Music has always been a huge part of my life. From singing along to Veggie Tales songs in the car to being dressed up in my Sunday Best doing a ‘special’ on Sunday Mornings, from an early age I was taught the importance and beauty of song sung in worship.
I still like to sing and dance to ‘I Like Bananas’ around a campfire, but my understanding of worship has expanded and grown. Just singing doesn’t mean that we are worshipping God, and sometimes the most worshipful moments are done in silence. We all know the days where we are going through the motions in a Church service, singing familiar words without it ever truly reaching our hearts.
What should a heart of worship look like?
In today’s reading, we see Psalm after Psalm of praise and worship. Importantly, the Psalms show the heart behind worshipping God.
A heart of worship is:
Based on the character of God, not the quality of our voices. We don’t sing praises because we ‘sound good.’ We sing praises because God is the ultimate thing that is worthy of praise. We sing because he has truly done ‘marvelous things.’
Grounded in the truth of scripture, not the beat of the song. The Psalms repeat the truth again and again: “The Lord reigns.” Why? Because the transformative power of worship is focused on repeating the truths of scripture to ourselves. We can praise God and weather difficult circumstances because God reigns.
Focused on remembrance, not emotions. Our summer camps were always a highlight of the year because we loved the worship. But the truly quality of worship isn’t based on the quality of the band. It’s based on the way we remind ourselves of the goodness and faithfulness of God and praise him for it.
One of my son’s favorite places to go is Dollywood Theme Park in Tennessee. He loves the decorations, the shows, and the food, but his favorite thing to do is ride the rollercoasters. I’ve never been a huge fan – I’m deathly afraid of heights and don’t like the feeling of being slung around. But, you can tell the joy (and a little fear) on his face as he clicks up to the first big drop and then races down through the twists and turns. Of course, at the very end, he always turns to me and says, “Can we ride it again?”
David’s life was definitely a roller coaster ride. He was sent to watch sheep by his father while Samuel came to pick the king, only to be called from the fields and anointed. He was elevated to be a part of King Saul’s court, only to be forced to flee for his life at night. He spent 15 years running from Saul, only to finally be crowned king. And this isn’t to mention Bathsheba, Abasolom, and the census.
So many highs and so many lows.
But, through it all David remained faithful.
We can see the contrast between the highs and lows as we read Psalm 57 and David’s song in 2 Samuel 22.
In Psalm 57:4, David cries out, “My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down amid fiery beasts— the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.” But still, he praises God.
In 2 Samuel 22:17-20, he exclaims, “[God] sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me.”
In both the highs and lows, David cried out to God. He praises God. He finds refuge in God.
You may be stuck on the roller coaster now. You may be in the lowest of lows, or you may be high on that mountaintop. But, wherever you are, remember God is there with you.
Wait on the Lord. Put your trust in God. He is faithful. He will walk you through it.
Have you experienced a low time in your life? Where did you turn for comfort and support at this time? How did you see God’s faithfulness in this time?
How does remembering God’s past faithfulness help you to navigate your present circumstances?
What are some ways that you can incorporate more worship into your life?
One Sabbath day, Paul came to a synagogue in Antioch (a city in modern-day Turkey) and sat down to listen to the law and scriptures. After the reading was down, Paul got up and gave a sermon. Nestled in the middle of his speech is this interesting passage, “After [God] had removed [Saul], [God] raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.” (Acts 13:22)
How amazing it would be to be known as a man (or woman) after God’s own heart! Of all the epitaphs that we could put on our tombstones, this would be the highest praise.
But, we know that there is more to David’s life than just this statement. In fact, it seems a little incongruous to describe the man who sent Uriah to die because of his sin and who sent an Angel of the Lord on his people because of his decision to do a census as a man after God’s own heart.
I think the Psalms we read today – the cries written from David’s own heart – show how he reflected the heart of God.
In the Psalms, we see that:
David understood that God loves righteousness and hates evil. David repeats the truth to himself that God does not delight in wickedness. When he comes to God in prayer, he describes his wickedness as wounds that stink and fester. This bleak picture demonstrates his view of sin: it is evil and something from which you should flee.
David understood the importance of confession. David’s harsh view of sin did not mean that he was blameless. We know that he slipped and fell multiple times and had to deal with the consequences of his actions. Still, when David veered from the good and right path, he recognized it and he turned back toward God. He didn’t minimize sin, and once he humbled himself, he didn’t stay in his sin. Instead, he confessed and repented.
David longed for God. He longed for God’s temple, God’s favor, and God’s very presence. He longed for it as deer pants for streams of water. He describes his soul as thirsting for God. And we know that God is the author and sustainer of life. As the very best thing, he is the ultimate thing we should long for.
To be a man after God’s own heart didn’t mean that David had to be perfectly sinless. No human is able to do that in this lifetime. Instead, being a man after God’s heart means that we are trying to make our heart – our priorities, desires, and understandings – match the heart of God.
If we want to be people after God’s own heart, we should:
Mother Teresa spoke of ‘the dark night of the soul.’ You would think that someone who served in such a ministry would be a titan of faith, impervious to doubt. But still, she wrestled with God.
And, who could blame her? I’m sure that the stresses of her ministry continually bashed against the rock of her faith.
All of our circumstances have a way of doing that. They are the waves of doubt, of shame, of sin, and of fear. They hit us throughout life in the jeers of our friends in middle school to the first heartbreak that comes with young love to the frustration of parenthood to the inevitable pain that comes with the final breaths our loved ones take.
James says that someone who doubts is like a wave blown and tossed by the wind. The antidote to that doubt is faith. But, what can be said of us then? For who can say that they haven’t wrestled with God?
As we turn through the pages of scripture, we find that we are in good company. Abraham, Moses, and of course, Jacob wrestled with God in their own way. And, we see David struggling through the pain of his circumstances in the Psalms we read today.
David cries out to God. He begs him to turn and listen. For someone who had slept on the floors of caves and pretended to be a madman in an enemy’s court, these words are more than just cliché.
David always goes back to the same statement, ‘In God alone I trust. I will wait patiently for the Lord.’
How powerful that statement is. And, oh how hard it is.
In the seasons of my life, I have prayed. When I woke up, when I lay my head down, and all the footsteps in between were filled with the same cry. And yet, my prayers were unanswered. What could I do?
In those times – even now – I could make a choice to turn my face from God. But, the question “Oh Lord, who could I turn to? Where could I go from your presence? Who have I but you?” rings out.
David understood this truth. God is our strong refuge in both the good times and bad. In health and sickness. Riches and poverty. Joy and sorrow. We turn to him in every season, and we wait patiently for him to act.
And when we do, we understand the truth of Psalm 40:4-8:
“4 Blessed is the man who makes
the Lord his trust,
who does not turn to the proud,
to those who go astray after a lie!
5 You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
yet they are more than can be told.
6 In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
In Hebrews 7 the author of Hebrews (who for simplicity I’ll call “Herb”) describes Jesus’ greatness, particularly as a high priest. Herb is following a pattern we recognize, he has compared Jesus to angels, Moses, Joshua, and now Levitical high priests and says ‘that was good, but he is greater.’ The style of argument he is using was one employed by rabbis, it emphasized moving from a lesser thing (never a thing without value) to a greater thing. In the case of the priesthood connected to the Levites Herb compares it with a priesthood connected to Melchizedek, who has almost no known history (see Genesis 14:18-20, Psalm 110), and ties that to Jesus’ High Priesthood.
When Melchizedek and Abraham met it was several hundred years before the Levitical priesthood began with Aaron’s family, and before the Law which records instructions for those priests. There was no Ark of the Covenant then, and no Tabernacle to house it. It is difficult to imagine what form Melchizedek’s service toward God took, and for whose benefit it was provided. Should we suppose that Melchizedek and Abraham met often, and that the first frequently ministered to the second? We are told that Melchizedek was not only a priest but also the king of Salem (that city seems to have been at or near the site of Jerusalem, Psalm 76:2). Might Salem, under Melchizedek’s leadership, have been faithful to God?
We may find Melchizedek mysterious, rather like Balaam who operated as a prophet separately from the Hebrew people in Moses’ day (and ended up turning away from God). But Herb’s description in Hebrews 7:3 makes Melchizedek’s life sound even less clear, getting into whether we know who this priest-king’s parents were, or when he was born or died, as though Melchizedek had no birth or death. Herb’s point really is that Melchizedek was never stated to have become a priest based on inheriting the position, and that it is never mentioned that anyone took up his role as a priest after him. This is following a second style of reasoning accepted among rabbis, one in which you didn’t need to assume the reality of things which scripture left unstated. This allowed Herb to draw connections to Jesus, as one who did not inherit a priestly role from a parent, and who would never stop serving in his role as high priest. That was in contrast with the carefully kept genealogies of the Levitical system – there were tens of thousands of priests living in the New Testament period, each of whom gained their title through their father, and each of whom was to retire at age 50 (Numbers 8:25) – the order of Melchizedek was not joined based on birth records and was not temporary, but was through the permanent oath of God declaring membership (v. 21, 28; Psalm 110:4). So Herb’s statement “made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually” (3b), paired with him saying that Melchizedek “lives on,” (8) may not just involve the rabbinical argument about an unstated death being assumed not to have occurred – it may refer to Melchizedek retaining his status as priest when he is resurrected. Melchizedek will continue to serve alongside the high priest of his order.
Hebrews repeatedly points to Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s plans and calls believers to follow Jesus to gain perfection / maturity / completion (the Greek term doesn’t translate simply). We are told in 7:19 that “the Law made nothing perfect,” but 7:28 says that “the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever.” Now of course when Herb tells us to join with Jesus he doesn’t mean that believers will stop sinning in this life, after all in 7:25 he describes Jesus as “able also to save forever [completely] those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (you see the point, people don’t need intercession unless they are still doing wrong; by the way, where 7:25 says “forever” and I note the Greek was more like “completely” that wasn’t the same Greek term as I was mentioning Herb used related to “perfection” and “completion.” I am sort of in the habit by now of noting with translations that say things like “forever” or “eternal” what word they should have said, though, because – say it with me – there was no New Testament word for eternal). As chapter six reminded us, a high priest never took the task on for himself, God made the choice, and when God provided us with Jesus we got the best (and only) high priest possible for the purpose of bringing us fully into contact with God.
I’m not sure if people in the church today think very often about how salvation works, but Herb felt it needed clarification and provided some in his book. We have read about Jews who were concerned over the idea of the Law continuing to be followed in the Church, a meeting was held at Jerusalem with apostles and other leaders to discuss that. At one point Paul addressed the issue by pointing to how God interacted with faithful Abraham, centuries before the Law. Paul showed that obedience to the Law was not required to please God, God was more interested in faith. Herb describes something similar with the priesthood, showing that it existed in Abraham’s time well before Aaron or Levi’s line and so the Levitical priesthood was not required for making connections to God. Herb also showed that Levi effectively tithed to Melchizedek when Abraham gave him a tenth of the spoils of battle, which Herb said meant that the earlier line of priesthood was greater than the later one.
Such interpretations as Paul and Herb wrote, or the many statements interpreting prophecies in the Bible, do not result from authors ‘putting together the pieces’ for what they wanted to support. I don’t think they could have been so fortunate in locating such details anyway. Rather we are talking about a God who shaped event, prophecy, and interpretation. Just as God chose Abram, by His own will, from whom to make a great nation, God also determined that He would use Abram as the starting point to reach the world. God’s choice involved setting up a whole imperfect system to put the Hebrew people on their path, creating a nation and a history and a culture that prepared the way for Jesus. Jesus then opened the way for people from the world; Jesus also provided for better things than the Hebrew people had been experiencing. It can be mindboggling to think about all the steps of the plan God put in place. I tend to wonder if some of those steps along the way were interchangeable, based upon whether certain people would follow through or fail in what they were called upon to do. What I am certain about is that God’s plan was never going to fail.
Thank you, Lord, for your plan, which you have been preparing for so very long. Thank you that we do not have to depend upon who gave us birth in this world to determine if we may enter your kingdom, but that you allow us to become inheritors of your kingdom through a relationship with your son Jesus. I may come into the relationship fallen, but he can lift me up. However dirty I seemed to myself, he was able to wash me clean. However useless I have felt, he can make me useful. As inheritors with him please help us each to joyfully work in your plan, caring and serving as he does for the will of his Father. And please help me be eager to serve him, let me help in ways I have not yet even been of help. Thank you, Amen.
~ Daniel Smead
Reflection Questions
Do you find it encouraging to think that your future is not based on your past, but on your connection to Jesus?
Hebrews 7:25 says that Jesus is able to save completely “those who draw near to God through” Jesus – do you see this more as part of the cautionary language in the book, saying salvation calls for drawing near to God, or as part of the promissory language of the book, pledging that we are able to draw near to God? How might a difference in outlook on that point affect someone’s life? How have you drawn nearer to God in the last few months?
Perhaps it will seem to be a side issue, but we are told we will be priests in the coming age (Revelation 5:10). If the offer had existed through the Levitical order almost no Christians would be eligible – they are not Levites, they are not male, they are the wrong age, etc. But as members of the Melchizedite order alongside Jesus we are not subject to those restrictions, and we can serve with our High Priest Jesus for centuries. How can you honor God today?
In yesterday’s devotion, we were reminded of the importance of obedience and the dangers of disobedience. Even though the passages that we read yesterday were years and years removed from our reading today in Isaiah, similar themes run through both. Israel was continuously going through a sin-cycle of disobedience, discipline, and then a decision to return to God. In Isaiah 1, we see the harsh consequences of sin again. Verse 5 says, “Why will you still be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel? The whole head is sick and the whole heart is faint.” Sin has eternal consequences, and it also has consequences in our daily life. Because of the Israelites’ sin, their home was destroyed, and all of the things that they loved were taken away. Even though sin was destroying them from the inside out, they still refused to submit to God.
In many ways, we can talk about sin with the same language that we use for other negative repetitive behaviors, like addiction. People who are addicted to something keep returning to it even if the actual desire to do the thing isn’t there. They may actually hate the thing that they do, but they can’t seem to stop themselves from returning to it (which sounds a lot like my relationship with social media). Israel continued to return to sin despite the pain that it caused.
In verses 18-20, we see a promise to the Israelites. It says, “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” On their own, Israel could never break out of the sin cycle. When they rested on their own power, they fell back into disobedience.
But, we don’t have to rely on our own power to break our addiction to sin. This promise for the Israelites – the promise to be made clean, to be freed from sin – found its fulfillment in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him.” We now have been grafted into the body of Christ. The promise that was given to Israel has been given to us as well. This is why we can break the sin-cycle in our lives. We don’t have to rely on our own works; we find our rest in him. Hebrews 4:9-11 says, “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.” We can enter into this state of rest because Jesus has done the work for us. He was the sacrifice that made us clean. Just like the Israelites waited for the Promised Land, we wait in hope for the Kingdom, our eternal glorious place of rest. We have to hold fast to the truth and choose to live rightly.
How then should we live? Isaiah describes a life that is lived rightly: “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.” (Isaiah 1:16-17).
Let’s pursue righteousness as we wait for the fulfillment of the promises of God.
After several years of teaching, I recently had the opportunity to stay home with my two kids. My oldest is three, and he has a mind of his own. Much of my day is spent doing fun things, like playing outside, reading books, and building Lego towers. But, with a toddler, there are always going to be times of correction. Discipline now is necessary for a happy, healthy, well-adjusted human later on. But disciplining through rebellion has its share of tears, tantrums, and yelling of “No.”
Today, we read about a similar situation of discipline. There are two choices we have in life. We can choose to be obedient to God, submitting to his word, or we can choose to pursue our own desires, rejecting God’s word. One path is the path of righteousness and life. The other is the path of sin and death. In Psalm 58, we read about the harsh judgment reserved for those who are not righteous. In verse 10, “The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance; he will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked. Mankind will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.”
As Hebrews 3:7-8 says, “There as the Holy Spirit says, ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion on the day of testing in the wilderness.’ We must take care of the condition of our hearts. If our heart is soft to God’s leading, we will listen in obedience to what he says, and we will do it. However, if our heart is hard, we will be more likely to reject God’s commands.
How do we know the condition of our heart? It’s important to look at our actions. If what we do is lined up to God’s word, then we have a heart to listen to what he says and follow it. I’ve heard it described as a plumb line that we use to measure up our actions. If we are out of line, God’s word will call us out.
What does a hard heart look like? If you notice that your actions are consistently not matching up with godly living as described in the Bible, that is a good indication that you have hardened your heart to his teaching. You are living in rebellion. Those words seem harsh, but they line up with the way that Hebrews describe them. If you consistently read that you should do something but you don’t, you are not living righteously. Just like the notifications on your phone, you swipe out of and never look at or the alarm you press snooze on, you are desensitizing yourself to the effects of sin. You’ve become “an evil, unbelieving heart” that is “hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (v. 12-13).
We need to encourage each other to pursue a righteous life of obedience. That is what we are called to do.
The book of Isaiah was written by the prophet Isaiah to the southern tribe of Judah at a time when the Assyrian empire threatened Judah’s destruction. The name Isaiah means “the Lord saves”. Isaiah is quoted in the New Testament more than any other Old Testament prophet.
While Isaiah predicted that Judah would eventually be defeated because of their sins; he also predicted a message of hope – the coming messiah (a suffering servant), would come to establish the Kingdom of God on the earth.
Some have suggested that the first 39 chapters of Isaiah focus on doom and gloom, similar to the 39 books of the Old Testament; while the 27 last chapters (40 – 66) of Isaiah focus on hope and restoration, similar to the 27 books of the New Testament.
There are many prophecies in Isaiah about the “last days”, the “Day of the Lord”, the promised messiah (Jesus), God’s suffering servant (also Jesus), conditions in the millennium, and the coming Kingdom of God.
One of my favorite verses is Isaiah 41:10, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
–Steve
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
Have you walked through a season of rebellion? What was the outcome?
What is the importance of obedience?
What is the current status of your heart? How do you know?
I love a good adventure story. One of my favorites is The Lord of the Rings (the original series of course). The movies came out when I was young, and I loved the epic battle between good and evil that they portrayed. One of my favorite parts is in the second movie during the Battle of Helm’s Deep. For those of you who aren’t familiar with this scene, let me paint the picture for you. The people were terrified as they were locked away in a fortress that was described as impenetrable. However, the defenses were failing as a massive army of mindless monsters had lined up before the fortress with the sole purpose of annihilating everyone within them. The people inside felt hopeless. They had sent the women and children to hide in caves. The men were putting on armor, knowing that the outcome of the war was a seemingly hopeless situation, that the fight they were putting up was futile, symbolic. They would not back down.
I imagine that the people in Helm’s deep would empathize with the Psalm we read today. David, who was also on the run from his enemies, faced imminent danger. Because of Saul’s jealousy, he was out to kill David. In Saul’s mind, David was a threat to his throne, and that threat must be taken care of even though David had been nothing but respectful of Saul’s authority throughout his life. David knew what it was like to be in a seemingly hopeless situation. He explains in Psalm 140:1-3, “Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men; preserve me from violent men, who plan evil things in their heart and stir up wars continually. They make their tongue sharp as a serpent’s, and under their lips is the venom of asps.” David was pursued by evil men and felt like he was almost in their clutches. Without God, his situation would have been hopeless.
In the battle of Helm’s Deep, the people were saved after the third day when Gandalf returned with another army that was able to defeat the army of the enemies. This is an obvious allusion to our ultimate hope that J.R.R. Tolkien, a Christian, included in his book. David also points to this hope in Psalm 140 when he says in verse 12-13, “I know the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted and will execute justice for the needy. Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name; the upright shall dwell in your presence.” Though David’s situation was difficult and dangerous, he knew that there was hope in his situation that seemed hopeless. His hope was God, and he knew that God would come to his aid.
God has also come to our aid through his son. Jesus is the light at the third day coming to defeat the forces of darkness in the world. The genealogies of 1 Chronicles point to this perfect salvation, the son of David. He is “the true light, which gives light to everyone” (John 1:9). This “light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).
When we face down our enemies, when we feel like we are in a seemingly hopeless situation, we can remember of the light, the hope, that we have in Jesus. He has already saved us.
~ Cayce Fletcher
Reflection Questions:
Are there areas of your life that feel hopeless? How does this Psalm give encouragement to you?
Now that we are not fighting physical battles as frequently as in David’s time, some of the Psalms can seem a little archaic. Who are our enemies now? How do we fight against them?
Why do you think that 1 Chronicles begins with a focus on genealogies? How does knowing your history help you live well today?
Colossians Introduction
Paul, possibly with the help of Timothy, wrote the book of Colossians to the church at Colossi while in prison in Rome. He had never been to Colossi when he wrote the letter to them.
Paul wrote this letter warning the Colossians about doctrinal errors in 2:8, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” This sounds like particularly good advice to us today.
Paul highlighted the importance of living a holy life. 3:1-6 is just a sampling, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.”
I’ll close with Paul’s advice as recorded in 3:23-25, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism.”
In the midst of all of our discussions of punishment for sin and idolatry, it can paint a picture of a harsh, just God. We know that God is doing the right thing, but it seems like the right thing is also cruel. Today’s scripture brings into focus another aspect of God that proves how loving and truly kind God is. Psalm 139 is a famous scripture and for good reason. Here are some truths we can learn about God from this beautiful and comforting Psalm.
God knows who we truly are. We cannot hide from God, and we don’t need to feel like we have to. The Psalm begins, “O Lord, you have searched me and known me! […] Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether” (v. 1, 4). We can find great comfort in that all the ugly, messed up parts of ourselves is already known to God. We don’t need to try to “flee from [his] presence” (v. 7) because he is already there. This shouldn’t make us feel afraid. Instead, we should feel like we can bring everything we are to God and lay it at his feet. He already knows anyway.
God’s boundaries are good boundaries. Verse 5 says, “You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.” When we think of God’s law, we can think of it as the rules that keep us safe. It reminds me of the baby gates in my house. My little girl is just starting to crawl. The one place in the house that she always wants to get to is the stairs. She has no idea how to go down them though! The baby gates in my house protect her from the thing that she wants to do. It is a boundary, a law, of protection that turns out to be provision for her.
God knows our days. We can find great comfort in the sovereignty of God. As we face trials and uncertainties, we know that “Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them” (v. 16). We believe that God is a good God, and we know that he has good things in store for us. It may not always work out like we hope. But, it will be something that works out for the glory of God. And ultimately, that is the best good.
As we consider the punishment that God gives, its always important to center that conversation on the never-changing character of God. Exodus 34:6-7 describes the character of God in this way, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and fourth generations.” We see here the story of Israel played out. Yes, God punished a few generations of children because of the iniquity of the Israelites. But, before that, God was faithful and stood by the Israelites. Not only that, after the Israelites were in exile for a few generations, God brought them back. He remembered them and brought them home to the Promised Land. Truly how “Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (Ps. 139:14).
~ Cayce Fletcher
Reflection Questions:
How does reading about the punishment for idolatry make you feel? Does reading about the character of God change those feelings?
Read Ps. 139:7-12. What does it mean to you that God’s presence is everywhere? How does that change the way you live?
Pray over verses 23 and 24. Bring to God any of the areas of your life that you feel like a “grevious” to him.
1 & 2 Chronicles Introduction
The word chronicles means “a factual written account of important or historical events in the order of their occurrence.” The books of 1 & 2 Chronicles list two such important pieces of information for post-exilic Jews.
The first is the list of genealogies recorded in the first 9 chapters of 1 Chronicles. This was important for Jews after the exile to be able to trace their lineage to God’s promised people, and therefore to the promises God made to Abraham.
The second reason for the name “Chronicles” is that 1 & 2 Chronicles retells the story that was originally told in 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings. The difference is that 1 & 2 Chronicles gives only information on the kings of the Southern Kingdon (King David and his descendants).
These books were written after the fall of the Southern Kingdom to Nebuchadnezzar’s army around 587 BC. And since the last chapter also includes information about the edict of Cyrus – allowing the Jews to return to Israel –, which took place in 539 BC, these books were likely written in or shortly after 539 BC.
While 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings share much of the same historical narrative as 1 & 2 Chronicles, Samuel and Kings point out that Israel is being punished for her sins. Chronicles was written to inspire hope and faith in God.
Another example of the difference is that Chronicles shows the kings in a more favorable light, including evil king Manasseh, who 2 Chronicles records as repenting of his sins – a fact not recorded in 2 Kings.
Finally, Chronicles shows more cause and effect within a king’s lifetime for his decision to follow or forsake God.
As you read through 1 & 2 Chronicles, may you too recognize the results of not only the kings’ life choices but also the consequences of your own life choices. And may you also experience the hope Chronicles tries to convey. And may you be among those people God is referring to when he said, in 2 Chronicles 7:14, “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
The school year has just ended in SC, and I am thoroughly enjoying summertime. After teaching for 5 years (and being in public school/college all those years before it), summer has become a beautiful time of rest, relaxation, and lots of swimming and sunshine. Summer is one of the perks of being a teacher, but it is definitely a time that feels earned. After a year of pushing students to be better learners and better people, I need a break.
One of the most challenging things about being a teacher is the constant redirection and discipline that are required to make sure a classroom runs smoothly. If everyone is always doing what they want – whether that’s blurting out, going to the bathroom (as soon as we start taking notes!), or playing on the iPad – not much learning is happening. One of my jobs as a teacher is to set up a structure for my classroom that involves rules so that students know how to overcome doing what they want so that they can do what they need in order to learn. Sometimes students are happy to follow these rules. But, sometimes they are not. When they don’t follow rules, there is a system of warnings and consequences to try to get them back on track. Lunch detention, emails home, you know the drill. Occasionally, a student will not listen, and that is when the big punishment happens: ISS or OSS. Any public school kids know about this place of detention. The purposes of ISS, or in-school suspension, are two-fold: (1) By taking them out of the classroom, they miss out on the fun and good things we do as well. Normally, they don’t want to be away from the class because of this. (2) It also removes the student from the learning environment so they don’t pull everyone else down with them.
In our reading today, we see the punishment the Israelites received that reminds me quite a bit of ISS, except much more severe and far-reaching. The Israelites were exiled from their land as a consequence of their sin. We read in 2 Kings 17:1-23 about how the Israelite king, Hoshen, continued to follow the pattern of doing evil in God’s sight. This caused the king of Assyria to invade the land and ‘carry the Israelites away to Assyria and place them’ throughout the land of Assyria (v. 6). Verse 7-8 says, “And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of the Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, and walked in the customs of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel, and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced.” Verses 9-23 go on to describe the Israelites’ descent into sin from the time they entered the promised land with Joshua until the present time. In Deuteronomy 28, we read the promised consequences for the sin of disobedience and see these consequences given after the Israelites choose repeatedly not to listen to what God has told them to do. Despite knowing these consequences, the Israelites still pursued other gods and idols. When God would try to call them out of their sin and draw them back to him, they would not listen.
Ps. 135 describes the difference between God and idols. Calling back to the deliverance from Egypt, it states the great works of God and praises him because “For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself, Israel as his own possession” (v. 4). In contrast, the idols are the work of human hands that cannot speak, see, hear, or breathe. “Those who make them become like them, so do all who trust in them” (v. 18). It’s chilling to read this Psalm after seeing the demise of the state of Israel. Because the Israelites trusted in their idols, they either died or were forced to live in captivity where their “life shall hand in doubt before them. Night and day they shall be in dread and have no assurance of their life” (Deut. 28:66). Instead of Israel being God’s chosen possession, God “rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight” (2 Kings 17:20).
This is a harsh consequence, but like the punishment of ISS, it is twofold in purpose. The descent into sin needed to be stopped. This was God’s boundary line, stating that if they continued to act like this they would not be allowed to remain with him. It also removed Israel from close proximity to Judah, the nation that still remained in the Promised Land. At this point, Judah was not too far gone, so God didn’t want Judah to be brought down further into sin by Israel.
God takes idolatry seriously, and there are severe consequences for it. We cannot be God’s chosen people if we choose to pursue idols. Idols look different than in the Israelites’ time, but they are all around us: Beauty, Money, Sex, Work, Family, Political Beliefs, Identity, Alcohol, Drugs, Social Media, Image. These are the intangible idols. We can’t hold them in our hands like idols of the olden days, but we may worship them all the same, giving offerings of our time, money, and relationships – sometimes sacrificing our parents, children, spouses, or friends on the altar of their worship. We will be exiled from his presence if we choose to pursue idolatry if we choose these things over God. It is not too late to turn back to him! Cast down your idols today.
~ Cayce Fletcher
Reflection Questions:
What are some of the idols that you see in your life or the life of the people around you?
Why does God give such harsh consequences for idolatry? What is the danger of idolatry?
What does exile look like in a modern day context? Do you think God punishes people in the present day, or is it just a future consequence (aka a lake of fire punishment)?
Philippians Introduction
Paul wrote the book of Philippians to the Christians in Philippi, which was the first church Paul established in Europe. Despite the fact that Paul wrote this letter while he was a prisoner in Rome, Paul repeatedly talked about joy – showing that he could be content in any circumstance (4:11).
Paul reminded the Philippians to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ (1:27), despite the persecution they were suffering (1:29-30). He pointed to Jesus as the ultimate example of humility and submission, and reminded the Philippians that they should have the same attitude as that of Jesus (2:3-11).
In chapter 3, Paul reminded the Philippians that even Paul didn’t earn his righteousness from following the law, even though he was a model Jew. Instead, all of us receive righteousness that comes from God and is by faith in Christ.
I particularly like Paul’s admonition in 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present our requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
I also like Paul’s reminder in 4:13, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”
May we be able to say like Paul in 4:9, “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”
Seek Grow Love 