Compared to Jesus Christ

 Psalm 31    Deuteronomy 29-30     Hebrews 3

David sings the ongoing struggle between trusting God and fearing the enemies both those he knows and those he called friends. The song starts out declaring his trust in God. While we all struggle to follow God’s ways David reminds us that when we face adversity God is our fortress and our rock. Even those that would set traps for us will be held accountable before God. God see the truth of what is happening and will be the judge.

Like David we can cry out to God do deliver us from those that oppose us when we seek to live the way God calls us to. This is a cry for God to make his face to shine on us and to show his lovingkindness thereby not allowing us to be put to shame. God has stored up goodness for those who fear him. We can therefor take refuge in God before anyone else.

When we are cut off from being seen like God sees us by others but when our trust is in the Lord, we join all those that put their hope in God and have great reason to celebrate.

As Moses wraps up his final instructions to the people of Israel before they enter the promised land, he reminds them once again that God has been with them and they are witnesses to the power of God since they left Egypt. He tells them that today they stand before God and that God has made a covenant with them and his goal is to establish them as his people in the land of promise. Moses wants with all his heart for no one to turn their back on God and to serve other gods because if they do, they will become like a poison the spreads throughout. Those that make that choice will be blotted out of the future of Israel. The anger of the Lord will burn against them and every curse that has been outlined will become a part of their life. They will be uprooted and scattered once again.

But even then, if they are willing to turn back to the Lord and obey Him with all their heart, mind and soul he will restore them because he is a God of compassion. God will circumcise their hearts and the hearts of those that come after them so that they once again can live with a heart, mind and soul right with God. When that happens God will inflict the punishment on those that led them from the Lord. The need to follow the commandments of the Lord will be restored as well. None of what God demands is hard or out of reach for the people to do. God has set the choice before them, life and prosperity or death and adversity. Choose life and God will multiply and bless you.

If they turn away from God again and serve other gods, the Lord will take all that he has given them and take it away once again. Moses then calls on heaven and earth to witness against the people he has led and taught for more than 40 years and reminds them he has set before them the way of life or death. If they choose life and obey the commands of the Lord, they will live a long and prosperous life in the promised land.

In Hebrews the writer reminds us that Jesus has been faithful to all of his followers as God was to Moses in the journey through the wilderness. As Moses trusted in the Lord so we are called to trust in Jesus and be confident that he will fulfill his word. The caution is that we do not fall into the path of and unbelieving heart and fall away from the living God. We are to encourage one another each day so that our hearts will not be hardened to the ways of God. When we hold fast, we become partakers of the Kingdom of God with Jesus Christ.

God was not angry with those that sought to follow him from the land of Egypt, in the wilderness and then into the promised land but with those that disobeyed his commands and his ways. The cost was death in the wilderness.

As we move towards the end of Lent and reflecting on our relationship with God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit we really must honestly compare ourselves with Jesus and ask how we measure up compared to him. The time to judge ourselves according to the way of the people around us in past and now we must answer to our obedience to the Lord our God.

Blessed or Cursed - Our Choice

 Deuteronomy 27-28    Psalm 11    Hebrews 2

Today the reading from the Old Testament is one of those passages we like to skip over. We like to look at the promises of God but often forget that the covenant God makes with his people require action on our part, obedience to God. Moses tells them when they get to the promised land, they are to build an altar with the commandments of God on them to remind them what is required of them. It is outlined for them and the leaders lead them in worship by telling them the curses they will suffer if they are disobedient. As they tell them each of the curses the people respond, ‘So be it!’ They are reminded once again if they follow the Lord’s ways they will be blessed. They will rule over the land of promise, with its wonderful crops and animals. They will rule over all the people if they are obedient and submit to no one.

Failure will result in not only the curses but the very land that is theirs to claim will be taken from them and they will find themselves disbursed around the world. The pain and suffering will be great, and some will go mad from the stress. The curses will come, and they will overtake them until they are destroyed and only a remnant is left. This too will be a sign that God will fulfill his Word. There will be no rest for them as long as they are in the land of others. They will doubt their very ability to live.

Today’s song reminds us the Lord is our refuge, the one in whom we can hide and feel his protection. There is conflict between the evil and the righteous and it often feels like there is nothing we can do. The Lord is on his holy throne in heaven and from there he tests the righteous, those that seek the ways of God, and the evil, those that refuse to follow the ways of God. The cost to the evil well be great and the Lord will love the righteous. In the end the upright will behold the face of God.

The reading from Hebrews tells us to pay closer attention to what we have been taught about the Lord and the expectation he has for us so that we will not drift away from it. All things in heaven and earth are subject to Jesus and nothing is not subject to his power. It was through death on the cross that we have the chance to share in the glory and honor of God by being obedient to him. We are great in God’s eyes when we submit our will to him and do what he asks of us.

The consistent message throughout the readings today is that God wants to and will bless us in ways we can’t imagine when we are obedient to his Word. We are also clearly warned that when we ignore or go against the ways God has laid out for us there will be an incredible cost including death. The good news is that there is a way to be forgiven but first we need to recognize that we are sinners and need what God offers us.

Justice Will Prevail

 Deuteronomy 25-26    Hebrews 1     Psalm 62

Justice continues to be the theme as Moses prepares the people to enter into the promised land. Note the not only the witness, as described earlier, has to be a part of the execution of the sentence in a court case but it is to be done in the presence of the judge. There are a series of instructions on responsibility to others, integrity and justice.

There is also the reminder that God deserves our first and very best. There is a responsibility to the widows and orphans and God is watching over our care for others. Before you declare you are going to be a follower of God, count the cost and be prepared to keep your word. There is a promise of being lifted up when we follow the Lord’s commands and instructions.

Hebrews opens with a reminder that Jesus was the perfect and exact representation of God that we were created to be. He came and showed us how to live and how to die and then took his seat at the side of the Father to await our arrival. The writer then goes on to outline the scriptures that have foretold this story.

We are reminded in our song today that our faith is built on the rock of our salvation when we put our trust in God and because of that we will not be shaken whatever we face. There will always be those that delight in misleading and lies. Even when they bless us when with us and lie when they are with others this curse themselves. Our call is to wait silently for the Lord to care to them as well as us.

We are not to put our trust in oppressing others or stealing to make ourselves look better. The power belongs to God alone and God will return to us a reflection of our work for good or evil.

Praise While Facing Challenge

 Psalm 118    Deuteronomy 23-24    Luke 19

Like the entrance into Jerusalem on that trip Jesus and his disciples made into the city with the people lining the streets singing his praise today’s song is one of praise. We are reminded of the goodness of God and that his love is everlasting. Even when surrounded by those that bring us distress the Lord is the one who is all around us. Because we trust in the Lord, we will not fear to taking refuge in the Lord brings us peace. We can even look upon that hate us because of our faith in God with satisfaction because God will always be more worthy than men or political leaders.

We live full lives because the Lord is exulted in our lives when we live to point to him. The day would come and has come when the stone, Jesus, came as the cornerstone of our faith and is rejected by so many. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord and we are to praise God in the house of the Lord. Our path is lighted by God and to God we give thanks because his love is everlasting.

Moses continues to remind the people of Israel that justice and fairness is to become a way of life with them not only with one another but with the people that they will interact with as the take possession of the land before them. Each of the instructions is about the way to treat others and that God will care for them just as he did when he brought them out from Egypt.

As Jesus and his disciples approach Jerusalem they travel through Jericho where they are greeted like they will be as they approach Jerusalem. The crowds gather until people crowd the road and we find a short man climbing a tree to see Jesus. As Jesus passes by he calls him down from the tree to share a meal with him. One more time Jesus is setting an example for his disciples. The man’s life is changed and he repents of the sin in his life. Jesus tells those around them that salvation has come to that house that day.

As they start up the mountains, he tells them another story about workers that receive responsibility for a portion of their master’s business. They each take different risks and receive different rewards. Great responsibility comes with the opportunity for greater risk. The poorest choice is to protect what we are given out of fear we won’t be able to return what we have been given. Again, he is reminding them that life is about to change, and they will be given responsibility for a part of the Kingdom. What they do with what God gives them responsibility for will be what they are accountable for.

As they approach the city the people line the roads again and praise him as a king. There are so many reasons this frighten the leaders of Israel. It threatens not only their power but because Jesus is one of them is likely to put them in direct conflict with Rome. When your main consideration is maintaining power, not matter how poorly you have handled what you have been given responsibility for, anything that threatens that brings fear.

Jesus weeps as he looks over Jerusalem and thinks about how they have made the symbols of power, the city and the temple, their focus rather than the God that has made it all possible. He once again reminds the disciples that what is before them will one day be destroyed completely and that only God will be worthy of their praise. God has been right in the middle of them, and they have been rejecting him and are about to attempt to destroy him.

Jesus enters into the city and then the temple and drives those that have defiled the temple out. He then spends the next few days teaching at the temple while the religious leaders plot to destroy the very blessing they have in their possession. All the while the people are hanging on every word of Jesus and learning from him, because he teaches as one that has authority.

On this Palm Sunday we are reminded that we have been given great blessings and that God has given us much to be thankful for. We need to handle what we have been given with care while having the courage and faith to risk what we have that God can do even greater things through us when we put our total trust in him. We have the advantage we know where this story is headed and now, we have to decide what we are going to do with what has put in our care until he returns to claim his church once again.

God Is the Final Judge

 Psalm 110    Mark 16    Deuteronomy 21-22

Sometimes we need to be reminded that bringing about change is ultimately not our responsibility but the Lord’s. As with David, we are invited to set at God’s right hand, the place of power and responsibility, but only to execute his commands. We that are in Christ have been promised that we will be in relationship with the Lord forever. The Lord will judge the people and the nations and crush those leaders that fail to follow in his path. We are to praise God and allow him to lift his name on high.

In the final chapter of the good news from Mark it is a brief reminder the women came to fulfill their obligations to the one they loved and had died. To anoint and prepare his body for burial. They had practical concerns, like the stone that closed the tomb. The were deep in their grief.

The not only find an empty tomb but a messenger from Jesus that he has risen as he told them he would. An invitation to look to know that what they expected was no longer there. They were to go and proclaim to his followers he was alive and going to Galilee before them and he would meet them there. That was overwhelming and way too much to process and so like most of us they responded with fear and trembling.

I also note that they did what the were told and the story of the resurrection began to be told, first to his closest followers. Each time the story is told there is unbelief. As he appears slowly to those that had been his closest followers, he would challenge them to go and share the good news that he was alive and ready to lead them in a way they never thought possible. He began to prepare them to have their story found unbelievable and that they themselves would be rejected. Then he was lifted up to heaven and left them and now us to do the work of spreading that incredibly good news.

In Deuteronomy there is a sense when sin occurs the community is responsible for the result of that sin. There is a responsibility to care for the people and God’s creation. The abuse of people or property should be delt with swiftly and fairly. It is clear that each have a responsibility to act, and both are to be held accountable when relationships are broken. There is an expectation for integrity.

You Either Submit to God or to Evil

 Psalm 125     Mark 15     Deuteronomy 19-20

There are two kinds of people, the wicked that ignore the ways of God, and the righteous that pursue the ways of God. Today’s song reminds us that those that trust the Lord are like the city of Jerusalem, nestled between the mountains and yet on a mountaintop itself. Those that truly believe and trust in the Lord cannot be shaken and moved by the storms and battles of life. While they face the same challenges and sometimes are beaten down their foundation is like Mount Zion, that cannot be moved.

This song is a call to God to do good to those that are upright in heart, working to do what God calls them to do. And that the leaders of iniquity, the evil ones, will be gathered together. Jesus tells us the day will come when the wicked and the just will be sent in two directions and sent to live with those that are like them. In the end our prayer is for peace.

After making judgement in the middle of the night the leaders of Israel bind Jesus and bring him to Pilate to be demand he be crucified. Jesus says very little to Pilate and Pilate knows the only reason they are there is because they are jealous of the attention and power of Jesus. They ask him to release a known murderer and when asked what he should do with Jesus the religious leaders demand that he be crucified. When ask why, what evil has he done they only demand louder that he be put to death. Rather than any of them seeking or executing justice they submit to the will of the vocal crowd.

Jesus is whipped, mocked and physically abused by the Roman soldiers and as the march him through the streets they have to demand that a foreigner carry the cross for Jesus. After he is hung on the cross they continue to mock and laugh at him, while at the same time gambling for his clothing.

We have to remember that Jesus knew this kind of suffering was coming because he understood the people that would demand it. He had told his disciples this would be the result and even though he prayed for relief he never lost the desire to do what God had sent him there for. He submitted to the will of the people that he would take on the punishment they really deserved. As his death occurs even those that are most powerful at the cross realize this was the son of God. Some watched from a distance and other close by. Then Joseph of Arimathea requests to be able to take his body from the cross and place it in the tomb. There was no one there that though the story of Jesus wasn’t finished. They still sealed the tomb through the Sabbath.

It is when there really is no hope for the future and all there is left is to trust God that we get to see what God can do. Often it is when we know that we can’t handle what the world has done, and we can do nothing about it that God is able to step in and do what no human can. 

Upon entering the promised land, the people are warned that they have to provide places for those that have unintentionally killed someone to flee so they are protected from the blood avenger until justice can be decided on. The people of God are expected to provide for a way that justice can be done rather than an angry response. There must be multiple witnesses and they must be honest. For those that are found to be dishonest the punishment of the one they were testifying against is to be given to them. Justice is to be done without pity to the guilty.

Once again, they are reminded that when they enter the land they will not push out and destroy those before them because they are stronger, most of the time they will be weaker, but that God goes with them and will fight for them. They are then to give God the glory for what they might be tempted to call attention to themselves.

They are to offer terms of peace before destroying a city. There is justice in giving people an opportunity to live. There is outlined what they are to do with the people and the goods they capture. The key is they do not mix with these people that they might not be led away from the Lord.

Each of today’s reading remind us that we have to choose who we are going to follow and when we choose anyone other than the Lord we will be mislead and it can lead to our destruction if we do not repent, turn around, and go the right direction. The truth is this has been a struggle throughout history as we want to be in control and demand our right to do it our way. The only way to know what it means to be truly blessed is to submit to the will of God and live life his way.

Obedience to God in Tough Times

 Psalm 130     Deuteronomy 17-18     Mark 14

We have all at times been overwhelmed by the sense that we can’t keep track of all the laws of God or of people in our lives. Just about the time we think we have it right and feel good someone tells us we have broken their law and we should pay the price for it. That is the way many that do not know God feel about the God we worship and offer praise to.

In this morning’s song we are reminded that God’s goal is not to execute judgement but to offer grace, undeserved forgiveness, and the chance to start again. For if the Lord was to mark and hold each of our sins, those things we do contrary to the laws of God, against us how would be able to stand before the Lord? The truth is that none of us would be worthy of God’s love and praise. And yet, the Lord offers abundant grace, forgiveness and joy to those that will seek him out and his way of life. It is the Word of God, the Bible, that offers us this hope when we take in the whole of scripture, not just the parts we like. God restores us to a new life and love and all it takes is a willingness to pursue his way of life.

After reminding the people of Israel that he has cared for them their whole life God makes clear he expects to be offered their very best and not the left over and defective things they are blessed with. Once again, we see God calling his people to be a people of integrity, requiring more than one witness and that the witness will be required to execute the judgement their witness causes. If they can’t decide it become the responsibility of the priests and judges to decide. Their ruling is then considered final and expected to be carried out.

While God want to be the ruler of the people it is clear that they will be satisfied with that and want a king like those around them. They need to choose carefully and make sure that leader is prepared to carry out God’s plan and not their own.

Mark 14 outlines those hours before Jesus is condemned to die. Eating with a group of people many who would have been unacceptable to many including one that comes and breaks a vile of perfume and anoints him with it. There is a cry because this is a waste of money. Jesus tells them that she is preparing him for burial and their focus should shift. Judas then heads out to make a deal to betray him.

Gathering with his disciples to celebrate the Passover and as part of the meal telling them that the bread represents his body and the wine the blood. He passes the bread and wine among his disciples and tells them that one of their very own will betray him. Jesus points out that the one that betrays him still breaks bread with them and it would have been better never to have been born. Then he tells them in fact that all of them will run and abandon him. Peter, as usual responds that he will never abandon him even if all the others run away. Jesus tells him that before the next morning he will deny even knowing him three times.

After crossing the Kidron Valley to Gethsemane he asks those closest to him to join him while he goes off to prayer. While praying about what he knows he faces in the coming hours they fall asleep. Judas then comes with the men to arrest him, betraying him with a kiss. After a brief struggle Jesus tells his follower to put away their weapons and trust him. They then flee as he had told them they would.

Jesus is put on trial in the middle of the night, beaten and mocked and they condemn him to death. Peter in the meantime has run off with the other disciples to hide. While he ventures in close again, he denies he even knows Jesus, just as Jesus said he would. When he realizes he has done exactly what Jesus said he would he begins to reflect on what he has done and weeps.

We find the people of Israel on the edge of the promised land and we find Jesus on the edge of prophecy told long ago. The question we all need to ask ourselves is who we would be supporting during this time. It is easy to look back through the cross and condemn those that rejected Jesus and all he taught but the reality is that if we honestly look in the mirror, we will often see ourselves as one of the ones disobedient to God and condemning him. During Lent we reflect on how much we look like Jesus and that includes our obedience to God in the face of adversity.

Only God's Way

Psalm 124     Mark 14    Nehemiah

Jesus stands beside us wherever we are. Think about that for a minute. …… No matter where we go, what we face, what we decide, nothing is hidden from God. This song of David reminds us that even when the people thought God wasn’t there, he was leading them and preparing them for the next chapter of their lives. This was true when they made good decisions and when the made poor decisions.

When we carefully look at the stories in the Bible there is a clear common thread. When the people of God live by his instructions and rules, they are confident they are heading in the right direction even when it takes them places they would never have chosen to go. David reminds them that sometimes in the midst of rejection, hate and anger God was still with them and would be with them going forward. The maker of heaven and earth was the one that helped them and worthy of their praise.

Jesus was an honest leader, warning that following him would mean putting their lives on the line and they would have to trust Him, God and the Holy Spirit that there was a broader vision we cannot see. We will only ever be able to trust those we believe will have our best interest at heart even when we can’t see it.

Like so much of Jesus teaching, Mark 13 is a series of short stories where Jesus challenges his disciples to make sure their focus is on what is important to God. He warns them many will come and try and deceive them and mislead them away from the Lord. That will lead to nations and kingdoms rising up against one another. The cost of following and telling the story of good news will anger many, cause some to do all they can to destroy you. But don’t be deceived and frighted by these end of the world story tellers. God’s story will be told and retold until everyone has heard and had the opportunity to receive or reject the call.  The divisions will be great even creating divisions between the closest family members. The ones that stand with Jesus and are not deceived will be saved from the wrath to come.

These days will be extremely difficult and challenge everyone’s faith. Jesus is always right at the door waiting for you. Keep on the alert that the life you live is one that Jesus will present to the Father with joy and celebration. Be on the alert at all times to be sure the voice you are hearing is the Lord’s.

Today we looked at the last few chapters of Nehemiah as part of a Bible study we have been doing. The last few chapters are after the walls of Jerusalem have been rebuilt and not the work of returning begins. The first phase of the hard physical work was done, a long stone wall had been repaired and new gates hung in 52 days using nothing but muscle. All the while under the threat of attack for those that were determined they would not succeed.

Now they must begin the long difficult task of rebuilding the city, reinhabiting it from the places they had lived in relative comfort. Nehemiah’s job was to lead and manage, hold accountable the people of God and to push them to do what was right. It was not a task to be done alone but together. The journey ahead would be long and difficult but Nehemiah trusted God to shape the leadership team needed to complete the task. Leading is not about being in control but doing and allowing others to do what is right for the greater community good.

Today the reading have all reminded me that if our focus is anywhere but following God’s lead we are moving in the wrong direction where the consequences are deadly.

God is Always Worthy of Our Praise

Psalm 55     Deuteronomy 15-16                    Jude

Nothing hurts more than betrayal of someone we thought was our friend. Today David pores out his heart to God in song as he reflects on how his friends, those he trusted, have betrayed him and the pain is deep and lasting. We expect our enemies to pass on lies and to mislead others, but when it is a friend we thought we could trust, it brings great distress.

David sings that even if all have abandoned him God will always be there and worthy of praise. God is the one we can bear out soul before and he will hear our voice. We must trust that God will return to those around us that they have done to us, for good or evil. Our trust in all times must remain in the One who sustains us and that he will never allow those that seek God’s ways to be shaken. In the end there is only one in whom we can trust, the Lord our God.

Moses instructs the people of Israel about how to treat debts to other members of the nation. This includes how long someone can be held in bondage as part of a work agreement. God demands the very best be what is offered to him.

He reminds them the importance of practicing the celebration of Passover to remind the people what God had done to bring them to this land overflowing with crops and animals. Everyone is to give back to God as they are able in the way of a sacrifice. They are to have judges to make sure the ways of God are followed, and justice is done.  Everything about their life is to direct their thanks to the God that saved them.

Jude calls the church to live out a life where mercy, peace and love will be multiplied to you. He recognized that there are those the have crept into the church and misled the church to believe that ungodly ways are okay. He reminds the that those that choose to not follow the ways of God as they came up out of Egypt were destroyed. When we sin, do things contrary to the word of God, we invite judgement upon ourselves. It is not God that judges but our action that convicts us.

These deceivers will hide their true motives but dwell in your midst if you are not paying attention to them. They follow their own lusts rather that the commandments of God. These are the causes of division even among the church.

We are called to build ourselves up in faith, praying to the Holy Spirit for revelation and transformation and then to trust in the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our praise is always to be directed toward God.

Each of today’s readings is about our relationships with others and how they should reflect the way God treated us. No matter what comes when our faith is in Jesus Christ, we can praise God for the life we have been given. God is always worthy of our trust and praise.

How Long Will the One you Seek to Please Bring You Life

Psalm 122    Deuteronomy 13-14    Mark 12

Many of us long to be able to go to the house of the Lord like we have done in the past. The place where we have entered into God’s presence and worshiped the Lord. We look forward to the day when we can with joy go up to the house of the Lord. We need to think about what we will have to offer to God when we come before God and present what we have done while away from the house of the Lord.

David is recognizing that God’s desire is that there be peace within those walls. Since he has been experiencing difficulty and pain while away from Jerusalem, he still prays for all, even his enemies, that God will be praised and glorified in the time yet to come because faith is passed on from one generation to the next.

Moses instructs the people of Israel on their relationships with others as they prepare to enter a land that will bring them great blessings but also great challenges. Destroying what is before us often leads to a question of faith and God tells them he is going to test their trust in him. If they fail the test, they will find themselves in distracted from and driven away from the very one that brings the great blessings into their lives. Note that one of the responsibilities of the witness that leads to death is to be the one whose hands are responsible for executing that justice. They will become guilty before the Lord if they bear false witness and make themselves guilty.

God is preparing them for the responsibility of trusting him by doing what he tells them to and then offering back to him a sacrifice of thanks from the first and best of that they are blessed with. I smile when God tells them they can spend that offering on what their heart desires. As always it is the spirit of the gift and why it is given that is most important.

As Jesus teaches his disciples, he tells them stories that will help them understand how God is at work in the world around them. The ability of people to have unrealistic beliefs and expectations is nothing new. Often the stories point out the sins, lies and misdirection of the very people that should be leading them to a deeper and truer relationship with God. Their reaction is one of anger because they see him as a threat to their power. However, they try and trap him he has a way of turning their position back on them in a way that make them fearful of him and they no longer want to confront him in public but want to do what they can to destroy him out of the public eye because they fear the very people that should be able to trust them.

Jesus has a way to challenging them to reexamine what they have believed and what they are teaching. He also points out that the ways of heaven are very different. it is about priorities. The command is to love God with your body, mind and soul and then your neighbor as you love yourself. He points out to the large crowds to watch who they follow. Do they point you to God or do they point to themselves? The one the leader proclaims, and the people puts their trust on will be the one that is responsible for fulfilling that promise. God doesn’t judge by the amount of a sacrifice but by how important that sacrifice is to the one that gives it.

Today each reading reminds us that as the people of God all that we do should point other to God and not to ourselves. Leaders will be held responsible for where they led those that follow them. Those of us that lead the church need to evaluate with each thing we do whose glory we are attempting to show.

Moving Forward - Trusting God

 Psalm 121     Deuteronomy 11-12     Mark 11

Today’s song is a short one that reminds us that the Lord is with us at all times and worthy of our praise. No matter where we go God goes with us and never slumbers or sleeps. We can trust him at all times. At times it is good to just praise the Lord because our lives have been changed and we give thanks.

God instructs the people of Israel through Moses on the importance of following the commandments and statutes he has outlined for them as they enter the land God promised them long ago. They are ready to enter in. It is God that goes before them and that will lead them in taking over this land. It will be so much better than that land the left in Egypt and the Lord has promised to not only help them capture the land but as long as they are obedient to what God has demanded of them that the land itself will be blessed and provide for them with abundance.

It is really important to note that God also warns them that if they do not follow what he has laid out for them on the ways they are to live, they will be cursed, set apart as a rejected people. He warns them that if they ignore his ways and intertwine their lives with those that inhabit the land they will be led away from following God and the cost will be losing the land they have waited so long for. They are to simply follow the ways of God without taking away or adding to his expectation as they enter the land.

As Jesus enters into Jerusalem with his disciples, he begins to show them that he knows what he is doing and what is going to happen. He tells them to go ahead and there will be a untrained colt there for them to bring back for him to ride into the city. When it happens the way, he said they bring it to Jesus and as he enters into the city the people cray out with high expectations about what his coming means. Once again Jesus is setting the stage for what is about to happen. There is great conflict here with his disciples struggling to understand what he is doing as he appears to provoke the leaders to anger and resentment. They want to create a plan to destroy him.

He instructs them with the ways of living by faith, trusting God at all times. He makes it clear that there are those that will violently oppose them. He shows them in a fig tree the power of speaking while believing. He also reminds them they will have to learn how to practice grace and forgiveness that he knows how hard that will be. As he did earlier, he reminds them that in the same way they judge others they will be judged by God.

In each of today’s readings we find the people of God on the verge of experiencing the power of God in a way they would have never expected or thought possible. It is always about putting our trust in God and believing that God will be faithful to his promises and that the role of his followers is to trust that his ways are the right way. When we try and live life in a way we think is better it will always lead to separation from  God while calling for a return to his ways.

Trusting God's Way

 Psalm 120     Deuteronomy 7-10                    Mark 10

It is time to contemplate the impact of war. Not only of nation’s armies but of political factions, churches, families and individuals. Peace is not the absence of war but the sense of contentment even in the depth of the battles we all face. War is always the result of a broken relationship. There are so many ways to punish our enemies and yet as the song writer here reminds us when we put our trust in God there is a peace that passes understanding.

Jesus, in the sermon on the mount, says the peacemakers will be blessed but then immediately tells us we are just as blessed are the persecuted, those at war, for doing what is right. Speaking for what is right in God’s eyes will lead to persecution. Maybe the most interesting this is that when we live the way God calls us to live, we find true peace. When we choose to live in sin, against the ways of God, we find ourselves in conflict, often within ourselves and with those closest to us.

God’s ways are designed as we are to live in harmony with one another. But the only way to live in harmony is to live as God created us and that is in obedience to his direction. Until we decide we are going to seek out his way for our life we will live in conflict, war.

Deuteronomy 7 through 10 is a passage most would like to only read the parts they like. We love to read about the blessings of God when we are obedient, and we claim those. As with most of God’s promises this is a series of if you do here is your blessings, BUT, if you don’t here is the cost you will pay. All these blessings I have promised you will be taken away and you will be allowed to be treated like those that are your enemies.

If you read carefully, you clearly see that God is going to go before the people and the blessings they are about to receive is not because of anything they will do but what God will do for them. Remember that they had spied out this land and responded before with fear because they saw they were too powerful for them to overcome. That is the point. God will often send us to places that only by trusting him to go before us and prepare the way will we get to experience the blessings of his power. If we want the glory, we need to make sure we never go where we cannot succeed. How often have you heard someone say, ‘God won’t give you more than you can handle.’ and then suggest your faith is not what it should be. The truth is that only when we are given more than we can handle alone is it necessary to show that we really do believe in God and that we are not alone.

We see Moses reminding them of the many times this has been true since the left Egypt and they will be facing the same kind of great challenges ahead of them. It was Moses the had the task of leading them on that journey, knew the many times they failed to trust God even though they had seen the power of God with their own eyes, often a short time before the challenge was presented ahead of them. He reminds them that what the Lord requires of them is to fear the Lord our God, walk in ALL His ways to love the Lord with all our hearts and soul, while keeping the commandments and rules that Moses has taught them.

God is the Lord, God of the gods, Lord of lords who is fair in his treatment of all. He will execute justice even to the weakest and those that are from another land. Just as they had been when they were Egypt, they were to treat the alien among them like they wish they had been treated with in Egypt. We are called to cling to God and his ways and to praise him in all things.

In the Good News in Mark, we find Jesus teaching his disciples lessons that will be hard to live out because they challenge so much of what they have been taught and what they have assumed to be true. They want to confront Jesus about what he is teaching and doing because it threatens what they need to be true to remain in power. Sin results in a hardness of heart that God has recognized for what it is, disobedience to the way of God. The problem is how hard to see and believe what God tells us to do and how to live seems so different from what brings us pleasure, even if temporary. Jesus calls us, and therefor us to put our faith in God, like a little child. Children have a way of believing those in power, including God, without question until they are hurt by misplaced trust.

It is hard to recognize the someone we have is a gift from God when we feel like we have worked for it and deserve it. The problem is the riches that we gather but who we think earned them and who should be thanked for their blessings. It is easier to walk away then realize that all we have is because God put us in the position, we are in. It is just as easy to lose it and often quicker. Jesus then compares becoming a part of the Kingdom of God as hard because we don’t want to submit to recognition of the King. It is only because of the love of God we can enter into the kingdom of God, not some future place of glory but of submitting to the power or God on earth, as is done in heaven. It is impossible for us to do enough to enter the kingdom, God has provided the place of entrance by submitting to Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

Peter like us points out the cost they have paid. Little does he know that the cost Jesus is about to pay and they will yet be called to pay is even greater. Entrance into the kingdom of God comes with great cost and responsibility. It means we have to put others first and ourselves last. Jesus then tells them that they are headed to Jerusalem and that the costs of claiming the kingdom of God will mean his life. IN Mark it is amusing to me that the response of James and John is to ask for the positions of power in the future as if they haven’t really been listening to the cost he has told them it will be. The tells them they don’t’ know what they are asking. Like us, they are only looking at the benefits of what they envision the future kingdom is going to look like, rather than the one Jesus has told them is coming. How often does Jesus ask if we are able to follow him and we respond we are able without counting the cost? When we declare we are able we better be prepared to pay the price of entrance. That is becoming a servant to those we live in the midst of.

The chapter closes with a short story of a blind man desiring to get his sight and like the children those around Jesus try to keep him away. Note that Jesus asks what he wants, listens carefully and the blesses him to what he asks for. Like many today, his life has been changed in such a way that he wants to follow Jesus wherever he goes.

Each of today’s reading remind us that when we put our trust in anything other than God, we are likely to be disappointed. Sometimes that disappointment is immediate and somethings even when we feel like we have gotten exactly what we demanded we find that it hasn’t brought us the happiness and joy we expected because it takes us outside the plan God has for us. Whose plan are you following?

God is There Even When We Cannot See

 Psalm 41    Mark 9    

As a leader David often found himself suffering like the person who is suffering from a deathly illness. The most painful part of his pain was that so much of his pain was caused by the lies and misleading of his enemies but even his close friends participate. He cries out to God asking for relief from the pain of their deceit and that he might see the hope offered by his faithfulness to God.

One of the things about David is that while he had great sin in his life, including adultery and murder, he had integrity to not only see his sin but to confess it and seek the forgiveness of God. It was that ability to experience the grace of God and the chance to begin again that gave him hope.

We, like David and Jesus, will suffer rejection and the pain of deception and evil the more closely we come to being like them. One shows God’s love for the imperfect and the other the pain of being righteous reflecting the perfect image of God. Today’s song reminds us that God will judge us on our integrity and not those that would seek to destroy us.

In Mark we see Jesus beginning to prepare his disciple for the road ahead without really telling them how difficult it would be. He does tell them that some will not taste death. Taking the 3 closest disciples to the mountaintop they experience his transfiguration as God prepares Jesus for the challenges, he will face in the week ahead. Peter wants to react in the normal way and provide for the messengers from God and worship them. Instead, God envelopes them and reminds them that Jesus is his beloved son, and they should listen to and follow his instruction. There is this really interaction where while Jesus is with the other disciples, they want to know about Elijah coming before him. They do not understand yet that what God has in mind they are unaware of.

As he interacts with the disciples, they continue to see the world through their own eyes rather than what God sees. People come to Jesus and demand he meet their needs but question if he really can. When he does touch a life and bring healing, they are afraid of him.

He also lets them know that he will be and rise again in three days. Since this has never happened before they struggle to believe him. They demand a sign that what he says in true. Jesus tells them until they put their trust in God like a child does a parent, they will never get to experience the transforming power of God. They are to put their trust in God and then because of the way though have been treated they must remember that like salt brings out the taste of the meal so they should bring out the best of what the world has to offer.

The journey of being a disciple of Jesus will take us places we would not choose to go, experience things we would never have had the chance to experience before. There will be times when the power of God is so evident and clear that we wonder how there was ever a time we doubted. At other times we feel powerless against people the want bad things to happen to us. In each of those times god is unchanging and worthy of our praise. What lays before us is put there to help us see God at work in the world around us then to witness to that presence and to praise God continually. 

Commands the Mean Something

 Psalm 86     Mark 8       Deuteronomy 4-6

In today’s song by David, he celebrates that even though he recognized his need for forgiveness because of his sin and the sin of others there is so much to praise God for. Even in those days when the enemies surround him, he can reflect with joy on the days of experiencing the blessings of God.

We find him praising God because there is no other worthy of the God in who he finds the fullness of life. Lifting our soul to God for fulfillment leads to knowing the joy of salvation found in the creator of all there is. One day, every nation will come and worship the Lord for they will know that there is only one God, the creator of the heavens and the earth.

He asks the Lord to continue to teach him God’s ways so he can walk in the truth of God and give God the glory forever. From experience he is thankful that God is slow to anger and has an abundance of forgiveness and truth. David of all people knew the ups and down of life, sin and forgiveness, the blessings of scarcity and abundance. He asks God to continue to show him a sign of good that those that reject God’s ways will be ashamed and in that he will find help and comfort.

In Mark 8 we find Jesus in the midst of large crowds teaching his disciples about meeting the needs of the masses so that there are lessons to be taught to the disciples. One of those lessons is knowing when to apply the lesson and when to realize that there is something else to be learned from interacting with Jesus. Jesus was laying groundwork for the days and years to come when he challenged them to make sure they were looking at the right thing before making judgement.

There is a big difference in who most people think Jesus is and who he wanted his disciples to understand him too really be. He wanted them to understand who he really was so they would be able to hold on and understand that when their world was turned upside down by broken expectation. The time was not right for public proclamations of who Jesus was as he continued to prepare them for a time when they were not walking together. The story of any true disciple maker.

When Jesus purpose is stated clearly it will often be rejected by the most devoted because it does not fit into their vision for what the future should look like. He was preparing them for his rejection and his failure to meet their expectations, along with all of Israel, in what it would mean to claim his Kingdom. He is asking them to choose what will impact their soul for eternity rather than the temporary pleasure of the earthly body. What we experience beyond death is defined by are willingness to submit to the ways of God and trust where God leads us even when we see no future in it.

The reading today in Deuteronomy follows the reminder by Moses of the journey that the people have been on since they left Egypt and the cost of disobedience. Then Moses tells the people he is about to outline the commandments they are to live under when they cross the Jordan river into the promised land. They will be given the land they were promised but failing to live the commandments and the direction of the Lord will result in not only defeat but being scattered around the world so they will no longer be a people.

Moses then outlines the ten basic commandments that God is giving them so that all will go well with them in the promised last that is before them. All the people heard what those commandments were and agreed to follow them. They are then to pass them down to future generations not just in the words they speak but in they way they live following those commandments.

Moses makes sure they know that there is only one God and their responsibility is to love the Lord God with all their heart, soul and might. They are simply called to live for God. He also warns them that if they fail to follow him, they will lose all that they have been promised and more. God will wipe them off the face of the earth if they are disobedient. These commandments, laws and directions are given to them so that they can live a full, long happy life. Those that keep the ways of God will understand they have done so for their own and their family and friends’ lives.

The readings today once again remind us that when we submit to the will of God, we will receive blessings. When we fail though there is a tremendous cost. Even today there are many seeking the blessings of God without wanting the responsibility to go with it

Trust God Even When the Future is Unclear

 Psalm 140     Deuteronomy 1-3                      Mark 7

Once again, we find ourselves, like David, thinking of those that surround us that would do all they can to destroy us and cause others to question our word. The more we reflect the perfect image of God, Jesus, to the world the more we will find ourselves in conflict with many. In what we call the beatitudes in the sermon on the mount in the beginning of Matthew 5, Jesus tells us that the more we grieve our failure to reflect him, allow ourselves to be shaped into his image, the more we will be rejected and become a target.

This song reminds us that each of us that because of the strength of our salvation we are covered in the battle with evil. There is a call from David for those that slander and mislead others to turn them from him will have what they have done come back to them.

The end is that those that seek God’s ways and uphold his justice will maintain us in affliction and will bring justice for the poor. Continuing to do that allows us to dwell in the presence of the Lord.

As the people of Israel prepare to enter the promised land Moses reminds them of all that has happened to them since they left Egypt. He reminds them of the blessing they received when they followed God’s commands and directions and the terrible cost their parents have paid for their lack of trust in God and their lack of faith. He points out to them that 40 years ago they were at this place and instead of entering the land believing God would give it into their possession they wanted to check it out. Those they sent mislead them and the cost was that their parents have all died in the wilderness except for Caleb and Joshua who wanted to trust God.

Moses challenges them to enter the land this time with faith that God will fulfill his promise and they will possess it. He also puts Joshua in charge and tells the people to encourage and strengthen him during the journey ahead.

In Mark 7 there is a series of short stories where Jesus is challenged by those that know the most about God and faith yet have lost their focus. They have decided that their rules are more important that what God has laid out and Jesus calls them out. He also reminds then and the disciples it is not what we put in our mouths that is important, but what comes out of our mouth. When we allow evil into our lives, that is what comes out of our mouths and out of our heart. All of this defiles’ people and creates havoc in their lives.

While Jesus makes it clear he came to first proclaim the good news to the Jews, his people, those the seek him out with faith have their needs met as well. He brings healing to people and they can’t help but tell their stories because their lives have been changed by him. That is a powerful witness.

Today’s readings remind us that God see what is coming when we are unable to see it and that is when we have to trust he has what is best for us in mind. When we put our trust in him, follow his lead through the Holy Spirit and go where he sends us without fear we will be blessed by the experience.

Our Integrity in God's Eyes

 Psalm 56      Numbers 33-36                            Titus 1-3

David shows us that when we place our trust in God it is his Word we can trust. The truly faithful will always be surrounded by those that lack character and integrity and spreading falsehoods is only an attempt to destroy their life. David, the Lord’s anointed king, had to hide from the one in power and those that supported him because David was a threat to his power. We must remind ourselves that this song writer had the life of the king, Saul, in his hands but honored God’s timing by trusting that God would take care of bringing Saul and his followers down in his time.

The song is one that shows that even when surrounded by enemies, that at times made him hide for his life, David put his trust in God and his vows, his word, would be good and he would uphold his word even when it was difficult. We live in a world where truth seems to have so little meaning, even to church leaders, and they do all they can to destroy those that get in the way of them holding on to power. Our call is to put or trust in God and let God worry about their place and accountability.

We must remember that in Jesus, through death on the cross, delivered our souls from death wo that we may walk uprightly before God and people, in the light of the day.

In the last four chapters of Numbers Moses records the stops on the journey from Egypt to being on the edge of the promised land once again. They are reminded that Aaron died in the wilderness and now they are about to cross the Jordan river. God instructs them o drive out the inhabitants of they land they are about to enter, and they are to destroy all the places and symbols of worship to other gods. They are to be assigned their areas to live by lot, that God can put them in the places he wants them to go. He also warns them if they fail to drive out those that live there, they will pay a heavy price for their disobedience. They will suffer the fate of what God had plan to do them. This is always a part of these promises we don’t want to remember. There is a cost for disobedience.

God gives them the boundaries of the land they are going to possess. In that land they are to set up cities of refuge for those that accidently kill someone. It is outlined how to decide the level or guilt and the punishment to be given out. One of the most interesting parts of this is that for those guilty of murder they are to be put to death by an avenger of the family that suffered the loss. They are to be tried and convicted by at least two witnesses.

Lastly, the rules of inheritance are laid out for them including the requirements to keep the land within the family. Throughout Numbers we have listen to God outline the expectations of the people of Israel when they enter the land that had been promised to them so long ago.

In Paul’s letter to Titus, we see instructions to a younger man that would have to take over responsibility for the church and to carry on the work they had started. Paul instructs Titus to be careful when the churches were selecting leaders that they were above reproach and a good witness to faith in Christ. He calls for those that wonder away from the faith to be reproved severely that they might return to the way of Jesus. Even then there was too many professing to know God, but their deeds said it was not true.

Titus is instructed on how to lead and the responsibilities of the different ages and genders. He also reminds them that they are all to show good faith by reflecting their Lord, Jesus. They are to be obedient to their leaders. He reminds him that once they were disobedient fools and practiced evil things. But Jesus saved them, and they had much to praise God for. Their faith will show through in the way they work together for the good of the Kingdom.

Each of the readings today remind us that our integrity will always reflect who we really are and that cannot be hidden from God. Those that would use deception and the power they have to fight against God will ultimately be held responsible for their disobedience

God is a Great Foundation

 Psalm 79     Numbers 31-32     Mark 6

There is a long line of us that have felt that we are surrounded by enemies that would nothing better than to see our reputation if not our life destroyed. God’s people have always stood out because they are called to be different than the rest of the world. They are to be a reflection of God to the world; in whose image they were made. Becoming like Jesus will lead to rejection and aloneness at times and the struggle to maintain faith is real.

Today’s song reminds us that when we reflect God, Jesus, to the world we will become a reproach to our neighbors. They will scoff at what we believe, and mockery will be a normal way of life. We often find the songwriter, as we do here, crying out from their loneliness feeling they are being held responsible for the sins of those that came before them. We have a desire, if we are honest as the songwriter is here, to see those that work against us punished by God.

All that being said, the song writer calls us to be like sheep in the pasture of the Lord, giving thanks to God forever and to tell future generations to give God praise as we do.

Before Moses sends the people off into the promised land the Lord tells him to take vengeance on a people that opposed them on the journey. They are to set aside a relatively small army and go into battle. This feels like a test of trust in the Lord. First will they go where they have to trust the power of the Lord and second, will they do what God commands of them. They go to battle, succeed and return with great plunder and present it to Moses as a sign of their strength. As often happens they struggle to follow all of God’s expectations and Moses has to hold them accountable. They are instructed to divide the plunder between those that went, the leaders and the people. They not only do that but bring to Moses an offering of atonement.

Still, two of the tribes look at the land they are living in and it seems so great they can’t image anything greater ahead and want to stay and claim their inheritance without going into the promised land. After agreeing to go into battle with the people of Israel and then return Moses gives them permission to leave behind their families and possessions.

The gospel reading today from Mark is a series of stories about Jesus teaching, challenging, healing and touching the lives of people in ways that drew others to him. Those that knew him best were the first to reject him because all they could see was what he had been. Then he took those that had been closest to him as he taught them how to live out their faith, sent them into the world without a support system and told them to teach what he had been teaching them by word and example. He also warned them that some places would reject them and they should leave and shake off their feeling of responsibility for them since their actions would be a witness against them.

The disciples go out and begin to tell the story of Jesus and why people needed to turn their lives over to God’s control. They are touching peoples lives and bringing out transformation in the name of God to the point they get the kings attention.

The king remembered that he had been rash before, and it had cost him greatly and put him in conflict with God and God’s people. We are reminded when we make public promises, they are harder not to keep even when we realize we never should have made them.

As the people continued to seek him out and come to have their lives touched and changed by him he told the disciples they were like sheep on the way to slaughter and their role was to change the course of their lives that hey would have a new chance.

While the disciples were able to see the human and spiritual needs of the people, they most often wanted to meet the physical needs and ignore the spiritual needs, especially when those needs conflicted with their own desires. They come to Jesus with a physical need that the people are hungry, and they should be sent off to care for their own needs. Jesus challenges them to meet the need. They see it as an impossible task because they have such limited resources. They have a picture of scarcity and Jesus shows them that the reality was when you trust in God there is not only enough to satisfy but there is a great abundance. This would lead to even more increasing crowds wherever they went even though the disciples still didn’t gain an insight because their hearts where hardened.

Today’s readings are all a reminder that we tend to look at life through our limited human vision while God knows no bounds and when we put our trust in him the results are boundless blessings. God doesn’t fail us when we put our trust in him.

God Wants What is Best for Us

 Psalm 142            Numbers 28-30                 Mark 5

Today’s song reminds us that when we are obedient to the call to reflect our creator, God whose prefect reflection is Jesus, many enemies will surround us, and we must continue to trust God. It is okay to pore ourselves out before God with our insecurities and fears. Especially when we feel that there is no one that cares about us anymore.

It is then that God becomes our refuge, the one we can hide in. Even though the powers around us are too strong for us to deal with alone God will surround us and deal with us as we deserve.

As God continues to lay out the offerings that are to become a part of the ritual life of Israel, I can’t help but think how God gave the people a way to remember and relate to Him. Offerings to God are never because God needs them but that in the act of giving, we receive a blessing. Each of the offerings comes with a reason for that person to think about their relationship with God and where it could be better or where there is great reason to celebrate.

Chapter 30 is one of those chapters that most would rather we didn’t look at since it talks about the importance of making vows and keeping them. It is also about being responsible for the actions for those we are to care for. In the end it is about being a person whose word is worth believing. In the sermon on the mount Jesus says, “Let your yes be yes and you no be no.” The choice to make a vow is always a free choice and so is keeping it.

Mark 5 is three stories of those that have sought healing and found none. One is suffering so deeply that no one can contain him, another is the helpless daughter of a man of faith, and the other one that found herself rejected and an outcast with no other help. In the end each of them receives healing, are told to go give glory to God and go away proclaiming they have been healed by Jesus. Notice that two come and are willing to submit, kneeling before him, that he would meet their need. One believes so strongly but fears the crowd so much she wants to sneak up and just touch his garment. Each has to do something that humbles them but, in the end, they have what they sought and great reason to rejoice.

Today we are reminded that God wants what is best for us. It really is that simple. We are the ones that want to decide what is best for us, get in trouble, and then want to hide from the sin that got us there. It I when we come to Jesus with the reality of our situation and submit to his will we are blessed.

Praise God in the Storm

 Psalm 40   Mark 4    Numbers 27

As we travel through Lent and the examination of our life and how well it reflects Jesus today’s song is a great reminder how we should travel through life. Praising God because he is the rock on which we build our faith and the foundation of our trust. In those times life feels overwhelming when we know that God is still hearing our cries even when they are too deep for words.

This song is full of praise and while still recognizing the challenges praising the one who David trusts and who he still tries to lift up in leading his people. It is a reminder that even when we fail God is waiting for us to turn back to him and know we will be received with open arms. God is always pleased with those that return to his ways and those that lead us there. David reminds us it is our job to tell the story that God is teaching us as we wait patiently for his will to unfold.

David calls God to hold accountable those that would seek to silence him and destroy his life. It is not our job to hold those that practice evil accountable. That role belongs to God alone and our job is to trust that His judgement will be fair and we can worry about what we are doing to reflect God to the world around us.

In the fourth chapter of Mark, we find Jesus and his disciples along the Sea of Galilee where he is teaching in parables, or stories, that illustrate the Kingdom of God. The key to each of these stories is to realize that they are meant to show us the Kingdom of God in our midst. Jesus tells the disciples that those that choose not to believe in him as the messiah will never be able to understand how to apply them to life. We all make a decision on what we are going to believe about Jesus. Those that truly believe will always hear the stories of and understand they are meant to teach us how to live together.

The chapter ends with a story of the Jesus and the disciples being in a boat, the winds whipping up, the disciples being afraid, crying out to Jesus accusing him of not caring. Jesus first calms the storm then turns asks why they were afraid and if they still didn’t believe in him. First, we should think about using the same technique that he has just told us that Jesus used to teach. He tells a story that can be applied for all time to learn what it means to have faith in Jesus. Jesus is with them, they see him as not caring, they demand action and accuse him of not caring because they are afraid of the raging storm around them. How often are we just like that, say we believe Jesus is always with us, but when the storms of life surround us cry out in fear and accuse God of not caring about us?

In Numbers 4 the rules of inheritance are modified to meet the needs of the people and bring justice. God’s desire is that leaders learn to treat people with justice and fairness.

Then Moses is told that his time on earth is ended. That he will no longer lead the people and will join his brother, Aaron, gathered to his people. What seems like a simple sin has come to have great costs.

Moses asks God to appoint a new leader to replace him that will follow God and lead the people in His ways wherever God is about to take them. God responds telling Moses to anoint Joshua to be the next leader of the people as they prepare to enter the promised land.

Today’s readings show us that God is always looking for ways to help His people understand what He requires of them and to challenge them to follow in God’s ways. God is always at work and when we put our trust fully in him he brings all things together not only for his wellbeing but for ours

God Is Waiting for Us to Trust Him

 Psalm 70              Numbers 23-26                 James 4-5

The song writer reminds us how often we are in hurry for the Lord to do what we ask. We seek God’s intervention on our behalf with our enemies, those who seek our life. Often it is not that people want us to die but to lose the life we are blessed with. The seek our dishonor and to hurt, but it is often because they hurt. The celebrate when we are hurt.

We are reminded to look to the Lord for our help and for our praise. Then we can be glad there is one that receives us just as we are and make us want to magnify the Lord. It doesn’t make us in any less of a hurry to have God take away our pain. When our help comes from God it is always in the right time.

We pick up the story of Balak trying to get Balaam to curse Israel, even thought God has made it clear that he has not intention of cursing them and each time Balak demands a little less but fails to hear the message from God through Balaam. How often are we like Balak demanding God bless us even when we are unfaithful and disobedient? In the end Balaam not only does what God tells him to, blesses Israel, he curses Balak and his people.

Once again, we find the people of Israel impatient and disobedient to God rather quickly. The cost of there disobedience is high as well. They fail to learn from what God has done to their enemies and sin against God too. They then take a census and find that no one over 20 when they left Egypt except Caleb and Joshua are alive. God has fulfilled the first part of his promise on the cost of their disobedience.

In the last two chapters of James that the wars within the church are the result of lusting for things we are not meant to have. We either fail to ask for what we need or ask with the wrong motive, our pleasure rather than God’s. God offers grace to the humble, those that see themselves the way God sees hem. When we draw near to God he draws near to us and even our mourning is turned into joy.

We are to be at peace with one another. We are to leave the judgement up to the only one that has the right to be the judge, the Lord. We are to be patient with one another as we await the Lord’s return. We are to care for one another and put aside our differences for the Kingdom. When we endure the hard times with faith we will be blessed. We are to keep our word and let God worry about the others. Our brothers and sisters in the faith should hear the confession of our sins so that they can pray for us and we will be forgiven our sins. When one stays from the faith it is our work to turn them back in the direction of the Lord and that will save our own soul.

Today’s reading reminds us that we are not to try and direct the Lord to perform as we want him to but we are to do what he asks of us. It is more important to worry about our relationship with God than to spend our time trying to change others. 

God's Way Always Best

 Psalm 5                Numbers 21-22                 James 3

Sometimes when we pray all we can do is groan because we don’t even know what words to use to express what we are feeling. It is often because those that oppose us are spreading false and misleading stories about us.

Here the song writer outlines that our prayer will be ordered to how we are feeling and trusting that God will hear the words and the feelings and we can eagerly watch for what God will do in answer to our prayers.

There is a recognition that God hates those who practice immoral or grossly unfair behavior. A prayer that their actions will be returned to them and they will suffer the consequences of their words and actions. A cry to make sure we can see the straight path laid out before us we should follow.

When we find our place of safety in trusting God we can sing for joy. We find our shelter in that place where we can exult God for God blesses the one that pursues the way of God and will surround us with a shield of faith.

As the nation of Israel begins their wondering in the wilderness, they truly find themselves wondering from place to place with no goal in mind. God begins to demonstrate their power not only to their enemies but to themselves. There enemies begin to fear them As they travel and become feared there are those that will want God to curse them and the approach Balaam and offer him wealth if he will curse the people of God. While he says he will only do what God allows there is an interesting back and forth between Balaam and God. God says I don’t want you to curse them but he returns and asks two more time. God places an angle in his way and he still pushes ahead. There in an exchange with the donkey he is riding on and then the angle in his path. There is danger ahead when we push for our own way rather than God’s.

In James 3 he warns that only a few should be teachers because they incur a stricter judgement. Teaching takes speaking and our inability to tame the tongue makes it dangerous. If you are able to control your tongue, the words you speak, then you should be able to control your body. After all, words are easy to speak without the action to back them up, then they become worthless. The tongue is a small part of the body but had the ability to create great harm to others. The example is that a small flame can quickly grow into a great fire and the harm and damage done by our words can happen just as quickly.

Maybe the more important thing he touches on here is that the same mouth should not practice blessings and curses. Like so many other things in life a little infects the whole. Jealousy and a selfish ambition create disorder and so many evil things.

When we look to the wisdom from above it will be pure, peaceful, gentle and reasonable. There are many good things that result form these practices. When we practice the ways of God in peace we make peace with others.

What God Sees

 Psalm 77     Leviticus 19-20      James 2           

Once again, we are reminded by the song writer that at times in life we are feeling completely disconnected from God and wonder if we will ever feel close again. At times even thinking about our relationship with God brings pain.

It is during these times we must look back to the times God was present our lives or the lives of others we know when we felt abandoned. We also remember the great blessings he provided for us along the journey of life. What else can we put our trust in? We have seen God work wonders and if we look experience it all around us. Wherever life takes us God is there and earth trembles in his presence. God’s ways lead us on the right path.

In the reading from Leviticus today we see that the cost of following God is high but must be followed. Trust is a key component of faith and God has placed men and women to rule over the earth but continue to trust God throughout the journey.

Once again, we see them only able to see what they claim is God failing to care about them. When the water runs short, they again look back to Egypt imagining that they were better off. Moses and Aaron call the people together and God commands Moses to speak to the rock and they will receive water. In anger, after gathering the people Moses strikes the rock and the water pores out, so their need is met with abundance. But God held Moses and Aaron accountable for not doing what he told them to do when he told them to speak, their very word was enough, and instead in anger struck the rock.  

They quickly find themselves in conflict with the people of the land they are in. They are surrounded by their enemies because they choose to reject God’s way. Then we see Aaron denied the chance to enter the land they have been dreaming of for so long. He dies and the nation wept for him.

In James 2 we are told not to practice favoritism based on our personal beliefs. James reminds us that God choose the poor because of their richness in faith. When we dishonor the poor, we dishonor God. If you are going to quote portions of the law be prepared to live it all out, including Jesus teaching on it particularly in the sermon on the mount in Matthew 5-7.

I remember I was serving a church that a donor had made a very large contribution to major improvement project. As the project was nearing completion, we were celebrating it during Sunday morning worship. On that day someone pick up the donor, escorted them into the building, others escorted them to a seat up front. They were obviously someone being treated with honor. I was sitting up front while all this was going on watching it unfold. I noticed a young woman enter a side door near the back where they gentleman was being treated as royalty and watch him escorted in. No one greeted her and she quietly walked down and found a seat on the side alone.

After the celebration was held, everyone was invited into a comfortable space for refreshments and conversation. When I arrived after greeting people in the other room, I once again found the donor surrounded by people caring for them. I saw the young lady standing to the side watching and taking it all in. A few minutes later I turned to talk to her, and she was gone. Because she came regularly to one of our outreach programs I knew her and went looking for her. I found her sitting in another part of the building alone and looking sad. When I sat down next to her and we talked she told me that she didn’t feel she belonged in that other room because she was so different.

You see, this young lady was living in a half-way house and struggling to get her life back on track, was poor and felt invisible. Every time I read James 2 I am reminded of that young woman and wonder how many others we have missed to include in our lives because they are invisible to us.

How often do we look at someone and make a judgement about them? When they don’t measure up in some way we treat them like they were invisible. James reminds us that God will be merciless to those that fail to offer mercy. Part of our work is to see people as Jesus saw them, a child of God, worthy of mercy, forgiveness and grace and we might be the only expression of that they will ever see. 

God is Still There

 Psalm 64, 74       Numbers 15-18                 2 Peter 3              James 1

David is one of those great men of God that the Bible shows his human tendencies and failures and the cost of those failures. The other side of the situation is that as the Lord’s anointed and king, the leader of the people, he is the target of those that believe he is the wrong person for the job, they could do it better or don’t want to go where he leads them. Anyone that struggles to lead God’s people will find themselves in this same position and there is in this song a reminder that faith is trusting that God will care for us when we are obedient to his Word.

The last two verses maybe we should look at first, so we know where we are headed. There is a lesson to be learned here in that before we go to God our goal in the end is to be able to praise him for the trust we will put in him while we struggle through the journey, that often feels lonely, on the way. When David asks God to preserve his life it is not just to give him the gift of a beating heart and breath but that his life will be protected in this lifetime. Often our enemies, who are so much stronger than we are, do things to destroy us and do it with cunning and deception. They take their shots from a hiding place and lift each other up in plotting injustices believing their plotting will never be seen.

David’s cry to God is for God to use their own methods against the enemies and that God’s arrows will shoot them and their plotting will be exposed, and they will fall in disgrace and be struck down. Notice that David’s desire is that God will be glorified and not himself. Those that seek to do things God’s way will be glad in the Lord and find their refuge in him. Those that remain honorable and upright will in their heart find glory. Our refuge is in God!

As Moses begins laying out God’s requirements to receive forgiveness and the chance to begin again, he tells them that they and the alien among them are to be treated the same. There is one law for both. He also lays out the required offering for unintentional or unwitting sin. When the offering is brought to the priest, they bring the offering before the Lord as an atonement offering. He also makes it clear the those who defy the Lord, alien or native, will be cut off from the people of God.

There is a group of two hundred fifty that three leaders have stirred up against Moses and Aaron because they stand out as leaders. They brought them to the edge of the promised land and now that it has been denied them because of their sin they blame Moses and Aaron. Moses falls on his face, a position of submission, before the Lord and then tells the leader to bring the people before God and God will decide between them. Once again, the look back to the land of Egypt and look at it as a land flowing with milk and honey and believe that they would have been better back there.

Moses doesn’t demand they submit to him but instead, gathers them together and tells them and the people that God will choose who the leader is supposed to be. After a ritual that Moses offers the disobedient are held accountable and death is the result. Not at the hands of Moses but of God. Probably the most interesting thing for me is that after the 250 disobedient people had offered up an offering, one they shouldn’t have, God destroyed the givers but sanctified the gifts for service.

 God also instructed Moses to place before him a way to determine who was to be the priestly spiritual leader. Aaron is clearly chosen, and his rod is placed before the Lord as a reminder that he is God’s chosen one.

God then continues on with the instructions to Aaron, his sons and the tribe of Levi how to properly worship the Lord and give an offering before Him as well as the distribution of that offering.

In the last chapter of 2 Peter we are told the day of judgement is coming for those that mock the followers of Jesus and God because they want to only follow after their own lusts. While that is true we are also reminded that God awaits judging those on the earth because time doesn’t mean anything to him, a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day.

Yet that day will come when the Lord comes like a thief in the night and the heavens and earth as we know them will be gone. As we look for a new heaven and earth that will glorify God in all that it does. Our desire should be to be found on that day at peace, our lives spotless and blameless before God. We are warned to be on guard that we are not swept away by the leading of unprincipled men. We should continue to grow in grace and knowledge of the God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Starting a read through James today and it opens allowing us to see that challenges we face should be considered a joy, knowing that the testing of our faith produces the endurance to get through the tough times. When we approach it that way the endurance, we experience produces great results.

No one should expect God’s blessing when he lacks the faith to face the challenges of life. Being one way at one time and another at other times is unstable and should not be followed.

Those trials of life result in the approval of God and there will one day be given us the crown of life. Others will allow themselves to be carried away by their lusts and that will give way to the birth of sin and death.

We must remember that every good and perfect gift comes from God and there is no variation in God even when it is hard to see him in the shadows. We are to spend more time listening, less time speaking and always be slow to anger for God’s ways are never accomplished with anger. The Word of God should be such an integrated part of our life that we desire to put aside sin and become those that do what God teaches us in His Word. The ability to control our tongue is vital or we are deceived and our religion is worthless.

Our faith will always be expressed in the sight of God as caring for the poor, the weak and abandoned and keeping ourselves untarnished by the world around us.

In Psalm 74 the song writer longs to feel God’s presence and feels the lost of abandonment. Sometimes we feel like God is so far away and we have lost touch with him and there is not even the energy to reach out to Him. We see no signs of God’s presence and God’s work. It feels like no one is speaking for God and no one knows how long this period will go on. We cry out like is done here with all the ways we would like to see God at work and present. We want to remind God that our enemies are uplifted by our lack of relationship with him. This is one of those songs that remind us sometime we just have to trust God even when nothing feels like we should.