The early church was a special time in history. Jesus has just been raised. He has gone up, bodily, into heaven, and has poured out his Spirit upon those who follow him. (Rom. 8:9) In our day discussions about doctrines and divisions about drivel develop daily.
BUT in the EARLY CHURCH, they were passionately pleading for the Pierced. They didn’t argue and debate about the number of angels that can dance on the head of a pin (to be fair, no-one has ever really debated that question). We can get so distracted from what was the early church’s singular focus : giving everyone and anyone the message of Jesus, and changing their world with the power of Jesus.
In chapter three, a man who had been begging for years is healed. This is the first of many, many miracles recorded in the book of Acts. The disciples were passionately sharing the message and gift of Jesus with everyone! They tell their fellow Israelites that God healed this man because of his servant Jesus. They tell the Sanhedrin and high priest about Jesus. They count it as a joy when they are persecuted and beaten for Jesus. They know their reward in heaven is great, because the righteous are persecuted by the wicked (Matt. 5:12).
In our lives, are we passionate about the message and work of Jesus then and now? If you aren’t don’t try to be passionate!
Instead, remember your sins, your mistakes, your failures. Remember that for even the smallest, you were separated from God. You were condemned to destruction, because that is the fate of those without God. And remember that God loved you enough to give you Jesus to redeem you. Jesus loved you enough to die in your place. They love you SO MUCH they love you just as you are, and they love you TOO MUCH to let you stay there, and want to make your life better, freer, holier, more and more wonderful.
The early church was passionate because they knew the truth of Christ. We will be passionate when we remember it.
-Jake Ballard
Today’s Bible reading passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway here – 1 Samuel 17-18 and Acts 3
I was a teenager when the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark first hit the theatres. It instantly became one of my all-time favorite movies. I love the Indiana Jones character and this particular adventure, searching for the Ark of the Covenant, was especially cool to me because it drew from Biblical themes. The Ark of the Covenant was a real thing containing real power. What would happen if it was found and fell into the wrong hands, like the Nazi’s? It was a great story. It got pretty intense toward the end when they tried to open the Ark. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t end well for the Nazi’s.
The Nazi’s in the story should have spent less time plotting the genocide of the Jews and global domination and more time reading their Bibles, because the story of the Ark in 1 Samuel 5-6 should have discouraged them from having anything to do with the Ark. (I know, Raiders of the Lost Ark is fiction- but what happens to the Philistines in today’s reading is True).
One thing we know from reading the Bible is that God doesn’t like to share His glory with idols. God is the one True God and He alone created everything, gives life, sends rain to produce crops and blesses people with fertility. God takes it very personally when people build statues for other “so called” gods and give them credit for sending rain or helping babies to be born.
I find the story of the Philistines stealing the Ark of the Covenant and bringing it in the temple of their “god” Dagon humorous. Dagon was the main god of the Philistines and they offered sacrifices to Dagon so that they could have fertility- their cattle, and their wives. They wanted lots of cattle to feed their bellies, and they wanted lots of sons to grow up and serve in the army to fight their enemies. So they prayed and offered sacrifices to Dagon so that Dagon would make their cows and their wives fertile.
We might excuse the ignorance of the Philistines because maybe they didn’t know any better, maybe no one told them the Truth about the True God. But God made it quite clear to His chosen people, Israel, that they were to worship and serve God alone. But they were often tempted to worship other gods. Several stories in the Old Testament show how God was superior and defeated other “so called” gods. Elijah called down fire from heaven and defeated the prophets of Baal. Samson’s last act after he had been captured and blinded was to push down the pillars of the temple to Dagon and kill a bunch of the Philistines. And here, when the Ark of the Covenant is brought into another temple of Dagon, The statue of Dagon falls down the first time, then falls down again breaking the idol into pieces. The Philistines of that town are afraid so they send the Ark to another town. There, everybody gets tumors and they end up in a panic. Everywhere the stolen Ark is taken trouble comes to the Philistines, so finally they bring the Ark back to Israel along with a guilt offering (golden tumors and rats, what a thoughtful gift).
The Philistines had trouble discerning fact from fiction- the true God, YHWH, the God of Israel, vs. Dagon, a statue that was quite brittle when it fell to the ground.
Truth matters. In today’s reading in John 18, after Jesus is arrested and brought to trial, he appears before Pilate, who is the highest representative of the Roman Empire in the region who ultimately decides all capital cases, who lives and who dies.
Pilate is a politician caught between his boss, Caesar, who has tasked him to keep the Jewish people in line and the Jewish people who can turn on him and cause trouble. He has to carefully consider the political implications of what he’s being asked to do. Like many politicians and people in charge, he is more of a pragmatist than anything else. What is going to work out to my best interests here? He asks Jesus some questions and Jesus gives an answer that he finds quaint. Jesus answered: “The reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”
Truth? How naïve. You might imagine the amusement (or scorn) in Pilate’s response when he asks Jesus: “What is Truth?”
If the idea of truth was a quaint notion to a first century Roman politician, it’s become reviled and scorned by 20th and 21st century intellectuals. We live in a time of Postmodernism. Absolute truth has been replaced by relativism. Truth is whatever the people who have the power to control government, the news, the arts and higher education say it is. Truth is what Facebook, or Twitter, or Google’s “fact checkers” say it is.
Whether you and I like it or not we are in the midst of a culture war. It’s the same one that’s been going on since the serpent tempted Eve to question God. It’s the same one that was going on in the temple of Dagon when the stolen Ark was brought in, it’s the same one that was going on when the Jewish leaders lied about Jesus and brought him to Rome to be condemned and executed, it’s the one that was going on when Pilate asked, “What is truth?” It’s going on today in a society where the things we’ve always believed about God and virtue, right and wrong, and pretty obvious things like basic human biology, are all being questioned and redefined. Gender isn’t about biology it is a social construct. If you start introducing facts or science or Truth, you will receive as much scorn as Jesus received from Pilate. But it is a culture war and Jesus told Pilate that there are two sides: one side is false and the other is true. Jesus said that if you are on the side of Truth you listen to Jesus. Pilate chose his side, and so he did what was politically correct and had Jesus crucified to appease the Jewish people. The question you and I must ask ourselves is whose side am I on? Am I on the side of Truth, that listens to the words of Jesus? Pick a side.
-Jeff Fletcher
Today’s Bible reading can be read or listened to at BibleGateway here – 1 Samuel 5-6 and John 18
“All you need is love.” That song, written by John Lennon and sung by the Beatles in June 1967 (during the so-called “summer of love”) was broadcast live and seen by over 400 million viewers in 25 countries at the time. It was a kind of sappy, feel good, hippie anthem/anti-war protest song (this was during the height of the war in Viet Nam).
The late 60’s was a time of radical change in America. Young men were coming back from Viet Nam in body bags and people were burning their draft cards. Desegregation was making strides through Dr. King’s call to non-violent protest and some progress was being made, until Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis in 1968 and peaceful protest turned to violent mobs. As the 60’s gave way to the 70’s and 80’s many of the hippies grew up and became yuppies trading their free love, pot and “make love, not war” peace signs for cocaine and dollar signs on Wall Street.
Now we’re in 2021 and the BLM movement tells us that racism is still alive and well. All that love that John Lennon said was all we needed seems to be in short supply these days.
Ruth is an interesting kind of love story that we need to study today. It shows that true love makes sacrifices and takes risks for the benefit of others. After Ruth’s husband dies and her father-in-law dies Ruth is encouraged to go back to her people and find another husband, but she loves her mother-in-law enough to sacrifice doing what is most convenient for her. She goes to a foreign land where she lives a very marginal existence of grabbing the scraps of life. She is a foreign woman without a husband living far from her family. It was a perilous existence full of danger and risk, yet she does it out of love for Naomi.
There are lots of interesting details to the story that no doubt get lost in 3000 years of cultural distance. Kinsmen redeemer is a foreign concept in our society. In ancient Israel there were two things that mattered most- having an heir and having land that belongs to the family and stays in the family for generations. When a man died without leaving behind a male child to continue the family name and inherit the land and care for the women in their old age it was up to the next available unmarried male relative to marry the widow and their child would actually be the heir of the son who died. Many men didn’t like this set up and refused to participate in it. It was a sacrificial act for a man to take on that responsibility for his dead relatives family and legacy.
Boaz was a man of great character. In many ways he could have taken advantage of Ruth’s helplessness and dependency and used her to his advantage. He did not, instead, he looked out for her and her mother-in-law by making sure they received more than enough food. He didn’t take advantage of her sexually, instead, he did what was right and at personal cost he took over the role of the kinsmen redeemer and made Ruth his wife and took care of Ruth’s mother-in-law, Naomi. He acted in a very loving way toward Ruth and Naomi. Ruth acted in a very loving way toward Naomi. Naomi was protected and cared for. Ruth was protected and cared for. She and Boaz were blessed with a son. That son, Obed was the grandfather to David who later became the King of Israel, and they were ancestors of Jesus.
“All you need is Love.” There’s a lot of love in the story of Ruth. Love really is important, it’s foundational to everything. But love must be rightly understood. It’s more than what we typically think of as love – warm feelings, romantic notions and sappy songs are not what love is about. Love is about commitment and sacrifice, it’s about doing what is hard in order to benefit the person you love. Love is a willingness to take the less easy route. Love is doing the right thing even when it would be easier and less complicated to do the wrong thing.
Jesus takes up this theme of love in John 15. He was about to go to the cross and suffer and die. He is giving a message to his friends and disciples to sustain them through the difficult hours and days ahead. The foundational message he gives them is love: “12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. “
Jesus teaches about love and exhorts them to love and then he shows them what love looks like by sacrificing himself as an offering for the sins of the world, his friends the disciples, and for us as well. This love that Jesus demonstrates is a reflection of God’s love for us that is shown in giving his son, Jesus that we might have eternal life (see John 3:16).
“All you need is love?” Yes, if we mean the kind of love modeled by Ruth and Boaz which ultimately led to Jesus. “All you need is love?” Yes, if we mean the kind of love modeled by Jesus who gave his life for our sins and by God who gave His only begotten son for our salvation. Love is not just peace signs and romantic songs- it’s commitment and sacrifice and placing the needs of others ahead of our wants and desires. Who and how can you and I love today?
-Jeff Fletcher
Today’s Bible reading passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway here –Ruth 3-4 and John 15
In Judges 17 we meet Micah’s mother. She promises a certain amount of money to God but holds back most (17:3). She built an altar and disgraces herself by not giving everything to God. Fast forward to the New Testament where we meet a woman who meets Jesus and takes her most treasured possession, her perfume, and pours it on Jesus’ feet. The comparison is stark. On one hand, you have Micah’s mother who holds back and on the other hand, you have a woman who lavishly gives everything at Jesus’s feet.
We all have things that we value and take great care to keep. At the beginning of John 12, we see the thing Mary considered precious — a bottle of expensive perfume. This perfume was not just a fragrance to Mary. It was worth nearly a year’s wages. Mary wasn’t just saving this perfume for a special day. This bottle was her financial security.
“Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume” (John 12:3).
In an act of love, Mary poured her perfume onto Jesus’ feet. She knelt to the ground and washed His feet, ignoring the opinions of others. Mary gave radically. She gave not knowing if she would be able to live through the day but trusting Jesus anyway. She gave with such extravagance that the disciples told her she had given too much.
To put Mary’s situation in today’s terms, it would be like going to church next Sunday, feeling called to give, and tithing your entire year’s salary! Yet, this is the same way God gave to us. He gave His best when He gave us Jesus. God not only calls us to radical faith, but He also calls us to radical giving.
What woman are you like? Are you giving everything to the Lord? Ask yourself how you can be more extravagant in your giving. What’s holding you back from pouring your security out at Jesus’ feet? How do these verses show us that we can trust Him with what’s most precious to us?
Is there anything in your life you have not given to God?
-Andy Cisneros
Today’s Bible reading passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway here – Judges 17-18 and John 12
We’re going to take a little break from discussing Joshua today to look at Psalm 69. This is one of the Psalms which is most often quoted or referenced in the New Testament (probably coming in 3rd after Psalm 110 and Psalm 22). Similar to Psalm 22, it is a portrait of a suffering servant. In the New Testament these verses will be used to describe Jesus, the ultimate suffering servant. But most likely, there have been a time or two when you thought theses verses could have been describing you, too.
Have you ever felt like you were sinking? Your troubles choking out your breath? The saddest picture I find is from verse 3 “I am worn out calling for help, my throat is parched, my eyes fail, looking for my God.” You can tell someone needs a hug! They are feeling so desperate. Their suffering is so great!
But this is not the cry of someone who has just had a couple bad days in a row – flat tire, sickness, general stress mounting. No, this is David, Jesus, or you surrounded by enemies. You know you aren’t perfect, certainly God knows that (verse 5) but these enemies don’t want to destroy you for something evil you have done, but for the very God you serve. They don’t understand you or your God so they hate you without reason and seek to bring you down for who and what you stand for. “For I endure scorn for your sake…zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me…people make sport of me. Those who sit at the gate (the town elders, ie – politicians, city councils, professors and principals) mock me” (Psalm 69:7a, 9, 11b, 12a).
Just this week I heard of the 3rd grader in trouble for wearing her favorite mask to school. It said Jesus Loves Me and the principal didn’t like that. Or the college student who was told he had to reserve a small “free speech zone” on campus from which to speak to others about his Christian beliefs and excitement. And when he complied with their rules he was once again told by campus police that he had to stop because some of the students were still complaining. Luckily the Supreme Court had something to say about that one recently.
Surrounded by enemies. We, in America, are watching our nation slip (or free-fall nosedive) from being a nation of “In God we Trust” where the large majority claimed Christianity to a foreign feeling country where our rights are being restricted at every turn. Suddenly “Dare to be a Daniel” means something to us. As new laws and policies develop, we have a new-found appreciation for what our brothers and sisters in Pakistan and other Christian hostile nations have endured for generations. Surrounded by enemies – for our faith? It feels so strange to us – but we are not the first to feel this way. Remember Paul, repeatedly thrown in jail for the crime of speaking the name of Jesus? David, Daniel, Jeremiah, Jesus, Paul and the disciples, the list goes on and on and includes many modern and Biblical role models and even martyrs. Hopefully you didn’t sign up to be a follower of Christ because you thought it was always going to be easy and pleasant. Surrounded by enemies – for our faith! Christians unite, and take up our armor of God (but that takes us into another devotion for another day).
Back to Psalm 69 – After saying his eyes fail looking for God, and all he does see is enemies who insult God surrounding him, he says, “But I pray to you, O LORD”. He is NOT throwing in the towel. Even though it is sometimes hard to see God in the suffering, we keep on praying to Him, knowing He is the Creator, the Sustainer, our Loving and Powerful Rock. Even when it looks bleak, we know the war is far from over. And, we know who does indeed win the war. And, that is why we don’t give up and don’t give in. We are not swayed by the town elders or those who mock us or try to destroy us because of our God. Our God is bigger.
There is one verse towards the end of the psalm that says, “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.” (Psalm 69:30). Doesn’t that sound like he is having a good, sunny, easy day! It’s almost like this verse landed smack dab in the wrong Psalm. Singing, praising, glorifying, thanking. What happened to the enemy surrounds and I am scared and suffering? Oh, it’s still there. In fact, the verse IMMEDIATELY proceeding the praising, singing, glorifying, thanking says, “I am in pain and distress; may your salvation, O God, protect me.” (Psalm 69:29). The trouble isn’t over, but David is still praising. It reminds me of Julie Andrews/ Maria (yes, The Sound of Music was my favorite growing up). Anytime she needed a confidence boost, when she was scared in a thunderstorm, or when the dog bit or the bee stung – she burst into song. We have something much better to sing about than girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes. We have a God who saves, even though we suffer. When we are caught in the storm we have a God who saves. And even while the winds blow and our enemies surround we can pray and lift our voice in song. Jesus did, too. After the Last Supper, before going to the Mount of Olives knowing that is where he would be physically surrounded by his enemies, he sang a hymn.
Joshua and the Israelites are getting things done and cleaning up Canaan land. Piece by piece, city by city, town by town, they are accepting their inheritance – the Promised Land that God has been preparing for them the past 430 years.
Beginning with the promise made to Abraham, the old man with no offspring, that if he followed God he would be made into the father of a great nation that would occupy the land. The promise was passed down to Isaac his miracle child, and given again to Isaac’s son Jacob, the father of 12 sons/tribes. It was these brothers that were saved by Joseph when he brought his family to Egypt to survive the famine in their land. A new pharaoh brought the Israelites into slavery and for the next few generations their numbers continued to grow in Egypt. Then Moses entered the scene with the 10 Plagues and “Let My People Go”.
This hasn’t been the easy way to grow a nation. But, God doesn’t have to go the easy route. He was not just creating any nation, but creating a holy nation that called on Him and relied on Him and followed Him.
In Joshua 11:15-16a it is recorded, “As the LORD commanded his servant Moses, so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua did it; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses. So Joshua took this entire land…”
The work passed on to the next generation and the promise passed on to the next generation. And here they were, back in the land where Abraham had pitched his tent. They were seeing the fulfillment of so many years of waiting and watching to see how God would make His promises come true. They had seen the waters of the Jordan stop flowing at flood stage so they could cross into this land. They had felt the ground shake when the walls of Jericho came down. They had witnessed the sun standing still! This was not a usual way to create a nation, because they did not have a usual God!
I love that this same awe of God is found about 200 years later in the writings of David. David is still writing about when God “turned the sea into dry land” (Psalm 66:6), as well as His majestic creation, His forgiveness, His care through rain and crops, and His “awesome deeds of righteousness” (Psalm 65:5).
I especially love a passage from yesterday’s Psalm reading – Psalm 62:11-12
“One thing God has spoken, two things I have heard;
that you, O God, are strong,
and that you, O Lord, are loving.
Surely you will reward each person according to what he has done.”
We serve a strong and loving God who rewards his faithful children. It is not enough for God to just be powerful (that could be scary). It is not enough for God to just be loving (that is also scary if you consider a loving but powerless God). But a loving and powerful God is the one I want to follow. He will have good things for His children and the strength to deliver them. Just as He delivered in mighty ways for the children of Israel as they entered the Promised Land under the outstretched arm of Joshua, God is now preparing the fulfillment of all His promises in the Coming Kingdom of God which will be ushered in at the return of His Son Jesus. And that is an event you don’t want to miss.
-Marcia Railton
Today’s Bible reading passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway here – Joshua 11-12 and Psalm 65-66
Yesterday, Makayla wrote about God’s plan and how perfectly Jesus accepted and fulfilled his part in allowing his body to be sacrificed and overcome by death – for 3 days. And she challenged us to consider how we will each respond, how will we play our part in the unfolding of God’s plan and His will. For each generation, and indeed each individual throughout history has the opportunity to choose how they will respond. Some have chosen very wisely.
Since January first our Old Testament reading has been in one of the first 5 books of the Bible – the Pentateuch, the Books of Moses. We have seen God’s plan unfold from His spectacular creation, the beginnings of life, to the the flood, the rainbow, and the faith of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We saw how God provided for every generation including food during famine and a miraculous family reunion for Jacob and Joseph. And that was all just in the book of Genesis. Next came 4 books and 120 years of God leading and protecting His people through His man Moses – from the basket in the river to the Pharaoh’s palace, from Moses’ stumbling speech at the burning bush to the far side (the safe side) of the Red Sea, from the gift of the Ten Commandments to that wretched Golden Calf, from the mountaintop to the tabernacle God has shown His faithfulness and how He deserves to be followed. He led the Israelites right to the door of the Promised Land, but then ten of the twelve spies chickened out and the people forfeited their chance to be led by God into the land flowing with milk and honey. Instead, that generation would die in the next 40 years as they were wandering in the desert wilderness. Meanwhile, their children were growing up, preparing to wear their dead parents’ sandals (the same ones God made sure didn’t wear out) into the good land promised to the grandchildren of Abraham. Every generation, every individual gets to choose their response to God and His faithfulness.
So, here we are reading the first book of the Old Testament books of History – the book of Joshua. Moses has just died and the reigns of leadership have been passed on to the man who has been Moses’ sidekick for years. Before Moses’ death he had written out the early history of God’s people and God’s laws so that Joshua and those who would follow would know and remember. Moses and God had instilled into Joshua the need to return daily (day and night) to God’s Word as recorded by Moses: “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:8-9 NIV)
This, too, is the key to our response. Stay daily in God’s Word (all 66 books now – what a treasure trove). The world is still a scary place, just as the 12 spies discovered. And, without a daily dose of God’s Word it is easy to lose sight of God’s provision and lose the strength and courage that comes only from a solid foundation in God’s power and promise.
As Joshua leads the people into the Promised Land it is still the land of giants and fortified cities that had scared away the generation that came before him. But, armed with God’s Word he has the courage to go with God. And God does not disappoint. The first obstacle is the Jordan River at flood stage. Not a problem. Once the feet of the priests touch the water’s edge the waters stop flowing and the people walk across on dry ground. God has Joshua select one man from each tribe to carry out a rock from the middle of the Jordan and these 12 stones are erected to form a monument to God’s miraculous provision, so they can remember and tell the next generation.
It is part of our response to His goodness. Remember. And tell the next generation. I have never seen that pile of rock. But I have seen God at work in my life and at work in the generations before me. And, I have a great gift that lasts longer than the greatest pile of rock – God’s Word. It has been given that I might know the Almighty Father and what He has done. Without it, my memory fails me, and I am fearful. Without it, I lose my courage in a scary world of giants. But, with it, I am armed with strength and courage that only God can – and has – provided. In a scary world – turn to His Word daily.
In our Bible reading today we also have a portion of the Psalms written by David. It reminds us everyone won’t have a wise response to courageously step out and follow God’s plan in a scary world. Every generation also has the fools who say in their hearts that there is no God. (Psalm 53:1) The noise of evil can be loud and distracting and scary, but like David and Joshua and Jesus and every generation and individual we have a choice who we listen to and how we respond. Be in His Word and follow His Way. He knows the way into the Promised Land and He knows how to do the impossible. There is no obstacle too great for our God. Arm yourself with His Word daily. Remember. And tell the next generation.
-Marcia Railton
Today’s Bible reading passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway – Joshua 3-4 and Psalm 53-55
I love to plan parties! I’m usually up late the night before a big party getting all the details just right—making signs, assembling favors, and arranging decorations. Meanwhile, my God plans parades centuries in advance! He planned the famous parade we commemorate each year on Palm Sunday: Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
Daniel received a vision about Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, about 600 years before it was to happen:
“Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’” (Daniel 9:25)
It’s important to note that the ‘sevens’ described by Daniel are each periods of seven years. The math makes my head spin (not everybody used the same calendar back then… talk about confusing!), but historians have found Daniel’s vision astonishingly accurate. The time between the issue to rebuild Jerusalem went out (Nehemiah 2) and Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem is just as God said it would be, to the very year. God’s timing is perfect and His plans always prevail.
In the book of Zechariah, the world’s best party planner gives even more insight into how this day would unfold:
“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9)
And so it came to be—Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The gospels contain several descriptions of that bitter-sweet day—Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, and John 12. Up until this point, Jesus kept his status as the begotten Son of God a secret, urging his disciples not to reveal his identity to anyone (Matthew 16:20). On that day, however, his disciples shouted among the masses, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Luke 19:38). In that same city, in that same week, the cries of “Hosanna!” would turn into shouts of “Crucify!”
As we wave our palm leaves at church this morning, remembering Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem years ago, let us also remember the parade still to come. Close your eyes and imagine the grandeur of Jesus’ second coming—the roar of the trumpets, the raising of the dead, and the overwhelming noise of centuries worth of believers worshipping at the feet of Jesus. No more death, no more crying, no more pain:
And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. (Revelation 21:2-4)
God’s timing is perfect and His plans always prevail. 2,000 years ago Jesus journeyed to Jerusalem to die. Soon he will return to Jerusalem again to bring life everlasting.
Hosanna in the highest!
-Mackenzie McClain
Today’s Bible readings can be read or listened to at BibleGateway here – Deuteronomy 21-22 and Luke 19
I am amazed by the similarities between our pandemic world and the requirements Israelites were told to follow in Leviticus. Quarantining, social distancing, infected people covering the lower part of their faces, … Unfortunately, sickness is a part of our fallen world. It is a reminder that we are not in that perfect, future Kingdom of God, and it also makes us long for the Kingdom.
We have to live in a world that sometimes hits us with pestilence. God prepared the Israelites for this. The Priests of Israel were given specific criteria to examine and quarantine those that were affected by defiling skin diseases. The priests also had to examine areas and items that might harbor defiling molds. I know, I know, some of you might think “EWW, gross” while reading chapter 13 of Leviticus. But having so much information given to the priests shows a great deal of mercy. First, mercy is shown to those that were dealing with the diseases. The priests were to examine and diagnose the diseases from defined criteria, not guesswork or intuition. Mercy was shown to the person possibly infected by quarantining and reexamining after multiple 7 day periods. Time was allowed for healing or for the disease to develop. Those affected by molds had to have their buildings or their articles inspected. It insured that the owners were protected from these dangerous molds. Secondly, the whole Israelite community was being protected from health threats.
Chapter 14 shows us restoration and cleansing. I think the ceremonies enabled the Israelites to physically experience this occasion of being pronounced clean. When Christ Jesus healed the sick and raised the dead, he gave us a glimpse of what is in store. A time of restoration. There will be a time of complete restoration for our world. We can rejoice because we know that the time will come for “God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets” (Acts 3:21).
I hope that your reading of Psalm 19 & 20 encourages you to lean into the LORD, our strength, our Rock and our Redeemer. Let Him clean and restore you.
There is a scene in Mark 16 where three women, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome are all going to anoint Jesus’ body with spices, after he had died. There is a similar account in each of the other gospels, the books of Matthew, Luke and John. In the accounts from the other gospels, there are many different details mentioned, but one detail that remains the same through all of the accounts: women were the first to know Jesus was alive! The fact that women were the first to know of Jesus’ resurrection brings validity to scripture. Let me explain how.
First, we need to understand the culture in which Jesus lived. During his time, women’s testimonies were not taken seriously. Don’t get me wrong, I think women and men are equally trustworthy and both should be taken seriously, but that wasn’t the view during the time of Jesus. There is a book called the Talmud which is an extra-biblical book that contains Jewish teaching and theology. Here is a quote from the Talmud which pointedly explains this view, “but let not the testimony of women be admitted, on account of the levity and boldness of their gender…since it is probable that they may not speak truth, either out of hope of gain, or fear of punishment.” Once again, these are not my thoughts and I’m not agreeing with them, but this was a common belief during the time period. Understanding how women’s testimonies were viewed is important because it probably means this account wasn’t fabricated.
You see, if someone wanted to make up a fake story about Jesus coming back to life during the first century, they probably would not have used women as the first on the scene and the first to report the news about Jesus’ resurrection. A made up story probably would have used the more trustworthy and reliable testimony of men to tell this story. Remember, this is how they thought back then. As a side note, Jesus didn’t think this way. He on multiple occasions showed favor to women. Taking into consideration the mainstream view in the first century, some historians, like Bart Ehrman, think that because women were recorded as the first people to learn of Jesus’ resurrection this is not a made up account. This means that there is more evidence pointing to the gospels being a true historical account instead of a made up story.
To me, it is nice to hear little bits of information like this to boost my confidence in scripture. Not that I would disbelieve without this evidence, but it is reassuring to hear educated people talking about the Bible as if it is an accurate historical document, and not a made up story. These types of arguments are most common in apologetic circles. Apologetics simple means defending. People who spend their time defending the faith and the Bible are called apologists. So now, you are one nugget of information closer to becoming a great apologists for the Bible. And maybe your faith in the Bible has grown as well.
Seek Grow Love 