Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)
In our Exodus reading this morning, we see once again that after a string of miracles and rescues, the Israelites are grumbling; to the point that Moses tells God he’s worried about them stoning him (17:4). God miraculously provides yet again for their provision, and then miraculously provides for their safety and security (17:11-13). Then, some of the in-laws decide to stop by for a visit (18).
Moses’ father-in-law Jethro comes to visit and sees an overwhelmed Moses, struggling from sunup to sundown daily taking care of the (very demanding) people he was leading. Keep in mind, this was not a small group, this was likely millions of people (Ex 12:37-38 “600,000 men, not counting the little ones (or women), and a foreign multitude also”) all clamoring for his attention at once. Can you even imagine the chaos? Jethro gives Moses some VERY good advice (18: 17-23) that applies to us today as well: organize and prioritize if you want to get results, delegate if you have to. I think we too many times take on more than we can reasonably accomplish, and don’t have a good plan to do it, and just end up getting frustrated and upset. Many times we just give up because we feel overwhelmed. But couldn’t we take Jethro’s advice, and plan better? If we organize ourselves, and approach our problems systematically, they become less overwhelming. This applies to every aspect of our lives: work, social, spiritual. We could actually have written the entire devotional on just this bit alone, but there are some other VERY important scriptures in today’s reading.
Moving on to our second portion of scripture today (Ps 2), we see some absolutely critical theological points that need to be highlighted (in your bible) and remembered . Do you remember what “Christ” or “Messiah” means? It ‘s a title, and means (literally) “The Anointed”. It represented a man who was chosen and anointed by God (usually through his agent, or “shaliah”…see Jan 27 devotional) to be his king, it’s all throughout the Old Testament, check and see. The Hebrew “Messiah” (or “Christos” in greek) means simply “the anointed one” and the term came to be one of prophetic expectation waiting for God to send his king to rule the earth (See 2nd Samuel 7 for the details of the prophecy, we’ll get deeper into that one in a later devotional). The New Testament continuously states that Jesus of Nazareth was this man anointed by God to be His king on earth by reiterating it over and over when describing him as “Jesus Christ”. That’s not his last name ya’ll, that’s a title (I’m Southern, I’m allowed to say “ya’ll”, it’s culturally appropriate). Most of the gospels directly state that the purpose for their writing was to show that Jesus was that Messiah, and that he had come, in their thesis statements.
In Psalm 2:2 it says “The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers take counsel together, against Yahweh and against his Anointed, saying…” (LSB Translation). We see clearly here that there are 2 individuals that the kings and rulers are taking a stand against. This does not match up with what some mainstream orthodoxy teachings relate, but this is stated explicitly and repeatedly in scripture and we know from Jesus that “scripture cannot be broken”. This is one of the many reasons why it is so absolutely critical to study for yourself, and not rely on people to tell you what you should believe. Men are just human, and can fail, but scripture cannot be broken(John 10:35), so read it for yourself (and show your work). Be a good Berean, and test everything that you hear against the scriptures. Our God is a God of truth and not deception, so if something you are hearing from men confuses you, study scriptures! If you can read Deut 6:4 and Mark 12:29-34 and not be fiercely monotheistic, like the ancient Jews, then you have learned mental gymnastics worthy of an olympic level athlete…but why change it? Man was made simple, his complex problems are of his own devising (Ecc 7:29).
Ps 2: 11-12 states “Serve Yahweh with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He become angry, and you perish in the way…”(LSB), another clear delineation between our creator and our king. It is terrible and sad that we have confused this simple message through the centuries, whenever possible I suggest we should with love, patience, and respect suggest the simpler reading to our brothers and sisters who have reached a different, more “complex”, understanding. In instances that opportunities present themselves for you to do this, may I humbly suggest that “love” is far more important for you to convey than truth. The truth will come in time, if presented deeply with love, according to God’s will.
To wrap this up in a nice tidy bow, we can then turn over to Matt 16, where one of the clearest statements of Jesus identity is made by his guy, Peter. First let me pose you this question, what is a son of man? I would respectfully answer this with the very common sensical answer of “a man”. What if you capitalized that, and said a Son of Man? Well, I’d have to say, still a man: although this does have prophetic overtones (See Daniel 7, and note again the clear delineation between God and his anointed). Did you know that in addition to God using his name (YHVH) almost 7000 times in the Old Testament, Jesus is referred to as the “son of man” (add capitilization however you like, the NT translators did…) 81 times, and 80 of those times were by Jesus himself in the gospels. A “son of man” was how Jesus self-identified. It’s pretty important to remember that.
In a conversation about identity, Jesus asks Peter who people were saying that he was (Matt 16: 13-14). To further clarify who he was, Jesus asked Peter “but who do you say that I am?”. Peter replies, “You are the Christ, the son of the Living God.” Remember that Christ and Messiah mean the same thing, anointed one. I would like to point out the obvious at this point and say that God has no need to anoint himself. By his statement Peter is clearly stating “You are the one that was anointed by God, and the son of the Living God”. This is in a direct fulfillment of the prophecy in 2 Sam: 7 wherein the Messiah MUST BE: 1-the son of David (a human descendant of King David), 2-the son of God, 3-the king who will rule forever. Note Jesus response to this answer in v17: “Blessed are you Simon Bar-Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven” (LSB). If Peter was mistaken about Jesus’ identity as the Christ, this would have been an excellent opportunity for Jesus to correct him don’t you think? Just some things to think about, may God bless you as you study his word.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
- What can you change in your approach, like Jethro suggested to Moses, to more effectively govern your own life? Your own work? Your own spirituality?
- When Jesus says that scripture cannot be broken, he is referring to the scripture they had at the time, the Old Testament. How often do you take time to “stand by the ancient ways” and read the Old Testament deeply? Why?
- Do you check everything the pastor tells you from the pulpit against scripture? Why, or why not? Now think of the same question, but instead of your pastor insert “anyone”, and instead of the pulpit insert “youtube”, “social media”, or “friends”. Is your answer different? Why, or why not?
- Who do you say that Jesus is? Is it different than Peter, and if so, why?
PRAYER:
Lord God Most High, please open my eyes so that I can see clearly. Please open my ears so that I can hear clearly. Circumcise my heart, so that I can walk humbly before you. Thank you for sending your son with your words to teach and redeem us all, please help us to listen and to obey. Forgive us our pride, and grant us humility and understanding. Thank you, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Seek Grow Love 