Listening to the Word

  Exodus 28-29; Acts 7   “Whenever Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will bear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breastpiece of decision as a continuing memorial before the Lord…Thus Aaron will always bear the means of making decisions for the Israelites over his heart before the Lord.” Exodus 28:29, 30 The breastpiece of decision containing the names of the tribes of Israel covered the chest of the priest as he entered the presence of God seeking direction for God’s people. Paul described the breastpiece of righteousness as an essential piece of the armor of God. What is over our hearts as we make decisions and discern direction? Are we placing the needs and lives of God’s people over our hearts as we discern direction? In the new covenant each of us can seek the Lord for ourselves; God’s Spirit indwells those who know him. We aren’t seeking God’s direction on behalf of others as the priests were, but we still carry others before the throne of God as we intercede for

Exodus 25-27; Acts 6 “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from each man whose heart prompts him to give.” Exodus 25:1, 2 One of the ways we worship God is through our offerings. God’s message to Israel was clear: he commanded them to give. In our individualistic, materialistic society, we are daily conditioned by advertising that tells us we don’t have enough. This call to give is also a call to find our security and life in God. We worship God through our offerings because all we have, including our very life, comes from him. We are to give to the Lord, not only to the church, our friends, or our children. When we give to the Lord, we must ask him what he is prompting us to give, and not be distracted by the vehicle through which we are giving. Our offerings are to be the free-will expression of our hearts. While God commands his people to give, it is our free-will, heart-prompted choice that makes this offering

  Exodus 23-24; Psalms 14; Acts 5   “If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you. My angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land…” Exodus 23:22, 23 “Will you listen to me?” God’s desire to teach his people to listen and obey, spans from his covenant with Israel, to his new covenant with the Church. Will we move beyond religion to a relationship with the living God? God’s promise to those who walk with him includes protection, provision, guidance, and forgiveness. God’s angels still minister to those inheriting salvation. God’s Spirit indwells those who have received salvation; the capacity to listen to the Lord is at a completely different level from Israel’s reliance on Moses in order to hear from God.   However, are we listening to the Lord? Are we walking in the Spirit, or still primarily responding to our lusts, physical needs, and appetites? Those who are led by the Spirit of God

Exodus 21-22; Psalms 12; Acts 4   “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: ‘Rulers and elders of the people!...It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you   crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.’… they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.” Acts 4:8, 10; 4:31 The courage and boldness to speak about Jesus doesn’t come from an outgoing personality. Boldness is the fruit of the Holy Spirit filling our lives, in particular, boldness to witness about Jesus and his work in our lives through his transforming gospel. When we limit our consideration of witness impact, or effectiveness to strategy, personality, or context, and leave out the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, we have missed the essential element. The unschooled fishermen from Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit, were used by God to turn Jerusalem upside down. What would God like to do in our community with disciples who are al

Exodus 17-20; Acts 3 “…He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed. When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.’” Act 3:25, 26 What does it mean for God to “bless us”? We often think of healing or material possessions when we think of blessings. But in this “street sermon” by Peter, he quotes the Abrahamic blessing in the context of Christ’s ministry to the Jews, calling them to repentance from wicked ways. How much has God blessed us? To what degree are we living in repentance and turning from wicked ways? The blessing of repentance is that we experience God’s forgiveness and grace, and that we find freedom from sin’s bondage. In our struggle against “the world, the sinful nature, and the devil” (Ephesians 2:1-3), our objective is to live each day in unbroken fellowship and communion with God through the Holy Spirit. This is the good news which God desires all nations to experi

  Exodus 14-16; Acts 2   “…There the Lord made a decree and a law for them, and there he tested them. He said, ‘If you   listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.’” Exodus 15:25, 26 Does God still test his people? Does he allow us to get really thirsty in “desert” periods of our lives, so that we, too, would learn to listen carefully to his voice and follow his commands? It is interesting that it was through this test of bitter water at Marah that God revealed his name as “Jehovah Rapha” – the Lord who heals. It is on the other side of the test, when we have cried out to the Lord and surrendered our bitterness and rebellion, that we discover God’s healing presence. What tests in our lives has God allowed so that we, too, will learn to listen to the Word and obey it? We all want

Exodus 12-13; Ps 21; Acts 1   “…Consecrate to me every firstborn male. The first offspring of every womb among the Israelites belongs to me, whether man or animal…you are to give over to the Lord the first offspring of every womb…Redeem every firstborn among your sons…When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed every firstborn in Egypt, both man and animal. This is why I sacrifice to the Lord the first male offspring of every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.” Exodus 13:1, 12, 13, 15 God’s judgment of sin and rebellion cost every Egyptian household their firstborn male. While the Passover meal commemorates the exodus of Israel from Egypt, it is the consecration and redemption of their firstborn sons which reminds Israel of the price paid for sin. When Jesus, God’s chosen Passover Lamb, was consecrated and died on a cross, he redeemed all those who would enter covenant with God by paying our sin penalty. We renew and remember this covenant each time we take co

  Exodus 9-11; Luke 24 “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.’” Luke 24:45-49 We serve a prophetic God who has told us in his Word what he will do, enabling us to trust his Word and live for him. Those who hear God’s Word calling them toward repentance and the forgiveness of their sins and still reject this gospel will be made accountable. It is the Holy Spirit, the gift of the Father, who empowers God’s people to witness to the gospel. It is the Holy Spirit who convicts us of our sins and in kindness, leads us toward repentance. God’s Word promises that the Word of the Lord would go out fr

Exodus 6-8; Luke 23   “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go: because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country.’ God also said to Moses, ‘I am the Lord.’” Exodus 6:1, 2 The mighty hand of God came down on Egypt in judgment and then in deliverance. He carried his people Israel out of Egypt. Do we know the mighty hand of God in our lives? Can we testify to God’s hand in judging sin, either in our lives or those around us? When the plague of gnats could not be replicated by the Egyptian magic arts, they testified, “This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:19). God’s hand of blessing and deliverance has lifted people out of mortal danger, averted accidents, and opened doors of opportunity. Are we living under the discipline and blessing of the hand of God? Will we place our lives and our families in the mighty hands of God? It’s a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God, but there ar

Exodus 3-5; Luke 22   “…God called to him from within the bush, ‘Moses! Moses!’…And Moses said, ‘Here I am.’…But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh…?’ God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM…I AM has sent me to you…’ God also said to Moses, ‘Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob - has sent me to you.’” Exodus 3:4, 11, 14, 15   Why didn’t Moses know God at the burning bush? He had the stories of God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but Moses didn’t know God yet for himself. To be sent by God we must know God, not just know about him. When we know God, our questions change from “who am I?” to “who is God?”. We know ourselves in the light of who God is and what he does and what he is doing in history. Once we know who God is, through relationship and his Word to us, we understand what he does. It is then that we know who we have been created to be and what we have been called to do.

Exodus 1-2; Ps 88; Luke 21   “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” Luke 21:34-46 Living a life that is self-controlled, alert to Christ’s work in the world, and watchful for his return is not the path of least resistance. The prevailing winds blow in the direction of self-indulgent living and the anxiety of buying and maintaining more than we need. There is a better way to live. Jesus is speaking to us. This life is only a preparation for our life with him, life that is eternal. This world is not our home. We watch and pray because our King is returning soon and he is inviting us to live on mission with him now while there is still time. Jerus

  Genesis 49-50; Psalms 8; Luke 20   “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.” Psalm 8:1, 2 The Creator of the universe delights in using the weak to confound the strong. While his glory is above the heavens and angels worship him, he receives praise from children and infants. In what ways does the praise of children silence the foe and avenger? Satan’s accusation of Job was that he was serving God because of the way God had blessed him. Children’s worship of God is not transactional. Children worship God without the expectation of anything in return. Like the worship of creation, children respond to their Creator because they are created in his image. When we choose to worship our Creator as adults, we silence the enemy of our souls. Worship is a weapon for which we were created. Are we listening to

Genesis 47-48; Psalms 10; Luke 19   “…the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:” Luke 19:37 “As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, ‘If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes…you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.’” Luke 19:41, 42, 44b Do we praise God for what he does, or do we love God for who he is? The same people who worshipped Jesus with palm branches, shouted a week later, “Crucify him”. Jesus’ tears of love over Jerusalem were for both their rejection of his salvation and for their future destruction. Peace begins with God, not with appeasement of our enemies. God comes to us as he came to Jerusalem, to save us from our sins and not just to improve our lives. Are our eyes open to whom God is, or do we only see what we want to see? “Lord Jesus, I love you and thank you for salvation, for sending the

Genesis 42-43; Psalms 5; Luke 17 “’So watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent!’ forgive him.’ The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’” Luke 17:3-5 Why does our choice to live with forgiveness in all relationships require faith? Jesus’ example of a brother who sins against us seven times in a day and each time repents, requiring us to forgive him each time, exposes the cost of forgiveness. We forgive because Christ has forgiven us. Our faith in the finished work of salvation and atonement on the cross is tested each time we forgive.   Is our faith in the cross enough for us? Or do we need an increased measure of faith to apply the forgiveness we have received in circumstances of repetitive sin? In which application of the gospel do we require more faith? “Lord Jesus, thank you for your gift of forgiveness toward me. By faith, I recei

  Genesis 39-41; Luke 16   “The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household and entrusted to his care everything he owned.” Genesis 39:2-4 The presence of God in our lives is noticed by others and can bring favor with others. It can also attract spiritual warfare and jealousy. Joseph valued the presence and favor of God in his life, more than the favor of men. When tested by Potiphar’s wife, Joseph honored God and resisted temptation. The favor and presence of God in our lives is an aroma of Christ. In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul said that it is the fragrance of life to some and of death to others. The faithfulness of Joseph in Potiphar’s household led to his eventual leadership of all Egypt. If we are faithful with a little, God wi

Genesis 37-38; Psalms 7; Luke 15   “As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his wrist and said, ‘This one came out first.’ But when he drew back his hand, his brother came out, and she said, ‘So this is how you have broken out!’ And he was named Perez.” Genesis 38:28, 29 This very unusual birth story illustrates a breakthrough moment for Judah, for Tamar, and for Perez. Judah now had offspring to carry forward the family line and the promises of God. Tamar had given birth after years of barrenness. Perez had somehow maneuvered past his brother to leave the womb first. Many times in Israel’s history God used direct descendants of Perez to lead a breakthrough. Caleb, a man God described as having a “different spirit”, brought back a faith-filled report after spying out the land. He later defeated giants in Hebron in order to claim his inheritance. Boaz, who redeemed Ruth, David, king of Israel, and Jesus the Messiah, are

  Genesis 34-36; Luke 14   “…Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame…Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full…” Luke 14:21, 23 “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33 The harvest of souls, to which Christ calls us to give ourselves, includes two aspects which appear to be in tension with one other. The priority of filling God’s banquet hall with whomever responds to the Gospel, principally the poor, crippled, blind, and lame, is combined with Christ’s call to give up everything we have to become his disciples. On closer examination, these two principles are related. Those willing to give up everything are often those who have nothing. The Lord of the harvest is inviting everyone willing to give up their lives, to find their life in him and his kingdom. This is good news for the poor, but bad news for

Genesis 31-33; Luke 13   “Then the Lord said to Jacob, ‘Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.’” Genesis 31:3 This simple command from God to Jacob required faith-filled obedience. Jacob became fearful after he mishandled his departure from both his father-in-law Laban and his brother Esau. In fear, Jacob fled and found himself wrestling with God all night at the Jabbok River. The cost of obeying the command to return home was great. God didn’t make clear the method or ways in which Jacob was to follow this command. Rather, the command exposed Jacob’s heart and provided a new opportunity to wrestle with God. Where has God called us to costly obedience, leaving the “how” up to us? Where have we seen our fears and the issues of our hearts revealed, even as we said “yes” to the call of God? Jacob returned to the place where he had promised God he would worship and serve him, should God bring him back there again. The altar of sacrifice and praye

Genesis 29-30; Luke 12   “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed! Do you think I came to bring peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but division.” Luke 12:49-51 The fire that Jesus came to bring was the baptism by his Spirit which transformed the lives of those seeking the gift of the Father in the Upper Room in Acts 2. This fire cleanses, purifies, empowers, and divides. Are we willing to count the cost in receiving this baptism of Jesus which he promised? The spiritual power of the Holy Spirit confronts the powers of this world and exposes sin. The fire is real and it is a zeal which has marked the Church through many ages, wherever disciples discover and surrender to the person of the Holy Spirit. Without peace with God, and the peace of God, there will be no peace on earth. The fire of the Holy Spirit marks the presence of God and the lives of those who carry his p

Genesis 27-28; Psalms 4, Luke 11   “Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.” Luke 11:52 What is the key to knowledge in the kingdom of God? Jesus had just finished rebuking the Pharisees and teachers of the law for their pride, greed, and judgmental attitudes. Their focus on outward regulations and neglect of their hearts grieved God. The key to knowledge must include humility, the humility to allow God to show us our heart, the humility to receive God’s gift of righteousness rather than trying to earn righteousness ourselves, and the humility to consider others as better than ourselves and to learn from them. It is the humility to serve others in love and lay down our lives for them as Jesus, our leader, did. Biblical knowledge requires obedience, not mere mental agreement. The key to this kind of knowledge is humility.   “Lord Jesus, I humble myself before you and

  Genesis 25-26; Psalms 6; Luke 10 “…the Philistines envied him. So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth…Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names…” Genesis 26:14, 15, 18 What is the significance of Isaac reopening the wells that had been dug by his father Abraham? Those wells represented life, as well as Abraham’s inheritance. God gave Abraham a large territory; the wells were the expression of occupying the land. What spiritual inheritance are we called to reclaim? We face an enemy who wants to cut off our source of life and drive us away from our inheritance in God. Through repentance and intercession we, too, can dig out the wells of salvation from our spiritual forefathers. As those who live by faith in Christ, we are the seed of Abraham and the fulfillment of

Genesis 23-24; Luke 9   “I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.” Genesis 24:3, 4 Why did Abraham send his servant far away on a mission to find a wife for Isaac from among his own relatives? Why not marry a local Canaanite girl? Abraham valued covenant relationship with God above all else. God’s covenant with Abraham included provision for raising his children in the ways of the Lord (Genesis 18:19). Abraham was not going to risk this covenant by bringing other gods and worship practices into his family. Paul’s instruction about marriage to other believers in the new covenant is based on the same principle. Do we value our covenant with God more than any other covenants in our lives? Are we praying for and counselling our children to keep covenant with God, marrying only th

  Genesis 20-22; Luke 8   “God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, ‘What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.’…God was with the boy as he grew up…” Genesis 21:17, 18, 20 God saw Ishmael, heard his cry, and he was with him. However, God did not covenant with Ishmael. As a son of Abraham, God honored Ishmael and made him into a great nation; however, there is a difference between experiencing God’s blessing and a relationship with him. Through Jesus Christ, the descendants of Ishmael are offered a new covenant with God. They, too, are invited into God’s family through the forgiveness of sins and the gift of righteousness in Jesus. Apart from this reconciling covenant with God, we live with the wound of rejection, fear, and an unfulfilled longing for peace at the core of our being. Today, the descendants of

Genesis 18-19; Psalms 3; Luke 7 “Abraham and Sarah were already old and well advanced in years, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself…Then the Lord said to Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ ‘Is anything too hard for the Lord?’…” Genesis 18:11-14 God’s desire is that we are fruitful and multiply, in both the natural realm and in the spiritual realm. Can old churches and denominations still bear children in their “old age”? In the last days, God has promised to pour out his Spirit on all people so that our sons and daughters will prophesy (Joel 2:28). The Lord of the harvest is calling forth a global harvest in these last days that will bring many sons and daughters to him. God is choosing to give life to “Sarah” so that his promises will be fulfilled. Is anything too difficult for the Lord, the Lord of the harvest and of all the earth? Will we, in faith, call out to him asking for spiritual children,

Genesis 15-17; Luke 6 “When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking fire-pot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces…On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram…’I will confirm my covenant between me and you…’ Then God said to Abraham, ‘As for you, you must keep my covenant…’” Genesis 15:17, 18; 17:2, 9 It is God who takes the initiative in establishing a covenant with Abraham, and a covenant with us through Christ. This covenant is personal and two-way. God promises to forgive our sins, redeem us from death, and fill us with his Spirit. We offer our lives to him, choosing to obey his Word and live according to his ways. Have we experienced this kind of personal covenant with God? The sacrificed animals were a symbol of both the cost and consequences of covenanting with God. Jesus offered his body as that sacrifice on our behalf, and we, in turn, offer our bodies as living sacrifices back to God, which is our reasonable act of worship. “Lord God, than

Genesis 12-14; Luke 5 “The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you…I will bless you.’…’Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.’” Genesis 12:1, 2; 13:17   “’Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch’…so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break…’from now on you will catch men.’” Luke 5:4, 6, 10 The call of God requires us to leave whatever we are attached to, and go in obedience to God’s command. In obedience and faith we experience God’s blessing and receive our inheritance. In Abraham’s story, obedience and faith resulted in the promise of nations being blessed, territory given as his inheritance, and God’s protection over his life. The call of God for Peter and the disciples meant leaving the life of catching fish, and following Jesus in his mission of catching men. Their obedience and faith led to the birth of the Chur

Genesis 9-11; Luke 4   “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit…was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil…The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, ‘I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours.” Luke 4:1, 2, 5-7 The Father allowed his Son to be led by the Spirit into extensive testing by the devil, not to break him, but to forge a weapon. The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. Jesus overcame each temptation by speaking the Word,   “It is written…”. Satan still offers authority and wealth to those who worship him, including those who are building religious empires; however, those who know God will resist the devil. Overcomers know their path is that of Jesus. We overcome by loving not our lives, even unto death. The reward for overcoming is given in the next

Genesis 6-8; Luke 3   “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” Genesis 6:8, 9 There is no more valuable attribute than to find favor in the eyes of the Lord. In the wickedness of Noah’s generation, he stood out like a beautiful flower. God’s eyes were upon him. Why? Noah valued righteousness, he lived with integrity in his relationships, and he honored God in the way he lived his life. Most importantly, Noah walked with God. Noah learned God’s ways by walking with God and by spending time with God. To find favor with God, we must learn his ways, receive his righteousness through Jesus Christ, and become apprentices of Jesus. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, we can walk with God in ways more intimate than were possible before Pentecost. Through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for our sins, we can find favor with God in ways that were not possible through

Exodus 33-34; Psalms 16; Acts 9   “Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance…my body also will rest secure.” Psalm 16:5, 6, 9 Living within the boundaries of God’s provision and promises for us brings peace and joy to our body and soul. It is the Lord who assigns us our portion and cup. Have we thanked him for his provision, providence, and protection over our lives? Some people live with dissatisfaction and selfish ambition. They would like to shift the boundary lines in their lives and live for their own inheritance. This leads to frustration and emptiness, rather than freedom and peace. When we accept the Lord and his kingdom as our inheritance, we find joy, peace, and abundant life. We also rest at night knowing our lives are in the hands of the Lord. What is God inviting us to surrender into his hands so that we would have what is so much better? “L