Chapter 9: verse 2-3... 'be assured' that what God has promised to do in our lives, He will accomplish... no matter how big or scary or impossible it may seem, He will do it nonetheless... and it will be HIM that does it, no matter what part He allows us to play in the whole matter. verse 4-6... I don't think it can be any clearer... when God allows us to accomplish something on His behalf, it is not because we are great or worthy or good or righteous (see Romans 3, specifically verse 10-12 and verse 23)... when God does something (and allows us to be apart of it), it is because of GOD and His awesome holiness... I think it is also interesting to note that God says it is because of the other peoples wickedness, not Israel's goodness... He calls them stiffnecked, so they are not good at all, just not as bad as the other people... it is the same with us... when God allows us to work with Him it is all about His power working through us... verse 7 and on... and to prove His point about how sinful the people are (and to jog their memories in case they 'forgot'), He goes on to remind them of their past sins... it reminds me about how we have to realize that we are sinners first, before we can realize how awesome God's power is in working in our lives... and reminds us of how far we can fall when we do not rely on Him... see also, Romans 3:20... it is through the law that we become conscious of our sin... so we realize just how much we need God's grace, and how thankful we are that He has provided it for us vesre 9-10... Moses is like, 'hey, guys wake up! This is serious stuff!'... I also had to smile at his 'guilt' ploy about how he didn't eat or drink the whole time... but I think in reality it was just to show how dedicated and serious these words/laws were from God, since he fasted, and then says that they were inscribed by the very finger of God... that is intense, if God writes the words Himself, we should pay attention... but, we should also remember that all the words in the Bible are "God breathed", so reading and obeying His word is just as serious and important a thing now for us, as it was then, for them (2 Timothy 3:16-17, as well as other verses around these) verse 17... 'before your eyes' makes me think that Moses threw the tablets not so much out of anger, but instead as a sign/symbol to show the people that they had 'broken' God's laws/commandments verse 18... wow 80 days with no food or drink... I struggle with one day of fasting... that makes me want to consider how seriously I take my confession/repentence/worship time for God? verse 19-20, and verse 25-29... we must never forget how important intercession is... praying on behalf of someone is very important... like life or death important some times... do we take pray this seriously, or just do it to 'get it over with' or because it is 'tradition' (like praying before meals, because we were taught it was the 'right' thing to do)... do we really pray like it makes a difference and means something? if not, how can we change our view and actions in this area? verse 21... didn't Moses make them drink the gold dust from the idol? (see Exodus 32:20)... I guess I assumed they knew they were being forced to drink it, and wondered how Moses accomplished that... but maybe they didn't know... verse 22... pretty much they've been rebellious everywhere they went and for most of the time they were in the desert... makes me wonder just how wicked the rest of the nations must be! (see verse 5 again) verse 23... 'did not trust and obey God'... isn't that the true reason for most of our disobedience? lack of trust? I would imagine the rest falls under 'selfishness'... verse 24... this verse I can see Moses just taking a deep sigh of frustration and reality as He says it...
Chapter 10: verse 1-11... good for Moses to recount this to the next generation so they know the whys and hows that brought about the regulations that they know and are expected to obeserve now... the Isrealites were told to tell their children these things, but since they didn't obey many other times, it was probably wise for Moses to repeat these things to the children now, just in case their fathers had not told them before verse 9... 'the Lord is their inheritance'... I just want to remember to live as this is true in my life... sometimes I forget and act as if the things of the world were my inheritance... we used to have a t-shirt that said 'he who has the most toys still dies'... so true... the only thing that we can take with us when we leave this world is our assurance of our eternal destination (hopefully we will choose that to be Heaven, by accepting God's gift of Salvation through Jesus) verse 12-13... it sums it all up, doesn't it verse 15... God didn't have to, but He chose to... He chose us (you and me)... isn't that an awesome thought (see Colossians 3:12-13) verse 17-21... God is mighty, awesome, the one true God about all others, loves and provides for everyone, including the outcasts... hold fast to God! (don't let Him go... remember, God doesn't let go of us... when we feel distant from God, it is we that have let go of Him)... He is my praise! (do I live as though this is true?)... He is my God, who has proven Himself and His faithful trustworthiness to me over and over again verse 22... from 70 to 'as numerous as the stars'... God can truly do anything!
Chapter 11: verse 8... makes me think about how if we don't follow God's commands and obediently do our spiritual disciplines (pray, read God's word, fast, have accountability, etc), then we will not have the spiritual strength to do the things that God wants us to do for Him... we may not even have the strength to make it day to day in all that just regular daily living puts on us, let alone more important tasks like sharing God's word with others, etc verse 11-12... I like the imagery that I get from these 2 verses verse 21... we need to follow God's commands not just for our own good, but also for the good of our children, lest our sinful actions lead them astray and curse them without their even knowing it verse 22... with these 3 truths we can do anything God puts before us... without them, we can do nothing (on so many levels) verse 26... isn't this true... if we follow God, we can't help but be blessed, but when we deny God or turn from Him, we can't help but be 'cursed'... there really is no middle ground or gray area is there? why do we sometimes pretend like there is? veres 29... when God works in our lives, we need to share it with others... the good and the bad... both are what make up our powerful testimony to God's goodness, grace, and mercy... sometimes we like to only focus on the good, but the bad has an important place too... it is what makes the good shine... not that we should try to do bad to make the good look good though (see Romans 7-8) verse 31-32... reading this gives me that excited anxious feeling for them... I can only imagine what they must have been feeling! :)
The IDEA: Romans 1:12-That we may be mutually strengthened, encouraged, and comforted by each others faith. Have you ever read the whole Bible before? We have never done it. We want to share God’s Word, but how can we if we do not know it.
The PLAN: Ecclesiastes 4:12-One person is easily overcome, but two can stand together and conquer. Three is even better, though, as a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. With each others help we can succeed-So, let us team up and read the Bible in a year.
The DATE: We will start Dec 26, 2009 - Dec 26, 2010.
The FYI: We will read 3-4 chapters each day, starting in Genesis, and post thoughts daily. If you do not have a Bible, you can access many translations at www.biblegateway.com. You can also download an audio for each chapter at: http://www.audiotreasure.com/webindex.htm
Chapter 9: verse 2-3... 'be assured' that what God has promised to do in our lives, He will accomplish... no matter how big or scary or impossible it may seem, He will do it nonetheless... and it will be HIM that does it, no matter what part He allows us to play in the whole matter.
ReplyDeleteverse 4-6... I don't think it can be any clearer... when God allows us to accomplish something on His behalf, it is not because we are great or worthy or good or righteous (see Romans 3, specifically verse 10-12 and verse 23)... when God does something (and allows us to be apart of it), it is because of GOD and His awesome holiness... I think it is also interesting to note that God says it is because of the other peoples wickedness, not Israel's goodness... He calls them stiffnecked, so they are not good at all, just not as bad as the other people... it is the same with us... when God allows us to work with Him it is all about His power working through us...
verse 7 and on... and to prove His point about how sinful the people are (and to jog their memories in case they 'forgot'), He goes on to remind them of their past sins... it reminds me about how we have to realize that we are sinners first, before we can realize how awesome God's power is in working in our lives... and reminds us of how far we can fall when we do not rely on Him... see also, Romans 3:20... it is through the law that we become conscious of our sin... so we realize just how much we need God's grace, and how thankful we are that He has provided it for us
vesre 9-10... Moses is like, 'hey, guys wake up! This is serious stuff!'... I also had to smile at his 'guilt' ploy about how he didn't eat or drink the whole time... but I think in reality it was just to show how dedicated and serious these words/laws were from God, since he fasted, and then says that they were inscribed by the very finger of God... that is intense, if God writes the words Himself, we should pay attention... but, we should also remember that all the words in the Bible are "God breathed", so reading and obeying His word is just as serious and important a thing now for us, as it was then, for them (2 Timothy 3:16-17, as well as other verses around these)
verse 17... 'before your eyes' makes me think that Moses threw the tablets not so much out of anger, but instead as a sign/symbol to show the people that they had 'broken' God's laws/commandments
verse 18... wow 80 days with no food or drink... I struggle with one day of fasting... that makes me want to consider how seriously I take my confession/repentence/worship time for God?
verse 19-20, and verse 25-29... we must never forget how important intercession is... praying on behalf of someone is very important... like life or death important some times... do we take pray this seriously, or just do it to 'get it over with' or because it is 'tradition' (like praying before meals, because we were taught it was the 'right' thing to do)... do we really pray like it makes a difference and means something? if not, how can we change our view and actions in this area?
verse 21... didn't Moses make them drink the gold dust from the idol? (see Exodus 32:20)... I guess I assumed they knew they were being forced to drink it, and wondered how Moses accomplished that... but maybe they didn't know...
verse 22... pretty much they've been rebellious everywhere they went and for most of the time they were in the desert... makes me wonder just how wicked the rest of the nations must be! (see verse 5 again)
verse 23... 'did not trust and obey God'... isn't that the true reason for most of our disobedience? lack of trust? I would imagine the rest falls under 'selfishness'...
verse 24... this verse I can see Moses just taking a deep sigh of frustration and reality as He says it...
Chapter 10: verse 1-11... good for Moses to recount this to the next generation so they know the whys and hows that brought about the regulations that they know and are expected to obeserve now... the Isrealites were told to tell their children these things, but since they didn't obey many other times, it was probably wise for Moses to repeat these things to the children now, just in case their fathers had not told them before
ReplyDeleteverse 9... 'the Lord is their inheritance'... I just want to remember to live as this is true in my life... sometimes I forget and act as if the things of the world were my inheritance... we used to have a t-shirt that said 'he who has the most toys still dies'... so true... the only thing that we can take with us when we leave this world is our assurance of our eternal destination (hopefully we will choose that to be Heaven, by accepting God's gift of Salvation through Jesus)
verse 12-13... it sums it all up, doesn't it
verse 15... God didn't have to, but He chose to... He chose us (you and me)... isn't that an awesome thought (see Colossians 3:12-13)
verse 17-21... God is mighty, awesome, the one true God about all others, loves and provides for everyone, including the outcasts... hold fast to God! (don't let Him go... remember, God doesn't let go of us... when we feel distant from God, it is we that have let go of Him)... He is my praise! (do I live as though this is true?)... He is my God, who has proven Himself and His faithful trustworthiness to me over and over again
verse 22... from 70 to 'as numerous as the stars'... God can truly do anything!
Chapter 11: verse 8... makes me think about how if we don't follow God's commands and obediently do our spiritual disciplines (pray, read God's word, fast, have accountability, etc), then we will not have the spiritual strength to do the things that God wants us to do for Him... we may not even have the strength to make it day to day in all that just regular daily living puts on us, let alone more important tasks like sharing God's word with others, etc
ReplyDeleteverse 11-12... I like the imagery that I get from these 2 verses
verse 21... we need to follow God's commands not just for our own good, but also for the good of our children, lest our sinful actions lead them astray and curse them without their even knowing it
verse 22... with these 3 truths we can do anything God puts before us... without them, we can do nothing (on so many levels)
verse 26... isn't this true... if we follow God, we can't help but be blessed, but when we deny God or turn from Him, we can't help but be 'cursed'... there really is no middle ground or gray area is there? why do we sometimes pretend like there is?
veres 29... when God works in our lives, we need to share it with others... the good and the bad... both are what make up our powerful testimony to God's goodness, grace, and mercy... sometimes we like to only focus on the good, but the bad has an important place too... it is what makes the good shine... not that we should try to do bad to make the good look good though (see Romans 7-8)
verse 31-32... reading this gives me that excited anxious feeling for them... I can only imagine what they must have been feeling! :)
Have a wonderful night!
God Bless,
sandJ