love God – Be Still…

Mark 12:18-34 – Love God & Others

The hard questions keep on coming for Jesus. I know when I have an audience with Jesus, I’m going to have all sorts of questions. I will seek clarification about creation and affirmation of my beliefs. I can’t imagine trying to trick Jesus.

It was helpful to hear how Jesus responded to the topic of resurrection. Except when we are in church or talking about our forever home with Jesus, the word “resurrection” doesn’t come up much in everyday conversation. It was interesting to me that it was a Sadducee who asked the question about resurrection, something they don’t even believe exists. Continue reading “Mark 12:18-34 – Love God & Others”

Ezekiel 45:1-8 – Fairness of God

Read Ezekiel 45:1-8

There’s land to distribute again. When the Israelites first took the Promised Land, the land was intentionally distributed among the twelve tribes. I couldn’t help but remember that story. However, this is different because it speaks of the holy land that will house the temple of God’s presence, a place for the priests, the princes, and the people. God’s place is discussed first.

Nobody has been left out. All have a place and a purpose. That’s God’s fairness. After all that the people have gone through, God wants to restore them in the land. There is a great promise here. If only they would listen to him this time and not try to figure things out on their own. Continue reading “Ezekiel 45:1-8 – Fairness of God”

Ecclesiates 6:10-12 – What’s Your Future?

Read Ecclesiastes 6:10-12

This passage oozes with the notion of predestination. That’s a “churchy” word meaning different things to different people. Known as a Christian doctrine for some denominations, it has been debated by theologians for centuries. Basically, it means that God has figured everything out ahead of time, knows what’s going to happen in our lives, and there is nothing we can do to change it. Does that give you assurance or scare you just a little bit?

In terms of our salvation, however, this can be a bit unnerving. What if God didn’t “choose” me to be saved? I have a hard time believing that some people of faith would not be saved because they weren’t “predestined.” After all, Jesus commanded us to evangelize and make new disciples. Why would he do that if it was already predestined who would be saved?

Lamentations 4:1-22 – Punishment for Sin

Read Lamentations 4:1-22

Some of the verses of this lament were very hard to read. I won’t quote those horrific scenes, but they will haunt me when I think of the punishment God’s people endured for their sinfulness. When we read passages like this, we often want to run immediately to the New Testament and fill up on some grace. Instead, take a moment to reflect on what God is saying to you today.

This lament is written from the viewpoint of the misery affecting the citizens of Zion. We see the fate of several different classes of people mentioned. Escaping this reality was not an option, even for the rich and powerful. These terrible things were punishment and a direct result of the people’s sinfulness.

Zephaniah 1:1-6 – God’s Wrath

Read Zephaniah 1:1-6

Zephaniah was a contemporary of Jeremiah and would have spoken God’s words during the reign of King Josiah. You’ll recall when King Josiah learned of the scrolls containing God’s law, great reforms began to help the people of Judah to return to God. Zephaniah would help shake the people of Judah out of their complacency so they could understand their hope comes from God.

Zephaniah doesn’t sugar coat the radical message from God but gets right to the point. God’s wrath will sweep away everything and crush Jerusalem and Judah. Even his own creation will suffer. God’s anger has been fueled by all the idol worship that fills the land.