Daily Devotions

The book named Judges  is so called as it comes from the type of leaders Israel had during this period. Before they had any kings, the tribes of Israel were ruled by judges. Don't think of a courtroom here, because these were regional, political, and military leaders, more like tribal chieftains.

The book of Judges highlights six judges during this era and uncovers their increasing corruption. These judges start off fairly well but their judgements become increasingly questionable. The book ends with two very disturbing stories showing how incredibly lawless the people had become. The book's thesis explores humanity’s tendency to trust themselves over God and do what it sees right in their own eyes. This habit highlights humanity’s need for God’s grace and a future king who will rescue people from their self-centredness.

In chapter 6:10 we find God saying to the  this apostate people, "I said to you, 'I am the LORD your God; do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live.' But you have not listened to me."

Regrettably, in the ensuing nearly 3000 years, the story of self-obsession and self-centredness has continued in generation after generation. British actor Michael Wilding was once asked if actors had any traits which set them apart from other human beings. "Without a doubt," he replied. "You can pick out actors by the glazed look that comes into their eyes when the conversation wanders away from themselves.”

I recently read an article entitled, "How To Be Miserable." It says, "Think about yourself. Talk about yourself. Use "I" as often as possible. Mirror yourself continually in the opinion of others. Listen greedily to what people say about you. Expect to be appreciated. Be suspicious. Be jealous and envious. Be sensitive to slights. Never forgive a criticism. Trust nobody but yourself. Insist on consideration and respect. Demand agreement with your own views on everything. Sulk if people are not grateful to you for favours shown them. Never forget a service you have rendered. Shirk your duties if you can. Do as little as possible for others.”

A far cry from the New Testament words of Jesus, to “love your neighbour as yourself!”

So today I pray, Lord, that You will give me the grace to not think more highly of myself than I ought and to always put the needs of others above my own. I pray for the compassion to always have love in my heart for others. For it is by loving others that I show my love for You. Amen

Daily Devotions

We now move onto some of the history books of the Old Testament starting with Joshua - with its theme, “Take the land.” The Book of Joshua does not explicitly name its author. More than likely Joshua the son of Nun, the successor of Moses as leader over Israel, penned much of this book. 

The Book of Joshua provides an overview of the military campaigns to conquer the land area that God had promised. Following the exodus from Egypt and the subsequent forty years of the wilderness wanderings, the newly-formed nation is now poised to enter the Promised Land, conquer the inhabitants, and occupy the territory. The overview that we have here gives abbreviated and selective details of many of the battles and the manner in which the land was not only conquered, but how it was divided into tribal areas.

To our New Testament ears, all this talk of battles seems so foreign yet out of all this mayhem we eventually come to the pivotal text of Joshua 24:14-15. “So revere Jehovah and serve him in sincerity and truth. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Worship the Lord alone. But if you are unwilling to obey the Lord, then decide today whom you will obey. Will it be the gods of your ancestors beyond the Euphrates or the gods of the Amorites here in this land? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”

We live in a world of choices. We choose our toothpaste, deodorant, cars, houses, jobs, life style, friends, church. The list goes on. Everyday we are confronted with choices.

Some choices are major, others are minor but they must be made. Someone has already said, “To make no choice is a choice.”

The greatest choice we can ever make is to choose the God of our life.

What Joshua is saying here, in his last public presentation, is what Elijah says centuries later.

“And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.”  I Kings 18:21

The elderly Joshua informs us that we have a choice of whom we serve. This was Israel’s choice and the choice is still with us today.

Lord, help me to constantly see those things in my life that keep me from loving You.  As I identify that which deters me in faith, give me the courage to choose You above all things.  Give me the wisdom to know how to choose You above all things.  Amen

Daily Devotions

“Stop and think”; could be the subtext of the book of Deuteronomy as it serves a variety of purposes. As a literary text, it functions as a farewell address from Moses. As a historical text, it bridges the nomadic early history of the Israelites with their later settled history. Theologically, it establishes the laws, traditions, and blessings of the tradition, including the Ten Commandments.

Perhaps one of the crucial texts is that of 6:4  a verse we find Jesus quoted in the Gospel known as the Shema - the declaration of the basic principle of Jewish belief, proclaiming the absolute unity of God. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart.”

A missionary translator was endeavouring to find a word for “obedience” in the native language. This was a virtue seldom practiced among the people into whose language he wanted to translate the New Testament.

As he returned home from the village one day, he whistled for his dog and it came running at full speed. An old man, seeing this, said, admiringly in the native tongue, “Your dog is all ears.”

Immediately, the missionary knew he had his word for obedience. 

This text is a kind of pay attention. In the Hebrew the word is a stronger more fuller word than listen it means to listen attentively, to discern, and to obey.

Once there was a man who dared God to speak. Burn the bush like you did for Moses, God. And I will follow. Collapse the walls like you did for Joshua, God. And I will fight. Still the waves like you did on Galilee, God. And I will listen.

And so the man sat by a bush, near a wall, close to the sea and waited for God to speak. And God heard the man, so God answered. He sent fire, not for a bush, but for a church. He brought down a wall, not of brick, but of sin. He stilled the storm, not of the sea, but of a soul.

And God waited for man to respond.

And he waited. . .

And he waited. . .

And waited.

But because the man was looking at bushes, not hearts; bricks and not lives, seas and not souls, he decided that God had done nothing. Finally he looked to God and asked, ‘Have you lost your power?’ And God looked at him and said, ‘Have you lost your hearing?’

Dear Heavenly Father, I honour you as God Almighty. I appreciate you for all your kindness and blessings lavished upon me. I love you because you first loved me in Jesus. My heart's desire today is to demonstrate my love for you in all I do, and love and say. Through Jesus. Amen.”

Daily Devotions

Our next Old Testament book is that of  Numbers! A volume that someone has subtitle, “Get Somewhere” The name “Numbers” is a translation of Arithmoi, from the Septuagint, titled thus because the book contains many statistics, population counts, tribal and priestly figures, and other numerical data. The Hebrew name comes from the first sentence of the book and means “in the desert of ”; it is perhaps an even more accurate description of the book’s content, which follows the Israelites through almost forty years of wandering in the desert.

Perhaps one of the most recognisable text of the Old Testament is found in this book, “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”  (Number 6:24-26) When John Rutter composed his now famous choral rendition of these lovely words in 1981, it was for the memorial service held at his old school for much loved music teacher. Yet in the original text it is a blessing for the travelling children of Israel.

This Numbers' text is a powerful promise declared in a priestly blessing. The Lord himself, who brought the Israelites out of Egypt, was uniquely present with the nation Israel (Exodus 20:2; Deuteronomy 5:6). Not only was He present with them in a special relationship, but He also promised to protect and guard Israel.

There is a fivefold aspect to this Godly blessing

1.God is the source of all blessing.

2.God blesses us personally. 

3.God bends down to benefit us. 

4.God blesses as a father to his child. 

5.God’s blessing brings peace. 

Blessing God, thank You for reminding me that despite the clouds that come into my life, You are still the same. While my circumstances seem to hide You from me, You have not moved away from me. You never change. Help me to remember that You care for me and desire to give me comfort. Amen.

Daily Devotions

We turn to the third book of the Old Testament, Leviticus, that could well have the strap line - “Get right with God”. Leviticus could be described as a manual of regulations enabling the holy King to set up his earthly throne among the people of his kingdom. It explains how they are to be his holy people and to worship him in a holy manner. Holiness in this sense means to be separated from sin and set apart exclusively to the Lord for his purpose and for his glory. So the key thought of the book is holiness.

This permeating theme is found in Leviticus 19:1-2, “You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.” The term “holy” is used about 150 times in this book. It calls for a holiness that is based in the nature of God. 

Holiness sounds scary. It doesn’t need to be, but to the average person it is. Our tendency is to say that holiness is something for the cloistered halls of a monastery. It needs organ music, long prayers, and religious-sounding chants. It hardly seems appropriate for those in the real world of this century. What words come to mind when you think of holiness? It’s almost as though holiness is the private way of life for a special group of monks, missionaries and martyrs. But nothing could be further from the truth. 

For the disciple of Jesus, there is another way of framing this holiness; to define it as Social holiness; the practice of obeying Jesus’ commandments to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, loving your neighbour as yourself, and loving one another one another as Christ loves.

When Wesley said that holiness is social he meant that the depth of our love for God is revealed by the way we love whom God loves. Perhaps Jerry Bridges has it spot on when he says, “Many Christians have what we might call a 'cultural holiness.' They adapt to the character and behaviour pattern of Christians around them...But God has not called us to be like those around us. He has called us to be like Himself. Holiness is nothing less than conformity to the character of God.”

Heavenly Father, thank You for the lessons that Your Church can learn through the history of Israel and for the many types and pictures of Jesus that are hidden within the sacred pages of Scripture. Thank You that like Israel, I have also been called to be holy, because You are holy. It is humbling to realise that as part of Christ's Body, we have also been chosen, in Him, to be kings and priests unto God - to be a chosen people, who tell the world that Jesus died for their sin and rose again, so that by faith in Him we may be holy, as He is holy. Thank You that by faith in Christ, I have been called to be Your very own, and to proclaim the wonderful deeds of Him Who called me out of darkness into His marvellous light. May I live and work from this day forward, to be more like Jesus, and to live a holy life that is separated from this fallen world system. In Jesus' name I pray, AMEN.

Daily Devotions

The word Exodus was adopted into English (via Latin) from the Greek word Exodos, which literally means “the road out.” Exodos was formed by combining the prefix ex-, meaning “out of,” and hodos, meaning “road” or “way.”

There are many angles in which we could delve into the book of Exodus, from the escape from Egypt, the Passover, the introduction of the Ten Commandments to name but a few. But I want to concentrate on one verse Exodus 15:2 “The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.”

This verse actually came from a song sung by Moses and the children of Israel. The Israelites had seen a miracle and been rescued from Pharaoh for the last time. And what they do; sing a song of praise!

We may well ask, “How often are we rescued by God?”

There is no doubt that there are more times than we realise. Things happen to us and no matter how careful we are, no matter how alert we try to be, no matter what preparations we might make, there is always the unexpected that can happen. 

And in the same breath we may also ask, “how often does God protect us and keep us safe?” Maybe when we look back on our live's events we realise the times that God stepped in. Or maybe we never even know about the disaster we came to so close too.

Much of Exodus, in spite of God’s redemptive action for the Children of Israel, records the times that they complained. 

In 1991, Robert Hughes, an art critic, wrote a book called The Culture of Complaint. His thesis is that we live in a culture in which we perceive ourselves as being entitled to having all our wants and desires fulfilled. When that doesn't happen, we become "victims," we whine and complain and grumble. 

Moses, as chief cheerleader was constantly in the role of centring  the people’s expectations.  Jonathan Sacks , The former chief rabbi suggests that “Jews read the books of Moses not just as history but as divine command. The question to which they are an answer is not, 'What happened?' but rather, 'How then shall I live?' And it's only with the exodus that the life of the commands really begins.”

Surely our response to the Lord’s redemptive initiative is join in the singing of, “The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This is my God, and I will praise him—my father’s God, and I will exalt him!” 

Almighty God and Father, you have saved your people throughout the ages, and protected them in ways which can never be fully understood. Give us the courage to face issues of good and evil within our world with the strength and courage only You can give, and so contribute to Your work for love and peace within the world: AMEN

Daily Devotions

Through October we take a snapshot view of the books of the Old Testament, and so we start with Genesis -  with the theme “Begin with God.”

The book of Genesis is a volume of narratives, if you like, an anthology of stories.  As the title suggests it is  "book of beginnings". Genesis embodies foundational principles that range all the way from the nature of the world and humanity to the history of God's covenant dealings with the human race. The gallery of characters is large, but eight characters stand out: Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph.

Perhaps after the creation narrative a key Genesis verse is this, “Now the LORD had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, From your family And from your father's house, To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." (Genesis 12:1-3)

The great theologian Walter Brueggemann has described 12:1–3 as a second creation account, which clues us into the importance of God’s “I will bless” declaration. When we first encounter this passage, we are struck by the repetition of 'brk', the Hebrew root of blessed. “God will bless Abram and then he in turn will be a blessing to others, ultimately to ‘all peoples on earth'.

On the surface, the saying 'blessed to be a blessing' can seem quite a trite statement, but when really taken on board, it has such a profound impact. The blessings God gives us are intended to be shared with all, beginning with the inestimable blessing of salvation from sin and including all the other good things the Lord has given to us.

As followers of Christ, whatever our circumstances, we have been given the greatest gifts of faith, hope and love. And we have been blessed with the means of grace and the hope of glory. If we have Christ, we have been given everything that is eternally worthwhile. So the big question is “Why?” Why have we been so blessed? The answer to that question is found in Genesis 12:2-3. “I am going to put a special blessing on you and cause your reputation to grow so that you will become a blessing and example to others

Heavenly Father, thank You for the beautiful example of Abram who, by faith in Your Word, has become the biblical example of someone who believed in the Word of the Lord and who simply trusted in the promises of God. Help me to listen to Your voice and faithfully obey Your call, to Your praise and glory. In Jesus' name I pray, AMEN.