Category: Year B

John 3:1-13

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            “You must be born again.”  In the evangelical world this phrase is arguably the most famous and used statement in the whole of Holy Scripture.  Unfortunately, it is often reduced to a cliché, an almost formula-like approach to the Christian life.  Simply ask Jesus into your heart and you can be born again, that is, go to heaven.  The problem, however, lies in the fact that this is not really what Jesus said in John 3.  
             Jesus ministered in a religious world that needed deep transformation because it had become, uh-hem, reduced to formulas and clichés.  When Jesus stated that people need to be born again, he meant that there is a need for new life – not behavior modification, not re-arranging some things on the calendar, and not some more focused goals.  No, people need new life.  They need it so bad that it is like being born again.
             Just as a baby cannot create herself, make herself grow in the womb, and give birth to herself, so no one can experience total life change, being born again, on their own ingenuity, power, or ability.  We ought never to expect anything less than complete life transformation that comes through a total spiritual awakening, like being born again.  
             If that sounds downright radical, well, it is.  It is meant to be.  Jesus’ words to Nicodemus were so revolutionary to him that he had a hard time swallowing it.  But Jesus never dumbed-down spiritual truth in order to make it more palatable or understandable; he insisted on life change, and he taught it and lived it through preaching the kingdom of God and healing all kinds of people. 
             Only God can do such a work of bringing new life.  We are completely dependent upon the Spirit to birth us into a new reality through the person and work of Jesus.  We are also totally reliant upon the Spirit to use us as spiritual mid-wives, helping to birth new spiritual babies into God’s world.
             Saving God, you sent your Son, the Lord Jesus, to this world in order to give it new life.  Save me, O God, from myself and give me the change I need.  Help me to share this message of transformation with others who need to be born again, as well.  Amen.

Genesis 9:8-17

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

            The older I get the less I remember.  I often tell the older members of my church when they have a “senior moment” that they have a lot more to remember from a lifetime of experiences and memories than everyone else does.  I am in the position now of having to remember so much that if I do not write it down it likely will not happen.  I am sure that on some level you can relate because we all have the common human experience of being forgetful.

             We do not think of God having a problem with remembering.  But even he put reminders in front of himself in order to remember.  The story of Noah is familiar enough to most people so that we remember it.  The world was evil.  God decided to destroy the creatures of the earth because all were so sinful.  He sent a flood, but spared Noah and his family.  Afterwards, God made a covenant between himself and all the earth:  he would never again send a calamitous flood.  Here is what God said about that covenant:  “I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.  When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh.”
             Maybe memory and remembering has less to do with actual forgetfulness and more with priority, commitment, and keeping something continually in front of us.  God did not set a rainbow in the sky because he believed he might have a senior moment someday; he put a sign in the sky because having symbols that point to things are important, even for God.  We put pictures of our kids on our desks not because we will forget what they look like, but to keep them in front of us throughout the day because we love them.  We keep tokens from travels or vacations in prominent places at home not because we will ever forget the experience, but because something significant happened or was decided in that time that was important to us.
             The things and the symbols we place all around us have significance.  God wants us to remember him, his Word, his saving actions, and, most of all, his Son which is why we have tangible symbols of bread and cup in order to remember the redemptive events of Jesus.  Christ is to be continually in front of us, our priority and our love as we live from day to day.
             Gracious God, you have made covenants with your people in order to remember them and be committed to them.  I desire to remember you in everything I do and say, especially the Lord Jesus who loved me and gave himself for me so that my priorities will be straight and your mercy will be shown.  Amen.

2 Chronicles 29:1-19

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
             Hezekiah was a faithful king, coming from a long line of faithless ones.  After becoming king, his first act of business was to thoroughly cleanse the temple.  Since the kings before him did not treat the temple as sacred, they defiled it by introducing practices of other gods and by sheer neglect of the holy implements.  Hezekiah assembled an impressive team of men to set about the task of getting the temple to the place where it could again be used as it ought.  The team of Levites meticulously took their time and worked diligently to consecrate the house of the LORD, and tossed everything unholy into the brook Kidron.
             Perhaps there is no better passage of Scripture than this to embody what the season of Lent is really all about.  We are to do the holy work of carefully consecrating our hearts so that our lives are prepared and ready for the new life of Easter.  It is hard and courageous work.  Just as Hezekiah had the bravery to uphold the temple’s true purpose through cleansing it, so we are to have the courage to enter the shadowy places of our hearts and bring out the sin within.  It is not a pretty process, but a necessary one.
             One of the greatest needs that believers have today is the courage to be vulnerable, to expose and bring into the light our besetting sins so that they can be tossed into the brook and be carried away.  Instead of spending inordinate amounts of energy and time trying to hide our true selves, it is much better to let the example of Hezekiah clear a path forward by confronting the darkness within.
             Holy God, my life is a temple of your Holy Spirit.  I invite you to come in and do the sort of cleansing work that needs to be done so that my words and actions are thoroughly consecrated to you.  Help me to have the courage to go to the places within that scare me.  In the name of Jesus I pray.  Amen.

Exodus 19:16-25

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            The Bible is filled with mountains.  Whether it is Christ’s transfiguration on a mountain; or, the giving of the law on a mountain; the physically majestic serves as a tangible symbol of the divine majesty.  Conversely, valleys in Scripture are symbolic of difficulty and suffering.  Our God is a God of both mountain and valley.  That is, the God of the Bible is both transcendent and immanent; he rules with power and might high above us on his holy mountain; yet, he also comes near to us in the valley of the shadow of death.
 
            Leading up to the giving of the Ten Words or Commandments in Exodus 20, Exodus 19 portrays an awesome scene of God in all of his transcendent holiness and power.  In fact, the experience was so otherworldly that the people were afraid to even come near the mountain.  The people needed limits placed on themselves because of God’s holy presence.  Just like coming too near the immense power of the sun will destroy us, so getting near God can ruin us if we do not respect his holiness.
 
            Understanding God’s power and transcendence brings the reality of his immanence into greater appreciation.  God went to extreme lengths to communicate to his people.  And it all culminated in the ultimate expression of God’s communication through the incarnation of Christ, the sending of the Son.  In Jesus, the transcendence and immanence of God meet perfectly to bridge the chasm between humanity and the divine.  Because of Jesus the awesome sounds of thunder and trumpet do not lead to fear, but announce grace to those who approach God by faith.
            Awesome God, by your majestic grace you drew me to yourself through the person of Jesus.  Help me so to know and appreciate your law so that the character of Christ will radiate in my words and my actions, in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.