Tag: God

A Noble Character

Ruth 2Psalm 43Acts 21

-Devotion by Liam Johnson (MN)

Boaz has become my favorite man in the Bible, and Ruth 2 highlights the big reasons why.

Ruth 2 opens by describing Boaz as a “man of noble character” (Ruth 2:1), but the first thing we see of Boaz is far more telling. Look how he greets his employees in Ruth 2:4,

Later, when Boaz arrived from Bethlehem, he said to the harvesters, “Yahweh be with you.”
 

“Yahweh bless you,” they replied.

Upon hearing that Ruth is gleaning from his field, he finds her, and further shows his noble character. He learns about her first from his chief servant in Ruth 2:5-7

5 Boaz asked his servant who was in charge of the harvesters, “Whose young woman is this?”

6 The servant answered, “She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the territory of Moab. 7 She asked, ‘Will you let me gather fallen grain among the bundles behind the harvesters?’ She came and has been on her feet since early morning, except that she rested a little in the shelter.”

Then when he goes to Ruth,

8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Don’t go and gather grain in another field, and don’t leave this one, but stay here close to my female servants. 9 See which field they are harvesting, and follow them. Haven’t I ordered the young men not to touch you? When you are thirsty, go and drink from the jars the young men have filled.”

And while it’s good to isolate how to be a good Godly man from Boaz, we can also pull a bit of being a good Godly woman from this chapter, when he answers a question from Ruth in 2:10-12

10 She fell facedown, bowed to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor with you, so that you notice me, although I am a foreigner?”

11 Boaz answered her, “Everything you have done for your mother-in-law since your husband’s death has been fully reported to me: how you left your father and mother and your native land, and how you came to a people you didn’t previously know. 12 May the Lord reward you for what you have done, and may you receive a full reward from the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.”

But Boaz continues showing generosity by giving her dinner before sending her home, and dinner for the week by sending barley home with her (Ruth 2:15-18)

Here’s a few more examples of being a godly man or woman from throughout the Bible:

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

13 Be alert, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, be strong. 14 Do everything in love.

Psalm 112

1 Hallelujah!

Happy is the person who fears the Lord,

taking great delight in his commands.

4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright.

He is gracious, compassionate, and righteous.

5 Good will come to the one who lends generously

and conducts his business fairly.

9 He distributes freely to the poor;

his righteousness endures forever.

His horn will be exalted in honor.

Micah 6:8

Mankind, he has told each of you what is good

and what it is the Lord requires of you:

to act justly,

to love faithfulness,

and to walk humbly with your God.

From Ephesians 5

15 Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise— 16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 

Reflection Questions:

Ruth 2 is a chapter that is filled with positive examples for improving yourself in any relationship you’re in. Both as an example in how to be yourself, but also in creating expectations for those with whom you want a relationship (whether friend or romance). Are there any ways you can improve in yourself to be a better friend or partner or spouse? Is there any way you can better help your friend be a better friend or partner be a better partner?

Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

Thank you for the demonstration of your love in Jesus

Please guide us to being the best person we can be

And help us to seek to be ever better

And to always seek you first

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Bitter

Ruth 1Psalm 43Acts 20

-Devotion by Liam Johnson (MN)

While Ruth is so titled for the woman who shows great bravery in following her mother-in-law to unknown land, she is not the main character of the story. Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law, is the lead driving character in the whole story.

This book has many themes, the most prominent being love, however this isn’t the theme that I’d like to dive into today. Instead we will follow Naomi as she falls into bitterness for events for which she blames God. Then, we’ll look at how we or those close to us have experienced this same bitterness, events that make us turn to God and say, “Why? Why me?” and we’ll look at how Naomi and a couple others turned from this negative view.

The cause of Naomi’s bitterness is described in Ruth 1:1-5.

1 During the time of the judges, there was a famine in the land. A man left Bethlehem in Judah with his wife and two sons to stay in the territory of Moab for a while. 2 The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife’s name was Naomi. The names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They entered the fields of Moab and settled there. 3 Naomi’s husband, Elimelech, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 Her sons took Moabite women as their wives: one was named Orpah and the second was named Ruth. After they lived in Moab about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was left without her two children and without her husband.

Running down what Naomi has gone through so far, we see:

  1. A famine forces her, with her husband and her sons, to flee to Moab, leaving her familial home behind.
  2. Her husband dies.
  3. While she experiences the joy of seeing her sons marry, she then loses both her sons

So, having been forced from her home, losing her husband, and also both her sons, Naomi is now a widow in a foreign land with no men in her life. Bear in mind, in the culture of the ancient near east, a woman has no social power without a man. Her life is in a massive upheaval and with this, Naomi makes a choice – her only choice, really. She will return home to Israel.

It’s easy while reading the Bible to forget that we’re reading about the lives of real humans. But, to put yourself in Naomi’s shoes for just a moment, you can probably imagine what she might be feeling in this moment. Naomi will answer for herself in Ruth 1:19-21, which says,

19 The two of them traveled until they came to Bethlehem. When they entered Bethlehem, the whole town was excited about their arrival and the local women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?”

20 “Don’t call me Naomi. Call me Mara,” she answered, “for the Almighty has made me very bitter. 21 I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has opposed me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”

Ruth’s mother-in-law doesn’t feel like “pleasant” Naomi anymore.  All these events have, understandably, made Naomi quite bitter towards her God. (This line in verse 20 is a play on words easily lost in the translation from Hebrew to English. “Naomi” means “pleasant”, while “Mara” means “bitter”. )

Naomi’s feeling that God has left her isn’t a unique instance in the Bible. The psalmist of Psalm 42-43 held a similar sentiment (these two Psalms are likely one psalm, based on the repeated refrain in 42:5, 42:11 and 43:5). He was likely someone during an exile whose psalm held two main prayers: first, help me against my enemies and second, why have you [God] abandoned me?

Psalm 43:2

For you are the God of my refuge.

Why have you rejected me?

Why must I go about in sorrow

because of the enemy’s oppression?


The psalmist asks God to recall him to Jerusalem so he can worship once again. Continuing the psalm in 43:3-4:

3 Send your light and your truth; let them lead me.

Let them bring me to your holy mountain,

to your dwelling place.

4 Then I will come to the altar of God,

to God, my greatest joy.

I will praise you with the lyre,

God, my God.

This bitterness and abandonment that the psalmist and Naomi feel may easily be felt by us too. Through the woes of this world, whether it be the loss of good friends and family; seeing close friends walk away from the faith; or seeing the state of the world, a world which serves itself as god, it can be very easy for us to become dejected, to be in such turmoil. To become bitter as the people ask, all day long, “Where is your God?” (Psalm 42:3).

But throughout this song and prayer, the psalmist repeats this refrain. It is a refrain of hope and faith. Though feeling abandoned by God, he still chooses to praise him. Psalm 43:5 says:

Why, my soul, are you so dejected?

Why are you in such turmoil?

Put your hope in God, for I will still praise him,

my Savior and my God.

Following from the psalmist’s words it may seem easy to say: Why, Naomi, are you so dejected? Why are you in such turmoil? Put your hope in God, still praise him, your savior and your God. However, as with most things in life; it is easier said than done.

So how do we do it? How do we continue to show our faithfulness and love for God when times become turbulent?

Let’s start small and look at how the psalmist talks about God. 42:1-2 (which is the basis for my favorite hymn) tells us:

1 As a deer longs for flowing streams,

so I long for you, God.

2 I thirst for God, the living God.

When can I come and appear before God?

He begins with the longing to see his God (where he can see his God – at the temple). The psalmist speaks only faithfully of his God, remembering leading the festivities in the temple with joyful and thankful shouts. He is depressed though he does not wish to be.

Finally from this psalm, he calls Yahweh by name once in this whole psalm (42-43), which he uses intentionally, as a part of remembering Yahweh’s faithfulness. The singer remembers that Yahweh sends his faithful love, his hesed, by day, and His song is with him by night (Psalm 42:8). All day and all night, Yahweh is with you.

Now, bringing it back to Naomi, she doesn’t have some epiphany, nor does she come back to the joy of her God on her own. No, instead, she is brought back to joy by those around her. The titular Ruth, in a brilliant act of bravery, chooses to follow her mother-in-law to, to Ruth, a foreign land, choosing the unknown path of life over the safer path as Orpah did, in staying in Moab (Ruth 1:15-18). Because Ruth went with Naomi, God was able to work good in her life, through the path of a redeemer, Boaz, who would be the second major factor in restoring Naomi to a pleasant life (Ruth 4:15).

REflection Questions

Have you experienced the bitterness of life, as Naomi and this psalmist have? If you have, how’d you get through it? Did you do as the psalmist, choosing to praise God even when it was hard? Or did your friends and family help you through it, bringing the joy of God in their actions?

Prayer

Here’s a short prayer based on the psalm we read:

God, our God of heaven, how I long for you

Be with me in this life, that we might not forget

For those who seek you, asking “Where are you God?”

Shine forth from your servants

For those who ask, “Why have you forgotten me?”

Remind us who you are, God.

Send your love by day, Yahweh,

And let us sing your song by night

Let our lives be a living prayer to you

Our savior and our God

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Rescue

Judges 19-21

Psalm 42

Acts 19

-Devotion by Kristy Cisneros (SC)

“Deep calls to deep

    in the roar of your waterfalls;

all your waves and breakers

    have swept over me.” (Ps. 42:7, NIV)

This verse from today’s reading is particularly poignant to me. When I read it, I imagine the person feeling like they are drowning in sorrows and troubles and calling out to God for their deepest rescue in their deepest time of need.

Earlier this week I alluded to the passage in Matthew when Peter stepped out in faith to walk on water. “But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ (Matthew 14:30, NIV). In this moment, Peter was literally scared he was going to drown and those three little words—”Lord, save me”—were so simple yet so powerful.

When we fail to find the right words, maybe we can remember those three little words —”Lord, save me”. Or, if we find ourselves struggling so much to keep our heads above water that we are at a complete loss for words, Romans 8:26 reminds us that the Holy Spirit will intercede for us when we feel like we are drowning and can’t even form the words: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.” (NIV) I am grateful for a God who loves us so much that He meets us where we are with a lifeboat. When we can’t find the words, He finds the words for us. How great is our God!

Reflection Questions

  1. What is one of your favorite verses in Psalm 42? Does an image come to mind when you read it? Explain.
  2. Kristy gives a powerful image when she writes: “I am grateful for a God who loves us so much that He meets us where we are with a lifeboat.” How else might you complete the sentence – God meets us with a __________. Thank Him.
  3. When have you felt stuck in the crashing whitewater at a loss for words? When have you said, “Lord, Save Me!”? How have you experienced God’s rescue? What do you need saving from now?

Prayer

Dear Lord God – You are a God who saves! Over and over You meet we where I am with what I need, including salvation through Your Son, wisdom, understanding, courage, patience, Christian brothers and sisters, and hope for the future in Your perfect Kingdom of God on earth. Thank You! Please keep providing and saving! Thank you for Your Word where I find You and so many of Your gifts. Thank You for Your Holy Spirit which comforts and empowers and gives me words. You are so good, God! Help me see You at work and give me all I need today to do the work You have prepared in advance for me to do.

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A Soul in Despair

Judges 17-18

*Psalm 42

Acts 18

-Devotion by Kristy Cisneros (SC)

“Why, my soul, are you downcast?

    Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

    for I will yet praise him,

    my Savior and my God.”

(Ps. 42:5 and 11, NIV)

Psalms 42 is one of the most beautiful passages in the Bible. This song of the Sons of Korah is replete with suffering and lamenting coupled with a deep yearning for God’s rescue. I appreciate how the subject of this song is recognizing his downcast and disturbed emotional state and is questioning why he feels that way and then reminds himself to put his hope in God and then makes a conscious choice to still praise Him in spite of how he feels.

In verse 6, the Psalmist decides to manage these downcast feelings by remembering better times. In verse 8, it seems to me that this person uses daily prayer to try to stay close to God: 

“By day the Lord directs his love,

    at night his song is with me—

    a prayer to the God of my life.” (NIV)

In spite of these efforts, doubts start to creep in during verse 9. The person feels forgotten by God, taunted by their foes who ask “Where is your God?” As they notice their faith wavering, we see them circling back in verse 11 to the same questioning we saw in verse 5 about why they feel so downcast and disturbed. This questioning is then once again quickly followed by a reminder that they will put their hope in God and still choose to praise Him. It’s a resounding chorus that comes around at just the right time.

This roller coaster of feelings is so relatable to me. We can get so bogged down in our trials that God can start to feel so very far away, but that’s when we need to take a cue from the Psalmist here and remember to put our hope in God and make a choice to praise Him. We need a resounding chorus at the ready that reminds us that we can trust God to care for us in our time of need. What would your resounding chorus sound like?

Reflection Questions

  1. What do you generally do when your soul is in despair? Do any of those things put your soul in deeper despair?
  2. What does it look like and sound like to put your hope in God?
  3. When does God deserve our praise? When was your hardest time to praise God, but you did it anyway?

Prayer

Dear God, You are a great God! My desire is to put my hope in You, fully and completely, even and especially on the days my soul is in despair. I want to praise you well all of my days. You are worthy and deserving, my Savior and my God, the giver of all good gifts, including Your Son and salvation. Help me see, feel and remember with deep gratitude. I love you, LORD.

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An Incredible Witness

Judges 13-14

Psalm 41

Acts 16

Acts 16:25: “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them” (NIV). I am always deeply moved by this passage and always wonder what those hymns consisted of. According to the Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary, “As the word here employed is that used to denote the Paschal hymn sung by our Lord and His disciples after their last Passover (Mt 26:30), and which we know to have consisted of Ps 113:1-118:29, which was chanted at that festival, it is probable that it was portions of the Psalms, so rich in such matter, which our joyous sufferers chanted forth; nor could any be more seasonable and inspiring to them than those very six Psalms, which every devout Jew would no doubt know by heart.”

Of course I had to rush to read Ps. 113-118 to try and imagine what that might have sounded like. I noticed several lines from these passages that are found in modern-day worship songs like

“From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets,

    the name of the Lord is to be praised.” (Ps. 113:3, NIV)

and

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

    his love endures forever”. (Ps. 118:1, NIV)

Further down on Ps. 118, I spotted some great words of comfort that no doubt really resonated with the other prisoners:

5 

When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord;

    he brought me into a spacious place.

6 

The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.

    What can mere mortals do to me?

7 

The Lord is with me; he is my helper.

    I look in triumph on my enemies.

What an incredible witness they were to the faithfulness of God and their faithfulness to God! They were so kingdom-focused that they didn’t dream of taking the opportunity to escape when their shackles fell off. Not only were they a tremendous witness to the prisoners, but to the guard when they refused to escape. Their faithfulness to their God-given mission resulted in the guard and his household becoming believers. Praise in the midst of hardship is a recurring theme in this week’s readings. Many are watching us and listening to us and we have the opportunity to be a great testimony by how we react to our trials and struggles. Do we reflect the faith of Paul and Silas?

Reflection Questions

  1. When faced with a difficult (or worse) day, what are some of your first responses? Are there times you let worry, fear, complaining, blaming, self-pity, negativity, shutting down, lashing out, or other harmful responses take over?
  2. How might praying, and singing hymns and worship songs (especially those created from Scripture, so I will even add recalling and reading the Bible) be helpful to you? And beneficial to those around you?
  3. Do you reflect the faith of Paul and Silas? What could you commit to working on this week to boost your faith and your testimony of God’s faithfulness, even when your life has some challenges along the way?

Prayer

Dear God, Thank you for being a faithful God. You do not desert Your children. I am sorry for the times I have neglected to turn to You first with prayer and worship and filling my mouth and mind and heart with Your perfect words of hope, comfort, righteousness, correction, mercy, love and faithfulness. Help me see that You and all of the good gifts You have already supplied are sufficient for my needs, even on days I experience trials. May I forever be a faithful witness of Your faithfulness to me.

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Knowing God

Judges 11-12

Psalm 40

Acts 15

-Devotion by Kristy Cisneros (SC)

“And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord: ‘If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.’ “(Judges 11:30-31, NIV)

Today’s reading in Judges contains a very disturbing account in chapter 11 of Jephthah making a reckless vow before God that if He gives him victory against the Ammonites, he will sacrifice the first thing that comes out of the door of his home. Sadly the first thing out of his door ends up being his beloved daughter. His daughter supports him in honoring this vow to the Lord, but asks for him to first grant her time to roam the hills for two months and spend time with friends. After the two month period, Jephthah carries out this vow.

In Pastor Andy’s Wednesday night class at Guthrie Grove Church, he recently covered some of these troubling stories in the Bible. He noted that some people can read these passages and feel very disturbed that God would allow such an atrocity to occur and ask why He would not intervene. Our class had some thought-provoking discussion about it and came to the consensus that it came down to Jephthah and his daughter ultimately not knowing the Lord and not hiding His word in their hearts.

If they had known God intimately, they would have realized that such a vow by a human was contrary to the heart of God. Jephthah would have never made this vow had he known God, and his daughter would have been able to speak against it if she had known God. We all agreed it underscored the importance of really understanding God’s character and recognizing His goodness. We can read His word to have a better understanding of His heart and each time we read it, that understanding can grow deeper. Consider what this week’s readings are showing you about the character of God.

Reflection Questions

  1. What is the danger of making vows to God? Are you known to be true to your word – both to men and to God? Should you more often adjust your words – what you have said you would (or wouldn’t) do, or your actions – what you did (or didn’t) do?
  2. What are some of the wrong assumptions about God prevalent today? Can you give Scriptural evidence to show that these views of God are not true? What is the danger of basing your own ideas about God on your own thoughts, and preconceived and borrowed ideas, instead of on Scripture?
  3. What are your Bible readings revealing about the character of God? Keep searching daily to answer this question!

Prayer

Dear Almighty God – I praise You for Your greatness. In so many ways Your greatness and goodness goes far beyond my comprehension. And yet, You want to be known. And, I want to know You more and more. Thank You for Your Word, where throughout Scripture You reveal Your heart and character. Thank You for Your Son Jesus who also shows us his Father and God and the way to You. Help me see more clearly who You are and what pleases You and reject the world’s “wisdom”. Help me be a person of my word who speaks well and does well, all for Your purposes and to Your glory.

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Made Into Something You are Not

Judges 6-8

Psalm 39

Acts 13

-Devotion by Kristy Cisneros (SC)

Judges 6:14 The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” 15 “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” (NIV)

Has God ever called you to do something for which you felt very ill-equipped?

Make no mistake, on your own you probably were ill-equipped indeed. I was watching The Chosen recently and Matthew and Jesus were in conversation about Jesus having chosen Peter as his rock and foundation upon which his church would be built. The show takes a little creative license with imagining conversations that might have ensued and in one such conversation Matthew says, “I guess I am finding it hard to accept that the person you would formally assign leadership to of a group, with the keys to the kingdom of heaven, would be someone so…temperamental. I know the term’s a metaphor, but he does not act like a rock.”

Jesus chuckles and then replies, “I make people what they aren’t.”

I loved that line and we can certainly see examples of people throughout the Bible who by their own merit were not up to a God-assigned task (e.g., Moses, Jeremiah, the Apostle Paul, etc.). Some even tried to persuade God to find someone else, but we know God would not lead us to something simply to watch us fail. He always has a plan and He is always up to the task. Do we have enough faith that God will see it through? 1 Thessalonians 5:24 reminds us, “He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it” (ESV).

God assures Gideon that he need not rely on his own strength in Judges 6:16: The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.” Our weaknesses are not a deterrent when it comes to carrying out a mission God has called us to do. Accordingly, 2 Corinthians 12:9 reminds us that our limitations should not prevent us from stepping out in boldness, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (ESV).

REflection Questions

  1. Has God ever called you to do something for which you felt very ill-equipped?
  2. Do we have enough faith that God will see it through?
  3. Why did Gideon feel weak? What made him a mighty hero? Why do you feel weak? What can make you into a mighty hero? What happens when you refuse to let God strengthen and use you?
  4. How do you put yourself in a position where “The Lord is with you”?

Prayer

Dear God, I thank You for giving strength and making heroes where there was only weakness and fear. You are a great God with a great plan! Your desire is to see people saved from the enemy and sometimes You do that in some pretty creative ways. Help me see Your battle plans and realize the role You want me to play – which I can only do when YOU are with me. Help me always draw closer to You so Your strength & Your Spirit runs through me. Thank You for Your Son who is our perfect example and Savior.

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Bought at a Price

Judges 3-5

Psalm 39

*Acts 12                                          

-Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)

            Today we’re going to talk about some deep things.  We mostly like to kind of brush past some of the harder bits of truth, but sometimes we need to acknowledge that they exist in order to appreciate the overwhelmingly high favor that we have been given without cause, and through no merit of our own. 

            **As a side note, I would also like to strongly encourage you to check it out every time scripture is quoted.  Look up every bible verse anyone ever quotes (including  me!)  just to make sure they’re not mistaken, quoting partial truths, or being misleading: be a good Berean and check.  Examine context, make sure it’s quoted correctly, and that it’s used properly.

            I sometimes wonder at how much I should share, but this might be important to someone.  This is the extremely edited version of a true story.  An old friend of mine, back in the bad old days (see 2/5 devotional) and I were having an inebriated conversation.  During this conversation talk turned to God, and he started saying the actual name of God, and I got scared (because we weren’t behaving properly), which amused him.  He continued to do it a few times, then I bowed up and let him know that the next time he drew attention to us in our current state that he and I were going to have a full on brawl (I was a little scrappy in my youth).  He laughed and moved on to other topics.  A few months later, I had escaped from that life and was safe in a different state,  no longer a criminal but attending a Bible college (talk about a culture shock!).  A month or two after that I received word that he was dead.  Let him who has ears, hear.

            The name of God (YHVH, Yahweh, Yehovah) is a sacred name, and not to be used frivolously.  It absolutely should be used in reverent prayer and meditation, but never frivolously.  God will be treated as holy, and honored before all people (Lev 10:3).   I believe part of the reason I’m alive today (aside from my parents’ constant intervention through prayer) is detailed in Malachi 3:16, and I remember Joel 2:32 as well, but I  wonder at times at the cost of my freedom from that life that I was in.  It is very sobering and very humbling.  The price of soul is costly and beyond your ability to buy (Ps 49:8).

            In our reading of Acts 12 today, we see this concept written painfully in blood, but most people miss it because it’s just a little blurb in the neat and somewhat funny (at points) story about Peter being freed from jail by an angel.  We start out the chapter very seriously indeed with Herod beginning the first (but certainly not the last) persecution of the believers, the “ecclesia”, or what some would call “the church”.  This would be Herod Agrippa I, the last “client king” of Judea, the grandson of Herod “the Great” (who was in actuality not so great).  Herod (Agrippa I) was a skilled diplomat who gained favor in Rome by backing Claudius’ imperial succession, who leveraged his friendships with emporers Caligula and Claudius to reunify the territories of Samaria, Judea, and Galilee under a single rule (his).

            Being a skilled politician who had just reunited rule on the territories around Judea, he sought to solidify his power by any means necessary.  So while he maintained his Roman alliances and friends, he zealously sought and enforced orthodox Jewish policies in order to secure the loyalty of his Jewish subjects of that territory.  So with that historical knowledge in the back of your head, now read in Acts 12:1-2 that after persecuting the early believers and killing James “and when he saw that it pleased the Jews” (Acts 12:3 LSB), he arrested Peter. 

            Remember that this is an ambitious politician, ruling over a territory of Jews, attempting to solidify his political strength in the land; so when he has Peter arrested, we can only assume it was to have him publicly killed later (since that is what pleased the Jews with James).  What was the cost of one man’s life to him, in order to gain power?  Just some fisherman, not anybody politically important, not even wealthy; a small price to pay to solidify your power over the territory, right?

            So when Peter is arrested, he takes extra steps to secure his prisoner, because this is political gold for him.  This is one of the leaders of that new upstart group causing dissension among the Jews, his subjects now.  In Acts 12:4 it says, “When he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to 4 squads of soldiers, to guard him…” (LSB).   The actual word here translated as “squad” is “quaternion”, and a quaternion was composed of 4 soldiers each, so: 4 quaternions (of 4 soldiers each) equal 16 soldiers, trained and hardened professional Roman soldiers.  When sleeping, Peter was chained with 2 chains between 2 soldiers, and there were other soldiers in front of the doors.  Stop and think about the level of force here for a moment, Herod is not taking any chances.  You don’t secure a prisoner that securely if you’re planning on giving public high fives when you bring him out, Peter was going to die here.  It says at the end of 12:4 that he was “intending to bring him out before the people”, to kill him publicly in other words. 

            There follows an inspiring and miraculous tale of victory when an angel comes to free Peter, releasing him from prison, leading him through multiple obstacles safely and then departing.  The story then becomes slightly amusing as Peter is left standing outside the gate of his friend’s house while the amazed servant forgets to let him in and rushes to tell the other believers that Peter is there, and after some disbelief, all of the believers rejoice.  This is detailed very well in Acts 12:6-17.

            In Acts 12:19, though, there’s a tiny little blurb that states:  “And when Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution...”.  Let me clarify that for you.  A Roman examination was, simply put, torture.  It consisted less of  a close examination of facts, and more of horrific slow and painful torture until you confessed; less fingerprinting and more of a painful removal of the fingers, followed by death.  16 men were tortured and died in order that 1 man might go free.  This is what I want you to consider today, because the cost of a soul is high.

            That is why it is so important as slaves of The Christ, as servants of The Messiah, to know that when our lives were bought, we were bought at a price (1 Cor 6:20, 1 Cor 7:23); an overwhelming price higher than we could afford or deserved, the blood of God’s innocent servant (1 Pet 1:18-19), His Anointed One, whose blood was given for you.  I remember my dead friend, I remember even more God’s chosen Messiah, the son of God, who willingly shed his blood for me.  How much was my sorry life worth?  The price of a soul is high, but my King, my innocent and humble King, paid it willingly for us.  It makes me cry.  Father God have mercy.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

Do you think that Peter ever humbly meditated on the fact that 16 men died in his place when he escaped?

If you had the same experience, how would it make you feel (even if you knew that if they hadn’t died, you would have)?

Are we daily living in a manner that honors and respects the (too high) price that was paid for us?

PRAYER

Oh my Father God, have mercy on me.  I am completely unworthy of the price that You paid for me.  Please forgive me, help me to honor You in every word, in every action, in every thought.  Thank You for redeeming me; without cause, and at too high a cost, but thank You.  Please help me to live every moment from this point forward reflecting that overwhelming love and generosity towards You and Your creation.  In the name of Yeshua, Jesus the Christ whom You sent, Amen.

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God’s Children

*Judges 1-2

Psalm 38

*Acts 11

  -Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)   

       Today we enter the time of the Judges, one of the most turbulent times in the history of ancient Israel.  I would like to point out that the preceding books of scripture are exceptionally important and critical, not just to us of the Christian faith but also to the Jews and the Muslims.  If you don’t study these early books often, I would encourage you in the strongest terms to do so. 

            Most folks don’t realize it, but this portion of “The Book” we share in common with our Jewish and Muslim brothers and sisters.  Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy combined are the Jewish “Torah” (“Law”, called in Hebrew Bereishit, Shemot, Vayikra, Bamidbar, and Devarim), and called the “Tawrah” in the Islamic faith.  Each of these religions shares this portion of scripture.  All of the Children of the Book believe in them.

            I am going to say something controversial here, but before you pick up a rock to stone me, consider it carefully: before we judge any of our fellow creation because they have theological differences, keep in mind that we are all children of the same God, we have all been given the scriptures as a guide, and that if we are being honest and scriptural that as gentiles we have the least legal claim to God’s mercy.  We should be humble, and exist in a state of awe and wonder that God saw fit to include us at all.  Simply put, the Jews are the chosen people of God according to scripture, but God made some very strong covenants with Abraham.  Muslims are considered to be the spiritual descendants (and some to be the actual descendants) of Abraham through Ishmael as well.  As Christians, we consider ourselves to be the spiritual descendants of Abraham through obedience, but most of us can’t claim a direct lineage. 

            So before we place ourselves in a position higher than we have earned or even have a right to: consider the character of God, who is the judge of all, who is the Most Merciful, the Most Gracious, and who extends His hand to all of His creation and offers salvation to those who will seek it, even the stubborn disobedient folks who have a hard time listenening (and thank God He does).  Remember before we start to judge our fellow creation: we already have a judge, that position has been filled, and your services in that area are neither required or desired.  Be humble.

            Today, however, we have arrived at the time of the Judges in our reading, a constantly shifting political time, hugely turbulent in the Jewish history, and a very good template throughout it for “how not to act”.  Keep in mind that prior to this book, from Exodus to Joshua, the Israelites had very strong leaders, Moses and then Joshua, leaders who God communicated with directly (usually through shaliah, see 1/27 devotional), and who unwaveringly did what God commanded. Then we come to the time of the Judges, and starting almost right away, things go sideways (as detailed here in Judges 1).

            Judah started out pretty good (Judg 1:1-20), but then folks started making exceptions and taking the “easier” path.  The sons of Benjamin didn’t dispossess the Jebusites (Judg 1: 21), the house of Joseph made deals with some of the inhabitants (Judg 1:24-26), and the sons of Israel seem to have decided largely at the time that free labor ( Judg 1: 28, 30, 33, 35)  was pretty handy and forced a lot of the locals into “forced labor” (or, slavery).  This was directly contrary to God’s instructions (see Josh 23: 1-16, among others). 

            Remember, that the covenenants that God made with the Israelites were in large part conditional.  In Judges 2: 1-4, the angel of Yahweh shows up and chastises the people for not obeying, lets them know that since they have broken their promise and have not listened that the nations will become a “thorn in their side”, as promised.  The people wept, made sacrifices, and then went to their own places and by the next generation had forgotten about God again (Judg 2:10).

            Judges 2:11 starts a terrible cycle that is repeated throughout this book, “Then the sons of Israel did what was evil in the eyes of Yahweh and served the Baals...” and as a consequence (Judg 2:14) “… the anger of Yahweh burned against Israel…” (LSB translation).  Then after a time of punitive distress for the nation, “God raised up judges who saved them…” (Judg 2:16, LSB).  This happens throughout this entire book. 

            This cyclical dysfunction is repeated nationally 7 times at least by my count in this book alone.  Over, and over again: Israel sins (by forsaking God), God allows oppression, Israel cries out, God mercifully raises up a judge to deliver them, there’s peace during the lifetime of that judge, then the judge dies and the people return to idolatry which restarts the cycle.  This is a truly painful book to read, particularly when given the recent miraculous and amazing redemption and direct intercession by God on their behalf.  What about you, though? Do you remember and celebrate all of the times that God delivered you, in loving awe and obedience?  Think about it.

            Moving forward to our awesome NT reading today, we find a landmark that you should never, ever, ever forget: for the first time, salvation is shown to have been given to gentiles (that’s most of us) in Acts 10, and then acknowledged in today’s reading  (in Acts 11:18).   When Jesus came to speak God’s word, he went almost exclusively to the Israelites (See the story in Mark 7:24-30 for clarification, and a good sense of how humble we should be), but we know from scripture that he was to be a light to all the nations (Is 49:6).  THIS is the time when that prophecy is fulfilled, and praise God for it! 

            Before this point in history, as a gentile, things were not looking so great for you.  “But God…” (I love that phrase), being merciful and gracious, and showing overwhelming forgiveness and equity for all of His creation, made a way.  Know in your heart that if you should be favored enough to enter into God’s kingdom, the one Jesus came to tell the world about, then know that it is not because of your righteousness or birthright but because of the overwhelming love and mercy from Yahweh God, our Creator and Father of all.  Nothing you have ever done or ever will do is enough to grant you this privilege, “but God”… He is the most merciful, the most gracious, the one who constantly seeks to bring us back to His fold, who cared enough to send His own son for our redemption.  You are not your own, you were bought at a price (1 Cor 6:20): be humble and fearfully obedient, and know that none of us are worth the price that was paid for our salvation.  “But God…”

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

  1. In Judges, we can clearly see the cyclical dysfunction of the nation of Israel.  Do you have any cyclical dysfunctions in your own life?  Are they national, familial, or personal dysfunctions?  How can you overcome them? (You should write these down).
  2. Why do we tend to forget God, and how can we break this cycle?
  3. Do we tend to judge our fellow human beings?  Why?
  4. Have you ever thought about how lucky you are that God made a plan for YOU, especially if you’re a gentile?

PRAYER

Father God, thank you.  You have been merciful to me without reason, and gracious to me without cause.  Your love overwhelms me.  Please, forgive me my shortcomings, and allow me to overlook the shortcomings of others.  Let me be an example of your love and mercy to my fellow creation.  Please grant me Your spirit, and teach me the way to reflect Your character, and to enter in to Your kingdom.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Reprove me not in Your wrath

*Joshua 23-24

*Psalms 38

*Acts 10                                 

-Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)

            Today’s readings have such important, landmark verses and concepts in them that we’ll be bouncing around in all of them.  First, let’s talk about discipline.  I grew up (many years ago) in an age that believed in physical discipline; in a time that folks believed that if you lacked proper direction then a firm impetus on the posterior would propel you properly towards the direction of righteousness.  I was personally propelled towards righteousness on a number of occasions, but I have to confess that it was always deserved and always administered fairly.  Even so, when I was younger I did my absolute best to avoid being punished: I shoved books down the back of my pants once, I remember hiding my father’s belts on at least one occasion, and I took long extended walks to the river hoping that the extra time would cause my offenses to be forgotten.  It was rather silly, really, the foolishness of a selfish child.    Thinking back to some of those instances really made the Psalms reading today resonate within me.

            In our Psalms reading, it says in 38:1: “…O Yahweh, reprove me not in Your wrath, And discipline me not in Your burning anger. ” (LSB).  This is David asking for a “cool off” time, for correction with justice rather than wrath which could destroy him; not an avoidance of punishment but temperance in it’s administration.  In v3-8 he freely confesses his sin, and is asking God to correct him, but in a manner which allows growth.  This sentiment  is echoed beautifully in Jeremiah 10:24, when the prophet says “Discipline me, O Yahweh, but with justice; Not with Your anger, lest You bring me to nothing. ” (LSB).  The purpose of discipline is to correct behavior, but know also that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10) is not an idle statement.  If you believe that your heavenly Father loves you, you will understand that the expression of that love is to correct your behavior at times before you continue in a course that will lead you to destruction. 

            Hebrews 12:6 says “FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE FLOGS EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.” (LSB).  It is the expectation that our heavenly Father will correct His children, in love, to prevent us from engaging in activities that will lead to our destruction.  That’s just what a good dad does.  The discipline of God can come in many forms; a painful conscience, an unrest in our soul when we know that we’ve done wrong, or even a more tangible and physical discipline.  Is it going to always be comfortable, and in a manner that we prefer?  Usually not.  If we are NOT receiving that corrective discipline though, we should be very concerned and ask ourself “why?”.  I’ve heard it said that God usually gently guides his children, but I can tell you truly that sometimes he picks them up by the throat and the short hairs (as in my case) until they listen.  Do not run from, or dread, the life saving corrective discipline from our Father in heaven who loves you.  Embrace it, and take to heart the lesson He is trying to teach. 

            When the Israelites, in our last chapters of Joshua reading this morning, are getting their last instructions and guidance from their leader Joshua before he dies they are reminded of all of the blessings that God has given them, and then warned of this very thing in Joshua 23 “…15 And it will be that just as all the good words which Yahweh your God spoke to you have come upon you, so Yahweh will bring upon you all the calamitous words, until He has destroyed you from off this good land which Yahweh your God has given you. 16 When you trespass against the covenant of Yahweh your God, which He commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, then the anger of Yahweh will burn against you, and you will perish quickly from off the good land which He has given you.”  (LSB).

            Then, Joshua tells the children of Israel that they have a choice, but clarifies his choice in one of the most beautiful (and most quoted) verses in the Bible, located in Joshua 24:15: “If it is evil in your sight to serve Yahweh, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.”  (LSB).

            In our reading of Acts 10 today, there is a landmark moment, a fulfillment of prophecy so huge that to give it proper scale of importance this entire chapter should be in huge bold font with giant exclamation points at the beginning and the end of the chapter.  Every time you turn to this section in the Bible, you should hear the trumpets of angels sounding in your head, it’s that important.  For the first time in recorded history, in this chapter, salvation is offered to the gentiles!  That’s the majority of us, unless you’ve got some remote biological link to Abraham.  This is in a direct fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 49:6 where it is written: “He says, ‘It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to cause the preserved ones of Israel to return; I will also give You as a light of the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.‘” (LSB).

            I will point out something that most folks conveniently overlook.  This guy Cornelius, in addition to being a gentile (a Roman centurion, specifically), was “a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the people and prayed to God continually” (Acts 10:2, LSB).  He was a devout man, he practiced tzedakah (look it up, please!) and enacted God’s justice to the people, and prayed constantly.  This is what got God’s attention, because God sees the heart of a man.  This was not a random choice.  In Acts 10:4 the angel of God says “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God.”  This is a guy who put his money where his mouth was, and his wallet where his heart was.  We should emulate his actions to the best of our abilities, if we desire to please our God.

            After the events detailed earlier in the chapter, Peter goes on to say at the beginning of what could be considered his 4th recorded sermon in  Acts 10:34 “I most truly comprehend now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the one who fears him and does righteousness is welcome to Him.” (LSB).  He then finishes this sermon, as the holy spirit falls upon all those listening to his words, as the Jewish believers who came with him were astounded that gentiles had received the gift of the holy spirit, by asking “Can anyone refuse water for these to be baptized who have received the holy spirit just as we did?”

            Today, with the overwhelming number of gentiles who profess to be Christians, we kind of take it for granted, but before THIS SPECIFIC MOMENT in history: salvation was for the Jewish people alone, the chosen people of God.  This was the exact moment in time when God clarified for all humanity: it’s not who your father was (genealogically), but who your Father is (in your heart) that matters.  This is what God has been saying from the beginning, in Deuteronomy 6:4-5, but now the gift of salvation is being offered up to all the nations, to all those who fear God and do righteousness (again, please go look up tzedakah for a clarification on this), to those who seek and accept the discipline of our Father.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

Did you ever try to avoid being disciplined (by God or men), and what were the results?

Think of a time when you received divine discipline.  What was the result?

Have your alms ascended as a memorial to God, or are they stacked up in your bank as a memorial to your own greed?

PRAYER

Father God, please discipline me gently and allow me to receive the instruction that is offered through it.  Correct me when my course goes astray, and forgive me of my many shortcomings.  Help me to reflect your love and character to all of Your creation.  Thank you for all of the blessings, and especially for sending us Jesus and his words of instruction.  In his name, Amen.

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