30 September 2010
Psalm 105:1-22; Hosea 5:8-6:6; Acts 21:27-36; Luke 6:1-11
The problem is a lack of knowledge of the Lord. They have come to believe that sacrifice and offering are the key to getting Him to do what He has promised. They have become religious and what God has desired is knowledge of Him. We often exchange relationship for religion, because it is easier. Because they have forgotten that their relationship is covenant and promise they have been willing to accept other gods. It is only when it all goes wrong that they will return to their first love, the One who gave them the land. Our God lacks nothing, He needs nothing from us. He is not a needy girlfriend either, the love of the Trinity for one another assures us that He does not need our love to feel complete or worthy. He chose in love to have relationship with us and yet it is on His terms not ours. Relationship means that worship is not duty nor is it what we do to appease Him, it is intimacy and desire.
The Pharisees are the religious people of Jesus’ day. They know all the rules, they invented many of them. As we see in these two vignettes, they are constantly watching Jesus to see whether He will play by their rules. Religious people are always watching others and their practices to see where they will slip, where they will fail to measure up to the standards they have set. It happens in worship, were the candles right, did the priest hold his hands properly, did he wear the right things or the opposite of that in the more protestant religious folks who determine that it is wrong to say creeds, wrong to use candles or vestments, wrong to use written prayers, etc. We are divided from one another and waste our time over what, to God, are inconsequential issues. In these two scenes from the Gospel we see Jesus setting the needs of people above the rules for the Sabbath. Was the God the great rule maker in the sky or was He someone you could spend the day with on His day?
Things turned in a hurry in Jerusalem. Those who stirred up the crowd were those from Asia who were aware of Paul’s work there. They, like Paul, were in town for the feast of Pentecost and now they had their chance. All their complaints have to do with religion and the final accusation, that Paul has brought Gentiles into the temple and defiled the holy place, is actually not even true, based only an assumption that Paul has done so because they saw him with an Ephesian. The scene that ensues with the tribune of the cohort is reminiscent of the trial of Jesus, no one can agree on the charges that are to be brought but everyone is certain he is guilty of something.
O give thanks to the Lord, call on his name,
make known his deeds among the peoples.
Sing to him, sing praises to him;
tell of all his wonderful works.
Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
Seek the Lord and his strength;
seek his presence continually.
Remember the wonderful works he has done,
his miracles, and the judgements he has uttered,
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
29 September 2010
Psalm 101, 109; Hosea 4:11-19; Acts 21:15-26; Luke 5:27-39
The apostasy isn’t confined to the spiritual realm it seems, but it is also in the morality of the people. The particular complaint is against the northern kingdom of Israel as opposed to Judah. (Recall the two were separated when Solomon’s son Rehoboam became king) The complaints here related to the worship of the Baals involving new moons, bacchanalia, and orgies. Baal was a fertility god and worship of him took the form of what is known as “sympathetic magic.” Baal was thought to provide the rain on which agrarian economies depended and in order to entice the god to have relations with his consorts and provide the rain, his people engaged in relations on earth. The Israelites apparently took up this worship and these practices, an utter abomination to God. What things does the world do in order to achieve prosperity that are un-Christian and instead are superstition that Christians should not do?
The call of Matthew to be a disciple has the potential to become very divisive. The first disciples were all friends and fellow fishermen and now one is called who participates in a detestable profession, tax collector. Tax collectors were collaborators with the foreign government of Rome and their profession was questionable in that they were collecting the tribute demanded to the emperor, something Jews had ethical problems with. The first thing Matthew does is invite Jesus and the others to a feast at his home and the Pharisees swoop in like vultures asking the disciples why they are now sharing fellowship with such men as these. Jesus says that His mission is to reach those who are sick, acknowledging that they are indeed sinners, so they change their tactics to why are you feasting when John and his disciples fast. They have not accepted John in the first place and now they use him as a standard! Jesus’ answer points to His identity and the new age that has come.
Why does Paul do what the elders suggest here? Why does he participate in this Jewish ritual and custom? He was obedient to the elders of the church but the purpose was to appease the Jews who oppose him. We are often tempted to respond to our critics in order to get them on our side and when we do we are rarely successful we are simply compromised. Here, Paul’s compromise is completely unsuccessful and it is a wonder why he agreed to participate. It is important that we not bend our message to popular sentiment and that we not allow ourselves to be co-opted by religion or even by leaders if it is a matter of conscience. Engaging with critics is generally not worth the effort.
With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save them from those who would condemn them to death.
Psalm 101, 109; Hosea 4:11-19; Acts 21:15-26; Luke 5:27-39
The apostasy isn’t confined to the spiritual realm it seems, but it is also in the morality of the people. The particular complaint is against the northern kingdom of Israel as opposed to Judah. (Recall the two were separated when Solomon’s son Rehoboam became king) The complaints here related to the worship of the Baals involving new moons, bacchanalia, and orgies. Baal was a fertility god and worship of him took the form of what is known as “sympathetic magic.” Baal was thought to provide the rain on which agrarian economies depended and in order to entice the god to have relations with his consorts and provide the rain, his people engaged in relations on earth. The Israelites apparently took up this worship and these practices, an utter abomination to God. What things does the world do in order to achieve prosperity that are un-Christian and instead are superstition that Christians should not do?
The call of Matthew to be a disciple has the potential to become very divisive. The first disciples were all friends and fellow fishermen and now one is called who participates in a detestable profession, tax collector. Tax collectors were collaborators with the foreign government of Rome and their profession was questionable in that they were collecting the tribute demanded to the emperor, something Jews had ethical problems with. The first thing Matthew does is invite Jesus and the others to a feast at his home and the Pharisees swoop in like vultures asking the disciples why they are now sharing fellowship with such men as these. Jesus says that His mission is to reach those who are sick, acknowledging that they are indeed sinners, so they change their tactics to why are you feasting when John and his disciples fast. They have not accepted John in the first place and now they use him as a standard! Jesus’ answer points to His identity and the new age that has come.
Why does Paul do what the elders suggest here? Why does he participate in this Jewish ritual and custom? He was obedient to the elders of the church but the purpose was to appease the Jews who oppose him. We are often tempted to respond to our critics in order to get them on our side and when we do we are rarely successful we are simply compromised. Here, Paul’s compromise is completely unsuccessful and it is a wonder why he agreed to participate. It is important that we not bend our message to popular sentiment and that we not allow ourselves to be co-opted by religion or even by leaders if it is a matter of conscience. Engaging with critics is generally not worth the effort.
With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save them from those who would condemn them to death.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
28 September 2010
Psalm 97, 99; Hosea 4:1-10; Acts 21:1-14; Luke 5:12-26
The priests are held out for special blame in the apostasy of the land. The priests have forgotten their duties and when the priests fail to uphold the law and the Word, the people will wander from it as well. We live in a time in the west when the Word of God is frequently not preached or taught in many churches or it is treated as a piece of literature rather than the inspired Word of God. It is presented as somehow a cultural artifact of a bygone era and its teaching neglected because they do not comport with modern mores and sensibilities. The reality is that much of the law did not match up with the morality and ethical sensibilities of its own time because it is a timeless Word. We can seek out the knowledge of good and evil somewhere else or we can get it from God. Choosing to reject His word is choosing to reject the one who spoke the word and here we see that those who are given to teach God’s word come in, as James wrote, for special judgment.
Jesus knew the danger of popular acclaim and that is why He regularly retreated to “deserted places” to pray. The most important thing we can do as leaders is to get apart from the crowd and spend time alone in prayer so that He can set the agenda for our lives and our ministry rather than the crowd. There is always a great temptation to follow and do the will of the crowd because it appeals to our vanity to see people coming to the ministry, but it is the way to make many mistakes to be led by the appeal to vanity. This was one of the original temptations of satan to Jesus and he wasn’t done tempting Him by a long shot. With the paralytic I believe that the most important thing was to forgive his sins, whatever they were, and that somehow sin was connected with the condition or Jesus would not have begun there. It was easy to see the infirmity but more difficult to see the real need. Jesus didn’t proclaim forgiveness simply to be provocative, but because it was necessary and the result was provocation but only if you don’t realize who He is.
What was Paul supposed to do? Prophetic words concerning what would happen to him if he went to Jerusalem were given to him on two occasions here, once in Tyre and then in Caesarea. Was God sending him a message not to go to Jerusalem or was the Lord only telling them what would happen next? We have to be careful with prophecy given to us. We have to make sure that even if someone interprets it to us that we submit both the word and the interpretation to the Lord in order to know what we are to do. Paul’s final answer on the issue is that the Lord’s will be done. We can only surmise that in all this Paul was submitted to the will of God as we have seen him time and again prevented from going one place or another by the Spirit of God and then pulled in a direction he had not intended by that same Spirit.
The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
Let them praise your great and awesome name.
Holy is he!
Extol the Lord our God;
worship at his footstool.
Holy is he!
Psalm 97, 99; Hosea 4:1-10; Acts 21:1-14; Luke 5:12-26
The priests are held out for special blame in the apostasy of the land. The priests have forgotten their duties and when the priests fail to uphold the law and the Word, the people will wander from it as well. We live in a time in the west when the Word of God is frequently not preached or taught in many churches or it is treated as a piece of literature rather than the inspired Word of God. It is presented as somehow a cultural artifact of a bygone era and its teaching neglected because they do not comport with modern mores and sensibilities. The reality is that much of the law did not match up with the morality and ethical sensibilities of its own time because it is a timeless Word. We can seek out the knowledge of good and evil somewhere else or we can get it from God. Choosing to reject His word is choosing to reject the one who spoke the word and here we see that those who are given to teach God’s word come in, as James wrote, for special judgment.
Jesus knew the danger of popular acclaim and that is why He regularly retreated to “deserted places” to pray. The most important thing we can do as leaders is to get apart from the crowd and spend time alone in prayer so that He can set the agenda for our lives and our ministry rather than the crowd. There is always a great temptation to follow and do the will of the crowd because it appeals to our vanity to see people coming to the ministry, but it is the way to make many mistakes to be led by the appeal to vanity. This was one of the original temptations of satan to Jesus and he wasn’t done tempting Him by a long shot. With the paralytic I believe that the most important thing was to forgive his sins, whatever they were, and that somehow sin was connected with the condition or Jesus would not have begun there. It was easy to see the infirmity but more difficult to see the real need. Jesus didn’t proclaim forgiveness simply to be provocative, but because it was necessary and the result was provocation but only if you don’t realize who He is.
What was Paul supposed to do? Prophetic words concerning what would happen to him if he went to Jerusalem were given to him on two occasions here, once in Tyre and then in Caesarea. Was God sending him a message not to go to Jerusalem or was the Lord only telling them what would happen next? We have to be careful with prophecy given to us. We have to make sure that even if someone interprets it to us that we submit both the word and the interpretation to the Lord in order to know what we are to do. Paul’s final answer on the issue is that the Lord’s will be done. We can only surmise that in all this Paul was submitted to the will of God as we have seen him time and again prevented from going one place or another by the Spirit of God and then pulled in a direction he had not intended by that same Spirit.
The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
Let them praise your great and awesome name.
Holy is he!
Extol the Lord our God;
worship at his footstool.
Holy is he!
Monday, September 27, 2010
27 September 2010
Psalm 89:1-18; Hosea 2:14-23; Acts 20:17-38; Luke 5:1-11
The Lord will reverse the curse! The promise is that He will take Israel to Himself. She will call Him husband instead of speaking to Him as Baal. She will know that it is Yahweh and not Baal who is her true love and the one who provides all things. There is nothing she can get from another that the Lord cannot and will not provide. The love of God is incredible. How could He continue to love Israel after she has gone after other gods? He has no covenant obligation to love her when she has broken covenant with Him and rejected Him yet He will not give her up, His desire is always for her. This passage speaks of reversing the curse on the children of Hosea, they who represent Israel to the Lord, those who were not shown mercy or love will be and those who were not His people will be His people, His beloved, and this covenant will be an everlasting covenant of peace and plenty.
Jesus teaches the crowds about the kingdom of God and the fishermen a thing or two about their trade. Jesus tells them to put out their nets in deep water for a catch and Peter informs him that they have been fishing all night without success. They wouldn’t have normally fished during the heat of the day as the fish would have been down deep and the work of bringing them into the boat would have been difficult if a sizeable catch were made. In spite of those misgivings, they let down their nets and the haul is amazing. Peter, upon seeing it, ascribes worship to Jesus and in words very similar to Isaiah’s response to seeing the vision in the temple in Isaiah 6, asks Him to go away from him for He is a sinful man. He has somehow seen holiness in this encounter and reacts as Isaiah did upon the proclamation of the holiness of God. Peter, like Isaiah before him, is given a chance to serve the Lord rather than being rejected by Him.
What a wonderful testimony Paul makes of his work in Ephesus but what a sad moment this is for those who love him. He is able to say that he never ceased to labor on their behalf and that he is confident that he is not responsible for the blood of any of them if they have not faith. That hearkens back to Ezekiel who is told by God that if he warns a sinner and they do not repent he is innocent of their blood but if he fails to warn them, he is complicit in their sin and their blood is on him. Paul can say that he has preached the Gospel always, even when he has been opposed. This speech is similar to the book of Deuteronomy in that Paul is aware in the spirit that his future will not be a return visit just as Moses knew he was soon to die. It is also similar in that he is warning them of what the future will bring and that they should keep the faith and not allow themselves to be turned away from Jesus no matter who it is that attempts to lead them astray. The love of the people for this man who brought them the Good News of salvation and eternal life is plain, they truly appreciate his work and his life and they are pained to hear that he is going to suffer and will not see them again. That is how we should leave when we have ministered among people.
Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Lord,
your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones.
The heavens are yours, the earth also is yours;
the world and all that is in it—you have founded them.
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
Happy are the people who know the festal shout,
who walk, O Lord, in the light of your countenance;
they exult in your name all day long,
and extol your righteousness.
Psalm 89:1-18; Hosea 2:14-23; Acts 20:17-38; Luke 5:1-11
The Lord will reverse the curse! The promise is that He will take Israel to Himself. She will call Him husband instead of speaking to Him as Baal. She will know that it is Yahweh and not Baal who is her true love and the one who provides all things. There is nothing she can get from another that the Lord cannot and will not provide. The love of God is incredible. How could He continue to love Israel after she has gone after other gods? He has no covenant obligation to love her when she has broken covenant with Him and rejected Him yet He will not give her up, His desire is always for her. This passage speaks of reversing the curse on the children of Hosea, they who represent Israel to the Lord, those who were not shown mercy or love will be and those who were not His people will be His people, His beloved, and this covenant will be an everlasting covenant of peace and plenty.
Jesus teaches the crowds about the kingdom of God and the fishermen a thing or two about their trade. Jesus tells them to put out their nets in deep water for a catch and Peter informs him that they have been fishing all night without success. They wouldn’t have normally fished during the heat of the day as the fish would have been down deep and the work of bringing them into the boat would have been difficult if a sizeable catch were made. In spite of those misgivings, they let down their nets and the haul is amazing. Peter, upon seeing it, ascribes worship to Jesus and in words very similar to Isaiah’s response to seeing the vision in the temple in Isaiah 6, asks Him to go away from him for He is a sinful man. He has somehow seen holiness in this encounter and reacts as Isaiah did upon the proclamation of the holiness of God. Peter, like Isaiah before him, is given a chance to serve the Lord rather than being rejected by Him.
What a wonderful testimony Paul makes of his work in Ephesus but what a sad moment this is for those who love him. He is able to say that he never ceased to labor on their behalf and that he is confident that he is not responsible for the blood of any of them if they have not faith. That hearkens back to Ezekiel who is told by God that if he warns a sinner and they do not repent he is innocent of their blood but if he fails to warn them, he is complicit in their sin and their blood is on him. Paul can say that he has preached the Gospel always, even when he has been opposed. This speech is similar to the book of Deuteronomy in that Paul is aware in the spirit that his future will not be a return visit just as Moses knew he was soon to die. It is also similar in that he is warning them of what the future will bring and that they should keep the faith and not allow themselves to be turned away from Jesus no matter who it is that attempts to lead them astray. The love of the people for this man who brought them the Good News of salvation and eternal life is plain, they truly appreciate his work and his life and they are pained to hear that he is going to suffer and will not see them again. That is how we should leave when we have ministered among people.
Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Lord,
your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones.
The heavens are yours, the earth also is yours;
the world and all that is in it—you have founded them.
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
Happy are the people who know the festal shout,
who walk, O Lord, in the light of your countenance;
they exult in your name all day long,
and extol your righteousness.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
26 September 2010
Psalm 66, 67; Hosea 2:2-14; James 3:1-13; Matt. 13:44-52
Hosea’s prophecy is poetry regarding the unfaithful wife and it is an extended metaphor for Israel. They have chased after other gods whom they believed provided them with the abundance they have enjoyed. The prophecy is that Israel will soon be exposed for what she has been, no more than a whore. That is strong language then and now but it is exactly the image the Lord intended, an image intended to shock them into the realization of what they had done. She will lose everything and her nakedness will be exposed for the world to see. She will know that the gods she has sought, the lovers she has known, are nothing at all and care nothing for her and she will attempt to return to her husband but he will hedge in her ways. However, His love for her in not ended, as we see in that last verse, He will woo her to the wilderness and there will reclaim her as His own.
The kingdom of heaven is to be valued above all else and for those who know its value it becomes the prize of life. Its value is such that we will sacrifice everything we already have in order to obtain it. Is that our attitude towards God’s kingdom when we pray the Lord’s prayer? Do we seek first His kingdom in our lives or are we distracted by many things? It is indeed shocking when we realize how little we actually value the gift we have been given and when we compare it to all else, including the stuff under the sun that Solomon warned us about in Ecclesiastes, we know it intellectually but we don’t live into what we know. Take a look at the amount of time you give to God as opposed to the time you devote to work, sports, the internet, and everything else in life and see if you can tell that you understand the value of God’s kingdom.
How do we tame the tongue? Can anyone argue with James concerning the tongue’s power or its deviltry? In pastoring a church I can say that many more problems have been caused by what someone, myself included, has said than by anything that has ever actually be done. If we could learn to tame the tongue the rest of the world would flock to the church but they see that the same problem that infects the world is at least as great in the church. If we listened to Paul and spoke to one another words of encouragement and spoke of the Lord to one another we would be a very different place. It all comes down to what we truly value.
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
that your way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
Psalm 66, 67; Hosea 2:2-14; James 3:1-13; Matt. 13:44-52
Hosea’s prophecy is poetry regarding the unfaithful wife and it is an extended metaphor for Israel. They have chased after other gods whom they believed provided them with the abundance they have enjoyed. The prophecy is that Israel will soon be exposed for what she has been, no more than a whore. That is strong language then and now but it is exactly the image the Lord intended, an image intended to shock them into the realization of what they had done. She will lose everything and her nakedness will be exposed for the world to see. She will know that the gods she has sought, the lovers she has known, are nothing at all and care nothing for her and she will attempt to return to her husband but he will hedge in her ways. However, His love for her in not ended, as we see in that last verse, He will woo her to the wilderness and there will reclaim her as His own.
The kingdom of heaven is to be valued above all else and for those who know its value it becomes the prize of life. Its value is such that we will sacrifice everything we already have in order to obtain it. Is that our attitude towards God’s kingdom when we pray the Lord’s prayer? Do we seek first His kingdom in our lives or are we distracted by many things? It is indeed shocking when we realize how little we actually value the gift we have been given and when we compare it to all else, including the stuff under the sun that Solomon warned us about in Ecclesiastes, we know it intellectually but we don’t live into what we know. Take a look at the amount of time you give to God as opposed to the time you devote to work, sports, the internet, and everything else in life and see if you can tell that you understand the value of God’s kingdom.
How do we tame the tongue? Can anyone argue with James concerning the tongue’s power or its deviltry? In pastoring a church I can say that many more problems have been caused by what someone, myself included, has said than by anything that has ever actually be done. If we could learn to tame the tongue the rest of the world would flock to the church but they see that the same problem that infects the world is at least as great in the church. If we listened to Paul and spoke to one another words of encouragement and spoke of the Lord to one another we would be a very different place. It all comes down to what we truly value.
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
that your way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
25 September 2010
Psalm 87, 90; Hosea 1:1-2:1; Acts 20:1-16; Luke 4:38-44
The prophet is instructed to take a wife who is either a prostitute or one who will be unfaithful to him. It is uncertain which way the description is to be interpreted. What is not difficult or uncertain is how to interpret the reason for the description. She is representative of the people of Israel who could be said to be whoring after other gods or unfaithful to the Lord. Hosea’s children, likewise, are a sign to the people of themselves in the eyes of God. They will receive no mercy, they are not His people so long as they continue unfaithful to Him and He has named the place where they will be broken. We need always remember that He is a jealous God, He has done much to purchase us and it is the height of unfaithfulness to go after other gods. Their names in that day were the baals, today they may be consumerism, materialism, and many others which claim the better part of our lives.
The healing ministry at Capernaum begins with Peter’s mother-in-law and then continues after sundown, as the Sabbath ended. The people respected the Sabbath restrictions of the Pharisees enough to wait but surely they had laid their plans and expectantly waited for the time when they could get their sick and those who needed inner healing to this man, Jesus. Luke gives us the detail of Peter’s mother-in-law that shows that Jesus did not respect the Pharisaic restriction, He performed this healing at her house when he returned from the synagogue. The disciples are excited about the response to the ministry and implore Jesus to return and make this a base of operations but He has drawn away from the crowds and gone away to be alone with the Father. Good leaders need to spend time away in order to get their marching orders not from the crowd (however small that number may be), but from the Lord.
In this passage from Acts the pronoun “we” appears. Apparently Luke joined Paul on this part of the mission and is now providing first hand reporting. He was there when Eutychus fell out of the window and died as Paul spoke well into the night and in that story gives us several details, “there were many lamps”, the time of night when it happened, and Paul’s words directly quoted. Luke also tells us that Paul was eager to be in Jerusalem at Pentecost. Why would Paul want to be there? Was he expecting the Lord to do as He had done on that first Pentecost?
Lord, you have been our dwelling-place
in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!
Psalm 87, 90; Hosea 1:1-2:1; Acts 20:1-16; Luke 4:38-44
The prophet is instructed to take a wife who is either a prostitute or one who will be unfaithful to him. It is uncertain which way the description is to be interpreted. What is not difficult or uncertain is how to interpret the reason for the description. She is representative of the people of Israel who could be said to be whoring after other gods or unfaithful to the Lord. Hosea’s children, likewise, are a sign to the people of themselves in the eyes of God. They will receive no mercy, they are not His people so long as they continue unfaithful to Him and He has named the place where they will be broken. We need always remember that He is a jealous God, He has done much to purchase us and it is the height of unfaithfulness to go after other gods. Their names in that day were the baals, today they may be consumerism, materialism, and many others which claim the better part of our lives.
The healing ministry at Capernaum begins with Peter’s mother-in-law and then continues after sundown, as the Sabbath ended. The people respected the Sabbath restrictions of the Pharisees enough to wait but surely they had laid their plans and expectantly waited for the time when they could get their sick and those who needed inner healing to this man, Jesus. Luke gives us the detail of Peter’s mother-in-law that shows that Jesus did not respect the Pharisaic restriction, He performed this healing at her house when he returned from the synagogue. The disciples are excited about the response to the ministry and implore Jesus to return and make this a base of operations but He has drawn away from the crowds and gone away to be alone with the Father. Good leaders need to spend time away in order to get their marching orders not from the crowd (however small that number may be), but from the Lord.
In this passage from Acts the pronoun “we” appears. Apparently Luke joined Paul on this part of the mission and is now providing first hand reporting. He was there when Eutychus fell out of the window and died as Paul spoke well into the night and in that story gives us several details, “there were many lamps”, the time of night when it happened, and Paul’s words directly quoted. Luke also tells us that Paul was eager to be in Jerusalem at Pentecost. Why would Paul want to be there? Was he expecting the Lord to do as He had done on that first Pentecost?
Lord, you have been our dwelling-place
in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!
Friday, September 24, 2010
24 September 2010
Psalm 88; Esther 8:1-17; Acts 19:21-41; Luke 4:31-37
The edict of the king is reversed. The Jews were allowed to defend themselves in any way possible and given authority to be ruthless in their defense of themselves. The bottom line is that there was mutually assured destruction and therefore détente. No one wanted to be the cause of a war no one could win. Sounds like the era in which I grew up in the 1960s to the 1980s. What a reversal of fortune that only God could have brought about! The king saved face by not canceling his own words but by issuing this second order which nullified the first. The fear of the Jews had fallen on the people but why? For the same reason it was true in Jericho at the conquest of the land, it was obvious that their God was with them, watching over them and protecting them.
Jesus spoke with authority, the authority of the law-giver Himself. When you have given the law you are the authority on application and purpose. No one could ever speak as authoritatively on this than Jesus. With the Holy Spirit, however, He speaks to us concerning His Word today as authoritatively as He did when He taught in the synagogue. Here, we see His authority extended beyond the words of the Scriptures to authority over demonic spirits. His command was instantly obeyed by this spirit, just as all of creation obeyed the Word in Genesis 1. There is only one creature that was disobedient, humankind. We form our own opinions and follow the devices and desires of our own hearts until they are circumcised and made His.
Demetrius begins a persecution against Paul because it is costing him money for the message of Jesus to be proclaimed and received. He knows, however, that such a story line will only attract a limited number of people so he broadens the appeal to be nationalistic civic pride and it catches on. Jingoism is always a good way to get people to your side quickly, it appeals to a base nature within us that we are better than them, whoever them are. Here we see some who have come to the demonstration without a clue why they are there or what is actually going on. As it turns out, Alexander has better sense than any of them and quells the rebellion by appealing to Roman law that will cost them dearly if they have public demonstrations such as this. In all this, there is no religious argument at stake. It is nearly successful and yet in the end nothing was changed.
It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night.
For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
at the works of your hands I sing for joy.
Psalm 88; Esther 8:1-17; Acts 19:21-41; Luke 4:31-37
The edict of the king is reversed. The Jews were allowed to defend themselves in any way possible and given authority to be ruthless in their defense of themselves. The bottom line is that there was mutually assured destruction and therefore détente. No one wanted to be the cause of a war no one could win. Sounds like the era in which I grew up in the 1960s to the 1980s. What a reversal of fortune that only God could have brought about! The king saved face by not canceling his own words but by issuing this second order which nullified the first. The fear of the Jews had fallen on the people but why? For the same reason it was true in Jericho at the conquest of the land, it was obvious that their God was with them, watching over them and protecting them.
Jesus spoke with authority, the authority of the law-giver Himself. When you have given the law you are the authority on application and purpose. No one could ever speak as authoritatively on this than Jesus. With the Holy Spirit, however, He speaks to us concerning His Word today as authoritatively as He did when He taught in the synagogue. Here, we see His authority extended beyond the words of the Scriptures to authority over demonic spirits. His command was instantly obeyed by this spirit, just as all of creation obeyed the Word in Genesis 1. There is only one creature that was disobedient, humankind. We form our own opinions and follow the devices and desires of our own hearts until they are circumcised and made His.
Demetrius begins a persecution against Paul because it is costing him money for the message of Jesus to be proclaimed and received. He knows, however, that such a story line will only attract a limited number of people so he broadens the appeal to be nationalistic civic pride and it catches on. Jingoism is always a good way to get people to your side quickly, it appeals to a base nature within us that we are better than them, whoever them are. Here we see some who have come to the demonstration without a clue why they are there or what is actually going on. As it turns out, Alexander has better sense than any of them and quells the rebellion by appealing to Roman law that will cost them dearly if they have public demonstrations such as this. In all this, there is no religious argument at stake. It is nearly successful and yet in the end nothing was changed.
It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night.
For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
at the works of your hands I sing for joy.
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