I went walking this morning. It was cloudy when I left, but not raining. By the time I got to the end of my block, it started sprinkling slightly. No big deal, I’ll just walk my short route. Well, by the time I got there, the raining had slowed so I could do my whole route. No sooner did I get past the point of no return, it started raining for real. Figures. But, the good news, no bulls encompassing.
We remember our Psalm from Good Friday. It reminds us so much of Jesus and His crucifixion. He may have been God’s Son, but He suffered terribly on the cross. To the point where He could count all His bones. His strength was dried up. A person who is crucified dies of suffocation. When they are too weak to push themselves up to breathe, they can’t inhale and they die. Usually after three days. But not Jesus. It was just a matter of hours because of the burden of sin He carried. It was not a pretty sight.
So, which of the Proverbs did you enjoy today? We have a few weather related proverbs today. “Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a faithful messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his maters. Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of a gift he does not give.” Right about now, I wish the clouds didn’t have rain this morning. But, I didn’t have to water my new sod. So that’s a good thing.
Verse 17 makes me chuckle, “Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house, lest he have his fill of you and hate you.” Reminds me of the vacation/fish analogy. Visitors and fish smell after three days. Just practical advise.
John records the details of the crucifixion. Jesus’ garments are taken. The list of disciples and followers is given. The exchange between Jesus and His mother and John is recorded. And Jesus dies.
But notice, it doesn’t say He dies, but “He gave us his spirit.” Even in death, Jesus has control. To be sure, He is dead. But the Father had given Him control of His life and death. That’s what being God is about. Only God is in control of life and death. Not us. That’s a point we need to remember. God is the giver of life. Only He can take it away.
In verse 35 and following, John stakes his claim as an eye witness. His testimony is true. He tells the truth so that you may believe. The whole point of him writing this Gospel is so that we might believe. Notice the details he puts into the burial. Joseph and Nicodemus took care of the arrangements. But John was there. He saw the 75 pounds of herbs. And he lays out the exact location of the grave, near the place where He was cruficied, in the garden, in the new tomb. Anyone of that day would have been able to find the exact location and John has the location etched into his memory. He would never forget that place.
If you skip the writing, I’d suggest you take the extra few moments to read it today. We don’t give our hearts to Jesus. Our Lord redeems us. It’s a good story.
PSALM 139:14-18, 23-24
PROVERBS 27:1-24
JOHN 20:1-18
Let’s see, i’m 10 to 20 lbs over weight. I’m on medication for high blood pressure and high chloresterol. My hair is getting thinner all the time. And yet, how does our Psalm begin? “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
One of the first psychology classes I took (besides psy 101) was Child Psychology. I never thought of it until the class stated, but the first unit was on fetal development. Basically, we spent the first two weeks of class looking at everything that could go wrong with a person even before birth. People, it’s a miracle we were born! The Psalmist understood that.
So yeah, I may be falling apart, but if it weren’t for the Lord, I wouldn’t be here at all. He has done a marvelous job forming us. It was our sinful nature that brought on all these problems. I doubt Adam and Eve had high blood pressure until after Cain killed Able.
This is a great Psalm. But verse 23 does scare me a little, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!” Ok, it’s not like I sit around all day planning of taking over the world, but it is a sobering idea that God knows all of our thoughts. While some of them come and go quickly, I don’t want anyone to know them.
This was our best day for proverbs yet, in my opinion. “Better is open rebuke than hidden love.” This one will get you thinking. Why is open rebuke better than hidden love? I don’t have an answer to that. My first thought is that one trying to hide love might think that rebuke would cover it up. So that there is a connection between the two. Let me know your thoughts!
So, Solomon thinks i’m simple. “The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.” When the tornado sirens go off, most people head for the basement. I head outside to watch. I’ve never suffered for it. But I agree, it’s not a smart idea.
We have this one gutter that leaks over the deck. After a rain it just drips and drips and drips all day. Solomon with his 1,200 wives must also have had a drip, “A continual dripping on a rainy day and a quarrelsome wife are alike.” I’m not saying any more.
Happy Easter! Easter in June would be so much better than Easter in March or April. But the Lord didn’t consult me on dates, so I guess we will just keep it as recorded. Two words in this text caught my eye. In verse seven it says, “He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloth but FOLDED UP in a place by itself.” This is the stuff that CSI’s love. Why would the face cloth be folded up? If the body was stolen, it wouldn’t be folded up, it would either be with the body or lying with the rest of the clothes or just thrown somewhere. For it to be folded up means that Jesus rose on His terms, at His time, not in a hurry, but according to God’s plan with no surprises.
Also, notice how God deals with the disciples differently and how they come to the knoweldge of the resurrection in different ways. John sees this stuff and “he saw and believed.” Mary Magdalene saw the same stuff, but she’s not there yet. So the angel appear to her and tel you what happened and she is still not there yet. So Jesus appears to hear and speaks to her and finally, she’s there. God deals with each of us on our own terms in our own way. He is a personal God. He loves us and takes care of us and loves us as we are.
Have a blessed Easter and enjoy the day. I hope the AC works.
PSALM 85:7-13
PROVERBS 30:1-9, 18-33
JOHN 20:19-31
I’m not happy. I was finished commenting on the Psalm, and researching something about Proverbs when I hit a button on my keyboard and the page just disappeared and I couldn’t hit the back button to recover it. Grrrrrr.
Anyway, I originally stated that we see verse seven played out in our lives each and every day. The Lord indeed shows us His steadfast love each and every day. As He provides us with food and clothing and shelter and everything we need on a day to day basis, He is showing us His love. Of course, the place He shows us His love the most is on the cross where He sacrifices His own Son so that we can have eternal life. Now, I really didn’t feel particularly loved this morning at 6am as I headed out for my walk in this humid weather (why do we always seem to go from cold and wet to hot and humid in a day?). But we can’t trust our feelings because they have been affected by sin. So, we look to His Word, we look to the Sacraments and we see that we are loved. The cross is God’s guarantee that He loves us.
We have no idea who Agur is. He is not mentioned anywhere else in the bible. He just shows up here. But, some of his words got in the bible. How cool is that?
“Surely I am too stupid to be a man.” Oh yes, there are times when we all feel like this. So, compare this in verse two to verse five where we read, “Every word of God proves true.” We are stupid. He is true. That sums it all up.
Notice the pattern that runs here. “Under three things the earth trembles; under four it cannot bear up.” Then it lists four things that shakes the world. It happens three or four times in the text. It’s just a type of poetry intended to catch your attention.
I was curious as to what was included in the passages from the middle of the text that wasn’t assigned to us. One verse caught my attention. Proverbs 30:17, “The eye that mocks a father, that scorns obedience to a mother, will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley, will be eaten by the vultures.” That’s graphic. I guess I better respect my parents. When my kids have kids (10 years from now) I’ll make a little cross stitch of this verse with a picture of a vulture pecking a toddler for them to put up in their room. I’ll be the crazy grandpa.
Finally, the night of the first Easter in our text, Jesus appears to the 10 disciples. The very first words out of His mouth are, “Peace be with you.” And they responded, “And also with you.” And the text says there were glad to see Him. No kidding. What I find interesting is that He breaths on them and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” When we know that they couldn’t believe if they didn’t have the Holy Spirit AND that Pentecost was coming when He would send the Holy Spirit. Did He give more of the Spirit? I would think that either you have the Spirit or you don’t. It’s just curious to me. I don’t have any answers.
In our continuing discussion of how God works differently in each of our lives, John just sees the empty tomb and believes. Mary Magdelene has to see the angels and the risen Jesus before she believes, and here we have Thomas who hears the testimony of 10 eye witnesses and still proclaims that he won’t believe. What? Are the disciples going to make it up to play a trick on Thomas because he will believe anything? I don’t think so. With this news, wouldn’t the disciples just be more upbeat and jovial and excited rather than down and depressed and sad? Well, Jesus makes him wait a week and He shows up again and all is well with the world. Thomas sees Jesus and immediately believes. Blessed are we, who have not seen Him and yet, we still believe!
Since I normally use the NIV version, which, in John 20:24, says, “Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the twelve” I did not know that he was called the Twin. I googled Didymus and discovered that in Aramaic it means twin. Three other verses in the NIV, John 11;16 and John 21:2, also refer to him as Didymus. I guess I just never questioned what Didymus meant before. Several hits on Google refer to him as the exact likeness of Jesus, therefore he was called the Twin. Some of the more questionable references went as far as to say he was Jesus’ twin brother. At that point, I decided I was getting myself in too deep.
I do enjoy the Treasury of Daily Prayer (even though I am a member of WELS). I also enjoy reading your blog. I am Darcy Mohr’s mother.
Judy,
Well thank you for reading and I hope you are getting something out of it. Yes, it’s amazing, because of this one event in his life Thomas went from being “Thomas the Twin,” to “Doubting Thomas.” As to who his twin was, we have no clue. His twin could have even been a girl. While Jesus died have brothers and sisters the name Thomas is never listed among them. I really doubt (get it “doubt”) that he was called the Twin because he looked a lot like Jesus. To us anglos, all of those mediteranian type Jewish men of about the same age would have looked alike. I think it’s just easier to think that he was called the Twin because he had a twin brother or sister and with high mortality rates of the day, I would bet that surviving twins would have been quite rare.
Thank you for answering. Yes, I do get a lot out of reading this book. I have many meditation and devotional books, but this provides me with a complete daily devotion. I set aside a portion of every day for bible study and have used different methods (including just starting with Genesis and ending with Revelation). This just works for me, and I can add the additional readings as time allows.
People don’t like to be told what to do in the world today. The general feeling is that you can do what you want to do, just let me do what I want to do and if we disagree on what is right, that’s ok. The world does not believe that there is one all encompassing “truth” or authority out there. We can all just do what we want as long as we don’t infringe on each other’s personal freedom. So, it’s ok if you want to commit adultery, just don’t do it with my wife. And yet, we know that God is THE authority and He has given us a set of Commandments that are binding on all people. At the heart of these commandments is love. They are not meant to be a burden, but they are given in love. And because Christ kept the Commandments for us, we are seen as being perfect in God’s eyes. So we can conclude with the Psalmist, “I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statues.” We love the Commandments because they show us how to love God.
What can I say about the Proverbs section for today? This wife is an exceptional woman. I have no idea when she has time to sleep and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t exist (however, my wife is awesome and does a great job). The key to this whole section is verse 30, “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” The key is faith and respect for the Lord. What does Matthew say, “Seek first His righteousness and all these things will be given unto you.” It’s obvious that this woman God first and has received everything else.
So, Jesus appeared to the 10 disciples on the first Easter night. Then He appears to the 11 a week later and Thomas believes. Now, for some reason the disciples have moved to Galilee (their former homebase) and Peter seems to have gotten bored and decides to go fishing. They fish all night and catch nothing. Jesus shows up and they catch 153 fish. John recognizes Jesus because of the catch and tells Peter and Peter can’t wait to see Jesus, so he jumps out of the boat and walks ashore and finds breakfast waiting for them. Now, I love fish, but I’m not sure I want it for breakfast. But remember, these are fishermen, so I’m sure they were used to it.
This meeting between Jesus and Peter is one of my favorite sections of the Bible. But you have to know Greek to really get the full impact of the story. To be sure, John writes that, “Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’” Peter had denied Jesus three times and Jesus ask him that question three times. To be sure, while the conversation was meaningful and cordial, Jesus was offering Peter forgiveness in a way that was uncomfortable for Peter. But I think there is more. The first two times Jesus asks Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Jesus uses the Greek word, “agape.” Agape is unconditional love. Will you always love me no matter what? It is the highest form and experession of love. It is the kind of love that God has for us and moved Jesus to die on the cross for us. Well, each time Peter replies he says, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you,” Peter uses the Greek word, “phileo,” which is friendship or brotherly love. Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, gets it’s name from this word. So, while Jesus is asking Peter for agape love, Peter is offering brotherly love instead. What happens the third time is that Jesus comes down to Peter’s level and asks him, “Simon, son of John, do you phileo me?” And Peter’s response is, “Lord, you know everything, you know that I phileo you.” Part of the reason Peter gets sad here and tries to change the subject in a second is that Jesus has to come down to Peter’s level.
Yesterday, in Bible class, we talked about how Jesus appeard to the disciples in different ways, in personal ways, as they needed so that they would believe the resurrection. We see the same thing here. Jesus is willing to come down to our level, to meet us where we are in faith and to move forward with us at our pace. He doesn’t require us to love Him as much as Peter and John did before we are baptized and forgiven. But He meets us where we are and offers us forgiveness and eternal life where we are now. He is a personal God who loves us and takes us by the hand and cares for us.
Wanting to end the conversation and switch to another topic, Peter notices John following Jesus and Peter as they are probably walking along the beach, and Peter asks Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” Typical Peter. We do the same thing. We try to change the subject when things get uncomfortable. I love the book of John because it is so human. We get so much detail because John was there and saw. We can almost taste and smell what is going on. John includes these details to show that, “This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.”
I just finished my sermon for Sunday based on Lamentations 3, and we found there too a strong emphasis on “wait for the Lord.” My wife will tell you, I’m not good at waiting. I’m impatient. If there is a problem now, I want it solved now. But obviously, the Lord has different plans and ideas. His goodness is abundant, we just have to wait for it. The Lord preserves the faithful and repays the prideful. He is indeed and awesome God. We just have to look and wait to see it.
Can you imagine being in charge of 3 million people? After the death of Moses, that’s exactly what happens to Joshua. He goes from being Moses’ assistant to being The Man in charge who is charged with obeying God. The Lord tells him, “Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you.” Three times in the text, at least, the Lord tells Joshua, “Be strong and courageous.” It is a huge task that Joshua has before him. Lead 3 million people and fight against all the cities that currently inhabit what will eventually be Israel. But God has been promising this day would come since Abraham and it would be very exciting to see that happen first hand. So while this is a huge task, it is also a very exciting time.
Now that’s a big jump. We go from Jesus’ death and resurrection and jump to Saul’s persecution of the church, even skipping the stoning of Stephen. But this is a good introduction to Saul, to see the passion with which he persecuted the church. He totally believed that the name of Jesus was against Judaism. So, he did what he did.
Then we hear of the work of Philip. This is important becasue he is working in Samaria. These were not Jews that he was working with. These were half-Jews. Jew and Samaritans hated each other. Yet, they accept Philip and even more important, his message. So, they send Peter and John to them to lay hands on them so that they receive the Holy Spirit. And it works. These non-Jews also receive the Holy Spirit which surprises the Disciples. But they aren’t going to argue succcess. It’s amazing that even during persecution, the new Church continues to grow and spread. Maybe we need a little persecution now, don’t worry, before the end of the world, persecution will come.
What do you think of this story of simon the Magician? At first, he seems to accept just so that he can continue doing magic. And when he sees what these people can do with the Holy Spirit, he offers money to get this power. But notice how agressively Peter reacts. The power of the Holy Spirit isn’t for sale. That’s why we are very careful in the church. People will ask how much it costs to do a baptism and we are very clear and upfront that it is free. We don’t chage for forgiveness of sin, eternal life and salvation. They are free gifts from God. Even if we were to give our life, it would not be enough to cover the cost of forgiveness. So, forgiveness, life and salvation remain free.
This Psalm is so familiar to us, but it is no less meaningful. We sin everyday. Sometimes our sins are huge and bother us and this Psalm stands out in our minds. Other times, our sin isn’t as great, just the normal everyday variety, but still, I’m almost more concerned about those because we don’t see the gravity in them. Sin is sin. They are all terribly bad. It’s when we get comfortable in sin that we really start traveling down a bad road. And as the Psalmist says, “Against you, you only , have I sinned.” While we may sin in private and no one else knows about it, it is God whom we have sinned against. There is no such thing as a good sin.
The Lord works in mysterious ways. He used the 10 plagues to bring fear into every nation in the mideast. Everyone had heard of the Lord’s work with Israel and they were afraid. The Lord uses a prostitute to save these spies. Her deeds are even mentioned in the New Testament. God uses a prostitute to help Israel. Normally, the Lord instructs Israel to destroy every man, woman and child of the city they are attacking. Why? Because these are pagan nations and if they are allowed to live, they will tempt the people of Israel to worship false gods. Israel ends up doing so anyway, but it would have happened much quicker. But, the Lord does indeed work in mysterious ways.
Speaking of working in mysterious ways, here we have Philip following the Spirits instructions to witness to this Ethiopian Eunuch. What is amazing is that the Spirit singled out this individual to receive one on one instruction in the faith. We have the parable of the lost sheep where the shepherd leave 99 sheep to go find the one lost one. Well, we see that taking place here. But it’s not that the Spirit would lead Philip to one person, it is WHO he ministers to that is surprising. First, this isn’t a fellow israelite. The Eunuch is a gentile, just like us. The church is branching out to someone who could not become an Israelite because he is a Eunuch, that was strictly forgibben by the Old Testament. But, as someone in charge of the treasury, he would be a key convert and would have influence in the whole court of Egypt.
After explaining the Gospel to the Eunuch, in Star Trek type fashion, Philip finds himself in Ceasarea. The Lord works in mysterious ways.
MONDAY, JUNE 22, 2009
Psalm 22:12-21
Proverbs 25:1-22
John 19:23-42
I went walking this morning. It was cloudy when I left, but not raining. By the time I got to the end of my block, it started sprinkling slightly. No big deal, I’ll just walk my short route. Well, by the time I got there, the raining had slowed so I could do my whole route. No sooner did I get past the point of no return, it started raining for real. Figures. But, the good news, no bulls encompassing.
We remember our Psalm from Good Friday. It reminds us so much of Jesus and His crucifixion. He may have been God’s Son, but He suffered terribly on the cross. To the point where He could count all His bones. His strength was dried up. A person who is crucified dies of suffocation. When they are too weak to push themselves up to breathe, they can’t inhale and they die. Usually after three days. But not Jesus. It was just a matter of hours because of the burden of sin He carried. It was not a pretty sight.
So, which of the Proverbs did you enjoy today? We have a few weather related proverbs today. “Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a faithful messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his maters. Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of a gift he does not give.” Right about now, I wish the clouds didn’t have rain this morning. But, I didn’t have to water my new sod. So that’s a good thing.
Verse 17 makes me chuckle, “Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house, lest he have his fill of you and hate you.” Reminds me of the vacation/fish analogy. Visitors and fish smell after three days. Just practical advise.
John records the details of the crucifixion. Jesus’ garments are taken. The list of disciples and followers is given. The exchange between Jesus and His mother and John is recorded. And Jesus dies.
But notice, it doesn’t say He dies, but “He gave us his spirit.” Even in death, Jesus has control. To be sure, He is dead. But the Father had given Him control of His life and death. That’s what being God is about. Only God is in control of life and death. Not us. That’s a point we need to remember. God is the giver of life. Only He can take it away.
In verse 35 and following, John stakes his claim as an eye witness. His testimony is true. He tells the truth so that you may believe. The whole point of him writing this Gospel is so that we might believe. Notice the details he puts into the burial. Joseph and Nicodemus took care of the arrangements. But John was there. He saw the 75 pounds of herbs. And he lays out the exact location of the grave, near the place where He was cruficied, in the garden, in the new tomb. Anyone of that day would have been able to find the exact location and John has the location etched into his memory. He would never forget that place.
If you skip the writing, I’d suggest you take the extra few moments to read it today. We don’t give our hearts to Jesus. Our Lord redeems us. It’s a good story.
Have a blessed day.
TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2009
PSALM 139:14-18, 23-24
PROVERBS 27:1-24
JOHN 20:1-18
Let’s see, i’m 10 to 20 lbs over weight. I’m on medication for high blood pressure and high chloresterol. My hair is getting thinner all the time. And yet, how does our Psalm begin? “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
One of the first psychology classes I took (besides psy 101) was Child Psychology. I never thought of it until the class stated, but the first unit was on fetal development. Basically, we spent the first two weeks of class looking at everything that could go wrong with a person even before birth. People, it’s a miracle we were born! The Psalmist understood that.
So yeah, I may be falling apart, but if it weren’t for the Lord, I wouldn’t be here at all. He has done a marvelous job forming us. It was our sinful nature that brought on all these problems. I doubt Adam and Eve had high blood pressure until after Cain killed Able.
This is a great Psalm. But verse 23 does scare me a little, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!” Ok, it’s not like I sit around all day planning of taking over the world, but it is a sobering idea that God knows all of our thoughts. While some of them come and go quickly, I don’t want anyone to know them.
This was our best day for proverbs yet, in my opinion. “Better is open rebuke than hidden love.” This one will get you thinking. Why is open rebuke better than hidden love? I don’t have an answer to that. My first thought is that one trying to hide love might think that rebuke would cover it up. So that there is a connection between the two. Let me know your thoughts!
So, Solomon thinks i’m simple. “The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.” When the tornado sirens go off, most people head for the basement. I head outside to watch. I’ve never suffered for it. But I agree, it’s not a smart idea.
We have this one gutter that leaks over the deck. After a rain it just drips and drips and drips all day. Solomon with his 1,200 wives must also have had a drip, “A continual dripping on a rainy day and a quarrelsome wife are alike.” I’m not saying any more.
Happy Easter! Easter in June would be so much better than Easter in March or April. But the Lord didn’t consult me on dates, so I guess we will just keep it as recorded. Two words in this text caught my eye. In verse seven it says, “He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloth but FOLDED UP in a place by itself.” This is the stuff that CSI’s love. Why would the face cloth be folded up? If the body was stolen, it wouldn’t be folded up, it would either be with the body or lying with the rest of the clothes or just thrown somewhere. For it to be folded up means that Jesus rose on His terms, at His time, not in a hurry, but according to God’s plan with no surprises.
Also, notice how God deals with the disciples differently and how they come to the knoweldge of the resurrection in different ways. John sees this stuff and “he saw and believed.” Mary Magdalene saw the same stuff, but she’s not there yet. So the angel appear to her and tel you what happened and she is still not there yet. So Jesus appears to hear and speaks to her and finally, she’s there. God deals with each of us on our own terms in our own way. He is a personal God. He loves us and takes care of us and loves us as we are.
Have a blessed Easter and enjoy the day. I hope the AC works.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24, 2009
PSALM 85:7-13
PROVERBS 30:1-9, 18-33
JOHN 20:19-31
I’m not happy. I was finished commenting on the Psalm, and researching something about Proverbs when I hit a button on my keyboard and the page just disappeared and I couldn’t hit the back button to recover it. Grrrrrr.
Anyway, I originally stated that we see verse seven played out in our lives each and every day. The Lord indeed shows us His steadfast love each and every day. As He provides us with food and clothing and shelter and everything we need on a day to day basis, He is showing us His love. Of course, the place He shows us His love the most is on the cross where He sacrifices His own Son so that we can have eternal life. Now, I really didn’t feel particularly loved this morning at 6am as I headed out for my walk in this humid weather (why do we always seem to go from cold and wet to hot and humid in a day?). But we can’t trust our feelings because they have been affected by sin. So, we look to His Word, we look to the Sacraments and we see that we are loved. The cross is God’s guarantee that He loves us.
We have no idea who Agur is. He is not mentioned anywhere else in the bible. He just shows up here. But, some of his words got in the bible. How cool is that?
“Surely I am too stupid to be a man.” Oh yes, there are times when we all feel like this. So, compare this in verse two to verse five where we read, “Every word of God proves true.” We are stupid. He is true. That sums it all up.
Notice the pattern that runs here. “Under three things the earth trembles; under four it cannot bear up.” Then it lists four things that shakes the world. It happens three or four times in the text. It’s just a type of poetry intended to catch your attention.
I was curious as to what was included in the passages from the middle of the text that wasn’t assigned to us. One verse caught my attention. Proverbs 30:17, “The eye that mocks a father, that scorns obedience to a mother, will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley, will be eaten by the vultures.” That’s graphic. I guess I better respect my parents. When my kids have kids (10 years from now) I’ll make a little cross stitch of this verse with a picture of a vulture pecking a toddler for them to put up in their room. I’ll be the crazy grandpa.
Finally, the night of the first Easter in our text, Jesus appears to the 10 disciples. The very first words out of His mouth are, “Peace be with you.” And they responded, “And also with you.” And the text says there were glad to see Him. No kidding. What I find interesting is that He breaths on them and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” When we know that they couldn’t believe if they didn’t have the Holy Spirit AND that Pentecost was coming when He would send the Holy Spirit. Did He give more of the Spirit? I would think that either you have the Spirit or you don’t. It’s just curious to me. I don’t have any answers.
In our continuing discussion of how God works differently in each of our lives, John just sees the empty tomb and believes. Mary Magdelene has to see the angels and the risen Jesus before she believes, and here we have Thomas who hears the testimony of 10 eye witnesses and still proclaims that he won’t believe. What? Are the disciples going to make it up to play a trick on Thomas because he will believe anything? I don’t think so. With this news, wouldn’t the disciples just be more upbeat and jovial and excited rather than down and depressed and sad? Well, Jesus makes him wait a week and He shows up again and all is well with the world. Thomas sees Jesus and immediately believes. Blessed are we, who have not seen Him and yet, we still believe!
Since I normally use the NIV version, which, in John 20:24, says, “Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the twelve” I did not know that he was called the Twin. I googled Didymus and discovered that in Aramaic it means twin. Three other verses in the NIV, John 11;16 and John 21:2, also refer to him as Didymus. I guess I just never questioned what Didymus meant before. Several hits on Google refer to him as the exact likeness of Jesus, therefore he was called the Twin. Some of the more questionable references went as far as to say he was Jesus’ twin brother. At that point, I decided I was getting myself in too deep.
I do enjoy the Treasury of Daily Prayer (even though I am a member of WELS). I also enjoy reading your blog. I am Darcy Mohr’s mother.
Judy,
Well thank you for reading and I hope you are getting something out of it. Yes, it’s amazing, because of this one event in his life Thomas went from being “Thomas the Twin,” to “Doubting Thomas.” As to who his twin was, we have no clue. His twin could have even been a girl. While Jesus died have brothers and sisters the name Thomas is never listed among them. I really doubt (get it “doubt”) that he was called the Twin because he looked a lot like Jesus. To us anglos, all of those mediteranian type Jewish men of about the same age would have looked alike. I think it’s just easier to think that he was called the Twin because he had a twin brother or sister and with high mortality rates of the day, I would bet that surviving twins would have been quite rare.
Thank you for answering. Yes, I do get a lot out of reading this book. I have many meditation and devotional books, but this provides me with a complete daily devotion. I set aside a portion of every day for bible study and have used different methods (including just starting with Genesis and ending with Revelation). This just works for me, and I can add the additional readings as time allows.
THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 2009
PSALM 119:41-48
PROVERBS 31:10-31
jOHN 21:1-25
People don’t like to be told what to do in the world today. The general feeling is that you can do what you want to do, just let me do what I want to do and if we disagree on what is right, that’s ok. The world does not believe that there is one all encompassing “truth” or authority out there. We can all just do what we want as long as we don’t infringe on each other’s personal freedom. So, it’s ok if you want to commit adultery, just don’t do it with my wife. And yet, we know that God is THE authority and He has given us a set of Commandments that are binding on all people. At the heart of these commandments is love. They are not meant to be a burden, but they are given in love. And because Christ kept the Commandments for us, we are seen as being perfect in God’s eyes. So we can conclude with the Psalmist, “I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statues.” We love the Commandments because they show us how to love God.
What can I say about the Proverbs section for today? This wife is an exceptional woman. I have no idea when she has time to sleep and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t exist (however, my wife is awesome and does a great job). The key to this whole section is verse 30, “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” The key is faith and respect for the Lord. What does Matthew say, “Seek first His righteousness and all these things will be given unto you.” It’s obvious that this woman God first and has received everything else.
So, Jesus appeared to the 10 disciples on the first Easter night. Then He appears to the 11 a week later and Thomas believes. Now, for some reason the disciples have moved to Galilee (their former homebase) and Peter seems to have gotten bored and decides to go fishing. They fish all night and catch nothing. Jesus shows up and they catch 153 fish. John recognizes Jesus because of the catch and tells Peter and Peter can’t wait to see Jesus, so he jumps out of the boat and walks ashore and finds breakfast waiting for them. Now, I love fish, but I’m not sure I want it for breakfast. But remember, these are fishermen, so I’m sure they were used to it.
This meeting between Jesus and Peter is one of my favorite sections of the Bible. But you have to know Greek to really get the full impact of the story. To be sure, John writes that, “Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’” Peter had denied Jesus three times and Jesus ask him that question three times. To be sure, while the conversation was meaningful and cordial, Jesus was offering Peter forgiveness in a way that was uncomfortable for Peter. But I think there is more. The first two times Jesus asks Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Jesus uses the Greek word, “agape.” Agape is unconditional love. Will you always love me no matter what? It is the highest form and experession of love. It is the kind of love that God has for us and moved Jesus to die on the cross for us. Well, each time Peter replies he says, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you,” Peter uses the Greek word, “phileo,” which is friendship or brotherly love. Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, gets it’s name from this word. So, while Jesus is asking Peter for agape love, Peter is offering brotherly love instead. What happens the third time is that Jesus comes down to Peter’s level and asks him, “Simon, son of John, do you phileo me?” And Peter’s response is, “Lord, you know everything, you know that I phileo you.” Part of the reason Peter gets sad here and tries to change the subject in a second is that Jesus has to come down to Peter’s level.
Yesterday, in Bible class, we talked about how Jesus appeard to the disciples in different ways, in personal ways, as they needed so that they would believe the resurrection. We see the same thing here. Jesus is willing to come down to our level, to meet us where we are in faith and to move forward with us at our pace. He doesn’t require us to love Him as much as Peter and John did before we are baptized and forgiven. But He meets us where we are and offers us forgiveness and eternal life where we are now. He is a personal God who loves us and takes us by the hand and cares for us.
Wanting to end the conversation and switch to another topic, Peter notices John following Jesus and Peter as they are probably walking along the beach, and Peter asks Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” Typical Peter. We do the same thing. We try to change the subject when things get uncomfortable. I love the book of John because it is so human. We get so much detail because John was there and saw. We can almost taste and smell what is going on. John includes these details to show that, “This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.”
FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 2009
PSALM 31:19-24
JOSHUA 1:1-18
ACTS 8:1-25
I just finished my sermon for Sunday based on Lamentations 3, and we found there too a strong emphasis on “wait for the Lord.” My wife will tell you, I’m not good at waiting. I’m impatient. If there is a problem now, I want it solved now. But obviously, the Lord has different plans and ideas. His goodness is abundant, we just have to wait for it. The Lord preserves the faithful and repays the prideful. He is indeed and awesome God. We just have to look and wait to see it.
Can you imagine being in charge of 3 million people? After the death of Moses, that’s exactly what happens to Joshua. He goes from being Moses’ assistant to being The Man in charge who is charged with obeying God. The Lord tells him, “Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you.” Three times in the text, at least, the Lord tells Joshua, “Be strong and courageous.” It is a huge task that Joshua has before him. Lead 3 million people and fight against all the cities that currently inhabit what will eventually be Israel. But God has been promising this day would come since Abraham and it would be very exciting to see that happen first hand. So while this is a huge task, it is also a very exciting time.
Now that’s a big jump. We go from Jesus’ death and resurrection and jump to Saul’s persecution of the church, even skipping the stoning of Stephen. But this is a good introduction to Saul, to see the passion with which he persecuted the church. He totally believed that the name of Jesus was against Judaism. So, he did what he did.
Then we hear of the work of Philip. This is important becasue he is working in Samaria. These were not Jews that he was working with. These were half-Jews. Jew and Samaritans hated each other. Yet, they accept Philip and even more important, his message. So, they send Peter and John to them to lay hands on them so that they receive the Holy Spirit. And it works. These non-Jews also receive the Holy Spirit which surprises the Disciples. But they aren’t going to argue succcess. It’s amazing that even during persecution, the new Church continues to grow and spread. Maybe we need a little persecution now, don’t worry, before the end of the world, persecution will come.
What do you think of this story of simon the Magician? At first, he seems to accept just so that he can continue doing magic. And when he sees what these people can do with the Holy Spirit, he offers money to get this power. But notice how agressively Peter reacts. The power of the Holy Spirit isn’t for sale. That’s why we are very careful in the church. People will ask how much it costs to do a baptism and we are very clear and upfront that it is free. We don’t chage for forgiveness of sin, eternal life and salvation. They are free gifts from God. Even if we were to give our life, it would not be enough to cover the cost of forgiveness. So, forgiveness, life and salvation remain free.
SATURDAY, JUNE 27, 2009
PSALM 51:1-9
JOSHUA 2:1-24
ACTS 8:26-40
This Psalm is so familiar to us, but it is no less meaningful. We sin everyday. Sometimes our sins are huge and bother us and this Psalm stands out in our minds. Other times, our sin isn’t as great, just the normal everyday variety, but still, I’m almost more concerned about those because we don’t see the gravity in them. Sin is sin. They are all terribly bad. It’s when we get comfortable in sin that we really start traveling down a bad road. And as the Psalmist says, “Against you, you only , have I sinned.” While we may sin in private and no one else knows about it, it is God whom we have sinned against. There is no such thing as a good sin.
The Lord works in mysterious ways. He used the 10 plagues to bring fear into every nation in the mideast. Everyone had heard of the Lord’s work with Israel and they were afraid. The Lord uses a prostitute to save these spies. Her deeds are even mentioned in the New Testament. God uses a prostitute to help Israel. Normally, the Lord instructs Israel to destroy every man, woman and child of the city they are attacking. Why? Because these are pagan nations and if they are allowed to live, they will tempt the people of Israel to worship false gods. Israel ends up doing so anyway, but it would have happened much quicker. But, the Lord does indeed work in mysterious ways.
Speaking of working in mysterious ways, here we have Philip following the Spirits instructions to witness to this Ethiopian Eunuch. What is amazing is that the Spirit singled out this individual to receive one on one instruction in the faith. We have the parable of the lost sheep where the shepherd leave 99 sheep to go find the one lost one. Well, we see that taking place here. But it’s not that the Spirit would lead Philip to one person, it is WHO he ministers to that is surprising. First, this isn’t a fellow israelite. The Eunuch is a gentile, just like us. The church is branching out to someone who could not become an Israelite because he is a Eunuch, that was strictly forgibben by the Old Testament. But, as someone in charge of the treasury, he would be a key convert and would have influence in the whole court of Egypt.
After explaining the Gospel to the Eunuch, in Star Trek type fashion, Philip finds himself in Ceasarea. The Lord works in mysterious ways.