"Real Revival" June 30 Readings: Nehemiah 6-9

Today's Reading - Nehemiah 6-9

Background

Nehemiah finishes the wall in spite of opposition and Ezra leads the people to return to God.

Devotional - Real Revival

Many books have been written and sermons have been preached on how to bring revival to our land. Most fail because they reduce this work of God to simple formulas and easy steps. We cannot do that. But in Ezra 8 and 9 we observe a real revival in which Ezra led the people of God to return and be spiritually renewed. In these chapters, we see some key aspects of real revival. This is not a formula or easy steps, but there are keys.

The word of God was central to the work of God. Ezra begins the renewal by reading the word (8:2-6) as the people stood in the presence of God. There was a group of Levites who took the time to explain to the people what they were hearing from the lips of Ezra (8:7-8). There have been many revivals throughout biblical and church history, but those that have been the most long-lasting and have had the greatest societal impact were word-based. Jonathan Edwards boldly proclaimed Christ for 17 years before God brought the First Great Awakening.

Yes, you should pray for revival, but do not neglect studying for it and preaching for it. The word of God is the basis of true revival.

There is something interesting that takes place in the middle of this renewal. The natural tendency of people when God shows up is to repent and weep and mourn. The brightness of the glory of God exposes the darkness of our sin. But in Nehemiah 8:9-10, the people were told that on this day holy to the Lord that they should not weep or grieve, but should rejoice in the Lord and what he has done.

Do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your strength.

We gain our strength from Jesus Christ and his work in our lives. Yes, salvation requires repentance from sin, but he has done great things for us and we should rejoice. Our strength comes from the joy that Jesus produces in our lives.

Of course, the fact that we glory in the Cross does not mean that we do not face our sin. After a time of rejoicing, chapter 9 speaks of a time of national and intentional confession of sin. All of the people gathered to seek God and to lay bare their hearts before him. Celebration of Jesus leads to confession of sin.

There is one more element in this story. Time. We want to microwave spirituality. A quick trip to church on Sunday morning. A verse or two of Bible and a devotional thought. But growing in Christ takes time. The Israelites built shelters so they could stay in the presence of God. Weeds grow quickly but an oak takes time to grow. We need to devote time to God's word, to prayer, and to the things of God if we wish to be conformed to Christ.

Father, thank you for your gracious work and willingness to revive your people. May we seek you through your word, celebrate your goodness, confess our sin, and give you the time it takes to grow in the knowledge of Christ. 

Think and Pray

Revival is a work of God but there are things we do to seek God's power and presence.
Are you seeking deeply the word of God, rejoicing in Christ and giving the time necessary to draw near to Christ?
"Praying for revival" is empty if you are not doing those things.

"Pray and Fight" June 29 Readings: Nehemiah 1-5

Today's Reading - Nehemiah 1-5

Background

Until the 16th Century, Hebrew Bibles included Nehemiah with Ezra.

Nehemiah was cupbearer to the King and led a return to Israel to rebuild the walls to protect Jerusalem. Ezra led in the spiritual rebuilding of Israel but Nehemiah worked to protect them from physical enemies.

He also finds out that Israelites have been backsliding and marrying non-Jewish wives and he confronts that sin.

Devotional - Pray and Fight 

Nehemiah was operating under the call and blessing of God, who had put it on his heart to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the walls around Jerusalem. God had further blessed him by granting him favor with the king who sent him on his way in favor. When he arrived, he was faithful to do the work of God carefully and diligently. The walls were being built.

Of course, that meant that everything went well, everyone cheered him on and supported his work and things fell into place. Amen?

Uh...no. There was a man named Sanballat, his friend Tobiah and many others who were opposed to the work Nehemiah was doing. They marshaled their strength to oppose the work that was being done. Sanballat was furious about the progress God's people were making.

The fact is, God's work will always be opposed. Jesus was opposed. Paul was opposed. Every great figure in the Bible experienced great opposition from the enemies of God, even sometimes from within God's people. When you determine to draw near to God, to seek him with all your heart, and to serve him in this world, expect that you will be opposed. Jesus promised that the world that hated him will hate us. Christians who walk in the flesh will oppose those who walk in the fullness of the Spirit. That is just the nature of things in this fallen world.

Nehemiah's approach to dealing with Sanballat and his minions is instructive. In verse 9, it says,

"So we prayed to our God and stationed a guard because of them day and night."

There are a couple of times in God's Word where his people were told to do nothing but stand and watch God work. "Stand still and see the salvation of God." Sometimes, they were told to do acts of obedience to display their faithfulness to God (like march around Jericho). But most of the time, God sent his people out to battle to fight against their enemies. The vast majority of biblical encounters follow this pattern.

Depend on God and fight hard. 

Nehemiah bathed everything he did in prayer. He asked God's wisdom to know what he should do. He asked God's blessing and protection as he did it. He never operated independently from God or live out his own agenda. He sought God faithfully.

But he also set a guard. The vast majority of the time throughout the Bible, God's people, depending on him, having prayed for his blessings, had to take up arms and fight. In the Old Testament that fighting was often literal. In the New Testament era, the weapons are spiritual. But the fact is that we must not only pray for God's direction, wisdom and power, but we must fight the good fight. We must go out into this world and work in God's name. We must face down the enemies of God and stand in Christ's victory.

Father, forgive me for when I have failed to pray and seek your wisdom and power and gone out on my own. Forgive me as well for when I have prayed for your power to be revealed but failed to take up the weapons of warfare you have given me and gone to battle in your name. 

Think and Pray

Do you balance these two sides?
Do you pray for the power of God and work in the power of God?

"A Great and Godly Leader" June 28 Readings: Ezra 7-10

Today's Reading - Ezra 7-10

Background

This passage primarily focuses on Ezra's prayer of confession because Israel was marrying foreign wives, risking returning to the sinful ways that had caused their downfall.

Devotional - A True Leader 

Ezra is one of the great men of Scripture. He comes from exile, returning to Jerusalem to lead Israel in its return to God. In Ezra 7-10, he finds the people of God returning to the sin of intermingling with the Canaanite people and intermarrying with them. Ezra demonstrates true leadership in guiding them to return to God and obedience. Let us examine some of the qualities that made Ezra a great leader.

1. Ezra was a man of God's word. 7:6

He was "skilled in the law of Moses" - a man of God's word. True leaders are not derived from their personality, creativity, or talent, but from their grounding in the teachings of the Bible.

2. Ezra was a man under God's blessing. 7:6

As a result of his obedience and fidelity to God and to his word, God put his hand of blessing on him and gave him favor with the king. No, obedience is no guarantee that we will always have smooth paths but God does have power over even pagan kings.

3. Ezra sought the glory of God. 8:21-23

Ezra led his group to fast and pray and seek the protection of God because he didn't want to ask the king for protection. He felt it would be an insult to God, showing God to be so weak that his people needed the help of a pagan king. Ezra's chief concern was not his own safety or well-being but the glory of God and this his name would be honored among the nations.

Great leaders do not seek to advance themselves but to lift high the name of Jesus.

4. Ezra shared the burden of leadership with others. 8:24-29

He was no lone ranger, but he shared the work God gave him with others. Paul was a great leader not only because of the work he did but because of the men he trained up to carry on when he was gone. A great leader not only does his work but includes others in the work.

5. Ezra confronted the sin of the people. 9:1-3

When he arrived and saw that the exiles who had returned to Jerusalem had also begun to return to the sins that had caused the fall of Jerusalem, he confronted that sin without compromise. He was not nit-picking or unnecessarily judgmental here. This was serious sin and he dealt with it directly.

A good leader must be patient and considerate as his people grow, but when there is blatant sin and rebellion he must confront it without fear.

6. Ezra led the people in confession. 9:4-15

He humbled himself before God and confessed sin. Leaders ought to be leaders not only in spiritual growth but in the acknowledgment and confession of sin.

7. Ezra led the people back to God. 10

That was his only goal, to bring the people into a right relationship with God and that was what he did. If a leader's goal is anything but bringing the people to God he will not be pleasing in God's eyes.

Ezra is one of the truly great men of Scripture because the glory of God and the good of the people he led was his only concern.

Father, make me like Ezra, who gloried in the honor of your name and who sought to bring people into a right relationship with you. 

Think and Pray

Examine the qualities of Ezra's life and leadership and see if they are true in your life.

"Sovereign Unseen" June 27 Readings: Esther 6-10

Today's Reading - Esther 6-10

Background

Esther is a strange book. It recounts some strange behavior from Esther and Mordecai; actions hard to square with the Law of God. But the oddest thing is that from the first verse to the last God's name is not mentioned a single time. How strange that a book of the Bible, inspired by God, free from error, should fail to even once mention the God who is over all.

But though God is not mentioned in the book, he is certainly present in it. He is working behind the scenes, in the background, accomplishing his purposes and protecting his Chosen People from yet another genocidal maniac. The sovereign God of the universe may be unseen and unmentioned in this book, but he is ever-present.

Devotional - Sovereign Unseen 

Chapter 6 is a hilarious story, though it ends in tragedy eventually. Haman hated Mordecai so much that he went off the rails and schemed to destroy all the Jews in the kingdom. He devised a plot and suckered the king into signing off on it. But in the meantime, while God was at work behind the scenes to protect Israel from destruction, he also was working to bring the haughty and hateful Haman down a few pegs.

The king had a sleepless night and took to reading the chronicles of days gone by - a sort of stroll down memory lane. He came upon a story of a plot against him that was foiled by Mordecai, who informed palace officials of the plan. The assassination attempt failed, the traitors were hanged, and life went on. The king asked his attendants if anything had been done to honor Mordecai for saving his life, and they told him no. So, the king determined to right this wrong and honor his savior.

He approached Haman, his top adviser, the next day and asked him how he should go about giving a proper fete for someone he desired to honor. Haman immediately assumed that the king was going to honor him - enamored of his own greatness, he could not imagine the king had anyone but Haman on his mind - so he came up with a plan, recorded in Esther 6:8-9.

"Let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set. And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king's most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.’”

He could hardly wait for the parade to start, probably already daydreaming of the glory he would feel as he was paraded through the city square with people cheering him. But then, the king spoke words that cut deep into Haman's heart. Look at verse 10.

“Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king's gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.”

Be honest. Wouldn't you love to see a recording of the look on Haman's face as the king said that? The man he hated most in the world would be honored with the parade he had designed for himself. Not only that, Haman was tasked with leading him through the streets and bestowing this honor. It was the worst day of his life (up until in his effort to get revenge on Mordecai he brought about his own death - but that story comes later).

Bad luck, eh? No. No. No. This is not a world of coincidence and luck. It is a world run by a sovereign king. Sometimes his work is clear and plain - manifest for all to see. Sometimes, he is the sovereign unseen who works behind the scenes to accomplish his purposes, protect his people, punish his enemies, and glorify himself.

You may not always see God's work, but he is at work. You may not always understand God's plan, but he has one. You may not always hear God's voice, but he is speaking and working and acting and guiding. Just because he is sometimes unseen does not change the fact that he is the sovereign over all.

Father, I thank you for those times your work is clear and plain. But I also know there are times when your hand is unseen and your plan is unclear. Help me to trust you, serve you and obey you whether everything is clear and plain or there is fog and clouds block the light. 

Think and Pray

Can you remember a time when you couldn't see the hand of God until later when you realized that the Sovereign was working unseen in your life?

"Flawed Servants" June 26 Readings: Esther 1-5

Today's Reading - Esther 1-5

Background

There are so many questions that surround the book of Esther. It was written for the purpose of explaining the Feast of Purim but there is a deeper purpose behind the book. It is one of two books in the Bible that does not even mention God (Song of Songs is the other), but it is a book in which the hand of God is seen from start to finish.

Devotional - Flawed Servants 

Esther is a great story but as you scratch below the surface there are a few things that pretty hard to explain. Esther is an Israelite woman of beauty who becomes a part of the harem of the king of Persia. Many have tried to soften that blow a little, but when Esther was "taken to the king" in 2:16, they did not spend the evening playing Parcheesi. And Mordecai? Esther was his adopted daughter (2:7) and he cared for her and about her. Yet, he helped her in the process of becoming a concubine of the pagan king of a pagan nation.

It is hard to see these actions as virtuous.

In spite of all of this God used Mordecai and Esther to save the nation. The story is familiar. She spent the night with the king (playing Parcheesi) and he fell in love with her and made her his new Queen. About this time, Haman decided to wipe out the Jewish nation once and for all. Like many dictators and evil men in subsequent history, he would fail. God used Mordecai and Esther and their questionable tactics to accomplish the salvation of the nation.

It has always bothered me that God used the founders of my denomination, Southern Baptists, in such powerful ways in spite of the fact that they were slaveowners and racists. How could God use people with such obvious glaring faults to build his kingdom?

But then I read the stories of the great characters of the Bible and realize that many of them were flawed and had great moral and spiritual failings. Somehow, in his sovereign power, God was able to use messed up people to do great things. Church history tells a similar story. Some of the greatest names in church history were people with huge problems - character flaws you could drive a truck through.

We should never be casual or lackadaisical about our sin, but the fact is that I am messed up and so are you. God uses flawed people because that is all the church has. Again, we ought not to use this as an excuse for sin, but we can comfort ourselves that we don't have to be perfect to be used of God.

Do you have some things you are struggling with? Don't give up! God uses people who are struggling. He uses people who are flawed. He uses imperfect people who are in the process of sanctification in his work. You don't have to wait until you are perfect to serve God. He can do great things with willing servants - even people who sometimes walk into walls, stub their toes, or trip over stuff.

You may not be perfect but if you are willing you are useful to God.

Father, purify me and use me!

Think and Pray

Remember, this is not an excuse for careless living, but realize that God can use you even with flaws and imperfections.
His work depends on HIS power not your perfection...thank God.

"The Jesus of Prophecy" June 25 Readings: Zechariah 8-14

Today's Reading - Zechariah 8-14 

Background

After the prophecy of chapter 8, chapter 9-14 concludes Zechariah's book with two great oracles from God (9-11, 12-14), each of which contains familiar messianic prophecies. They focus on the great victory of God over Israel's sin.

Devotional - The Jesus of Prophecy 

It is dangerous to delve into the end times in a devotional such as this since people have such varying views. However, a passage such as today's reading almost demands it. Chapter 9-11 contains the first great prophecy of God's destruction of Israel's enemy, the restoration of the nation, and the coming of Israel's king. Then, chapters 12-14, the second prophecy, carry on the glorious refrain speaking of the cleansing of the people and the glorious reign of the king. There are two familiar messianic moments, one in each of the great prophecies, that encapsulate the work of Jesus.

The Triumphal Entry is a story recorded in each of the gospels, but its details come straight out of Zechariah 9:9. Of course, Jesus knew this prophecy and chose the colt because of it, but he rode into Jerusalem as he did to declare clearly to all that he was the Messiah, the subject of OT prophecy.

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem!Look, your King is coming to you;he is righteous and victorious,humble and riding on a donkey,on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Jesus was telling Jerusalem to rejoice because their King had arrived just as Zechariah had prophesied. They rejected and crucified him so his elevation to glorious king of Jerusalem awaits another day, another coming, another entrance. But Jesus declared who he was when he rode down the Mt. of Olives and into the city as he did.

But he had another purpose when he entered the city, one he was born to fulfill before he would take the throne as Israel's king. Zechariah 12:10 points to this higher purpose of Christ.

Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the house of David and the residents of Jerusalem, and they will look at me whom they pierced. 

They will look to the one they pierced. This harkens back to the prophecy of Isaiah 53, which points clearly to the redemptive death of Christ. This prophecy goes on to extol the redemptive grace of God. Zechariah 13:1 says,

On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the residents of Jerusalem, to wash away sin and impurity.

Israel will be purified and redeemed from its sin. Chapter 14 describes the ultimate victory of Christ as he stands on the Mt. of Olives, marvelous signs follow, and then Jesus takes up the throne of the world. Living water flows from Jerusalem (verse 8) and the curse will be lifted (verse 11). All the world will come to Jerusalem to worship Jesus Christ.

My friend, it may be a tough world today, but we are on the winning side. Jesus will never be defeated.

Father, thank you for your unbeatable power and inestimable glory that shines over all this world. 

Think and Pray

Do you rest and trust in the ultimate victory of Jesus?
How would it change the way you live your life today if you fully trusted in the victory of Christ?

"He Defends the Guilty" June 24 Readings: Zechariah 1-7

Today's Reading - Zechariah 1-7

Background

Zechariah was a contemporary of Haggai and his prophecies are likely dated to about 520 to 518 BC. Zechariah is of the priestly tribe and his name means "God remembered" - God did not forget Israel in Babylon. His message dovetails with Haggai's.

Devotional - He Defends the Guilty

What a powerful vision Zechariah had - not really a vision but an insight into reality. In Zechariah 3:1-5 we see a man named Joshua, a priest, the chief priest in fact who was standing before the Angel of the Lord. The identity of the "Angel of the Lord" is difficult to discern in the OT - is it just an angel, or Jesus himself? We will likely not know for sure until we are in heaven. Joshua is standing before this representation of the divine presence.

And Satan, the accuser of the brethren, is right there beside him doing his thing. He is accusing him. He is unworthy to stand in your presence, God. He has no right to be here. Look how filthy he is, how unclean, how compromised. He has not done right, has not followed the law adequately, has not earned the right to be in the presence of the Lord. The accuser is accusing!

The problem is that every accusation he is lodging is absolutely correct. According to verse 3, Joshua was clothed in filthy garments. He was unclean. The accuser was absolutely right. Dirty. Fallen. Wicked. Unworthy to stand in the presence of God.

Just like me. Joshua is me! A sinner whose sin makes him unworthy to be in the eternal presence of God. Here is the hard, cold truth - the truth I want to ignore, deny, and pretend is not so. Whatever accusations Satan wants to lodge against me to the Father are probably true. Oh, maybe I haven't broken every one of the commandments in body, but in mind, in heart, in spirit, I have broken them all. I am guilty.

But God does not respond to Satan's accusations as we might expect.

The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you!

Satan spoke true accusations against Joshua but he was rebuked. Why? Because God had chosen Jerusalem. God chose them and therefore he would redeem them.

Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.

God takes his chosen people, cleanses them, and clothes them in pure clothes. We know now how that happens - it is the righteousness of Christ that is our robe. I am Joshua. Stained and dirty, God chose me. He sent his Son for me to take away my iniquity and clothe me in righteousness. I know have "pure vestments" - spiritual garments of holiness given to me by the work of Christ.

Though I am guilty of every accusation Satan can level against me, in Christ I am innocent!

Thank you, Father, for the grace I have in Christ, for clothing me in Christ's righteousness instead listening to the accusations of Satan against me. 

Think and Pray

Do you struggle with guilt, with doubt, and with self-recrimination?
Remember that Jesus is your redeemer and has cleansed you and clothed you in "pure vestments."
Thank him today for that!

"Curse of Misplaced Priorities" June 23 Readings: Haggai 1-2

Today's Reading - Haggai 1-2

Background

Today's reading is unusually short but powerful. (Tomorrow's will make up for the shortness of today's - seven chapters of Zechariah.) Take a little extra time to meditate on the message of Haggai.

It is written within the time period of Ezra and Nehemiah. He prophesied in 520 BC. The decree of Cyrus went out in 538 BC and nearly 20 years later the procrastinating Israelites were still making excuses as to why the Temple had not been rebuilt. Haggai challenged them to "give careful thought to their ways."

The book contains a series of 4 prophecies which passionately call on the returned exiles to rebuild the Temple and so to return to the full favor of God.

Devotional - The Curse of Misplaced Priorities

A youth pastor I knew gave the best illustration of life I ever heard. He rented a limousine and took his small youth group out for a night on the town (in Cedar Rapids). He took them to a fancy restaurant, to museums, to all kinds of expensive places. Finally, he took them to the gates of Mt. Trashmore, Cedar Rapids' dump. He said, "Everything you saw today ends up here." Wow.

That's how we live our lives, isn't it? We devote ourselves to this world, which is destined to be destroyed, while we ignore the things of God. It is the worst investment decision any of us could ever make.

Haggai was a prophet to the people of Israel who had returned from exile in Babylon. They had come back to the land with the intent of rebuilding the Temple and reestablishing the worship of Yahweh. But, of course, they first had to erect places that they could live in and walls to protect them. Suddenly, it was eighteen later and they were living in comfort while the Temple still lay in ruins. They continually procrastinated. "The time has not come for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt." (Haggai 1:2).

God's patience with this procrastination was at an end, and he sent Haggai to warn the people, "Think carefully about your ways." Their minds were on their own comfort and convenience and they cared little for the things of God.

There are consequences to that. We could call it the Curse of Misplaced Priorities. When we invest ourselves in this world, we bring certain natural consequences, designed by God, upon our lives. Look at what God said through Haggai in 1:6.

You have planted much but harvested little.
You eat but never have enough to be satisfied.
You drink but never have enough to become drunk.
You put on clothes but never have enough to get warm.
The wage earner puts his wages into a bag with a hole in it.”

There is an inverse proportion principle at work in the kingdom of God. Jesus mentioned it often. "He who saves his life will lose it, but he who loses his life for my sake will save it." What you seek is not what you get. "Seek first the kingdom and all these things will be added to you as well. Here, the more you invest in your own life, the less you will have of peace, satisfaction, and contentment.

The less you focus on your own things and give attention to the things of God, the more you receive of peace, satisfaction, and contentment.

There are five statements there that describe the dissatisfaction, frustration, and futility of the life with misplaced priorities. 

• No matter how much work you do, there is little return (eternally) on your investment. In the kingdom, a grain of mustard seed moves mountains. With misplaced priorities, we can barely move the mustard seed!
• The next three speak to satisfaction and contentment. When you invest in this world, it's never enough. Ever eaten a meal so good that you didn't want to eat again for a month? Of course not. The things of this world never satisfy for more than a moment. You eat, but it's not enough. You drink, but you want more. You put on clothes, but you are still cold. This world offers fun and good times, but not satisfaction. 
• Finally, misplaced priorities produce lost opportunity - what might have been. You stick money in a bag, but the bag has a hole. The money goes away and you don't get to enjoy it. You had it all, but you squandered it. I hate writing this because boy-oh-boy have I been there! But it is a marker of misplaced priorities that you squander the opportunities and blessings that God gives you. 

There is a solution, though. Build the house of God. In the OT, that was a building on a hill just above the City of David to the north. But we are the Temple of the Living God today - both individually and as a church. We need to build the church and we need to build our lives as sanctuaries of God's presence. Cleanse it. Honor God's presence. Make the sacrifice (well, honor the one Christ made) and devote yourself to the service of God. 

Father, I have seen so much of the Curse of Misplaced Priorities in my life - work without return, dissatisfaction and lost opportunity. Cleanse my heart as your sacrifice. I thank you for the sacrifice made for me once for all by Christ. Consecrate me, Lord, for your service. 

Think and Pray

How would Haggai (or the God who spoke through him) describe your life?
Would he tell you that your priorities are misplaced, that you need to get your mind and heart off the things of this world and "build the temple?"

"When the Enemy Attacks" June 22 Readings: Ezra 1-6, Psalm 137

Today's Reading - Ezra 1-6, Psalm 137

Background 

Several of the books of the Hebrew Old Testament seem to have originally been one book and were divided into two. This is true of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles, which were likely divided because of the length of the scrolls. It seems that originally Ezra and Nehemiah may have been one book and were later separated, though that is less clear.

Ezra is of priestly descent and his task is to bring Israel back not just to the LAND but to the LAW. They had returned to Jerusalem but not to God. He led a revival after God had orchestrated a return.

The order of the Ezra and Nehemiah is significant theologically, even if it is not chronological. First, the decree comes in which God was at work by his sovereign power among the nations. Then, the Temple was rebuilt, then the community was purified under Ezra, then the walls were rebuilt under the ministry of Nehemiah. God's activity, the building of a place of worship, heart restoration, then physical protection.

Psalm 137 is the exiles lament, sung by those in Babylon about their return to Israel.

Devotional - When the Enemy Attacks 

"I can't believe he said that."
"If people aren't going to support me, then I will find something else to do." 

Christians today are remarkably easy to discourage. People will begin a ministry and assume that when they do they will receive encouragement and support and applause for what they do. There is little support for that biblically. In fact, the opposition is pretty much true. When someone was called by God to a task they pretty much always faced severe opposition and persecution.

Folks, they crucified Jesus!

God worked a mighty act of power in the heart of a pagan emperor to get a decree for Israel to return to their homeland, recorded here in Ezra 1. The people of God were excited to return to their devastated homeland and begin the process of rebuilding. (We know it actually took some time for the rebuilding to start - Haggai tells of this.)

Progress was coming along nicely until, as Ezra 4 and 5 records, opposition began to arise. That hurts. Here they were doing to work of God and people stood up to oppose them. If they were like many evangelicals today, they'd get their feelings hurt and they'd quit. But that is not what they did. They continued to do what God had told them to do and they faced the opposition with faith.

The God who had gathered them protected them. The great victories of God do not come only through obedience but through perseverance as we continue to work in the power of God. Had Israel gotten discouraged and given up the Temple would not have been rebuilt. There would have been no Temple for Jesus to have worshiped in when he came to earth.

My Christian friend, you have a call from God on your life but it will often be hard. The challenge is not only to obey God but to continue to serve him through opposition, through discouragement, through failure, and through suffering. Great victories are won after great struggle. God does not protect us from enemies but empower us to overcome them.

Father, may I be courageous and strong when I answer your call. 

Think and Pray

Do you get discouraged easily when you are serving God?
Do you quit when opposition arises?

"War of the Angels" June 21 Readings: Daniel 9-12

Today's Reading - Daniel 9-12

Background

The last four chapters of Daniel contain visions of the future - some of the most significant in the Bible. Daniel 9:24-27, the prophecy of the Seventy Weeks, is a template for all future prophecies regarding the End Times. The prophecies of chapter 11 and 12, while having some historical content, also look forward to the great battles of the last days, which we often loosely call Armageddon and tells us much about the Antichrist, modeled on the evil man known as Antiochus Epiphanes.

Devotional - War of the Angels 

I often find myself confused by the Bible's teachings on so-called "spiritual warfare." We know that our God is in control and that demons flee before him. We know that Satan was created as an angel and rebelled against the Father, leading a third of the angelic forces to create the kingdom of darkness. We know that he goes about on this earth like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. We know that he is defeated and one day will be sent forever into the lake of fire, with all who are loyal to him, to be tormented for his rebellion.

There is much that we know and much we do not know. There are many who are confident of their knowledge of spiritual warfare who have created intricate mythologies about rankings of demonic forces and territorial demons and all sorts of such things on the flimsiest of biblical evidence. They are much more certain about the angelic and the demonic than my study of the Bible allows me to be.

However, many of us in evangelical and Baptist circles tend to discount and ignore the angelic and the demonic. We don't disbelieve in it we just don't think about it much. But when one reads the Bible the conclusion is inescapable. Angels are real and have a genuine role to play in the work of God. Demons are real and are actively working evil in this world, sowing lies, tempting people to sin, and inciting wickedness as best they can. Exactly how that works is difficult to discern.

The story in Daniel 10 is an interesting one. According to verse 2, Daniel was mourning and praying for 3 full weeks, agonizing in prayer before the Lord, but no answer came. He continued until finally at the end of the 3 weeks an angel appeared to him and told him a strange tale. He had been dispatched from heaven with an answer immediately when Daniel began to pray, but he was opposed by the "prince of the kingdom of Persia" - seemingly a demonic force with authority over the nation of Persia. Finally, Michael, one of two angels who are named in the Bible (the other is Gabriel) arrives to help him and the demonic force is overcome. Daniel's answer arrives.

Of course, it is dangerous to derive too many truths from one story, but reading Job and other scriptures, there seem to be some truths we can establish here.

• God is always sovereign and in control. His power is unchallenged. Any presentation that gives Satan or demonic powers any hope of defeating the work of God is unbiblical. 
• However, demonic forces are always working against the activity of God and seem to be able to resist and hinder the work. Here, there was a three-week delay. 
• We assume that God, in his sovereignty, permitted this to teach Daniel a lesson in patience and perseverance, but still, there was a delay caused by demonic forces. 
• There are rankings of angels, though we don't understand all of that. The visions of Isaiah and Ezekiel talk about seraphim and special winged creatures worshiping in heaven. But here we meet Michael, who was a special protector of Israel. We also know of Gabriel, God's "press secretary" who made many announcements of the great works of God. They are called archangels. 
• A common concept seen in the prophets, especially in Isaiah, Ezekiel, and here, is the idea of a demonic force working behind the power of a human government. We wonder if Democrats or Republicans are in charge, but there are also likely demonic forces at work in human governments to seduce and to cause evil. 
• In the end, God always wins. 

There are two extremes to avoid. To ignore the work of angels and demons, to act as if the heavenly realm does not exist and does not matter is unbiblical and wrong. But to mythologize it beyond what the Bible says is also wrong. We need to avoid excessive speculation. Whatever is true in the spiritual realm, our God reigns ultimately.

Father, help me to see what you want me to see in the realm of spiritual things. Guide me away from ignorance and away from excessive curiosity and speculation. 

Think and Pray

Do you ignore the spiritual realm of angels and demons?
Do you involve yourself in excessive speculation about it?

So You Want to See Miracles? June 20 Readings: Daniel 5-8

Today's Reading - Daniel 5-8

Background

The book of Daniel is self-revelatory. Modern liberal scholars are convinced that it cannot have been written by Daniel because of the prophecies made about the kingdoms to come. If Daniel actually wrote the book then it is evidence of the supernatural nature of scriptural prophecy and skeptics cannot accept that. They claim that the book was written after the events took place and that the words were put into the mouth of the prophet Daniel.

The only evidence for this is their lack of faith in predictive prophecy. Those of us who believe in the divine nature of Scripture have no trouble believing that God is the author of the Bible and that he could describe events accurately centuries before they take place.

Devotional

Wouldn't it be great if we could see the kind of miracles today that was seen in Daniel's day?  Three men were thrown into a fiery furnace who come out unharmed; a hand writes a message to a pagan king on the wall; a man survives in a den of hungry lions - those were some dramatic miracles. We would all love to see that kind of thing in our day. 

But none of these works of power was done for entertainment value. They were performed in the lives of people who had risked their lives in obedience to God's Word. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stood against an entire culture and refuse to bow the knee to an idol. They were called before the king who demanded they acquiesce to his demands but refused. They were thrown into a fiery furnace that was intended to kill them. It was then - when they had risked their lives to the point of death in obedience to God - that God stepped in to act in power.

In Daniel 6, Daniel is an old man but still a loyal servant of the king. Darius trusted him and gave him great responsibility, which created jealousy and hatred among others in the palace. They conspired against him to bring him down. These schemers manipulated Darius to sign an edict that only he should be worshiped for 30 days, knowing that Daniel would violate that rule and continue to worship the One True God. Daniel ended up in a den with hungry lions because of his obedience and faithfulness. And God acted in power to preserve the life of the man who acted in faithful obedience to him.

We would all like to see the kind of power God displayed in biblical days when God performed miracles that would leave his people in awe and his enemies in terror. But those miracles were never curiosities. They were performed to accomplish great works and God used obedient people who put their very lives at risk to serve and obey him.

God's great miracles are acts of war in the great cosmic battle and they are experienced by those who are on the front lines of that conflict! It is in the fiery furnace that God's presence is known. It is in the lion's den that God's power is released.

Would you like to see the mighty power of God at work in your life? You will not see it sitting in your easy chair. God doesn't do miracles through spiritual spectators! Present your body to Christ as a living sacrifice and give yourself fully to him and his kingdom's work. When you are on the front lines of the kingdom conflict, you will see the power of God in ways you never will in places of comfort and peace.

Father, I want to be on the front lines, not on the sidelines, so that I can see your mighty hand of power at work in me. 

Think and Pray

Are you experiencing the mighty power of God in your life?
Are you on the front lines of spiritual battle, working in God's power to expand the borders of the Kingdom?

"Into the Fire" June 19 Readings: Daniel 1-4

Today's Reading - Daniel 1-4

Background

Daniel is one of the truly great men of biblical history. He is one of the few characters of the Bible's story without a major flaw or a sinful failing. From his boyhood in captivity until his older years in the lion's den and through all the visions God gave him, he is an example of spiritual courage and moral excellence.

Devotional - Into the Fire

It is one of my favorite stories in the Bible and has been since my youth. It has drama and tension and intrigue - everything that makes a story grand.

It begins in the mind of a megalomaniac named Nebuchadnezzar, who constructs a 90-foot high golden idol and demands that everyone in his kingdom bow down before it when the music sounded. Babylon was filled with captives, people from all over the world who still worshiped their own gods. The king didn't care about that as long as they kowtowed to his demands and when the instruments played demonstrated their loyalty by bowing before his god.

But there was a problem, one that was fairly easily identified, and one that Daniel 3:8-9 tells us was reported to the king. If when the music sounds everyone falls on their faces, it becomes pretty hard to hide the fact that three young Jewish men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, were not bowing down. They were faithful servants to the king, but they refused to bow to his gods. When Nebuchadnezzar heard about their refusal, he hit the roof. In verses 14-15 he offered them one last chance to bow down and to save their hides, but their response was forceful (verses 16-18).

“O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

They would serve him. They would honor him. They would seek to please him any way they could. But they would not bow down to his gods. There was a limit to their submission. They faced the king in faith and confidence, believing that the God they worshiped was stronger than the most powerful man on earth, but they were also willing to face torture and death rather than serve the false gods of Babylon. 

This infuriated the king. He ordered the fire in the furnace heated to a temperature seven times its norm. He was going to show these impudent Jews what happened to dissenters and make an example out of them to everyone. No one would defy him! Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were bound and carried to the fire to be thrown to their deaths. It was so hot that the soldiers who threw them in were incinerated - a tragedy, to be sure, but at least Nebuchadnezzar had gotten his message across. 

But, wait! He looked into the fire to see to satiate his wrath and see the three young men writhing in agony, but he saw something very different. He saw the men who had been cast into the fire walking around, unbound, and there was another being with them, one he described as "like a son of the gods." I have a theory about who that might have been, but I'll let you guess that on your own! 

He called to the men and they walked out of the fire, unharmed, without even a whiff of an odor of smoke on them. Suddenly, Nebuchadnezzar knew the truth. There is a God in Israel, one unlike any other god. This God is real, not an idol. He's not some impersonal force to whom supplication is made to receive favors. He is a real God, a powerful God, a miracle-working God. 

How Nebuchadnezzar's attitude had changed. He may not have been "converted" but he suddenly had an amazing respect for the God these men worshiped. 

This all happened because three young men believed God enough to obey him, even at great cost, at the threat of their own lives. But because they believed, a wicked man saw the power of a mighty God. May we believe God and obey him that the world may see his power and tremble!

Father, may I live in faith and obedience to you in such a way that the world may see your power and tremble before you!

Think and Pray

Do you have the moral courage to make bold stands for Christ even at the cost of suffering?

"Tear Your Hearts" June 18 Readings: Joel 1-3

Today's Reading - Joel 1-3

Background

Joel is a mystery prophet, with almost no specific historical information to date it. Some put it among the earliest of the prophets and many place Joel at the end of the kingdom of Judah and as a contemporary of Jeremiah and Ezekiel.

Devotional - Tear Your Hearts 

Joel tells the entire story of sin and redemption, a microcosm of Israel's history, of God's grace and restoration toward them. In chapter 1, Joel calls Israel to task for their sin and explains the consequences of that sin. Israel was suffering greatly, and they often wondered why. They thought that since they were the chosen people of God that he should shield them from trouble.

But God was allowing them to suffer the consequences of their wicked sin.

Tell your children about it, and let your children tell their children, and their children the next generation.What the devouring locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; what the swarming locust has left, the young locust has eaten; and what the young locust has left, the destroying locust has eaten. Joel 1:3-4

Sin is not only an offense to God, but it destroys us. Like waves of locusts, it destroys the life that God has intended for us. Israel thought that they could embrace sin, idolatry, immorality, greed, and other sins and still experience the blessing of God and the joys of his presence. But sin doesn't work like that. It devastates and destroys. 

But there is a solution to sin. God opens his heart to repentant sinners. 

Even now—this is the Lord’s declaration— turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in faithful love, and He relents from sending disaster. Joel 2:12-13

What a powerful statement. "Tear your hearts, not just your clothes." Real repentance - a heart of sorrow over sin, one that turns to God with a full, pure, and humble heart. Our great blessing is that God is not hard-hearted or vindictive. He responds to repentant sinners with grace. In fact, he initiates grace by seeking us in his love. He is faithful and good, always seeking reconciliation rather than judgment. 

Verse 19  tells us the end result of Israel's repentance (and ours). 

Look, I am about to send you grain, new wine, and olive oil. You will be satiated with them, and I will no longer make you a disgrace among the nations. Joel 2:19

He restores the repentant. 

It is my desire to walk consistently with God - when I consider what Christ has done for me, what else can I do? But I have more than 50 years of history as a Christian and I know who I am. Like Israel, I wander. I fail. I sin. And knowing who I am and what I do, it is a great comfort to know that the God who made me, the God who saved me, is a God who loves me, who is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in faithful love. I wish that I did not presume on that grace as often as I do, but I am thankful that my God is love, that the Blood of his Son is forever powerful against sin, and that he never abandons me, even in my depths. 

Thank you, Father, for your amazing Grace. Thank you for the Blood of your Son that cleanses and restores me. 

Think and Pray

Is there sin you need to confess to God today?
Thank God for his faithful love and grace.

"Living Water" June 17 Readings: Ezekiel 43-48

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 43-48

Background

There are many questions about the millennial temple - the biggest of which is why sacrifices are mentioned after the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ. But this passage describes that temple that will exist in the times after the Lord has returned to set up his kingdom on earth.

Devotional - Living Water 

Though we have many questions about this idealized and future temple that will never be explained until the end of time, there are some things that we do know - and those are the things that matter most.

First of all, the glory of God returns. In the early chapters of the prophecy, Ezekiel described the presence of God departing from the Temple because of Israel's sin but now we see the Glory restored in the new Temple. God wins; sin never does. Israel may have strayed but God's power is stronger.

We have been reading in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, and it is easy to see these books as "downers." They are in one sense. Human sin is a downer. But the prophets always ended with the glory of God restoring Israel. God always wins. The message of the prophets is that yes, God hates sin and will not tolerate it among his people. But the message goes far beyond that. God wins where sin attacks. His grace is always greater than our sin.

And the second truth we must see is also encouraging. We look for life from so many sources that turn out to be dry wells that only disappoint. When the Temple is restored in Israel there will be a River of Life flowing it. Look at Ezekiel 47:9.

Since the water will become fresh, there will be life everywhere the river goes.

Life does not come from money or from pleasure or from power or from any of the things that people seek. It comes from God and the right worship of him. The glory of God is a life-giving stream that gives abundant life everywhere it goes.

Even today, when our bodies are the temple of God, we must be vessels of his glory and power so that the world may see him through us. Then, the streams of living water will well up inside us and flow to those around us.

Thank you, Lord, for the glory of your presence and the streams of living water that you bring - life-giving, soul-restoring water. 

Think and Pray

Where do you seek for the water of life? Do you seek it from Christ and his glory or do you seek it from the things of the world? 

"Dry Bones Live" June 16 Readings: Ezekiel 37-42

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 37-42

Background

Two of the better-known passages of Ezekiel are in today's reading. In chapter 37; God makes the dead live - which only he can do. Then, in 38 and 39 we have the prophetic history of the great future battle known as Armageddon.

We are also introduced to the millennial temple.

Devotional - Dry Bones Live

It is the greatest miracle of all. The Bible records many wondrous works done by God. He parted the Red Sea and stopped the flow of the Jordan. He made the walls of Jericho come tumbling down and sent fire down on Elijah's sacrifice. Jesus walked on water, fed the crowds, made the lame walk and the blind see. But there is one miracle that is greater than all others. It was the miracle that God previewed when Elijah raised the Widow of Zarephath's son, when Jesus interrupted the funeral in the Jezreel Valley, and when he spoke to his friend Lazarus, calling him from the grave after four days. And it is the ultimate miracle of history, which God performed on Jesus early on the morning of the first day of the week, raising him from the dead.

Death from life. Something from nothing. This is not art, not renovation, it is creation.

It is that kind of miracle that Ezekiel speaks of in chapter 37 of his prophecy, the vision of the dry bones. He saw a valley of nothing but dry bones - death and decay had done its complete job. This was not a sickness, it was death. A doctor can treat sick people, but there is nothing can be done for dry bones. But God can do the impossible - he can raise the dead.

People, think about that. We don't just serve a God who can do a few little things for you. He can take dry bones and make them live! Doesn't that problem that is bothering you seem kind of small in comparison? If God can make dry bones come to life, do you think the thing that is stressing you out is going to stress HIM out?

This prophecy is a vision of the resurrection of a nation. God has destroyed Israel because of their sin. The nation lay in ruins, the people were in exile and the future looked bleak. There was little hope in any human effort or ability for the nation in its condition. But that did not stop what God intended to do. He would sweep through the dry bones in power, they would shudder to life and form sinews and tissues. God would do what no one else could do. The prophecy came true in history and its ultimate fulfillment awaits in the future when God will restore the nation to its full glory.

It is the same thing that he did in my life. I was, according to Ephesians 2:1, dead in my sins, without any hope of fixing the problem on my own. My soul was a valley of dry bones - nothing but death - hopeless death. But God did not leave me in that condition. He worked a miracle - his greatest. As he had raised his Son from the dead, he also raised me to new life and gave me eternal hope.

I have eternal life and hope today because God works miracles, because he raises the dead, because he took "dem dry bones" in my soul and knit them together in new life. I have been given life in Christ. More than that, I have been loved in Christ. Eternally and ultimately. What an amazing privilege it is to serve a God who makes dry bones live!

Thank you, Father, for the life I have because of you, and you alone. 

Think and Pray

Reflect on the amazing power of God.
Realize that a God who can make dead bones live can handle whatever problems are in your life.

"Restored" June 15 Readings: Ezekiel 31-36

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 31-36

Background

Today's reading finishes the second major section of Ezekiel, the judgment on the nations, which concludes at the end of chapter 32. The rest of the book, chapters 33-48, focus primarily on God's restoration of the nation.

Devotional - Restored

One of the most amazing truths of God's word is that there is still a future for the nation Israel. This is a controversial teaching among students of God's word - Amillennialists and certain other eschatological views challenge this. But every text that speaks of the end focuses on the nation of Israel.

Why is that so amazing? Because if you look at the history of Israel in the Bible it is anything but a shining example of fidelity and godliness. They were an idolatrous and disobedient people far more than they were walking with God. They gave God every reason to destroy them, and he just about did. The destruction under Nebuchadnezzar came very close to being total and eternal.

But God preserved a remnant from which he rebuilt the nation. When Israel was scattered by the Romans he preserved a remnant. When Hitler attempted his final solution, God preserved them and brought them back to the land. And one day, the people of God will be restored. (No, the nation that exists today is not the restored Israel - that nation will love the Messiah who died for them.)

None of this happened because of Israel's merit. They were not chosen because they were special. The key is God's love and faithfulness, not their merit or righteousness.

In Ezekiel 33-36, we read of God's work of restoration. As you read that, note what is happening. God is at work. "I will restore you..." This is not Israel pulling itself up by its bootstraps but God doing a work of grace. God would shepherd the nation whose shepherds had been unfaithful.  In spite of their continuing unfaithfulness, he would restore their land and their people.

Thank God. When I look back on over 5 decades as a Christian, I think, "I should have done a lot better." There's been so many failures, so much drifting, so many times I let the Savior down. But he has been faithful to me, just as he was and will be to Israel. He doesn't quit on me any more than he quit on the nation he chose. God is good. So good.

Father, I thank you for your faithfulness and your restoring grace. When I drift, you draw me back. When I fall, you lift me up. When I am weak, you are my strength. Thank you for being all I need. 

Think and Pray

Thank God today for his unfailing love and faithfulness.
Meditate on that and consider what your proper response is.

"Downfall of Pride" June 14 Readings: Ezekiel 25-30

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 25-30

Background

We turn to the second section of Ezekiel today, in which Ezekiel prophesies against the nations.

Devotional - Downfall of Pride

In Ezekiel 28:1-10, God speaks to the earthly ruler of Tyre, describing his wealth and splendor, but also his vainglory and pride. Because of all he possessed, he lost his heart to arrogance and self-exaltation. God will bring them "down to the pit" (28:8), a prophecy that came true in the violent destruction of the nation.

In verse 11, the prophet focuses his attention on another ruler, this time the "king" of Tyre. It's two different prophecies and seem to be directed at two different people. The second prophecy, in Ezekiel 28:11-19, is focused on the true power behind the throne of Tyre, Satan himself. The earthly ruler of Tyre was simply mimicking the heart and behavior of the spiritual ruler.

You were the seal of perfection,full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every kind of precious stone covered you. 28:12-13 

Satan was created as a being of wisdom and beauty in the garden of God, covered in glory. The mythology of Satan as a grotesque being with red skin, horns and a pitchfork is nonsense. He was created in beauty - magnificent, astounding, awe-inspiring. He dwelled in the presence of God until something unthinkable happened. 

You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked among the fiery stones.From the day you were created you were blameless in your ways until wickedness was found in you. 28:14-15

Evil was found in him. How? That is the question that millions have asked and no one has answered. Why would God allow such a thing to happen? How did a being created in perfection fall into sin? These are questions without answers, but the fact remains - he fell. We learn from verse 17 that it was pride in his own beauty that was at the root of sin. 

The effect was devastating, though. 

So I threw you down to the earth;
I made you a spectacle before kings. 

He was cast out of heaven because of his sin, banished from the blessings of God's presence and love.

There is a lesson to be learned from the fall of Satan. I was never perfect, nor possessed of glorious beauty of Satan before the fall. But when I lift myself up in pride as he did, I will offend God as he did. Humility is the path to God's blessing, but pride brings God's discipline. If I wish to live in God's blessing and experience the nearness of God day by day, I must follow the command to, "humble myself in the sight of the Lord."

Father, I bow before you. I hate my pride, my self-centeredness. Help me to keep my heart lowly before you. 

Think and Pray

Does pride have a hold on your heart?
Humble yourself before God.

"An Ugly Win" June 13 Readings: Ezekiel 19-24

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 19-24

Background

More vivid, graphic prophecies against Judah as the first main section of prophecies against God's people comes to an end.

Devotional - An Ugly Win

Wow, that's depressing, isn't it?

In chapter 22, God spells out the ongoing sin of Israel that caused all this judgment, then laid out one graphic onslaught of retribution after another. A fire. A sword of judgment. Jerusalem as a furnace in which God would burn off the dross of sin from his people. Two wicked sisters. A boiling pot of God's wrath poured out. And the sudden death of Ezekiel's wife.

Not an uplifting six chapters to read, is it?

On the surface, that would seem to be true, but in reality, you should draw great encouragement from these chapters. Unfortunately, you, like Judah, have a sin problem. You recommit yourself to God and then slowly drift back. That cycle can tend to repeat itself over and over again. It is depressing and sometimes we think we will never break free of the cycle of sin.

But look at what God said in Ezekiel 20:39.

As for you, house of Israel, this is what the Lord God says: Go and serve your idols, each of you. But afterward you will surely listen to me, and you will no longer defile my holy name with your gifts and idols.

God doesn't judge the sins of his people because he hates them but because he is determined not to let sin win in their lives. No matter how much Israel sins, God is going to work in such a way that eventually his holy name will be honored among them and not defiled.

God doesn't let me run free in my sin because of his love for me. He rebukes me and even disciplines me - because he LOVES me. Because he desires the best for me. Because he is determined to defeat sin in me. God's holiness and his discipline are not depressing; they are signs of his victory, of his determination to win against our relentless sin.

Hallelujah.

Thank you, Lord, for your grace and power, but also for your holiness and for your discipline, that works to defeat the fleshly nature in me. Win, Lord. Win!

Think and Pray!

Do you see the discipline and the holiness of God in negative terms?
Spend time meditating on the idea that God's discipline is evidence of his love and his determination to gain the final victory in us.

"False Prophets" June 12 Readings: Ezekiel 13-18

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 13-18

I have been so busy at the Southern Baptist Convention, I simply FORGOT this. My humblest apologies.

Background

In today's readings we see some of the vivid, graphic prophetic words of Ezekiel. The description of Israel as the adulterous wife is especially graphic and would have been shocking to the hearers. God takes sin, especially idolatry, seriously.

Devotional - False Prophets

There were many prophets in Israel, not just the men of God about whom we read in Scripture. These were the false prophets, the ones who told the people what they wanted to hear. As we read in Ezekiel 13:1-7 and 10-12, look at the characteristics of false prophets.

1. They prophesy out of their own imagination. 2-3

The word of God must be interpreted and applied, but it is not subject to our imagination or reinvention. We do not get to make it say what we want it to say. These false prophets created their own prophesies out of their own spirits and had "seen nothing." They had no word from God.

We proclaim a "sure word of prophecy" from the Bible and are not to make it up.

2. They were jackals. 4-5

A jackal among the ruins - that is how God described these false prophets. They were predatory. Instead of blessing the people they were using the people for their own good. They were consuming the flock of God instead of caring for them.

3. They declared the false message of "Peace." 6-7, 10-12

The whole point of the gospel is to give us peace with God through the blood of Christ. That is truth. The false gospel is to declare that we have peace with God without bothering to repent or seek forgiveness through Jesus.

The false prophets preached that Judah had peace with God without calling them to repent. Peace without repentance, without turning away from sin - that is the key marker of the false prophet. That is why people love false prophets and kill the real ones. The real man of God says, "Your sin is an offense and you must turn away." The false prophet says, "God doesn't care how you live."

Father, may we be obedient to your word and listen to those who preach it truly, rejecting the false prophets. 

Think and Pray

Think about the way you view God and the way you read the Bible. Does it conform to the truth or to the message of the false prophets?

"Ichabod" June 11 Readings: Ezekiel 7-12

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 7-12

Background

The great vision in these early chapters is of the "glory of God" rising and departing from the Temple - what a terrible figure.

Devotional - Ichabod" 

It was a tragic and fearful vision that Ezekiel had in Ezekiel 8-10, a tour of the holy city, Jerusalem. The Hebrews constantly wondered why their God would abandon them, why the terrible things that they were experiencing were allowed by God. How could he do such a thing to his chosen nation? God answered that question clearly to Ezekiel in chapters 8 and 9.

He showed him a pagan statue north of the altar gate (8:5), the people and even the 70 elders engaging in idolatrous worship and practices (8:11), women weeping for Tammuz, a Babylonian deity (8:14), and several other despicable acts. God was showing Ezekiel that the divine havoc being wreaked on Israel was just and justified. In chapter 9, Ezekiel is shown the destruction that God will pour out upon Israel - a harsh judgment on extreme depravity.

But chapter 10 is a haunting and fearful passage. It tells of the glory of God, his powerful presence that has dwelt in the Holy of Holies, departing. In a dramatic scene, God's glory moves to the threshold and then finally out of the temple.

Ichabod. "The glory has departed."

Before the temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar it was first desecrated by the Israelites themselves. Their sin, their idolatry, their degradation, and the hardness of their hearts had so defiled the House of God that the God's glory could no longer dwell there. It departed and the temple was just an empty edifice - beautiful outside with nothing real inside. Nebuchadnezzar did not destroy the temple of God. He destroyed the building that was left after the glory of God departed.

Whew! Aren't we glad we live in the New Testament era when the Holy Spirit indwells us and brings God's glory into our lives forever? Aren't we thrilled that we are sealed with the Spirit forever and that he will never depart from us? Of course, this is a great blessing. But there is still a danger to us in the church today.

In Revelation 1, Jesus is described as the presence of God among the candlesticks - the churches of Asia Minor. He warns the wayward churches that if they do not repent and return to him, he will come and remove their candlestick!  Evidently, a church can become Ichabod like Israel did.

It is true that we are secure in Christ - praise God - but there is an ever-present danger that we will walk in the sin from which God delivered us through Christ and the light of God will be hidden under a basket, the Spirit will be quenched, and we may sense a distance from God, an absence of God's glory in our lives. It is not that God has actually departed, but our sin prevents us from experiencing and enjoying the presence of God as we should.

No king could ever destroy the temple until God's people had so defiled it that the glory departed. May we glorify God every day and never mimic the depravity and idolatry of the Israelites of that day.

Father, thank you for you glory. I seek you and glorify you. May I do nothing to desecrate the temple you now dwell in, my body, and the Body of Christ. 

Think and Pray

Is there rebellious sin in your life that quenches the presence and power of the Holy Spirit?

"Bloody Hands" June 10 Readings: Ezekiel 1-6

Today's Reading - Ezekiel 1-6

Background

Ezekiel is a great prophet, who gives his prophecies from the banks of the Chebar River in Babylon, one of the early captives taken away before the destruction. The book records six great visions from the prophet - great unveilings of heavenly things.

Ezekiel 1-24 records God's judgments on Jerusalem and upon Judah.
Chapters 25-32 declare God's judgments on the nations.
As is almost always the case, Ezekiel 33-48 prophesies the restoration and future blessings of Israel.

Devotional - Bloody Hands 

Ezekiel is one of the fortunate men of biblical history for whom God pulled back the veil and allowed him to see the glories of heaven and of eternity. He was a prophet to the exiles, those who had been carried off to Babylon after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. He saw the glory of God and then, in chapter 2, God called him to prophesy to sinful Israel, and called him to be hard as stone. If the hearts of Israel were hardened against God, the heart of the prophet would also be hard, and he would proclaim God's truth boldly.

“But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words, though briers and thorns are beside you and you live among scorpions. Don’t be afraid of their words or be discouraged by the look on their faces, for they are a rebellious house. But speak My words to them whether they listen or refuse to listen, for they are rebellious." Ezekiel 2:6-7

Later, God made it very clear what he was to do. He was a watchman over Israel. When there was spiritual danger, Ezekiel's job was to tell Israel the truth, whether they liked it or not.

“Son of man, I have made you a watchman over the house of Israel. When you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me."

Ezekiel's job was simple. Warn the people. Tell them what God said. Being stiff-necked and hard-headed, the people would likely refuse to heed him, but his job was to prophesy - clearly, fully and faithfully. 

If Ezekiel failed in his duty, the consequence would be great for both him and the man against whom he was to prophesy. 

If I say to the wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ but you do not warn him—you don’t speak out to warn him about his wicked way in order to save his life—that wicked person will die for his iniquity. Yet I will hold you responsible for his blood. Ezekiel 3:18

The wicked person would die, without having even a chance to repent. But Ezekiel would also experience a consequence. He would be held liable before God for the blood of the man he should have warned but didn't. It is a serious thing to fail to proclaim God's truth to sinners. 

All Ezekiel had to do was proclaim the truth of God. 

But if you warn a wicked person and he does not turn from his wickedness or his wicked way, he will die for his iniquity, but you will have saved your life. Ezekiel 3:19

So God would hold his spokesman accountable for staying silent when he should have spoken. That is a little sobering. It is one of my greatest sins - silence when I should have spoken up. It doesn't seem like a big thing to us, but evidently, to God it's a serious thing. We must proclaim the truth of God whether the world likes it or not. 

Father, may I be a faithful watchman for you, speaking the truth of the Lordship of Christ, the gospel of salvation by grace through faith, and also the seriousness of sin against our holy God. May I never be a silent watchman. 

Think and Pray

Do you remain silent when you should speak?
Are you are faithful and vocal witness to God's truth?