History to Deal With

Scripture: Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently. Romans 14:1

Observation: Paul will use the example of food and dietary practices extensively in this passage as one of the things Christians from various cultures and backgrounds may disagree about. However, from his introductory statement, it is clear that is just one example. There are a variety of topics Christians can - and will - disagree about, and the point is to be very careful about correcting each other. Overall, he will give three reasons:

1) Your opinion may not actually be the right opinion, or at least not the definitively right/best interpretation of the truth in all circumstances.

2) Ultimately, if someone is doing something because they believe it honors God, then the mind to honor God is of primary importance, not the method.

3) Sometimes people are influenced by their past history and are still working through those issues, so compassion and love is more important than rules.

Application: I have absolutely been on both sides of this issue ... receiving judgment from other believers who think I am "doing it wrong," and judging other believers for what they do. Clearly, this isn't new within the Church.

I cannot do anything about others judging me, but I have tried to become better about judging others. I still do so, particularly regarding the actions of 'leaders,' but I have been especially aware of how this applies to those new in the faith. In all matters, they need permission and grace to grow in Jesus, learn of his teaching, and simply receive his love.

Today, I especially like this one sentiment from Paul that reminds me of this ... "they have their own history to deal with." We all do. Even though I am forgiven, my past still influences my thoughts, behaviors, language, and decisions. I can even say that God gave me that past so perhaps I can use elements of it for his glory. But I do have a history to deal with, and others have their own history to deal with.

Prayer: Lord, may I treat others gently, everyone, every day. Amen.

Importance I Cannot Understand

Scripture: The sons of Ephraim were Shuthelah, Bered his son, Tahath his son, Eleadah his son, Tahath his son, Zabad his son, Shuthelah his son, and Ezer and Elead, cattle-rustlers, killed on one of their raids by the natives of Gath. Their father Ephraim grieved a long time and his family gathered to give him comfort. 1 Chronicles 7:20-22

Observation: In this passage explaining the clans of the tribe of Ephraim, it starts by stating Ephraim's son (Shuthelah), then follows his line six generations, then ... a comma, an "and", then randomly names two more people (Ezer and Elead) who died ... and THEN says they were Ephraim's other sons, thus Shuthelah's brothers, from six generations ago. Because they died there are no clans from them. From there it says Ephraim had a daughter and thus she is not a clan. And finally it names another Ephraim son (Rephah) and his lineage down eight generations to Joshua. (It is also worth noting that verse 7:6 names three sons of Benjamin, but Chapter 8 begins by naming five sons of Benjamin, and only one (Bela) is common between both lists.)

For a people group that cared so very much about ancestorial ties to the patriarchs, and who organized their societal structure - from land holdings to career options - around their lineages, they could not have made the documentation of such more confusing if they had tried.

Application: I am quite confident that thousands of scholars over the centuries have reviewed all the scriptures in painstaking detail, and documented the family trees of the Israelite clans, and that if I Googled it I could find it neatly and simply laid out. However, I am always fascinated by the ancestorial documentation in scriptures for three reasons:

1) Ancestry is considered critically important for understanding many aspects of the Bible, including Jesus as Messiah, John as a prophet, David as king, Samuel as a leader worthy of selecting David and Saul, all the chief priests, etc.

2) The fall of Jerusalem to the Romans destroyed the ancestral documentation, which is one of the strongest cases for the fact that, since it was now impossible to trace ancestry to David, therefore Messiah had already come.

3) Despite all this importance, the documentation is - on the surface - a rats-nest mess of redundant names, seeming contradictions, and meaningless dead-ends, requiring extensive research to even try to comprehend.

And maybe ... maybe ... that is the point. This is an element of the Bible that reinforces many of the paradoxes of faith:

-- Significance (very important) vs. incomprehension (can't really understand)

-- Simple (just read it) vs. intellectual (study to find meaning)

-- Mundane (we all have ancestors) vs. complex (untangling God's meaning)

In the Bible, I often see the simplicity of the Lord's instructions, but also see immense wisdom that I cannot possibly fully comprehend. We are often told over and over again, in the midst of events (both in the Bible and in our everyday lives), that while we may have an earthly understanding of the events, we cannot understand the full breadth and depth of the Lord's purposes for everything that happens. In some cases, we need special teachers with years of study just to scratch the surface of understanding.

I don't understand the lineages in the Bible, but I can have faith in the importance of the Bible nonetheless.

Prayer: Lord, your word is perfect and wonderful. May I continue to find your meaning, your truth, and your love in everything I read in the Bible. Amen.

The Reason for the Therefore

Scripture: Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It’s way over our heads. We’ll never figure it out.
Everything comes from him;
Everything happens through him;
Everything ends up in him.
Always glory! Always praise!
Yes. Yes. Yes.
Romans 11:33,35 (ish)

Observation: Paul will begin chapter 12 of his letter with what is perhaps the most important "therefore" statement in the Bible ... a declaration that because of all he has said to that point, we therefore should live our lives as a living sacrifice to the Lord, giving him everything of ourselves at all times. However, he precedes that declaration with this summary of what he has been talking about. Effectively, the Lord has given us everything and done everything for us. His wisdom is beyond our comprehension - we could never come close to figuring it all out - but if in our limited understanding we tried to figure out how the world worked the only logical conclusion is that God runs it, and therefore all praise and glory goes to him, at all times.

Application: Romans 12:1-2 is one of my 2-3 favorite verses in the Bible, and probably the one I completely and totally fail to live out in my life the most. I don't make my life a living sacrifice. I don't do only things that are holy and pleasing the God. While I don't conform to the world, I resist being transformed by the spirit. Perhaps I fall short of living into the instructions of Romans 12 because I forget the reasons summarized in Romans 11.

The Lord has given me everything. This fact is so very, very evident. There is no logic to how the world, or how the universe operates, without the reconciling logic of a creator. This fact is intellectually solid. No human could rationally explain all aspects of human behavior without a discussion good vs. evil that only exists in people. This fact is explicitly explained only by scripture.

The Lord has given me everything, THEREFORE ... I must live my life as a sacrifice to the Lord. How dare I do anything less.

Prayer: Lord, my God and redeemer and father and judge and protector, I seek your grace and forgiveness this day. I have failed to be a living sacrifice. Please forgive me. More and more, may my life become an aroma, pleasing to you in heaven, transformed by your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Living Within the "Much More"

Scripture:
"On Judgment Day, watch out!"
These are the words of God, my Master.
"I’ll turn off the sun at noon.
In the middle of the day the earth will go black.
I’ll turn your parties into funerals
and make every song you sing a dirge.
Everyone will walk around in rags,
with sunken eyes and bald heads.
Think of the worst that could happen
—your only son, say, murdered.
That’s a hint of Judgment Day
—that and much more."
Amos 8:9-10

Observation: The Lord is preparing judgment on Israel, and the description of that day is very interesting. It includes ... the sun darkening in the middle of the day ... festivals being turned into a time of great sorrow ... the sadness of an only son being put to death.

There was a day to come, about 750 years after this was written, when - in the midst of the Passover celebration - all of Israel was put into turmoil, tens of thousands had their celebration interrupted, hundreds went into mourning, the sun itself was blacked out at midday, an earthquake damaged the temple, and one man - God's one and only son - was crucified, killed, and buried in a tomb, despite being found innocent of all wrongdoing by the authorities. And it is now, by our understanding of that son and of his resurrection from the dead, that we are judged. We are either judged guilty of our sins because we have no way of proving our goodness before the Lord, or we are judged innocent because we place total faith in the crucified son, who then offers us grace through his death, and eternal life through our belief, all because of the father's (God, my Master) love.

Application: Again today I declare my faith and belief in Jesus Christ as my Lord and savior. I believe in Jesus, God incarnate born of a virgin, judged unjustly, crucified dead and buried, resurrected from death, taken into heaven, and seated on the judgement seat at the right hand of the Lord God almighty, creator of heaven and earth. It is by this revelation, available through the impartment of the Holy Spirit, that I trust in these things entirely and completely.

I can only imagine the pain and sorrow on the day of Jesus' death, but that was only a "hint of Judgment Day."  I live on the other side of the event that occurred three days later ... the time of "much more".

Prayer: Lord, your word is amazing. The prophetic revelation of Messiah gives us logic, but your Holy Spirit also gives us all the heartfelt emotion to understand just a little of your love. May I praise you forever and ever. Amen.

Full Trust that Comes from Faith

Scripture: For Abraham is father of us all. He is not our racial father—that’s reading the story backward. He is our faith father. We call Abraham “father” not because he got God’s attention by living like a saint, but because God made something out of Abraham when he was a nobody. Isn’t that what we’ve always read in Scripture, God saying to Abraham, “I set you up as father of many peoples”? Abraham was first named “father” and then became a father because he dared to trust God to do what only God could do: raise the dead to life, with a word make something out of nothing. When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn’t do but on what God said he would do. And so he was made father of a multitude of peoples. God himself said to him, “You’re going to have a big family, Abraham!” Romans 4:16b-18

Observation: Paul continues his discussion of Abraham's faith, and there seems to be two major points he is making. First, he continues to highlight the definition of faith and righteousness illustrated by Abraham, that these are all about trusting the Lord no matter what. Second, he emphasizes that being a 'child' of Abraham is not really about being Jewish, but rather it is about having the same faith in the Lord that Abraham exhibited and thus taught by example. Abraham is told he will be the father of many nations, and that means ... every people group in every nation can effectively call Abraham 'father' when they have adopted the same kind of faith in Yahweh ... a faith that is now exhibited through belief in Jesus Christ as the Messiah, our Lord and savior, and the full trust that comes from that faith.

Application: More and more, I have been fascinated by Abraham. It has taken me a long time to understand what perhaps others have known and seen their entire lives. The Lord made promises to Abraham; that he would have a huge family as the 'father of many nations', which would posses land as far as the eye could see. Abraham received no land but spent his life as a nomad, and in his VERY old age fathered one son whom he almost killed anyway. Somehow, with absolutely no evidence that the Lord's promises would be fulfilled - and such evidence never existing in all of Abraham's life - Abraham steadfastly believed in the Lord.

THAT is "full trust that comes from faith". And honestly, it's a level of trust that is hard for me to get my head around. At my best, when I trust by faith in the Lord, at some point I expect a result. I expect some evidence of progress toward what I am believing for.

Abraham's faith is truly amazing. Understanding it is a gift from God.

So how will I receive this gift? Will I embrace hope and trust for things that I pray for, and in faith never let go of that trust no matter the reality of the world I see around me? Perhaps part of that is dependent upon whether or not I perceive that the Lord has promised the things I hope for. If he hasn't, I likely need to find the things he DOES promise, and hope for them.

I'll start with this. The Lord promises that he will never leave me nor forsake me. I believe that for sure.

Prayer: Lord, I would desire to see where your real promises lie in the world around me, so I can find more and more ways to believe and fully trust in the future by faith. Amen.

All the Things I Can't Do

Scripture: What we read in Scripture is, “Abraham entered into what God was doing for him, and that was the turning point. He trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own.” If you’re a hard worker and do a good job, you deserve your pay; we don’t call your wages a gift. But if you see that the job is too big for you, that it’s something only God can do, and you trust him to do it—you could never do it for yourself no matter how hard and long you worked—well, that trusting-him-to-do-it is what gets you set right with God, by God. Sheer gift. Romans 4:3-5

Observation: The more traditional interpretation of this passage is that Abraham "believed in God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." That's it. Abraham was righteous before the Lord because he saw what needed to be done, and instead of figuring out how to do it himself he simply said "I can't, so I'll figure out what God is doing and simply join him, trusting he will do it."

Abraham could have remained a maker of idols like his father. He could have become a shepherd in Ur. I would have done fine and lived a good (but childless) life. What Abraham couldn't do was ... he couldn't become his own nation, and he couldn't have children. However, God could do these things for Abraham, all he had to do was leave his entire life behind and move hundreds of miles away to a strange land with potential enemies all around, and live the life of an untrusted nomad. And Abraham did that.

Application: I can work. I can do the tasks my boss gives me. I can hold my wife when she is down. I can feed my cats.

What I couldn't do when I was 26 ... I couldn't figure out how to live a peaceful life. I couldn't support a family. I couldn't love anyone. God told me he could do these things in my life if I trusted him, and I did.

What I can't do now ... I can't make my back stronger. I can't trust others with my thoughts. I can't find joy in my daily work. I can't release the anger I have toward strangers. However, God can. Am I ready to trust him?

Prayer: Lord, yes, I'm ready to trust you. I desire the sheer gift of having you in my life, and being righteous not by what I do, but by trusting you will do things that I cannot. Amen.

Held Responsible for Sin

Scripture: Listen to this, Israel. God is calling you to account—and I mean all of you, everyone connected with the family that he delivered out of Egypt. Listen!
"Out of all the families on earth,
I picked you.
Therefore, because of your special calling,
I’m holding you responsible for all your sins."
Amos 3:1-2

Observation: After condemning the nations around Israel, Amos turns his attention Israel itself with a specific statement ... that because they are the chosen people of the Lord, called out and delivered from Egypt, set aside as a kingdom of priests, he will hold them responsible in a very specific way for their sins.

Also in today's reading, Paul says something similar as it relates to Jews ... "Our involvement with God’s revelation doesn’t put us right with God. What it does is force us to face our complicity in everyone else’s sin." (Romans 3:20)

In both of these, there is a common lesson. When the Lord has given the people knowledge, understanding, and special treatment, and when that is all reenforced by messages from the Holy Spirit, and THEN the people rebel against the Lord, explicitly reject his teaching - not accidentally or simply through the weakness of humans to avoid sin, but making a conscious effort to adopt a life that is counter to the Lord's will - there will be a special kind of reconning to come.

Application: I pray over and over and over again for our nation, and for all people in this time, who have actively pursued lifestyles that actively reject the Lord. That said, I am very aware that there is a difference between those who do so in ignorance, and those who do so in full knowledge of the precepts and ordinances and pronouncements of the Lord, endorsed by Jesus, while they declare themselves followers of Jesus. There can really be no doubt that there is a special kind of reconning to come.

I don't believe that reconning is heavenly or eternal, as faith in Jesus is sufficient for salvation. However, there are earthly troubles ahead for many Christians. I would do well to ensure I am not one of them, and in that regard ... I must consider if there are elements of the Lord's clear teaching that I have actively and intentionally rejected.

I have been very clear that I am a sinful human who makes mistakes in behavior and judgment and thought alike. However, I believe I have not adopted a "lifestyle" practice that explicitly denies the Lord's instructions. If I have, I would like knowledge of it, and correction to fix it.

Furthermore, I pray for denominations and churches that have in fact declared themselves opposed to the Lord's teaching. They often do so as a way to 'comply' with another of the Lord's precepts, but are clearly misguided in such methods. I would like them to have the truth revealed to them. However, I fear that instead some special kind of reconning will come down, and the non-believers will rejoice at the pain of Christians.

Prayer: Lord, let me begin with this. Please, Lord, if I have adopted as practice in my life something that offends you and rejects you, please tell me and correct me. I ask the same for my brothers and sisters in Christ, that we all receive your word of correction. Amen.

Not Special the Way We Think

Scripture: So what difference does it make who’s a Jew and who isn’t, who has been trained in God’s ways and who hasn’t? As it turns out, it makes a lot of difference—but not the difference so many have assumed. Romans 3:1-2

Observation: Paul spends a fair amount of time discussing the topic of Jewish Christians, and specifically about behaviors and rituals that are now up for new interpretations due to the ides of salvation by faith. It is a newly complex topic, as Jews previously understood their compliance with Mosaic law to define their relationship with Yahweh. However, they now have a relationship with the Messiah, Jesus, knowing they are saved by faith, and that their gentile peers in this faith have explicitly been told that compliance with Jewish practices is not required. It gets confusing at best.

One extreme view is that all Christians can ignore 'sin' as faith brings forgiveness and salvation (even to the point that sinning yet being forgiven somehow demonstrates God's love even greater), however that concept is easily dismissed. Some Jews think they should be just like other Christians and no longer care about compliance of their ancestorial practices. Some believe they are Jewish and thus need to comply with Jewish practices, and that gives them a higher 'status' in the Christian faith.

So Paul is asking ... does being Jewish matter? And his answer is ... yes, but not for the reason y'all believe it does. And this is actually a fact of the Jewish people going back a thousand years ... it very, VERY much matters that they were (and still are) the chosen people of God, but not in the way they understood it. They were not a nation that had exclusive access to - and love from - the Lord. They were rather a nation of priests, set apart as an example of God, and blessed in order to take that blessing to the rest of the world. The Lord is the Lord of everyone, not just Israel, and the Jews were to inform the world - by word, deed, and example - how wonderful it is to trust in the Lord.

Applications: Just like the Jews, Christians today are special, but NOT special the way we think we're special. We aren't special because we're forgiven, or blessed, or loved. We aren't special because we can find joy in hardship, can hear guidance from the Holy Spirit during tough issues, or experience miracles around us. Every single person can receive all that ... in fact it is the will of the Lord that every single person would receive all that, and so much more.

We are special because we are supposed to bless others. We are supposed to help and encourage and love the rest of the world, in Jesus' name. For those who do not know Jesus, we are supposed to be the source of joy and hope, and then upon seeing us as that source - and transitively that Jesus is our source - they discover Jesus.

I am not special because Jesus loves me. I am special because Jesus has decided to allow me to participate in the process by which he loves the entire world.

Prayer: Lord, may I fulfill my purpose today, showing others your joy, hope, and love. Amen.

Thinking on some Hard Q&A

Scripture: I thank God through Jesus for every one of you. That’s first. People everywhere keep telling me about your lives of faith, and every time I hear them, I thank him. Romans 1:8

Observation: After the more formal and structured greeting, this is what Paul first says to the Christians in Rome ... that he thanks God for them all the time, over and over, every time he hears about their lives of faith. Roman Christians are living in the epicenter of the world, under the nose of the most powerful ruler ever seen, who expects total honor and respect and even worship from his plebian subjects. It is likely the most difficult place in the known world to be a Christian. Yet there are the Christians in Rome, believing in Jesus, honoring God, and Paul know it and celebrates them for it.

Application: There are VERY hard places to be a Christian in the world today, with 'hard' being defined as likely deadly if caught (Iran, Myanmar jump to mind). However, in the United States, the "greater Puget Sound" area is brutally difficult. Outsiders are SO ignorant of this fact. A radio station conducted a survey in 2015, and the results of the survey were published under the title "Don't Believe in God? Move to Seattle." This area of approximately 4 million people self-declares to be 52 percent Christian, but really isn't. Less than 4 percent of the population attends Christian church at least twice per month, and 64 percent say they NEVER attend any kind of religious service. In this survey, most who called themselves "Christian" did so because they were raised going to church, and the survey didn't have a 'none' choice. In other (better and more comprehensive) surveys of the area, the actual plurality in the region is agnostic/atheist/'none', and Christians as measured by actual belief come in at closer to 19 percent.

The BEST-case numbers from the above make Seattle the least-churched region in the entire country. The LIKELY accurate numbers make Seattle similar to the nations in the "10/40 window".

Okay ... so now, let's ask the hard questions today!

Why is it that Christians in the "bible-belt", or in any other part of the U.S., don't think about us Christians in the Puget Sound area and thank God for us? Why don't they pray for us? Why aren't they hearing stories about our perseverance and strength and faith and worship and lifting us to the Lord for strength and encouragement? Why aren't they writing letters to us to fortify our courage? Why aren't they sending missionaries to aid our evangelism and augment our preaching?

There are two hard answers.

First, those Christians are so self-absorbed and ignorant that they are casting us aside for their own comfort, their own pet projects. They would rather pat themselves on the back by sending money to missionaries in North Africa, or taking a trip to hand out tooth brushes in remote villages of India, than come to Seattle and have to stand face-to-face with a software millionaire wearing a rainbow tee-shirt, standing before a thousand like-minded people, lecturing about the spectrum of transgender practices, openly declaring that any 'religion' that disagrees is a hate organization, while elected officials actually pass laws making common church activities illegal ... and have to think to themselves 'I would like to demonstrate the love of Jesus toward these people'.

Second, we Christians here aren't being faithful enough. We love our high-paying jobs at the software companies too much to raise a fuss. We aren't so active in showing the love in Jesus during these same anger-filled events that it becomes news that spreads to other Christians. We aren't visible. We have mostly gone into hiding, and worse yet we have begun fleeing the call as PNW Christians have simply given up and are moving away. In addition, we haven't made know the issue and urgency, the fact that this region is simultaneously one of the least-Christian places in the world, AND the epicenter of the technology information boom that is influencing the thinking of the entire world ... and thus made Christian leaders aware of both the opportunity and risk.

We are failing our Lord. We are failing Jesus. And we don't care as much as Paul did.

Prayer: Lord, in both personal and communal humility, I confess to you today that we are failing you in the mission you have given. We are not effectively baptizing and teaching in the name of Jesus, here in the Seattle area. Just measuring our church against another and saying "we're better" isn't good enough. We aren't in an internal competition, but rather this is a spiritual war, and we aren't arming ourselves and showing up well enough. We need both hard answers addressed. We need to bear down and answer the call in this time and in this place where you have put us, and we need help and reinforcements from others. Please. Amen.

Rejection of the Spirit

Scripture: Some of them were persuaded by what he said, but others refused to believe a word of it. When the unbelievers got cantankerous and started bickering with each other, Paul interrupted. Acts 28:24-25a

Observation: Paul is about to pronounce his final words of the book of Acts, which will be quoting Isaiah in reference to non-believers. This is why such a pronouncement is made ... because when the Jews don't believe in the Messiah, they don't just say 'no' in their hearts or even out loud, they instead get "cantankerous and start bickering". They do not simply ignore such belief, but they fight about the truth and meaning and legalistic interpretations explicit and implicit within the very word of God.

Paul recognizes that this is something different than non-belief. It is easy - common - to hear someone make a persuasive argument, decide you don't agree with it, and simply let the matter be. It is also possible to disagree about such a matter by presenting the facts of one's own beliefs, even identifying where the two viewpoints do not align. However, arguing and bickering against something, fully rejecting the logic but without contradicting logic, and rejecting or nit-picking every single "word" of it, is a different kind of rejection. It is a rejection of the spirit, occurring at a spiritual warfare level.

Application: We have so many different belief systems in the world today, some of which are based on such wild and crazy concepts that they have no logical basis. However, many have a logical (albeit flawed) basis, embraced by millions of people. And while I know my faith is based on my personal experiences and the way I have felt the Lord in my life, I am also very convinced Christianity has a foundation that is provable by logic and science. With these understandings, I need to consider three things.

First, I need to recognize when others reject my beliefs by responding to them with negative and argumentative emotions. These are individuals who are not engaged in a logical response to Jesus, and thus their real issue is spiritual. They are being influenced in the spiritual realm, and any engagement with them needs to consider that fact.

Second, I need to recognize when others reject my beliefs through logical counter-arguments to statements about their own faith. THESE are individuals who are misinformed, but are (perhaps) willing to be informed. It is not useful to legalistically or logically debate ... it is better to 'preach Christ crucified' ... but in these cases conversations are possible.

Third, I need to recognize when I respond to other's beliefs with emotions, not logic, and reset my mind. "Beliefs" can include religious and secular activities, from Hinduism to non-binary gender practices. If I respond with anger and emotion to any of these, I can be easily dismissed by those who hold those beliefs, even giving them ammunition to further hate Christians. If I respond with love, and a little logic, then the ball is back in their court to see if they will be logical or hate-filled.

Prayer: Dear Lord, it is so difficult to have your wisdom and your patience and your peace when interacting with those who are opposed to Jesus. In my daily interactions, may I find a way to rely upon the Holy Spirit alone to properly center myself in every conversation. Amen.

Remembering Who Really Heals

Scripture: Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “How do I know whether this is of God and not just the fig plaster? What confirming sign is there that God is healing me and that in three days I’ll walk into The Temple of God on my own legs?” 2 Kings 20:8

Observation: With Hezekiah on his deathbed, Isaiah hears the word of the Lord, that Hezekiah will in fact live another 15 years. At this, Isaiah has physicians apply a plaster made from figs - basically a balm - and Hezekiah recovers. And this is Hezekiah's response ... questioning whether it was the work of physicians that healed him (aka a natural process), or if it really was the Lord who did it.

Hezekiah is creating a differentiating quality in the miracle of healing that many others do as well. He is believing there is a difference between a healing process that is a "miracle" and one that comes through a process of natural biology and medical insights. He is ignoring the fact that biology, and our understanding of it, are actually created and ordered by God, too.

Application: Here I sit, two weeks away from a great golf trip, and crippled by a sudden injury. I am praying for rapid recovery, asking for a miracle. And as I am feeling a little better today, it is easy to say "oh, my body is healing."

No. The Lord is healing my body. I pray he does so quickly, in time for my trip, but there must be no doubt in my mind that the Lord is in charge of my health and my strength. Even if I saw a doctor, the results would be directed by the Lord's wisdom and plan. And if I am not fully recovered by the trip, that will only mean there is a reason for that.

Prayer: Lord, I do pray for full recovery within the next 10 days. I do not know why this has happened, but I know your hand is in the recovery. Your hand manages my body, which I surrender to you. I will do and take the things needed, but I give my hope over to you entirely. Amen.

Completely Forgetting the Promises

Scripture: Ahaz sent envoys to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria with this message: “I’m your servant and your son. Come and save me from the heavy-handed invasion of the king of Aram and the king of Israel. They’re attacking me right now.” Then Ahaz robbed the treasuries of the palace and The Temple of God of their gold and silver and sent them to the king of Assyria as a bribe. 2 Kings 16:7-8

Observation: In his struggle against both foreign enemies and also the king of Israel, Ahaz (the king of Judah) requests aid from Assyria. This will be the beginning of the end for Israel. Assyria will quickly vanquish Aram, but will then proceed to Samaria, and in a few years will totally defeat the northern kingdom of Israel, sending those Jews into exile, and thus ending Israel's occupation of most of the promised land.

The irony of this involves who the Assyrian's are and where they come from. Without getting too much into a study of people and geography, they are ... from the land of Ur. The Assyrians are the ancestral people of Abraham, the people whom Abraham was called out of, told to leave their land, and promised the new land his family would eventually occupy.

God made Abraham a promise. If Abraham would obey the Lord, leave his land and people, and place his faith in Yahweh, the Lord would make him a great nation of priests fully occupying the land of Canaan. Abraham did this, and Yahweh did this. Approximately 1,000 years later, full of sin against the Lord, in violation of the covenant, actively worshipping other gods ... Abraham's descendants are removed from Canaan - at the request of one part of Abraham's descendants - by Abraham's own ancestors.

Application: In calling upon Assyria, Ahaz shows he has forgotten everything about the Lord's covenant with Abraham. Yes, he is ignoring the Mosaic covenant as well, actively overturning the rules and practices given to the Jews in the wilderness, to the point that he discards the alter for the burnt offerings designed by the Lord himself. However, Ahaz has gone a step further, totally ignoring the origination of their entire people-group ... Abraham was called out from Assyria to be special, and Ahaz now calls upon Assyria to eliminate - assimilate - most of Abraham's descendants.

I know the Lord has made promises to us who believe in Jesus Christ. Do I remember those promises? Or do I act in a manner that not only breaks God's instructions, but discards the promises themselves, rolling back history, and undermining the basis of very covenant of the Messiah? This is a tough question. By reading God's word, I believe I am at least aware of the covenant, and I keep the core of that, which is faith in Jesus as Messiah. I retain that hope and always will. I know I could do better in obeying the teaching of Jesus, however I am not seeking out ways that some worldly concept could eliminate Jesus, or the Church.

As for my continued learning and awareness, I will continue to seek - and cling to - the promises of the Lord.

Prayer: Lord, yes, I seek your promises in my life. I know you have given so much through the covenant of Jesus. May I continue to center my entire life within that covenant, body, mind, heart, and soul. Amen.

Extra Effort to Live Wrongly

Scripture: But for all that, Jehu didn’t turn back from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, the sins that had dragged Israel into a life of sin—the golden calves in Bethel and Dan stayed. 2 Kings 10:29

Observation: Jehu - who's stated purpose is to return Israel to the Lord - has now killed every remnant of Ahab's family line, every person who was obedient to Ahab's family, every priest of baal, and every individual who ever followed the baals. He has also destroyed the temple of baal and the significant idols representing that false god. He has cleansed Samaria of this false religion, and of the king that led their nation astray.

However, he fails to address the sin that started it all, the creation of the idols meant to represent Yahweh, created to be worshipped as idols representing the Lord, replacing the temple worship and sacrifice practices performed in Jerusalem as prescribed by the law. In other words, Jehu addresses the sin of worshipping other gods instead of Yahweh, but he does not address the sin of failing to obediently and properly worship Yahweh.

It was this act - failing to be obedient to the Lord - that allowed other sins to enter Israel. This act isn't as obvious as rejecting God. Rather, it is about creating false images and false practices to create security and hope on one's own terms, rather than humbly obeying the Lord and offering one's life as the Lord prescribes. The golden calves in Bethel and Dan were the gateway to this ... they created a model that told Israel they didn't need to follow the Lord as the Lord had prescribed, and that is just one logical step away from ignoring the Lord entirely.

Application: Humbly and obediently following the Lord as he prescribes ... it sounds straightforward, but in truth it is probably issue we all stumble over, which required the sacrifice of Jesus in the first place. It isn't that there are a lot of difficult rules, because there aren't. (I mean, how difficult was it for Israel to NOT build two idols?!) Instead, many of us - myself included - who declare ourselves faithful believers, fall short of obedience by doing things that actually make our lives more difficult, like getting angry at strangers instead of simply being peaceful, or allowing our mood to darken over minor issues instead of finding joy in the small elements of life.

One could say that the source of our sins lies in our extra effort to live wrongly. It is from that position - working to do things the Lord doesn't even want us to do - that we then find other sins, other frustrations, and a litany of earthly temptations that drive our behavior further and further from the Lord.

I know I do this. I get angry with total strangers for no real reason, when simply doing nothing would be easier, and being kind would also be easier and in turn produce better outcomes. When alone and frustrated, and will swear out loud, when there's no reason to say anything at all ... why waste my breath to offend the Lord in such a way?

I don't worship golden-calf idols, but I keep things in my life that create the 'gateway' to sin as such idols, things and actions and attitudes that simultaneously disobey the Lord AND make my life harder. Then I pray for forgiveness, with a heart of embarrassment and guilt I didn't need to have, and it is the source of that heart for which Jesus died. My life would be easier - and Jesus would have more honor - if I simply chose to not work so hard to do the wrong things in life.

Prayer: Lord, I do seek your forgiveness this day for my sins. I know I do little things that offend you every day, and I am sorry for this. As I have said before, may I take your hand and walk humbly with you, my Lord, every day, in every activity, and in so doing, living a wonderful life. Amen.

Needing Full Alignment

Scripture:
We plan the way we want to live,
but only God makes us able to live it.
Proverbs 16:9

Observation: This section of Proverbs includes many one-sentence soundbites of wisdom, and this one is about the general effort of people's lives and their personal plans. There are two ways to read this:

1) We can plan to be a good person, following the Lord's will for our lives, but it is only by the strength of the Holy Spirit that we are able to obey and fully live within the Lord's will.

2) We can make all kinds of earthly plans for our lives, but in the end it will be the Lord's plan that comes to pass in our lives, therefore only if they are aligned will our plans succeed.

These two interpretations are very similar in outcome - that when our plans align to the Lord's will, our lives will proceed as we expect - but they are different in the matter of heart. If one puts the Lord first and seeks his will, then our lives will be full; If one creates their own plans, success is by chance only.

Application: I ask over and over for insight from the Lord about the direction of my life, and my personal plans in life have been torn apart over and over as well. I do know that peace in life comes when I seek the Lord's path, while disharmony, pain, and difficulty result when I charge off on my own plan. This is even manifested in other proverbs of this same chapter, that discusses how leaders interact with others for success ... but I have learned that interacting that way within a situation that is not within the Lord's plan for your life won't work.

My life needs full alignment to the Lord's plan for my life. I need to be in the place he wants, doing what he wants, with the people he wants. So ... am I?

Prayer: Lord, my God, I am your servant. Yes, I know that my heart sometimes seeks its own ideas and direction. Please forgive me. As you need to tune my life, please do so, so that I may be aligned to your will and your plan, and contribute to your kingdom of heaven here on earth, during the life I have left. Amen.

With Whom Should God be 'Angry'

Scripture:
If you’re going to be angry, be angry
with the pagans who care nothing about you,
or your rival kingdoms who ignore you.
They’re the ones who ruined Jacob,
who wrecked and looted the place where he lived.
Psalm 79:6-7

Observation: This psalm follows a theme similar to many of the psalms. Israel is in trouble, attacked by other nations, and the prayer to the Lord is that he protect Israel and punish the attackers, for it is Israel who believes in the Lord, and the aggressors are pagans who denounce and badmouth the Lord. These pagans destroy the Lord's temple, kill the Lord's people, and gloat and taunt the Lord himself while doing it. Meanwhile, the faithful should not be punished because either their parents or a subset of the current victims failed to obey the Lord.

This prayer has logic ... the Lord should punish those who fully and completely reject and blasphemy him, not those who pray regularly, offer their sacrifices, sing worship, yet sometimes disobey his orders, and mix in a few other gods and their rituals into their daily lives.

We know the Lord will respond. All those nations that rejected and blasphemed and attacked and killed - Moab, Aramea, Edom, Amon, Assyria, Babylon, etc. - don't exist anymore. However, the Lord also had every reason to be angry with Israel, because ... they knew the full truth about Yahweh, and chose other options.

Application: This is the curse that is upon me every time I ask the Lord to "take care" of the current situation within our nation and our culture. The Lord should be so very, very angry with those who actively reject him and deny him and openly declare him to be meaningless or non-existent. And he WILL take care of that. However, how angry must the Lord be at me when I pray to him, seek his spirit and will, worship him, declare my love for him, and then gloat over 'my' success, swear in anger at others, leer at a young woman, or covet a little more money for a good trip or other fineries for my home?

Yes, the Lord is angry at those who attack him, but he is also patient and loving. He wants them to discover him, repent, and believe in Jesus. However, for those of us who do believe, there is no 'future' decision ... our wrongdoing right now is rebellion in need of correction.

Maybe "anger" isn't the right word for the Lord's response to my wrongdoing, but certainly he has a right to be angry with his believers - his Church - that fights and whines and sins and gossips and judges.

I should have two commands in my life: Love God; Love people. If I truly lived those two things 24/7, surely the Lord's anger would never come my way.

Prayer: Lord, I have prayed for a changed and softened heart. May I continue to evolve and change in that way, so I may live in your love only all the days of my life, and into eternity. Amen.

On the Moral Priorities

Scripture: In asking you to do this, we’re not going back on our agreement regarding non-Jews who have become believers. We continue to hold fast to what we wrote in that letter, namely, to be careful not to get involved in activities connected with idols; to avoid serving food offensive to Jewish Christians; to guard the morality of sex and marriage. Acts 21:25

Observation: The early Church had already made some decisions about what it meant to be a gentile believer. Gentiles were not Jews and therefore not subject to the Law. However, they did need to observe the moral teachings of the Law. In addition to being kind to Jewish believers by not tempting them with unclean food, there were really two key elements of the Law that effectively covered everything ... do not worship idols (in other words, love and worship only the Lord), and avoid sexual immorality (in other words, hold sacred the way that the Lord has created mankind).

Application: It is amazing to think how wise these two elements have proven to be, and how well the first century believers understood the way the evil one would undermine humans. As we sit here today with a culture that worships earthly success above all else ... while celebrating sexual perversion and chasing after lusts in ways that destroy families and lives ... it is obvious that taking care of just these two priorities would create so much peace and joy in the world.

In the last few days, I have thought deeply about the issue of "the morality of sex and marriage" and the fact that the root cause of the fight my in-laws are in is not about human actions, but about this one issue, and how the solution is to bring people to faith in Jesus. This was known 2,000 years ago; that faith in Jesus should include observance of the teachings about sexual morality, which in turn grows the faith and brings peace, joy, love, and kindness into our hearts. The primary issue is not that individuals confused about their identity and thus pursue a path of sexual perversion, can receive assistance from greedy and corrupt professionals that worship money they can receive for their medical practices. The primary issue is that neither of these types of people have the love of Jesus in their lives and in their hearts.

Prayer: Dear Lord, we know that the answer to every problem and issue in the world is Jesus. Please help us to simply tell others the good news of Jesus, and of the love and hope and peace available to those who simply believe. May our message be simple, for thy will to be done. Amen.