Devotion.al

  • Found and Find

    Found and Find

    Psalm 119:9–16; Isaiah 43:8–13; 2 Corinthians 3:4–11

    God said, “I announced, I saved, I proclaimed…”

    says, “…our qualification is from God.”

    As much as the Christian “world” tries to keep these two concepts in mind when out our lives, we really struggle with it. There is a constant human desire to perform and prove. Many of those who gave in their general lives did so because they believed they could not perform and prove. It is often even more difficult in our spiritual lives.

    The tricky balance of a spiritual life is that it should pour out of us naturally. It is often hard (if not impossible) to determine if the life displayed of authentic pouring out or if it is by will and effort alone. We can be tricked into thinking that effort will produce spiritual life . We can also be tricked into thinking that our spiritual life is strictly an internal thing. A spiritual life will pour out something.

    ※Reflection※

    ※Does your spiritual life pour something positive into the lives of , just lost amongst other lives, or does it hurt the lives of others? ※

    In our quest to not shame people (including ourselves) regarding our spiritual journey, we often disregard effort and work. This was often covered under the term, spiritual disciplines. Spiritual Disciplines weren’t (and aren’t) checkboxes to completed. They are ongoing forming, reforming, and reconciling actions. While the performance of them has been used unspiritually to abuse and shame people into outward conformance, the spiritual disciplines are no less important.

    Paul notes that the gives life. Spiritual disciplines are to be the same. There is a big caveat there, however. The spiritual life often goes against the life (i.e., “spirit of the flesh” or “worldly”). This means that the physical life is crying, “I’m ,” while the spiritual life is crying, “I’m gaining life.”

    ※Further ※
    • Have you experienced your physical/worldly life dying while your spiritual life was growing? What was that like?
    • Why do you think we often believe our spiritual life is supposed to be easier than the worldly life to ?
    • How do the opening words (from Isaiah and 2 Corinthians) affect or influence (or should) both worldly and spiritual lives?
    ※※

    Lord, often we make spiritual living too hard, but more often we think it should be easy, and thus it is all hard. Help us to submit our hearts and spirits to you, so that we may live lives fully committed to you. Amen.

  • Look and See

    Look and See

    Jeremiah 31:31–34; Psalm 51:1–12; Psalm 119:9–16; Hebrews 5:5–10; John 12:20–33

    In circles and theology, we talk about the New Covenant. When we read about the New Covenant from Jeremiah, the honest person might question which New Covenant Jeremiah was talking about. “They will no longer need to teach each other to know the Lord.”

    One of the primary ways the has understood this over the years is the of the Holy Spirit in believers. That’s a good way of thinking. When we add the instructions, we may begin to see a problem. Based upon the words of , we could simplify the instructions (which makes sense in of the New Covenant) to God and love others.
    It is, however, this combination that can cause a person (especially a non-believer) to wonder if the New Covenant has actually come. Depending on your circles (whether of happenstance or decision), we have seen our brothers and sisters behaving in ways that do not seem to be motivated by the love of God or others.
    As we say we are Bible-believing people, the Bible is going to be one of the first places that non-believers (in particular, those who seek to not believe) go to check what Christians are supposed to be. This is what we should be thinking about as we read the .
    ※※
    • According to today’s passages (not just Jeremiah), what should a Christian display?
    • What happens when an apparent non-believer shows all the signs of a believer as an of nature versus an act of will?
    ※※
    Lord, we hold onto the promise that we are indeed New Covenant people. Guild us and strengthen us to live New Covenant lives. Amen.
  • Serve and Sit

    Serve and Sit

    Psalm 51:1–12; Habakkuk 3:2–13; John 12:1–11

    That household is a problem. That’s pretty much the description for the household of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. One dies, is buried for 3 days, and then lives again (and will die again). Another takes some really expensive stuff and washes feet with it!

    At least one was , right? Martha at least understood proper propriety when hosting a guest (even though it was ). Oh, except at the tomb of Lazarus she declared Jesus the Messiah (before Lazarus was raised from the dead). Nevermind. She’s just slightly better. Barely.

    If you had had Jesus at your house, would you have been Lazarus, Mary, or Martha? All of us would have tendencies to be all of them. For most of us, we would not be solely any of them. Even I would be sorely tempted to start cleaning house (and that’s not my thing). Perhaps I would be like Lazarus who would recline almost as an equal (but still with the “this guy raised me from the dead” look). Maybe I would be like Mary who didn’t care about propriety or place and at the feet of Jesus.

    Many of us would like to immediately say we should be like Mary, however, is that really the case? Jesus didn’t tell Martha to come sit. Was it Martha’s place to sit at Jesus’ feet? There are a great many people in the (and in the world) whose particular gifting is service. They feel more connected to Jesus when serving.

    That doesn’t mean that they should never sit at the feet of Jesus, but always sitting at the feet of Jesus is not good either. Sitting and learning only is good when it is applied to .

    ※Reflection※

    Do you know what your spiritual /calling is? How do you use it for Jesus?

  • Given

    Given

    Psalm 51:1–12; Exodus 30:1–10; Hebrews 4:14–5:4

    Even if every single Israelite behaved completely within the bounds of Law, and thus no offerings were offered for an entire year…still Aaron would have to perform the ritual of reconciliation. No matter how perfect every Israelite was, reconciliation was still needed.

    In the Church of the Nazarene (and similarly in other holiness denominations such as the Free Methodist, Wesleyan, Methodist, Church of God in Christ (Anderson), and others) we have a concept of Entire Sanctification. This is not as universal in understanding as it could be, yet it is (ultimately) being like Christ insofar as we have been enabled by the (and, yes, this is far more complicated and much simpler). This is a high standard. Others have defined it as oneself wholly over to Christ through the of the Holy Spirit (different ways of explaining it).

    By the Law, even if every single being were Entirely Sanctified, the purification offering for reconciliation would still be required. To many, Entire Sanctification is entirely impossible (and it is without the Holy Spirit). Yet, even were it possible to the many, the offering was still needed.

    That is the weight of the Law. It isn’t all the offerings needed to cover our sin. It isn’t all the festivals to celebrate and recognize God’s miracles and saving works. The weight is the Truth that we can do nothing to save ourselves.

    As the author of Hebrews is unknown (plenty of speculation), we don’t really have an idea of their perspective or history. Yet, it seems that he () was a Jew. It wouldn’t surprise me, based upon sections like this, that he was from some sort of priestly background. As such, the Law and the symbols of the Temple would be significant to him.

    To the author of Hebrews, Jesus was the ultimate High Priest. Due to Jesus’ nature, Jesus was always acting as the reconciling . Though only a sacrifice once, that sacrifice resounds throughout Creation.

    Like the earthly High Priest, Jesus was tempted and therefore understands our frailties. Unlike the High Priest, Jesus did not yield to the temptations, and thus does not need to offer sacrifices. Through Christ, then, the weight of the Law is removed, for the reconciliation is done and remains done for eternity.

     

    ※Reflection※

    • Most of us (as non-Jews) do not understand the weight of the Law. With your understanding, what “weight” would you come up with to explain this to another?
    • What is one thing you do every year that weighs you down or overwhelms you? How might that be similar to the “weight” of the Law and how might it be different?

     

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, we are unable to fully grasp the chasm between your holiness and our fallenness. Thank you for crossing the chasm for us and aiding us in being to you. May our hearts and lives reflect it. Amen.

  • Ready To Wait

    Ready To Wait

    Psalm 51:1–12; Isaiah 30:15–18; Hebrews 4:1–13

    This passage from Isaiah was for me. It sounds like my life. “Lord, help me figure this out.” “Wait.” “Argh! It’s too much! I’ve got to do something!” “Wait.” “I can’t wait! It’s too much!” [time passes] “Well, THAT was a stupid decision.” “I did say, wait.”

    I’m sure it’s just me. I’m certain that God has never told you to wait, and then wait some more. I’m the only one. Right?

    This, of course, is not to direct waiting at all times and in all places, but only when God says to. Then God adds the hard part, waiting in quietness (i.e., ) and peace. The linchpin, however, is when to .

    There was a time, many years ago, where I could sit or lay awake quietly for hours. Now? I’m often just a jumping bean in a can.

    Waiting is an art. Waiting in quietness and peace is a .

    Sometimes, we just won’t wait. There can often be good (so we think) reasons. There are other times that we just cannot think beyond ourselves or the hour at hand. Despite all the bad that can happen when we don’t wait, God still promises to be there when we are to in his embrace.

    Rest can be defined as many things. The author of Hebrews talks about the ultimate rest that is beyond this life but can be experienced as a foreshadow in this life. There is always another rest until the final one.

    There can also be many types of rest. This is important for often our waiting is a form of resting.

    An athlete can only train so much before their body needs to rest and recharge. Many of the most successful entrepreneurs and leaders take a “rest” (sometimes to start their day) just staring out a window. Introverts will often rest by avoiding people (guilty). As a person in a family of 5 introverts, I actually have no clue how extroverts rest (do they?). Perhaps the commandment to rest was directed at extroverts? Not that introverts don’t need to rest, too.

    What we can confuse, however, is resting when we are to be waiting (which often involves preparation) and waiting (preparing often for the wrong thing) when we are to be resting.

    The beauty of the Church Year (e.g., Lent) is the combination of rest and waiting that are part of the plan. Not that many (even liturgical) churches do it completely, but the intent was to rest in God and wait for God.

    ※Reflection※

    • Are you waiting, resting, or waiting and resting for God? How do you tell which one you are doing?
    • If you are waiting, do you know what you are waiting for? If you know you are waiting, do you know how you will know to move?
    • If you are resting, what are you resting from? If you don’t know what you are resting from, are you really resting?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, many of us feel that we have been waiting for over a year. While we were waiting, many of us failed to rest. Help us to rest so that we are prepared for the coming storm of your . Amen.

  • Pursuit of Wholiness

    Pursuit of Wholiness

    Psalm 107:1–16; Isaiah 60:15–22; John 8:12–20

    In the US, Christians as a whole (versus individually), are disliked (if not hated), forbidden (i.e., closed-minded, intolerant, bigoted, prejudiced, etc.), and culturally abandoned (granted, much of that is based upon Christians running for the “” hills and their buildings). We are the modern Israel (insofar as Isaiah), which is not a good thing…at all.

    You might well be tempted to say “they” are the problem, but were we honest with ourselves, we are the problem. “Let them be one”, “known by their ”, “”, “kind”, “generous”…we’re not good at it. We’ve actually been pretty awful, in fact, and that’s just to each other. This doesn’t include non-Christians.

    This is not a let’s beat ourselves up. It is a of our fallen nature. That doesn’t excuse us from the pursuit of . We may be muddy, dirty, bloody, cranky, angry, depressed, grieving, sad, or even happy and joy-filled. We are still to pursue holiness.

    The Prince of is a mighty title. Lord of Lords is mightier still. Yet, peace is not our governor. We are not at peace, whether it be ourselves or each other.

    Looking at too much of the conversations between Christians, the of the World is not the light of our lives. We look to governments and politicians—not God—to guide our way. The Lord as our everlasting light? That is as it is supposed to be. It isn’t, however, as it is.

    told the Pharisees that they didn’t know him and that (by extension) they didn’t know the Father. Those are harsh words for people who firmly claimed to be God’s treasured possession. As we look at the list of “Christian” characteristics, we should start to question whether we know Jesus, either.

    In Eastern traditions of varying kinds, there is an intent called, one of unknowing. The basic concept is to “empty” oneself. As many Christian theologians point out, though, if you empty yourself, something will fill the void.

    For Christians, perhaps, a related concept would be the “breaking” of self. By “breaking” who we were, we then give ourselves the freedom to be remade into the likeness of Jesus through the power of the Holy . On the surface, they may appear similar, but the inner working of the Holy Spirit is uniquely Christian.

    ※Reflection※

    • What is one of the characteristics of “Christian” that you struggle hardest with? Why do you think that is?
    • It can be hard to ask, do we really know Jesus? Why is important to regularly ask that question?
    • What is one area of “self” that has been broken in you and that the Holy Spirit has made new?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord Jesus, please be the Lord of our hearts. Guide us. Lead us into and through the pursuit of holiness so that we may become more like you. Amen

  • Examples and Warnings

    Examples and Warnings

    Psalm 107:1–16; Numbers 20:1–13; 1 Corinthians 10:6–13

    Imagine saying, “ thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his lasts forever,” to the Israelites at Kadesh. Those words would have been grating (at best) the ears of all the lashing against Moses and Aaron.

    The Psalmist also wrote, “So they cried out to the Lord in their distress, and God delivered them from their desperate circumstances.” Except that is not the story in Numbers. Instead of crying out to God, the condemned, blamed, and judged Aaron and Moses. Instead of crying out to their Redeemer and Rescuer, they passed around blame and bemoaned their from slavery.
    The are full of stories. Many of them include the failings and failures of families. We the bad choices that people make, including followers of God, that are nowhere near the intent or desire of God.
    There have been many people that have claimed that God endorses many things (slavery, abuse, polygamy, etc.) that appear in the Scriptures, solely because they appear in the Scriptures. This has been the case with Christians and non-Christians alike. It also is a really bad idea.
    Just because it shows up in the Scriptures certainly does not mean endorsement by God. comments on this. Paul notes that the intent of the descriptions of human failures is intended to be descriptive and instructive. They are not to be prescriptive.
    Paul reminds and encourages us to remember that we are not alone in any temptation or failure. We are in quite the company, in fact. The lie we tell ourselves and others that others couldn’t possibly be tempted like us, or that have succumbed as we have is put on display by Paul.
    Paul, while displaying the lie, also encourages us to recall that God did not tempt us, just as God did not endorse or encourage the sins of those in the Scriptures. Ultimately, it is the weakness of our fallen condition. Which is not unique to an , but is part of the state of all of humanity.

    ※Reflection※

    Why is it important to understand that we are all tempted? How does that mean we should treat others who have succumbed? What should we do when we succumb? Why and how are these related both in our interactions with fellow Christians and those who are not ?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, you set us free from the ultimate consequence of sin…death. Help us in our lives to be free of sin and help others to break their chains and to heal their wounds from sin. Amen.

  • Nasty Water

    Nasty Water

    One of the current struggles in the of Israel (the modern one) is water. Like every nation, they need water to drink, bathe, irrigate, and even manufacture. As of now, the land is (by and large) dry. Water is not yet a war issue, but may be.

    Due to its “Law of ” (those who are of Jewish descent can immigrate and citzenship), Israel has seen a constant influx of people, especially from nations that are more anti-Jewish. In addition, Israel has been fairly successful technology-wise, and immigrate for opportunity. Regardless, the more people that come, the more water is required.
    As of 2015, more than half of Israel’s water is provided via desaliniztion. This technology takes undrinkable (almost poisionous) sea (salt) water, and turns it into drinkable water. Due to its high proportion of sun, there is a drive to turn this into a self-powering process, meaning almost unlimited “clean” water at a very minimal cost.
    Sometimes “known” bad water, such as the case with sea water or the water at Marah, isn’t the bad, limiting, or stopping thing that we think it is. When confronting our “bad water” it requires new thinking or, when God’s involved, a miracle.
    When confronting our bad water, do we it over to God, to pursue to , or do we give up?

Devotion.al

Found and Find

Psalm 119:9–16; Isaiah 43:8–13; 2 Corinthians 3:4–11

God said, “I announced, I saved, I proclaimed…”

says, “…our qualification is from God.”

As much as the “world” tries to keep these two concepts in mind when out our lives, we really struggle with it. There is a constant desire to perform and prove. Many of those who gave in their general lives did so because they believed they could not perform and prove. It is often even more difficult in our spiritual lives.

The tricky balance of a spiritual is that it should pour out of us naturally. It is often hard (if not impossible) to determine if the life displayed of authentic pouring out or if it is by will and effort alone. We can be tricked into thinking that effort will produce spiritual life . We can also be tricked into thinking that our spiritual life is strictly an internal thing. A spiritual life will pour out something.

※Reflection※

※Does your spiritual life pour something positive into the lives of others, just lost amongst other lives, or does it hurt the lives of others? ※

In our quest to not shame people (including ourselves) regarding our spiritual journey, we often disregard effort and work. This was often covered under the term, spiritual disciplines. Spiritual Disciplines weren’t (and aren’t) checkboxes to completed. They are ongoing forming, reforming, and reconciling actions. While the performance of them has been used unspiritually to abuse and shame people into outward conformance, the spiritual disciplines are no less important.

Paul notes that the gives life. Spiritual disciplines are to be the same. There is a big caveat there, however. The spiritual life often goes against the physical life (i.e., “spirit of the flesh” or “worldly”). This means that the physical life is crying, “I’m ,” while the spiritual life is crying, “I’m gaining life.”

※Further Reflection※
  • Have you experienced your physical/worldly life dying while your spiritual life was growing? What was that like?
  • Why do you think we often believe our spiritual life is supposed to be easier than the worldly life to ?
  • How do the opening words (from Isaiah and 2 Corinthians) affect or influence (or should) both worldly and spiritual lives?
※※

Lord, often we make spiritual living too hard, but more often we think it should be easy, and thus it is all hard. Help us to submit our hearts and spirits to you, so that we may live lives fully committed to you. Amen.