As we do what we understand about God’s directions for us He will reveal more to us, so that we understand His will better with each passing day. On the other hand, when we know what God wants us to do and fail to do it, we will gradually become less able to discern what He desires of us. There are a series of points in this psalm I want to highlight:
Make more eager to do God’s will than to acquire money
My sinful ways are shameful, only with God’s help will I be able to abandon them
It is only by doing as God instructs that we can be free
Oh Lord, guide me in doing Your will and help me to cease each and every one of the sins which plague me.
Peter reminds us to live obedient to God and avoid slipping into living our lives for our own pleasure. Living for ourselves is an empty life with no meaning or purpose. Peter tells us how to live a life with meaning and purpose. Love each other with deeply and with sincerity. Rather than living our lives for our own pleasure, let us seek to bring joy and peace to those around us. We were cleansed of our sins, so let us put them behind us and embrace the new life into which we have been born.
God wishes to use us as living stones to build His Temple of this new covenant He has made with mankind. If we are going to be part of this Temple, we need to allow God’s Spirit to chisel off of us all of our evil behavior: deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and unkind speech (all sins involve one or more of these to varying degrees).
I continue to struggle with the meaning of this section of Ezekiel. However, there is one point which I take out of this. Those in positions of authority who gather funds from those over whom they have authority have an obligation to use those funds to further God’s purposes on this earth.
It is from fear of the Lord that we learn wisdom. I have heard pastors preach that this does not mean “hide under the table” fear. I disagree with them. The first step to wisdom, the first step to faithful obedience to God, is learning to fear God in a way that makes us want to hide from Him. Only after we have learned to fear God can we understand how great His love for us is.
The second part of this proverb tells us that we do not honour people who tell us that they deserve to be honoured. Those we see as deserving of honour are those who do what they do because it needs to be done and think it is nothing particularly noteworthy (or, at least, who appear to think it is nothing particularly noteworthy).
The theme continues. As I read this passage today, I wonder how I lost track of the theme in this psalm the previous times I went through it. Reading this today, I feel a desire to reword almost every verse as part of what I write. However, I do not see the point to that when you can read them for yourself. I will however highlight a few, not because they stand out, but in order to show how they apply to me (and they all apply to me).
I will join the psalmist in asking God to teach me His decrees. I strive to practice what I understand of God’s will because that is the path to happiness. I wish to desire God’s word more than I desire money. It is only through the help of the Holy Spirit that I will be able to abandon my sins, which are shameful, and follow God’s regulations, which are a better way to live. Then in verse 43 I am reminded of my greatest fear. I fear coming down with Alzheimer’s, or some other form of dementia. The greatest thing I fear about that is that I will forget the Scripture I have learned throughout my life and be unable to read it to be reminded of it again. Oh Lord, if it is your will that I suffer dementia, and forget everything else I have learned, let me still know your Word.
Here Jesus tells us how God calms our fear of Him so that we do not feel the need to hide from Him. Once we have learned to truly fear Him, He sends His Spirit to us in order to show us His love. It is when we strive to do as Jesus instructs us that God, in all three of His aspects, will come to live with us and in us. When we recognize God’s love for us we will love Jesus. Out of our love for Jesus we will strive to obey His instructions. And here Jesus says the thing which relieves the fear I spoke of in my meditation on the psalm. Even if I forget everything I have ever learned, the Holy Spirit will teach me what I need to know and remind me of what Jesus has told me.
Looking at today’s passage, we see God telling David that He had never asked anyone for a place of worship other than the tent which He already had. David wanted to build a Temple to honour God. God responded that it was not something for David to do. This struck me as something to which we should take note. It took me a bit to understand the message. The message is that sometimes we have an idea about something we can do for God, but God is not ready for us to do that (or for anyone to do that). It is not that our idea violates God’s will. It is just that the time is not right. When we undertake a project to serve God where it just seems like things never quite pan out, this is not necessarily a sign that the project is bad. It might mean that it is not yet God’s time for that project.
The rich often think that their wealth is evidence of their wisdom, but their are many poor people with far greater wisdom. Wealth is not an indicator of wisdom and those who think that it is are fools.
Throughout this psalm the psalmist tells us how to live good, happy, and joyful lives. The path to that end is to follow God’s instructions, to meditate on His word. Let us be more eager to know and follow God’s law than we are to acquire money and things. Let us abandon our shameful ways in favor of God’s. Let us seek both to receive God’s unfailing love and to express it to those around us. Let us delight in God’s decrees and speak of them to all we meet. This is the path to a joyful, fulfilled, happy life.
God has chosen us to be holy. We must not slip back into living to satisfy our own desires. We had an excuse for doing so when we did not know any better. But now that we have learned how to be like God we must seek to be holy, just as He is holy. We are temporary residents, foreigners, in this world. Let us strive to send our wealth to our home country. As I read this I was reminded of the fuss over illegal immigrants going on right now. In particular I was reminded of the fact that many of those illegal immigrants send a large portion of the money they earn back to their families in the country they came from. They are not in the U.S. because they desire to be in the U.S. (this may be an oversimplification and is not my point). They are here because here they have greater opportunity to acquire wealth to send home.
In a like manner, we should not live as if we desire to live in this world. Rather let us desire to send our wealth to our home country, the kingdom of God. This means getting rid of evil behavior: hypocrisy, deceit, jealousy, and unkind speech (the NIV translates those last two as envy and slander). We have been born again to a new life. Rather than partake in the evil behavior listed above, let us have sincere love for each other. We can build up wealth in heaven by using our wealth on this earth to show how deeply we love each other.
Ezekiel continues to describe the procedures and rituals that the Israelites are to follow when God restores them to Jerusalem and the land of Israel. As I have said over the last few days, I find it hard to see what God’s message is for me in these instructions from Ezekiel. However, one thing struck me today. Ezekiel describes the tax which is to be collected for the “Prince”. My understanding is that this is what the people are to pay in taxes to the government in the restored Israel. It is a wealth tax, but the rate is the same for everyone. It is not a progressive rate, not a greater percentage from those who have more. If you own 200 sheep, your tax is one sheep. If you own 400 sheep, it is 2 sheep. If you own 200,000 sheep, your tax is 1,000 sheep.
In the first portion, the psalmist reminds us to follow God’s instructions and commands. I will turn to God for teaching and understanding. I will cry out to the Lord:
Help me abandon my shameful ways;
for your regulations are good.
Then in the second portion, the psalmist tells us that if we trust in God’s word and obey His commands we can stand with confidence before everyone whom we meet. We will have no need to be ashamed and will be able to provide answers to those who attempt to mock us.
If we love Jesus we will follow His instructions, we will do what He has told us. Those who do not do as He directs, do not love Him. When we do what Jesus directs God lives within us. The Holy Spirit will give us further instruction and remind us of what Jesus taught when He was here on earth. We have a two-fold way to learn and follow Jesus. First, we have the written word which tells us what He taught when He was here on earth. Second, we have the Holy Spirit within us, showing us how to understand what was written. The Holy Spirit will never tell us something which conflicts with the written word, but it may show us that we had misunderstood the meaning of the written word. Let us call on the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the meaning of the written word which we read.
If we love Jesus and do as He commands, He will give us peace. This is a more lasting and filling peace than anything the world can offer. The only peace which the world can truly offer is the peace of death. Jesus offers us a peace which conquers death. We have no reason to be troubled or afraid, because, even though the ruler of this world is approaching and has set himself against us, he has no power over us; Jesus has defeated him and stands by our side. Let us do what God requires of us, just as Jesus did. Then the world will know that we love God.
When David desired to build a Temple for God, God sent him a prophecy. In the past when I have read this prophecy, I have seen it as a prophecy about Solomon building the Temple in Jerusalem. And it is indeed that. However, today as I read it I realized that it was also a prophecy about Jesus. God raised up Jesus, a descendant of David, a gave Him a kingdom which will never end. Jesus in turn built a house in which God dwells. That house is the Church and those who are part of the Church. We, each and everyone who puts their faith and trust in Jesus, are God’s house and He dwells within us.
When David received God’s prophecy, rather than be disappointed because God rejected his desire to build a temple he praised God and was grateful for God’s promises. We should be similarly grateful to God for His making His dwelling within us. There is no other god like unto the God we worship. He has done great things. I will be His servant in all that I do.
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
Ezekiel lays out the tax which the people are to give to their ruler. He then says that the ruler shall provide the sacrifices to be offered at all of the regularly scheduled worship services. From this we learn that the leaders are to provide for the people and assist them in coming before God. This passage provides yet another model of the rule that those who lead shall be servants of those being led.
Peter instructs us to think clearly and exercise self-control. He tells us to live as obedient children of God and not to living to satisfy our own desires. God has ransomed us with something more valuable than material wealth. He ransomed us with the lifeblood of Christ. We were thus cleansed from our sins and failures. Let us therefore love one another with a sincere and pure heart. I need to keep it in the forefront of my mind that God is using me as a building block to build His house/Temple, the place where He lives. I need to remember that I am always in a holy place because I am part of that holy place.
Peter points out that to those who trust and honor Christ He is the cornerstone, the linchpin of both their lives and the Temple of which they are a piece. However, to those who reject Christ, everything about Him is a cause for them to stumble and fall.
I read this psalm and feel for those who reject Christ because following God’s commands is the only path that truly leads to happiness and fulfillment. I want the eagerness for God’s law to which the psalmist refers. O Lord God, help me abandon my sinful, shameful ways and follow your guidance. I will follow God’s ways and not be ashamed to speak of them, no matter who my audience, from the lowest to the highest. I will meditate on God’s commands.
The rich are always sure of their wisdom, but sometimes the poor are more discerning. Never make the mistake of refusing wise advice because the person giving it has suffered hardship.
I have been using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study for almost a year. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I started writing this blog because the only way I can get myself to read the Bible everyday is to pretend that I am teaching someone about what it says to me. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
David settled into Jerusalem and defeated those who threatened his control. At that point he felt guilty that God was worshiped in a tent and proposed building a temple to God. He discussed this with the prophet Nathan, who at first approved of the idea. However, that night God spoke to Nathan and told him that David was not to build the Temple. God gave Nathan a message for David. In that message God promised to make David’s name be among the great names of history. In addition, God promised that He would establish one of David’s descendants on his throne and that that descendant would build God’s Temple.
The prophecy says that one of David’s descendants will sit on his throne and God would establish his kingdom forever. God would be this descendant’s Father and he would be God’s Son. The descendant would build the House for God to live in. God’s love would never be taken from him. This was for all intents and purposes fulfilled in Solomon, but, like many Old Testament prophecies, it was also fulfilled in Jesus. I know I have heard this spoken of, but this morning is the first time I read it and could see it being meant that way. First the obvious piece, Jesus constantly referred to God as His Father and Himself as God’s Son. Jesus also talked about building God’s House. That House is the Body of Christ, the Church. In this context, the Church does not refer to any of the human institutions that we give that name (the Roman Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, the Mennonite Church, etc). It refers to all of those who live as disciples of Christ.
In response to Nathan’s prophecy, David prayed a prayer of thanks and humility. David did not take God’s promise as his due, rather he asked why should he be given such honor. David then praised God and spoke of how God was unique among gods. He went on to accept God’s promise and thank God for making it. Can I learn to humbly accept both the hard times and the blessings that God brings me? Can I see how my life is blessed, even when I am facing difficulties? Will I accept God’s promises for the future.
The passage describes David’s military victories. It is not clear from here, but I look at the described conquests and they look to me like conquests to extend David’s control over trade routes. It also appears to involve eliminating the power base from which bandits raided merchants along those trade routes. I reached this conclusion partly from the story of David and Nabal and partly from other passages that speak of the reasons David went to war against particular kings. However, that interpretation is consistent with the order of conquest listed here and elsewhere and explains why David did not leave more archeological evidence. David’s kingdom and power was not a traditional empire of that period and region, rather it was a trade empire where David secured the trade routes so that the merchants could travel freely.
In yesterday’s passage Jesus told His disciples that if they had seen Him, they had seen the Father because He was in the Father and the Father was in Him. When I wrote about that I mentioned that elsewhere scripture tells us that we are in Jesus and He is in us. Well today’s passage is where it says that.
Jesus tells His disciples that He will send them an another advocate to be with them and to help them. That advocate is the Spirit of Truth who we refer to as the Holy Spirit. He told them (and us) that the world cannot receive the Holy Spirit because it isn’t looking for Him and doesn’t recognize Him. But those who follow Jesus know the Holy Spirit because it lives with us and in us. Jesus then told His disciples that soon the world would be unable to see Him any longer, but they would be able to see Him. They would be able to see Jesus because they were in Him and He was in them in the same way that He was in the Father. This means that when others see us, they should see Jesus. Do other people see Jesus when they see me?
If we love Jesus we will keep His commands and live as He did. If we truly love Him (demonstrated by keeping His commandments and living as He did) Jesus and the Father will love us and make their homes with each of us. Am I prepared to have Jesus and the Father living with me? Sitting next to me looking over my shoulder while I surf the Internet? Listening to the comments I make to my closest friends, or when I think I’m alone? Riding with me to work? Standing in for my co-workers? Watching the TV shows and movies I watch? Reading the books I read? When you think of it that way, you realize why many people are atheists. They don’t want to live a life they would be comfortable living if they believed God was watching. But do I really live like I believe God is right there with me all of the time?
Jesus reminded His disciples that He was telling them that while He was with them, but soon He would be gone. However, the God would send an advocate, the Holy Spirit, to remind them (and us) of what Jesus had taught and to teach us to understand what it means. All of this is difficult, but Jesus told His disciples, and tells us, not to be troubled or afraid about all of this. There was not much more that Jesus was able to tell us because the ruler of this world was coming. That one had no power over Jesus, but Jesus was going to give Himself into his power so that the world would know that He loved the Father and was willing to do whatever the Father commanded. Am I willing to face suffering and death if that is what God commands of me? Can I see the joy that others have seen in being held worthy to be treated as Jesus was treated? We must remember that the suffering and death that Jesus faced, and that we might face, was not suffering and death for their own sake. It was for the sake of making others’ lives better. It was for the sake of taking away suffering and misery from others. It is easier for me to face the prospect of suffering when viewed in that light. I like to think I would be willing to suffer to spare others’ suffering.
Today’s psalm goes well with the theme from the Book of John. In the passage from the Book of John, Jesus told us that if we loved Him, we would keep His commandments. The psalm tells us that we should keep God’s command because that is where happiness lies. Oh let me live according to this line from today’s psalms:
I will speak to kings about your laws,
and I will not be ashamed.
I encourage anyone reading my blog today to read today’s psalm. It is beautiful and has given me renewed resolve to follow God’s commands.
Magrat stalking a frog
We learn wisdom when we are afraid to do that which will anger God because we learn that these things will bring us harm (whether God wills it so or not). The only way to true honor is from genuine humility, from believing that one’s actions are not worthy of being honored.
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
In today’s passage Ezekiel describes the sacrifices and rituals that are to be performed after the children of Israel are restored from exile. As I read this I can see the beauty and solemnity of the rituals. There is a certain quality to rituals that allows us to submerge our concerns for our daily troubles into worship of the Lord. It is a fine line because all too easily the ritual becomes the focus rather than something that places our focus on God. I struggle with the issue of rituals because, as a Mennonite, I come from a tradition that has focused more on the dangers of rituals than the benefits. I will strive to develop rituals that allow me to submerge my concerns for the issues of daily life and place my focus on God.
Peter tells us to think clearly and exercise self-control. We must not slip into living to satisfy our own desires. We should strive to be holy, just as God is holy. God paid a price to rescue us from the empty meaningless life we led before His Spirit came upon us. God does not play favorites so we must live in reverent fear of Him, recognizing that we are foreigners in this world. We place our trust in God because He raised Jesus from the dead. In response to this wondrous gift let us show sincere love for one another.
We need to avoid all sorts of dishonesty and deceit. It is not enough that what we say is technically true. We are to avoid telling people partial truths that we know will lead them to believe something that is not true. Further we need to avoid hypocrisy, jealousy and unkind speech. We need to avoid all that because we are being built into God’s Temple with Jesus as the cornerstone. We must avoid behaviors that might block others from coming to Christ and worshiping God. Instead we should offer spiritual sacrifices that are pleasing to God. I need to sacrifice my desires and the things that I desire in order to better serve the Lord. I will trust that the Temple that God is building with Christ as the cornerstone will be an architectural masterpiece despite the critiques of those who do not trust in Christ.
These two stanzas are indeed my prayer today. O Lord give me the wisdom to follow Your commands, Make me eager to do your will rather than eager to acquire wealth. Turn my eyes away from the worthless things of this world and instead focus my sight upon you. Help me to abandon my shameful, sinful ways so that I may live to bring glory to Your Name.
I ask O Lord that you do not take your word of truth from me. I will study God’s words and hide them in my heart so that I may meditate on them all of my days. Let me not be ashamed to speak of God’s commands and what they mean to me, whether I am speaking to the rich and powerful or to the poor and lowly. I resolve to follow the Lord’s commands and delight in them in the face of any ridicule that comes my way.
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or my understanding of them, please post them.
When David sees that he has settled into his palace and is no longer threatened by enemies, he desires to build a Temple to God. God tells David, through the prophet Nathan, that He will establish David’s descendants on the throne, but that David is not to build a Temple. God further tells David that his son will build God a Temple. When David hears this promise from God, he prays a prayer of thanks and praise to God. Now that David knows that he will not be building a temple to God, he sets out to conquer all of the surrounding peoples and expand his kingdom.
In David’s prayer of thanks he says, “How great you are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you. We have never even heard of another God like you!” I would echo that, there is no other god like our God. There are those who look at other religions and say that all religions teach the same things, but this is not true. I will not go into it now, but I have looked at other religions and they teach something different than Christianity. Christianity teaches that each person is to be valued and that we should go out and teach them about God so that they may choose to become one of the people of God.
Jesus tells His disciples that those who love Him will obey His commands. He also tells them that the Father will send them the Holy Spirit to teach them what they need to know and remind them of what Jesus said to them. Jesus tells His disciples that the world cannot receive the Holy Spirit because it is not looking for Him and does not recognize Him. This is an important point. In order for someone to become saved they must be looking for God. Jesus gives the disciples, and us, his peace and tells us not to be troubled or afraid. As we love God more, we will strive harder to obey His commands. AS we strive harder to obey His commands, we will come to love Him more. And in all of this, He will send His Holy Spirit to live in us to help us understand what His commands are and to strengthen us in following them.
I started this Bible study blog because I have long felt a need to improve my daily devotions. Actually, I have felt a need for a daily devotion. I had tried daily Bible reading, but when I just read the Bible after a few days, it stopped actually meaning anything. Some time back I had realized that when I read a passage and wrote something about it that others would see the passage carried much more meaning for me. So, I finally started this blog. Now that I have started this blog and am getting something out of my scripture reading, I am feeling led to memorize more scripture and improve my prayer life. In particular, the various stanzas of this psalm that I am reading each day right now push me to start memorizing scripture again.
Over the last few days I have been especially touched by the last verse in each stanza of the daily reading that is coming from this psalm. However today, I find that the first verse of today’s first stanza and the last verse of the second stanza are the one’s that I wish to be my prayer today.
“Teach me your decrees, O Lord;
I will keep them to the end.”
“I honor and love your commands.
I meditate on your decrees.”
The second of those is one that I do not do enough of, but I am going to try and do so going forward. The psalm I have been working through over the last several days has reminded me of how much blessing there is from memorizing scripture, a blessing that I now crave.
When we fear the Lord we learn wisdom in part because we realize how insignificant we are in the grand scheme of things and how far we fall short of God’s desire for us. As we accept this realization we have no choice but to be humble because we know that no matter how successful we are, we are nothing compared to God, or even to what He intended us to be. Those who lack humility are not honored because they view all praise as their just due and all criticism as unjust. In addition, those with no humility at all attempt things that are beyond their ability to accomplish and reject assistance, leading them to fail. And since they lack humility, they blame their failure on others and thus do not learn from their failure. Those who are humble recognize their need for help to do anything of worth and thus are generally successful.
