Devotion.al

  • Blind to the Signs

    Ezekiel 12:21–28, Jeremiah 32:17–23, Matthew 16:1–4

    In the Post-Enlightenment or Scientific (depending on how you want to define either or both), evidence has been crucial. It’s not as if we are all that different than the Israelites.

    Ezekiel’s words come at a time when there have been many Men of God who, by God’s direction, preached repentance and warned of impending doom. Yet, instead of taking such to , the people hardened their hearts away from God. They thought that the so-called Men of God must have been delusional because the doom hasn’t come. This is instead of seeing it as God’s (conveyed) mercy, , and forbearance. The lack of doom caused them to think that those that were promising were more-likely from God than those preaching doom.

    Yet, Jeremiah and Ezekiel were almost (plus or minus a few years) contemporaries. Jeremiah comments on God’s past and present (implied of ) signs and wonders. What different perspectives these 2 Men of God have compared to the people! It is definitely a case of seeing God at work in the world, rather closing one’s eyes to it.

    It’s not as if didn’t have the same issues. When it came to signs (the weather), the “great” leaders had no problems interpreting the signs. However, when it came to God acting they were blind!

    1) While the world can claim ignorance of God working, we cannot. Where are you seeing God working both miraculously and in the mundane?

    2) Signs of significance continue to be an issue. What signs do people demand in the world (i.e., corporations, , environmental, people, etc.)?

    3) Acts of forbearance are often seen as , rather than love and grace. Why do you think that is? With the results of the demise of Jerusalem, and the exile of the Jews, why do you think God acted that way?

  • Forgetting the Story

    Jonah 3:1–10, Nahum 1:1–11

    The story of Jonah has always been a big fish story. It catches our attention. Whether Jonah was alive in the whale/fish for 3 days (evidence indicates it’s possible) or if it was a and story, it doesn’t fail to capture our attention. Even unbeliever get the story.

    We pick on Jonah a lot. First, he ran away. Then, when he was successful with the , he got angry. Then there is all the stuff in between. He was a mess.

    Whether the people of Nineveh repented because they were horrified at the translucent skin (stomach acids) and/or were they truly fearful of God. They repented. That’s what matters, or is it?

    Nahum foretells the fall of Nineveh. It happens soon after. Imagine having the legend of Jonah’s visit to your city. The bedtime stories (be good or Jonah’s God will get you). A few generations and gut-wrenching became legend became fairy tale became empty. Nineveh falls.

    It is a story repeated in the . It is a tale as old as time. People don’t really . They forget. Even in the most families, people wander off.

    1) Why do you think people wander off?

    2) What does it take to keep people from wandering off?

    3) Truly, what can you do to keep people from wandering off?

  • Believing Dress-Up

    2 Corinthians 6:3–18, 2 Corinthians 11:12–15, 1 John 4:1–6

    is not a happy camper. The Corinthians appear to be pulling away from him for 2 reasons. The first is that he sent a letter that hurt (or offended) them. It seems likely that it wasn’t the letter we 1 Corinthians, but a different one that we don’t have. The other reason was they were being drawn in by “super” apostles or other charismatic leaders that guided them away from Paul and likely the other elders of the .

    While many people have concluded Paul’s statements about being unequally yoked with unbelievers as being focused on worshippers and Judaizers, in the context of this letter it isn’t about the obvious unbelievers. It’s about the unbelievers “dressed-up” as Christians! When we think about it, it is those unbelievers “dressed-up” as Christians that can pull people away from church, , , God.

    The world around us often uses the old Satan imagery to offend and desensitize us. The so-called Satanist tries to present itself as . Pagan folklore and witchcraft (druidic and other types) have also become more common. These are relatively easy things to see. That is what makes them scary. What if they are no different than they were in Paul’s day (?)…a distraction.

    As John admonishes us, test the angels. Paul says that Satan dresses up as an angel in white. This is not to say, kick out everyone that doesn’t believe exactly what we (or the Church of the Nazarene) believe. It is to say that all angels (maybe especially angels?) and prophets and pastors and elders and teachers and everybody else are to be tested against scripture.

    1) What are your thoughts about the dangers of “dressed-as” Christians versus believers in other religions?

    2) How do you train yourself to test angels?

    3) Angels are culturally popular. They are also often misunderstood. What do you think of being charged to test angels?

  • Staying Behind

    Ezra 1:1–6, Hebrews 13:9–15

    Imagine being one of the children or grandchildren who had only heard of the homeland. Imagine having only the legends to live on. Your told you of a place where you actually belonged, instead of being an outsider among other outsiders. Even those who had come from the land had probably lost that God would restore them (what few of them remained).

    Then a declaration from Cyrus was probably first a shock. All of sudden, things were different. For many, it was a that God was indeed . For , sadly, it was more a sign of Cyrus’ manipulation or pity (the cynics). There there was the last group. This group is the ones who cast aside the land and their heritage.

    The don’t really talk about them. Many concern themselves with the “lost” 10 tribes of Israel. Those that returned to the Promised Land didn’t concern themselves with those who remained (too much, rightly, concerned about restoring the people and the land).

    Those that remained integrated into Persian society. They had become Persian. They had to set their in a foreign land. Who knows what the motive was? Was it finances? Was it security? Was it a lack of in God? Their motivations and histories can only be guessed.

    What we do know is that they succumbed to the world. That is why we need to keep the words in Hebrews in mind. The Hebrews that remained (i.e., became Persian) forgot their place in the world was not set by the world, but by the Creator of the world.

    1) Why is important to keep the concept of our “real home” in mind as we walk through this ?

    2) What is the danger of keeping our “real home” too much in the forefront on our minds?

  • Sheltering Wings

    Exodus 37:1–9, Ruth 2:10–3:9, Psalm 61, Luke 13:34–35

    The wings of God are an interesting image, and it is well considering. While God may not have literal wings, wings being part of the comprehension of God cannot and should not be ignored.

    The Ark of the was a reminder of God’s among the people of Israel. The lid of the Ark of the Covenant was called the Seat. Think about that. Beneath the seat were the stones of the Commandments, a container of mana, and (later) a blossoming branch. Mercy was the capstone of it all. Surrounding the Mercy Seat were wings. Were they God’s wings? No, but as they were directed by God to be there, they were indeed a manifestation of God’s will.

    In the story of Ruth, wings come up twice in actually a short time, and both have the same concept surrounding their appearance. In the first, Boaz declares that Ruth has placed herself underneath the wings of God as a refuge. As the story progresses, she then places herself under the wings of Boaz for refuge.

    Wings and refuge often go hand-in-hand in the . We see it yet again in Psalm 61 (and it is also in other Psalms). God has wings of refuge.

    ‘ sad cry against and on behalf of Jerusalem (representing the past and present Israelites and Jews) shows a refusal to be underneath the wings of God, a refusal to be in the refuge of God. Jesus’ words of how a mother hen guards her chicks with her wings, how her wings are the chicks’ refuge from the world…they are nothing short of amazing.

    God wants to shelter us underneath his wings.

    1) Shelter and refuge are things we often seek in things, , and even people. How are you doing seeking shelter under God’s wings?

    2) What do you feel in your , knowing that God wants to gather YOU underneath his wings?

    3) Why would people NOT want to be under God’s refuge? How do you think that might affect how they view, feel, and interact with the world around them?

  • Joy in Demise

    Habakkuk 3:16–19, Zephaniah 2:1–3

    Imagine how Habakkuk is feeling. He understands the impending doom. He knows that Israel can no longer avoid the consequences of generations of bad behavior.

    Habakkuk uses the imagery of rottenness in his bones. It’s a weird statement. Yet, most of us understand it if we’ve ever had the flu, broken bones, bone surgery, or (the ultimate) bone cancer.

    This is a deep ache that is beyond mere flesh. Habakkuk probably did have a more spiritual intent, yet there is something in that phrase that makes many uncomfortable.

    This is the feeling of utter and complete exhaustion, , mental, and spiritual. Most of us have been there a time or two (or more) in our lives.

    While Habakkuk is not celebrating his (or the people’s) misery, at the same he understands that there is a difference between the immediate and the infinite. Habakkuk does not stand down on worshipping God. Bones that are rotten, yet walking on mountain heights like a deer? That is often the difference of a truly lived in the embrace of God.

    Zephaniah, too, sees impending doom. While Habakkuk still worships God in the midst of it, Zephaniah foresees an opportunity, an opportunity of repentance. Zephaniah understands that the impending doom is only impending when hearts are not yielded to God.

    Seek the Lord. It sounds simple, but after years and generations of bad habits and practices, plus the taking on of foreign gods, the people of Judah are at a point that any path they chose would probably be wrong. In their case, they would have to truly start at the beginning. They would have to become like children. Who could teach them anymore, however? The priests and leaders were much of (but not only) the problem.

    1) In the midst of struggles, especially of the , it is incredibly difficult to be like Habakkuk. What do see in Habakkuk’s words and attitudes, which may be different than yours?

    2) Zephaniah’s conviction of God’s ever-present and willingness to forgive can be hard to understand. How can you this with who cannot understand?

  • Consequent Restoration

    Amos 9:1–4, Amos 9:7–10

    The open verses of Amos 9 are anything but comforting. It would seem that God is actively and minutely seeking the destruction of Israel. And it’s true, from a certain point of view. However, is a fickle thing, and the visions that Amos saw were the best that he could understand.

    The reality is that the Israelites did bring this upon themselves by their actions and attitudes. Instead of being blessed and protected (especially the protected part), God removed the “hedge” of protection from them, and the world came in. If it helps, you can think of Israel as Ebey Island in the between the Snohomish River and Puget Sound. During the rainy season, much of the land is more swamp. In addition, there are dikes protecting much of it too. God removing the hand of protection is like removing the dikes during the rainy season. A land already sodden in misery becomes overwhelmed by the natural (or in this case, ) forces of the world.

    The of the imagery is to put a point on it that there is no escape. No matter what they do, they will not be able to escape the consequences of their generations of behavior. The desire was not destruction, it was repentance and . Earlier in Amos, God and Amos went back and forth about destruction, and God would quickly back-off of total destruction. It was as if God’s just wasn’t in it.

    Ultimately, Israel’s pride was its downfall. Verses 7–10 show that Israel’s pride was still an issue. God ties Israel to the Cushites (Ethiopians), the Philistines (long-time ) and the Arameans. They, the Israelites, are on the same level. From an Israelite , that would have likely been insulting. Israel was far above any of them, so they thought. God was not treating them right! God was letting them know that while they were , that did not make them more important.

    1) Do you recall when your pride got you in trouble? What was it? What part of your pride was the issue? How did you resolve it?

    2) Do you know your areas of pride? If you think you don’t have one, then think about your accomplishments or hard work or projects. How about now?

    3) It is important to understand our areas of pride, for that is often where we are weakest. How does understanding our pride keep us from falling into the traps of the enemy?

  • The Duty to Pass On

    1 Timothy 4:13–16, Romans 12:3–8, Acts 20:22–32

    Teaching is a core function of passing on the . There have been plenty of stories (and continue to be) of people coming to Jesus without being taught about Jesus. The moves as God wills. By and large, though, people need to be taught about Jesus.

    Teachers of the Word, as some like to say, are very important to the passing on of the faith. They are not parents (in this context), they are not spiritual mentors (again, in this context). They teach the parents and the spiritual mentors in their faith so that they will pass it on. Preaching and teaching are the primary modes of this teaching.

    What also was tied into teaching, was care. In today’s age, we it being a pastor (or pastoring). It is not just the domain of Pastors, it is also the responsibility of elders ( and duration, not age) in the faith. The reason this is part of it is in hopes to prevent people from introducing false beliefs and pulling people away from the faith.

    The reason all of this is important is that there really is a call in scripture for there to be pastors, leaders, and elders. The purpose is for any to lord over other and authority, but to help prevent people from adding and taking away pieces of the faith.

    Many Christians now look at the church as an ancient tie that needs to be tossed away. Scripture does not us that freedom, nor does nature. In Robert Robinson’s hymn Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing, he writes, “…Let thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to thee…” It is nature of fallen humanity to wander away from God. Without to something greater to ourselves, we will wander away. It may be with good intentions, but those intentions need to be tempered.

    1) Whether teacher, pastor, “shepherd”, elder, parent, mentor, how is your passing on of the faith held accountable? If it is not, what can you do bring such accountability into your ?

    2) What are some bad reasons, do you think, that people want to throw “church” into the trash bin? What are some good reasons?

    3) What do you find beneficial in regards to church? What can you do to build that up with ?

Devotion.al

Blind to the Signs

Ezekiel 12:21–28, Jeremiah 32:17–23, Matthew 16:1–4

In the Post-Enlightenment or Scientific (depending on how you want to define either or both), evidence has been crucial. It’s not as if we are all that different than the Israelites.

Ezekiel’s words come at a time when there have been many Men of God who, by God’s direction, preached repentance and warned of impending doom. Yet, instead of taking such to , the people hardened their hearts away from God. They thought that the so-called Men of God must have been delusional because the doom hasn’t come. This is instead of seeing it as God’s (conveyed) , grace, and forbearance. The lack of doom caused them to think that those that were promising peace were more-likely from God than those preaching doom.

Yet, Jeremiah and Ezekiel were almost (plus or minus a few years) contemporaries. Jeremiah comments on God’s past and present (implied of ) signs and wonders. What different perspectives these 2 Men of God have compared to the people! It is definitely a case of seeing God at work in the world, rather closing one’s eyes to it.

It’s not as if didn’t have the same issues. When it came to signs (the weather), the “great” leaders had no problems interpreting the signs. However, when it came to God acting they were blind!

1) While the world can claim ignorance of God working, we cannot. Where are you seeing God working both miraculously and in the mundane?

2) Signs of significance continue to be an issue. What signs do people demand in the world (i.e., corporations, , environmental, people, etc.)?

3) Acts of forbearance are often seen as , rather than and grace. Why do you think that is? With the results of the demise of Jerusalem, and the exile of the Jews, why do you think God acted that way?