DAY 181

HOLDING ONTO HOPE

Job 17, 18 & 19 and Acts 10:1-23

Today the reading from Acts of the Apostles sets us up for one of the most profound moments of the New Testament. I am going to comment on it tomorrow, but the reading today sets the stage. In the Old Testament Job’s saga continues, today he writes some of the most powerful words ever written…so powerful they are said at every funeral that the uses the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer.

Our reading opens with Job describing his attitude: “The graveyard is ready for me.” He has had enough and he believes he is going to die. He goes on to lament about how he is treated, but (and this is a big BUT) he refuses to hope that he will go “down to Sheol.” In Sheol there is no hope

Bildad apparently has not heard Job’s cry for a better friend. He cannot help but challenge Job. In Bildad’s mind Job is an unrighteous sinner and Sheol is his destination. “Surely such are the dwellings of the unrighteous, such is the place of him who know not God.” To say to Job that he “knows not God” is a strong and rather disheartening statement. Job has been saying all along he does know God, he has been saying he thinks he is innocent, but he is willing to have his sins exposed to him. In other words he is seeking God in order that he might repent and be restored. Job’s friends will have none of this; there is no mercy for Job in their minds.

Yet mercy is exactly what Job cries out for: “Have mercy on me, have mercy on me, O you my friends, for the hand of God has touched me!” Job knows however that his friends have abandoned him. What does he do? In one of the most poignant chapters of Job, as he believes he is about to die, he turns to God. He cries out: “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God.”

Job puts his full trust in God. “I know that my redeemer lives.” Wow! Do you think you could say that after all you ever possessed had been stripped away and your children killed? In the midst of suffering Job is holding onto God; as he faces death he is clutching onto his relationship – for his not without hope.

A little note: Hope is not the same thing as Wish. Hope is something you confidently believe will happen. In the winter I hope for summer. When a loved one is a long distance away you hope you will see them again. You don’t hope you will win the lottery, you wish it. A wish is something you might like, but have little reason to believe will happen. Job has HOPE – and so do you and I when we trust God. 

DAY 180

NOT “JELLING”

Job 14, 15 & 16 and Acts 9:21-43

“Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble,” so begins our readings today – not a very positive attitude –I have been through the reading today a few times and my thoughts are not “jelling.”

Job is in another round of debate with his commiserating comrades. He is probing the human condition noting that a tree when it is cut down still has the chance to grow again, but not so with a human. He cries out to God and asks that he, Job, be hidden away until God’s wrath has passed. His “friend” Eliphaz accuses Job of not fearing God and allowing iniquity to govern his mouth. Job finally calls out his friends, “miserable comforters are you all,” and then he really lets loose. It is not surprise, everyone has a limit. He ends by saying he “shall go the way from which he shall not return.” Yet in each of his discourses he does not curse God, he is interacting with God, at least in a one-sided manner. Job seeks God in the midst of his calamity.

While I feel like I have been meandering in Job, the reading from Acts is all action. Saul has linked his knowledge of the Old Testament with his new found faith and is confounding all the Jewish leaders in Damascus…they now want to kill the repentant killer – they have murderous thoughts towards this new follower of Jesus. Saul is aided in escaping to Jerusalem but is not any safer, so he is sent on his way.

Peter’s dairy is full us similar adventure: heal a man named Aeneas and raises a woman named Dorcas from the dead…all in days work?

The two stories side-by-side presents interesting contrast and similarity. Job is suffering in the presence of a seemingly silent God. Saul & Peter are full of the Holy Spirit doing the work of God. Job is suffering and being harangued by three of his counselors as he tries to work out just what is happening to him. Saul & Peter’s friends are helping them, one which includes escape from being killed… (Job’s friends could take a lesson).

Life can be like that…days full of sameness and days full of action…yet all of them seem surrounded by and immersed in the story of God and humanity. Each seems to be seeking God, or an answer from God, or is working to proclaim God...not every day “jells,” and that may be the point…when it does not, make sure to stay engaged with God. 

DAY 179

180° TURN AROUND

Job 11, 12 & 13 and Acts 9:1-26

If you thought friend #2 was direct, meet friend #3 – Zophar. He doesn’t directly call Job stupid, but he implies it with his comment, “…a stupid man will get understanding when a wild donkey’s colt is born a man!” Hmmm, apparently Job is not understanding what friends “one through three” have been saying. They want Job to “do a 180” and announce that he is a wretched sinner. Job of course maintains his innocence. I have to remind myself that Job is having this interaction having recently lost his family and his body is covered in sores.

In our New Testament reading we read about one of the most famous “180’s” of all time – Saul’s conversion. In the text we get an interesting piece of theology. Jesus asks Saul why he, Saul, is persecuting him, Jesus. Now Jesus has ascended to heaven. How is it that Saul is persecuting Jesus? The answer: we are one body, part of the Body of Christ with Jesus himself as the head. I once heard it explained that if you stub your toe your entire body is feels it. Consider for a moment that you and Jesus are so united that he understands all you experience. Consider also that we should have a sense of unity and understanding with our fellow brothers and sisters around the world! In is amazing some of the ideas God invites you into when you get turned around the right way.

DAY 178

IMAGE OF GOD…HONEST BEFORE GOD

Job 8, 9 & 10 and Acts 8:26-40

Today I find Job’s speech amazingly honest; it is a speech to God! It is provoked by his second “friend,” Bildad the Shuhite. Bildad has the same theme as the first “friend,” but is more aggressive. “Your children died because they transgressed God,” says Bildad. “If you plead with God he might be merciful,” he adds. What a miserable thing to say to someone, what possible image does Bildad have of God? It would seem to be an image of some mean and angry God.

Interestingly Job doesn’t argue, but asks, “How can a man be right before God?” It isn’t that God is some “mean and angry God,” but rather Job points out that when compared to God we all fall short…even if we are “in the right,” as Job says he is.

What I find remarkable is Job’s speech to God. He notes that in comparison to God he, Job, cannot contend. Yet at the same time he asks God a series of questions. It reminds me a bit of Moses when he would sound like he was negotiating with God on the mountain. Do you remember those negotiations? Moses would essentially say, “Yes, I know the Israelites sinned, but if you kill them, then what will the other nations say about you? Don’t do it, you are too great of a God.”

Job likewise draws on his image of God to be honest before him. “Does it seem good to you (God) to oppress, to despise the work of your hands?” (10:3). Job’s plea stands upon God’s nature and not only upon Job’s situation. Job does maintain his innocence while asking that God reveal to him his sin, but I see the basis of Job’s ability to be honest rooted in his image of God.

The human race has twisted and distorted that Image of God over the centuries. It is in part why Jesus – God – came to earth. He, the Christ, is so vital to the story of “God and humankind.” Jesus gives us a clear image of God…a God of love that went to the Cross for us.

It is what allows people like Philip in Acts chapter 8 to, in the midst of persecution, be compelled to continue to spread the Gospel. It is the Image of God that the Ethiopian Eunuch is getting a glimpse of in Isaiah: “Like a sheep he was lead to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opened not his mouth…” Isaiah is writing about the Suffering Servant, Jesus. The Eunuch is drawn to this image. When Philip fully unpacks the Scripture the Eunuch immediately wants to be baptized.

Between Job and Acts we have images of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Job declares the goodness and nature of God…it is what allows him to be honest. The Eunuch is drawn to the Son. Philip through the power of God the Holy Spirit is able to witness the love of God.

What is your image of God? Is it Bildad’s? Is it God, not the Father, but the Grandfather…the one who spoils the kids he really loves? For me I look to Jesus, not in isolation, but as the fullest revelation of all I have been reading in the Old Testament…and then I pray that the Holy Spirit will so fully dwell in me that I may live a life pleasing to Him who gave His life for me.

Take a moment and think about your image…you might need to “trade yours in” for another…and then take another moment and get honest with God. 

DAY 177

SIMILAR SOURCES

Job 5, 6 & 7 and Acts 8:1-25

In Job we continue to listen in on Eliphaz’s admonition to Job. Eliphaz’s is rather eloquent, but looking closely at his words reveals that he is convinced that Job has done something to bring this trouble on himself, “for affliction does not come from dust…” There is it, the assumption that affliction must come from somewhere. And if you are to believe in an all powerful and all loving God, then God must be the source of the affliction and it must be your fault! Job responds in a way that shows he is looking for relief; isn’t that what we all look for when calamity befalls us. Yet as his speech continues there is a sense of hopelessness that is setting in.

Suffering as a constant companion is draining. Job is beginning to show the effects of that drain. I know people who live with chronic conditions, or are battling a disease for years, or cannot seem to get “a leg up” on life. Everyone reacts differently, but I cannot imagine “a friend” showing up to tell any of these people that their suffering is because of something they did. True enough that some people are caught in addiction, or adultery, or some other sin that can wreak havoc, but most Cancer Clinics and Alzheimer’s Wards are not filled with people because of such sins. And so I close this day with Job with the question of “the source” in my mind.

On the other hand it is not a mystery as to why the early followers of Jesus are about to experience suffering and persecution…Acts chapter 8 tells us that “And there arose on that day a great persecution against the Church in Jerusalem, and they were scattered…”  What is that day? The day they stoned Stephen, and “the not yet St. Paul” (still known as Saul) approved of this violence against God’s saints. This persecution and suffering took place because the Jewish leaders of the day had had enough of all this talk about Jesus being the “Risen from the dead Messiah.” Gone is the wise counsel we read a few chapters back where one Jewish leader advised to leave them alone – if this is not of God it will die out, if it is then don’t get in its way – that was his advice. That advice has been replaced with open persecution, so much so that people are picking up their stakes and moving. [How bad would your life have to get for you to abandon your livelihood and move?]

Now I stated that we know why in this instance the early followers of Jesus are suffering; it is because there are people who oppose the message of Jesus…the message of God. Isn’t that why Job is suffering? Satan opposes God and God’s message at every turn. You might say, “Yes, but God is allowing it!” Certainly, God is omnipotent, “He allows everything.” But just as Saul openly opposed Jesus, Satan is openly opposing God. Suffering has a source, it is not “from the dust”…Eliphaz was correct in at least that much. As we work our way though Job we will wrestle more with this idea, but for now I am just pondering the similarities.

DAY 176

REGRET

Job 3 & 4

Regret, we often fall into it, especially when our world piles up on us. If you had lost your children, your home, your livelihood and your health, might you suffer some regret? Chapter three takes us deeply into Job’s emotions…let all be darkness. And then begins the all too frequent question we all ask “Why?” Receiving no answer he concludes that he is not at rest or ease.

Enter “Friend #1” – Eliphaz and he has been listening to Job’s regret, Job’s complaint you might say. Eliphaz is not the kind of friend who sympathizes with Job, he is more interested in helping Job answer the “Why” question. Eliphaz begins laying out his answer. He starts first by showing respect to Job, how many in the past have come to Job with troubles and so Eliphaz now asks if Job will bear with him as he, Eliphaz, provides insight. And it is not just human insight, no it comes from a dream and from a word, “Can mortal man be in the right before God?” There is Eliphaz’s theory. He will unpack it more in the next chapter, but it stands before us right now…the theory that Job is being punished by God for a wrong he has done.

Don’t lose this theory, it will operate throughout the Book of Job and it operates all too often in our lives. Some of us have small voices in the back of our minds. Sometimes those voices are filling our thoughts with regret, and other times they are making us ask ourselves if God is punishing us. The next few days will take us into the issue of suffering and all the questions that attend that all too often human experience.

Today, and for the next several, there is no “neat bow” that I can put around the blog entry…no closure I can give it...that is the reality of suffering. My blog posting in fact is a bit late today because yesterday I drove to be with my mother. She has had a stroke, a fairly severe one. As I entered where she was staying I entered a fairly nice facility, but it didn’t matter, people were there and they are suffering…there is no “nice bow” you can put around it. To be there was to be in the midst of a situation that is troubling, and a situation you cannot “fix.”

Job’s situation is like that, he cannot “fix it.” I like to fix things, especially when it involves people and places I care about. That desire is not a bad one, however we also must learn how “to be” in the presence of suffering and all the questions the suffering brings with it…and those questions will ultimately bring us to questions about God. This is where we will spend the next few days, not a fun read, but an important one.

DAY 175

BOOK OF JOB

Job 1 & 2

The Book of Job: Considered both a theological and literary masterpiece, Job is an honest portrayal of God allowing a good man to suffer. You will read of a good man’s faith being tested. The test is in fact allowed by God in a response to a challenge from Satan. The drama that ensues reveals God’s loving sovereignty and the supremacy of divine wisdom over human wisdom. The human wisdom enters the book through a variety of dialogs between Job and his so-called friends. The work reveals a path by one man to believe that God is good despite the apparent evidence to the contrary. Job rested in faith alone. The author is unknown and it is thought to be circa 1500 – 500 BC.

We begin with a description of Job: blameless. His family: seemingly idyllic. We then come to an interaction between God and Satan. Satan is brazen, openly challenging. God points out how righteous Job is, and Satan essentially challenges God’s assessment. So God, in a way to prove a point that his, God’s, discernment about Job is not in error, allows Satan to test Job.

Some people struggle with this idea of God allowing Satan to test Job; are we humans mere puppets for those in the heavens to play with? I think not. This story has many layers to it. I have already pointed out one, the arrogance of Satan. In many ways God is showing tremendous confidence in Job and Job’s faithfulness – “Go ahead,” says God, “Test him, I am confident in my servant Job.”

Satan is quick to destroy, by the end of chapter one, all is taken away. Job’s reaction: “the Lord gives and the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” In chapter two Job himself is attacked with vicious disease. Job’s wife has reached the breaking point, but not Job.

Sometime when people suffer they ask me if I think God is testing them. That question comes from this story. I do not believe that is generally the case. Might God be testing them? Possibly, but I more think it dangerous to view us as pawns in some game God is playing with Satan. Clearly we need to face our challenges with God. Clearly we need to lean into and onto God amid our struggles. I think that we need to be careful to not blame God, or worse. As the chapters unfold in the Book of Job you will see how one man dealt with difficult, personally difficult situations.

DAY 174

RESPONDING

Esther 9 & 10 and Acts 7

The last two chapters of Esther are almost a post script. We knew yesterday the outcome would be favorable, and today we read of the inauguration of the Feast of Purim.

In the Acts of the Apostles we continue reading about Stephen. Today I am going to comment on ALL of chapter 7. The reason is we are about to turn into the Book of Job and I want the space to be able to comment on Job in the next two coming days.

Turning to Stephen we see in the first 53 verses the outline of the story of God acting in the world…a story you have already read! It is an interesting thumbnail sketch of what you and I have been intentionally reading. The leaders when they hear this story are “enraged and grind their teeth at him!” Their reaction will result in Stephen being stoned, and in a dramatic scene we read of Stephen being comforted by seeing into the heavens.

What do you make of martyrdom? Maybe you think it is powerful witness for what a person believes, but you prefer others display it. Maybe you recall the very true phrase “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church” by Tertullian. Being presented with the story of a martyr leads me to ask, “How far will I go for God – for Jesus?” Today in the world Christians are dying each and every day for their faith. A group, The Voice of the Martyrs, estimates that more Christians were killed for their faith in the 20^th century, then in the prior 19 centuries all combined.

Short of martyrdom is persecution. Today there are many forms of persecution. Maybe your family will ostracize you. Maybe your friends or co-workers will. Today young people in schools face open ridicule by their teachers. I have spent time with many a troubled and distraught student in my office as they retold the prejudice they experienced. Today I speak with Priests and Pastors who are shocked by their congregation’s hostility to the Gospel. There is a growing tone of public derision that is widely accepted when it is directed against Christians.

What would you do? What have you done, or what will you do? It would be easy to respond in kind. Remember our Lords example. He challenged the religious leaders of the day with his intellect. He did not stoop to their antics. Further, by his behavior many, who were once opposing the Gospel, were won over to it. May our response lead to similar results…for in the story today there was a young man Saul collecting coats who was won over.

DAY 173

DO BOTH

Esther 6, 7 & 8 and Acts 6

The plot of the Book of Esther today comes to a head. Mordecai is honored, Haman is hanged, and the Jews are delivered through a rather clever technique given that the king could not revoke his prior edict.

In all God is faithful. And that axiom is going to be needed for the Apostles as we push more into the Book of Acts. Today seven Deacons are chosen to serve to allow the disciples’ time to pray and preach. Remarkably the first Deacon we read about is not serving at table; rather he is proclaiming the Good News. This all brings me to ponder, “Maybe Stephen was serving at the tables?”

Consider the possibility that Stephen, while he is doing is job, is talking about Jesus. We so often “unionize” the different ministries. The text clearly says seven were selected to serve and help with those in need. Is it possible that Stephen did both? I think it is possible, which folds back into Esther. We read how Esther was a Queen and served God by delivering her people.

These stories seems to lead to a common point – we proclaim God in the place we find ourselves, whether we are Queen or cook.

I realize this is a short blog today, but perhaps I need to ponder how much I might be proclaiming God as I serve him as Dean, Priest, and Pastor.

DAY 172

FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS

Esther 3, 4 & 5 and Acts 5:22-42

I didn’t want to load too much background into yesterday, but today as we continue with Esther most scholars consider that the events of this book took place around 480 B.C. in Persia. This Book is actually thought to be written some decades later, but as you will read in the coming days, it captures the roots of the Festival known as Purim.

We ended yesterday with Mordecai being key to uncovering a plot to overthrow the king. Yet today, as a new “Prime Minister of sorts” is put in power, we read that he, Mordecai, would not bow down; and not just once, but day after day. The “new man,” Haman, is furious. [As a side note anger is never good. I once watched a Company President challenge a man in a meeting who got angry, he said, “Being angry is like being drunk, your brain becomes disconnected from its rational center…and I do not work with people who are irrational…you are dismissed.” I have never forgotten that moment…back to the lesson.]

It is not clear why Mordecai would not bow down. Would he bow to the king? We do not know. Haman’s response is rather irrational, rather than deal with Mordecai, he seeks to eliminate all Jews…and he successfully convinces the king to have the entire people group eliminated on one specific day of the year. Mordecai is beyond distressed. His “sack cloth and ashes” comes to Esther’s attention. He points out to Esther that she should not assume that she will be spared, and besides she may have been appointed “For such a time as this” 4:14. Our reading closes with Esther being up to something, and Haman further descending into his evil plan as his pride swells.

Similar to the Old Testament, our New Testament reading today is a continuation of the story the Apostles were in the middle of yesterday when they ended up in jail, and then were the subject of some angel’s “jail break.” They do not go and hide, but instead go back into the Temple. The leaders are incredulous and want to know why they are still using the Name of Jesus…the answer, because they are obeying God. They might have answered. “For such a time as this we have been appointed heralds of the Good News.”

In a rare moment of sanity, one Jewish man appeals to the officials basically saying, “leave them alone, if this is not of God then it will die of its own accord.” What good advice, I think we ought to use that approach more when we are in conflict over what to do, possibly with one exception…that being proclaiming the Good News. Why do I say “with one exception?” Over and over we see Jesus proclaiming the Kingdom of God, or preaching repentance. Over and over we read about the Apostles doing likewise. Jesus came across people who wanted to make all sorts of issues, and the disciples will as well, they ignored all but one, they kept focused on one thing…proclaiming the Good News because “for such a time as this they were appointed” and I have a sense that now it is our turn.

DAY 171

FLOURISH

Esther 1 & 2 and Acts 5:1-21

We start another short story of the Bible, the Book of Esther. You might notice that the name of God is never mentioned in these first two chapters. His name will never be mentioned in it, and yet it is a story of God’s faithfulness.

We start with the king having a 180 day celebration that culminates in a private 7 day party. The king ordered each man to do as he desired. Do you get a sense of how wild things must have been? Then the king wants his queen, Vashti, to come out with her crown on and show everyone her beauty…meaning naked. She refuses. So the king, after getting advice, determines he should act in a way to “let every man be master of his own household.” How? The king sets in motion a process to pick another queen.

It is a long process, involving 12 months of “beautifying.” Esther is selected all the while hiding her Jewish heritage. Our reading ends with her uncle Mordecai uncovering a plot against the king. The story of Esther will continue to develop in the coming days as we see her flourish.

In the Acts of the Apostles we are much further into the story. The Apostles are having tremendous success. The religious of the day are becoming jealous as many are added to their ranks day by day. The presence and power of the Holy Spirit is palpable as those who are ill merely want Peter’s shadow to fall upon them, and they will be healed.

In the middle of this tremendous moment is sin. The sin of Ananias and Sapphira is not that they withheld money, it is that they lied. They wanted people to think they had sold their property and given all the proceeds to the church, but they didn’t. The Holy Spirit reveals this to Peter and the consequences are grave. He even confronts Sapphira, after Ananias’ death, giving her a chance to recant, but she sticks to her lie.  

It sounds wonderful, maybe you are thinking you wish your parish were like this, and that your priest or pastor had the power that seemed to be flowing through St. Peter. I often wonder if we have a sufficient level of maturity to handle this kind of Holy Spirit power flowing through us. Week after week people we thought were great Christian leaders fall from grace. Financial and sexual scandal seems to abound. Below the headlines countless others leave the pastorate and priesthood.

Yet in other parts of the world we do hear stories such as what we have read today. In China we hear of a tremendous number of people being healed, and similarly in South America. In these worlds we see a great poverty and lack of opportunity, and yet God seems to flourish. I do not have much more to say other then I am struck by this idea of flourishing. I usually try and caution myself to not turn Christianity into some sort of Western ideal of here-and-now prosperity - and yet I am struck by the here-and-now success in the readings. As both Esther and the Acts of the Apostles unfolds I will be looking to sort out more of this idea of flourishing.

DAY 170

STAYING “CENTERED”

Nehemiah 12 & 13 and Acts 4:23-37

I have difficulty “staying centered.” There is much to do in being a Husband, Father, Son, Brother, Uncle, Friend and Dean of a Cathedral. Most of the things I spend time doing are “good things” and most all the things I spend time doing are “worthy of doing.” The question for me becomes one of “are they really necessary, especially if doing them is a detriment to the central things I should be doing?” I can be so busy that I lose my “center.” And, if I am honest with myself, occasionally I can become so “side-tracked” that I am doing the wrong things.

Today in the Old Testament we come to the close of the Book of Nehemiah. It starts with the dedication of the repaired wall. Two great choirs singing in thanks must have been a glorious sight. Our last two Christmas Midnight services had two choirs signing across the Cathedral – one “in choir” near the altar, and another in the West Loft some 175 feet away. It was grand. It was meant to celebrate and offer praise to God. Nehemiah certainly was offering praise and thanks to God.

Nehemiah then goes about ordering the work of the service in the Temple. He goes to pay tribute to the king, the king who has allowed him to do this wonderful work in Jerusalem. While he is away the people again slip into idolatry and more. These are the people who placed their seal on the covenant. It is hard to tell if they set out to “do wrong” or if they just slipped into it. They certainly lost their center.

The issue which is remarkable to me is that Tobiah, an Ammonite king who came out and opposed Ezra and Nehemiah, now has a chamber in the Temple! Did this come through force, inter-marriage, or by some other means? Nehemiah is outraged and takes on his final reforms…the people have certainly lost their center and he aims to restore it.

In the New Testament the prayer and behavior of the followers of Jesus is amazing: they seem centered. I love the prayer… “help us to be faithful and proclaim you to the world with boldness” might be a summary of it. They are so committed that they hold everything in common. “No sense weighing ourselves down with the things of earth, we are on a mission.” It would be easy to look back and want to “go back” to that sort of situation, as if to run away from the challenges of the current situation. We often romanticize what the past looks like. I am also reminded of the idiom, “grow where you are planted.” That is what the early believers did, they grew where God had placed them…and they changed the world.

So what I am taking away today is that I need to keep centered, right here in Albany, doing what I am doing to proclaim him…at least for now.

DAY 169

SIGN ON

Nehemiah 10 & 11 and Acts 4:1-22

Yesterday’s post was a short one. I was “toast”, my brain just couldn’t develop very much the texts I was reading…and I knew it, and it was frustrating. I also knew that I just needed to let God do what He would do and not become overly focused on me and my efforts.

The texts almost develop themselves. Both Old and New are compact enough that they are easier for me than others have been. The shortness of Ezra and now Nehemiah are a welcome respite from the longer history books I have read. I am somewhat free of “who’s the king and which country are in we in?”

In Nehemiah the people make a written covenant with God, stating that they will keep the Law. The seriousness of this act is highlighted by the fact that the leaders who placed their seal upon the document, and all the leaders inside and outside of Jerusalem who agree are listed. I know the list is long, but the point is one of removing any doubt about who has signed on to follow the Lord. They did not do this in a vacuum. There were people around who were not pleased that the walls were rebuilt and that these folks were following God…it was not politically correct.

“Signing on:” it is pretty clear Peter and John have. Yesterday we read about the moment where they healed the lame man. Now, of course, they are getting in trouble for doing so with the religious of the day because they used Jesus’ name. The leaders of the council don’t know what to do because the “man who had been lame” is standing right next to them (smart move on their part). So after they get scolded by the leaders they are told to stop using Jesus’ name…they say NO!

Today people don’t want to know what you and I have “signed on” for; people today prefer political correctness and a politeness that waters down belief; they do not want us to use the Name of Jesus. At times I am asked to say an opening prayer for some sort of event. I have at times, before I pray, thanked people for inviting me to do so, and that I would be praying to God as I know Him – not to offend them, but to be true to how I understand God. Every time that has received a positive response.

Now I am not saying I am looking for “man’s approval.” I am merely suggesting there may be a way to actually let the Name of Jesus be offered and people actually hear and receive it. There is a sort of Christianity that can be so obnoxious that, in our public behavior we can drive people away, and then there is that sort of Christian witness that is so politically correct it is as if Jesus has been rendered irrelevant. At the end of the day we have all “signed on and signed up” for something – for some it is political correctness – for us, let it be for God, and let others come to know Him through His Son.

DAY 168

CONVICTION

Nehemiah 7, 8 & 9 and Acts 3

What to say about chapters 7 – 9 of Nehemiah? Nehemiah has Ezra, the priest, read the law. People are moved over what they hear, so much so that they weep. I love the command to the people, “Do not weep for this day is holy to the Lord.” Days that are holy to the Lord are to be days of celebration! The people are strongly convicted by what they read, it causes them to change their entire attitude about how they are to live. Chapter nine closes with the leaders signing a sealed covenant to God.

In the New Testament we read of two similarly convicted people: Peter and John. Going up during prayer they come across a man who is lame; unable to walk he is begging for money. Perhaps one of the most remembered verses of the Bible then happens. “Gold and silver I have not, but what I do have I give you, in the Name of Jesus of Nazareth, arise and walk” and the man does!

Peter and John had the Holy Spirit: we have the Holy Spirit. I am not sure that you are I could make such a command, but why not? Do we have the conviction to follow God, to follow Jesus the way we read of today? It requires turning your world upside down, or maybe a better way to say it, is having God turn us upside down. When He does, will we “go for it?” 

DAY 167

DEVOTION

Nehemiah 4, 5 & 6 and Acts 2:22-47

Devotion: something we all admire; something we all hope to be able to do to something or someone worthy of it.

In the Old Testament we read of Nehemiah’s devotion: he was devoted to the rebuilding the wall and to the people. I love the image of people so determined that they were rebuilding the wall with one hand, and with their other hand they held their weapons – there is a devotion to the task at hand.

Nehemiah was not just a task oriented person; he was devoted to the people. We note that some people were really suffering. Nehemiah not only corrects the situation with the nobles, but he also provided financial relief.

In the New Testament, after the Holy Spirit comes upon the early believers, we read they were devoted to “the apostles teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of the bread, and to the prayers.”

The Greek word for devotes is “proskartereo” meaning to join, to adhere to, to be ready, and to be fully committed to. The first century church had a devotion to the things of God all by themselves. They wanted to learn more about Christ.

I find the phrase “They devoted themselves” is one of the most inspiring and dynamic descriptions of the early Church. They are the first words ever written about the church and a springboard for them to launch in a new direction.

I am asking myself, “What I am devoted to, what am I so consumed by that I would even keep one hand on my weapon!”

DAY 166

PERSISTENCE

Nehemiah 1, 2 & 3 and Acts 2:1-21

There is this “persistence” in today’s readings. Persistence over the city of Jerusalem; persistence by God. First to the city: David founded it, Solomon adorned it, the kings of Judah had an “on again-off again” relationship with it, the kings of the northern territory feared it…and into Jesus’ own time it served as a center of worship and controversy.

The opening chapters of the Book of Nehemiah bring us into the “third wave” of people returning to this great city following the exile. Nehemiah receives the news that the city walls and gates are in disrepair and therefore the people in danger. Nehemiah is quick to act. He receives the king’s permission and support, surveys the situation at night, and divides and organizes the people.

Center to Nehemiah’s actions is his prayer. Consider chapter one: Nehemiah wanted to go to Jerusalem, but he first sought God’s guidance through a positive response from his boss, the king. We are often moved by situations in our lives, the key is to seek God.

In the New Testament we read of the Feast of Pentecost…it is taking place in Jerusalem. People from many nations are gathered as they have made one of the three annually required pilgrimages to the Temple. All should be going to seek God. Yet going to the Temple can be done out of obligation or sincerity. Often times we can allow our religious practices to slip into some rote performance, and other times we can sincerely be seeking God. Remarkably God persists. He is present regardless of our condition. At times he will break through our numbness and awaken us, at times he will meet our sincerity, and at times he will move his hand and we will be in the presence of this Otherness – the Day of Pentecost is a day of Otherness, a Day of the Holy Spirit.

Can you imagine, have you experienced, the Holy Spirit of God sweeping through a place? At times it is peaceful, at times it is private, and at times palpable to all. The point is not so much the dramatic external evidence, but rather what is happening on the inside. God persists. He persists in his world and in his children. Earlier I posted on the Promise of the Father and how it culminates in this day in history. God has told us this day is coming, he has laid the foundation for this day with Jesus Christ as the cornerstone…He persists…not for a city…but for his people…you and me.

DAY 165

CAPTURED HEART

Ezra 9 & 10 and Acts 1

In Ezra today we come upon one of the difficult parts of Scripture. The Jewish men have intermarried; a violation of God’s Law. The action to correct it is to send away their wives and children from these marriages. Many want to part-company at this point with the “God of the Old Testament.” It is worth a close read.

In 9:1-2 we see that Ezra’s return had a profound effect on the people; the text says the leaders approached Ezra and confessed the situation to him. He was devoted to teaching them. The realized that while they were performing the outward sacrifices something was amiss “on the inside.” Somehow the Law had captured their hearts. Isn’t that what happens when we willingly “confess our sin?” For me, those are moments when the Holy Spirit captures my hearts attention and I am undone. (John 16:8)

The issue is not racial, these people were all of the Semitic race; it is a religious issue. We have read the history of the nation(s) of Israel and noted how intermarriage was often the beginning of worshipping false gods. You do not have to think back too many days, and you were immersed in reading about all the kings “that did evil in the site of the God.” Those kings were practicing the religions of their foreign wives.

Ezra’s response is both typical and dramatic of God’s people when sin is acknowledged. He tears his cloak, lies before God and prays. His prayer is amazing. He notes their sin and God’s faithfulness. Their captivity in Babylon was to be a time of purifying the people, but apparently it did not happen. Ezra concludes God would be just in destroying them. His prayer includes no specific request; he simply throws himself on God’s mercy.

The people in chapter 10 acknowledge their sin and then determine to put things right. The scene is dramatic…but look closely. They go about in a very systematic way to examine the marriages. Some people may have converted to Judaism and their marriages would have been acceptable. The people gather and agreed with the plan (10:9-15) and then they set out in a very intentional manner to examine each marriage; it takes three months.

The marriages are examined and the offenders listed: 17 priests, 10 Levites and 84 others. We know nothing of what happened to these wives and children. My hope is that this was done with real integrity, although it is still a tough situation to process. Remarkably the narrative ends abruptly. The message of the book in complete: in order for the people to be back in fellowship with the Lord it was absolutely necessary for them to have proper Temple worship (chapters 1-6) and to live according to God’s Word (chapters 7-10).

This message, to be in fellowship with the Lord, is why Jesus came to earth. He came not to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it. He fulfills it through His life, death, resurrection and ascension. We read of the Ascension today in “Acts.” Acts of the Apostles is really volume two of Luke’s Gospel. He is the author, and so we read the phrase, “In the first book, O Theolphilus…” which connects us to Luke’s work.

The Ascension is described in a remarkably brief manner. As I think about it, so is the Resurrection. No “fireworks” as it word, just the Son of Man ascending…remarkable. Perhaps more important than how the event captured by words, is how it captures our hearts and minds. God come to earth, the restore our fellowship the Father-Son-Holy Spirit.

DAY 164

REMNANT

Ezra 6, 7 & 8 and John 21

Today we read about the completion of the Second Temple! This is a wonderful moment, and yet we know it is not of the grandeur of the first one. Gone are the pages and pages of directions from God about how to build it; gone is the great nation that surrounded it. What will it be? How will it be used? In the coming pages we will find out, but today a remnant, a faithful remnant, has overcome amazing odds to rebuild and dedicate the Temple. It would appear to have taken about 20 years to build.

We then read of Ezra coming to Jerusalem; most scholars put this moment around 458 BC, over 50 years after the dedication of the Temple. Artaxerxes, the king, is certainly favorably pre-disposed to this effort, providing lavish amounts of money and stating that the rulers of the local provinces give Ezra whatever he asks for. A read of the text shows the modesty of this undertaking…and yet these are the faithful remnant.

In our New Testament reading we come across another remnant out fishing. John 21 presents an episode that has me scratching my head while at the same time my heart is moved.

I am scratching my head because I am wondering why they are fishing? In John 20 they have met the Risen Lord. Maybe “scratching my head” is really me “judging them.” I am thinking, “These are the disciples, they have met the Lord, they ought to out there.” But that judgment immediately rightly turns upon me evoking two responses:

·         These are 11 or so confused men and women, and

·         The same could be said of me, “I’ve met the Lord, so what am I doing.”

The place I come to in my thinking is that they are persons, just like us. It is easy to see them as “super stars,” but at that end of the day they are persons; in some way a remnant, and they can only do a godly appointed task if God is with them.

And He is. Jesus in this episode is on the beach. I have never been fond of fish, especially in the morning. Beyond the cuisine the moment is amazing. Here is the Risen Lord, cooking, and they know who it is, but are too anxious to speak. Why? I am not sure. Is it because they are fishing, having gone back to their “pre-call” vocation? Is it because they just don’t know what to say or do because it is all so new? I am not sure.

The silence matters not because it allows Jesus to take the initiative – and his initiative is always first and foremost about reconciling human beings to God. I wonder if Peter, who has dashed in, realizes that last time their eyes met were when the “cock crowed?” Could you imagine if that was the case? Here is Peter rushing to the shore, and then it dawns on him.

It is no wonder Jesus takes the initiative. First asking about fishing: Asking a fisherman about fishing is akin to asking someone about the weather…its small talk. Then, after a bite to eat, Jesus asks the ultimate question of Peter, “Do you love me more than these?” The threefold question has an interesting Greek language twist.

In Greek there are a number of words for love. Agapé is one – it is self-sacrificing/self-giving love. That is the word Jesus uses in His question. Peter answers “Yes I love you” with a different Greek word: Phileo. Think of our “city of brotherly love,” Philadelphia. Brotherly, sibling love, is the best way to understand that word. Why might Peter use it instead of Agapé? Perhaps because he knows he fell short once and doesn’t want to overreach. We will not know the answer this side of heaven. What we do know is the Lord persists. He pursues. He reconciles Peter to himself.

That is our God: a God who is in the business of reconciling us. A God who calls home the remnant to build a Temple. A God who calls home those who have even denied Him. A God would will do godly work to those who join Him in his mission.

DAY 163

OPPOSITION

Ezra 3, 4 & 5 and John 20

Today we read about the “first wave” of people coming to Jerusalem under the leadership of Zerubbabel. We also note how this work was opposed and we should not be surprised.

As we read chapter 3 of Genesis, Satan makes his appearance opposing God’s will for Adam and Eve – he always is opposed to God’s will. When people, when you, are engaged in doing God’s will, opposition will immediately be present. Some people today think talk of Satan is ancient and superstitious; nothing is further from the truth.

I doubt I have to convince you that there is evil in the world, just turn on the television or read the newspaper. We accept evil, but many today reject that there is a spiritual component to it. Our belief in God is to believe in a world that is “seen and unseen.” Our belief in God is to acknowledge, through faith, that there is a spiritual component to our existence, and further, that we are enmeshed in this spiritual-physical world. In this spiritual-physical world there is evil and the Bible tells us it is not random. The Father of Lies is behind it all.

Therefore when people set off to rebuild the Temple they should not be surprised there is opposition. Who put those opposing its reconstruction up to it? Who do you think?

“In this world you will have trouble, take heart, for I have overcome the world.” Those are Jesus’ words from just a few days ago in John 16:33. Today in John 20 we read how he has broken free the bonds of death, he has defeated the force which sought to kill him – to kill God – that would be…?

In the reading we see the concern and fear and doubt in Mary and the disciples. It is natural. We also see the relief when they come into contact with the Risen Lord.

Three thoughts emerge for me: First this is not some 50-50 battle between God and Satan, with you and me wondering how it will turn out. We already know: Jesus has won! The second thought is that we need to expect opposition when we follow God. Take for example reading the Bible in One Year, do you think this is going to be unopposed? Not for a minute. Yet the more you follow Christ, the more you pray, the more you spend time with God, then the stronger your defense against such attacks. The Third thought is that we need to be close to Jesus. The fear, the concern, and the doubt drained away for those on that first Easter morning – and it will drain away for us when we stay with him.

DAY 162

HOLD GENTLY

Ezra 1 & 2 and John 19:23-42

You’ve made it through 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, and 1 & 2 Chronicles! Those books form a large part of the history of the Israel as it grows from wandering tribes in the desert into a prosperous nation and then sadly slips into oblivion. The span of years is from about 1050 B.C. to about 586 B.C. ~ roughly 500 years.

If you have been reading the Bible with me, then let me congratulate you for reading through this history. It is not easy, especially with the nation splitting into two, and all the kings.

The curtain falls with the people of Jerusalem being carried off into exile by Babylon as we came to the close of 2 Chronicles, BUT just before the curtain touches the floor, at the end of the 2 Chronicles the last four verses skip ahead some 50 years. Babylon has been defeated by Persia. A new empire is ruling most of the world and its king, a man named Cyrus, makes a proclamation. Cyrus says he has heard from the “Lord God” and allows some of the Jewish people to return to Jerusalem with the task of rebuilding the Temple – amazing!

To help you keep what is coming straight in your head, you can think of the people returning to Jerusalem, doing so in “three waves.” The first was lead by Zerubbabel beginning in 538 BC, the next wave was lead by Ezra in 458 BC, and the third wave was lead by Nehemiah in 445 BC. We will read the details of each of these, but I wanted to provide you this idea of “three stages.”

Central to all of this is the Temple, a source of pride and identity. Yet in the New Testament we continue reading of Jesus’ death and burial. We have read this before and we know that Jesus, while on earth, was critical of the how the “Idea of the Temple” had been handled roughly, you might say twisted. How the place from which light was to shine and living water was to flow, had turned inward, and the result was that God was being obscured by, rather than radiating from, the Temple.

So strong in the people’s mind is the idea of Nationhood (Zionism) and so fixated on the Temple are the religious of the day, that they will kill their Messiah. I am not trying to mislead you: Jesus’ death on the Cross was part of God’s plan – it pays the debt for our sin and the sins of the world and it makes a way for our relationship with God to be restored.

Yet the human beings involved in this event had completely different motives for crucifying Jesus. We can suffer the same fate. We can become full of pride about Jesus, about Christianity, about being Anglican, or Catholic, or Methodist…, or we can become full of pride about our local church. When we do, we have twisted the message and obscured God…we will have indeed killed the Messiah.

One of the biggest challenges we face today is not just religious pride, but intellectual pride. In Jesus’ day the religious thought they knew better then what their own Torah and Talmud (our Old Testament) said. They had twisted the Sacred Text to their own purposes. I don’t think they set out with malicious intent. I simply think that when challenged by difficult teachings or tempted by power, they rationalized God’s Word in order to make the text fit how they would like things to be…they formed God in their own image.

We do the same thing today with Jesus and with God. I spend a lot of my week talking to very sincere people who want to argue with me about some of Jesus’ actions and teachings. “He didn’t do those miracles, they are not possible” is one that I often hear. “I am the way, the truth, and the life…no one comes to the Father but through me” is one that is avoided. “Certainly God cannot be that mean” is the retort. When I ask, “Does everyone get into heaven?” The answer is usually “almost everyone” as hell is reserved for the really bad people, and yet “who the really bad people are” is rather vague. I could go on with examples, but I pray you see my concern.

I am trying to make a few points:

·         First, it is very important to understand Old Testament history. It allows us to see God’s faithfulness and to better appreciate Jesus’ Jewishness and His role as Messiah.

·         Second, knowing this story allows us to see the all too common mistakes that we, humans, are very prone to as we relate to God.

·         Third, make no mistake, we can in a sense “kill the Messiah;” in essence robbing the world of him. Yes He is Risen, but do people know? If they know, does it bring them into a relationship with God? Or have we so roughly handled this treasure that it has become distorted?

I have no doubt that God will prevail, but we must hold very gently this treasure we have been given. Read again how God looked down from the Cross at his human mother with tenderness. Read again how his side was pierced. Read again the words “It is finished” and then hold them gently.