Week 116, Day 2: the Importance of the Word of God
Today’s Reading: Psalm 119:1-32
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Psalm 119 is one of the greatest resources we have to understand how God thinks of the word that He has revealed to us. The Psalmist speaks not only of how important the word of God is, but also what our responsibility should be toward the word of God. God provided His word for us for a purpose: so that we can know how to be obedient to Him. It is sad to see that most people, even in the religious world today, think of the word of God as nothing more than a book full of suggestions, ways to make our lives better if we decide we want to follow them. But, this Psalm shows us that we have a greater responsibility to the word of God than just to pick and choose the things that we want to do! Consider just a couple of examples from the first 3 segments of this Psalm:
Following the word of God causes one to be undefiled. Psalm 119:1 shows that those who walk in the law of the Lord are undefiled, that is free from sin. Psalm 119:3 emphasizes this point, showing that those who follow the revealed word of God do no iniquity. The only conclusion that one could draw from these verses is that those who do not follow the word of God are defiled and walk in iniquity! Does this sound like one can pick and choose what parts of the word he wants to follow, and allow the rest to go unheeded? Certainly not!
One learns how to be cleansed by following the word of God. Those who are following the word of God are free from iniquity, but what of those who are just starting to follow His word? What of those who have stumbled, falling away from faithfully following the word of God? The great thing about God’s word is that it makes provision for repentance! In fact, that is one of the central themes of the whole Bible message. Psalm 119:9-11 speaks of the need for the young man to cleanse his way, and that can only be accomplished through the following of God’s will! He asks God to help him in his endeavors, ensuring that he does not wander from the commandments of God. That is accomplished through the process of hiding the word of God in his heart, so that he might not sin.
Understanding God’s word takes time, effort, study and meditation.In Psalm 119:26-27, the psalmist speaks of the need to have the statutes of God taught to him, so that he can understand them clearly. He wants to be able to understand the precepts of God. He also speaks of meditating on these things. The only way that we can truly understand God’s word is to spend time with it. We cannot trust others to tell us what it says, we must be willing to search the scriptures and ensure that what is being taught is true (Acts 17:11).
The importance of the word of God will be emphasized throughout Psalm 119. Continue to read, opening your mind to how God views the word that He has revealed for us. If we don’t view His word in the same way that He views it, then how can we ever be obedient to Him?
Challenge: Spend some time with Psalm 119 today, and make a list of important points concerning the word of God. What is it, and how should it be used?
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Week 116, Day 1: The Lord is On My Side!
Today’s Reading: Psalm 118:1-29
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
In this psalm, the psalmist speaks of giving thanks to God for all that He has done. In verse 5, he writes of calling upon God in time of distress, and God answered him! Verse 6 declares that the Lord is on the side of the psalmist, and because of that, he had no fear. What a comforting thought! With God on our side, there is nothing that we need to fear. With His help, we can overcome anything that can be thrown at us in this life.
The apostle Paul gave a similar admonition to Christians as he wrote the book of Romans. consider his words of encouragement for us (Romans 8:31-39):
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We can have the same confidence as the psalmist, and we should offer the same prayer of thanksgiving for what God does for us! With God on our side, we can overcome the challenges that Satan throws at us every day. We must remember to rely upon God for our strength, instead of relying upon our own power.
Challenge: Think of a specific time that you have prayed to God for help in a time of particular distress. Did you remember to thank Him when He provided His help? Pray to God today to thank Him for His help and protection!
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Week 115, Day 5: The Riddle of Idols
Today’s Reading: Psalm 115:1-117:2
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
The psalmist, in Psalm 115, provides a description of the idols that should have made everyone realize their ridiculous nature. They were created at the hands of people, and yet those same people would bow down to the image that they had just made. Consider the description as given by the psalmist:
They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.
This description sounds much like the riddles that are often told. What could be described by such things? What is more the riddle is: How could/can a person follow after something that is so obviously false? The idea of following after something so clearly concocted by men seems foolish at best!
And yet, idolatry can be so much more than just a carved image. For example, the apostle Paul called covetousness idolatry in Colossians 3:5. Anything that we allow to stand between us and God, or anything that we serve more than God becomes our idol. For many it is money, career, drugs and alcohol, or any number of other things. Until we are able to do away with all that keeps us from serving God faithfully, we allow this idolatry to fill our lives. That seems to be the same problem as was had by the Rich Young Ruler of Mark 10:17-22. He had one thing, his wealth, that kept him from following after Jesus, and serving Him faithfully. That money served as this man’s idol! We cannot allow ourselves to be hampered in the same manner, falling for the foolishness of idolatry!
Challenge: List out things that tempt you stray from faithful service to God. Identify them as “idols” so that they will be easier to avoid in the future!
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Week 115, Day 4: Praise the Lord!
Today’s Reading: Psalm 112:1-114:8
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
One of the greatest reminders that we can take from the Psalms is the manner in which the men of old praised the Lord. In our self centered, selfish society, it has become easy for us to look upon God as our safety net, only calling upon Him when we are in some kind of trouble. It is easy to remember to pray to God when we are sick, or when we are facing financial difficulties, or familial problems. When was the last time we stopped to pray to God just to offer our praise to Him? The Psalms are full of instances of praising the Lord, and there is evidence of that in our reading for today. Psalm 113 especially is centered on praising God just because of who He is! We would be better served to spend more time in praising God, not because He needs it, but because we need it to be reminded of who God is, and what He has done for us.
Today, rather than leaving you with a question, I leave you with a challenge:
Challenge: Spend time in prayer today, asking God for nothing, but rather praising Him for who He is, and what He has done for you.
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Week 100, Day 5: Job’s Defense…
Today’s Reading: Job 6:1-30
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Job, throughout this book, tried to defend himself. He was convinced that he had done nothing wrong, and was trying desperately to get his friends to understand that, and give him something that he could use to improve his plight. They, on the other hand, were convinced that he must have done something very wrong to deserve the punishment that God was bringing on him. As we know, because we have a “birds eye” view, none of the men involved really understood what was happening, even though they were all convinced that they were right.
Job appears to have the proper attitude in this chapter, pleading with his friends to provide evidence for his sinfulness, so that he could make a change. This is an attitude that is often missing today. People simply do not want to hear about their faults. They are convinced that if someone comes to them with a fault, they are “out to get them”. We should be more like Job, determined to change if fault is shown. If we are blessed with brethren who care enough to show us our sin, we should be mature enough to make the changes in our lives that are required to be in favor with God. Sometimes, we ask for brethren who will provide us with the correction we need, but when it comes, we ignore them, convinced that we never do anything wrong! We must have the right attitude, and we should be willing to repent when shown the way.
On the other hand, Job’s friends were quick to condemn without any evidence against Job. They could only speculate that he must have sinned, else he would not be suffering these woes. We must be diligent to have the right motives, and the right evidence before accusing anyone of sin. If we know that a person has sinned, and refuse to address it, we are doing them no good. However, if we accuse someone of sin, and there is not evidence (and they are not guilty) we do nothing but discourage. If we have the right attitude, we will seek to correct those in sin with nothing but the word of God.
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Week 89, Day 1: God’s Requirements
Today’s Reading: 2 Kings 5:1-27
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
There are a lot of parallels that can be drawn between the account of Naaman and people in the religious world today. Naaman was told by the messenger of the prophet Elisha to go and dip seven times in the Jordan River, and his leprosy would be taken away from him. Naaman was angered by the prophet’s instructions, sure that he would make some big show over him, and cleanse the leprosy. He had decided what God should do to heal his leprosy! Fortunately, Naaman had a sensible servant who prodded him into being obedient to the Lord’s command (2 Kings 5:13). When Naaman was obedient, he was saved from his leprosy!
Today, many read the New Testament, and see God’s plan of salvation laid out in black and white, but they are convinced they have a better way! Surely God doesn’t mean one HAS to be baptized in order to be saved (Mark 16:15-16, Acts 2:38, 1 Peter 3:21). Rather than just submitting to what God has said, people today try to figure out why they don’t really have to be obedient. And, they think they will be saved without their obedience. Could Naaman have been saved if he chose a “better” way of cleansing his leprosy? If he had dipped only 5 times, would his leprosy have been healed? If he had gone back to the rivers of Damascus to dip, would he have been saved? The obvious answer is no. The same is true for us today. If we reject the simple method that God has given, by either taking away from it or adding to it, then we will not have our sins washed away any more than Naaman would have had his leprosy washed away. When the majority of the religious world teaches that the passages listed above don’t really apply to us, or that baptism has nothing to do with our salvation, they are acting like Naaman, wanting to seek salvation in a different place, and in a different manner than what God has prescribed. We need to reject what is popular, and be obedient to what is right. Adopt the same attitude as displayed by Joshua in Joshua 24:15: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!”
To read more on this subject, click here…
Question: What will you do with God’s plan of salvation? Will you be obedient, or try to find a better way, like Naaman first tried?
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Week 88, Day 5: It is Well
Today’s Reading: 2 Kings 4:1-44
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
In this chapter, we are shown a true picture of faith. Elisha was shown kindness by a woman who was barren, and in return God blessed her with a son. However, after the child had grown big enough to go with his father into the field, he got sick and died. The widow took the young child, and put him on the bed that she had prepared for Elisha.
The woman called for her husband and asked for him to prepare a donkey and a servant to take her to meet Elisha. What is very interesting is her own response to her husband’s questioning. He asked why she would want to go to the man of God when it was not the New Moon nor the Sabbath. She answered, “All is well.” Why would she answer in such a way? There are two possibilities. Either she was simply able to accept the fact that her son was dead, or she was confident that the man of God could do something for her. Because she left immediately to find Elisha, the second scenario seems to be the most logical.
When the woman found Elisha, she told him the very same thing. When asked how she, her husband and her child was, she said, “All is well.” She was about to tell Elisha that the boy was dead, and yet she was able to say that all was well. This woman knew that Elisha was indeed the prophet of God, and knew that God was indeed powerful. This child had been a gift from the Lord in a very special way, and she seems to have been convinced that he would not be taken away from her at such a young age. In 2 Kings 4:28, she reminded Elisha that she never asked for the child, and she asked for Elisha to not deceive her concerning the birth of a child. Elisha took pity upon her, and worked to raise the child from the dead, restoring him to his mother.
When we have the proper spiritual perspective, we can have the same kind of faith that this woman showed. We are not going to expect God to send a prophet to raise a dead child, but we can still have the attitude that “All is well.” We have a hymn entitled It is Well With My Soul that conveys this same type of sentiment. All can be well with us, regardless of the circumstances that we face, because we know what is awaiting us. We know that if we remain faithful to God in this life, there is a greater, eternal life that awaits us. This enables us to have a peace that is beyond understanding (Philippians 4:7). This explains why Christians have been able to face great persecution, and tribulations, and remain faithful. Even if our lives are threatened, or taken, we know that our salvation is sure. All is well.
Question: Is there anything in this life that should threaten our peace in Christ?
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Week 87, Day 3: What Are You Doing Here?
Today’s Reading: 1 Kings 19:1-21
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
In 1 Kings 19, the prophet Elijah had just had a great victory over the false prophets supported by Ahab and Jezebel. However, he was being pursued by the servants of Jezebel, who were intent upon killing him. Elijah went from being at a high after his victory, to a great low as he hid, afraid for his life. Elijah seems to be challenged with with depression, determined to hide and die in the wilderness (1 Kings 19:4). But God had a different idea for Elijah. Twice in the chapter God seems to offer a mild rebuke to Elijah, prodding him into further action (1 Kings 19:9, 13).
By asking Elijah, “What are you doing here”, God reminded Elijah of his purpose. First, he was not doing what he should have been doing. God had a plan for Elijah, and Elijah needed to wake up, quit moping about his own perception of what was happening and be ready to fulfill God’s desire. Second, he had to come to realize that what he saw was not necessarily the truth of the situation. Elijah thought that he was the only faithful servant of God left, and yet God knew there were many more.
There is much that we can learn from Elijah’s circumstances. Sometimes we think that we are all alone when we are trying to serve God. But, like in Elijah’s day, there are always going to be many more (even if we don’t know of them). It should give us great confidence and comfort to know that there are others who are facing the same struggles and trials that we are facing.
We also should learn that God wants us to be busy in His work. It is not acceptable for us to be stagnant. Trying to hide from tribulation will cause us to be ineffective in working toward expanding the borders of the Lord’s kingdom, and will keep us from encouraging and edifying others around us. If we are simply sitting back, hoping that all tribulation will pass us by, we should hear the words of God echoing in our ears: “What are you doing here?”
There is always going to be opportunities for us to be busy in the kingdom of the Lord. If we find ourselves sitting still, we can be sure that we are forsaking our obligations. We need to find out what we should be working on, and get to it!
Question: What are you doing here?
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Week 83, Day 5: Adonijah’s Rebellion
Today’s Reading: 1 Kings 1:1-53
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
In today’s reading, Adonijah, one of David’s sons, made an attempt to usurp the throne of David. In his efforts, he drew Joab and Abiathar (both men who had been very loyal to David) away from David and Solomon. Adonijah went so far as to make sacrifices, call the people together to celebrate, and have them cry out “Long live king Adonijah!” This was, however, in direct contrast to the will of God, who had chosen Solomon to be the next king (1 Chronicles 28:5). It was evident that Adonijah knew this to be the case as well, based on what he would tell his mother, Bathsheba in 1 Kings 2:15. He was upset that he had lost the kingdom, and that God had chosen Solomon instead!
Adonijah’s action is reminiscent of Saul’s actions toward the end of his life. Saul knew that God had taken the kingdom from him, and given it to one who was better than he, and yet he continually tried to get around God’s will! He thought if he could just kill David then God’s plan would have to be changed. Adonijah seemed to think that if he could just get all the people on his side, he could change the will of God. He thought, through the implementation of his own selfish desires, that he could force God to do his will! Of course, God’s will was accomplished in the end, with Solomon established by David as the next king over Israel, and Adonijah would soon get his just rewards.
Adonijah’s actions are not unlike those of many people today. It is easy to look into the pages of the word of God and find what His will for us is. And yet, the practice of many is to try and circumvent the will of God. Because of selfish desires or ambitions, too many people try to force God to conform to their wills. This can be seen in the sheer number of denominations that have formed with different doctrines developed to organize the local group, some national or international group, and to define the work of those bodies. Instead of focusing on what we want, the church should be focused upon what God wants, and conform itself (through the individuals that comprise it) to the prescribed commands of scripture! If we act like Adonijah, we will end up with the same spiritual consequence.
Question: When it comes to serving God, are we selfless, or selfish?
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Week 83, Day 4: True Sacrifice
Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 24:1-25
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Our reading today has a wonderful object lesson in the concept of sacrifice. David angered God by numbering the fighting men of Israel without His permission or command. As a result, God sent 3 options for David’s punishment. David chose to suffer the wrath of God in a plague for 3 days. As the destroying Angel approached the city of Jerusalem, David went out to the threshing floor of Araunah to offer a sacrifice to Jehovah to stop the plague. Araunah offered to give David all that was needed for the sacrifice, including the wood from the threshing implements and the yokes for the oxen, as well as the oxen themselves for the sacrifice. One of the most powerful verses concerning sacrifice is found in this context. David’s response to Araunah was:
Then the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. (2 Samuel 24:24)
David refused to make an offering to God which did not cost him anything. This is a part of sacrifice! Unfortunately, many people today do not want to offer anything to God that costs them something. They are willing to serve God as long as it doesn’t get in the way of anything else that they want to do. They will not sacrifice money, time or effort for God–they expect God to give into their wishes and desires! God requires sacrifice on our part, and it is going to cost us something. Romans 12:1-2 tells us that God demands that we make ourselves a living sacrifice. That is gong to cost us. It will cost us money. It will cost us time. It may cost us friends. It may cost us family. If we are not willing to pay the price of making an offering to God, then we cannot (and will not) be His children. If we are unwilling to offer things which cost us something, we are not really offering Him a sacrifice!
Question: When was the last time your offering to God actually cost you something?
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