Day 27 - Daniel

Day 27 - DANIEL (Faith Tested by Fire)

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Then Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, gave the command to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. So they brought these men before the king.  Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up?  Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?"  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.  If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.  But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up."   (Daniel 3:13-18)

How many of us would be able to withstand the test of our faith when confronted with the threat “Deny or Die!”   Sadly, that is exactly what thousands of Christians are faced around the world today in countries like North Korea, China, and many Middle East nations.  In all likelihood, you and I reading this devotional, will not have to face such extreme test of our faith in Christ.  

We are, however, faced daily with a more subtle test of faith, that is, whenever we are presented with the choice of obeying God or self and sin.  Will you continue to look at that obscene image on your computer screen or click it off?  Will you forgive the person who offended you or will you keep a grudge?  I can go on with many other examples but you get my point.  Know this, God always honors the person who honors Him and keeps the faith.

Back to Daniel, you might wonder what happened to him and his freinds.  Well, the text would be too long for me to paste on this short devotional so if you really want to know you can open your Bible and read the rest of  Daniel chapter 3.

Day 26 - Ezekiel

Day 26 - Ezekiel - (Israel’s Restoration)

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For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land.  Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.  I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  (Ezekiel 36:24-26)

Around 565 years before Christ while being a captive in Babylon, Ezekiel prophesied about the return of the scattered Jews from around the world and the restoration of Israel as a nation.  Two and a half milleniums later on May 14, 1948, Ezekiel’s prophecy, and Isaiah’s prophecy of the nation Israel being re-born in one day, was fulfilled.  One day, the other part of Ezekiel’s prophecy about Israel being cleansed and receiving a new heart and a new spirit and her heart of stone being replaced with a heart of flesh will also be fulfilled when as a nation she acknowledges Jesus as her Messiah.

Just as God will save Israel when she believes in Christ, God will also save the person who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ as Messiah.  

Day 25 - Lamentations (God's Goodness)

Day 25 - Lamentations (God’s Goodness)

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Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not.  They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.  "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!"  The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him.  It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For the salvation of the Lord.  (Lamentations 3:22-26)

“God is good all the time; all the time God is good!”  That has been a catchphrase among believers around the world because it rings true to those who know the goodness of God.  I, for one, confess that were it not for God’s mercy, I would have been consumed by sin and fallen out of the ministry which He has called me this 30 years now.

As long as I continue to place my hope in Him and wait upon Him and seek Him with all of my heart, soul, and strength, God’s compassion will fail not, they will be new every morning, for great is His faithfulness!  Hallellujah!

Day 24 - Jeremiah

Day 24 - JEREMIAH (He is the Potter, I Am the Clay)

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And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.  Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying:  "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" says the Lord. "Look, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!  (Jeremiah 18:4-6)

At the very root of man’s heart is rebellion against his Creator.  We want to think that we are the master of our own destiny and that no one, not even God, has the right to meddle in our lives.  But God says that He is the Potter and we are the clay and that as our Creator He has every right to do what He wills with our life.  

The problem lies when we fail to fully trust that God loves us and has the best plans for our life.  When we do completely trust God for everything in our life we can be the pliable clay in His hand that He can mold for His purposes.  Trust God, there is no better place to be than in the palm of His hand.

Day 23 - Isaiah

Day 23 - ISAIAH - (How God Regards Our Righteous Works)

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But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.  (Isaiah 64:6)

When I read and understood the meaning of the above verse, it proved to be the greatest reality check in my entire life and still is to this day.  The phrase “filthy rags” refers to what women in the time of Isaiah used as sanitary napkin after the fact.  When I learned that, I realized that my very best act of righteousness was completely abhorrent to God!  

If that is the case, there is only one hope for me and for all human beings to be accepted by God, that is, through the merit of another who is perfect and sinless.  Praise God, He provided the only way possible for mankind to be saved from the penalty of sin; He sent His only begotten Son Jesus to die in our place and He has declared that anyone who believes (puts their faith and trust) in Him will not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).  Are you still relying on your own goodness to bring you to heaven?  Forsake that path now and trust in Christ alone to save you while you still can.

Day 22 - Song of Solomon

Day 22 - Song of Solomon (Christ’s love for His Bride, the Church)

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I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.  (Song of Solomon 7:10)

Although at face value, the Song of Solomon is about the wooing and wedding of Solomon with a shepherdess, allegorically, it pictures Israel as God’s espoused bride (Hoseah 2:19-20), and the Church as the Bride of Christ.  Husbands and wives can glean treasures for their relationship by reading this short book; and Christians, both single and married, can learn about Christ love for believers who make up the Church which is the Bride of Christ.  I just made a reminder to read the Song of Solomon with my wife at the earliest opportunity:)

Day 21 - Ecclesiastes

Day 21 - ECCLESIASTES (The Conclusion of the Whole Matter)

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Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man's all.  For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil.  (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

Although writing under divine inspiration, when Solomon penned those words in the above quote, he was also writing as a man who had experienced life unlike any other person who ever lived.  Chosen by God before birth to become king after his father David, Solomon received from God upon his request wisdom beyond that possessed by any man who lived before him and after him.  

Wanting more than unmatched wisdom, Solomon departed from God’s commandments and did not hold back from himself any pleasure life had to offer.  Despite God’s explicit instructions not to multiply his wives, Solomon acquired 700 wives and 300 concubines.  Adding to his sins, Solomon also worshipped the idols of his heathen wives.

Scholars believe that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes towards the end of his life and so it is logical to conclude that he repented and returned to worshipping the true God.  Let the wise person heed the last words of a man like Solomon who did not leave any stone unturned in his search for the meaning of life.

Day 20 - Proverbs

Day 20 - PROVERBS (The Fear of the Lord is Wisdom)

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The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.  (Proverbs 1:7)

Solomon was referring to the knowledge that comes from God when he wrote the above quote.  To fear God does not mean that we become afraid of him like we may be afraid of getting mugged in a bad neighborhood.  Rather, to fear God means to fear his wrath against sin just as we learned in a past devotion when Uzza did not fear God enough to not touch the Ark of the Covenant (see blog on 1 Chronicles).  When we understand and possess the fear of God, the Bible says we will begin to have the knowledge of God.  

The best way to tell if you and I have the fear of God is to ask ourselves this question:  “Do I care enough to know what God hates and what He loves that I would actually open the Bible to read it and do I care enough to obey what I already know to be God’s commandments such as ‘do not commit adultery...do not make an idol and bow down to it...do not take God’s name in vain...honor your parents...etc.?”  When we do despise the wisdom and instruction of God as revealed in His Word, the Bible, God calls us fools.

Day 19 - Psalm

Day 19 - PSALM (The Blessed Man)

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Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;  But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.  He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.  (Psalm 1:1-3)

There is nothing more that I aspire for myself than to be a blessed man as the Psalmist described above.  I have tried to live according this godly counsel from the time I have accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior although, no doubt, I have fallen short each time and still fall short.  But praise God He does not require perfection before He blesses us; He has blessed my life beyond anything I deserve or could ever imagine.  Foremost is the gift of salvation through my Savior Jesus Christ and then He blessed me with a wonderful wife and children.  Then, wonder of wonders, God has chosen to call me to the ministry as a pastor.  Truly, blessed is anyone who will commit his life completely to follow and obey God!

Day 18 - Job

Day 18 - JOB (The Believer’s Proper Response to Tragedies)

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And he said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord." 22 In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.  (Job 1 :21-22)

In one single day, Satan, acting with God’s permission, kills Job’s entire family and his many servants except for his wife, destroyed all his properties and livestock, and inflicts Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.  Yet in all the tragedies that befell him, “Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.”  Most people including many believers would become bitter against God when unbearable tragedies happen in their lives such as what happened to Job.  When tragedy happens in our lives, let us remember the end of Job’s life and how God blessed him because of his complete trust in God so that we would not fall into the mistake of blaming God:  

Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys.  He also had seven sons and three daughters.  And he called the name of the first Jemimah, the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-Happuch.  In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.  After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations.  So Job died, old and full of days.  (Job 42:12-17)

Day 17 - Esther

Day 17 - ESTHER (The Greatest Paradox in History)

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Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai:  "Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!"  (Esther 4:15-16)

Nothing I could write would do justice to tell the one of the greatest story known to mankind - the story of Queen Esther and her people, the Jews.  Anyone who desires to know why I call it the greatest paradox in history must read the entire book which would take no more than a several minutes.  Throughout history, many have tried to annihilate the Jewish race from this planet including most recently, the Nazis, and now, the Arab nations.  Around the time of the Jewish captivity in Babylon, one man by the name of Haman, who was second to the king, also tried to blot out the Jewish people from earth.  Another man, Mordecai, the uncle of Esther who raised her from childhood, dared to stand up against Haman.  This greatly infuriated Haman, to say the least, and he had a gallows built in order to hang Mordecai.  The story ends with Haman being the one to hang on the gallows he built and Mordecai taking his place in the kingdom as second to the king.

Although the paradox I briefly described above is remarkable, the thing I would like to focus on for this devotional is the passage quoted above.  Esther made the difficult decision to approach the king to request for the lives of the Jews at the risk of her life for “All the king's servants and the people of the king's provinces know that any man or woman who goes into the inner court to the king, who has not been called, he has but one law: put all to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter, that he may live.” (Esther 4:11)  God honored Esther’s courage and He moved the king’s heart to grant Esther’s request.  

The story of Esther is a powerful example of how evil could never triumph over God’s plan and that God uses men and women who put their trust in Him despite overwhelming danger and odds.  O how we need more men and women like Mordecai and Esther today!  Would you and I have the faith and courage to step up to this need of our day?

Day 16 - Nehemiah (The Power of Prayer)

Day 16 - NEHEMIAH (The Power of Prayer)

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O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.   For I was the king's cupbearer….And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me.   (Nehemiah 1:11b; 2:8b)

The Jewish captives who had returned to Israel from Babylon “are in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire."  Having received this sad news, Nehemiah prays his prayer in verse 11 of chapter 1.  The stakes couldn’t be higher; either the king would sympathize with his cupbearer and grant his request or the king would be displeased and have his head cut off.  But God was no doubt pleased with Nehemiah’s grief over the sad state of his people and that was all that mattered.  God moved in the heart of King Artaxeres and the king granted the long list of requests that Nehemiah presented.  The result of this one man’s burden and vision to make a difference for his suffering brethren: Jerusalem was rebuilt amidst great opposition and persecution from her enemies and the people served and worshipped God!  

God, give me a burden and vision like Nehemiah to make a difference in the lives of others who are in need.

Day 15 - Ezra

Day 15 - Ezra

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Ezra came up from Babylon; and he was a skilled scribe in the Law of Moses, which the Lord God of Israel had given. The king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the Lord his God upon him.  Some of the children of Israel, the priests, the Levites, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the Nethinim came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes.... On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him.  For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.  (Ezra 7:6-10)

In chapter 1 of the book of Ezra, it says that God spoke through Cyrus, King of Persia who took over the Babylonian empire in October of 539 B.C. when he made a proclamation and said, “Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem.” (Ezra 1:3)  Later in chapter 7 we read that “Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.”  (Ezra 7:10)  Today, God is still calling for His people everywhere in the world to partake in the building of God’s Kingdom by spreading the gospel.  Have you prepared your heart to seek the Law of the Lord and to teach it to others?

Day 14 - 2 Chronicles

Day 14 - 2 CHRONICLES (God’s Mighty Deliverance of Israel)

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After this Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem (but he and all the forces with him laid siege against Lachish), to Hezekiah king of Judah, and to all Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying,  "Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria: 'In what do you trust, that you remain under siege in Jerusalem?  Does not Hezekiah persuade you to give yourselves over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, "The Lord our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria"?  Has not the same Hezekiah taken away His high places and His altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, "You shall worship before one altar and burn incense on it"?  Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands in any way able to deliver their lands out of my hand?  Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed that could deliver his people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my hand?  Now therefore, do not let Hezekiah deceive you or persuade you like this, and do not believe him; for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people from my hand or the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you from my hand?' "  Furthermore, his servants spoke against the Lord God and against His servant Hezekiah….Now because of this King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, prayed and cried out to heaven.  Then the Lord sent an angel who cut down every mighty man of valor, leader, and captain in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned shamefaced to his own land. And when he had gone into the temple of his god, some of his own offspring struck him down with the sword there.  Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all others, and guided them on every side.  (2 Chronicles 32: 9-22)

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Sennacherib king of Assyria mocked God before his whole army and before King Hezekiah and the Jews in Jerusalem - but God cannot be mocked (Galatians 6::7)  King Hezekiah did the wisest thing any leader could do in his desperate and hopeless situation - he prayed and cried out to God for deliverance and God came through for him in a miraculous way!  God can do the same today for any who would cry out to Him for deliverance.  It may not be as fantastic as Hezekiah and Israel’s deliverance but as His Word promises in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

Day 13 - 1 Chronicles

Day 13 - 1 CHRONICLES (God’s wrath and love)

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And David and all Israel went up to Baalah...to bring up from there the ark of God the Lord, who dwells between the cherubim, where His name is proclaimed.  So they carried the ark of God on a new cart from the house of Abinadab, and Uzza and Ahio drove the cart.  Then David and all Israel played music before God with all their might, with singing, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on cymbals, and with trumpets.  And when they came to Chidon's threshing floor, Uzza put out his hand to hold the ark, for the oxen stumbled.  Then the anger of the Lord was aroused against Uzza, and He struck him because he put his hand to the ark; and he died there before God... So David would not move the ark with him into the City of David, but took it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite.  The ark of God remained with the family of Obed-Edom in his house three months. And the Lord blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that he had.” (1 Chronicles 13:6-14)

To discuss all the reasons why God’s wrath was aroused against Uzza for touching the ark would take several paragraphs but suffice it to say that God killed Uzza because he failed to honor God by treating the ark, which represented His presence among the Jews, with contempt.  This ought to serve as a warning to all that those who would treat God with contempt will be dealt with by Him in His wrath.  Remarkably, on the other hand, God showed His abundant love to the house of Obed-Edom when the ark of His presence stayed at his home.  In the same manner, those who invite God the Holy Spirit in their lives through faith in God the Son Jesus Christ will experience God’s abundant love and showers of blessings.

Dayt 12 - 2 Kings

Day 12 - 2 KINGS (Naaman’s Leprosy Healed)

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And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, 'Wash, and be clean'?"  So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.  (2 Kings 5:13-14)

Naaman, the commander of the army of Syria, almost lost his chance to be healed from his leprosy had he not heeded the wise advise of his servant to simply do what the prophet Elisha commanded.  Too many people today lose their chance to be healed of their spiritual leprosy callled sin because they refuse to heed the simple command of the Lord Jesus to simply look to Him in repentance and faith.  They would rather continue in their stubborn way to save themselves by some great religious rituals which are nothing short of insults for Christ sacrifice on the cross.

DAy 11 - 1 Kings

Day 11 - 1 KINGS (Solomon’s Wisdom)

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And the king(Solomon) said, "The one says, 'This is my son, who lives, and your son is the dead one'; and the other says, 'No! But your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.' "Then the king said, "Bring me a sword." So they brought a sword before the king.  And the king said, "Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other."  Then the woman whose son was living spoke to the king, for she yearned with compassion for her son; and she said, "O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!" But the other said, "Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him."  So the king answered and said, "Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him; she is his mother."  And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice.”  (1 Kings 3:23-28)

Lord, please grant godly wisdom to our leaders, especially the leaders of nations during this unprecedented time in history.  Grant wisdom to us husbands and fathers as well that we might lead our wives and children in righteousness and truth.

Day 10 - 2 Samuel

Day 10 - 2 SAMUEL

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“Then the Lord sent Nathan to David.  Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.  I gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!  Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon.  Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ So David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord." And Nathan said to David, "The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die.”   (2 Samuel 12:1, 7-10, 13)

Most people think of king David as a righteous man who was much beloved by God and who performed almost superhuman feats like killing a lion and a bear with his own hands; and they are right.  What many do not know is that David was a man just like any other and that he committed murder and adultery as recorded above.  One very valuable lesson we can learn in the life of king David is that no matter what sin we may have committed, God will forgive in Christ if we truly and sincerely repent just as David had done.

Day 9 - 1 Samuel

Day 9 - 1 SAMUEL

Then David said to the Philistine(Goliath), "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.  This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.  Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's,...So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him.”  (1 Samuel 17:45-47, 50)

The passage above is one of the most inspiring stories in the Bible for me.  It proves to me that with God, nothing is impossible; that there is no giant in my life that is too big that God cannot help me defeat it.  

Day 8 - Ruth

Day 8 - RUTH

“wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God.”  (Ruth 1:16b)

The story of Ruth is one of the greatest if not the greatest story of love and loyalty of one person to another.  After her husband dies, Ruth, who is not even a Jew, decides that she will never leave her mother-in-law Naomi even when Naomi returns to Israel.  As a result of her devotion to Naomi and to God, God honors Ruth by making her the wife of Boaz who became the grandfather of King David from whose lineage, Jesus the Messiah was born.

Day 7 - Judges

Day 7: JUDGES

“‘And the Lord said to Gideon, "The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, 'My own hand has saved me... Then the Lord said to Gideon, "By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his place.”...Now Zebah and Zalmunna were at Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand, all who were left of all the army of the people of the East; for one hundred and twenty thousand men who drew the sword had fallen. Then Gideon went up by the road... and he attacked the army while the camp felt secure. When Zebah and Zalmunna fled, he pursued them; and he took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and routed the whole army.”’ (Judges 8-9)

Question: Why did God tell Gideon to choose only 300 men to go to battle against an army of 120,000?
Answer: As the Lord said to Gideon above, “Lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me…”

Let us be careful to give God the glory and credit that is due Him.

Day 6 - Joshua

Day 6: Joshua

"But as for me and my house, we will serve The Lord." (Joshua 24:15b)

This verse hangs above the doorpost in my house as well as the doorpost of my heart.

Day 5 - Deuteronomy

Day 5 -DEUTERONOMY

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

The above passage is one of my favorites in the whole Bible.  Personally, this is the easiest command that God has ever given for my greatest ambition in life is precisely what God has commanded me to do: to love Him with everything I’ve got!  After all that God has done for me, the greatest of which is sending His only begotten Son to die in my place, I can do nothing less.

Day 4 - Numbers

Day 4 (of my 66-day thru the Bible journey) - NUMBERS

“Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way.  And the people spoke against God and against Moses: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread."  So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, "We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord that He take away the serpents from us." So Moses prayed for the people.  Then the Lord said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live."  So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.”  (Numbers 21:4-9)

Question:  Is there a symbolic significance to the bronze serpent that God commanded Moses to make?

Answer:  Yes.  Jesus Himself gives us the symbolic meaning to the bronze snake in John 3:14-16

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

Have you placed your trust in God’s only begotten Son Who was lifted up on the cross so that all who would look (believe) in Him should not perish in hell but have eternal life in heaven?

Day 3 - Leviticus

3rd Day:  LEVITICUS

"Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house.  Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat.  So he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins;...”  (Leviticus 16:6, 15-16)

Question:  What is the meaning of the animal sacrifice in the Old Testament?

Answer:  The author of the Book to the Hebrews in the New Testament answers it best:

“For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect.  For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins.  But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year.  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.  Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me.  In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure.  Then I said, 'Behold, I have come-- In the volume of the book it is written of Me-- To do Your will, O God.' "  Previously saying, "Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the law),  then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God." He takes away the first that He may establish the second.  By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.  And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.  But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God,  from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool.  For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.”  (Hebrews 10:1-14)

Question:  What does the sacrifice of Christ on the cross have anything to do with me?

Answer:  Everything.  If you put your trust in Christ as your Savior asking Him to forgive you of your sins, His sacrifice acts as a substitute for the death you deserve (both physically and eternally) just as the offerer in the Old Testament brought an animal as a substitute for the death he deserved at least temporarily until God provided the perfect Lamb in the person of the Jewish Messiah Jesus Christ.

DAy 2 - Exodus

2nd Day - EXODUS (10 Conmandments)

1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God...
3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.
5. Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet

Question: Many people say that they pray to idols (carved images) because it helps them focus on their prayer so it must be ok, right?
Answer: If one really believes that God could be a spineless being who will blatantly compromise one of His top ten commandments (not to mention any of His commandmens), then I would say to that one: you do not know the God of the Bible.

Day 1 -Genesis

Day 1 _Genesis

Today I start a 66-day journey scanning thru the Bible and highlighting my favorite passages. I invite all to follow me on this fruitful adventure - you might even get a peep on my favorite photos:)

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;...So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." (Genesis 1:1, 26a, 27)

Question: Who was God talking to when He said Us and Our?
Answer: Angels cannot create life so God could only be talking to His Triune Self-Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Question: Did God make a mistake in creating some as male and some as female?
Answer: God cannot make mistakes because He is perfect, otherwise He cannot be God. Therefore, it is people who claim that God made mistakes who are in error.