Mark 16
Mary and Mary Magdalene discover that Jesus has risen from the dead.
INSIGHT
It is a momentous morning as Mary and Mary Magdalene walk to the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, intent on anointing the body of Jesus but not knowing how they will get into the tomb. They say to one another, "Who will roll away the stone for us?" Miracle number one: The stone has been rolled away. Miracle number two: An angel is sitting in the tomb to explain to them what has happened. Miracle number three: Jesus is gone; He has risen. They have two responses. They were amazed! And they report to the disciples all that they have seen. They expect to deal with death. But they find themselves in the middle of more life than they can imagine. Such paradox is God's way. He brings life from death.
PRAYER
Give your praise to the Lord for offering you the gift of eternal life:
He is the Rock, His work is perfect;
For all His ways are justice,
A God of truth and without injustice;
Righteous and upright is He (Deuteronomy 32:4).
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
So Samuel said: "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
As in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams (1 Samuel 15:22).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:
He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:
Greater faithfulness with your time
The president, national leaders, andnnational affairs
Your activities for the day
Whatever else is on your heart
Finally, offer this closing prayer to the Lord:
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever (Psalm 23:6).
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
We Have a Problem, but Rick Jacobs Isn’t It
We Have a Problem, but Rick Jacobs Isn’t It
Good Fences
By J.J. Goldberg
Thirty-four years ago, when Menachem Begin first led the Likud to power in Israel, it was Rabbi Alexander Schindler, the leader of Reform Judaism, who reached out to embrace him. In doing so, Schindler averted a crisis in relations between America’s liberal-leaning Jewish community and an Israel where the right was newly ascendant. This would be a good time for Benjamin Netanyahu to return the favor.
The recent selection of Rabbi Richard Jacobs as Reform Judaism’s next leader is causing a bit of a stir. It’s mostly just a murmur, actually, but it’s worth watching. Some critics worry that in choosing Jacobs as its president-designate, the Union for Reform Judaism is signaling a sharp turn leftward. Some even fret that the liberal denomination is returning to its pre-World War I anti-Zionism.
The worriers are onto something. But it’s not what they think it is.
Jacobs’s accusers, which include the Zionist Organization of America and various far-right bloggers, charge him with consorting with “extremist groups” — as the ZOA’s president, Morton Klein, put it — that are helping to delegitimize Israel. The evidence: Jacobs is a member of the rabbinic cabinet of J Street and is active with the New Israel Fund. The critics also note that Jacobs participated in an anti-settlement protest in the Sheikh Jarrah section of East Jerusalem. The critics insinuate that he will not stand up for Israel, and some suggest his associations reflect hostility to the Jewish state.
Let’s clear up one thing at the outset: Jacobs is no more hostile to Israel than Shimon Peres, or David Ben-Gurion for that matter. Like Ben-Gurion he supports partition of the Land of Israel into two states. And like Ben-Gurion, he fears the consequences for Israel’s future if there is continued settlement in the West Bank. More to the point, his views put him more or less at the center of today’s evolving American Jewish mainstream — strongly supportive of Israel as a democratic Jewish state, committed to a deep, mature Israel-Diaspora relationship and insistent on equal rights for all streams of Judaism.
True, Jacobs takes his style of liberal Zionism further than most. He visits Israel regularly, knows the language and even owns a home there. He is a fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, an important, Orthodox-led think tank in Jerusalem. And of course he plays a role in liberal causes that most liberals only talk about, via groups such as J Street and the New Israel Fund. But his broad outlook is in line with his movement’s famously liberal membership. He wouldn’t have lasted two decades as spiritual leader of one of America’s biggest synagogues if he were a fringe figure.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem, though. It isn’t that Jacobs’s appointment raises the likelihood of some future crisis in Israeli-American Jewish relations. The problem is that the crisis is already here. Jacobs’s appointment only brings it into sharp relief, the way a lightning flash illuminates a dark, moonless battlefield.
The problem is that while Jacobs’s views on Israel are quite mainstream among American Jews, the notion that such views endanger Israel and have no place in Jewish communal discourse is becoming mainstream in Israel. In other words, we have a very serious family feud brewing.
Where is the American Jewish mainstream today? You might start your search with the simple fact that the largest Jewish religious movement chose Jacobs to lead it. But then consider this: J Street was founded just three years ago and is already one of the biggest organizations on the American Jewish scene, even before it’s out of diapers. Consider, too, the rapid growth of Jewish activism to the left of J Street, among the boycott, divestment and sanctions crowd and Palestinian-solidarity types. What used to be the left is now closer to the center.
Also telling is the fact that the objections to Jacobs’s nomination come from a narrow spectrum on the right. Being identified with the New Israel Fund and J Street just isn’t remarkable in American Jewish life anymore. Attacking them is increasingly a sign of eccentricity.
That’s not how it is in Israel. As Jacobs’s appointment was announced in New York, the Knesset in Jerusalem was in the midst of hearings to determine whether J Street is entitled to call itself “pro-Israel.” With everything else going on in the world, Israel’s parliament decided to investigate whether one of the fastest-growing Jewish organizations in America is a friend or foe.
The Knesset’s J Street hearings are part of a sharp rightward trend in Israeli politics, reflected in a rash of legislation curtailing criticism of Israel and limiting rights of Israeli Arabs. The J Street hearings came barely a month after the Knesset debated legislation aimed at foreign funding of Israeli nonprofits that criticize the Israeli government. (The bill eventually passed in watered-down form and imposes heightened disclosure requirements for Israeli nonprofits that receive funding from foreign governments.)
That bill grew directly out of a campaign launched a year ago by Israeli right-wing activists to discredit the New Israel Fund as an anti-Israel organization. The campaign sought, through outrageous newspaper ads, billboards and a slick research paper, to link the fund with groups that work to isolate Israel internationally through boycotts and war-crimes lawsuits. The connections drawn between the fund and the boycott campaigns were mostly spurious, but the rightists’ noise left its mark on segments of public opinion, both in Israel and here.
Nations have their political mood-swings, and the two great Jewish communities have had their ups and downs before. There’s no precedent, however, for the sort of concerted assault against American Jewish institutions that’s underway in Jerusalem. It’s irresponsible, and it’s self-destructive. If Rick Jacobs is anything, he’s a peacemaker. Israel will need him.
Good Fences
By J.J. Goldberg
Thirty-four years ago, when Menachem Begin first led the Likud to power in Israel, it was Rabbi Alexander Schindler, the leader of Reform Judaism, who reached out to embrace him. In doing so, Schindler averted a crisis in relations between America’s liberal-leaning Jewish community and an Israel where the right was newly ascendant. This would be a good time for Benjamin Netanyahu to return the favor.
The recent selection of Rabbi Richard Jacobs as Reform Judaism’s next leader is causing a bit of a stir. It’s mostly just a murmur, actually, but it’s worth watching. Some critics worry that in choosing Jacobs as its president-designate, the Union for Reform Judaism is signaling a sharp turn leftward. Some even fret that the liberal denomination is returning to its pre-World War I anti-Zionism.
The worriers are onto something. But it’s not what they think it is.
Jacobs’s accusers, which include the Zionist Organization of America and various far-right bloggers, charge him with consorting with “extremist groups” — as the ZOA’s president, Morton Klein, put it — that are helping to delegitimize Israel. The evidence: Jacobs is a member of the rabbinic cabinet of J Street and is active with the New Israel Fund. The critics also note that Jacobs participated in an anti-settlement protest in the Sheikh Jarrah section of East Jerusalem. The critics insinuate that he will not stand up for Israel, and some suggest his associations reflect hostility to the Jewish state.
Let’s clear up one thing at the outset: Jacobs is no more hostile to Israel than Shimon Peres, or David Ben-Gurion for that matter. Like Ben-Gurion he supports partition of the Land of Israel into two states. And like Ben-Gurion, he fears the consequences for Israel’s future if there is continued settlement in the West Bank. More to the point, his views put him more or less at the center of today’s evolving American Jewish mainstream — strongly supportive of Israel as a democratic Jewish state, committed to a deep, mature Israel-Diaspora relationship and insistent on equal rights for all streams of Judaism.
True, Jacobs takes his style of liberal Zionism further than most. He visits Israel regularly, knows the language and even owns a home there. He is a fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, an important, Orthodox-led think tank in Jerusalem. And of course he plays a role in liberal causes that most liberals only talk about, via groups such as J Street and the New Israel Fund. But his broad outlook is in line with his movement’s famously liberal membership. He wouldn’t have lasted two decades as spiritual leader of one of America’s biggest synagogues if he were a fringe figure.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem, though. It isn’t that Jacobs’s appointment raises the likelihood of some future crisis in Israeli-American Jewish relations. The problem is that the crisis is already here. Jacobs’s appointment only brings it into sharp relief, the way a lightning flash illuminates a dark, moonless battlefield.
The problem is that while Jacobs’s views on Israel are quite mainstream among American Jews, the notion that such views endanger Israel and have no place in Jewish communal discourse is becoming mainstream in Israel. In other words, we have a very serious family feud brewing.
Where is the American Jewish mainstream today? You might start your search with the simple fact that the largest Jewish religious movement chose Jacobs to lead it. But then consider this: J Street was founded just three years ago and is already one of the biggest organizations on the American Jewish scene, even before it’s out of diapers. Consider, too, the rapid growth of Jewish activism to the left of J Street, among the boycott, divestment and sanctions crowd and Palestinian-solidarity types. What used to be the left is now closer to the center.
Also telling is the fact that the objections to Jacobs’s nomination come from a narrow spectrum on the right. Being identified with the New Israel Fund and J Street just isn’t remarkable in American Jewish life anymore. Attacking them is increasingly a sign of eccentricity.
That’s not how it is in Israel. As Jacobs’s appointment was announced in New York, the Knesset in Jerusalem was in the midst of hearings to determine whether J Street is entitled to call itself “pro-Israel.” With everything else going on in the world, Israel’s parliament decided to investigate whether one of the fastest-growing Jewish organizations in America is a friend or foe.
The Knesset’s J Street hearings are part of a sharp rightward trend in Israeli politics, reflected in a rash of legislation curtailing criticism of Israel and limiting rights of Israeli Arabs. The J Street hearings came barely a month after the Knesset debated legislation aimed at foreign funding of Israeli nonprofits that criticize the Israeli government. (The bill eventually passed in watered-down form and imposes heightened disclosure requirements for Israeli nonprofits that receive funding from foreign governments.)
That bill grew directly out of a campaign launched a year ago by Israeli right-wing activists to discredit the New Israel Fund as an anti-Israel organization. The campaign sought, through outrageous newspaper ads, billboards and a slick research paper, to link the fund with groups that work to isolate Israel internationally through boycotts and war-crimes lawsuits. The connections drawn between the fund and the boycott campaigns were mostly spurious, but the rightists’ noise left its mark on segments of public opinion, both in Israel and here.
Nations have their political mood-swings, and the two great Jewish communities have had their ups and downs before. There’s no precedent, however, for the sort of concerted assault against American Jewish institutions that’s underway in Jerusalem. It’s irresponsible, and it’s self-destructive. If Rick Jacobs is anything, he’s a peacemaker. Israel will need him.
True Freedom
True Freedom
John 8:31-36
At the time when Jesus was born, the Israelites were experiencing great oppression. They looked forward to thepromised Messiah, who would bring freedom and victory.
But instead of overtaking the Romans, Jesus spoke about respecting authority and loving enemies. Rather than win victory for the Jews alone, He brought blessing even to despised Gentiles (John 4:4-30; Luke 7:6-10). The people expected Him to overpower the domineering nation through battle, but He allowed those in authority to crucify Him.
So the Jews rejected Jesus. Surely, they thought, this was not the promised Savior who would liberate the chosen people. They failed to understand that Christ was most concerned about the freedom of our hearts. He came to release us from the sin bondage in our lives, but He does not always free us from our current circumstance.
A letter I received illustrates this beautifully. After 15 years in prison for habitual criminal acts and drug addiction, the writer shared that everyone had given up on him. He felt hopeless until he was saved and began following Jesus. Now, the bitterness and anger are gone, and he is filled with joy and peace. He has been liberated. He still faces temptations and he still is in jail, but he has experienced true freedom.
Jesus came for you—He died to pay your sin debt. Have you accepted His free gift of salvation? His power can tackle sin in your life, and His truth can overcome harmful faulty thinking. Walking with Him is truly walking in freedom, so lean on His strength, and choose the right path.
John 8:31-36
At the time when Jesus was born, the Israelites were experiencing great oppression. They looked forward to thepromised Messiah, who would bring freedom and victory.
But instead of overtaking the Romans, Jesus spoke about respecting authority and loving enemies. Rather than win victory for the Jews alone, He brought blessing even to despised Gentiles (John 4:4-30; Luke 7:6-10). The people expected Him to overpower the domineering nation through battle, but He allowed those in authority to crucify Him.
So the Jews rejected Jesus. Surely, they thought, this was not the promised Savior who would liberate the chosen people. They failed to understand that Christ was most concerned about the freedom of our hearts. He came to release us from the sin bondage in our lives, but He does not always free us from our current circumstance.
A letter I received illustrates this beautifully. After 15 years in prison for habitual criminal acts and drug addiction, the writer shared that everyone had given up on him. He felt hopeless until he was saved and began following Jesus. Now, the bitterness and anger are gone, and he is filled with joy and peace. He has been liberated. He still faces temptations and he still is in jail, but he has experienced true freedom.
Jesus came for you—He died to pay your sin debt. Have you accepted His free gift of salvation? His power can tackle sin in your life, and His truth can overcome harmful faulty thinking. Walking with Him is truly walking in freedom, so lean on His strength, and choose the right path.
After Jesus is crucified, Joseph of Arimathea buried Him in Joseph's own tomb.
Mark 15
After Jesus is crucified, Joseph of Arimathea buried Him in Joseph's own tomb.
INSIGHT
Most of us have a highly developed sense of justice. We want things to be fair, and we are incensed when they are not. From simple things like people cutting in line ahead of us to major things like prejudice and bigotry, we are angered when we see or experience injustice. With that in mind, review what happens to Jesus. Though He is totally righteous and without sin, religious bigots manufacture charges against Him and take Him to a legal jellyfish who doesn't have the courage to execute justice. Then He is beaten, mocked, and crucified. Doesn't that inflame your sense of justice? He has the power to obliterate those who harm Him; yet He willingly endures it for us.
PRAYER
Thank the Lord and praise Him for the "great and awesome" things He has done in offering you salvation:
Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods?
Who is like You, glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises, doing wonders? (Exodus 15:11).
Therefore You are great, O Lord God.
For there is none like You,
nor is there any God besides You,
according to all that we have heard with our ears (2 Samuel 7:22).
Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving.
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
Of the Rock who begot me,
I am unmindful,
And have forgotten the God who fathered me (based on Deuteronomy 32:18).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:
He who has My commandments and keeps them,
it is he who loves Me.
And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father,
and I will love him and manifest Myself to him (John 14:21).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:
Greater love for fellow Christians
The work of missions in Asia
Your activities for the day
Whatever else is on your heart
Finally, offer this closing prayer to the Lord:
Let the words of my mouth and the
meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer (Psalm 19:14).
After Jesus is crucified, Joseph of Arimathea buried Him in Joseph's own tomb.
INSIGHT
Most of us have a highly developed sense of justice. We want things to be fair, and we are incensed when they are not. From simple things like people cutting in line ahead of us to major things like prejudice and bigotry, we are angered when we see or experience injustice. With that in mind, review what happens to Jesus. Though He is totally righteous and without sin, religious bigots manufacture charges against Him and take Him to a legal jellyfish who doesn't have the courage to execute justice. Then He is beaten, mocked, and crucified. Doesn't that inflame your sense of justice? He has the power to obliterate those who harm Him; yet He willingly endures it for us.
PRAYER
Thank the Lord and praise Him for the "great and awesome" things He has done in offering you salvation:
Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods?
Who is like You, glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises, doing wonders? (Exodus 15:11).
Therefore You are great, O Lord God.
For there is none like You,
nor is there any God besides You,
according to all that we have heard with our ears (2 Samuel 7:22).
Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving.
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
Of the Rock who begot me,
I am unmindful,
And have forgotten the God who fathered me (based on Deuteronomy 32:18).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:
He who has My commandments and keeps them,
it is he who loves Me.
And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father,
and I will love him and manifest Myself to him (John 14:21).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:
Greater love for fellow Christians
The work of missions in Asia
Your activities for the day
Whatever else is on your heart
Finally, offer this closing prayer to the Lord:
Let the words of my mouth and the
meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer (Psalm 19:14).
Friday, April 1, 2011
Life’s Great Liberator
Life’s Great Liberator
Luke 4:16-21
From some people’s countenance, we judge them to be happy. Smiles, makeup, and stylish clothing can create an appearance of inner peace. Internally, though, many are in bondage.
In today’s passage, Jesus clarifies His purpose: He has come to set free those in captivity. Christ was referring to several types of bonds that can imprison our souls.
First, Jesus breaks the chains of sin. All people have broken God’s law and consequently live apart from Him (Rom. 3:23). But Christ’s death and resurrection free us when we accept His gift of forgiveness and place our trust in Him. Then we can have a relationship with the Lord.
Secondly, He liberates us from persistent sins like jealousy, bitterness, and gluttony. His Spirit resides within each believer and provides the power to overcome wrong choices that seemed to “own” us. He enables us to do what He desires—by bringing immediate healing or by giving guidance and strength in the ongoing battle.
The Creator of mankind made us with a void in our hearts for Jesus to fill. Everything we put there—whether it seems like a good thing at the time or an obvious bad choice—will ultimately leave us empty. And we will remain in bondage until God frees us and then provides the only true satisfaction.
Are you one of those people who appear happy and seem to have life figured out, and yet inside feel uneasy and empty? Jesus Christ is the only One who can redeem you, forgive your sins, and fill the vacant place in your soul. Allow Him to liberate you today.
Luke 4:16-21
From some people’s countenance, we judge them to be happy. Smiles, makeup, and stylish clothing can create an appearance of inner peace. Internally, though, many are in bondage.
In today’s passage, Jesus clarifies His purpose: He has come to set free those in captivity. Christ was referring to several types of bonds that can imprison our souls.
First, Jesus breaks the chains of sin. All people have broken God’s law and consequently live apart from Him (Rom. 3:23). But Christ’s death and resurrection free us when we accept His gift of forgiveness and place our trust in Him. Then we can have a relationship with the Lord.
Secondly, He liberates us from persistent sins like jealousy, bitterness, and gluttony. His Spirit resides within each believer and provides the power to overcome wrong choices that seemed to “own” us. He enables us to do what He desires—by bringing immediate healing or by giving guidance and strength in the ongoing battle.
The Creator of mankind made us with a void in our hearts for Jesus to fill. Everything we put there—whether it seems like a good thing at the time or an obvious bad choice—will ultimately leave us empty. And we will remain in bondage until God frees us and then provides the only true satisfaction.
Are you one of those people who appear happy and seem to have life figured out, and yet inside feel uneasy and empty? Jesus Christ is the only One who can redeem you, forgive your sins, and fill the vacant place in your soul. Allow Him to liberate you today.
Jesus spends His last two days in intimate communion with His closest friends.
Mark 14
Jesus spends His last two days in intimate communion with His closest friends.
INSIGHT
Prayer is one of the true mysteries in the Bible. It is inevitable that, as we grow in our prayer life, we will struggle with an inadequate understanding of how to pray. The example of Jesus praying in Gethsemane helps us with what we can know and understand about prayer. First, we can know that prayer does not eliminate emotional struggling. A second thing we can learn is that prayer can make us stronger spiritually and keep us from temptation. In each account of His prayer, Jesus says to His disciples, "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation." (Mark 14:38). If we watch and pray, we will be strengthened against temptation.
PRAYER
As you continue your time with the Lord, offer to Him this praise:
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,
And You are exalted as head over all (1 Chronicles 29:11).
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
Seek the Lord while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon (Isaiah 55:6-7).
As you confess your sins, pray this affirmation of God's Word:
He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength. . . .
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint (Isaiah 40:29, 31).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:
Greater insight into the Scriptures
The hungry around the world
Your activities for the day.
Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance on you,
And give you peace (Numbers 6:24-26).
Jesus spends His last two days in intimate communion with His closest friends.
INSIGHT
Prayer is one of the true mysteries in the Bible. It is inevitable that, as we grow in our prayer life, we will struggle with an inadequate understanding of how to pray. The example of Jesus praying in Gethsemane helps us with what we can know and understand about prayer. First, we can know that prayer does not eliminate emotional struggling. A second thing we can learn is that prayer can make us stronger spiritually and keep us from temptation. In each account of His prayer, Jesus says to His disciples, "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation." (Mark 14:38). If we watch and pray, we will be strengthened against temptation.
PRAYER
As you continue your time with the Lord, offer to Him this praise:
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,
And You are exalted as head over all (1 Chronicles 29:11).
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
Seek the Lord while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon (Isaiah 55:6-7).
As you confess your sins, pray this affirmation of God's Word:
He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength. . . .
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint (Isaiah 40:29, 31).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:
Greater insight into the Scriptures
The hungry around the world
Your activities for the day.
Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance on you,
And give you peace (Numbers 6:24-26).
It’s Time For Drastic Cuts
It’s Time For Drastic Cuts
“At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met Moses and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it. ‘Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,’ she said. So the LORD let him alone. (At that time she said ‘bridegroom of blood,’ referring to circumcision.)” Exodus 4:24-26 NIV
The Apostle Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians states that the intention behind his words, and therefore his actions, was not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts (1 Thessalonians 2:4). It’s impossible to please everybody, so as a Christian we can simplify our lives by making it our sole objective to please our Heavenly Father. This is a decision of the will we all must make of our own volition. To decide is to literally “cut off” all other options, opportunities, and possibilities.
The elected officials of this nation are charged to be responsible and accountable in handling this nation’s resources. Sometimes drastic cuts are necessary. We make changes to adjust to the current climate, and also in order to be prepared to take advantage of the opportunities that are yet to come.
Moses was called as the mediator (go-between) of the covenant between God and his children. The benefits of the covenant are unmatched: health, deliverance, prosperity, security, peace, and the abiding Presence of Almighty God. These benefits came upon condition. “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Be sure to keep the commands of the LORD your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors, thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the LORD said” (Deuteronomy 6:5, 17-19). God asked for, and deserves, exclusive devotion.
The sign of the Old Testament covenant was for males to be circumcised. Either be circumcised, or be cut off from the benefits of belonging to the covenant (Genesis 17:14). New Testament circumcision is of the heart by faith.
A gardener must prune diseased, damaged, dead, non-productive, structurally unsound, or otherwise unnecessary parts of a plant in order to increase the yield or quality of the flowers or fruit. May we all take inventory of our lives and cut off every weight and the sin that hinders our progress (Hebrews 12:1), and cultivate a closer and deeper relationship with God!
“At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met Moses and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it. ‘Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,’ she said. So the LORD let him alone. (At that time she said ‘bridegroom of blood,’ referring to circumcision.)” Exodus 4:24-26 NIV
The Apostle Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians states that the intention behind his words, and therefore his actions, was not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts (1 Thessalonians 2:4). It’s impossible to please everybody, so as a Christian we can simplify our lives by making it our sole objective to please our Heavenly Father. This is a decision of the will we all must make of our own volition. To decide is to literally “cut off” all other options, opportunities, and possibilities.
The elected officials of this nation are charged to be responsible and accountable in handling this nation’s resources. Sometimes drastic cuts are necessary. We make changes to adjust to the current climate, and also in order to be prepared to take advantage of the opportunities that are yet to come.
Moses was called as the mediator (go-between) of the covenant between God and his children. The benefits of the covenant are unmatched: health, deliverance, prosperity, security, peace, and the abiding Presence of Almighty God. These benefits came upon condition. “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Be sure to keep the commands of the LORD your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors, thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the LORD said” (Deuteronomy 6:5, 17-19). God asked for, and deserves, exclusive devotion.
The sign of the Old Testament covenant was for males to be circumcised. Either be circumcised, or be cut off from the benefits of belonging to the covenant (Genesis 17:14). New Testament circumcision is of the heart by faith.
A gardener must prune diseased, damaged, dead, non-productive, structurally unsound, or otherwise unnecessary parts of a plant in order to increase the yield or quality of the flowers or fruit. May we all take inventory of our lives and cut off every weight and the sin that hinders our progress (Hebrews 12:1), and cultivate a closer and deeper relationship with God!
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