Tag: God’s power

Morning Musing: Romans 15:17-19

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“Therefore I have reason to boast in Christ Jesus regarding what pertains to God. For I would not dare say anything except what Christ has accomplished through me by word and deed for the obedience of the Gentiles, by the power of miraculous signs and wonders, and by the power of God’s Spirit. As a result, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

What is it that causes the Gospel to grow and spread? If you look much into it, you’ll find all sorts of evangelism methods and programs. The most popular of them are marketed well and cost a pretty penny to get your hands on. But while these aren’t entirely without merit—and indeed, some of them are pretty helpful if implemented well—these aren’t the things that cause the Gospel to grow. Paul speaks to some of what does here. Let’s take a look.

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Advent Reflections: Psalm 139:7-12

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“Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I fly on the wings of the dawn and settle down on the western horizon, even there your hand will lead me; your right hand will hold on to me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light around me will be night’—even the darkness is not dark to you. The night shines like the day; darkness and light are alike to you.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When the apostle Matthew was writing Jesus’ story, he began at the beginning. Writing for a Jewish background audience, he rooted Jesus in Jewish history, showing Him to be the Son of David as every Jew knew the Messiah would be. Then, he told the story of His birth. Narrating through Joseph’s experience, Matthew went out of his way to show that Jesus’ birth was the fulfillment of prophecy. Specifically, He fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy about a child born to a virgin who would be called Immanuel, which means “God is with us.” Jesus made it possible for the God who is everywhere in Spirit to be with us in relationship. Let’s celebrate the goodness of our God with David’s words today.

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Morning Musing: Matthew 14:1-2

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“At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the report about Jesus. ‘This is John the Baptist,’ he told his servants. “He has been raised from the dead, and that’s why miraculous powers are at work in him.'” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever read something in the Scriptures and wondered how on earth the author could have come to know that particular detail? We don’t encounter this much in the Old Testament, but the Gospel authors all have places where there are details reported they were present to have observed or experienced for themselves. Sometimes they report the conversations that happened in gatherings of priests that included none of Jesus’s followers when they happened. Matthew reports a private conversation between Pilate and his wife. Here he reports what was apparently a private conversation between Herod and his servants. How did they come by this knowledge? Let’s explore that briefly this morning through the lens of an interesting little connection that’s easy to miss.

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Morning Musing: Exodus 20:18-21

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“All the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the ram’s horn, and the mountain surrounded by smoke. When the people saw it they trembled and stood at a distance. ‘You speak to us, and we will listen,’ they said to Moses, ‘but don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.’ Moses responded to the people, ‘Don’t be afraid, for God has come to test you, so that you will fear him and will not sin.’ And the people remained standing at a distance as Moses approached the total darkness where God was.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When I was little, my parents took me on a thrill ride at an amusement park. It terrified me. A lot. As a result, it was a full decade before I rode another thrill ride of any kind. That first experience left me chastened. I responded by backing away and not getting near them. When Israel experienced the power and presence of God in the wild storm theophany there at Mount Sinai out of which God delivered the Ten Commandments, they were terrified. They reacted about like I did with roller coasters. Let’s talk through their response here and Moses’ efforts to encourage them.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 10:27-29

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“But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he was unwilling to let them go. Pharaoh said to him, ‘Leave me! Make sure you never see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you will die.’ ‘As you have said,’ Moses replied, ‘I will never see your face again.'” (CSB – Read the chapter)

We’ve danced around this idea several times now over the course of our talking through the various plagues God unleashed on the Egyptians because of Pharaoh’s refusal to let the Israelites go worship in the wilderness. (Have you noticed that a three-day trip to the wilderness to worship God is still all Moses has been asking for and not total emancipation?) Today, it’s time to tackle it head on. This is a deeply uncomfortable idea, but it has been repeated now several times. What does it mean that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart? Did Pharaoh harden his own heart? What is going on here? Let’s see what kind of sense we can make of out this.

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