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Insights and thoughts for Day 56 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 days. If you would like to follow along with the book offered exclusively on Amazon, please refer to https://www.amazon.com/Reading-Bible-Cover-365-Days/dp/B0B6XSNMY6/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?
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 56 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 Days!
Let’s pray:
O Lord, thank You for teaching us, Your servants, more of You. May you impart knowledge, discernment, and wisdom into our hearts today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let’s see what’s happening in Luke chapter 12!
Well, there are a lot of verses in this chapter underlined in my Bible.
First, Jesus warns His disciples about the sin of the Pharisees – again, calling it the leaven of the Pharisees. He tells them all things will be revealed in time: things we say, things others say – the tales we tell. It will all be revealed. We need to pray against telling false tales – which God, the Father, hates. And pray against telling secrets or talking badly about anyone.
He goes on to instruct them to not worry or be afraid of people or what they can do to them but be afraid of what God will do to them if He sends them to hell. The way to heaven is to believe in Him, speak openly about Him to others, and believe in Jesus.
He reassures them, and us, that God knows every hair on our heads, and He will take care of us.
Then He tells of the one sin that cannot be forgiven, blaspheming the Holy Spirit. We have read about this before and determined that blaspheming the Holy Spirit is to be willfully against God and the promptings of the Holy Spirit. So, let us be careful that we are mindful of God and His Holy Spirit nudging us in a certain direction, and then obey.
Next, Jesus discusses wealth and covetousness. He warns against greed and then said, “for a man’s life does not consist in and is not derived from possessing overflowing abundance or that which is over and above his needs.” And He goes on to tell the parable of a rich man who had gathered huge storehouses of goods. The man died after he had been in hot pursuit of earthly riches, however, hadn’t taken the time to establish riches in heaven. So, Jesus told the disciples, and us, “do not be anxious and troubled [with cares] about your life, as to what you will [have to] eat; or about your body, as to what you will [have to] wear. For life is more than food, and the body [more] than clothes. Only aim at and strive for and seek His kingdom, and all these things shall be supplied to you also.” Jesus gives us perspective in this chapter. He tells many stories and offers many analogies to show us the importance of pursuing Him instead of the world.
Let’s see what’s happening in I Corinthians chapter 12!
Paul writes to the church about the gifts of the Spirit which is one of my favorite things to read about. In verse 7 Paul writes, “But to each one is given the manifestation of the [Holy] Spirit [the evidence, the spiritual illumination of the Spirit] for good and profit.” We are not given gifts of the Spirit to taunt other people to jealousy, but we are given gifts of the Spirit to glorify God. Verse 11 says, “All these [gifts, achievements, abilities] are inspired and brought to pass by one and the same [Holy] Spirit, Who apportions to each person individually [exactly] as He chooses.” We don’t have a choice in the matter, so we need not judge others or wish we were given this instead of that. Paul lists the gifts as wisdom, knowledge, understanding, faith, power of healing, miracles, prophetic insight, discernment, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Each of these gifts is amazing. Each is needed in the church. Each is given as the Holy Spirit determines. And each is part of a larger body – the body of Christ.
Paul’s last charge is to work at cultivating our gifts. However, more important than any of these gifts is love. If we think about the Pharisees, they may have memorized Scripture and been considered literate men, they did not operate out of love. So, every gift that is empty and devoid of love comes to nothing.
Let’s see what the Lord is instructing Moses in Leviticus chapter 21!
God gives instructions to Moses about the priests. They needed to be holy as they were the ones offering sacrifices to the most holy God.
They were not to come into contact with any dead person. While we might think that is a priestly duty, it was not allowed. The one exception was close relatives like mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters. God also gave Moses instructions about how they cared for their hair, and who they could marry.
The last set of instructions had to do with Aaron’s family – his sons. If any of them were born with any defects or blemishes, they were unable to serve God at the altar. They couldn’t go near the altar. But they could eat the offerings that were acceptable to eat.
In chapter 22, God told Moses how to keep Aaron and his sons holy. There are many do’s and don’ts here which shows us again, that our God is holy and anything or anyone that comes into contact with Him or His holy temple had to be clean and holy.
Next, He tells Moses about the necessity of the perfectness of the sacrificial animal. They had to be without blemish or any imperfections to be sacrificed and considered holy by the Lord. We can be thankful that Jesus was that perfect sacrifice for us and covers all our imperfections and sins.
Lastly, God reminds Moses about not profaning His holy name. He said, “but I will be hallowed among the Israelites. I am the Lord, Who consecrates and makes you holy.”
Let’s see what’s happening to David in Psalm 56!
David fled to a town called Gath when King Saul was pursuing him. This town was a town of Philistines. They went to war against Israel and thought David would turn on them, so they sent him away.
David writes of enemies that lie in wait for him. But he still believes in God and trusts God will keep him safe. He is obviously distraught because he writes about his tears. In verse 8 he writes, “you number and record my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle – are they not in Your book? “
There are 2 important things to note here:
Verses 4 and 11 are similar and when we have repeating phrases, they are important. Both talk about praising God and trusting Him. And both ask the question, “What can man, who is flesh, do to me?” David’s reliance is on God.
The other thing to note is in the last verse, verse 13, “For You have delivered my life from death, yes, and my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life and of the living.” I love when David writes about experiencing God on this earth instead of having to wait until he went to heaven. We will see this a few times in the book of Psalms, and it is life-giving every time we read it.
Let us pray:
O Lord, thank You for being present in our daily lives. Thank You for teaching us more about You and loving us even though we are far from perfect. Help us receive Your love today and every day. In Jesus’ name, amen.