Tag Archives: Bible

Emancipation Proclamation – Hebrews 13:1-8

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First published December 2, 2014 and edited for re-publication here.
Emancipation_Proclamation

“Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:7-8, NASB).

Recently in the men’s Sunday School class I attend, the lesson was from Hebrews 13. And, this lesson from Hebrews 13 helped me resolve a theological dilemma I had wrestled with from Romans 6-8.

But, I love it when that happens! It reinforces the consistency of the Bible to me and why I should read and study all of it over and over again. And, of course, why it is so important for the Holy Spirit to enlighten us and counsel us when we study God’s word.

Let me explain…

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Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men – Luke 2:8-20

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This is a re-post of one of my favorite Christmas devotionals.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:13-14, NKJV)

We often sing or say or write this angelic announcement of the Incarnation in our Christmas songs and greetings as if the angels declared the birth of the Messiah brought new conditions to the earth–peace and good will.

We think of “peace” as meaning nations not at war with one another and “good will” as people being kind to one another. Yet we know that on earth nations are at war with one another and human beings showing kindness to other human beings is often lacking.

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Qualified – Hebrews 5:1-10

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“After he was perfected, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him….” (Hebrews 5:9, CSB).

The Hebrews writer gives us yet another Old Testament perspective of how Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s plan for human redemption. This verse is the conclusion of a broader argument about Jesus’ role as the everlasting High Priest to emphasize His unique qualifications as the both fully human and fully divine Savior.

The Hebrews writer explains that a High Priest was chosen from the Israelite people to make sacrifices for their sins. Because he was human, he had to offer sacrifices for his own sin as well as the sins of the people. In Leviticus 16 God implemented a Day of Atonement in which the High Priest performed a sacrifice for the atonement of the sin for the Israelites. The ceremony, which was conducted annually, began with a sacrifice for the atonement of the sins for the High Priest.

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Drifting – Hebrews 2:1-10

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For this reason, we must pay attention all the more to what we have heard, so that we will not drift away. For if the message spoken through angels was legally binding and every transgression and disobedience received a just punishment, how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? This salvation had its beginning when it was spoken of by the Lord, and it was confirmed to us by those who heard him. At the same time, God also testified by signs and wonders, various miracles, and distributions of gifts from the Holy Spirit according to his will (Hebrews 2:1-4, CSB).

Have you ever heard the the old saying, “up the river (or creek) without a paddle.” If you don’t have a paddle in your boat, you flow whatever direction the river current takes you. The boat drifts with the current.

But, a paddle lets you steer the boat; it lets you set a course and sail in a direction. It keeps you from drifting.

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The Cosmic Struggle – Genesis 32:24-32

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Originally published on August 21, 2013.

Picture of Jacob wrestling with God

“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” he said. “It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.” (Genesis 32:28, CSB).

After twenty years of separation, Jacob attempted to reconcile with his estranged brother, Esau, whom Jacob had tricked into giving up his birth right to him.

Fearing that his encounter with Esau may be a hostile one, Jacob appropriated from his flocks a considerable gift to assuage any revenge Esau might want to take on Jacob and his family. Then, Jacob sent his gift ahead with some of his servants to meet Esau first while Jacob and his immediate family remained behind.

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Focal Point – Genesis 28:18-22

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Originally published January, 2014.

“Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker. He poured oil on top of it and named the place Bethel…Then Jacob made a vow: ‘If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, if He provides me with food to eat and clothing to wear, and if I return safely to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God. This stone that I have set up as a marker will be God’s house, and I will give to You a tenth of all that You give me'” (Genesis 28:18-22, HCSB).

Jacob was on a journey to Haran and at the end of one of the days during his journey he stopped and camped outdoors.

That night God appeared to Jacob in a dream of a stairway that started from where he was and reached to heaven. Angels were ascending and descending the stairway. In the dream God transferred to Jacob all the essential elements of the covenant He had established with his grandfather and father, Abraham and Isaac.

When Jacob awoke, he took the stone that was near his head and set it up as as a marker or a memorial and anointed it with oil and named the place, Bethel, meaning house of God. Then Jacob made the vow stated in these verses.

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An Expensive Meal – Genesis 25:19-34

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Originally published on January 22, 2014

“So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn” (Genesis 25:33-34, NLT).

Esau and Jacob were twin sons of Isaac. As they grew up, Esau, the firstborn of the twins, was an outdoorsman and preferred by his father, Isaac. Jacob was a homebody and preferred by his mother, Rebekah.

We see these personality traits on display in this story. Esau had been out in the woods, possibly hunting, while Jacob was at home cooking. When Esau came home exhausted and hungry, he asked Jacob for some stew. Jacob said he would trade Esau some stew for Esau’s rights as the firstborn son. Esau swore an oath selling his birthright to his brother for the price of a meal.

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Leftover Grace – Genesis 21:1-21

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But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed about the boy and about your slave. Whatever Sarah says to you, listen to her, because your offspring will be traced through Isaac, and I will also make a nation of the slave’s son because he is your offspring” (Genesis 21:12-13, CSB).

In Genesis 15 God made a covenant with a childless and aged Abraham that his offspring would be so numerous they would become a great nation and that he would possess the land of Canaan, “the promised land.”

So, Sarah gave her Egyptian slave Hagar to Abraham to take as his wife as a way to fulfill God’s promise to them. Abraham had a child by Hagar named Ishmael.

Then, fourteen years later God fulfilled His promise to Abraham and Sarah became pregnant and bore Abraham a son named Isaac. While both boys were Abraham’s sons, Isaac was the son of God’s promise while Ismael was the son that Sarah and Abraham contrived to fulfill God’s promise.

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Role Player – Genesis 20-21:6

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“The Lord came to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time God had told him” (Genesis 21:1-2, CSB).

In basketball not every great player is a starter. You have players who come off the bench who are great defensive players, great rebounders, great ball-handlers or great 3-point shooters. These players may not be the stars of the team but you can’t be a championship team without great role players.

After the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis returned to the story of Abraham. Genesis 20 is devoted to God’s rescue of Abraham’s wife, Sarah, from the harem of King Abimilech.

Abraham had continued his travels around the Promised Land and settled for a while in the region of the Negev. The Negev is a desert region in southern Israel. Abraham obviously had a large entourage and a large number of flocks so when he entered the region he likely requested permission from the king to encamp there.

In making his request Abraham told King Abimelech that Sarah was his sister, not his wife. While it was true that Sarah was Abraham’s half-sister (Genesis 20:12), Abraham omitted the part that she was also his wife. Abimilech took Sarah into his household (or harem) as one of his wives, possibly to seal the deal.

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When God Pays A Visit – Genesis 18

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JesusAtTheDoor

“Now the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day. When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him…He said, ‘I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son’….Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord. Abraham came near and said, ‘Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?… Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?’” (Genesis 18:1-2,22-23,25, NASB).

Genesis 18 is a theological nexus that reveals the link between God’s mercy and wrath, between human rebellion and redemption. And it does so in a most dramatic way.

Three defining moments occur in this chapter that reveal the cosmic interaction between mercy and wrath, between human rebellion and divine redemption: 1) the announcement of the birth of Isaac; 2) the plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah; and 3) God’s restraint for Lot and his family.

One day while Abraham was sitting on the front porch of his tent, God paid him a visit. God appeared in front of Abraham in the form of three men (a theophany). Some think the three men signify the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The text indicates that two of them were angels so at least one of the three persons appearing at Abraham’s tent was God Himself,  “the Lord” (see vs. 1, 13, 17, 20, 26, 33, 19:1)!

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