Devotion.al

Tag: holy

  • Revealing Unity

    Numbers 16:1–50, Romans 16:17–20, 1 Corinthians 1:10–17

    Most of us have heard John Dalberg-Acton’s quip, “ tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” What is most often missed is Acton’s “tends”.

    David Brin takes a slightly different tack, “It is said that power corrupts, but actually it’s more true that power attracts the corruptible. The sane are usually attracted by other things than power.”

    Lastly, Robert Caro’s take might be the most significant for us, “We’re taught Lord Acton’s axiom: all power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. I believed that when I started these books, but I don’t believe it’s always true anymore. Power doesn’t always corrupt. Power can . What I believe is always true about power is that power always reveals.”

    Korah wanted more than he had. Whether he wanted power, prestige, or influence, is unclear. Who knows, maybe he thought he could earn holiness by being the chief priest. Regardless, his entire family was given a duty in regards to the holy things of the temple. It was still an honor, but as some many of us struggle with, it wasn’t the honor he wanted. The undercurrent of this is power. At this point, the religious was the people’s leader. It’s not clear whether Korah convinced people to follow, or that they gathered somehow. The reality is that they did gather. Scripture says that they rebelled against Moses, but as the story unfolds into the relation that as they were rebelling against the leader by God, they were rebelling against God. Without question, Moses was chosen supernaturally by God, and there were multiple events that testified to that. It was abundantly clear. However, in our day-and- is it the same?

    How our leaders are chosen is different than such an obvious outward sign of God’s hand. It is through prayer, wise thinking, discernment, and much counsel that good leaders are chosen. However, we are all . Leaders make mistakes. Followers make them too. Two of the biggest obstacles to unity are not necessarily tied to the leadership position itself (for who wants the blame), but the influence and power of the leader, then there is jealousy and envy. This is human reality. Human selfishness often hides behind the of doing the best for others, but truly only serves the self. When talks about divisions in Romans, there are obviously people stirring up trouble. That’s got to be dealt with. Most people expect the leader to do it, yet it is not the leader’s responsibility, it is the responsibility of everyone. There is mutual accountability and responsibility in the community. Yet, people will still be people, and divisions will occur.

    In Corinth, we read of divisions of which person they follow. While most of us would say, “I follow ,” is that true? As the Western World runs away from Christianity (sometimes with good reason), while the Middle East and Eastern Worlds actively oppose Christianity, the Church has to come to a form of unity. The Church for far too long has been separated for good doctrinal reasons, but the reality is that every denomination and unaffiliated congregation will have to come to some sort of agreement with one another. As long as the church eats itself, it cannot feed the world the Bread of Life.

    1) Where do you see the greatest unity in your personal life? Where do you see the greatest ?

    2) Where do you see the greatest unity in the world around you? Where do you see the greatest division?

    3) For each of the above, what can and will you do to build unity and heal division?

    FD) People usually separate from others when they are hurt emotionally. What can we do to help?

  • Heartful Rest

    Psalm 23, Deuteronomy 10:12–22, Hebrews 4:4–13

    Sleep is good. is good. Too much of either is bad. Too little of either is bad. Sleep and activity must be balanced. All too often, however, neither of these are correctly balanced in our lives. The lazy or lonely or depressed often get too much rest, and movement begins to cease. Those who are too active, rarely resting, usually become less themselves and even begin to lose their grasp on things, trying to keep it all . Does any of this sound like you?

    While Psalm 23 may be the most famous psalm, and many take solace in it. In the King James Version, Verse 2 says, “…maketh me to lie down…” The NIV says, “…he makes me lie down…” Some translations do say, “…lets me…”, but most don’t. The Hebrew “rabats” (רָבַץ) has more emphasis than just “lets”. David was a shepherd as a boy, during his most formative years, so shepherding would always be near to his heart and understanding. (like people) sometimes have to be made to rest. Are you being made to rest? Resting is not everything, though.

    As Moses speaks to the people at the edge of the Promised Land, he calls them to activity. They are instructed to walk in God’s ways. They are to God. They are to God (with their whole hearts and souls). They are to do something. They must be in relationship with God. Yes, there were rules. Before you are quick to judge the Israelites on the law, look at our own law books, and understand that we have far more rules than they did. This is important as we Christians are often too quick to say how bad “all” their laws were. The center of it all was heart and soul directed toward and in relationship with God. As they entered the Promised Land, they were to take this understanding with them. If they had taken it truly to heart and practiced it, the story would have turned out different.

    In some ways, the author of Hebrews is trying to drive home the same point. Hearts aligned with God achieve true rest. However, note that the author of Hebrews did not there. The author of Hebrews notes that Joshua did fully realize the goal, but does not blame Joshua. It was a pattern of disobedience that led to a lack of rest in the Promised Land. The author of Hebrews is warning his readers that we cannot just “rest” on God’s and love. We must to it. God’s grace and love don’t “require” a response, but only a response of following, love, and worship (from heart and soul) is a true relationship with God.

    1) Have you ever found yourself checking-off the “God to-do” list? What emotions come to mind when you think of that?

    2) Why do you think Moses emphasizes “heart and soul”? Shouldn’t one be enough? Aren’t they the same? What about the mind?

    3) We are often busy doing “stuff”. How much of this “stuff” is Holy activity?

    FD) Do think it odd that the writer of Hebrews says, “make every effort to enter the rest?” Effort to rest? What does that mean?

  • A Day Off Or A Day For

    Psalm 99, Deuteronomy 16:1–17, 1 Corinthians 10:23–11:2

    If you look at the calendar of any country, you will find a number of secular (i.e, non-religious) observances. Sometimes these to get mixed into , and some are just odd. Today, for example, has the following “observations”: Day of Unplugging; Pig Day; Employee Appreciation Day; Salesperson Day; Horse Protection Day; Fruit Compote Day; Plan A Solo Vacation Day; World Compliment Day; Refired, Not Retired Day; Dress in Blue Day; Wedding Planning Day. Whew! Did you know so many things/people were “observed” today? That doesn’t even include the week or month observances that March 1st occurs in. Yikes!

    Our holiday—as you might have guessed—is a conjoining of holy and day. Just the conjoining of the two words creates a problem. In the British Commonwealth (the UK, Australia, New Zealand, India, Canada, etc.), holiday has come to mean vacation. That came into being as holy days were the days people didn’t work. It became associated with leisure rather than God. Even in the US, we use the word holiday to note a day off (except for Holidays, when we mean all the observances starting with Thanksgiving through New Year).

    As the Israelites are about to enter the Promised Land, certain days are being set aside as Holy Days. Some of these Holy Days are non-working (Sabbath) days, but they are not all required to be. What is common across all of them is that God is part of the day. In fact, God is the focus of each of these days. What elevates them over the “normal” Sabbath day is the purpose of their observances, whether it be Passover (/escape from Egypt), bounty of the harvest (that God blessed them), or remembering the wilderness wandering (God lead and took care of them in the wilderness for 40 years).

    Why we is as important as what we remember. As we quickly approach the season of Lent (Ash Wednesday is March 6th), it is easy to dismiss holy days as either a mindless or fruitless activity. This is especially true with Lent, as many people use Lent to stop/pause an activity (Facebook, certain foods, etc.) that they need a healthier with anyway. This is not to dismiss these actions (for they can be very good), but to understand the why. Lent is a time of reflection intended to identify with Jesus’ 40 days in the desert, to set our minds to look to the cross, and . In other words, it’s about Jesus, Jesus, and Jesus (respectively).

    Why do we remember Holy Days? For the same reason the Israelites were to…God. What do we remember? What God has done, and how God has done it. As a Jew, Paul was very much aware of the of Holy Days and traditions (Lent is both a group of Holy Days and a , for example). Paul valued them as part of his , and also part of his . While Gentile Holy Days were minimal (versus Jewish ones), there were still plenty of secular days of observation, and they all mattered.

    1) Have you ever been bored by a holiday? If not, how do you stay excited and engage with a holiday? If you have, how will you become engaged again?

    2) Does recalling or focusing on the fact that a Holy Day (holiday) is about God change how you view them?

    3) Holy Days and their rituals can be empty of any value or meaning if you let them. What will you do to maintain or put value and meaning back into them?

    FD) What is you favorite Holy Day? Why?

  • Interceding Love

    Genesis 44:18–34, Isaiah 59:15b–20, Hebrews 7:11–28, Romans: 8:26–39

    It has been said the person who does not pray for their spouse will have their prayers bounce back. It has been said that a person who is not prayed for by their spouse will experience the same. It does seem to be a catch-22. It isn’t. This is to be a lifestyle of , not once or twice. It is to be regular. One should know best what one’s spouse needs prayer for, maybe even better than their spouse. Prayer shouldn’t there. People should pray for their parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, and other members. People should pray for friends. People should pray for their . People should be praying…a lot. This sounds like a lot of shoulds, and it is. Intercession is an of love toward and for . Do you love people? Pray for them.

    Not all intercession is prayer. In Genesis, Judah intercedes for his brother Benjamin on behalf of their , Israel. Yes, there is a lot more to than just that. Intercession is often putting oneself in the place of another, just like Judah was trying to do with Benjamin. Understanding the “putting oneself” piece is put into a larger context when Jesus says, “No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) Life has many places where one can and should intercede for others.

    While Judah was trying to avoid the breaking of his father’s heart, Isaiah speaks to the people of Israel. The leaders are not interceding on behalf of their people. They are not supporting and living out justice. Therefore God has to exercise . Justice and salvation are part of intercession. Think about that for a moment, and go back to intercessory prayer. Justice and salvation are part of that, too. THANK GOD! That’s where Jesus comes in!

    The author of Hebrews notes that Jesus’ intercession on our behalf means that we receive salvation. As Jesus continually (until the end of this world) is before the Father interceding on our behalf. Just as Judah interceded to keep his father’s heart from breaking, Jesus (from the Tribe of Judah) intercedes on our behalf so that God the Father’s heart is not broken by losing us. When Judah died, there could be no more intercession. Jesus is eternal so the intercession never ends.

    As if that wasn’t enough, the intercedes on our behalf in the intent of the first piece, intercessory prayer. 2/3 of the Trinity is interceding on our behalf. Jesus and the Spirit interceded in one heart/mind/spirit with God the Father, on whose behalf Jesus came for us. It is just amazing!

    1) If that much of God is about interceding, should our response be any less?
    2) God obviously views intercession as important. Do you view intercession as an important part of your walk with Christ as God views it?

    3) Why is intercession for others so important? Does intercession your heart regarding those people for whom your interceding?

    FD) Have you ever defended somebody who didn’t “deserve” it? Why or why not?

  • How Do We Look?

    Psalm 120, Mark 13:9-13, 2 Peter 1:20-2:9

    Psalm 120 is a lament. The psalmist is among those who live a life of lies. These same people are warmongers, seeking strife and conflict. The psalmist is living in foreign lands that seek no peace, but the cry of the psalmist’s heart is for peace. The psalm begins with the . God answered him, the of the psalm is about what the problem was. The truth is that while the psalmist was referring to a specific people, we all know the type. There are those that do not seem happy unless there is conflict. There are those who do not trust peace. When one does not have peace, one resorts to force fairly quickly. We are all guilty of this to some degree. Sometimes the response is yelling, crying, ambivalence, disregard. These all are violent to the heart and soul of , and often to ourselves. We quickly think that all violence is physical. The truth is that violence is the outward sign of an inward .

    Jesus’ words in Mark are certainly not comforting. They can be terrifying. The internal strife of families torn apart. Neighbors calling out neighbors. Remember the Second Great Commandment? your neighbor as yourself. This is the outward sign of it not being so. Jesus is warning that his peace is not the peace of this world. All too often, the peace of this world is bought and paid for by blood and . The peace of God is not so. The psalmist understood this. The response of the psalmist to those around him was, “God me!” It wasn’t a slap to the face, or something more. It was . As Jesus continues, he refers to the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the source of the peace of God. When the Holy Spirit resides in us, we can respond to those around us with a grace and wisdom that is not ours.

    The God-ly wisdom of the Holy Spirit requires our humility. Peter has to confront people already who say that they have a new revelation from God. Peter is quick to point out that the prophets themselves did not understand their prophecies (unless granted so by God). It was only after the fact that it was proven that their prophecies were true. This is an important thing as the church, and groups that masquerade as the church, often have those that call themselves prophets or revealers or divine actors of some sort that are bringing a new truth from God. Often these new truths are then used in ways that are violent to the hearts and souls of the innocent (and even not-so innocent). These people use the of media, guilt, society, anything at all to crush the hearts of the people of God. We too can be guilty of using God in this same way. God’s ways are the ways of peace. God’s ways are the ways that sooth and heal.

    1) Has some “religious” person ever said something to you that was hurtful? How did that make you feel toward the religious they claimed to follow?

    2) Often (and rightly) people are told that if they are abandoning religion because of people, then they are looking at the people not God. What does that mean, then, when we also say, “we may be the only Jesus they every see?”

    3/FD) Being a peace-lover or peace-maker does not mean being a pushover. How does one make peace without violence?

  • For Glory!

    Psalm 115, Judges 5:1-11, 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1

    Much of the modern world is obsessed with the self. Individualism (rugged or otherwise) is a key feature of (U.S.) American culture. It then becomes ironic when non-believers question why everything should be for God’s . They attribute to God a selfish conceit that has no consideration for others. This is one of the reasons why the doctrine of the Trinity is important to understanding God. God lives in community. There is a perpetual and integral consideration of another. We created beings are blessed because God considers us of being related to. This is not a vain conceit of God. It is a reality of a and wholly other being who has created us.

    When it comes to God’s glory versus our glory it is important to not just say it’s God’s glory. God’s glory is . Our glory is temporary. It is that perspective of an abiding glory that remains forever. When we are aware and take this into account, it should affect our decisions and responses.

    The psalmist compares the eternal God to man-made idols that are destroyable. The psalmist then compares the makers and worshippers of idols to the very idols they make. They are the same in that trusting in them is trusting in nothing (or possibly alluding to death). In comparison to the living God whose people are living and plentiful. The legacy is of children, grandchildren, and so on. The legacy is of the living and who live in relationship with God. The legacy needs to be remembered.

    Deborah and Barak were the leaders of Israel, seeking to restore a lost legacy. Even in the midst of celebrating victory over their oppressors, Deborah and Barak gave God praise for the leaders who lead, and the volunteers who stepped up. While they (leaders and volunteers) did as they were called, it was still to God’s glory that they responded and succeeded. Their actions live on in the story of God that God laid out for us to receive. While in this case, it is something that was done that brought God glory, it can also be things not done that brings God glory.

    In his letter to the Corinthians, is confronting the struggles of people trying to conform their lives to a new way of thinking. In their culture, sacrifices to idols are done. It is prevalent. The idols are dead, so why worry about the meat? For the follower of Christ—who knows the in/of Christ—this is just a silly question. However, for those who are not followers of the Way (i.e., Christians) this is an important question, for their perspective is that the believers are worshipping idols when they eat the sacrifices! Thus, not eating it brings glory to God by showing that they do not the idols or feel they are worth paying attention to. It may seem silly to us, but to a culture for whom worship was cultural and religious, this was a huge thing.

    1) What things could the culture view us (i.e., Christians, Christ-Followers) as worshipping, just like the culture?

    2) How can you know when you are doing something for God’s glory rather than your own?

    3) Why do leaders leading and volunteers stepping up God glory?

    FD) What can you not do and give God glory?

  • The Nudging

    Moses is in need of help. He can’t do it all. What’s odd is that it would seem that Moses didn’t maintain the lesson learned from his father-in-law (see Exodus 18). It’s not entirely the same. In Exodus 18, it was the “priestly” judges who were selected. This is more along the lines of a professional judiciary, such as we have from local, to district, to appellate, to supreme judiciaries. We have something different here. What has occurred is the selection of senior spiritual leaders. They are family leaders, too, but it is the application of the that makes this important. There are a couple of story-lines occurring here, and that can lead to some confusion. It is often assumed (and has often been taught) that Eldad and Medad remained in camp because they were disgruntled, putting them with the grumbling people. The text does not make that clear. It is our . We do know that Eldad and Medad were selected by Moses (so, much less likely to be among the disgruntled). What if they just hadn’t made it, yet? Or, what if they did not feel or were scared? Both reasonable based upon experience God’s miracles. They had been chosen…and the Holy Spirit fell on them anyways.‌

    Joshua was offended on Moses’ behalf, but Moses noted that it is God’s spirit, not his. Many, many years later, Jesus has a similar experience with his disciples. Within in the context of arguing which was greater than the other, and Jesus shutting that conversation down well, John ups the game reporting that a man who was not among the disciples are successfully driving out demons. John then states that they (in other words, “I wasn’t the only one, Jesus.”) tried to stop the man, but Jesus stopped even that. The disciples were “offended” by the man driving out demons, but were they upset on Jesus’ behalf or their own. Jesus’ would indicate that this was about them, not him.‌

    Often we can become overly concerned with the “right” way of doing things. With the Holy Spirit, the right way can often not be our way. This is not to say the God is a god of chaos. God makes and creates order. However, our concept of order and “right” can be at odds with God at times. Joshua and John (yes, with some pride in there) assumed they were doing the right thing by saying “this is wrong.” Yet, God did it, so it wasn’t wrong. It just didn’t fit their idea. Philip may have learned a lesson by the point of this story in Acts. The of the Holy Spirit didn’t hurt either. Philip obeyed and went to the “desert” road for a divine appointment. Nudged further, he approached an important chariot. There is a lot in this story that is missing, but the essentials are there. Philip in obedience approached a chariot that would have been awkward for him normally to approach. Through obedience to the Holy Spirit, Philip then leads the Ethiopian to Christ. After the Ethiopian’s something strange happens, the Holy Spirit “carries” (in Greek, it’s more of snatch) Philip away. The Ethiopian goes on his way rejoicing. The way the journey from Jerusalem to Gaza is written, it sounds immediate, but it was actually quite a journey by foot. We don’t get that from Luke’s words, we just have to know geography. This is important as the way Luke writes this gives us an idea that Philip teleported from Gaza to Azotus (a.k.a., Ashdod). While it is quite possible for God to do such, a better way to think of this is that Philip did what was needed and did not stay there rejoicing in the victory. He continued on the .‌

    Far too often we get comfortable with the success and want to “stay” there in the happy time. The Holy Spirit is always calling us on to the next thing. The next thing may not be immediate (and often isn’t). Sitting with our victories and successes, though, makes us stagnant. The same can be said of sticking to the old known formula. It worked for its time. The Holy Spirit may have stamped “expired” on it. We need to be ready for the Holy Spirit is doing.‌

    • 1) In the last week, how have you seen the Holy Spirit move in your ? How about the lives of others?‌
    • 2) What is the Holy Spirit nudging you to do? Who is the Holy Spirit nudging you to speak to?
    • 3) Often times we may think the Holy Spirit is nudging us to talk to someone so that they can be “fixed”. This isn’t always the case. When have you had a Holy Spirit encounter where you were the one that learned rather than being the one who taught?‌
    • FD) Have you ever said something to defend the efforts of others? Why did you do that?

  • Seeking Voices

    Psalm 57, Galatians 4:1–11, Luke 7:20-30

    words to the Galatians are a warning and yet imbued with and . Paul recalls for them that they were slaves to statues, sacrifices, and temples that did not give them life. In fact, these things took life. When we are talking about life here, we’re not speaking of biological life, but spiritual life. The Galatians were spiritual captives to those that wanted to keep them chained up.

    This spiritual enslavement is both Jewish (to the Mosaic law and to the Rabbinic law put over it) and Gentile (to the pagan and Roman cultures and religions to which they began). Paul’s concern is that they are being called/cajoled/harassed by both insiders and outsiders to return to “their roots,” whether Jewish or Gentile, respectively.

    This is why the concept of slave and heir are important here. A way to think of it is that their souls have been enlightened by the Holy Spirit. They are now children of God. However, in similarity to those enslaved by the “old” ways, they aren’t quite free yet. They have a choice to make. They can choose to be free, fully accepting the inheritance of God, or they can choose the comfortable old way, where they are not free. They are free to choose, but only one path leads to true freedom.

    By and large, the rituals of both the pagan and Jewish traditions were to satisfy the rules and to make things okay. On the other hand, Christianity has many traditions and rituals. All of them are (supposed to be) a to what was already completed by Jesus Christ. However, even the can sometimes forget that it is free of those requirements. How easy it is to follow the old ways!

    In the time of Jesus, we cannot forget that Jesus wasn’t the only wandering teacher. He also wasn’t the only person called a prophet. The sad is that there are always those who set themselves up as prophets, and many people would follow them. These followers were seeking the release of what was holding them down, though many could not put it into words. We even still see this today.

    The interplay between Jesus and John is significant, as John is testing and validating Jesus’ prophetic call, and Jesus is affirming John’s prophetic call. This ties them as far as many of the people are concerned. Yet, the trap of having a prophetic voice to follow is that people will often find themselves always following the latest and greatest prophetic voice. The church is no different.

    Often pastor, elders, and leaders do the same. It is nature to want to be near the successful. The successful, though, are often as trapped (if not more so) than “normal” people.

    When Jesus and John validate each other’s calling, there is a sense of mutual submission. They are looking to the other for validation and confirmation. This is unusual when it comes to those who put themselves up as prophetic voices, for they then consider their voice the only one to be listened to.

    • 1) When you seek voices to into your life, do you test them? If so, how? If not, why not?
    • 2) Thinking of the grisly deaths of Jesus and John, why would anyone set themselves up to be a prophet?
    • 3) Where do you see voices in our modern context trying to be prophetic influencers? What seems to be the primary motivation?
    • FD) What does it mean to have someone speak into your life?