Category: Year C

Acts 26:19-29

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Paul was quite the guy.  He was a zealous missionary to Gentiles, indefatigable, and an intense type-A kind of dude.  But it wasn’t those characteristics that Paul was looking for others to see in him.  Paul simply wanted others to see Christ in him.  Having been arrested for preaching the gospel, Paul found himself before King Agrippa making a strong apologetic for Christian faith.  The DTR talk is one worth examining and emulating.  Agrippa’s response to Paul was, “In such a short time do you think you can talk me into being a Christian?”  Paul answered, “Whether it takes a short time or a long time, I wish you and everyone else who hears me today would become just like me!”
 
            I wonder how many of us could confidently say the same thing as Paul.  Are we the kind of Christians that we would want others to emulate?  Has our faith journey led us to the place of being a solid model of what a follower of Christ should look like?  Do we expect others to change while avoiding change ourselves?  Do we deeply desire and work toward others coming to know Jesus?  What is on your wish list?
 
·         I wish every non-Christian in my community would come to know Jesus as the gracious Savior and risen Lord of their lives.
·         I wish every single member of my church would spend all their relational and emotional capital in this life leading others to Jesus Christ.
·         I wish every person I encounter would have the merciful privilege of knowing Christ like I have been privileged to know Him.
·         I wish all my parishioners would become just like me, except, of course, for my self-made chains.
·         I wish every person on planet earth would become a Christian.
 

 

Risen and ascended Lord, you are the king of all creation.  May your rule and reign take over my life to such a degree that everything that comes out of my mouth, and every action I take would be worthy of emulation in your way of love.  Amen.

Exodus 40:16-38

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            “No matter where the people traveled, the LORD was with them.”  This last verse of Exodus perfectly summarizes not only the message of this biblical book but of the entire Bible.  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and formed man and woman as the apex of his creative work.  Humans alone bear the stamp of God’s image and likeness.  People were created to be with God.  But humanity took their own path apart from God and fell into sin and disobedience.  From that point forward God has been on a massive mission to restore, reconcile, and reclaim his lost humanity so that they can be together again.
 
            God chose Abraham and set apart his descendants, the Hebrews, to be his people and be a kingdom of priests in order to reverse the curse.  God gave laws and commandments to communicate his presence with his people.  For the Jews, God was like a pillar of cloud, a sentinel watching over them.  In the fullness of time, when it was ripe for the promised Savior to come, God sent his Son, the Lord Jesus who is called “Immanuel” which means “God with us.”
 
            Jesus lived a holy life, died a cruel death on our behalf to bring forgiveness of sins, rose from death, ascended to heaven, and now watches over us, interceding for us.  But that is not all; until he comes again God’s Holy Spirit has been sent to be the continuing presence of Jesus on this earth.  The Spirit is with God’s people.
 
            No matter where the Christian goes, no matter what happens, no matter the place or the situation, God is with him/her.  Nothing can separate God from his people.  There are no guarantees in life that things will turn out well, or that all will go our way.  But we have the abiding promise that God is with us because he has gone to the greatest lengths possible to make it happen.  And God’s presence is what makes all the difference.
 

 

            Ever-present God, there is nowhere in which you are not.  Thank you for your continuing presence.  Enable me to always live in awareness of this reality so that my life might confidently follow you anytime and anywhere; through Jesus Christ, my Lord, in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

John 1:14-18

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            This is an astounding passage of Scripture!  These are verses to not quickly read through; this is a theologically rich, lovingly beautiful, and missionally sensitive piece of Holy Scripture.  The high and holy God has chosen to come and show himself to us in the person of Jesus.  We know God through Christ.  We learn about what God is like through Jesus.  God has condescended to us, communicated to us through means we can understand and discern, through the Lord Jesus.  To capture this earth-shattering truth, here are just a few translations of verse fourteen:
 
The Word became
a human being
and lived here with us.
We saw his true glory,
the glory of the only Son
of the Father.
From him all the kindness
and all the truth of God
have come down to us. (Contemporary English Version)
 
The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish. (The Message)
 
            The sort of God that Christians worship and serve is an over-the-top gracious and generous God who has gone to the most incredible lengths possible to restore lost humanity.  Since God has bridged the great chasm between heaven and earth, the very least we can do is walk across the room and develop a new relationship with someone who needs Jesus.  God’s loving initiative can become our own motivation.  Sit and soak with this wonderful verse today and let it seep deep into your soul… and let it shape how you live your life.
 

 

            Gracious God, how can I say “thanks” for all you have done through your Son, the Lord Jesus?  Here is my life; do with it what you will.  Amen.

Psalm 97

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


             In the wake of Ascension Day we are to be overwhelmed with the tremendous majesty of King Jesus.  Today’s psalm portrays the Lord as a very big God whose presence alone impacts the world in cataclysmic glory. God is large and in charge.  Nothing moves God; but God moves mountains.  This is no wimpy deity who needs his creatures to sustain him and his memory.  But all God’s creation is dependent upon him for life, sustenance, and flourishing.
             It is such a view of God that deeply impacts humanity.  When people catch just a glimpse of God’s glory it causes pagans to be ashamed of their useless idol worship, and brings forth humble celebration from the penitent.  The sheer dearth of these dual responses to God in today’s Western world ought to clue us to the reality that we are not seeing God for who he really is:  the great and glorious king who is so immense and so concerned for justice that just a snort of his nostrils could lay complete waste to the earth.
The conclusion to the matter is to “Love the LORD and hate evil!….  You are the LORD’s people!  So celebrate and praise the only God.”  Today is a day to make a simple choice to celebrate and praise God in some simple ways:  
Ø  Acknowledge Him in both the big and in the small things of life;
Ø  Include God’s message of grace in your everyday conversations – we don’t have to be preachy, just real;
Ø  Praise Him in public as well as in private;
Ø  Pray simple heartfelt prayers to Him whether it is eloquent or not because He just wants to hear the voice He has given us;
Ø  Be generous toward others through forgiveness and actual physical help;
Ø  Study His word because it honors Him to do so;
Ø  Express gratitude with a predetermined mindset to find things that God has put in your life to be thankful for;
Ø  Count your blessings today and again tomorrow so that it eventually becomes a spiritual habit; and,
Ø  Sing with the joyful noise God gives you.
Mighty God, you are worthy of all the praise, honor, and glory I can give you.  May my life be a simple offering to you, so that your kingdom comes not only in my own life but impacts the lives of others; through Jesus, my King.  Amen.