365 Reflections

David's flight from Saul is one of incredible detail. We see where he goes, who he meets, what he wants and where he ends up. Why? Because we are looking at a moment in David's life where his faith waned and his strength was sapped. Like all of us, he found himself making questionable decisions along the way. First, we see David lie to the Priest for the purpose of self-preservation: 1 Samuel 21:2 (ESV) And David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has charged me with a matter and said to me, ‘Let no one know anything of the matter about which I send you, and with which I have charged you.’ I have made an appointment with the young men for such and such a place. He hasn't been sent by the King, he's running from him. Then we see David want and secure a sword. And what an ironic choice he's given: 1 Samuel 21:9 (ESV) And the priest said, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the Valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a c...

Judges 2:3–5 (ESV) 3 So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, but they shall become thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you.” 4 As soon as the angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the people of Israel, the people lifted up their voices and wept. 5 And they called the name of that place Bochim. And they sacrificed there to the Lord . After Israel's slow fade into half-hearted faith in the land of promise and after they began little by little to not only decelerate their occupation of the land but also to embrace cohabitations with the people in it, the Lord has a word of judgment for them.  He will not drive out the nations before them. Though He was the one who began to drive them out, He would do so no longer. Instead, those nations they failed to drive out will become "thorns" and "snares."  I know this looks bad, but consider: 1. God does not drive Israel out of the land. His patience is on display with di...

When I get bored sometimes I like to take my wedding ring and dangle it from finger to finger seeing how many times I can flip it between them.  It's my way of passing the time.  Of course, I'm playing with fire.  Eventually the ring flings off the tips of my fingers onto the floor, rolls fast and furiously away from me and I start to scramble for it's redemption! I share this because the Greek word used in Hebrews 2:1 carries the same meaning as what I do with my ring on occasion. Hebrews 2:1 (ESV) Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. The words "drift away" is one word in Greek.  The word " pararrhueo"  is very picturesque.  It can mean to slip off as in a ring from a finger.  This is why we have to pay attention.  Our thoughts can lead us away from the message of the Gospel. We start to let it dangle off the tip of our finger, only to suddenly realize how lost we are withou...

Did you ever think about the fact that Peter is the first backslider in Christian history? And worse yet, his defection from faith and steadfastness is recorded for generations of Christians in the sacred text of the New Testament! Poor Peter. Peter said to him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not." And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times." But he said emphatically, "If I must die with you, I will not deny you." And they all said the same. And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire. But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you mean." And he went out into the gateway and the rooster crowed. Mark 14:29-31, 54, 68 But the glorious reality is that Christ thought of Peter upon His resurrection. He told the women to tell his ...