Whoever touches a dead person, the body of anyone who has died, and does not cleanse himself, defiles the tabernacle of the LORD, and that person shall be cut off from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown on him, he shall be unclean.

Numbers 19:1-22

Whoever touches a dead person, the body of anyone who has died, and does not cleanse himself, defiles the tabernacle of the LORD, and that person shall be cut off from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown on him, he shall be unclean. Numbers 19:13

I continue my study of Numbers, and in the text today - Numbers 19:1-22 - God describes purification laws (ceremonial law) for the people.  Here are my observations using the Sword Bible Study Method.

• What do we learn from the text about God?: Impurity is a big deal to God, and the text today lays out many of the Old Testament criteria or conditions that trigger impurity.  Old Testament law ultimately became twisted by the Jewish leaders who focused on the actions of purification vs the heart condition that God really seeks through purification.  Sin is really what drives impurity and this is the great equalizer because we all sin (Psalm 14:1, Romans 3:10, 23, 1 John 1:8).  The gospel of Jesus Christ, allows us to confess and be cleansed of sin and therefore be justified or declared "not guilty" or not accountable for the sin we committed as this would have if guilty led to death (Romans 6:23).  God wants us to love Him with all of our heart and allow Him to change us from the inside out - heart and life transformation.  All are deserving to hear the gospel and of the work He does in us.   
• What do we learn from the text about people?: Purification laws at one point were twisted by Israel to avoid association with those from other lands.  Yet we know that God never intended this as even in the Old Testament, God sought to save those beyond the borders of Israel - one such example is God sending Jonah to save Nineveh.  In the New Testament we see Peter (see Acts 10:28), based on his vision from God, make clear God's intent to not to exclude anyone not from Israel from the church - deemed unclean based on purification laws.  The gospel extends to the Gentiles and to all corners of the world (Matthew 20:19-20).   
• Is there anything from the text God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid, Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): Avoid excluding anyone from hearing the gospel.  Claim the promise that Jesus came to seek and save the lost - all.  Follow the example of Peter, Paul and so many others who seek to bring the gospel to all tribes and nations.  Go into the world and bring the Good News everywhere.   

Comment and discuss this post

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves and seeks to save everyone - all sin and fall short of the glory of God and all are worthy of hearing the gospel to be saved.  You save!  Thank You Jesus for saving me.  I am not deserving...my sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

Mark 2:13-17

And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. Mark 2:15

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, I focus on a commentary-assisted review of Mark 2:15, which is the second division (Jesus Calls the Socially Undesirable to Fellowship with Him) of the text 2:13-17 per commentary.  Excerpts from the second division per commentary:

• "Now we find Jesus in Levi’s house, sharing a meal and having a good time. This is appropriate because the day of salvation should be a day of celebration (Luke 15:7,10,32)."
• "The term “sinners” may be a technical term for the common people who did not live by the rigid rules of the Pharisees. They were alienated and rejected. These are people who needed God’s grace and knew it. They were no doubt stunned that the famous young Rabbi would share table fellowship with them."
• "Jesus, in this event, tells us the Messiah calls and eats with sinners, extending forgiveness to all who would follow Him. The meal itself was something of a foreshadowing and anticipation of the great Messianic banquet at the end of the age (Revelation 19:9), when persons from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation who have experienced this scandalous grace, including the unlikely and the undesirable, will recline with King Jesus at a great banquet that will never end."  

Believers must understand that we all sin and are undeserving of the salvation that Jesus offers as He loved us despite how we are dead in our sin and enemies/hostile to Him - the wages of sin are death (Romans 6:23).  Jesus doesn't give us what we DO deserve but DOES give us what we don't deserve - salvation.  We should be just like those at Levi's house - amazed at God's grace.  We must believe just as Paul does that our former lives before Jesus were "rubbish" compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus (Philippians 3:8).  This surpassing worth of knowing Jesus must then compel us to share the gospel with others because we are literally bursting at the seams looking for ways to share Jesus - see Acts 4:20 where Peter, under arrest, shares that "we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard."  

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, what an awesome God You are that You loved me first while still sinning and hostile to You.  You not only loved me, You saved me!  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

[Jesus] looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.

Mark 5:25-34

[Jesus] looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease. Mark 5:32-34

I continue my study of The Character of Jesus.  For this morning, I focus on chapter 14: The Chivalry of Jesus where I highlighted in my Kindle version the following excerpts:

• "Possibly we can find no better word to cover this rich characteristic of the heart of Jesus than the word 'chivalry'"....In a world from which justice had been largely banished and in which might had usurped the place of right, the knight arose to defend the weak and to bring just causes through to victory."
• "Jesus of Nazareth was a knight. On foot he traveled forth, clad in the armor of a peerless manhood, to shield the weak, maintain the right, and live a life which should charm and win the world. At the head of the great company of knightly souls by whose bravery and prowess the world has been made better, stands this knight of knights, this chivalric Man of Galilee." 
• "[Jesus'] soul goes out to those who suffer. Physical distress pierced him and wrung his heart. Sickness in the first century did not receive the attention which it receives in ours. The poor were allowed to suffer unattended and to die unrelieved. There were no hospitals such as ours, and no earnest bands of philanthropic men and women giving their lives to the alleviation of pain and to banishing the terrors of the dying hour.  Insane people were not housed and cared for. Supposed to be possessed by devils, they were driven out of the town and allowed to wander in cemeteries and desert places, a terror to all who heard their shrieks and cries. Jesus pitied them. No one else reached out to them a helping hand."
• "His heart was ever open to the neglected and forlorn. Between Galilee and Judea there lived a tribe of people, half Jewish and half Pagan [(Samaritans)], who in their religion as well as in their blood exhibited a degeneration from the high ideals of the early times. Degenerates and apostates, they were held in deep abhorrence by Hebrews whose hearts were true to the high traditions of their country. It was only in cases of necessity that a Jew could be induced to pass through the region inhabited by these people.  Jesus not only passed through Samaria, but he tarried there and taught the people just as he taught the men of Judea and GaHlee. They were outcasts, but they were also human, and if they had no protector or friend, he at any rate would befriend them. Some of them might not understand how to receive him, but such churlish conduct could not dampen the ardor of his interest in them. The disciples with blazing hearts might want to bum up a Samaritan village, but the Knight of Galilee came not to destroy but to save.  No man can take his place on the side of the Samaritans without paying an awful penalty, and Jesus paid it. Men gnashed their teeth and hissed, "You are a Samaritan." That was the most cutting thing it was possible for them to say, but he never swerved from his course. He healed Samaritan lepers as freely as any others, and when he painted a man who represented his ideal of goodness he painted him with the features and dress of a Samaritan.  The parable which has probably taken the deepest hold on the heart of the world of all the parables which Jesus spoke is the parable of the " Good Samaritan." The creation of that parable was a sublime act of chivalry."
• "There were outcasts even in Galilee and Judea. There were people who were estranged from organized religion....In many of these people there were aspirations after better things, and in all of them there were the deep hungers and warm feelings of our common humanity. But they were outcasts. The church had laid a ban upon them.....But Jesus was not a man to be deterred by the of execrations of polite society. The so-called sinners were human beings, and because children of God they were not to be despised. If no other religious teacher would go among them, he would. He did. He made himself of no reputation. He sat down with sinners and ate with them."
• "But as is the case with all true knights, it is in his attitude to woman that Jesus' chivalry reaches its finest expression....There were many degraded women in Palestine as there are to-day in America. Woman being weaker than man is the first to suffer from the injustices of every social and economic system.  One of these degraded women was caught one day by a lot of men who dragged her into the presence of Jesus just to see what he would say and do. According to the Palestinian law a woman guilty of adultery could be stoned to death. As soon as the men had made their accusation, Jesus paused a moment and then said, "The man among you who has not committed the same sin may throw the first stone." Not a stone was lifted. No one said a word. Those who were on the outskirts of the crowd one by one disappeared. By and by they all had gone."
• "In the scales of God's eternal justice a woman's sin is not heavier than that of a man. Here is a teacher who does not hesitate to defend the rights of woman even though by so doing he incurs the deadly hatred of all foul-hearted men. Even women of the street shall not be denied the privilege of repentance, for they are capable of remorse, and may long to find their way back to the Father's house. A woman has a mind, a conscience, a soul, even though she lives in Samaria and has broken the moral law, and is worthy of careful instruction at the hands of the greatest of teachers. What a piece of gallantry it was — that conversation at Jacob's well!" 
• "Here, then, we have a knight who is a knight indeed. The medieval knight went forth seeking for adventures: our knight of Palestine went forth in search of forlorn and friendless human beings.  He had all the graces and virtues of medieval chivalry and none of its superficiality or its foibles. He had the nerve, the mettle, and the intrepidity of the bravest of the knights, and along with this he had a sweet winsomeness, a divine graciousness which history cannot match. Many a knight protected the distressed and maintained the right but failed to live the stainless life. This prince of knights, this king of all the hosts of chivalry, conquered on every field and came off without a stain." 
• In Jesus we have a revelation of the heart of God. In speaking of the chivalry of this man of Nazareth I have been speaking of the chivalry of the Eternal. God is knightly in His disposition, chivalric in His temper. It is His work from all eternity to protect the weak, maintain the right, and live a stainless life. His heart goes out unceasingly toward the weak, the helpless, and those who have no friend....If you are conscious of your weakness, cry out to Him, for He is swift to answer such a cry. If you feel sometimes absolutely helpless, altogether forlorn and forsaken, do not despair, for the heart of Jesus is the heart which beats in and behind all this world, and you can never be forsaken so long as God is God. In your moments of depression and in the days when the world seems cold and cruel, think of the chivalric God, whose heart beats in sympathy with weakness, and who goes out with alacrity and with gladness to meet every soul in need of succor."

The Gospel is Good News indeed - for everyone.  No matter your station or circumstances in life, Jesus comes to save.  When you feel there is no one left willing to help and you feel broken and hopeless.  Jesus is there...always.  He is the knight in shining armor we all need seek.  Stop seeking and come to Jesus! Luke 19:10.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, Jesus, You are my knight in shining armor as You save and You saved me...You also never leave or forsake me, and delivery new mercies everything morning that never cease!  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving...by a long shot.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message to me today and every day.  

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.

Malachi 4:1-6

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction. Malachi 4:5-6

I continue my study of the last four books of the Old Testament, having already covered Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and most of Malachi.  My study leans on the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series volume which covers these books. This morning I continue with Malachi 4:1-6, focusing on an unassisted review of 4:5-6.  Here, as the book of book of Malachi closes, God delivers a message to Israel that during end times (before the third woe) God will send Elijah and he will bring peace to families.  Keeping in mind the text is not clear to me in terms of God's specific message and application, the words offered are nonetheless encouraging.  First, they are encouraging for those families who struggle with tension between parents and children - I am one of those parents (who isn't?) who experience this tension.  Beyond the implied peace - the outcome of this peace is not clear.  Revelation 11 shares how, during end times, there are two witnesses that share testimony and prophecy, are attacked and killed, but then rise again to Heaven.  A cursory Internet search reveals that Moses and Elijah are these two witnesses, yet I am going to wait until tomorrow for details on what my commentary shares.  The hope is that God uses the two witnesses to offer testimony and opportunities for those who have not already been saved to be saved during end times.  My mind goes to Jude 22-23 where we are commanded to "have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire."  Eternal damnation (Hell) sounds like an awful, awful place and believers are no more deserving than anyone else for their salvation.  We should, given an opportunity, offer grace to everyone and share the gospel hoping that a seed planted will be germinated by God such that others are saved. 

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Heavenly Father, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and mercy for me - giving me salvation. I know I am not deserving.  Thank You for my salvation.  My sin is great and it continues...harshness towards others and harsh talk.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply your message for me today and every day.      

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."

Matthew 2

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." Matthew 2:1-2

I maintain a pause of my study of 1 Corinthians as I continue using DesiringGod.com's Advent devotions where I pick up on Day 7.  Here, John Piper unpacks Matthew 2:1-2.  Piper first contrasts Matthew's account of the gospel with Luke's (see Luke 2:8-18 and also post yesterday). Piper shares: "Unlike Luke, Matthew does not tell us about the shepherds coming to visit Jesus in the stable. His focus is immediately on foreigners — Gentiles, non-Jews — coming from the east to worship Jesus."  Piper then highlights how Matthew's gospel both starts and ends with a focus on how Jesus "[was/is] a universal Messiah for all the nations, not just for Jews."  Piper continues: "Here the first worshipers are court magicians, or astrologers, or wise men not from Israel but from the East — perhaps from Babylon. They were Gentiles. Unclean, according to the Old Testament ceremonial laws."  Of course we know from Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus's words from the Great Commission that gospel is not just for Jews but "all nations."  The devotion then refers us to Isaiah 60:3 as the devotion pivots to how Matthew's focus on non-Jews not only opened the door for Gentiles to be saved, "it added proof that [Jesus] was the Messiah. Because one of the repeated prophecies was that the nations and kings would, in fact, come to him as the ruler of the world." Piper concludes the devotion by sharing that "Matthew adds proof to the messiahship of Jesus and shows that he is Messiah — a King, and Promise-Fulfiller — for all the nations, not just Israel."

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and compassion for me.  Thank You Jesus for including me in Your plan to be saved and so many others.  I am not deserving of such love and compassion.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.  

“And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, “I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered.”

Isaiah 54-57

“And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, “I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered.” Isaiah 56:6-8

I continue my deep dive of Isaiah, based on the Precept Upon Precept study series.  My study of Isaiah begins with day 2 (of 5) of week 20, which looks at Isaiah 54-57.  Day 2 focuses on Isaiah 55-56.  Isaiah 55 describes God's great compassion, as both the wicked and unrighteous are offered forgiveness if they repent and turn towards the Lord (Isaiah 55:7). Isaiah 55 also describes a more fertile land vs previous descriptions Isaiah as desolate (Isaiah 55:13). Isaiah 56 describes how God offers the riches of His inheritance towards not just the remnant of Israel, but also foreigners (Isaiah 56:3-8). Of course, this is a foretaste of the Great Commission, where Jesus commands the disciples to go out into the world - all of it - to share the Good News of Jesus Christ, and to make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20).

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an incredible God who loves me and who offers Himself, freely, to anyone who accepts You as His Lord and Savior.  Thank You for the salvation You gave me - I am not deserving of course.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus[.]

Ephesians 2

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus[.] Ephesians 2:4-6

This morning, until I start a new Bible study, I continue using devotionals from John Piper.  Today, the post focuses on the "freeness of grace" - meaning that the manner in which God brings about our conversion to faith is through a "one-sidedly free and non-negotiated" conversion from spiritual deadness to life with Christ.  Piper remarks at the abruptness of Paul's insertion of how "by grace you have been saved" between v5 and 6 to underscore the depth of God's grace.  This grace is emphasized once again - this time more explicitly and less abruptly - in v8 where in one of the more well referenced verses in the New Testament Paul writes: 

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God[.] Ephesians 2:8

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for Your amazing grace - that I was dead in my sin, hostile to You - yet You brought me to life and made me one of Your elect and gave me faith - thank You!  I am not deserving of such a blessing - the greatest gift of all time.  Yet I am not deserving - I sin...daily, including worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians,both to the wise and to the foolish.

Romans 1:8-15

 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians,both to the wise and to the foolish. Romans 1:14

This morning, I continued my study of Romans.  Using my commentary - Exalting Jesus in Romans (eBook) - I moved on with a review of Romans 1:8-15.  My initial reading sees an emphasis on Paul's love for the Romans and he is deeply encouraged by their faith and how he longs to be with his fellow believers in Rome. He shares how he is torn between his love and desire to be with the Romans and how he feels a sense of "obligation" or duty to preach among the Greeks and non-Greeks who he refers to as "barbarians" (v14). 

My commentary notes that Paul has not yet been to Rome, so he is "exposing his heart" for the gospel, his mission, and the Romans, and in so doing "he is building rapport" as this is deeply encouraging for his readers.  My commentary contains three key sections for today:

• communion with God (1:8-10); he is described as thankful, and that only humble people show gratitude; we are encouraged to "pepper thanksgiving to God into our everyday conversations with one another"; Paul's passion is on display, including "people-centered passion" where he prays for the Romans and the church; we are encouraged to pray for believers and the church globally as these prayers "really matter; Paul desperately wants to get to Rome but as a busy missionary he has been unable to - yet he submits to God's will
  
• concerns for the church (1:11-13); Paul explains why he is eager to go to Rome as he "wants to bless the church through his gifts of leadership and teaching"; we are encouraged to see how Paul wants to be an encouragement and to be encouraged (v12) and all of us need each other
  
• commitment to preach the gospel to everyone (1:14-15); here we see how Paul sought to reach everyone not just a single people group; we are urged as well to focus on both non-believers and believers as "[w]e need a better understanding of various doctrines, we need to apply them to our lives, and we need to be reminded of our fundamental identity as well as as the hope that is ours in Christ"

In v14-15, RC Sproul in this post highlights a distinction of duty vs delight in our service to God. John Piper highlights how we owe grace to others as God freely gave it to us. 

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God who loves me and who freely redeemed me from my sin, giving me life to the full and for eternity - thank You Jesus!  Without a doubt I am undeserving.  My sin of worry, and other sins, continues.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

If you love only the people who love you, you will get no reward. Even the tax collectors do that. And if you are nice only to your friends, you are no better than other people. Even those who don’t know God are nice to their friends.

Acts 9 and Jonah 1-4

If you love only the people who love you, you will get no reward. Even the tax collectors do that. And if you are nice only to your friends, you are no better than other people. Even those who don’t know God are nice to their friends. Matthew 5:46-47 (NCV)

I continue with my study of - Ten Men of the Bible: How God Used Imperfect People to Change the World - eBook by Max Lucado (for purchase). This morning, I start the story of "Paul: Never Too Far Gone for a Turnaround*".

*Title of lesson ten from the Max Lucado study.

Max Lucado's commentary* for day one of my study focuses on Ananias, to whom God spoke to attend to Saul after the Lord spoke to Saul on the road to Damascus (and blinded him). Lucado compares how God used Ananias much like God used Jonah - Jonah was given a mission to preach to Nineveh and Jonah did not believe the city deserved mercy so he ran from his mission. While we don't know much about Ananias' state of mind after the Lord gives Ananias the message to attend to Saul, we do know that there was hesitation on Ananias' part (Acts 9:13-14).  Unlike Jonah, ultimately, it appears that Ananias went to Saul as the Lord directed him, and with what appears to be little to no further resistance. Despite the differences between Ananias and Jonah, a key takeaway remains that God often calls us to missions that are not just tough but undesirable, perhaps missions where we disagree on some level, including loving those we feel are undeserving of love.  Yet Lucado wants us to understand that we don't get to make that call - God does - and God wants us to love everyone, including those we don't think are deserving of it.

Lucado uses Matthew 5:46-47 (NCV) to emphasize this key message. 

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God as You are so full of love, mercy, and compassion for me - even though I am quite clear I am undeserving.  Thank You Jesus!  Yet again, I know I am undeserving. My attitude at work is far from ideal - I grumble and complain, etc. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.

Acts 9-12

Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. Acts 10:34-36

Day 326 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues as I move further into the New Testament - this morning focusing primarily on the spread of the Gospel to the Gentiles. My commentary* notes: "God’s eternal plan all along has been that all people of the world—Jew and non-Jew alike—should come to know him through Christ Jesus....The first Gentile recipient of the gospel message is a devout Roman military leader by the name of Cornelius....the church’s Gentile ministry and fellowship grows steadily, even to the point that when the Jewish Christians in Judea have a special financial need, the Gentile Christians in Antioch volunteer to supply that need."

*Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) . Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition. 

I am reminded that all are deserving to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ and we are to dismiss any thoughts we may have regarding who might believe or not.  Believers are to speak as Peter did in Acts 4:20 when he said "[a]s for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard". We must feel compelled to not only be the hands and feet of Jesus with our actions but also with our words.  It is then up to God to either make someone a believer or not - we are simply the messenger. God may provide us the words, but faith itself is a gift from God, and although God may work through us, it is not from anything we do.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has given me faith...and faith in those around me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You bless me.  My sin continues, including worry, etc.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

 Matthew 15-16, Mark 7-8

 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

Day 304 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues as I move further into the New Testament - tonight focusing a number of encounters around Galilee, including north of Galilee, such as Tyre and Sidon, and it includes one particular encounter Jesus has with a Canaanite woman who pleads with Jesus to heal her daughter. My commentary notes: "[a]s descendants of Noah’s son Ham, against whom a curse had been directed, the Canaanites are looked down upon by the Jews as unworthy of God’s blessings. So the woman’s request is an excellent opportunity for Jesus to teach his disciples once again about the universality of his kingdom." My reading also includes a warning by Jesus to his disciples to beware of the "yeast" of the Pharisees and Sadducees - with the yeast being the hypocritical teaching of these groups who denied Jesus.

*Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition. 

The encounter with the Canaanite woman of course underscores how we must remember that all deserve the Good News of Jesus Christ - all are deserving of salvation; it also not up to us to save but only to share the Good News - . 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who gave me faith - thank You Jesus!  I am grateful but I am undeserving of such a gift as salvation - the greatest gift of all time.  My sin continues...worry, etc.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

Jonah 1-4 and 2 Kings 13-14

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?” Jonah 4:10-11

  

Day 166 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues with a study primarily of Jonah, although there is brief mention of how Israel is spared destruction but ultimately responds not by turning back to God but by continuing their worship of foreign gods. Broadly speaking, this morning's takeaway* is "an amazing demonstration of God’s universal grace and divine concern at a time when a rather exclusivistic Israel is in great need of a reminder that, despite being God’s chosen people, their failure to repent actually lowers them to a level of spirituality beneath even penitent pagans." 

*Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) . Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Most of us know the story of Jonah quite well, yet this morning I see an angle I've not previously understood.  Both my commentary* and this post from John Piper (from 1981 no less) point out how Jonah is sent by God to deliver a message not to Israel or Judah (who by the way needed to repent big time!), but to Nineveh, "a foreign, Gentile city" according to Piper (see map here).  Jonah does not want to go to Nineveh because he does not see Nineveh (relative to Israel or Judah) as deserving of rescue. Piper goes on to use the story of Jonah to exhort us to not "despise" but embrace the "free mercy" of God by playing a role in denying the Good News of Jesus Christ to others.  God wants us to deliver this message to EVERYONE and EVERYWHERE!

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  Matthew 28:19

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has rescued me - I am grateful Lord Jesus!  I am not deserving of Your mercy and compassion.  I worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.

Acts 10

I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. v34-35

Acts 10 gives us the story of a divine appointment between Cornelius and Peter and how God fulfilled on the Great Commission by bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to Jews and Gentiles alike.

In Matthew 28, Jesus gives believers the Great Commission telling us to "make disciples of all nations".  God wants everyone to be His child; we ARE all His creation yet not all are adopted into the family of Christ - see post here from John Piper on this.  We should understand that our role is to BE Jesus and share the Good News of Jesus Christ with others - it is up to God alone who actually becomes believers.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

Faith is a gift from God - see more from Piper in this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an incredible God who loves me and gave me faith - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such a gift and the many blessings that come of such faith.  I worry and I have other sins - daily!  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

John 4

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) v9

In v1-42, we see Jesus talking to a Samaritan women at Jacob's well in Sychar.  

Read more about the significance of Sychar and it's neighboring land Schechem and about the enmity between the Jews and Samaritans.

In my view, the most significant aspect of the story is the compassion Jesus shows for a woman that appears to be ashamed of her unmarried status and beneath the man with whom she is speaking. Jesus demonstrates that everyone is worthy of God's salvation.  Wealth, position, behavior, etc. - NOTHING makes anyone any more or less deserving of God's grace.  The Prison Fellowship ministry is a great example of this.  Luke 23:43 is yet another example - where Jesus saves a criminal crucified with him.  There are many more examples of people who've done bad things (Moses, Paul, etc.) but who were redeemed by God and used for His service. 

We must reach everyone and snatch as many as possible from the fire! 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God who loves me - even though You know everything about me, including my sin.  You saved me - while I was still sinning!  You continue to bless me with grace and so much more...thank You Jesus!  I am undeserving.  I worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Mark 7

Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” v36-37

It says in the MacArthur commentary that Jesus "did not intend" to have a public ministry for the gentiles.  Perhaps not at this time, but Jesus did come for all of humanity and Jesus provides a message to Peter in Acts 10:9-16 that all deserve salvation.  Believers often act as if we get to decide with whom we get to share the gospel - and the point is that ALL are worthy and that it is not us who bring people to faith.  We allow Jesus to work in and through us and HE does the work! 

We should be the hands and feet of Jesus to ALL.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are worthy of my full attention and life - You are the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings.  You give me life and life to the full - thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love and blessing.  I daily miss the mark.  Please forgive me for my sin and help me overcome such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Matthew 7

Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. v6

Jesus focuses our attention to judgement...that we are to avoid judging others. First of all, that is not our role - God alone is judge.  Second, we are to love (John 13:34), forgive (Ephesians 4:32), and be graceful to others as God is to us.  In verse 6, Jesus turns our attention to how we should treat others who spurn our words of truth.  MacArthur claims Jesus' statements here do not contradict his previous statements (Matthew 5:39, Luke 6:29) on how we should treat our enemies. John Piper's thoughts on this are consistent - that no one is beyond our prayers. 

Everyone is worthy of Jesus' grace.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome and incredible God - I know You love me, You died for me, and You are so full of grace and compassion for me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love.  I continue to miss the mark - daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

Jonah 4

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?” v10-11

Jonah's self-righteous attitude leads him to grow angry over not just the Lord's compassion for Nineveh (see v1-4), but also over how he believes the Lord fails to shelter him from the heat (see v7-9).  

In Jesus' day, the Jewish leaders cared more about their own opinion, status and comfort than about others' - in defiance of God's law as laid out by Moses (see Matthew 23, Exodus 20 and Matthew 22:37-40). 

All are deserving of God's grace and salvation - it's not up to us to decide...only God can do this.  We must put God first, then others....humility (vs self-righteousness and arrogance).  

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, what an awesome God You are that You are so full of grace and compassion. You love me and You saved me while I was still sinning...and I continue to do so.  Thank You for Your love and grace. I am not worth such love.  I am often harsh with my words and actions.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.

Jonah 3

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened. v10

This morning I am reminded of how God's grace and mercy is available to us all - even when we believe we have sinned beyond where God would provide such grace and mercy. See also verse 5:

The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

"[T]he greatest to the least" infers not just social, economic and political stature but also the degree to which people have sinned and disobeyed God.  You see...if we repent, salvation is available to ALL.  Paul was a murderer (Acts 7-8)...as was Moses and David (by way of conspiracy).  

Additionally, God redeemed the sin of these biblical heroes through the death of His Son Jesus Christ and used these people for something ONLY God could design and create.  I think also of Chuck Colson.  We should not question God's plan to save as we don't know God's plan for those He is saving (see also Isaiah 55:8).

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, what an incredible God You are that You are able to use broken and sinful people like me to do incredible things.  I have seen the miracles in my own life that You have done.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such blessings.  I worry, am harsh with others, etc.  Please forgive me and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind, and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.”

2 Samuel 10

David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” v2

Here we have David expressing what I will call transactional kindness - this is in contrast to my previous post where David not only expresses kindness to Jonathan's son Mephibosheth, but also to Saul's servant Ziba and Ziba's family - despite Saul's sinful behavior to David.  

Nahash (per Mcarthur Commentary) was an enemy of Saul and thus he and David shared an implied alliance.  Yet we are not only to provide kindness to our friends but also to our enemies.  Again, per my post yesterday, we are not in a position to judge as ALL are deserving of God's love.

If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Luke 6:29

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:43-48

...and the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10).

It is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another. Psalm 75:7

 My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who has shown kindness to me - despite my sin.  I am often deserving of Your kindness yet You continue to love me and show kindness to me.  Thank You Jesus.  Please forgive me for my gossip and worry.  Help me overcome and turn from such sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

2 Samuel 9

You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.) v10

A very wise man recommended that I read the bible from beginning to end and not jump into any given book. I can now see why this is very wise indeed.  At the very least, 1 and 2 Samuel must be read together so that we can have the context of how Saul was very jealous and vengeful to David - yet even after Saul's death in today's verses David seeks to do good to Saul and his heirs (and servants!) - reminding me that regardless of how blessed I am (see 2 Samuel 8) my blessings are only through the hand of God and I am to be a good steward with the time, talents and treasures God puts in my care.  We must also be kind to everyone - including our enemies - because we are not in a position to judge who is deserving and who is not.  ALL are deserving of God's love.

In a time of great blessing, David seeks to do good - as we should as well.  Today in particular I am touched by David's efforts because I have my own son with special needs (Down Syndrome).

Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:16-17

God please help me be generous.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God whose love and compassion is more than I sometimes can bear or understand.  It is overwhelming.  Thank You Jesus.  I am not worth such love.  I too often am harsh with my words.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul and mind and help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself strength and wisdom.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.