repent and to change; and with His grace, I did. And like Joseph’s brothers, I became broken, acknowledging that my only hope was in the Person of my Savior. And I thank God for this rich and wonderful lesson in forgiveness which we read in the life of Joseph; and I pray that if we have someone in our lives who needs forgiveness that we pray for them and allow them the dignity of humility and repentance in this art of life we call forgiveness.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, if there be anyone I need to forgive, as You have forgiven me, make them known to me and give me the grace to forgive them. Amen
Sunday, January 03, 2010
2010 – Day 3. Jan. 3 – A God With Feelings
Studying Genesis 6 – 9; Passage for Reflection: Genesis 6: 6 … NIV - The LORD was grieved that He had made man on the earth, and His heart was filled with pain.
My Journal for Today: I don’t think we, as fallible, ever failing humans can grasp the depth or height of God’s feelings when He either senses His creatures of grace living in sin to abase Him or living in sacrifice to honor Him. We’ve all been disappointed somewhere in our lives by disappointment when someone we love fails us. Maybe a wife learns that her husband has been unfaithful; or parents learn that their daughter is unexpectedly pregnant. Or a dad learns that his son is into drugs. Well, take those feelings of remorse and regret and magnify it by infinity to sense the extent of God’s anguish over seeing mankind’s extent of falling to reject the very God Whom had given them life.
God is both a God of justice and of mercy; and all of that is worked out in the Genesis account of Noah and the flood (i.e., Genesis 6 – 9) which I was led to study in my devotional time this morning. And by contemplating my wife’s feeling of anguish over the years of infidelity which I visited upon her over 30 years ago; and then, to think on the degree of her mercy, forgiveness, and patience to allow God to transform me from an agnostic fool into a loving and purposeful Christian husband gives me a picture, though only a reflection, of the feelings God must have had for mankind by allowing a remnant to live when man had so rejected God’s love in those centuries following the fall in the Garden.
F. LaGard Smith’s question at the end of his devotional today challenges me to reflect on God’s feelings about my sinfulness. He writes, ”When I repeatedly disappoint God, do I understand that I have genuinely and truly broken His heart?” But then, I need to add the other side of that coin of humanity. I need to understand just how much my God smiles with glee when any of His kids (and that certainly includes me) stands up for Godly righteousness or uses His enabling grace to overcome the temptations or tests which our spiritual enemies place in our lives. We have a God who feels for His created children; and we need to honor those feelings with choices which turn His anguish to joy.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I so desire to make You smile today and be filled with joy, not sorrow, as I honor You with my choices. Amen
My Journal for Today: I don’t think we, as fallible, ever failing humans can grasp the depth or height of God’s feelings when He either senses His creatures of grace living in sin to abase Him or living in sacrifice to honor Him. We’ve all been disappointed somewhere in our lives by disappointment when someone we love fails us. Maybe a wife learns that her husband has been unfaithful; or parents learn that their daughter is unexpectedly pregnant. Or a dad learns that his son is into drugs. Well, take those feelings of remorse and regret and magnify it by infinity to sense the extent of God’s anguish over seeing mankind’s extent of falling to reject the very God Whom had given them life.
God is both a God of justice and of mercy; and all of that is worked out in the Genesis account of Noah and the flood (i.e., Genesis 6 – 9) which I was led to study in my devotional time this morning. And by contemplating my wife’s feeling of anguish over the years of infidelity which I visited upon her over 30 years ago; and then, to think on the degree of her mercy, forgiveness, and patience to allow God to transform me from an agnostic fool into a loving and purposeful Christian husband gives me a picture, though only a reflection, of the feelings God must have had for mankind by allowing a remnant to live when man had so rejected God’s love in those centuries following the fall in the Garden.
F. LaGard Smith’s question at the end of his devotional today challenges me to reflect on God’s feelings about my sinfulness. He writes, ”When I repeatedly disappoint God, do I understand that I have genuinely and truly broken His heart?” But then, I need to add the other side of that coin of humanity. I need to understand just how much my God smiles with glee when any of His kids (and that certainly includes me) stands up for Godly righteousness or uses His enabling grace to overcome the temptations or tests which our spiritual enemies place in our lives. We have a God who feels for His created children; and we need to honor those feelings with choices which turn His anguish to joy.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I so desire to make You smile today and be filled with joy, not sorrow, as I honor You with my choices. Amen
Saturday, September 26, 2009
2009 – Day 268.Sept 26 – Set Free
Passage of the Day: Job 42 … Linked for study …
My Journal for Today: I agree with my devotional shepherd, Chuck Swindoll in his book, Great Days with the Great Lives, that Chapter 42 of Job, especially the first eleven verses is a wonderful representation of what happens at the cross. And you know, the times I had read this victorious chapter earlier, I had never really seen it that way.
Oh, I saw Job being restored after his prayer for the three “friends” who had done him wrong [see this memorable passage of restoration in Job 42: 10]. And I had seen God’s justice coming into balance after it had seemingly been out of balance for so long with Job getting the short end of Satan’s stick. And I saw Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar having to humble themselves before God and Job. But until Pastor Swindoll helped me see it, I had never seen how God – as He did at the cross – released His justice and mercy so that the power of His grace could be worked out in one final efficacious act of love. I had never seen Job as a personification of what our Lord did for us on the cross.
Yes, that’s what is happening in Job 42; and it’s what happened at the cross. Job prayed for the three men here; and on the cross Jesus prayed, “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do.” And in Job’s act, as well as that of the Lamb of God, sinners were set free – forever. And Job was then fully restored into his former glory, just as God, the Father, did for Jesus when The Father’s Son ascended back into Heaven to sit at the right hand of God, the Father, re-established into the glory which He had so ignominiously set aside to walk in agony as a servant of mankind (see Phil. 2: 5 – 11 - link provided).
Oh, my friends, isn’t the balance of God’s justice and His grace so, so perfect? And here, in this story of Job’s serving God, we see a picture of the suffering Servant, Jesus; and we must stand in awe of what our Savior went through to serve His Father and what He did in His earthly walk to suffer for my sins (and yours). Job becomes another of the arch types of The Christ that we study to realize whom we must become as God’s Spirit reshapes us into His image for eternity.
So, we must ask ourselves, are there any in our lives for whom we need to pray, “Forgive them, Father, for they really didn’t know what they were doing when they wronged me”? Do we need to repent our confused and selfish heart, as did Job, when we experience tribulations in this life and we’re tempted to ask, “Why, me, Lord?” Do we need to be more patient – as was Job in his account – realizing God truly does work out ALL things for my good and His glory [see, of course, Romans 8: 28]? This has been a good review for me to do the self inventory which Paul spoke of in 2nd Cor. 13: 5 [linked] to see if, indeed, my faith sees Christ is in me and I trust His Spirit for all that is going on in my life.
Perhaps we all need to take that test and see if we have the patience of Job [and Jesus] in our hearts.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I know I need to do more to see Your fruit of patience mature in my heart. Amen
My Journal for Today: I agree with my devotional shepherd, Chuck Swindoll in his book, Great Days with the Great Lives, that Chapter 42 of Job, especially the first eleven verses is a wonderful representation of what happens at the cross. And you know, the times I had read this victorious chapter earlier, I had never really seen it that way.
Oh, I saw Job being restored after his prayer for the three “friends” who had done him wrong [see this memorable passage of restoration in Job 42: 10]. And I had seen God’s justice coming into balance after it had seemingly been out of balance for so long with Job getting the short end of Satan’s stick. And I saw Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar having to humble themselves before God and Job. But until Pastor Swindoll helped me see it, I had never seen how God – as He did at the cross – released His justice and mercy so that the power of His grace could be worked out in one final efficacious act of love. I had never seen Job as a personification of what our Lord did for us on the cross.
Yes, that’s what is happening in Job 42; and it’s what happened at the cross. Job prayed for the three men here; and on the cross Jesus prayed, “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do.” And in Job’s act, as well as that of the Lamb of God, sinners were set free – forever. And Job was then fully restored into his former glory, just as God, the Father, did for Jesus when The Father’s Son ascended back into Heaven to sit at the right hand of God, the Father, re-established into the glory which He had so ignominiously set aside to walk in agony as a servant of mankind (see Phil. 2: 5 – 11 - link provided).
Oh, my friends, isn’t the balance of God’s justice and His grace so, so perfect? And here, in this story of Job’s serving God, we see a picture of the suffering Servant, Jesus; and we must stand in awe of what our Savior went through to serve His Father and what He did in His earthly walk to suffer for my sins (and yours). Job becomes another of the arch types of The Christ that we study to realize whom we must become as God’s Spirit reshapes us into His image for eternity.
So, we must ask ourselves, are there any in our lives for whom we need to pray, “Forgive them, Father, for they really didn’t know what they were doing when they wronged me”? Do we need to repent our confused and selfish heart, as did Job, when we experience tribulations in this life and we’re tempted to ask, “Why, me, Lord?” Do we need to be more patient – as was Job in his account – realizing God truly does work out ALL things for my good and His glory [see, of course, Romans 8: 28]? This has been a good review for me to do the self inventory which Paul spoke of in 2nd Cor. 13: 5 [linked] to see if, indeed, my faith sees Christ is in me and I trust His Spirit for all that is going on in my life.
Perhaps we all need to take that test and see if we have the patience of Job [and Jesus] in our hearts.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I know I need to do more to see Your fruit of patience mature in my heart. Amen
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
2009 – Day 243.Sept 01 – A Lot of Grace
September, 2009 Topic: Job … Continued from Aug. 31, 2009
====================
Passage of the Day: Job 17 … Linked for study …
My Journal for Today: I agree whole heartedly with Chuck Swindoll today about why he says he loves the Bible. His reason; – “It is so real!” And that’s what we read in Chapter 17, … Job’s very real and very human appeal to God for relief.
Here, the man has lost everything, including his kids; and he’s now encumbered with horrible, painful boils; and then he’s been enduring absolute foolishness from his so-called “friends.” And as we’ve read through those speeches from Eliphaz and the others, I agree with Swindoll. If I had been God I would have pushed the button on mercy long before this; and I would have visited some relief for Job and some very severe retribution on the three stooges, especially Eliphaz. Swindoll had it right, … maybe having the lips fall off of Eliphaz would have been a nice touch. But as I say so often here in my quiet place, “God is God; and I am not.” And the Lord has chosen to make Job wait on God some more … to ponder and pursue God’s mercy with prayers like the one we read in today’s passage.
And it’s the waiting in faith that becomes the hard part of this relationship with God, isn’t it? It’s holding on to the trust, which is demanded in a passage like Prov. 3: 5 – 6. I hope you know that one by heart. If not, please look it up and meditate on its truth. And remember, it closes by saying, “In ALL your ways, acknowledge [God]; and He will make your paths straight.” [NIV] And that’s exactly what Job is doing in Chapter 17, … pleading with God to give him a straight way out of all of what he has confronted. Job wants to see some light to make it through the fog of his life.
And Swindoll closes with the quote of quotes from the old hymn again, Amazing Grace, which says …
Thru many dangers, toils, and snares
I have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
And as Swindoll closes, “Even through the fog, grace will lead us home.”
My Prayer for Today: Oh, my Lord, the world is so foggy. Please lead us home with Your grace. Amen
====================
Passage of the Day: Job 17 … Linked for study …
My Journal for Today: I agree whole heartedly with Chuck Swindoll today about why he says he loves the Bible. His reason; – “It is so real!” And that’s what we read in Chapter 17, … Job’s very real and very human appeal to God for relief.
Here, the man has lost everything, including his kids; and he’s now encumbered with horrible, painful boils; and then he’s been enduring absolute foolishness from his so-called “friends.” And as we’ve read through those speeches from Eliphaz and the others, I agree with Swindoll. If I had been God I would have pushed the button on mercy long before this; and I would have visited some relief for Job and some very severe retribution on the three stooges, especially Eliphaz. Swindoll had it right, … maybe having the lips fall off of Eliphaz would have been a nice touch. But as I say so often here in my quiet place, “God is God; and I am not.” And the Lord has chosen to make Job wait on God some more … to ponder and pursue God’s mercy with prayers like the one we read in today’s passage.
And it’s the waiting in faith that becomes the hard part of this relationship with God, isn’t it? It’s holding on to the trust, which is demanded in a passage like Prov. 3: 5 – 6. I hope you know that one by heart. If not, please look it up and meditate on its truth. And remember, it closes by saying, “In ALL your ways, acknowledge [God]; and He will make your paths straight.” [NIV] And that’s exactly what Job is doing in Chapter 17, … pleading with God to give him a straight way out of all of what he has confronted. Job wants to see some light to make it through the fog of his life.
And Swindoll closes with the quote of quotes from the old hymn again, Amazing Grace, which says …
Thru many dangers, toils, and snares
I have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
And as Swindoll closes, “Even through the fog, grace will lead us home.”
My Prayer for Today: Oh, my Lord, the world is so foggy. Please lead us home with Your grace. Amen
Sunday, May 17, 2009
2009 – Day 136.May 17 – Who Am I?
2009 – Day 136.May 17 – Who Am I?
Passage of the Day: 2nd Samuel 7: 4 – 20… Link to 2nd Sam. 7 for study …
My Journal for Today: In today’s passage we read of a man taking stock of his life. God has let him know that it will not be David who will build the Lord’s Temple; and he comes back to God, basically asking the question, “Who is this David, Lord?” And as Swindoll rightfully points out, the language David uses to converse with God is almost like a child; because it is children who refer to themselves by their own name to their parents, before growing and later in life using self-directed pronouns.
So, we read David asking “Who am I?” to God. And in doing so, he does a self inventory which leads David to count his blessings. If I were to ask God today, “Who am I” … what would I see in my life as it has been cast by God? What would my life look like? And that’s exactly what I’ve been doing today as I meditate on what David asked of God.
Maybe you’d be asking “Who am I” that God would give me life when the lives of others are snuffed out by tornados or tsunamis? Maybe you’d say, “Who am I that God would allow me to have a regular income when others are struggling so much financially?” Who am I that I drive over the speed limit and I don’t get fined when others do? And we could go on and on and on, couldn’t we?
Do we really stop long enough or often enough to realize just how blessed we are? Do we really appreciate the truth of Lamentations 3: 22,-23 [linked], which says that God’s mercies are new every day. As I sit here this morning, I realize that for what I’ve done in my past, I could be an ex-con; … but I’m not. I correspond with a young man in prison who is now labeled by his state as having committed a sex crime; and yet, here I sit on the outside when I have committed what my state labels as sex-crimes in my past. I am an Elder in my church and an ordained minister, leading a ministry for God’s kingdom; and my young brother in Christ languishes in prison. Who am I to receive such mercy when my young friend has not?
It is no wonder that David lamented where he was in life and who he had become? And this study today helps us [well, at least me] see that God can use each of us for His glory in different ways and in different places in life. I don’t know why God has put me here and my young brother in Christ in prison. But now that we are what we are, where we are, and whom we are, it behooves us to grow where we’re planted and to be used for God’s glory, going just where He leads us and being just whom we have been molded to become.
I am the clay, God is the potter? May this cracked pot be used for His glory?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I am so blessed; and even if I can’t build Your temple, may I be Your servant as You call me to be. Amen
Passage of the Day: 2nd Samuel 7: 4 – 20… Link to 2nd Sam. 7 for study …
My Journal for Today: In today’s passage we read of a man taking stock of his life. God has let him know that it will not be David who will build the Lord’s Temple; and he comes back to God, basically asking the question, “Who is this David, Lord?” And as Swindoll rightfully points out, the language David uses to converse with God is almost like a child; because it is children who refer to themselves by their own name to their parents, before growing and later in life using self-directed pronouns.
So, we read David asking “Who am I?” to God. And in doing so, he does a self inventory which leads David to count his blessings. If I were to ask God today, “Who am I” … what would I see in my life as it has been cast by God? What would my life look like? And that’s exactly what I’ve been doing today as I meditate on what David asked of God.
Maybe you’d be asking “Who am I” that God would give me life when the lives of others are snuffed out by tornados or tsunamis? Maybe you’d say, “Who am I that God would allow me to have a regular income when others are struggling so much financially?” Who am I that I drive over the speed limit and I don’t get fined when others do? And we could go on and on and on, couldn’t we?
Do we really stop long enough or often enough to realize just how blessed we are? Do we really appreciate the truth of Lamentations 3: 22,-23 [linked], which says that God’s mercies are new every day. As I sit here this morning, I realize that for what I’ve done in my past, I could be an ex-con; … but I’m not. I correspond with a young man in prison who is now labeled by his state as having committed a sex crime; and yet, here I sit on the outside when I have committed what my state labels as sex-crimes in my past. I am an Elder in my church and an ordained minister, leading a ministry for God’s kingdom; and my young brother in Christ languishes in prison. Who am I to receive such mercy when my young friend has not?
It is no wonder that David lamented where he was in life and who he had become? And this study today helps us [well, at least me] see that God can use each of us for His glory in different ways and in different places in life. I don’t know why God has put me here and my young brother in Christ in prison. But now that we are what we are, where we are, and whom we are, it behooves us to grow where we’re planted and to be used for God’s glory, going just where He leads us and being just whom we have been molded to become.
I am the clay, God is the potter? May this cracked pot be used for His glory?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I am so blessed; and even if I can’t build Your temple, may I be Your servant as You call me to be. Amen
Thursday, May 07, 2009
2009 – Day 126.May 07 – Lesson Learned!
2009 – Day 126.May 07 – Lesson Learned!
Passage of the Day: 1st Samuel 25: 35 - 38 … Link to 1st Sam. 25 for study …
Highlight Passage – 1st Samuel 25: 35 – 38 … 35 So David received from her [Abigail’s] hand what she had brought him, and said to her, “Go up in peace to your house. See, I have heeded your voice and respected your person.” … 36 Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was, holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk; therefore she told him nothing, little or much, until morning light. 37 So it was, in the morning, when the wine had gone from Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became like a stone. 38 Then it happened, after about ten days, that the LORD struck Nabal, and he died.
My Journal for Today: Above I have given you the link to go back and study the context of today’s shorter highlight passage [also above for your quick study]. It’s another rather remarkable story, illustrating the interaction between Abigail, David, and Nabal, Abby’s husband.
You may remember that Abigail had done the tough, but Godly thing, standing in the gap for her scoundrel (and probably abusive) husband, saving his life from a very angry anointed one, David. And David recognized that Abigail had given him wise and Godly counsel; and he spared her household, allowing Abigail to give David and his 400 men all the food and drink they needed. And what was Abby’s hubby doing the whole time his wife was being his advocate? As you’ve hopefully read, this “scallywag” was off getting drunk and probably carousing without his wife. And so, what did God do?
Well, the next morning, after Abigail informed her husband what had transpired with David, The Lord saw fit to bring some sort of severe vascular malady (maybe a stroke or heart attack) to this evil man; and he died ten days latter. And if you take a sneak peak by reading ahead a bit, you’ll see that David, recognizing how special Abigail was, proposed to her; and she came to David and was made over to be one of his wives.
This is not the place to discuss the rights or wrongs of David having more than one wife (which becomes interesting theological speculation given David’s fall into sin some years later); but at this point we realize that God can, in His own timing and in His own way, take care of seemingly impossible situations and honoring our righteous decisions, especially when we honor God by doing things the right way rather than the world’s way.
There are many examples in Scripture of God honoring His promises, even when mankind has trouble doing the right thing. BUT, when man does it the RIGHT way, God may not do things exactly as we might imagine or desire; but He’ll always do it the best way for those who believe and follow Him. That’s the working out of a verse (Romans 8: 28 - linked below) which I hope you have memorized and internalized. And we see it played out in this true-life scenario in 1st Samuel 25.
Abigail does the right thing; and God takes over, doing exactly what was needed to protect her family, her household, and to bring about justice for her life with her abusive husband. And so, here’s the deal, … my fellow Christ follower. If we live up to the truth of Luke 9: 23 (also one you should have memorized by now – but linked here if you don’t), God will do the right thing by us (again, I refer you to Romans 8: 28 - linked for your convenience).
Oh, how it’s taken many failures on my part and God's mercy over the years for me to come to the belief and realization of these truths. I pray that you don’t have to incur God’s humility if/when you can’t or won’t choose to humble yourself and learn the lessons we’ve been learning from the life of Abigail. And the main lesson is, … if you don’t humble yourself before God, He will take you through the lessons in “Humility 101;” and the lessons you will have to learn may be something like Nabal had to learn. Personally, I’d rather intentionally submit and humble myself intentionally to life God’s way rather than having to take a mandatory God lesson in humility from our Lord. What is it the old commercial says, … “Pay me now or pay me later!”
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I surrender to You in humility now; and I truly believe that You will guide and protect me as you’ve promised in Your word. Amen
Passage of the Day: 1st Samuel 25: 35 - 38 … Link to 1st Sam. 25 for study …
Highlight Passage – 1st Samuel 25: 35 – 38 … 35 So David received from her [Abigail’s] hand what she had brought him, and said to her, “Go up in peace to your house. See, I have heeded your voice and respected your person.” … 36 Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was, holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk; therefore she told him nothing, little or much, until morning light. 37 So it was, in the morning, when the wine had gone from Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became like a stone. 38 Then it happened, after about ten days, that the LORD struck Nabal, and he died.
My Journal for Today: Above I have given you the link to go back and study the context of today’s shorter highlight passage [also above for your quick study]. It’s another rather remarkable story, illustrating the interaction between Abigail, David, and Nabal, Abby’s husband.
You may remember that Abigail had done the tough, but Godly thing, standing in the gap for her scoundrel (and probably abusive) husband, saving his life from a very angry anointed one, David. And David recognized that Abigail had given him wise and Godly counsel; and he spared her household, allowing Abigail to give David and his 400 men all the food and drink they needed. And what was Abby’s hubby doing the whole time his wife was being his advocate? As you’ve hopefully read, this “scallywag” was off getting drunk and probably carousing without his wife. And so, what did God do?
Well, the next morning, after Abigail informed her husband what had transpired with David, The Lord saw fit to bring some sort of severe vascular malady (maybe a stroke or heart attack) to this evil man; and he died ten days latter. And if you take a sneak peak by reading ahead a bit, you’ll see that David, recognizing how special Abigail was, proposed to her; and she came to David and was made over to be one of his wives.
This is not the place to discuss the rights or wrongs of David having more than one wife (which becomes interesting theological speculation given David’s fall into sin some years later); but at this point we realize that God can, in His own timing and in His own way, take care of seemingly impossible situations and honoring our righteous decisions, especially when we honor God by doing things the right way rather than the world’s way.
There are many examples in Scripture of God honoring His promises, even when mankind has trouble doing the right thing. BUT, when man does it the RIGHT way, God may not do things exactly as we might imagine or desire; but He’ll always do it the best way for those who believe and follow Him. That’s the working out of a verse (Romans 8: 28 - linked below) which I hope you have memorized and internalized. And we see it played out in this true-life scenario in 1st Samuel 25.
Abigail does the right thing; and God takes over, doing exactly what was needed to protect her family, her household, and to bring about justice for her life with her abusive husband. And so, here’s the deal, … my fellow Christ follower. If we live up to the truth of Luke 9: 23 (also one you should have memorized by now – but linked here if you don’t), God will do the right thing by us (again, I refer you to Romans 8: 28 - linked for your convenience).
Oh, how it’s taken many failures on my part and God's mercy over the years for me to come to the belief and realization of these truths. I pray that you don’t have to incur God’s humility if/when you can’t or won’t choose to humble yourself and learn the lessons we’ve been learning from the life of Abigail. And the main lesson is, … if you don’t humble yourself before God, He will take you through the lessons in “Humility 101;” and the lessons you will have to learn may be something like Nabal had to learn. Personally, I’d rather intentionally submit and humble myself intentionally to life God’s way rather than having to take a mandatory God lesson in humility from our Lord. What is it the old commercial says, … “Pay me now or pay me later!”
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I surrender to You in humility now; and I truly believe that You will guide and protect me as you’ve promised in Your word. Amen
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
2009 - Day 27 - A Banquet of Grace
January 27, 2009 … Swindoll’s Topic for Today: A Banquet of Grace
Passage of the Day: Genesis 43: 31 – 34 ... 31 Then he [Joseph, after being overwhelmed with emotion and tears] washed his face and came out; and he restrained himself, and said, “Serve the bread.” 32 So they set him a place by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves; because the Egyptians could not eat food with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. 33 And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth; and the men looked in astonishment at one another. 34 Then he took servings to them from before him, but Benjamin’s serving was five times as much as any of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.
My Journal for Today: One doesn’t have a doctorate in theology or Old Testament religion to see what the scene in today’s chosen passage depicts. It is a banquet of grace with which all born-again Christians ought to identify.
Here we have a band of sinners, Joseph’s brothers, who had come into the presence of a powerful lord. They had their past sins on their consciousness; and they were filled with guilt and fear as to what their fate might be. They had acknowledged their guilt before God, recognizing and repenting of their ways; but now they had humbly come into the presence of one who could meet out any justice he saw fit for them.
And it was to their astonishment that they were entreated to mercy from the lord of this household, actually to a banquet of grace. They certainly didn’t deserve to sit and feast in the king’s court and partake of this lavish bounty offered to them. But they were overjoyed to be able to do so, partaking from the mercy offered to them by this grace-filled lord.
And now, as much as any time during the Old Testament character study I have undertaken with Chuck Swindoll’s help, I think one can see why I see Joseph as an Old Covenant picture of the character of our Lord and Messiah, Jesus. These men had done nothing short of pound the nails in the hands/feet of their brother, much as we have done to Christ with our sinful past. And the sinful brothers in this tale, like yours truly, deserved nothing short of death. But like Joseph’s brothers, recognizing my sin and receiving the grace of my Lord, the Christ, I can now sit at His table and partake in faith from His mercy and grace, which is unlimited and full of abounding favor.
And truly, God’ mercy, depicted in this scenario today, in the words of John Newton’s wonderful hymn, is “AMAZING GRACE that saved a wretch like me.” And this was also the case for the guilt ridden brothers of Joseph. And one day, though I deserve death, I will sit at the wedding feast of the Lamb of God because I have acknowledged my sin and received my Lord’s grace. And so, in this little scene from Genesis 43 we see a picture of why we can find our salvation from a merciful God, Whose grace abounds in the face of our guilt.
Do I sense a “PRAISE GOD” and a “HALLELUJAH [!!]” from anyone reading here? Those are certainly my feelings; and I hope you share them.
My Prayer Today: Oh, praise Your Holy Name, Lord, for my being able to sit at Your table of love and grace. Amen
Passage of the Day: Genesis 43: 31 – 34 ... 31 Then he [Joseph, after being overwhelmed with emotion and tears] washed his face and came out; and he restrained himself, and said, “Serve the bread.” 32 So they set him a place by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves; because the Egyptians could not eat food with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. 33 And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth; and the men looked in astonishment at one another. 34 Then he took servings to them from before him, but Benjamin’s serving was five times as much as any of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.
My Journal for Today: One doesn’t have a doctorate in theology or Old Testament religion to see what the scene in today’s chosen passage depicts. It is a banquet of grace with which all born-again Christians ought to identify.
Here we have a band of sinners, Joseph’s brothers, who had come into the presence of a powerful lord. They had their past sins on their consciousness; and they were filled with guilt and fear as to what their fate might be. They had acknowledged their guilt before God, recognizing and repenting of their ways; but now they had humbly come into the presence of one who could meet out any justice he saw fit for them.
And it was to their astonishment that they were entreated to mercy from the lord of this household, actually to a banquet of grace. They certainly didn’t deserve to sit and feast in the king’s court and partake of this lavish bounty offered to them. But they were overjoyed to be able to do so, partaking from the mercy offered to them by this grace-filled lord.
And now, as much as any time during the Old Testament character study I have undertaken with Chuck Swindoll’s help, I think one can see why I see Joseph as an Old Covenant picture of the character of our Lord and Messiah, Jesus. These men had done nothing short of pound the nails in the hands/feet of their brother, much as we have done to Christ with our sinful past. And the sinful brothers in this tale, like yours truly, deserved nothing short of death. But like Joseph’s brothers, recognizing my sin and receiving the grace of my Lord, the Christ, I can now sit at His table and partake in faith from His mercy and grace, which is unlimited and full of abounding favor.
And truly, God’ mercy, depicted in this scenario today, in the words of John Newton’s wonderful hymn, is “AMAZING GRACE that saved a wretch like me.” And this was also the case for the guilt ridden brothers of Joseph. And one day, though I deserve death, I will sit at the wedding feast of the Lamb of God because I have acknowledged my sin and received my Lord’s grace. And so, in this little scene from Genesis 43 we see a picture of why we can find our salvation from a merciful God, Whose grace abounds in the face of our guilt.
Do I sense a “PRAISE GOD” and a “HALLELUJAH [!!]” from anyone reading here? Those are certainly my feelings; and I hope you share them.
My Prayer Today: Oh, praise Your Holy Name, Lord, for my being able to sit at Your table of love and grace. Amen
Thursday, January 15, 2009
2009 - Day 15 - Tender Mercies
January 15, 2009 … Swindoll’s Topic for Today: Tender Mercies
Passage of the Day: Genesis 41: 41 - 46 ... 41 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” 42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand; and he clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. 43 And he had him ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried out before him, “Bow the knee!” So he set him over all the land of Egypt. 44 Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” 45 And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt. 46 Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt.
My Journal for Today: When I’m feeling down or depressed, I love phrases like, “It’s the darkest before the dawn.” It reminds me that things may seem like the night at the moment; but the sun is going to rise on a new day soon. And that is what we see in the outcome of Joseph’s dark days in prison. Because as we read in today’s passage, the sun came up on this hero of the faith BIGTIME!
He had been in the slammer for two long years, having been incarcerated unjustly by his former master, Potiphar. And then in prison he had been led to help the Pharaoh’s butler whom he asked to give a good word for him. However, the king’s cupbearer summarily forgot about it until Pharaoh needed a dream interpreted; and the butler, who had been reinstated as Joseph had predicted two dark years earlier, finally remembered Joseph’s ability to accurately interpret dreams.
And so, Pharaoh called Joseph, who interpreted a series of wild dreams for Egypt’s king. None of Pharaoh’s wise counselors had been able to do it; but Joseph was ready and up to the task, laying out a scenario for the king and predicting an upcoming famine in the land and the need for Egypt to prepare for the coming horrors by preparing ahead of time. And now, we enter the story as Pharaoh needs someone to manage the land in preparation for the famine; and somehow, with the help of God’s discernment, I believe, the king sees that Joseph is the man for the job.
So, in this wondrous moment of God’s intervening mercy, Joseph learns, as Swindoll writes in his devotional for today, “… a broken and contrite heart is not the end, … it is the beginning.” Here we see Joseph being a wonderful example of someone who waited and waited in faith in the dungeon of life, knowing that God was always in control and that the Lord would never leave him there in prison. Joseph’s faith had allowed him to go through the fire of testing so that the dross in Joseph’s life could be burned off. And now our hero had emerged as pure gold, purified and ready for a God-laden plan to unfold in his life.
And wow, it began with a bang. Pharaoh puts his own signet ring on Joseph, which Swindoll points out was like giving the young man (only 30 years old) the keys to the kingdom. It was the ultimate credit card, which would allow Joseph to travel anywhere and have the authority of the most high. Talk about going from the “pits to the pinnacle,” as Swindoll points out.
Have you ever been so down you couldn’t look up; and then you find yourself lifted up with a glimpse of glory? I have; and it’s so tempting in that high moment to be prideful … a dangerous scenario because God cannot pour His grace into a heart of pride (see Prov. 3: 34 or James 4: 6). The Apostle Paul was there. In 2nd Cor. 12, we read of Paul coming down from a wondrous spiritual high; and God had to allow Satan to give Paul some “thorn,” which was horribly painful, so that Paul would come to learn that the pain was a blessing from God to keep him humble enough to receive and use God’s enabling grace. And it is in this moment of revelation that we read Paul quote Jesus, Who says, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in [your] weakness.”
I love that passage because it’s Jesus telling Paul (and me and all Christians) what Joseph had learned. That God can use anyone who recognizes and acknowledges their weakness and submits to God’s Spirit, seeking the grace that one will need to be used by God. And God can use a Joseph or a Paul who has been seasoned by the fires of pain and privation. And he certainly did with Joseph; and I hope we all realize that God can and will use any of us IF we surrender our lives to him as “living sacrifices,” as Paul wrote about in Rom. 12: 1-2.
My Prayer Today: Lord, I would rather not have to go through prison or a thorn to surrender and receive Your grace. I do so willingly and gladly now. Amen
Passage of the Day: Genesis 41: 41 - 46 ... 41 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” 42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand; and he clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. 43 And he had him ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried out before him, “Bow the knee!” So he set him over all the land of Egypt. 44 Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” 45 And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt. 46 Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt.
My Journal for Today: When I’m feeling down or depressed, I love phrases like, “It’s the darkest before the dawn.” It reminds me that things may seem like the night at the moment; but the sun is going to rise on a new day soon. And that is what we see in the outcome of Joseph’s dark days in prison. Because as we read in today’s passage, the sun came up on this hero of the faith BIGTIME!
He had been in the slammer for two long years, having been incarcerated unjustly by his former master, Potiphar. And then in prison he had been led to help the Pharaoh’s butler whom he asked to give a good word for him. However, the king’s cupbearer summarily forgot about it until Pharaoh needed a dream interpreted; and the butler, who had been reinstated as Joseph had predicted two dark years earlier, finally remembered Joseph’s ability to accurately interpret dreams.
And so, Pharaoh called Joseph, who interpreted a series of wild dreams for Egypt’s king. None of Pharaoh’s wise counselors had been able to do it; but Joseph was ready and up to the task, laying out a scenario for the king and predicting an upcoming famine in the land and the need for Egypt to prepare for the coming horrors by preparing ahead of time. And now, we enter the story as Pharaoh needs someone to manage the land in preparation for the famine; and somehow, with the help of God’s discernment, I believe, the king sees that Joseph is the man for the job.
So, in this wondrous moment of God’s intervening mercy, Joseph learns, as Swindoll writes in his devotional for today, “… a broken and contrite heart is not the end, … it is the beginning.” Here we see Joseph being a wonderful example of someone who waited and waited in faith in the dungeon of life, knowing that God was always in control and that the Lord would never leave him there in prison. Joseph’s faith had allowed him to go through the fire of testing so that the dross in Joseph’s life could be burned off. And now our hero had emerged as pure gold, purified and ready for a God-laden plan to unfold in his life.
And wow, it began with a bang. Pharaoh puts his own signet ring on Joseph, which Swindoll points out was like giving the young man (only 30 years old) the keys to the kingdom. It was the ultimate credit card, which would allow Joseph to travel anywhere and have the authority of the most high. Talk about going from the “pits to the pinnacle,” as Swindoll points out.
Have you ever been so down you couldn’t look up; and then you find yourself lifted up with a glimpse of glory? I have; and it’s so tempting in that high moment to be prideful … a dangerous scenario because God cannot pour His grace into a heart of pride (see Prov. 3: 34 or James 4: 6). The Apostle Paul was there. In 2nd Cor. 12, we read of Paul coming down from a wondrous spiritual high; and God had to allow Satan to give Paul some “thorn,” which was horribly painful, so that Paul would come to learn that the pain was a blessing from God to keep him humble enough to receive and use God’s enabling grace. And it is in this moment of revelation that we read Paul quote Jesus, Who says, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in [your] weakness.”
I love that passage because it’s Jesus telling Paul (and me and all Christians) what Joseph had learned. That God can use anyone who recognizes and acknowledges their weakness and submits to God’s Spirit, seeking the grace that one will need to be used by God. And God can use a Joseph or a Paul who has been seasoned by the fires of pain and privation. And he certainly did with Joseph; and I hope we all realize that God can and will use any of us IF we surrender our lives to him as “living sacrifices,” as Paul wrote about in Rom. 12: 1-2.
My Prayer Today: Lord, I would rather not have to go through prison or a thorn to surrender and receive Your grace. I do so willingly and gladly now. Amen
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