Month: October 2017

Digging in Deeper: Psalm 106:16-17

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“When men in the camp were jealous of Moses and Aaron, the holy one of the Lord, the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Reading through verses 16-31 here leaves a couple of strong impressions, both of which are important for us today.

The first is that the people of Israel were stupid.  There were times they were misled and times they were weak or short-sighted and even times when they were deceived.  But on many occasions they made the wrong decision in full awareness of the consequences and without any prodding from the enemy.  They were stupid.  They turned away from the Lord constantly.  And they did it in spite of what we can now see as His obvious action in their midst.  They did it in spite of experiencing the consequences of such actions in ways that were both dramatic and, often, immediate.  It’s like they were dead set on going their own way instead of in the direction the Lord was leading them.  They couldn’t even receive the good things He wanted to give them.  Again, they were stupid. Read the rest…

Morning Musings: 2 Corinthians 11:30

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“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Why did Paul rattle off this list of experiences that by almost any account would make someone conclude that the particular path of life he had chosen was not for them?  He was boasting about why he carried the authority to call them to behave in a certain way.  If they were going to claim to be followers of Jesus, then he was someone they should listen to in terms of how to do it right. Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: Isaiah 14:3-4

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“When the Lord has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made to serve, you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: ‘How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased!'”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

At first blush here, it feels a little odd that God would call Israel to taunt Babylon when they are brought low in judgment from the Lord.  Isn’t that just cruel?  Why kick someone when they are down?  This Old Testament god here must be the vengeful, gleeful-in-wrath god we’ve always heard about from our critics. Read the rest…

Morning Musings: 2 Corinthians 10:5

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“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Here is a truth that the world doesn’t know and Jesus followers forget much too often and always at our peril: Our chief enemies in the battle to advance the Gospel are always ideas and never people.  People are never our enemies.  They are always, only, and ever creatures bearing the image of God and, prayerfully, future brothers and sisters in Christ.  Our opponents are the ideas they carry and advance.  It is ideas that undermine and tear down the Christian worldview.  Ideas have consequences.  Bad ideas have victims.  We must be ruthless with ideas, but gentle and loving with people.  This is a tough balance to achieve, but one we must if we are to boldly advance the Gospel as is our call.

Morning Musings: 2 Corinthians 11:14-15

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“And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.  So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness.  Their end will correspond to their deeds.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Not everything that looks good is good.  Consider a poison dart frog of the Amazon rainforests.  They are beautiful, brightly colored little frogs.  And yet, to touch them could be deadly.  Just because Satan is evil, doesn’t mean he always or even often looks the part.  Much more often he “disguises himself as an angel of light.”  In other words, he looks like something that is good in order to lead us to something that is bad. Read the rest…