Study from God’s Word… Nehemiah, Chapters 11 – 13 (especially the latter passages) … Passage for Reflection: Nehemiah 13: 22 … NIV Remember me for this also, O my God, and show mercy to me according to Your great love.
My Journal for Today: When one reads what was chronicled by Nehemiah (probably by a scribe or maybe even Ezra), Chapter 13 reads somewhat like a eulogy. In this last chapter of the historical book by his name, Nehemiah has written about a number of failures by God’s people, which he discovers after he had returned to Susa and had been released by Artaxerxes to go back, possibly permanently, to Jerusalem to be the permanent governor. And when Nehemiah returns, to his chagrin, he discovers that the people, in the time he had been gone (we don’t know how long) had desecrated the Temple, began intermarrying with the non-Jewish peoples again, and were not observing the Sabbath properly. And in a historical picture of the Messiah, Who would come to cleanse the Temple some centuries later, Nehemiah was enraged and struck out against God’s chosen people with righteous anger.
And apparently identifying with the heart weakness of these people, in today’s highlight passage in Neh. 13: 22, we read of Nehemiah praying to God for the Lord to have mercy on him, remembering what he had done to cleanse the Temple and set the people on a path which could/would honor God. I can almost read Nehemiah’s mind, possibly remembering the words of Jeremiah, who had come before him with the prophetic description of the deception in any man’s heart (see Jer. 17: 9). I can imagine Nehemiah, returning to Jerusalem again to see the Temple desecration and the worship of idols again, and saying to himself, something like, “There, but for the grace of God, go I;” and then taking righteous action to cleanse the Temple and drive the people to follow God’s law.
And yes that would be the “M.O.” of our Messiah as well, who would come into His Father’s house centuries later to see similar desecration and idol worship, grieving at the hearts of God’s people, and then overthrowing the Temple tables and dispelling wickedness from His Father’s House.
How about you and me, if you’re reading with me here? Do we see desecration in the Temple of our own hearts; and are we angry enough – with a righteous anger toward our sinfulness – to strike out and cleanse our own hearts and rid our own lives of idol worship as well as become more vigilant about guarding the walls of our hearts – i.e., God’s Temple – against the onslaught of evil in our world?
Will we be eulogized when we go to be with Jesus, by someone saying, “This man was driven, Lord, to honor You and to maintain the Temple of his heart pure to honor You and shine a light for all to see Your glory.” That, most certainly, is something I would want said at my home-going. I pray that it will.
What about you? What do you want said to God and to the world as your life is honored when God brings you home?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, may my life be a pure worship for Your glory. Amen
Showing posts with label remembrance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label remembrance. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Saturday, March 06, 2010
2010 – Mar. 6 – Tassels of Remembrance
Study from God’s Word… Lev 22: 31-33; Deut 12: 32; Deut 15: 37-41; Deut 22: 12; Deut 31: 9-13; Lev 26: 3: 1-46; … Passage for Reflection: Deuteronomy 15: 37 – 41 … NIV 37 “The LORD said to Moses, 38 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel. 39 You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the LORD, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by going after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes. 40 Then you will remember to obey all my commands and will be consecrated to your God. 41 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD your God.' "
My Journal for Today: Is forgetfulness a challenge in your life? Do you – as I do – have to use “to do” lists to get things accomplished? Do you put important dates, like your spouse’s birthday, on a calendar; or maybe important appointments so that you don’t forget to remember these important events? Do you take notes when you go to seminar, especially one with an important teacher, like yours truly, {yeah, right! ;>)} says something that you don’t want to forget?
Yes, many of us do some, or all, of these things because forgetfulness is part of the human condition. God certainly knew that in the days He gave Moses the Law. So God wrote those big ten laws down on tablets; and Moses placed them in the Arc of the Covenant. And then Moses had all these laws, which I’ve been studying and reviewing these past few days from the Pentateuch, written down; because God, through Moses, recognized that mankind had short memories with regard to obedience to the God who had given them life and had delivered them from Egypt.
And in today’s passage we even see that Moses (from God’s instruction) had the men wear blue tassels on their outer garments as remembrance of God and His Law; so that, by wearing these tassels, the men might remember and be obedient to their very personal God. And if you read through Leviticus 26 – linked here for your study - any Jew in those days might have been really motivated to wear those tassels and to be obedient to God’s provision and practices because the provisions for disobedience was certainly horrible.
Bad things were to be wrought by God if the Israelites disobeyed His Law. And F. LaGard Smith, my devotional shepherd in his devotional entry for today, points out that we may not, as Christians, wear tassels of remembrance on our garments these days; but there are ways we can remind ourselves that we need to be obedient as our Lord has instructed us to be (see John 14: 21). We can have our “tassels of remembrance” whenever we take in God’s word through Scripture memory. Smith points out that teaching God’s word, through verse-by-verse memorization, explaining to our kids the meaning of God’s truth, is one of the best ways to help establish and maintain a relationship with God for our children.
And when we, personally and consciously, decide to take in God’s word into our hearts, truly contextualizing its meaning and understanding its application, we will be doing what God charged Joshua (see Josh. 1: 8) to do so that Joshua (or we) could realize spiritual success. Every verse we memorize, and can use for our lives, becomes our remembrance and use of God’s prescription to avoid sin (seePsalm 119: 9-11). Every verse we memorize, and discipline ourselves to use to deal with life’s challenges, is the way we sharpen and practice with our Spirit-swords for battle (see Eph. 6:17). Jesus certainly used this technique when He was tempted by His arch rival (and ours), Satan. When challenged by Satan, Jesus remembered and invoked the word of God [see Matt. 4 or Luke 4] to demonstrate His “tassels of remembrance.”
And this is a technique of spiritual battle my mentor taught me years ago; and I now teach it to any Christian who’ll listen to me. We are weaklings when it comes to remembering God’s truth and applying it to our lives. We need the kind of help which God imparted to His people by having them wear those blue tassels on their garments. What “tassels of remembrance” do you have in your life, … “tassels” which help you to continue to go deep – on a daily basis – in your relationship with God? Is your daily priority time with God one of those tassels? How many tassels of scripture memory do you wear in your heart, … tassels which bubble forth in your consciousness when you’re confronted by some spiritual enemy which is trying to get you to live in accord with Satan or self, rather than to remember and live for our Savior?
I leave it to you to see if you’re wearing any “tassels of remembrance” where others can see that your life is a living display of your relationship with and obedience to Christ.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I’m so grateful that Your word has become my garment with tassels to help me remember You each day; and to display Your glory for the world to see – YOU – and Your Robes of Righteousness, covering my rags of sin. Amen
My Journal for Today: Is forgetfulness a challenge in your life? Do you – as I do – have to use “to do” lists to get things accomplished? Do you put important dates, like your spouse’s birthday, on a calendar; or maybe important appointments so that you don’t forget to remember these important events? Do you take notes when you go to seminar, especially one with an important teacher, like yours truly, {yeah, right! ;>)} says something that you don’t want to forget?
Yes, many of us do some, or all, of these things because forgetfulness is part of the human condition. God certainly knew that in the days He gave Moses the Law. So God wrote those big ten laws down on tablets; and Moses placed them in the Arc of the Covenant. And then Moses had all these laws, which I’ve been studying and reviewing these past few days from the Pentateuch, written down; because God, through Moses, recognized that mankind had short memories with regard to obedience to the God who had given them life and had delivered them from Egypt.
And in today’s passage we even see that Moses (from God’s instruction) had the men wear blue tassels on their outer garments as remembrance of God and His Law; so that, by wearing these tassels, the men might remember and be obedient to their very personal God. And if you read through Leviticus 26 – linked here for your study - any Jew in those days might have been really motivated to wear those tassels and to be obedient to God’s provision and practices because the provisions for disobedience was certainly horrible.
Bad things were to be wrought by God if the Israelites disobeyed His Law. And F. LaGard Smith, my devotional shepherd in his devotional entry for today, points out that we may not, as Christians, wear tassels of remembrance on our garments these days; but there are ways we can remind ourselves that we need to be obedient as our Lord has instructed us to be (see John 14: 21). We can have our “tassels of remembrance” whenever we take in God’s word through Scripture memory. Smith points out that teaching God’s word, through verse-by-verse memorization, explaining to our kids the meaning of God’s truth, is one of the best ways to help establish and maintain a relationship with God for our children.
And when we, personally and consciously, decide to take in God’s word into our hearts, truly contextualizing its meaning and understanding its application, we will be doing what God charged Joshua (see Josh. 1: 8) to do so that Joshua (or we) could realize spiritual success. Every verse we memorize, and can use for our lives, becomes our remembrance and use of God’s prescription to avoid sin (seePsalm 119: 9-11). Every verse we memorize, and discipline ourselves to use to deal with life’s challenges, is the way we sharpen and practice with our Spirit-swords for battle (see Eph. 6:17). Jesus certainly used this technique when He was tempted by His arch rival (and ours), Satan. When challenged by Satan, Jesus remembered and invoked the word of God [see Matt. 4 or Luke 4] to demonstrate His “tassels of remembrance.”
And this is a technique of spiritual battle my mentor taught me years ago; and I now teach it to any Christian who’ll listen to me. We are weaklings when it comes to remembering God’s truth and applying it to our lives. We need the kind of help which God imparted to His people by having them wear those blue tassels on their garments. What “tassels of remembrance” do you have in your life, … “tassels” which help you to continue to go deep – on a daily basis – in your relationship with God? Is your daily priority time with God one of those tassels? How many tassels of scripture memory do you wear in your heart, … tassels which bubble forth in your consciousness when you’re confronted by some spiritual enemy which is trying to get you to live in accord with Satan or self, rather than to remember and live for our Savior?
I leave it to you to see if you’re wearing any “tassels of remembrance” where others can see that your life is a living display of your relationship with and obedience to Christ.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I’m so grateful that Your word has become my garment with tassels to help me remember You each day; and to display Your glory for the world to see – YOU – and Your Robes of Righteousness, covering my rags of sin. Amen
Sunday, May 03, 2009
2009 – Day 122.May 03 – from The Daily Bread - In Remembrance of Me
2009 – Day 122.May 03 – from The Daily Bread - In Remembrance of Me
Blogger’s Note: On vacation with family, when I left home, traveling to East TN, I left the Swindoll devotional book at home. Therefore, I’ve chosen to use the devotions from the classic book, The Daily Bread, for my devotionals while I’m on vacation. The online version was available for me to use during my travels.
Daily Bread Passage for May 3: Luke 22: 7 - 22 ... Passage linked for your study …
My Journal for Today: The author of today’s devotional in The Daily Bread uses a common scenario to help us identify with the Last Supper scene from today’s passage in Luke 22. The scene had two parents leaving pictures of themselves at the eye level of their toddler when they left the child with a baby sitter to help the child remember that the parents would be there for the child in their absence.
And here we have Jesus, knowing that He would not physically be with His Disciples very soon; and so He takes a ritual very familiar to them, the Passover Supper, and gives them a picture in remembrance of Him. I’ve always felt that the sensitivity and love shown in this scene, as we read about it in the New Testament, here in Luke and in the Upper Room Discourse of John 13 – 16, illustrates just how far God will go with His love to reinforce the truth that He will never leave us nor forsake us, a message we can read over and over again in His word (see Deut. 31: 6, Joshua 1: 5, and Hebrews 13: 5).
As the sheep of His flock, Jesus knew His disciples (including you and me) would feel separated at times from our Good Shepherd. So, He gave us a poignant and powerful reminder that would help reinforce the Good Shepherd’s promise that He would die so that we will live forever. As His sheep, we need the truth of Isaiah 53: 6 [linked] bored into our minds and hearts; and our Communion was/is one of God’s way of doing that.
I hope you have ways, like the sharing of Communion, to remember the Good Shepherd in your life. As the sheep of His flock, it’s pretty easy for us to fall prey to letting the circumstances of life dampen or deter our vision of our Shepherd. However, every time I come back to His word every morning – like I am here with this journaling – I’m given a picture at my eye level to remind me that my Good Shepherd is right here with me. And as I write this, I do so in remembrance of Him.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, my Good Shepherd, thank You for giving me remembrances from Your word of Your presence. Amen
PS NOTE: The timing and imagery of the Daily Bread author today using a “baby sitter” scenario to illustrate God’s desire to comfort His children with His New Covenant Communion was not lost on me today since I had left my “security blanket” (i.e., my daily devotional book) when I left home. It was as if God was saying to this little wayward lamb, “Don’t worry, Bill, … My word from The Daily Bread will bring Me close to you.” And it did just that!
Blogger’s Note: On vacation with family, when I left home, traveling to East TN, I left the Swindoll devotional book at home. Therefore, I’ve chosen to use the devotions from the classic book, The Daily Bread, for my devotionals while I’m on vacation. The online version was available for me to use during my travels.
Daily Bread Passage for May 3: Luke 22: 7 - 22 ... Passage linked for your study …
My Journal for Today: The author of today’s devotional in The Daily Bread uses a common scenario to help us identify with the Last Supper scene from today’s passage in Luke 22. The scene had two parents leaving pictures of themselves at the eye level of their toddler when they left the child with a baby sitter to help the child remember that the parents would be there for the child in their absence.
And here we have Jesus, knowing that He would not physically be with His Disciples very soon; and so He takes a ritual very familiar to them, the Passover Supper, and gives them a picture in remembrance of Him. I’ve always felt that the sensitivity and love shown in this scene, as we read about it in the New Testament, here in Luke and in the Upper Room Discourse of John 13 – 16, illustrates just how far God will go with His love to reinforce the truth that He will never leave us nor forsake us, a message we can read over and over again in His word (see Deut. 31: 6, Joshua 1: 5, and Hebrews 13: 5).
As the sheep of His flock, Jesus knew His disciples (including you and me) would feel separated at times from our Good Shepherd. So, He gave us a poignant and powerful reminder that would help reinforce the Good Shepherd’s promise that He would die so that we will live forever. As His sheep, we need the truth of Isaiah 53: 6 [linked] bored into our minds and hearts; and our Communion was/is one of God’s way of doing that.
I hope you have ways, like the sharing of Communion, to remember the Good Shepherd in your life. As the sheep of His flock, it’s pretty easy for us to fall prey to letting the circumstances of life dampen or deter our vision of our Shepherd. However, every time I come back to His word every morning – like I am here with this journaling – I’m given a picture at my eye level to remind me that my Good Shepherd is right here with me. And as I write this, I do so in remembrance of Him.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, my Good Shepherd, thank You for giving me remembrances from Your word of Your presence. Amen
PS NOTE: The timing and imagery of the Daily Bread author today using a “baby sitter” scenario to illustrate God’s desire to comfort His children with His New Covenant Communion was not lost on me today since I had left my “security blanket” (i.e., my daily devotional book) when I left home. It was as if God was saying to this little wayward lamb, “Don’t worry, Bill, … My word from The Daily Bread will bring Me close to you.” And it did just that!
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