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Today´s reading:
OT: Exodus 32-33
NT: Matthew 26:69-75, Matthew 27:1-14
Ps: Psalm 33:1-11
Pr: Proverbs 8:33-36

Today´s notable verses:

The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.

Exodus 32:16 (NIV)

What a unique and miraculous blessing to the Israelites: the very Word of God, inscribed by God Himself! Thw points come to mind: first, that the Israelites squandered such a precious gift by inciting the anger of Moses and provoking him to throw down the tablets in his rage. Second, that even this precious gift was but a pale reflection of God’s later work:

You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

II Corinthians 2:3 (NIV)

God has made each one of us more precious than those stone tablets, since He Himself ascended and shattered Himself on the Cross for our sake, and has engraved His Spirit on our hearts, and in so doing has given us His perfect Law and made it so integral to our lives that our very lives are now identified in it, and in it alone.

The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.

Exodus 33:11 (NIV)

I once heard a teaching concerning Joshua in this verse, that his later accomplishments originated, in part, in this verse. He was with Moses in the tent of meeting, and he stayed. He sought the same intimacy with the Lord that Moses had. He stayed in the place of meeting with the Lord. He longed for the presence and glory of the Lord.

The One Year Bible Blog asks:

Comments from you & Question of the Day – The Golden Calf readings… Are we so different from the Israelites? Do we make our own versions of “golden calves” today? Do we have idols that we worship? Money? Career? Popularity? Relationships? Addictions? Our Intelligence? Technology? Do these idols stand in the way of our worship of God? Do they stand in the way of our relationship with God? Do these idols defile us?

What amazes me about this incident is that the Israelites turned to Aaron for guidance, and he failed them miserably; yet God still ordained Aaron to be His High Priest – another example of God, in His grace, using people for His purposes despite (and through) their failures.

I think the real sin here was the Israelites’ lack of faith, and their willingness to put their trust in something so obviously man-made, while the Presence of the Lord yet remained on the mountain with Moses. Perhaps their actions resulted from taking their eyes off of the mountain, looking to the desert and wilderness, rather than staying focused on God’s Presence?

And we are still the same today. Our faith still falters. We still put our trust in all those things mentioned, especially when we take our eyes off of our Lord. And just as Peter, walking on water, began to sink when he took his eyes off of Jesus, so too do we begin to become overwhelmed by the world when we take our eyes off of Him.

Today´s reading:
OT: Exodus 30:11-38, Exodus 31:1-18
NT: Matthew 26:47-68
Ps: Psalm 32
Pr: Proverbs 8:27-32

Today´s notable verse:

Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the LORD “—
and you forgave
the guilt of my sin.
Selah

Psalm 32:5 (NIV)

What a relief it is to confess our sins to our Lord! When we keep our sin to ourselves, the weight of it is heavy upon us (verse 4); but when we confess it, the burden is lifted – often, tangibly so.

The One Year Bible Blog asks:

Comments from you & Question of the Day – Psalm 32 is a powerful Psalm on confession and forgiveness. How do you confess your sins these days? Do you confess them verbally to someone else – a pastor / minister / priest / mentor / friend / accountability partner? Why do you confess them verbally? Do you confess your sins to God in prayer? After confessing your sins verbally or in prayer do you feel any different? Do you think confession is relevant? Do you think confession is a spiritual discipline?

One of the difficult things about moving around somewhat frequently (twice since college graduation) is the formation of relationships sufficiently intimate to allow for accountability. I am just now getting to the point in some close relationships that I can count on one or two as accountability partners, one in particular. I think it wise to have two types of relationships: one peer relationship, and one mentor relationship. I am working on both. Since college, the majority of my confession has been to God alone, in prayer; but I think the principle confession to one another is extremely important:

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

James 5:16 (NIV)

However confession is made, I always “feel better” and am able to “move on” afterward. The reason is that, before confession, when we willfully withhold that confession, we open ourselves to worldly sorrow and guilt; but when we yield to the Spirit, and openly confess our sins, we are blessed with Godly sorrow:

¹⁰ Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. ¹¹ See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done.

II Corinthians 7:10-11a

Worldly sorrow – that to which we open ourselves by withholding the confession of our sin – brings death: Satan condemns us of the guilt of our sin, and the wages of sin is death. That death is spiritual death, or separation from God. The longer we withhold our confession, the longer we allow the Accuser to separate us from God by overwhelming us with the guilt and sorrow of our sin.

But when we confess our sin to the Lord, we accept Christ’s atonement for our sin, and no longer bear the burden of its guilt, which Christ bore for us on the cross. Instead, that condemning guilt is replaced, through the Spirit, with a desire to right wrongs and to do right and to pursue Godliness and holiness. Praise God for His grace!

Today´s reading:
OT: Exodus 29, Exodus 30:1-10
NT: Matthew 26:14-46
Ps: Psalm 31:19-24
Pr: Proverbs 8:14-26

Today´s notable verse:

¹⁷ I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.

¹⁸ With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity.

¹⁹ My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver.

²⁰ I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

²¹ bestowing wealth on those who love me and making their treasuries full.

Proverbs 8:17-21 (NIV)

Remember, this chapter refers to wisdom (also, as I pointed out yesterday, symbolic of and analogous to the Holy Spirit). Those who seek wisdom find it; James gives us the key:

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

James 1:5 (NIV)

When God gives us this wisdom, we grasp His perspective with respect to the true nature of riches, honor, wealth, and prosperity – and what a blessing that perspective is, because what the world offers for these things will always prove to be insufficient and empty compared to what God wants for us.

The One Year Bible Blog asks:

Comments from you & Question of the Day – Do our readings in Matthew today remind you of Communion / The Lord’s Supper at your church? Is this a positive remembrance for you? How important is Communion / The Lord’s Supper to you personally these days? Do you look forward to this remembrance at your church? Have you ever experienced Communion / The Lord’s Supper with others in settings outside of your normal worship experience? Maybe at a prayer gathering or outside or in other beautiful settings?

Communion is not just important; it is vital to the life of the believer! Paul even ascribes tangible, physical consequences for partaking of communion improperly:

²⁷ Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. ²⁸ A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. ²⁹ For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. ³⁰ That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.

I Corinthians 11:27-30

Note, here, that Paul was admonishing the Corinthians for treating communion as just another meal, and were acting out of gluttony and selfishness – but the point is the same: they abused that which Christ ordained as sacred, and thereby ate and drank judgement upon themselves, in the form of sickness and even death.

My church has communion every week, and I prefer churches that do so. However, I love opportunities to share in communion in settings outside of regular church services. I have taken communion with 60,000 men at a Promise Keepers convention, at a rest stop with a mission group during a mission trip, at a state park while camping – I’m sure there are others as well. What I love about these occasions is that the focus remains on communion – and the reason for and basis of communion: Christ – rather than the service during which it is taken.