JANUARY
30
What’s great about doing this reading with
other people, like in a discipleship cell, is that you can discuss and hear
other observations and try out some of your own and have people tell you that
you might have overlooked something. For example, I was talking about this
stuff with my wife, who told me that the comment I made about the magicians not
being able to “create life” had a problem because they were able to turn their
sticks into snakes. I objected because I don’t consider snakes a valid life
form, just like I don’t consider cauliflower a valid food unless you smother it
in a cheese sauce, whereas I still wouldn’t like snakes even in cheese sauce.
Anyway, where was I, oh yeah, she made a good point. Talking this stuff out in
a group makes it fun and the Spirit leads you to other insights.
One other thing. This morning I read my German
one-year Bible. In the German, the word they use for “fly,” means “biting fly.”
That kind of puts a different curve on the curse of flies. Being a city boy, I
automatically think of the common housefly, or in Latin, “buzzio obnoxyous.” If
it was, in fact, a biting fly, that adds, as the Germans would say, a little
“music” to that plague.
Exodus 10:1-12:13
Exodus 10
Vs. 1-20 Note that God does a great job of
“coaching” Moses through all of this. He encourages Moses and lets him know
what’s going to happen, even up to Pharaoh’s negative reaction. When we read
this, it is very “one dimensional.” We don’t feel the emotion or see what was
happening. Moses had to have been under tremendous pressure. Imagine walking
into the White House or the capital of Tehran and delivering this message. God
is being very good to Moses and Aaron in this very pressurized and deadly
situation.
Also, this is the second time the Lord
hardened Pharaoh’s heart. That’s 2 out of 8, meaning that Pharaoh is winning in
the “who can harden my heart more times” contest.
Egypt is now totally ruined economically. If
something like this happened to the USA, it would knock us out of “superpower”
standing and the country would be laid waste. What we don’t see, regardless of
what country we call home, is that nationally and personally, we owe God a lot
more than we think.
Egypt would never return to its former glory
or strength, economically or militarily; and, interestingly, in this
“superpower” vacuum, Israel would be able to grow, unhindered, as a nation. I
guess God knew what He was doing.
Vs. 21-29 Obviously it must have been a
supernatural darkness, if lamps wouldn’t work.
God hardens Pharaoh’s heart (3 out of 9) and
Pharaoh, rather than being repentant and open, is angry and bitter. This is
sort of like getting into a fight and you know you should have stopped but you
didn’t and now the other guy has inflicted such damage on you that your pride
won’t let you stop even though you know you should.
V. 28 Although Pharaoh and Moses would meet
again, it would have nothing to do with the conflict and petition we have seen.
To "see his face," probably meant to petition him to let Israel
leave. The next time they see each other, Pharaoh will plead with Moses to
leave.
Exodus 11
Vs. 1-10 Apparently, before Moses left
Pharaoh, he warned him of what was to come; and, since Pharaoh wouldn’t listen,
Moses left angry with his hardness of heart. When Jesus healed the man with the
withered hand, the same thing happened. Jesus asked the Pharisees a question,
and they wouldn’t answer. Mark 3:5 says, And
he (Jesus) looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of
heart. Interesting parallel.
Exodus 12
Vs. 1-13 There is a lot to see here.
First, if you don’t know already, figure out
what month this “first month” of their year is on our calendar.
Second, God is laying in place a
national/cultural/personal tradition that will prepare them for the coming of
the Christ. Talk about long-range planning. Think about the different parts of
this preparation that connect to Jesus, salvation, and our redemption.
As disciples, our life and our call to follow
Christ into the harvest, to reach out to dying people, begins with our
appreciation and love for Him saving us. The Passover is a great picture of all
of this.
When I read that they were to eat the meal
fully ready to leave, it makes me think of how we, as disciples, are supposed
to live on this planet. We are to be ready to work, to help, to share with
others, to encourage and make disciples. Down here, we are always in the
harvest.
Matthew 20:1-28
The connection of these two stories is in the
last sentence from our reading yesterday about the first being last and the
last being first. Jesus will now explain what that means. It will have a
meaning regarding time, God's grace and purpose, and how a person views himself
and his service.
Vs. 1-16 It looks like the time factor and
the kindness of the master are at question here. Unfortunately, I probably
would have been one of the guys complaining at the end of the story. So, what
was the proper mindset?
First, each servant should have appreciation
for even getting hired (saved). I find it easy to take my salvation for granted
and think that I deserve it. The wonder of Him saving me is something that I
should never “get over.”
Second, a focus on the harvest. In Germany,
we had a yard with two cherry trees. Since it was rainy in Germany, the
cherries would get ripe and then you’d have to “mach schnell” to get everything
off the trees before the birds ate them or the cherries rotted. They’d rot
right before your eyes. Everyone was busy with other things, and I was busy,
too; but I remember being out there alone, working as quickly as I could,
wishing anyone would help. I think, with an eye on the harvest, we don’t care
who comes in the last hour and how much they are paid if we have a heart like
our Savior, not wanting any to perish.
Vs. 17-19 I don’t know if it’s just me, but
doesn’t it seem like Jesus is “coaching” His disciples just like God was
“coaching” Moses? He’s telling them, again, what is going to happen so that
when it happens they can remain strong, not panic too badly, and hold on to their faith.
With regard to the "first and last"
teaching, the direction they were going in following Jesus didn't look too
glorious. This "vineyard" looked different than the vineyard in the
story Jesus told.
Vs. 20-28 I’m not sure of all that was going
on in the head of James and John’s mother, Salome. (Salome was
Jesus’ aunt, that is, His mother Mary's sister. This means too, that James and
John were Jesus’ cousins.) Did
she believe Jesus was about to die? Did she think there would be a showdown in
Jerusalem, with the boys emerging victorious? We’ll have to ask her.
Jesus was related to James and John and maybe
they thought they would be given positions of honor because of their
connection. Jesus would tell them that those places were only given by the
Father, and then, they would be given according to service and suffering.
Vs. 26-27 These words not only helped defuse
the anger of the other disciples, but they brought the discussion back to the
"first and last" teaching Jesus had given. I'm sure they had as hard
a time understanding this as we do. So who really is the "first?"
Only God knows. We know that God's goal for us is to be servants of all as we
serve in the harvest, uninterested in that position.
There is a lot of amazing stuff here for us
as disciples. Are we willing to drink the cup? Are we willing to die as He died
for the sake of saving lost people? Are we willing to be the servants of all?
Read 1 Corinthians 9:19ff. Let this section sink into you.
V. 28 is worth a million dollars if we could
ever internalize it and live it. As disciples of Jesus, we are to do the same
thing He did and live the same way He lived in the harvest.
Psalm 25:1-15
I just can’t read these psalms of David,
without my own heart being pulled at because of some of the terrain the Lord
has taken me through. And, I believe, I hope, I’m closer and more useful to the
Lord as a result of it.
Vs. 1-3 Notice the call to waiting. Verse 3 is
quoted by Paul in Romans 9 and 10. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel.
Vs. 4-5 As we wait on the Lord, we need to
learn of Him and understand Him. Understanding God and what is happening on
this planet often helps us keep our heads in the midst of difficult
circumstances. The best way to learn is to read the Word every day.
Vs. 6-10 David calls upon God to remember His
steadfast love, and he expresses his
desire to be taught and to know the ways of the Lord. David valued friendship
with the Lord and He had learned enough to know that God's love was steadfast
and faithful.
Vs. 11-15 It is interesting that David had a
heart like this, always seeking God. It is what made him a man after God's own
heart. In spite of his difficulties, dangers, and sins, David always turned to
God and sought Him.
We get the second half of this psalm
tomorrow. I wonder what it sounded like as a song.
Proverbs 6:6-11
Ok, grasshopper, look at the ant. (an old
“kung-fu” joke)
For me, two thoughts help this “parable”
apply to me.
First, this illustration has to do with
anything that requires preparation, not simply getting ready for winter.
This could be anything from training for a
career to preparing to meet God. The winter part intensifies the need; that is,
“if you don’t do it now, you’ll die later.” I often think this is what made the
northern Europeans a very organized and serious people. If you didn’t prepare,
you died. And thanks to that, we have IKEA!
Second, I qualify as this fool. And don’t be
so smug, you do too. We all do at some point, in some area of our lives. And as
if the deadening power of our own sin weren’t bad enough, we have Satan telling
us to sit back, relax, and not sweat, God is in control, “hey, flip over to
that channel,” or “hey, go and see what’s on YouTube.”
Especially in the western world, our lives
become overwhelmed with distraction and drifting, personally and in our
churches. As disciples, God gives us purpose and focus in Christ and in the
harvest, and it rounds out our lives with love and family and meaning. We have
Jesus as a model, who came to seek and to save that which is lost. Like David
says above, we need to cry out and learn His ways and seek His friendship. And
then you have Jesus saying that to follow Him you have to lose your life. But
then you receive it back again in Him.
What God is asking us, as disciples, to do
here, now, on earth, in the middle of this desperate tragedy, requires focus
and work and sacrifice. What we get in return is secondary (although great).
But, it is still work. We’re yoked to Jesus, but it is still work. But, love
gives you wings.
A quote I like from Oswald Sanders’ Spiritual
Leadership is, “The heights by great men, reached and kept, were not
attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling
upward in the night.”
Great disciples are great leaders/servants,
reaching out and making disciples; because they make and take the time now, to
get closer to their Lord, instead of getting lulled to sleep by distraction.
If you’re reading along
and don’t have a One Year Bible, click on this link http://oneyearbibleonline.com/weekly-one-year-readings/?version=47&startmmdd=0101. This
version is set to the ESV but you can reset this to a different version or
different language.
I'm writing these
comments to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and interested in
growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see
the growth of a discipleship culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples,
meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out
and make disciples who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal
manual we have and key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us
more focused on why we are here or what we are to be doing. My comments are
only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of
God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are
designed to keep us focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is
that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a
year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples,
disciples making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a
complete description of this model of being and making disciples you can find
it in my book: Simply Disciples*Making Disciples.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011WJIDQA?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
If you would like a more
descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the
Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's keyed to the NIV, so the result is the
commentators are constantly telling you what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never
hurts.
I am not endorsing any
particular One Year Bible; in fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte
Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with
us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their
own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular
tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to
criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has
written to us, as I understand it. Send comments or feedback to dgkachikis@gmail.com.
If you would like
documents containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes. You can download these to use on your computer or to
print.
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