If you don't
have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to
the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This
site allows you to select from several languages and several English
translations.
JULY
18
1
Chronicles 26:12-27:34
1 Chronicles 26:12-32
Vs. 12-19 Again, it is hard to
know exactly what the gatekeepers did. Since there were sacrifices always going
on, there would constantly be people coming to Jerusalem to worship and offer
sacrifices when the tabernacle was there. Also, there were the three festivals
each year to which all the men were to come. This would require a lot of
organization. The gatekeepers were not guards. Soldiers would have had the
responsibility of guarding the gates and the city. The job of the gatekeepers
might have been more that of organizing and helping in worship and preparation
for worship. Their primary responsibility seems to have been at the gates of
Jerusalem, meeting the people coming to worship and to offer sacrifices. Since
Jerusalem wasn't a huge place, and since wherever the tabernacle was set up it
couldn't have held all the people at once, there must have been places around
the city where these men led people in worship, singing and prayer.
Vs. 20-28 Samuel and Saul, but
especially David, dedicated huge amounts of precious metals to the service of
the Lord. David literally amassed tons of gold, silver, copper, and iron for
the work on the temple. All of this needed to be kept track of, guarded, and
disbursed for payments, buying supplies and making repairs to the tabernacle and
later to the temple.
Vs. 29-32 This is the political
organization of the country, beginning with the 2.5 tribes on the west side of
the Jordan.
V. 31 Notice that this happened
in David's final year. If not for Ezra and this record of David's organizing, we
would never know this about him.
1 Chronicles 27
This is the summary of David's
organization of the government. There are lots of little, interesting things to
observe.
Vs. 1-15 This was the standing
army. Every month a new tribe was on duty with their 24,000 men. Notice the
name of Jashobeam in v. 2. He was not only of the tribe of Judah, but he was
the chief of the three and took out 800 men all by himself in one battle.
V. 7 Notice who Asahel was. This
means that David began his organization of the country immediately after he
became the king in Hebron, at the beginning of the civil war with Saul’s
followers.
Vs. 16-24 These are the king's
chief liaison officers in contact with the heads of every tribe. Of interest is
v. 21 where David appointed Abner's son (Abner was murdered by Joab) to be his
chief officer to the tribe of Benjamin.
V. 24 Ezra makes no mention of
Bathsheba, but the census is mentioned again a second time. It might be that
the Spirit and Ezra are making a point that the glory of Israel is not to be
seen in its numbers, but in its worship of God. This would help keep the
returnees focused on the right thing and keep them from being discouraged.
Vs. 25-31 These are the chief
stewards over David's personal property.
Vs. 32-34 These were David's
counselors. Of course, you notice Ahithophel.
The question to ask here is what
Ezra's purpose is in recording all of this. Tomorrow David will inspire the
nation and hand off the leadership to Solomon. But here, we see David the hero
and sweet singer of Israel as a dynamic spiritual leader, organizing the
worship of the nation and laying out the government.
Again, I think the point Ezra is
making has to do with the preeminence of David as the king of promise and as a
model to the new leaders leading the returned nation to honor and glorify God.
As disciples who are to make
disciples, modeling the right stuff is important for us too. Discipleship is
"caught." We need to show what it means to follow Christ. Paul says
this to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 11:1, Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. I also like what someone
said, "Set yourself on fire, and people will come for miles to watch you
burn."
Romans
4:13-5:5
Romans 4:13-25
This is really a great passage
on faith. Verses 16-25 are worth memorizing.
Vs. 13-15 This is Paul's final
argument that Abe could have only been justified by faith. Notice v. 15. What
does that say to you? This will be worth discussing in your cell group. For any
Jew or believer focused on the law, the law causes sin to have an allergic
reaction to God. Grace and faith do not have that same effect. Any
non-Christian trying to please God by the law will only have His wrath to face.
Any believer who transforms faith in Christ to a list of “Do’s and Don’ts,” simply
following laws, will enrage the power of sin and will miss the grace and love
of God. We'll see this in the first words of the next chapter.
V. 16 This is the pivotal verse
here. The common denominator is faith, not the law. The promise to Abraham and
the promise of redemption is not limited to the Jews. The faith of Abraham
brought him the righteousness of God before he was a Jew, so to speak.
Vs. 17-21 Notice the expression
of Abraham's faith in the promise. I am always struck when I read this, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave
glory to God, fully convinced that
God was able to do what He had promised. What amazing faith! The strength
of Abe's faith is magnified by the length of God's silence. But Abe didn't have
faith in "an immediate answer," he had faith in an amazing God and
the promise He had made. In hope Abraham believed against hope that he should become the father of many
nations, as he had been told. What a model for us as disciples and how
humbling.
Vs. 22-25 Amen!
Romans 5:1-5
These would also be good verses
to memorize. I wish they would have included 6-11 in today's reading. It
completes the thought that the Spirit and Paul are expressing.
V. 1 This is the only way to have peace with God. This is the gospel. This peace, as we'll see
in a few verses, is peace as in deliverance from God's wrath. Remember what
Paul just said, the law brings wrath.
Anyone who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God
abides on him. Whoever believes in the
Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the
wrath of God remains on him" (John 3:36).
V. 2 This is John 3:16 and Ephesians
1-3 all rolled together in a few words.
Vs. 3-5 An utterly new life. Not
only do we stand in grace and the prospect of receiving God's kindness in all
eternity, but He changes our lives now as we follow in the harvest. This is not
a “perspective” on life, it is the active working of God to sanctify us and
change us into the image of His Son. I don't know how often I have been helped
by this progression from tribulation to hope. The key element that makes this
process work is the work of the Holy Spirit pouring the love of Christ into our
hearts. We are never meant to recover from our salvation. It is what keeps us
fresh in loving our Lord and living for Him in the harvest. We follow and obey
out of our love for Christ.
Notice for the first time, the
Holy Spirit is mentioned as having a major part in our new lives. His role will
be fully developed in Romans 8. God gives us new life at salvation. A new
creation of spirit is created within us. The Holy Spirit is given to walk with
us, within us, to help, strengthen and lead us; and He is the guarantee and
proof of our inheritance until the resurrection. Without the Holy Spirit within
us, even though saved, we would not stand a chance against the rebellious
nature within us. With Him, all things are possible.
Read and re-read these passages
in Romans. They are like a breath of spiritual life. I would suggest that you
memorize these portions to make them a part of your heart and meditation and
what you pass on to the disciples you make in the harvest.
Psalm
14
V. 1 Notice also that Romans
4:15 says that the law brings wrath
and that Romans 5:1 says that there is only one way to have peace with God. The fool of this psalm
is in control and doesn't sense the wrath of God or the fact that he and God are
not on good terms.
V. 2 This psalm speaks to the
purpose of God's silence. It allows the fool to show himself; and it causes
those who love God to seek Him, crying out to Him and holding tightly to their
knowledge and faith in Him. The Lord will come and put this all in order. David
suffered during these times, but when he finally saw the deliverance that he
knew God would bring him, David became that man who led and organized the
worship of Israel. Because David experienced this, later, he ordered that there
would be perpetual thanks given in worship and that it would be continually
sung that the steadfast love of the Lord endures forever.
V. 3 Look at Romans 3:10-18 and
see if you can tell that Paul knew this psalm.
Vs. 4-6 I like the contrast
here. It reminds me of what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2, that the unspiritual
man doesn't understand the gifts of the Spirit. His ignorance of God is
evidence of God's wrath on him. God's foolish gifts to the spiritual man look
just like the process in Romans 5 of growing in suffering. Suffering produces
endurance, endurance produces character, character produces hope, and hope
doesn't allow us to be disappointed because we know the love of God, which has
been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. To
learn that God is with us and is our refuge is a great gift.
V. 7 David was longing for this,
and it will happen when Jesus returns to Jerusalem and then gathers His saints
to do battle as He establishes His eternal kingdom.
Proverbs
19:17
It is interesting that Jesus commanded His disciples in
Matthew 5:42, Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the
one who would borrow from you. But the point is not giving to get a reward
from God. If you read that context in Matthew 5, you'll see it has to do with
living as a disciple whose only purpose on this planet is to follow Christ in
the harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. The
resources God gives us are given for a purpose. Sometimes we don't know what
that purpose is and then we are nudged by the Spirit to give to a person or an
outreach. This proverb intensifies Jesus' command to be generous to the poor.
We are really giving to the Lord.
Please Read
the Following Disclaimer
I'm writing the Reading Notes to and
for those who are following a One Year Bible and are 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, that is, 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 and important discipleship manual we have and it is the 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, or whom we are to be following. 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, as disciples, 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, making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive
commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC).
I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite
often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only
note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these
and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge
Commentary would be a good idea.
I am not endorsing any particular
One Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die
Revidierte Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the
ESV Bible.
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. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both
historical and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background,
theological training and my personal study.
I'm
doing this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that
will keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are
reading. Remember, the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a
supplement, a disciple’s commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we
will keep following our Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making
disciples, who make disciples. Being in
the Word every day, sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the
essential essence of being and making disciples.
May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the
harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan
If you would like documents
containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
If you would like a full
presentation of discipleship read Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples.
Or if you are struggling with
insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these
can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis
2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
The One Year Bible © by
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189
The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of
Good News Publishers.
All charts/graphics/outlines
from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C.
Cook.
© 1983, 2001 John F Walvoord and Roy B Zuck.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary is published by David C Cook.
All rights reserved. Publisher permission
required to reproduce.
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