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Day 95 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 days commentary, insights and thoughts. If you would like to follow along with the book offered exclusively on Amazon, please refer to https://www.amazon.com/Reading-Bible-Cover-365Days/dp/B0B6XSNMY6/ref=mp_s_a_1_90
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 95 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 Days!
Let us pray:
O Lord, thank You for teaching us more of You. Help us receive the message You have for us today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let’s see what’s happening in Matthew chapter 6!
Jesus teaches the Lord’s prayer. We all know it, but I share something new in case you haven’t seen this before. The prayer starts and ends with glorifying God. The first phrase is, “Our Father, Who is in heaven, Hallowed (kept holy) be Your name.” Yes, the Lord is holy. We have certainly learned this in our Old Testament reading. The last phrase is, “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen.” There is nothing greater or better or more of anything than the Lord. I feel like we, or me as in I, have not given Him the honor He is due throughout my life. Yes, there are times when we are closer to Him than others, but overall, I haven’t given Him the honor and worship He deserves. Let us worship Him today.
Jesus also tells them, and us, to “Not gather and heap up and store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal. But gather and heap up and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal; For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” This is a great time to reflect on what we consider most important to us and possibly gain a new perspective on what should be most important. We may wonder where we are putting our worth and value. Most likely it is what we are anxious and uneasy about which Jesus goes on to address. He tells us not to be uneasy or worried. If we keep our minds on heaven, the worldly worries and cares tend to disappear. We all know the saying, when we are on our deathbed, we won’t say we wish we would have worked more or harder. Let’s allow God to help us do some self-evaluation today. He will show us if there is something we need to come up higher in. This chapter ends with Jesus telling us to not worry or be anxious. He says this a number of times, so we best consider His words.
Let’s see what Paul is writing the Thessalonians in chapter 2!
Paul starts out telling them he suffered and was mistreated at Philippi but was not deterred in coming to them to share the Gospel. He goes on to tell them he doesn’t serve men, but he serves God Who is his only concern. I love verse 7 where he writes, “But we behaved gently when we were among you, like a devoted mother nursing and cherishing her own children.” Later he writes about how he also encouraged them like a father would do. He encouraged them to live lives worthy of God. After all, God created them, and us, and has called us to all be a part of His kingdom. There is no greater reward. Paul took great care of the people – gentle care. This is the kind of love God asks us to have for one another.
In verse 13 “And we also [especially] thank God continually for this, that when you received the message of God [which you heard] from us, you welcomed it not as the word of [mere] men, but as it truly is, the Word of God, which is effectually at work in you who believe [exercising its superhuman power in those who adhere to and trust in and rely on it].” Whenever I see the word superhuman in the Bible, I take notice. I actually get excited because I love to see superhuman power in motion. Many of us do or there wouldn’t be all the superhuman movies made for us to enjoy. Paul writes about the Word of God exercising its superhuman power in us. God is always at work in us to bring us up higher, and reading His Word furthers the mission. As we read the Old Testament, we see how hard God worked to have relationship with the Israelites. Lord wanted each one to be His. He gave specific instructions to Moses all the way from Exodus through Deuteronomy about how to live according to His commandments, statutes, and ordinances so they could remain set apart for Him. The Lord is the same today. He desires relationship with us so much so that He sent His Son to make it possible. I do believe the Word exercises superhuman power in all of us as we seek Him in His Word for He is always seeking us.
Well, God is showing Himself magnificent in Joshua chapter 3!
In verse 7, “The Lord said to Joshua, This day I will begin to magnify you in the sight of all Israel, so they may know that as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.” And He did. He dried up the Jordan so the people could pass through similar to drying up the Red Sea 4 decades ago. The priests were to carry the ark of the covenant into the water, and it would dry up. And it did.
Let’s see what’s happening in chapter 4!
God told Joshua to have one leader from every tribe pick out a large stone from the Jordan and put it where they stayed to remember what God had done for them, and to tell future generations what the stones meant. About 40,000 men ready for battle passed over the Jordan. It was to be remembered and God revered forever. Verse 14 says, “On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him, as they stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.”
The first part of Psalm 95 is a psalm of praise to God. Verse 1 says, “O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the Rock of our salvation!” Yes, let us praise Him today. Verses 8-11 talk about the Israelites hardened hearts. Having just read the first few books of the Old Testament, we are fresh with the knowledge about their hard hearts. Let us pray God softens our hearts and keeps them soft toward Him for the rest of our lives.
Let us pray:
O Lord, thank You for Your Word that teaches us about You. Father, keep our hearts soft toward You. Keep us seeking after You. Don’t let us wander away from You. In Jesus’ name, amen.