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This is a podcast sharing thoughts and insights for the accompanying the daily reading schedule for the book, Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 Days.
Welcome to day 348 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 Days!
Let us pray:
O Lord, thank You for teaching us more about You and Your ways as we read Your Word. Help us learn more about You today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let’s see what Jesus is teaching in John chapter 13!
Verse 1 tells us how much Jesus loves us. “And as He had loved those who were His own in the world, He loved them to the last and to the highest degree.” His love for us is incomprehensible.
Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, showing them He desires service. There are many kinds of service. We can pray that God will show us how to serve Him. It’s easy to get caught up in everything we want to do – worthy things – but let’s seek God’s will and serve Him all the days of our lives.
Then we read about Jesus’ spirit becoming agitated as He told Judas to go and do what he intended to do to betray Him. As soon as Judas left, He said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified! [Now He has achieved His glory, His honor, His exaltation!] And God has been glorified through and in Him.” Yesterday and today, we read about Jesus’ death glorifying God. We were saved through this one act of service. Through Jesus’ death on the cross, God was glorified, and the enemy was put down. The blood of Jesus covers us. Let us be especially grateful for Jesus’ sacrifice today.
Last, Jesus gives the disciples a new law to live by in verse 34, which says, “I give you a new commandment; that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another.” May God’s love permeate our hearts so that we can love all those around us.
Let’s see what Amos has for us today in chapter 7!
Prayer is shown to be extremely powerful in this chapter. God showed Amos a vision. He was shown a swarm of locusts that destroyed the Israelite’s crops. The Israelites grew two crops. The first was for the taxes paid to the king, and the second was for them. Verse 1 tells us the second crop was destroyed, meaning the harvest for the Israelites. They would have had nothing to live on, so Amos prayed that the Lord wouldn’t do this, and the Lord revoked His plan. Interestingly, the Amplified Bible says the Lord was eased and comforted when He withdrew His plan. God never wants His people to be hurt. He doesn’t want us to hurt either. It was difficult for God to pass judgment on His people even after they had shut their eyes to Him and opened them to foreigners and their gods.
Verses 4-6 are similar, where God would send fire against the people. Amos prayed that He not do this, and again, the Lord revoked His sentence upon the people and was relieved.
Then, in verse 8, we read that the Lord held a plumb line to a wall and asked Amos what he saw. A plumb line was held to a wall to see if it was straight. God measured the Israelites to see if they walked the straight and narrow path, but they did not. Their idol worship was detestable to the Lord, and He planned to make their places of worship destitute. One of the priests at Bethel, where the golden calf was worshiped, sent word to King Jeroboam that Amos was conspiring against him. Amos said that Jeroboam would die in battle and Israel would be held captive. The priest told Amos to go back to Judah and prophesy there. Amos admitted he was not a professional prophet, but the Lord found him and told him to prophecy against Israel. God does miracles through ordinary people. I Corinthians 1:27 says, “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” This is God’s MO. His ways are not like our ways. May the Lord grant us understanding, knowledge, and wisdom to learn more about Him and His ways.
In chapter 8, God showed Amos ripe fruit and told him the people of Israel were like the ripe fruit. Their prosperity would not last long. He saw their mistreatment of the poor. He saw their hearts had grown cold toward the Sabbath and the Feasts, where they used to be worshipful and praise the Lord. At this point, they attended the feasts and held the Sabbath, but in their hearts, they couldn’t wait until they were over so they could go on buying and selling again. The Lord told Amos that the time of Israel’s suffering was coming soon.
God also told Amos that a famine was coming. It wasn’t a famine in the land, it was a spiritual famine. No matter how much they searched for the Lord, they wouldn’t find Him. And the people who worshiped the golden calves would perish.
In the final chapter, chapter 9, God shows Amos the pillars at the altar and tells him to shatter them. When the pillars are destroyed, the whole temple falls. God uses this analogy to show that He is ready to destroy Israel. But He will leave a fragment alive, a seed that will grow again. While they are in exile, there is no escape from God’s judgment and suffering. He uses this to purify His people. But when the suffering and purification process is done, God said, “I will raise up its ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old.” And in verse 12, we are included in “the nations that are called by” God’s name. There are such blessings as have never been found such that the one who plows bumps into the one who sows the seed. The crop grows so fast that the planter and the reaper work simultaneously. The Amplified Bible says, “Everything heretofore barren and unfruitful shall overflow with spiritual blessings.” We can look forward to that day. Today we can praise God for His perfect plan to unite us to Him, and we experience overflowing spiritual blessings.
Let’s see what King Solomon’s wisdom is for us today in Proverbs 17!
There are so many golden nuggets of wisdom in this chapter. Each verse deserves its own quiet meditation and pondering.
Verse 5 is a common theme in the Bible. We read about it yesterday and today in Amos. It says, “Whoever mocks the poor reproaches his Maker.” God does not take our opinions, thoughts, and words lightly. May we help instead of hurt the downtrodden that are in our lives.
Solomon warns us to handle strife immediately. Verse 14 says, “The beginning of strife is as when water first trickles [from a crack in a dam]; therefore stop contention before it becomes worse and quarreling breaks out.” Great advice for ourselves and our thoughts. First, let’s not negatively contend with ourselves. It is also great advice for our interactions with family, friends, and work. We can use this wisdom in all areas of our lives.
Verse 22 says, “A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.” The way to a happy heart is through the Lord. A cheerful mind comes when we remind ourselves of the good things God has done for us and the blessings He’s already bestowed on us. When we remember God’s faithfulness to us in the past, we can patiently wait upon Him with the expectation that He will come to our aid in the future.
Let us pray:
O Lord, thank You for all You have done for us and all You are. Lord, keep our eyes on You and not this world. Increase our faith in You and keep our hearts Yours forever. In Jesus’ name, amen.