Mar 29 I Samuel 13-14 Obedience Over Sacrifice

Saul was into religion - trying to earn God's favor by religious ritual. God wants a relationship based on trusting Him in all things - shown by obedience to His Word. Saul never learned about a relationship with God.

We show our relationship with God as we exercise our trust in Him. As we forsake our trust in Him and exercise our trust in ourselves (or the size of our army), we show

Mar 30 I Samuel 14-15 God Hates Pride

Saul, once small in his own eyes, revels in a victory brought by God and sets up a monument in his own honor. During the process, Saul disobeys God to keep his men happy. Saul has seriously gone off course and will continue his downward spiral from God.

Saul's main problem is that he was never a spiritual man and despite all of God's blessings, never really became spiritually motivated.

Saul is a picture of a worldly man who will bring himself to destruction - because he trusts in himself, rather than trusting in God.

Mar 28 I Samuel 8-12 Israel Wanted an Earthly King to Replace God

In I Sam. 8:19-22, the people clearly state their wont of an earthly king - so they could be like the other nations and have him/lead them in battles - God wanted them to be different from the other nations and to rely on Him to lead them in battle. Israel didn't get it - they rejected the kingship of the LORD. So God was going to give them what they wanted - a worldly king - his name would be Saul.

While you read, watch Saul start out dependent on God, successful, humble, etc. - and watch what he devolves into. Saul was a "giant" of a man (remember this when you get to Goliath) and not very spiritual. He grew up in a town almost right on Samuel's circuit route, but Saul knew nothing of Samuel. Saul was originally shy, hiding among the baggage when he knew he would be named king. Yet God chose to put His Spirit upon him - to empower him for kingship.

Mar 27 I Samuel 3-7 God Isn't a Good Luck Token

The Israelites thought God was a good luck token (by way of the Ark) to be literally carted out when they needed something. Many people today treat God the same way - in a bottle on the shelf to be called upon when they need Him to do something that they can not do.

Today's reading tells us that God is not a good luck token - He is God, a person who desires a close personal relationship with each one of us. He is a jealous God who wants our undivided worship. He is not Dagon or Allah or known by any other name than the LORD (Yahweh). The LORD fights for those that know Him.

Mar 26 I Samuel 1-2 Oh, To Be Honored

God says in Chapter 2, "Those who honor Me, I will honor." I think this is a great verse to meditate on today. Do I honor God in all that I do? Do I live to honor God? Is that my mindset?

Mar 25 Judges 19-21 Self Will Slides People Down

The Book of Judges ends with an insightful summary of a period of great morale decline ;: "In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit." This sad commentary slide the people from the pinnacle of God's holy people to a people firmly imbedded in the cultural values of the people around them. It sounds like a warning to us committed Christians.

Most people think that the reference to Israel having no king refers to their earthly king. My OT prof, Dr. Vannoy did his doctoral dissertation on his finding that the reference was a denial of the LORD as Israel's king. The earthly king was just to be an undershepherd to the real shepherd of Israel, Yahweh God.

We as the people of God have a simple decision to make - to be reaffirmed in every little decision we make along the line - we will bow to God's values and serve Him as king - OR do as we see fit - just like the rest of the culture around us. I choose to follow the King.

Mar 24 Judges 17-18 Stealing Gods and Priesting for the Best Offer

Today's account shows how idiotic religion can become when worship turns away from the one true and living God. It becomes a man-made convention to serve man and his wants. Thinking becomes dark and self-centered. Even a relative of Moses "sells" his services to the one with the best offer - forgetting that the best offer for service is from God Himself.

I think we all have to ask ourselves, "Am I serving God? Myself? Others?" Once our worship gets mis-directed a bit - it can continue to slip into the wrong direction. We need to continually check our worship orientation.

Mar 23 Judges 13-16 Sexual Immoralities Take a Blessed Man Down

Samson was clearly a man whose uncontrolled sexual appetite took him down.His weak father Manoah was no help in the beginning with Samson wanting a Philistine woman. His father should have put his foot down and said, "No, I am not going to get you that woman. Marry in your own tribe as God commands you." That was only the beginning of Samson's problems - a man blessed by God and called to do so much more for God.

It was a terrible epitaph for Samson - he did more in death than in life.

Mar 22 Ruth 1-4 Godly People in the Time of Judges

The Book of Ruth is set toward the end of the period of the Judges, say 1100BC-ish. Though godlessness is rampant throughout Israel, there is a faithful remnant of people of loved God and were faithful to the covenant.

Boaz becomes the kinsman redeemer for Naomi and Ruth. He ransoms their property and Ruth. He saves them from bondage by paying their redemption. Boaz is a type of Christ - our kinsman redeemer who saves us from the bondage of sin. Boaz rescued Naomi and Ruth, because they could not rescue themselves. Christ rescued us, because we could not rescue ourselves from the bondage of our sin problem.

Boaz should also be remembered as a faithful upright man who stood firm to God despite the culture around him falling away from God and His ways.

Mar 21 Judges 10-12 The Morality in the Bible

Was Jephthah's daughter killed as a sacrifice to the LORD? Many think so. Or was she offered "as (or like) a burnt offering" to the LORD in service all her life as a virgin around the tabernacle? Scholars debate this.

It is important that all that occurs in the Bible is not necessarily endorsed by God. The Bible contains narratives (I don't like to use the word, stories, because that makes the accounts seem like fiction) about real, flawed people - even the "heroes" of faith. The only unflawed "character" (again this sounds like a storybook fictional character) in the Bible is Jesus. So, don't feel compelled to defend everything in the Bible. On the contrary, it is important to point out the flaws of the so-called heroes to unbelievers, so they see that only Jesus is our ultimate model.

Jephthah made a rash oath that was kinda stupid. Be careful about what you pledge - and don't pledge others - commit yourself to ethical (Biblical) behavior.

Mar 20 Judges 8-9 Bad Examples of Judges

People sometimes cite something from the Book of Judges to support what they do or think. In general, Judges is a terrible place to get your theology about what to do - it is a great place to cite about what NOT to do.

Our account today of Abimelech and Shechem is a great story of what happens when people forsake God and do things their own way - everyone loses.

Mar 19 Judges 6-8 Little Faith and the LORD's Strength

Many people point to Gideon's fleece and sometimes say, "I laid out a fleece for the LORD to see if He wants me to do such and so." Not a good thing to do. Gideon showed a lack of faith when He failed to act immediately on the LORD's word. God chose the weakest man in the weakest clan, so He probably expected little faith from Gideon. Don't show your little faith in God by putting Him to the test.

God whittled down the fighting force to show it was Him who brought the victory, not Israel's fighting men. God was trying to re-establish their faith in Him. God still wants us to rely on Him, not our own efforts. We all need to make sure that we are exercising faith in God to do great things. We should pray for and expect things that can only be accomplished "if God shows up!"

Mar 18 Judges 4-5 A Great Failure of Male Leadership

Deborah and Jael are the two women heroines of this Israelite victory. The males at this time were timid because they had strayed from Yahweh and His ways. Their courage melted because they knew that God was no longer with them (as a judgement for their sin). This account should be a wake-up call for all men to return to God - He will give us the courage to lead ourselves, our families, our workplace, and our church.

Praise for faithful women in our midst. They are a blessing from God.

Mar 17 Judges 2-3 The Importance of Godly Parenting

It is incumbent on parents to provide for the physical needs of their children. But it is even more important for parents to provide their children with the knowledge of God and His ways AND TO MODEL IT/THEM IN THEIR OWN LIVES. Judges 2:7, 10-13 is a very bad commentary on the parenting of the 1st generation of Israelites in the Promised Land. Those who personally witnessed the miracles of God did not pass on that knowledge to their children.

It is true that children must ultimately make their own choice to receive the things of God, but through loving, consistent teaching/modelling of their parents, the children will mostly choose the things of God.

I wish that I could do things over as a parent, so if you have no children yet or they are young, then repent if you must and give your children most - God and His ways.

Mar 16 Judges 1 Not Listening to God's Warnings

All of the tribes fail to drive out the Canaanites from  their assigned lands. Watch closely for the consequences - they won't be good.

Mar 15 Joshua 22-24 Warnings About Canaanites

God warns the Israelites to completely drive out the Canaanites. He warns them about turning away from Him - to ally with them, intermarry with them, and to associate with them. They will be snares to the Israelites and they will take on their evil customs. And of course, that is exactly what happens.

We are warned not to marry unbelievers because more times than not, they draw us away from God. I think we don't believe God and because we don't, it is a sign of turning away from Him. Single disciples of Christ have to look at what has happened to people throughout redemptive history who have not listened to God. Unbelievers consistently draw believers away from God. Don't start a relationship that you can't complete. "Oh we are just friends." Every couple who marries begins as friends.

Mar 14 Joshua 18-21 Promises Fulfilled

My relationship with God is strong because of His faithfulness. The last verse in Chapter 21 sums up God - Not one of all of the LORD's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled. God has made many promises to us - we can be assured that every one of them will be fulfilled, also. That is enough to meditate on today.

Mar 13 Joshua 13-17 Caleb Wholeheartedly Served the LORD

Caleb, along with Joshua, was one of the spies who came back after a spy mission with enough faith in God to take the land. The 10 others did not. God promised Caleb a place in the Promised Land and now God makes good on that promise.

It should be all of our hopes that on our tombstone it is written, "He/she wholeheartedly served the LORD." It requires looking at what God has done in history (the Bible and our's) and trusting that He will deliver on His promises.

Mar 12 Joshua 9-12 Keeping Our Word is Important to God

The ruse of the Gibeonites to get the Israelites to make a covenant of protection with them is quite interesting. Joshua, although duped by deception into this covenant, was obliged to honor his promise. There appears to be no rebuke by God for Joshua's sense of integrity. I take this to teach that God (who is one who can be trusted) expects His people (who bear His name and represent Him) to honor their word.

Our yes should mean yes and our no should mean no. If we say we will do something, then we should do it well. If we say that we will be somewhere at a certain time, then we should be there. People say that some in some cultures, being late is to be expected. I would say that the ways of our God should always trump the ways of our culture.

The other interesting thing about this covenant is that the text does seem to chastise Joshua for not consulting the LORD before making this covenant. Presumably, God would have exposed this ruse. My takeaway is that I should always seek the wisdom of God through prayer and searching the Scriptures before getting tied into anything.

Mar 11 Joshua 6-8 Lust of the Eyes of Achan

Achan lusted after a robe and gold and silver. He coveted them after he saw them. What he coveted was not his and would never be his. But he took them any way and covered up his sin by hiding the articles.

Achan's sin drew in his entire family. They all conspired to hide the articles. One's irresponsibility inevitably draws in other people.

Achan's sin was found out and destroyed his whole family.

The LORD is generous to us and allows us all to live with what we need if we will only follow Him and obey Him. Covetousness exposes our heart and the ingratitude and envy it contains. The only cure is to be satisfied with the LORD and all He provides. This includes material and immaterial blessings that we have all received if we just open our eyes to Him - and close our eyes to the things of this world.

Mar 10 Joshua 1-5 Be Strong and Courageous

"Be strong and courageous" was God's exhortation to Joshua. All leaders need to exude confidence for people to follow them. But where does on summon strength and courage? Some would say from our inner selves. But the Bible tells us the true source of strength and courage - from God.

Notice in Joshua 1, God promises Joshua, "I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you." Once we understand that God is with us, we must ask ourselves, "Who can be against us?" The answer is no one nearly as powerful. When a leader understands that God is with him and will never leave him, then he can be strong and courageous.

But God continues with an important caveat - "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it." For us Christians today, we need to be firmly rooted in the entire Bible as leaders. We must represent God well by modelling His holiness in our lives. If we do, we will continue to lead well in strength and courage - because He is with us.

Mar 9 Deuteronomy 33-34 The Awesome Responsibility of Leading God's People

As the leadership of Moses comes to an end, we are reminded of His great failure once again - "Both of you [Moses and Aaron] broke faith in me in the presence of the Israelites at the waters of Meribah Kadesh in the Desert of Zin and because you did not uphold my holiness from among the Israelites." People in spiritual leadership positions ought to understand the awesome responsibility that they have to represent God well at all times. At any moment, we can be called upon to represent God before His people. We must always represent His holiness before the people we shepherd. People who seek leadership positions should do so with fear and trembling before an all-powerful and all-seeing God!

Those who are not in spiritual leadership positions should pray for their leaders often. Satan knows that he can take out a lot of people through the mis-steps of God's leaders. We need to be protected from the Evil One - he is real and active and good at his chosen profession. But our God can allows us to overcame Him through His protection. Please pray for your leaders.

Mar 8 God is Jealous and in Firm Control

The words of God in v. 32:39ff have always been chilling to me - this is where I fear God. God declares that there is no god but Himself - He puts to death and He brings to life - He repays those who hate Him.

Him is important! Not the Him we envision Him to be, but the actual person of God in His word. To disdain who He really is and to conceive Him as we want - is to hate Him (the real Him, the one living and true God). This view of God scares me - the fear of God brings me wisdom.

Mar 7 Deuteronomy 28-30 Presumption and Our Reality

Now the final blessings and curses. This time through, I am struck by the warning about the sin of presumption in vv. 29:16-29 - "I will be safe even though I persist in going my way" - this after swearing an oath to follow the covenant with God. Moses warns - you will not be safe. We can apply this today to people (hopefully not yourself) who claim a salvation experience and then give no thought to actually doing what God commands. A salvation experience includes repentance - a change of mind - understanding that we are free from the bondage of sin. Staying bound by sin is a pretty good signal that the salvation "experience" wasn't real.

v. 30:11 is a very key verse in Scripture. God is saying that His laws are very doable - they are not too hard for us to follow. The real problem is that we don't want to follow them. We are the ones with a problem! God is the one with the solution - Jesus and a real salvation experience.

Mar 6 Leviticus 26 Blessings and Curses

Congratulations, you have finished reading the Torah - the 1st 5 books of the Bible - the Pentateuch!

Leviticus and Deuteronomy end with the blessings and curses for keeping or breaking the covenant. God was very lenient and patient with the Israelites for breaking the covenant. No king of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) was faithful to the Lord. Only twice were three consecutive kings of the Southern Kingdom (Judah) found to be faithful. The curses were eventually invoked and the people were expelled from the land. But God was faithful to His covenant - he never completely destroyed them.

Leviticus 22:31-33 expresses God's own heart. We are not to profane His holy name by our thoughts words, or deeds. We are to follow His commands. We are to remember that He is the one that makes us holy - NOT OURSELVES!

Tomorrow, we are on to Joshua and to conquer the Promised Land. Congratulations! You have made it through the Torah - the most revered part of the Old Testament among the Jews - and the basis for the whole Bible and the personage of Jesus Christ.

Mar 5 God Cares About People

There are many laws in the Torah that provide for fair treatment of all people. There is the law of gleaning where harvesters can only go through a field once. All that they have missed is to be left for the poor. This is early welfare.

A rebellious child could be killed. We have no record of this actually being implemented. However, this law tells us how important obeying our parents is to God.

Elders were to be treated with great respect - must stand when they enter a room. How different things are today. Elders should be respected today, too.

Mar 3 Leviticus 13-15 Laws for Health

Some, but not all, of the laws of Moses have been shown to be for good good medical and hygienic reasons. I believe that some of those laws are in today's readings. Infectious communicable diseases are attempted to be curtailed in some of these laws. But in all laws, the illustration of the separation of the holy and unclean is shown.

During the plagues of the Middle Ages, the Jews were almost immune. Most scholars believe it was because of the Mosaic purity laws that saved them.

Mar 2 Marriage and Sexual Relations

It is quite interesting that I will be preaching tomorrow on the importance of sexual purity. God's laws in the OT attest to the importance that God places on keeping marriage sacred. In Leviticus 18, God says, "Do not do as they do..." We are not supposed to be swept up into the culture of our land. God promised if the Israelites did adopt the detestable practices of the people occupying the Promised Land, then the land would vomit out the Israelites...and it did!

Unlawful homosexual and heterosexual sins were equally as abhorrent to God. I don't talk much about homosexual sin because I think the greater sin inside the church is heterosexual sin. The church and parents have been much too silent about the goodness of sex inside marriage. We have let the culture teach sexual values to our children. We must rise up and be bold in proclaiming that is was God who made sex to be wonderful inside marriage.