July 11, 2012

Appalling and Horrible and the People Love It So!

At the time when Jeremiah prophesied, God was preparing to send Judah into Babylonian captivity in order to punish them for their sins (Jeremiah 1:14-16). But it was not just the common people that had devolved into a state of spiritual corruption. The prophets and priests were involved as well.

“An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule on their own authority; and My people love it so!” (Jeremiah 5:30-31).

The inhabitants of Judah had learned to tolerate and celebrate sin. “Where they ashamed because of the abomination they have done? They were not even ashamed at all; they did not even know how to blush” (Jeremiah 6:15). The prophets spoke lies and the priests followed their own rule. “For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for gain, and from the prophet even to the priest everyone deals falsely. They have healed the brokenness of My people superficially, saying ‘Peace, peace,’ but there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:13-14). Yet even as judgment was planned because of these things, God invited His people to repent and turn back to Him.
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June 19, 2012

"Draw Near to Listen Rather Than to Offer the Sacrifice of Fools" (6/19)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Ecclesiastes 1-6.

“Guard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil” (Ecclesiastes 5:1).

As Solomon and the Jews would go to the temple to worship, we go to various locations to worship God today. The wise man’s warning is necessary for us: be careful how you worship God.
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June 13, 2012

"Will God Indeed Dwell on the Earth?" (6/13)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from 1 Kings 8; 2 Chronicles 5.

After the ark was brought into the temple, Solomon offered a prayer of dedication. As he was praying, he said this:

“But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house which I have built!” (1 Kings 8:27).

The temple that Solomon built was an impressive and beautiful structure. Yet he realized that though it was a temple for the Lord, it was inadequate to house the Lord. God is great, so great that even the heavens cannot contain Him.
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June 11, 2012

Solomon’s Plan to Build the Temple (6/11)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from 1 Kings 5-6; 2 Chronicles 2-3.

When Solomon was about to build the temple, he contacted Hiram (or Huram, depending on the translation), the king of Tyre to receive workers and materials from him that would be necessary for the project. In his message to Hiram, we see four attitudes that Solomon possessed that are important for us to emulate.

“Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, dedicating it to Him, to burn fragrant incense before Him and to set out the showbread continually, and to offer burnt offerings morning and evening, on sabbaths and on new moons and on the appointed feasts of the Lord our God, this being required forever in Israel” (2 Chronicles 2:4).

We first see that Solomon had a desire to worship God according to the pattern He had given to Israel. In building the temple, Solomon was not trying to do things his way, but God’s way.
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May 25, 2012

Every Morning and Evening (5/25)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from 1 Chronicles 23-25.

Near the beginning of Solomon’s reign, the text records the responsibilities of the Levites. Among them is the following instruction:

“They are to stand every morning to thank and to praise the Lord, and likewise at evening, and to offer all burnt offerings to the Lord, on the sabbaths, the new moons and the fixed festivals in the number set by the ordinance concerning them, continually before the Lord” (1 Chronicles 23:30-31).

We remember the special festivals and observances that were commanded in the Law of Moses. These required the work of the Levites. But their work in serving God involved more than just the weekly Sabbaths and yearly observances. They were to thank and praise the Lord “every morning… and likewise at evening.”
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May 6, 2012

“Shout Joyfully to the Lord” (5/6)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Psalm 89, 96, 100-101, 105, 132.

“Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful singing.

“Know that the Lord Himself is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

“Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations” (Psalm 100:1-5).

All people are to worship and praise the Lord. This invitation to come and glorify God was not just for the nation of Israel, but was for “all the earth.” In this short psalm, there are several reasons given as to why we ought to praise the Lord.
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April 27, 2012

Obedience is Greater than Lineage (4/27)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from 1 Chronicles 6.

“The sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath and Merari. The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. The children of Amram were Aaron, Moses and Miriam.

“And the sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar” (1 Chronicles 6:1-3).

Aaron was chosen to be the priest of God for the people of Israel. He, and his sons, were of the tribe of Levi which had been set apart by God to do His work. It was a special privilege to be born into such a group. But while the passage above lists all of Aaron’s sons, the one below singles out one of them – the one who would be his successor as high priest.
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