Day 74: Hebrews 6-8

Today’s reading comes from Hebrews 6-8 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

Hebrews 6:18 reminds us that it is impossible for God to lie, therefore as previously stated, He made an oath that those who are being persecuted might find hope in the midst of their persecution. This is indeed comforting as well as encouraging. God doesn’t lie and all his promises will come true. We live in weakness seeing things dimly as through the fog, but God’s promises are sure, even when we don’t have eyes to see them.

What wrongs do you need to make right today?  Who do you need to forgive?

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 73: Hebrews 3-5

Today’s reading comes from Hebrews 3-5 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

The writer of Hebrews challenges the readers to exhort on another to guard from becoming hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:13). The idea is that we need to be continually motivation, encouraging and challenging one another from the source of Truth. There are two elements at work here: 1. The implied truth of God’s word and 2. our Christian brothers.

The way we best guard our hearts from the deceitfulness of sin, especially sins such as jealousy, bitterness, pride, etc… is to strengthen and be strengthened by those around us. As we pour truth and encouragement into other and as we are poured into we are lifted up and provoked to keep up our guard against sin.

 

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 72: Hebrews 1-2

Today’s reading comes from Hebrews 1-2 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

“Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.” – Hebrews 2:1

The danger of a lack of attention is drift. The danger of lack of attention to your life in light of the scriptures is that you will soften the blow of the gospel upon your life. You will generalize, moralize, and rationalize your thoughts on scripture until you pull the punch that is present in the gospel.  The writer here is challenging us to examine the truth. To go back to the genuine article and make sure that we do not drift from the truth.

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 71: Philemon

Today’s reading comes from Philemon follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

Philemon is all about forgiveness. How do you handle it when someone robs from you? That is what we get a picture of in Philemon. Paul walks Onesimus through how to receive back the one who has wronged him, while at the same time asking him to receive this former slave as a brother. Powerful stuff.

What wrongs do you need to make right today?  Who do you need to forgive?

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 70: Titus

Today’s reading comes from Titus  follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

In Titus 3:10, Paul writes,  that Titus is to have nothing to do with the people that continue to cause serious division over ancillary matters.

Sometimes people just talk junk. You don’t have to listen. Especially if you are a pastor or church leader. Sometimes listening only heightens the issue or causes a person to believe that their point of view is valid. If you hear a matter out and correct an errant view or redirect a person towards a more complete view of the gospel and they will have nothing to do with it, then finally leave them alone. Don’t listen any more. It sounds callous, but it’s to help them and honor God with your time. The truth is, you can’t convince a fool of his ways and some people are fools (not because you declare them to be, but because by their actions they are foolish).

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 69: 2 Timothy

Today’s reading comes from 2 Timothy follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

In 2 Timothy 3:7, Paul writes that it is possible for someone to always be learning, but never really coming to the truth.

There is a real danger here of becoming acquainted with the things of God, but not God.  Some will level accusations at biblical scholars for this endeavor, but to be honest when we approach the scriptures we are looking in the mirror. The question we really need to ask is: “is that me?”

The real danger is when someone who is a “believer” who has uninformed views on life, reads the scripture through an interpretive lens (such as being a republican or democrat) and they dismiss what the Bible actually says because of it. So lets not stop and ask who else this might apply to today… let’s ask if we are guilty of always learning, but never really coming to the truth.  Let’s ask God to expose our hearts today.

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 68: 1 Timothy 4-6

Today’s reading comes from 1 Timothy 4-6 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

In 1 Timothy 5:3 and following, Paul writes, that believers are to take care of their own household. That is to say that the burden for caring for my elderly mother (she’s not that elderly) falls mainly on my shoulders, not that of the church (and dare should I say the government).  If you have read anything in the epistle to Timothy you should read that the family matters.  While Christ does say that our allegiance to our family should be nothing compared to our allegiance to him (Luke 14:26), there is a very real sense in which our allegiance to Him calls us to care for our families.

This is essential for pastors (as well as laypeople). We cannot sacrifice family for the sake of the gospel, we are to serve our family for the sake of the gospel. If we preach to care for the family and our own families are wanting, what have we done other than proved we preach better sermons than we live.

 

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 67: 1 Timothy 1-3

Today’s reading comes from 1 Timothy 1-3 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

In 1 Timothy 1:2-4,  Paul writes that Timothy isn’t supposed to listen to pointless speculation, but rather stick to what is truth.  One thing that has become apparent in Evangelical life over the past 50 years is that pointless speculation is destructive. Can you imagine the real effect that Christianity might have had on American culture and the world if we had not been so caught up in defining the details of the allegory of the book in Revelation according to modern times. It’s pointless speculation to ponder that the plague of locusts might be black hawk helecopters.

Don’t get stuck in the left behind novels. Its largely speculative and speculation isn’t Truth. Stick with the Truth. Christ will return. Jesus died and rose again to save sinners of which I may just possibly be the worst.

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 65: 1 Thessalonians 4-5

Today’s reading comes from 1 Thessalonians 4-5 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:15, Paul writes, “See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.”

This hit home today. This past week I had a few different attacks from different places.  One was a militant non-believer who found my twitter profile and made it his personal mission to attack everything I had ever written for the last several tweets. I was shocked at how angry he seemed over seemingly insignificant comments. My initial reaction was to rebut everything he was saying, but then my thoughts were drawn to the gospel of Matthew where Jesus says to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

So I did and in the process I got to share an authentic moment with my daughter. I know that the verse above is more in context with a local group of believers and I guess that’s the point. Sometimes it’s easy to see the application of this verse to an outsider who doesn’t trust Christ the way you do, but what about when someone of the faith hurts you? How do you respond then?

I think the key is to seek their good and God’s glory, which isn’t always easy to do when you are still feeling the sting of their slap across the face. Yet again it’s the hard but right way.

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading.

Day 64: 1 Thessalonians 1-3

Today’s reading comes from 1 Thessalonians 1-3 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online. You can get a copy of the New in 90 reading schedule here.

In 1 Thessalonians 2:8, the Apostle Paul writes, “We were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become dear to us.”

Today as I was reading this I was reminded of the love and warmth I have felt and given serving two different congregations over the past fifteen years. There comes a point as a pastor on staff that the line between duty and love are dissolved. Near the beginning of my ministry I would labor to visit the sick, counsel the hurting, and minister among the broken because it was a duty (first to God and second to the people who had confirmed God’s call).  Then comes the moment when you show up to the hospital for someone, not because it’s a duty or calling, but because you love them. The sense of duty has been replaced with a genuine love.

I think this is natural and fitting for all who love the Lord. Sometimes going through the motions of caring for someone seem cold and mechanical because of what is expected, but as you “do life together” a real friendship and love is formed.

What did you take away from today’s passage? What are your thoughts?

Don’t forget to also check out Chrisaiken.wordpress.com  and dawnjefferson.wordpress.com for other insights and thoughts on today’s reading