365 Reflections

Solomon gets a visit from an Arabian Queen at the height of his success and fame. The Queen of Sheba arrives and sees for herself the blessing of God on this great man. Her reaction is priceless: 1 Kings 10:6–7 (ESV) And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, 7 but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard.  Notice as well the first thing she mentions is Solomon's wisdom. That's where it starts, friends. If we want God's blessing we have to get a hold of God's wisdom. His wisdom will do so much for us that others will not have anticipated it!  We should take note that it was Solomon's wisdom for which she originally came. She had things on her mind and questions in her heart. 1 Kings 10:2–3 (ESV) She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels bearing ...

Solomon's aspirations for the Temple of God are admirable. He uses the best materials and the most sacred style of construction to send a message to the nation and the world that the HOUSE of the Lord deserved the highest priority. Sadly, the story of Solomon takes a sad turn just after the details of the Temple's construction are finished. Notice how the text quickly moves on to discuss Solomon's work on his own home and several others adjoining buildings for himself plus his queen's own residence in 1 Kings 7. The first hint at the problems occurs with the last verse of 1 Kings 6 and the first verse of 1 Kings 7: 1 Kings 6:38–7:1 (ESV)   And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was finished in all its parts, and according to all its specifications. He was seven years in building it. 1 Solomon was building his own house thirteen years , and he finished his entire house. There is a tendency for those who work hard...

Joshua 8:30–31 (ESV) At that time Joshua built an altar to the Lord , the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal, 31 just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the people of Israel, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, “an altar of uncut stones, upon which no man has wielded an iron tool.” And they offered on it burnt offerings to the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings. The nation of Israel had recovered well from the Achan episode militarily. But there's a nuance in the text after Ai's king is buried from right before this verse that was used in regard to Achan's burial. The text says both graves were visible at the time of the writing of Joshua so people were well aware what had happened.  The visual image of death that would have appeared in their minds would quickly be replaced with the emphasis on the Altar of meeting and the Words of the Covenant. Joshua doesn't let the nation dwell on the death of Achan nor the burial of Ai's king. As ...

Have you ever been cursed? It's not pretty. It hurts. It can stick with you for a while. If you're not careful, you can pass it on to your children and their children after them. What's crazy is to see the people of the Bible, even some of the great heroes be in the cursing business. You may remember from way back in the early days of Israel's story, Jacob is on his last days and decides to bless his sons before death just as Moses does here in Deuteronomy 33. But his first three sons are not blessed at all, they are in fact denounced and cursed. Listen especially to what Jacob said about his firstborn, Reuben: Genesis 49:3–4 (ESV) “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the firstfruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power. 4 Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence, because you went up to your father’s bed; then you defiled it—he went up to my couch! Unstable as water is a tough one. You can't get much less stable t...

In Deuteronomy 33, Moses is called up to the mountain to die and the final act of his faith is to bless all the tribes of Israel. It's really incredible to think this man can find it in his heart to bless the very people who caused his failure at the rock and led to him missing out on the promised land. But again, this all points us to Christ's death for the sins of the people. Deuteronomy 33:1–5 (ESV) This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death. 2 He said, “The LORD came from Sinai and dawned from Seir upon us; he shone forth from Mount Paran; he came from the ten thousands of holy ones, with flaming fire at his right hand. 3 Yes, he loved his people, all his holy ones were in his hand; so they followed in your steps, receiving direction from you, 4 when Moses commanded us a law, as a possession for the assembly of Jacob. 5 Thus the LORD became king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people were gathered, all the tribes...

Deuteronomy 2:5–7 (ESV)   Do not contend with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. 6 You shall purchase food from them with money, that you may eat, and you shall also buy water from them with money, that you may drink. 7 For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.” ’ Deuteronomy 2 gives us more clarity on the Edom episode of Numbers 20. The Israelites must pass through the Edomite territory in order to come to their Promised Land. In Numbers 20 they are met with anger and force regardless of the delegation Moses sends for terms of peace as they pass through their land with no intent to seize it. Edom will not let the old grudge between the ancient brothers die and so Israel must walk aroun...

Numbers 23:8–10 (ESV) How can I curse whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced? 9 For from the top of the crags I see him, from the hills I behold him; behold, a people dwelling alone, and not counting itself among the nations! 10 Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the upright, and let my end be like his!” These are the words of Balaam's first oracle to the Israelites after going with Balak's men and being paid and prepared to curse the people of God. In a stunning turn of events, Balaam can only bless those God has already blessed. This is good news and still rings true today. God ha blessed and man cannot reverse it.  Understand and remember, Balaam has been cajoled into this moment. He has been pressured financially and ceremoniously. He has been coerced by fame and notoriety. His ego has been played and he has been pandered to. For all intents and purposes, this is a slam...

Leviticus 26 is wrapping up the context of this most intricate book. The 26th chapter is God's reiteration of the covenant stipulations. There are conditions for the blessing of God upon His people. Make sure you catch that... there are conditions for the BLESSING of God, not the saving of God. The saving has happened. They are His people, His chosen nation. They are even still in existence today. But for His people to experience His blessing, there must be obedience. Leviticus 26:1–5 (ESV) “You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the LORD your God. 2 You shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD. 3 “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, 4 then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5 Your threshing shall last to the time o...

I love the theology of the Sabbath. It is the first thing God designates as holy in the Bible. It is made for man and yet restricts man from working to produce for himself trusting in the God who called him into the rest which points to the ultimate rest to come in Christ! The Sabbath is where man gets to remember he is made in God's image to reflect God's character and ways.  The Sabbath is where we remember we are most creaturely dependent upon another for all that we have and are. The Sabbath is where God's liberation and power are at work in Jesus.  The Old Testament and the New Testament hinge on the Sabbath. The Sabbath is where God's Word for us and our obedience to it come together. in the Sabbath we learn by experience how obedience is a blessing to our lives. When we obey the Sabbath we find the blessing of God's rest. You could say the Sabbath is the day in which we most learn doing what God wants us to do is actually what is good for us to do m...

In Genesis 49, the Patriarch Jacob pronounces his final "blessings" on his sons who would form the 12 tribes of Israel. He begins with the oldest four: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah. What is quite notable in this chapter of fatherly blessing is the LACK of blessing anyone receives until Judah is mentioned. Look at it: Genesis 49:3–7 (ESV) “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the firstfruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power. 4 Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence, because you went up to your father’s bed; then you defiled it—he went up to my couch! 5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords. 6 Let my soul come not into their council; O my glory, be not joined to their company. For in their anger they killed men, and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel. Jacob...

Genesis 35:11 (ESV) And God said to him, “I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. God's command here seems strange. Jacob is an old man at this point. He's not going to bear another son. He's produced 12. But here, amazingly as he finally arrives back at the house of God, "Bethel" the Lord's Word comes to him again, "Be fruitful and multiply." What's going on? Here's what it means. Obviously God knows that our child bearing days are just the beginning of doing the work God has given us to do. And for those who cannot have children, you need to hang on to this verse. Being fruitful and multiplying extends beyond just children. There's a nation in Jacob, there are kings in Jacob. His family will be a mighty army and a tremendous multitude. Jesus will come from Jacob. Another interesting facet of this text is that this moment will...

I read Genesis 16 this week thinking about all the stupid things Sarah did. She thought up this crazy idea to give Abram to her servant. She got vicious toward her when Hagar conceived (although Hagar wasn't innocent in this matter either), then she put all the blame on Abram for doing what she told him to do! That's basically how we are. We like to pass the buck. But this chapter, though beginning with Sarah ends with God's regard for Hagar! Genesis 16:7–10 (ESV)   The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.” 9 The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit to her.” 10 The angel of the Lord also said to her, “I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.” Sometimes we are guilty to cast certain people...

In the Psalm of Ascents, David declares: Psalm 124:1–5 (ESV) If it had not been the Lord who was on our side— let Israel now say— 2 if it had not been the Lord who was on our side when people rose up against us, 3 then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their anger was kindled against us; 4 then the flood would have swept us away, the torrent would have gone over us; 5 then over us would have gone the raging waters. Psalm 124 is the response of God's faithful help in response to the cry of Psalm 123. They are meant to be read together. The Psalmist called out to God in Psalm 123 and then responds with praise in Psalm 124. How fitting and how often forgotten. We need to learn how to move from PRAYER to PRAISE. We usually call out to God when we need help. That's in our nature. We go back to church, we make deals with the Almighty, we pray, we get serious in our devotion, we seek the face of God.  Then the battle ends in victory. And yet how often we nev...

Psalm 5 is another Psalm with "chaistic" structure. That's a fancy way of saying the first verse matches up to the last verse, the second verse matches up to the second to last verse, and so on. When right in the middle is Verses 7-8. Before we look at verse 7 and 8 we need to see what's around them. David's Psalm contains alternating segments about the wicked and the righteous. The Lord hears the prayers of the righteous (1-3), but the Lord detests the wicked (4-6). The wicked lie, flatter and are filled with violence at their core (9-10). But those who hope in God will sing, will worship, and will be covered by the Lord (11-12). David is surrounded by good and bad options. Be someone who does good or be one of those who does evil. How do you live in the midst of a world like that? What crowd will you regard as your people? David actually choses neither. His plan is simple, draw near to the Lord... Psalm 5:7–8 (ESV)  But I, through the abundance of your s...

On to the Psalms. Psalm 1:1–2 (ESV) Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. The first Psalm lays the groundwork for the entire Bible. The Bible consistently portrays two opposite paths. The path of God's Word and every other option. From Cain and Abel to Lot and Abraham, to Jacob and Esau, and on to Peter and Judas. One path consistently yields blessing, the other path only harm and destruction.  The first word in the Psalm is "Blessed." It's the Bible's word for "happiness" I love how God gives us the path of happiness.  The Lord wants us to find the right kind of happiness.  God doesn't withhold it, God doesn't dangle it before us like a carrot. But He gives one clear statement here about how to find true and lasting happiness.  The first key to finding h...

We would have spent our vacation in a cramped hotel room. Three days and four nights in Vermont, just the two of us. And we would have enjoyed our accommodations fairly well as they were a gift from someone else. Never look a gift horse in the mouth! But thanks to a broken air-conditioner I had to talk to the front desk. While mentioning that the first attempt at fixing it didn't work, I brought up the fact that we were expecting a bit more than a simple hotel room when the reservation said, "Suite". The attendant informed me that our key opened the room next door to ours as well! So we got another two-room Suite with a working air conditioner and spent our vacation according to a reality we almost missed. Too many Christians live like we were about to that weekend in September. Cramped in a confining space of limits. This is the reason Paul writes Ephesians. For the first three chapters he proclaims the wonderful realities of a new life in Christ to this wond...

Have you ever had one of those days? One of those days that just took it all out of you. Took your strengths from you. Take your stamina from you. Took your patients from you. Not that it was a bad day, but it was a draining day. It could even be a day in which you had a great battles and great victories. But no matter the win it still took its toll on your emotions and physical strength. Life has a way of doing that. I think of Abraham fighting off those five kings and rescuing his nephew Lot from his own silly choice to live near Sodom. Abraham must of been totally spent. And here is what happens. This Melchizedek was king of the city of Salem and also a priest of God Most High. When Abraham was returning home after winning a great battle against the kings, Melchizedek met him and blessed him. (Hebrews 7:1 NLT) Melchizedek is a type of Christ. He is the king of peace and the king of righteousness. And after Abraham had fought and won the battle, Melchizedek came and blessed...