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We are following a Bible in a Year plan with 15-minute daily readings from the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms & Proverbs.Your options for joining us include: 1. Subscribe to our daily readings emails above. 2. Read online using our daily links to Bible Gateway. 3. Listen online using the links at the top of each daily blog post (the daily readings by Tom Dooley are terrific!). 4. Read from your own Bible using your preferred translation. You can print out a listing of our entire year's readings in PDF format at this link. 5. Purchase a One Year Bible which organizes our daily readings. 6. Email me with any questions at [email protected]
Please note that we are not following a Chronological Bible plan on this blog - however, you can find my Chronological Bible Blog at this link, New Testament in a Year Blog at this link and Old Testament in a Year Blog at this link.
God bless! Mike
p.s. Keep scrolling down to see our latest daily readings blog post and email content below this welcome post. ⬇️
Old Testament - Well, I debated posting up this water color of Moses killing the Egyptian from chapter 2 today, but the image probably captures things accurately enough. We cannot hide from some of the things in the Bible that are not squeaky clean & perfect. The Bible is not always squeaky clean & perfect in terms of the behaviors of people in the Bible. Life is not always squeaky clean & perfect. However God will ultimately make us squeaky clean & perfect - forever. And in this life God can even redeem Moses after this act:
Please do read up more on this act of Moses' in chapter 2 at bible.org at this link. At this link you'll see this line: "We dare not seek to defend Moses in the murder of the Egyptian, no matter how cruel he may have been. Moses’ act was in defiance of the authority of Egypt, and it was premeditated murder (“he looked this way and that,” v. 12). While Moses’ method of dealing with this problem was wrong, we can see that his motivation was commendable. Moses sought to defend the oppressed. When he sought to rebuke his Hebrew brother for wrongly mistreating another Hebrew (v. 13), Moses revealed, once again, the disposition of a deliverer." Moses was 40 years old when he killed the Egyptian. Moses then escapes to Midian - an area on the eastern side of the Red Sea that was very dry and desolate. Moses ends up living in Midian for 40 years:
In Chapter 3 today God speaks to Moses through the burning bush! What I love about this is in verse 4: "When the LORD saw that he had caught Moses' attention..." It seems like Moses probably could have seen this burning bush - and kept going. He could have somehow walked on by - maybe because he had to get the flocks back home or he was late for dinner or who knows what. He could have missed the adventure and the calling of his life. But he doesn't. He stops. He investigates. He has a conversation with God. God caught his attention. And I wonder in our lives today, is God trying to catch our attention? Is God trying to tell us something important? And are we just passing God by - or will we stop and investigate and have a conversation with God?
Exodus 3:14 is a biggee in today's readings as Moses asks God who he should tell the Hebrews who sent him: "God replied, "I AM WHO I AM. Just tell them, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" I AM WHO I AM translates into Yahweh in Hebrew. I read a great little commentary that said when God speaks of himself, he says "I AM". When we speak of God we should say "He is." I like that. He is. I actually heard a sermon recently about the unchanging nature of God. He is omniscient. Omni-present. Eternal. He is wisdom. He cannot learn anything, because He knows everything. He is. The Hebrew letters yud, hey, vav, hey (below) -- often depicted in English as YHWH or Yahweh -- spell the ineffable name of God:
Another powerful thing to note is that Jesus uses this same phrase of I AM and nearly gets stoned to death for sharing this truth in the Gospel of John chapter 8 verses 58 & 59: "“I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds." Do you believe that Jesus is? So - when God says I AM! - what is our response? He is! :) I like that. He is. A great commentary on the Burning Bush & I AM in Exodus chapter 3 is at bible.org at this link.
New Testament - Today in Matthew chapter 17 verse 20 stood out to me: ""You didn't have enough faith," Jesus told them. "I assure you, even if you had faith as small as a mustard seed you could say to this mountain, `Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible."" As I think about this verse, I wonder about my own faith. How much faith do I really have? Do I have enough faith in Jesus? And in all of God's promises? Or - am I hedging my bets? Do I also place a lot of faith in my own power? My own skills? My own "smarts"? Do I truly have complete faith in Jesus and Jesus alone? If so, and if it was Jesus' will, do I believe that I could move mountains? Could you? I don't think that this idea of not having enough faith means that I need to "try harder" in any way. I think it means I simply need to depend more - rest more - relax more - give more - to Jesus. Trust in Jesus. Trust that his grace is enough... As a great Chris Tomlin song goes - "All of you is more than Enough, for all of me." Is Jesus more than enough for you?
Verses 25 & 26 are awesome as Peter is about to ask Jesus about the Temple Tax: "But before he had a chance to speak, Jesus asked him, "What do you think, Peter? Do kings tax their own people or the foreigners they have conquered?" "They tax the foreigners," Peter replied. "Well, then," Jesus said, "the citizens are free!"" Here we see that Jesus is recognizing himself as the King - and his disciples are his citizens who should not have to pay the tax. But - as to not offend those who did not realize that Jesus was the King, Jesus tells Peter where to find a coin, in the fish's mouth, to pay the tax.
Psalms - Psalm 22 is an amazing Psalm! This Psalm is the most quoted Psalm in the New Testament. Re-read this Psalm again and see if you see parallels to Jesus' crucifixion? There are a lot in this Psalm. I'll list a few - Psalm 22:1a was quoted by Jesus on the cross - "My God, my God! Why have you forsaken me?" As we see in Matthew 27:46 - "About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”–which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Psalm 22 Verse 8: ""Is this the one who relies on the LORD? Then let the LORD save him! If the LORD loves him so much, let the LORD rescue him!"" We see in similar fashion in Matthew 27:42-43: "“He saved others,” they said, “but he can't save himself! He's the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
Psalm 22 verses 16 & 17 make me want to cry... "They have pierced my hands and feet. I can count every bone in my body." The piercing of the hands and feet of Jesus are apparent with how the crucifixion took place. And these Psalm 22 verses are similar to John 19:33-37: "But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken,” and, as another scripture says, “They will look on the one they have pierced.”"
And Psalm 22 verse 18: "They divide my clothes among themselves and throw dice for my garments." Compare to John 19:23-24 - "When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. “Let's not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let's decide by lot who will get it.”"
Proverbs - Proverbs chapter 5 verses 12-14 are some sad verses to imagine saying in our lives: ""How I hated discipline! If only I had not demanded my own way! Oh, why didn't I listen to my teachers? Why didn't I pay attention to those who gave me instruction? I have come to the brink of utter ruin, and now I must face public disgrace."" Do you love or hate discipline? Do you demand your own way? Are you listening to your teachers today? Who are your teachers today? Who is disciplining you? For Whom will you not demand your own way?
Worship Video: Based on Psalm 22's look at what Jesus endured for us, it seems appropriate to share Shane and Shane singing “Power of the Cross:"
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'" Exodus 3:14 NIV
Prayer Point: Pray that you would know God truly as the great I AM. Pray that God would be your personal I AM each and every day. Pray that our world would come to know God and Jesus as the only one and true I AM.
Comments from You and Questions of the Day: I realize that reading Psalm 22 and seeing some of the images I posted up can evoke a lot of emotions. I am wondering, how often do you meditate upon Jesus' passion and death? Do you do this just around Good Friday / Resurrection Sunday each year? Or more often? How do you meditate upon the Lord's passion and death? Are passion plays, movies, or books helpful for you to do this? Or are their other things you read or watch or do? Do you think we should or should not meditate upon Jesus' passion and death more often than once a year? Why or why not? Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!
God bless, Mike
p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our Bible readings at this link.
p.s. #2 - Download a schedule of our Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.
p.s. #3 - I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this Bible Blog ministry today! Please also consider partnering with us by financially supporting this ministry. Thank you!
Old Testament - Today is a big reading day! We finish up Genesis and begin Exodus! Genesis chapter 50 verses 19 & 20 stood out to me as Joseph spoke to his brothers: ""Don't be afraid of me. Am I God, to judge and punish you? As far as I am concerned, God turned into good what you meant for evil. He brought me to the high position I have today so I could save the lives of many people." Again, I am impressed with Joseph's character here. His brothers seemed to think that Joseph hadn't really forgiven them, and that he was waiting to get back at them after their father had passed away. But, I think we see here that Joseph had truly forgiven his brothers! It was water under the bridge. And not only had Joseph forgiven them, but he saw the power of how God turned something bad into something incredibly good. I wonder about this in our lives today - do we truly forgive other people like Joseph forgave his brothers? Or, do we maybe hold some piece of unforgiveness within us? Maybe we keep bringing up the wrong that somebody did to us? Maybe we do this to make them feel a bit guilty from time to time? Will we instead fully forgive and fully move forward?
One interesting side note in chapter 50 was the embalming of Jacob & Joseph. Embalming was an Egyptian custom - not a Hebrew custom. Some commentaries suggest that Jacob & Joseph were likely being respectful of the Egyptian customs of the day. The Egyptians believed in an afterlife - and believed that the embalming allowed the deceased to utilize their body in the afterlife. Below is an illustration from the 13th century "Psalter of St. Louis" of Jacob´s corpse being laid in the tomb by his twelve sons:
~Exodus~ Author: Moses Date: 1420 or 1220 B.C. Content: The book of Exodus deals with the significant facts surrounding Israel’s emergence as a nation. Moses’ great leadership is described as he accepted God’s call to return to Egypt in order to lead God’s people to freedom. God sent the ten devastating plagues upon Egypt because the Pharaoh refused to obey his command. The ceremony of Passover was established during the last plague and became a memorial of God’s deliverance for all time to Israel. The Israelites crossed the sea and arrived at Mt. Sinai where God gave the Ten Commandments and the plan for the tabernacle, and the covenant was renewed the nation. Theme: The power of God over evil is clearly shown when God defeats the enemy of his people by delivering them from bondage, but God expects that we trust and obey him in return. Worship in the Tabernacle and adherence to the law were two aspects of Israel’s obedience. (Above commentary is from Tyndale Publishers “The One Year Bible Companion” pages 1-2) Terrific in-depth commentary on the book of Exodus can be found at bible.org at this link.
In Exodus chapter 1 verse 12 is awesome: "But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more quickly the Israelites multiplied!" It's amazing how when God wants people to flourish, they flourish! Even in the midst of oppression. This verse kind of reminds me of the flourishing of churches over the centuries and even today where the body of Christ is still often oppressed. It flourishes! Praise God for flourishing his people then - and now!
In Exodus chapter 2 we are first introduced to Moses, who is the author of this book of Exodus - along w/ the overall first 5 books of the Old Testament - also known as the Pentateuch or the Books of Law. A fun little Bible factoid for you in Exodus chapter 2 verse 6 is that this is the only mention anywhere in the Bible of a baby crying! :) "When the princess opened it, she saw the baby. The little boy was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This must be one of the Hebrew children,” she said."
Bible.org's commentary on Genesis chapter 50 titled "The End of An Era" is at this link, and commentary on Exodus chapter 1 titled "Pharaoh’s Fears and Israel’s Faith" is at this link.
Bible Project: Here is a terrific video overview of the book of Exodus!
New Testament - Today we read about Peter’s confession of Christ in Matthew chapter 16. In verse 15 we hear Jesus ask: ““But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” And then in verse 16 Peter replies – “Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” I believe this is a question that is asked of each of us today as well. Who do you say that Jesus is? Is your answer the same answer as Peter’s? If not, will you pray to God about who Jesus truly is? Below is a fresco from 1481 by Pietro Perugino of "Christ Giving the Keys to Peter" from verse 19:
In verse 18 we read - "Now I say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it." Praise God for Jesus instituting the body of Christ, Jesus’ church! And all of the powers of hell will not conquer the body of Christ! Do you praise Jesus regularly for the church you attend? Do you pray for the ministry of your church regularly? Do you pray often for your pastors / ministers / priests? Do you pray for others that attend your church? Do you pray for those that will soon be coming to attend your church? I have to say - I absolutely love my church. I honestly cannot imagine what my life would be like without the church. I met first met Jesus thanks to the church over 20 years ago. And Jesus changed my life forever. Thank God for the church! I realize that some of you may feel that some churches have some issues and so you don’t go to church at all at this time. However, I honestly do believe that we are called to be in community with others in a church – be it a big church, small church, house church, etc. - and that you really can find a great church if you search prayerfully. Trust me, they are out there! If you are not currently attending church - maybe because of bad experiences you had at another church in the past, will you pray about this with Jesus? Will you attend a different church again soon? I honestly believe it will bless you immensely to attend church again on a regular basis. Also, I am reminded of a classic line from Billy Graham – "If you ever find the perfect church, please do not join it. You’ll mess it up!" :) Indeed, there are no perfect people out there, and hence no perfect churches. But let us be the church anyway! The church may be a majestic mess, but it is Majestic indeed! And I do honestly believe that the body of Christ is the "hope of the world". Please be an active participant in this Hope.
Verses 24 - 26 are so powerful today: ""If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me. If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life. And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? Is anything worth more than your soul?" Wow... there is so much going on in these verses... I pray they speak to you powerfully as well? Do you want to follow Jesus? Will you put aside your selfish ambition? Will you shoulder your cross? Do you know what your cross is? Are you trying to "keep your life" in any area of your life? Or, will you give up all of your life - every area - to Jesus so that you will find true life? Is there anything that this world has to offer that is worth more than your soul?
Bible.org's commentary on today's readings in Matthew chapter 16 titled "Peter's Confession and Christ's Church" is at this link and commentary on chapter 17 titled "The Transfiguration" is at this link.
Psalms - Psalm 21 today follows up Psalm 20 from yesterday - yesterday's being a prayer for victory for the king as he goes out to battle - and today's being a psalm of praise for victories granted to the king. I like the credit given to God in verse 1: "How the king rejoices in your strength, O LORD! He shouts with joy because of your victory." The king is not rejoicing in his own strength. He is not claiming victory as his. He is giving credit to God! How about you in your life today? Do you give credit to God for the blessings and gifts he has given you? Do you shout for joy and rejoice simply because God is in your life?
Proverbs - Today we read in Proverbs chapter 5 verse 6: "For she does not care about the path to life. She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn't even realize where it leads." For some reason this year, as we've been going through the One Year Bible, the idea of "paths" keeps jumping out at me over and over again. Every time we read about paths now in the Bible, it stands out to me. And here it does again. The idea of paths in the Bible seems to clearly indicate that there are good paths - straight paths - paths through the narrow gate - paths of life - that we can choose to take. Or, unfortunately, there are also crooked trails and we don’t realize where they lead. Or we can take our eyes off the path. Or we can stumble on the path. How about for you? What type of path are you on these days? Is it a straight path? Are you keeping your eyes straight ahead on the path and focused on the prize? Will you pray to Jesus regularly to keep you on the straight path? Will you allow God's Word, the Bible, be a lamp unto your feet and a light on the path of life that you walk each day?
Worship Video: Today's readings reminded me of the Needtobreathe song "Multiplied" with a great live acoustic fireside version here:
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on two verses of Scripture today:"Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it." Matthew 16:24-25 NIV
Prayer Point: Pray that you are following Jesus, denying yourself and taking up your cross daily. Pray that you have lost your life for Jesus.
Comments from You and Questions of the Day: In our Matthew readings today Jesus institutes the church. I'm curious what your thoughts are on the church today? And I'm not talking about any one denomination - I mean church as the overall "body of Christ" Christian churches worldwide. Big churches, small churches, house churches, cathedral churches. Do you personally go to church regularly? Why or why not? Have there been periods of your life where you have not gone to church regularly? Have these been good or not so good periods of your life? What would you say to someone now who might be reading this blog who does not go to church about church? How might you encourage someone to go to church? Why does it matter if they go to church or not? Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!
God bless, Mike
p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our Bible readings at this link.
p.s. #2 - Download a schedule of our Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.
p.s. #3 - I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this Bible Blog ministry today! Please also consider partnering with us by financially supporting this ministry. Thank you!
Old Testament - Today in Genesis Chapter 48 we read about Jacob blessing Ephraim and Manasseh! One thing I thought about when reading this chapter and the next chapter was how interesting it is that blessings had so much importance and significance back in the days of the patriarchs. And I wonder - do we have blessings today that are as significant? Do fathers bless kids or grandkids these days? Maybe so... I guess I just haven't noticed it in my family... :) I do think there are still some "blessings" today that hold some incredible significance today. Wedding vows come to mind and the blessings that come from the pastor/priest/minister during this time. Church ceremonies or rituals come to mind - Communion, Baptism, Funerals, etc. And then certainly above all else, there is the amazing and eternal blessing we receive from Jesus himself - the free blessing and free gift of salvation. What else is there today that I'm missing? Have you been "blessed" by others in some way, like we read about in today's 2 chapters? Have you "blessed" others? Please share in the Comments section below. Below is a painting by the American artist Benjamin West from the early 19th century of Jacob blessing Ephraim and Manasseh - and with his arms appropriately crossed as per the text :) -
In Genesis chapter 49 we read about Jacob blessing his sons - and these are some very accurate blessings he gives as we will see as we continue through the Bible this year. Perhaps Predictions or Prophecies might be the better term for Jacob's blessings in this chapter. Verse 10 is awesome: "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will obey." This verse can apply to 2 descendants of Judah - King David and then ultimately and eternally to Jesus. In verse 22 we read this about Joseph: "Joseph is a fruitful tree," And this is certainly true, as his descendants will include Joshua, Deborah & Gideon & Jephthah (3 judges of Israel), and Samuel the prophet. Below is an image of Jacob blessing his 12 sons:
Below is a map that should be helpful to review based on today's blessing from Jacob of his sons. Obviously we still need to get through the Exodus and a few other things before the twelve tribes have this land below :), but this is a nice overview for now of where things are going and correlate with Jacob's blessing in today's readings:
Bible.org's commentary on Genesis chapter 48 titled "The View from the Graveyard" is at this link and commentary on chapter 49 titled "The Purpose of Prophecy" is at this link.
New Testament - In Matthew chapter 16 verses 11 & 12 stood out to me today: "So again I say, `Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.' " Then at last they understood that he wasn't speaking about yeast or bread but about the false teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees." And I wonder today - are there false teachings that we should beware of today? I believe there are... and there have been times in my life where I have bought into false teaching's. How can we know if a teacher is false? That is a great question. I would say that each of you are doing an amazing thing to help discern whether a teacher is false by reading the entire Bible. I believe the Bible to be the ultimate Truthful teaching that we can read - and thus, if you come across teachers that differ radically or go against the teachings of the Bible, you need to be wary. Don't get me wrong - every pastor / minister / priest is going to have some different takes or views or interpretations of the Bible. By slight degrees... If there are major differences, then you should be worried. In addition to knowing the Bible relatively well, the key to discerning false teachers will be the Holy Spirit. If you are getting bad "gut feelings" (hopefully coming from the Holy Spirit) over and over again about a teacher, there might be an issue. Pray to God about this and ask for his guidance. I realize this can be a sensitive issue! I'd say don't freak out about this and start wondering if your pastor is a false teacher.... :) But, be aware. I do believe there are still false teachers out and about today unfortunately. If you ever feel like you are being confused by someone today, keep your eye on the way out of confusion through God's Word!
Bible.org's commentary on today's readings in Matthew chapter 15 titled "A Lesson in Hermeneutics" is at this link.
Psalms - Psalm 20 is a prayer for a king as he goes out into battle - check out verses 1 through 5 again and you can imagine a group of people saying these words to the king. Maybe another way to read this Psalm, personally, is as a prayer for yourself as you go out into battle against a sin or a struggle in your life. And this verse 5 then is for you as you go into this battle: "May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory, flying banners to honor our God. May the LORD answer all your prayers." Amen! Let the banners fly soon in your life!
Proverbs - Proverbs chapter 4 verse 23 holds so much truth... "Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do." Check out yesterday's posting below for tons more reflections on why it is so critical for us to guard our hearts. How are you doing on guarding your heart these days?
We would do well to obey the teaching of verse 24: "Avoid all perverse talk; stay far from corrupt speech." I have found it sometimes far too easy to be pulled into perverse talk - even if I didn't start it. (look at me - blaming others here! :) I do think we really need to be aware of situations where talk amongst our peers or friends is going in the wrong direction and to realize that we need to get ourselves out of these situations as quickly as possible. Sure, try to do it gracefully. Try to change the subject if you can. But if not, just excuse yourself and get out of Dodge...
Worship Video: Today's readings in Genesis about Jacob blessing his son's reminded me of Tenth Avenue North's song "You Are More:"
Do you know that you are more than the sum of your past mistakes?Click here for More!
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. " Proverbs 4:23 NIV
Prayer Point: Pray that your heart would be guarded by God's Word today. Pray that Jesus is the Lord of the wellspring of your life today and forevermore.
Comments from You and Questions of the Day: Proverbs verses 25 & 26 are powerful and bring up a question I'd love feedback on: "Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; then stick to the path and stay safe." One thing that stood out to me in these verses is the ideas of setting goals. Are you a goal setter? I honestly am not really. I mean, I kind of set short-term goals - work projects, ministry projects, etc. But I don't really sit down and write down any big lifetime type goals. Part of my thinking on this is that I want to be as flexible as possible - if Jesus calls me to do something, I don't want to be hung up on some other goal... :) But, I'm not sure if this is the best thinking. This Proverb verse kind of makes me wonder if setting goals helps us keep looking straight ahead? If goals help us mark out a straight path for our feet? And to stay on it? So, let me know in the Comments section below if you are a goal-setter? And to the extent you can share how you set goals? How often? In writing? How often do you check back in on your goals? Do they make a difference in your life? In your spiritual life? I am really curious on this one... I am thinking I might need to be setting some goals here! :) Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!
God bless, Mike
p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our Bible readings at this link.
p.s. #2 - Download a schedule of our Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.
p.s. #3 - I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this Bible Blog ministry today! Please also consider partnering with us by financially supporting this ministry. Thank you!
Old Testament - Today in Genesis Chapter 46 we read about Jacob and his family's journey to Egypt! I really like that God speaks to Jacob in a vision at Beersheba - the same place where both Abraham and Isaac had worshiped God earlier in Genesis. As Jacob was about to leave Canaan, God reaffirms his covenant promises. Very reassuring for Jacob I am sure! I wonder - sometimes in our lives - as we are about to embark on something big: Maybe a new ministry. Maybe a mission trip. Maybe a new job. Maybe a new marriage. Maybe a new child. Does God speak to us? Does God reaffirm his love to us? Does God tell us that he will be with us on this new thing - as he did to Jacob in this chapter? I can't say that I've verbally heard God speak to me during times of big change in my life. But, I have most definitely sensed amazing peace many times during big changes in my life. I do try to pray more than ever during times of change. I try to stay as absolutely close to God as I possibly can. Maybe I'm kind of like a scared child trying to huddle up to my heavenly Father during times of change. Which I am okay with. :) And - it seems almost without fail, God does "speak" to me with a peace that surpasses all understanding. If the peace is not there... then I do begin to worry if what I am doing is really God's will for my life. If the peace is there - I know without a shadow of a doubt that what I am embarking upon is God's will for my life. I will say this - that even if I cannot discern or sense the peace during a time of change, I still do not doubt that God will be with me. That he will not leave me. That he will be there. Do you believe that God is with you always? That he will go with you wherever you go? Below is a wonderful engraving by Gustave Dore of Jacob traveling to Egypt:
Verses 33 & 34 stood out to me in today's readings, as Joseph gives his brothers this instruction: "So when Pharaoh calls for you and asks you about your occupation, tell him, `We have been livestock breeders from our youth, as our ancestors have been for many generations.' When you tell him this, he will let you live here in the land of Goshen, for shepherds are despised in the land of Egypt."" I like Joseph's wisdom here. I guess you could look at this as Joseph being manipulative of Pharaoh. But I don't really see this. I see that Joseph is telling his brothers what to say - which is true - and that this will allow the nation of Israel to begin to grow and flourish in the land of Goshen, removed from the cities of Egypt. It seems like Joseph is definitely catering to Pharaoh's generosity - "let your family come to Egypt!" - and Pharaoh / Egyptians prejudices - "shepherds are despised in the land of Egypt." For a win / win. It's a Stephen Covey win / win business principle here! :) Below is a map showing Jacob's family's journey from Canaan to Goshen:
In Genesis chapter 47 I find it very interesting that Jacob blesses Pharaoh twice. I haven't studied why this happens. My thought is that Jacob is indeed very appreciative of this current Pharaoh - for literally saving the Israelites by allowing God to move mightily through Joseph. We will see soon that there are future Pharaoh's who are not so kind to the Israelites... So, perhaps Jacob realized that this Pharaoh was deserving of two blessings. Let me know your thoughts on these blessings in the Comments below? Below is an image of Jacob blessing Pharaoh:
We then read about Joseph's leadership and business skills during the famine - as things get really bad with the famine and people are on the brink of starving. Overall, I initially thought that Joseph was making wise decisions that ultimately ended up saving lives - and in verse 25 the people said the same thing. However, I have one good friend who was in a Bible study with me who felt that Joseph was being way too harsh. I can see both sides... :) Did Joseph have other options / ways to do this? We actually got into quite a heated discussion on this point in our Bible study on this topic a couple of years ago. What do you think? During this time of extreme famine, was Joseph being too harsh or being wise and even being compassionate? Below is a Victorian era painting from 1874 by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema titled "Joseph, Overseer of the Pharaoh's Granaries":
Okay, I have to say that I absolutely love Bob Deffinbaugh's humor over at bible.org! Check out his commentary on Genesis chapter 46, with the awesome title of "Life Begins at 130"at this link. I love it! Bible.org's commentary on Genesis chapter 47 titled "A Proper Perspective of Poverty and Prosperity" is at this link.
New Testament - In Matthew chapter 15 today we read about Jesus confronting the Pharisees on their "age-old traditions." I read in Zondervan's & Tyndale's commentaries that after the Babylonian exile (we'll read about the exile late this year in the One Year Bible), Jewish rabbis began to make meticulous rules and regulations governing the daily life of people. And that these rules were added to God's law and were essentially elevated to the same sacred status by the Pharisees. In 200 A.D. these traditions of the elders were put into writing in the Mishnah. I think what Jesus gets at here in this chapter is that the Pharisees were allowing the "rules & regulations" to overshadow the spirit of God's law. They were not honoring their parents because of the practice of Corban - giving $ to the temple. Which, giving $ to the temple is a good thing... but at the expense of the great thing of caring for your parents? I know we all could probably go round and round on what is the greatest good - how should we spend our time and our money and our lives. I like that Jesus basically takes it to the heart. What is the heart of the matter? No matter what the matter is - taking care of your parents, giving to your church, obediently following God's will, receiving God's grace - what is the heart of the matter? One thing that I have been so blessed to learn over the past few years is that the condition of our hearts matters. Immensely. The motives of why we do something - anything - matters. Immensely. We are called in Proverbs to "guard our hearts, for it is the wellspring of life." If we do not care for the state of our hearts, we can become very regimented or insensitive in our thinking and doing. We might even get to the point in verse 8 of this chapter where Jesus quotes from Isaiah: "`These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away." How is the state of your heart today? Is it close to God? Does your heart yearn for Jesus?
Jesus continues to speak about the importance of what is in our hearts in verses 18-20 today: "But evil words come from an evil heart and defile the person who says them. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all other sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. These are what defile you." I think this takes us back again to the Sermon on the Mount - where Jesus teaches us in one example that yes, it is wrong to commit adultery. But, if you commit adultery in your heart, it is just as wrong. Because if you commit adultery in the heart, you have defiled your own heart. And from the heart could come the actual act of committing adultery - which would then shatter several lives. But it all starts in the heart.... So - the good news? Jesus can heal our hearts! Jesus is in the business of heart-healing! Maybe in your life, you might need to refocus from some external actions and start focusing on the state of your heart? Maybe by focusing on what's going on inside your heart, the external actions will ultimately change? Maybe allow Jesus to heal your heart - and then your external life will be healed as well? I'm not sure you can go about this the other way - trying to work from the outside back in... I think you need to start on the inside first and work your way out. But don't do this alone - let Jesus walk this healing path with you. Let Jesus tattoo your heart with his healing love! (very interesting name of the theater in the image below, based on our Genesis readings today... :)
Bible.org's commentary on today's readings in Matthew chapter 15 titled "Jesus and the Traditions of the Elders" is at this link and "The Faith of a Canaanite Woman" is at this link.
Psalms - Today we read Psalm 19, which is one of my favorite Psalms! In large part this Psalm is one of my favorites because one of my former pastors taught from this Psalm a few years ago in such a powerful way. Have you had this type of experience? Where you hear a sermon on a chapter of the Bible and then that chapter becomes one of your favorites? I do hope that this One Year Bible experience will allow you to tune-in a little bit more whenever you hear your pastors or ministers or priests teaching you from the Bible in church. I know this is the case with me. Thanks to reading the Bible each day, I now have better context of what is being taught from the pulpit and it makes going to church a richer experience overall. I also now often catch some Bible verses in the worship songs or hymns we sing as well. And this adds a lot to my worship of God now through music. This year, as you go through the One Year Bible and as you go to church, will you tune-in to the sermons and the songs in church more than ever and look for and appreciate how they tie in to the Bible?
Back to Psalm 19 – I do encourage everyone to really read through and meditate on every verse in this Psalm of David and how this Psalm might be speaking to you this week. Please do take a few minutes to go through the Psalm twice if possible and really reflect upon it. You may even want to journal to God some thoughts or ideas or prayers that come to you through reading this Psalm. I find verse 14 in this Psalm to be so powerful – again in large part because one of my former pastors often sang a worship song that simply repeats this verse over and over again – and what a beautiful prayer it is for each of us to repeat over and over again as well: “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Are the words of your mouth and the meditation of your heart pleasing in God’s sight? Is God your Rock? Is God your Redeemer?
Bible.org's commentary on Psalm 19 is at this link.
Proverbs - Proverbs 4 verse 18 reminds me of Psalm 19! "The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day." See the parallel? Is your life shining ever brighter as you go forward in life? Are you shining ever brighter for those around you? Are you loving and blessing those around you more and more each day? Are you moving forward toward the full light of day?
Worship Video: Today's readings in Psalm 19 reminds me of the Laura Story song “Indescribable” sung here live by Chris Tomlin at Red Rocks from the sound board in the middle of the audience:
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today:"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer." Psalm 19:14 NIV
Prayer Point: Pray that the words of your mouth today would be pleasing in God's sight. Pray that the very meditations of your heart today would be pleasing in His sight. Pray that you would know and experience Jesus as your Rock and your Redeemer this very day.
Comments from You and Questions of the Day: In Matthew 15 verses 10 & 11 today we read: "Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “Listen,” he said, “and try to understand. It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth."" Do you agree with these words of Jesus'? Are you cognizant of the words that come out of your mouth on a moment by moment basis? Have you ever had to conscientiously change the words that come out of your mouth because they were not blessing others? Do you use profanity? (or am I being a Pharisee by even asking this question... :) I think it's a fair question - does profanity come out of your mouth? Do you think this is pleasing in God's sight? (Psalm 19:14) Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!
God bless, Mike
p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our Bible readings at this link.
p.s. #2 - Download a schedule of our Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.
p.s. #3 - I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this Bible Blog ministry today! Please also consider partnering with us by financially supporting this ministry. Thank you!
Old Testament - In Genesis chapter 44 we read about Joseph instructing his servant to place his silver cup in Benjamin's sack. I guess what struck me about all this is that it seemed to me like Joseph was possibly playing mind games with his brothers. Not to say that they didn't deserve it... but, I wonder if in all of this Joseph had a master game-plan - or if it was simply games he was playing? The weeping we see from him kind of makes me think that he was not 100% sure of what he was doing, game-plan wise. The weeping seemed to indicate that he wanted to reconnect with his brothers and his family. It seems in all of this he has kept at least 1 family member around - or has not let them get very far away. This makes me wonder - do we play mind games with others around us? Should we? Would it have been better if Joseph was honest with his brothers from the beginning on who he was? Would it be better for us if we are simply honest with others from the beginning? And don't play mind games? (I wrote the previous words several years ago. I've since read a couple of Bible commentaries that now make me think that Joseph wasn't playing mind games, but was bringing his brothers to a needed place of repentance for their sins before he revealed himself, which does make a lot of sense.) Below is a painting from 1831 by Russian painter Alexander Ivanov of Joseph's household manager finding the silver cup in Benjamin's sack:
Verses 18 through 34 in this chapter is Judah's amazing speech to Joseph! I don't know what it is about this speech. But I love it! It seems like Judah is finally owning up to being who he was born to be - the forefather of the line of King David and Jesus Christ. Verse 33 is the verse that really stood out to me: "Please, my lord, let me stay here as a slave instead of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers." What struck me about this is that now Judah is willing to be the slave, in the place of his brother Benjamin - whereas 22 years prior he offered up the idea of selling his brother Joseph into slavery as we read in Genesis 37 verses 26 & 27: "Judah said to the others, "What can we gain by killing our brother? That would just give us a guilty conscience. Let's sell Joseph to those Ishmaelite traders." It seems like Judah in chapter 44 has finally grown up and is acting like a morally responsible adult. Judah with this speech today is finally beginning to look like he might indeed deserve to be referred to as the father of the tribe of the "Lion" of Judah!
Genesis chapter 45 begins with Joseph weeping again - and I think that it makes perfect sense that he does so, in light of Judah's impassioned speech! And I wonder if Joseph in part weeps because Judah is offering to be the slave in the place of Benjamin? Either Joseph is weeping because his brothers did not show him this same mercy 22 years prior - or he is weeping because he is happy that Judah and his brothers seem to be very different people from 22 years prior - or he's weeping for other reasons. :) (Similar to my note above, I now think Joseph was weeping because his brother's are now humbled and repentant - very different men than they were 22 years prior.) Below is a painting from 1816 by Peter von Cornelius of Joseph revealing his identity to his brothers in today's readings:
Verse 5 in this chapter is a powerfully mature statement from Joseph to his brothers: "But don't be angry with yourselves that you did this to me, for God did it. He sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives." I find this very powerful that Joseph discerned this. He had been sold into slavery for 11 years! He was in a prison for 2 years! And then, yes, things got better for him thereafter - but he was still apart from his family. And yet - Joseph saw God's hand and God's plan in all of this. There was a greater good happening - the preservation of Abraham & Isaac's descendants. The preservation of God's covenant people. I then wonder about this in our lives. Are there times where we go through some hard times - maybe for many years - and in the midst of that, could God be working? Could God's hand and God's plan be moving in the midst of challenging times in our lives? I think it's possible that if I was Joseph that maybe I would have become a bitter man toward my brothers - and maybe done worse than just mind games. But, Joseph was compassionate - he wept - he gave grain in abundance to his family - he forgave his brothers. And more than anything, he saw that God was in control. Do you believe that God is in control of your life? Right now? All the time? No matter how good or how bad circumstances seem? Is God in control? Below is a very unique :) portrait by artist Guy Rowe of Joseph revealing his identity to his brothers and their looks of shock from 45:3: "But his brothers were speechless! They were stunned to realize that Joseph was standing there in front of them."
Bible.org's commentary on Genesis chapter 44 titled "The Final Test: Dothan Relived" is at this link, and commentary on chapter 45 titled "The Fundamentals of Forgiveness" is at this link.
New Testament - In Matthew chapter 14 today we read about two miracles - Jesus feeding the 5,000 (or really 10,000 to 15,000 counting men, women & children - Matthew just counted men, as his Gospel was written to a Jewish audience, which had men eat separately from women and children at that time/place) and Jesus walking on water. While these 2 miracles are amazing and again confirming that Jesus is God - a couple of other things stood out me. First was verse 23: "Afterward he went up into the hills by himself to pray." If Jesus did this - do you think we should do the same? How often do we get away from the "crowds" or even the "disciples" or loved ones in our life to be by ourselves and pray? Do you do this at least for a few minutes each day? Do you do this for longer periods of time too?
Verses 29 & 30 also stood out to me today: "All right, come," Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he looked around at the high waves, he was terrified and began to sink. "Save me, Lord!" he shouted." These verses made me wonder in our own lives - Are there times or areas our lives where Jesus has said, "Come", and we've moved forward in faith. But then - the waves came... the challenges came... the doubts came... the insults came.... and we started to waver in our faith? Maybe we got scared - and started to sink? Well - I do admire that Peter did cry out to Jesus to save him in this situation - and we then get the reassuring verse 31: "Instantly Jesus reached out his hand and grabbed him." If you feel like there are some areas in your life where you are sinking - will you cry out to Jesus to save you? Do you believe he will instantly reach out his hand and grab you?
Bible.org's commentary on today's readings in Matthew chapter 14 titled "The Feeding of the Five Thousand" is at this link.
Psalms - Today we finish up Psalm 18. (Psalm 19 tomorrow! So excited! :) The closing verse 50 of Psalm 18 today is powerful - and I believe can apply to both David and Jesus: "You give great victories to your king; you show unfailing love to your anointed, to David and all his descendants forever." Are you a spiritual descendent of David? Do you believe that God shows you unfailing love? Do you think that God's Word, the Bible, shows His unfailing love for you?
Proverbs - Proverbs chapter 4 verse 13 was impactful for me today: "Carry out my instructions; don't forsake them. Guard them, for they will lead you to a fulfilled life." I like that last thought - guard God's instructions. Don't forsake them. For they will lead you to a fulfilled life. I think sometimes people think that loving God and following his ways will be BORING. :) This is so not true! It is absolutely the best adventure we could ever imagine. And truly, following God and his instructions is the only way I personally believe that any of us can have a fulfilled life. I do not think there is another way to lead a fulfilled life. Can you imagine a life apart from God being fulfilling? Is this remotely possible?? Today, let us leap into the adventurous life of faith that God is truly calling us to live!
Worship Video: Today's readings in Matthew about Peter calling out to Jesus when he was sinking in the water reminded me of the Third Day song "Call My Name:"
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today:"The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!" Psalm 18:46 NIV
Prayer Point: Pray that you would praise God wholeheartedly today in all that you think, do, and say.
Comments from You and Questions of the Day: Based on our readings in Matthew today where we see that Jesus slipped away from the crowds to pray by himself, do you model this behavior of Jesus' in your life and slip away from the crowds to pray by yourself? How often? Where and How? Also, do you take spiritual retreats? Do you take the retreats alone or with others? Is prayer a central part of the retreats? I'm just curious about spiritual retreats. I cannot say that I have done a prayer-focused spiritual retreat - or even an alone-with-God focused spiritual retreat. I think I might be due. :) Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!
God bless, Mike
p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our Bible readings at this link.
p.s. #2 - Download a schedule of our Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.
p.s. #3 - I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this Bible Blog ministry today! Please also consider partnering with us by financially supporting this ministry. Thank you!
