17 December 2009
Psalm 50; Zech. 4:1-14; Rev. 4:9-5:5; Matt. 25:1-13

We like to measure things but we don’t know how to properly measure them. Do not despise the day of small things is the word of the Lord and yet we, particularly in America, constantly despise small things. Here, the rebuilding of the temple has just begun and yet even that is a major triumph in that no one thought it would even be started. The vision of the lamps connected to the two olive trees is a picture of who we are to be in the church, filled with the Spirit and knowing that we are connected to a continual source of more. Our problem is that we get disconnected from that source and when we do, we begin to make wrong judgments and allow ourselves to be discouraged rather than looking for small signs of God’s grace.

The bridesmaids were not prepared for the coming of the bridegroom, their lamps had gone out and they had no oil. In that time of waiting on the return of the bridegroom from his work of preparing the bridal chamber, (see John 14.2-3) we must indeed remain connected to the source of our life and hope, the Holy Spirit. We know that meditation on His Word and prayer are the ways in which we remain connected and that we need the fellowship of brothers and sisters in Christ in order to encourage one another and yet we allow ourselves to be distracted by many things as Martha did and fail to choose the best thing. It is in our choices that lose our connection, it requires wisdom.

The elders around the throne have crowns and yet in the presence of the one seated on the throne, whose name is not given, they throw down their crowns and give glory to Him, who alone is worthy of glory. They recognize their own unworthiness in the light of His glory. Praise and worship, either in prayer or song, is essential to our lives as followers of Jesus. We need to constantly remind ourselves that we are children of the King of kings and Lord of lords. Our worship here is the place where we are filled and refreshed, and our lives are to be worship. How can we worship with our lives today, as living sacrifices?

The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;
to one who orders his way rightly
I will show the salvation of God!"

16 December 2009
Psalm 119:49-72; Zech. 3:1-10; Rev. 4:1-8; Matt. 24:45-51

The high priest is a representative of the people. As he stands before the Lord, Satan rightly accuses him of being unprepared and unfit for the Lord. Satan knows righteousness, he is the ultimate legalist and here we see a foreshadowing of the coming of Jesus. By fiat, the Lord declares Joshua to be righteous and provides him with the clean garments required to come into His presence. It is all about grace and mercy triumphing over judgment but it does not mean there is no judgment. The passage ends with the Lord making a promise to Joshua concerning the future of the nation and the peace and prosperity it will enjoy.

Jesus says there is such a thing as judgment. The master chooses between his servants and makes distinctions between them. The delay in God’s coming again seems to either encourage us to speculate on the signs or to lose our sense of expectant waiting and go pursue other interests. Christians are to be in the mode of expectant waiting, a waiting that knows what it is waiting for and is preparing for the coming or advent of what it is waiting for. We are called to be “faithful and wise” if we are to be commended and blessed. Faithful relates to knowing our Lord and continuing to do His will even when He is absent and wise relates to remaining prepared for His return that we would greet Him with joy and not shame.

The scene in heaven at the throne is glorious and awe-inspiring. The idea of a door in heaven standing open is a thrilling idea and yet John wisely waits until the angel with the trumpet bids him come up. The majesty of God should give us an indication of what we are waiting for, what is to come. All of heaven worships and proclaims His glory with the three-fold proclamation in which we join our voices each Sunday in the celebration of the Eucharist. As we either sing or say those words we should be reminded that our hearts are indeed lifted up to heaven with the chorus who forever sing this song that never becomes rote but ever remains spontaneous praise in His presence.

You have dealt well with your servant,
O LORD, according to your word.
Teach me good judgment and knowledge,
for I believe in your commandments.

15 December 2009
Psalm 45; Zech. 2:1-13; Rev. 3:14-22; Matt. 24:32-44

What a glorious promise this prophetic word is! A man with a measuring rod is going out to lay out the plan of the rebuilt city and an angel says, in essence, don’t bother, the city you build won’t be big enough to hold all those who will come and live here. The Lord promises greatness such as the city has never seen and punishment for the nations who had plundered her. It is a wonderful thing to think of being the apple of God’s eye. John saw this same vision and described it in Revelation 21 when he saw the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven, its architect and builder God Himself.

Jesus continues to speak of the end of time. His comparison is with the days of Noah, and Genesis 6 tells us that the land was filled with sinfulness, the only intention of man’s heart was only evil all the time. In our world today we can see that reality on a daily basis on the news and the internet. Jesus warns us to be prepared and stay awake for that day is coming. When God judged the earth at the time of Noah, only he was found righteous enough to be the seed of the new creation. Our hope is in Christ alone and His righteousness, but we are called to emulate Him and live by the Spirit as a means of preparation for eternal life in His kingdom. Our pleasures are to be kingdom pleasures and our delight in Him. This life is preparation for eternity.

The letter to the church at Laodicea is almost the opposite of the letter to Philadelphia. There is nothing good in this letter. The Laodiceans are deceived in heart and mind, they do not see their own condition. I wonder sometimes about the church in the west as we have become so carnal in our desire for wealth and ease and we fail to see and address suffering and injustice all around us. Do we recognize our need or are we satisfied and therefore lukewarm?

I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations;
therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.

13 December 2009
Psalm 63, 98; Amos 9:11-15; 2 Thess. 2:1-3,13-17; John 5:30-47

The promise of the Lord is that the judgment is not a final judgment on the people. They are not entirely rejected. They will be restored to their former status and they will again possess the land and it will produce in abundance. If the Lord had said, “It’s over” the people would not have returned to Him. The prophet does not leave them without hope. As bad as it will be, there will be a time when they are restored. We live for the hope of the coming of the Lord and the establishment of an eternal kingdom of righteousness and justice.

Jesus comes speaking truth to the people and they will not hear it or receive it. He has just healed the paralytic at the pool of Bethesda but He has done so on the Sabbath and so he is doubted. In many of Jesus’ miracles there is a place where the religious leaders can find fault, typically because He dared to do something on the Sabbath when no work was to be done. They would rather have religion and righteousness on their own terms, be in control. Jesus points to the testimony of John, the Father, the Spirit, the works He is doing, the Scriptures and to Moses as at one concerning Him. The charge, you prefer receiving glory from one another than from God. The call, lay down that desire and walk humbly before God and receive the One who has been sent by God.

Paul speaks prophetically to the people of Thessalonica concerning what will come, lawlessness and rebellion. They are told that Jesus has not come back yet, no matter what they have heard or what anyone has said in Paul’s name. The promise is that He will come again and in order to receive glory from Jesus requires them to stand fast in the belief in the truth and holding to the “traditions” Paul and his companions taught them. God’s people have always been required to stand for truth against the world in order to receive the promised glory.

Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.

14 December 2009
Psalm 41, 52; Zech. 1:7-17; Rev. 3:7-13; Matt. 24:15-31

Zechariah’s prophecy was written during the time of Ezra-Nehemiah as the city and now the temple were being rebuilt. This vision shows that the nations who had destroyed the city and the temple are at peace while God’s people are harassed by enemies and in the midst of rebuilding. The angel of the Lord, on hearing this news, intercedes on behalf of Jerusalem. God’s response is that He is angry with the nations because they went too far in conquering. He was angry and used them as a tool for correction of His people, but they went beyond their boundaries in dealing with the nation. The vision ends with a promise of restoration of glory to the city.

Jesus gives an apocalyptic vision. His prophetic words are dire, reminiscent of Sodom and Gomorrah in the beginning of the vision, telling them to flee from the destruction. The temple and the city continue to matter to God and the vision of Revelation is of a new Jerusalem coming down from heaven. We are warned of those last days that the suffering will be great and yet the mercy of the Lord will shorten that time. We are also warned that many will claim Messiah has come but we are to wait for His coming in the heavens. The promise is clear, that He will return and set all things to rights.

The church at Philadelphia is the one church against whom God does not state a grievance, only a promise. The word is spoken to a church with “little power” and who are opposed by what is referred to as the “synagogue of Satan.” Apparently the church was insignificant on the landscape but important to God and the opposition was Jewish and their particular sin was the denial that Jesus is Messiah. They are commended and encouraged in patient endurance with the promise that if they continue they will be kept from the judgment that is coming. The words “hold fast” are words Paul and others use to encourage their followers to keep the faith, not lose heart, and continue in the Way. Our promise is that one day, the nations will be judged and that we will see the kingdom established forever.

I trust in the steadfast love of God
forever and ever.
I will thank you forever,
because you have done it.
I will wait for your name, for it is good,
in the presence of the godly.

12 December 2009
Psalm 30, 32; Haggai 2:1-9; Rev. 3:1-6; Matt. 24:1-14

The prophet speaks words of encouragement regarding the rebuilding. It has become increasingly clear to me that the Lord always wants his people to be realists, understanding the situation in which we find ourselves, aware of the obstacles and the impossibility of the task confronting us. Never do we see Him giving His people a job to do that they are able to do on their own. He always wants them to see the enormity of the work but not to discourage them, but rather that they will pray and ask Him for help. We tend to take on the work we estimate ourselves to be capable of doing but He generally calls people to greater things. Haggai calls them to remember the former splendor in order to give them a vision of what they are working towards. They are also reminded that all the resources needed to accomplish the work belong to the Lord and even though they may see a lack of resources, the Lord does not.

Jesus speaks prophetically of the overthrow of the temple and of what else the disciples will suffer. The disciples remark on the grandeur of the temple and Jesus immediately tells them it will not be left standing, a prophecy that came true in their lifetimes. Jesus wants them to not be afraid when they see the obstacles before them as they go about the work of establishing the church, and not lose heart in the work. To hear his words would, for many, be so discouraging that they would not attempt the work at all, but the disciples will experience the physical resurrection of Jesus after having seen Him crucified, will witness the ascension and will receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit before that work begins. They will know that there is more than this life at stake and they will be willing to sacrifice everything for what they know to be true. Are we?

The word to the church at Sardis is that all that glitters isn’t gold. What looks good to outsiders is not appealing to the Lord. They are called to remember what they have heard, obey and repent. While the message may seem less clear in some ways than the other letters we can assume that the people of Sardis knew what this referred to. The call is to purity, as only those whose garments are unsoiled will be allowed into the banquet. We cannot take a haphazard approach to the Lord, we must come undefiled.

I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up
and have not let my foes rejoice over me.
O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,
and you have healed me.

11 December 2009
Psalm 31; Haggai 1:1-15; Rev. 2:18-29; Matt. 23:27-39

Haggai’s prophetic words were addressed to the returned exile community who had re-settled in the land. They have seen to their own needs and gone about their business seemingly unconcerned with rebuilding the house of the Lord. They are confronted with this neglect and then the prophet shows them that their lives and labor have failed to live up to their expectations and says that this is God’s judgment on their failure to attend to the temple. The prophetic word stirs the people to action.

The righteousness of the Pharisees is condemned in the strongest possible way, calling them “whitewashed tombs.” When festivals were held in Jerusalem, one of the public works projects was to whitewash the tombs in order to make everything as beautiful as possible and at the same time this whitewashing obscured the fact that they were the abode of the dead. Jesus uses this powerful image to describe the religious leaders. Further, he links them with their ancestors who killed the prophets while these contemporary leaders disavowed the connection. At this very festival they will do far worse than killing God’s messengers, they will kill His only begotten Son.

The church at Thyatira is criticized for listening to a false prophetess who is leading them astray from their spiritual loyalty to Christ. The specific teaching here is not available to us and yet we can surmise certain things based on what we do know of teachings that were current among those who would lead the church astray. It seems likely that this prophetess claimed special revelation from God and that this revelation was leading the people into truths that were not found in Scripture, the deeper truths as it were. This same spirit exists today in some churches and we should always be careful of those who claim to have this knowledge that is unattainable to others. We have the Word written and the Spirit of God to guide us into all truth, we should be skeptical of those who claim new revelation.

Blessed be the LORD,
for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me
when I was in a besieged city.
I had said in my alarm,
"I am cut off from your sight."
But you heard the voice of my pleas for mercy
when I cried to you for help.