Category: Year C

Acts 1:1-11

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            This is Ascension Day.  It is the fortieth day after Easter, and marks the time when Jesus was taken up to heaven right in front of his disciples’ eyes.  It is rather unfortunate that Christ’s ascension often gets overlooked.  When getting into the book of Acts, this redemptive event of Jesus may get quickly passed over to get to the supposedly juicier parts of thousands being converted and apostolic miracles taking place.
 
            But this Christ event is loaded with significance on its own merits.  Since Christ has ascended and is sitting at the right hand of the Father, he intercedes for us and prays on our behalf for us.  The ascension reminds us of the hope that we, too, will experience bodily resurrection.  Christ’s ascension means that he is the sovereign ruler who reigns in heaven.  Unpacking each of these grand theological truths is a treasure trove of help for the contemporary believer.
 
            So, today, let us remember the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Let us keep in mind and not forget that since Jesus is our risen and ascended Lord, we no longer have to fear or be controlled by sin, death, and hell.  Let us retain the memory of Jesus ascending in the clouds so that we will continually anticipate his coming again by telling everyone about him in the power of the Holy Spirit.
 

Lord Jesus, you are the crucified, risen and ascended King of the universe.  I humbly submit to your benevolent and merciful rule and pray that many will have the spiritual eyes to see your truth and reality.  Amen.

2 Chronicles 34:20-33

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Today’s Old Testament lesson is both very sad and quite joyful, all at the same time.  When God’s temple was undergoing repairs, the Book of the Law was found.  What is sad is that it was lost to begin with.  Somewhere along the line a king, a priest, some people, they all just plain forgot about God’s Word to them.  But what is joyful about it is that King Josiah had God’s Word read to him and he and his officials responded by promising “to faithfully obey the LORD and to follow his laws and teachings that were written in the book.”  What is more, Josiah asked the Israelites to make that same promise.
 
            It is likely that you are reading this because you are a person committed to listening to God’s Word.  It is likely that you don’t need to go on an archaeological dig inside your own house in order to find an old dusty Bible to read.  God’s Word is important enough to you to read and obey.  So, maybe you need to take the next step, like Josiah of old, to not only listen and obey yourself, but to ask and invite others to make the same promise.
 
            You and I both know that Bible reading often does not take place within the homes and even the churches of many confessing believers in Jesus.  Take the next step.  Invite others to read with you.  Ask your fellow Christians to read Scripture, make observations about it, apply it to their lives, and base prayers upon it.  Ask them to make the same promise that you have made to God:  to listen to God’s Word and do what it says.
 

 

            Patient God, you continue to wait for people to read your Word and obey it.  May I not simply attend to your laws in isolation from others, but freely ask others to make the same promise I have:  to obey Jesus Christ, my Lord by living and loving like him in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Psalm 93

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
Our Lord, you are King!
Majesty and power
are your royal robes.
You put the world in place,
and it will never be moved.
2     You have always ruled,
and you are eternal.
3 The ocean is roaring, Lord!
The sea is pounding hard.
4 Its mighty waves are majestic,
but you are more majestic,
and you rule over all.
5 Your decisions are firm,
and your temple will always
be beautiful and holy. (CEV)
 
            Soon it will be the Ascension of our Lord (Thursday) and the church will celebrate the grand redemptive event of Jesus ascending to heaven from earth after his resurrection.  So, then, today’s psalm is quite apropos to the season.  Jesus is our King.  Since Christ is the rightful ruler of the universe, nothing will move him; he will not be swayed by any earthly power of humanity or of nature.  When God decrees something, it will happen.
 
            Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  His kingdom is eternal.  His grace is limitless.  His decisions cannot be compromised.  Let us praise God with heartfelt thanksgiving because of his character, power, and wisdom.  We can never be reminded too much that God is in control and mightier than anything in heaven or on earth.  Let’s put today’s worries and situations in their proper perspective in light of Christ’s benevolent rule.
 

 

            Mighty God, you rule the nations and everything in all creation.  You are beautiful and holy and I worship you.  Help me to always put my life’s circumstances in your hands so that I might confidently trust in your power to save, heal, and thrive.  Amen.

Revelation 21:5-14

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            “I am making everything new.”  This is the voice of the One seated on the throne.  In other words, this is God speaking.  This is only one of two places in the entire book of Revelation where God himself speaks directly and personally.  We are meant to take notice of the change in speaker so that we will pay special attention.
 
            The good news which is the marrow of Revelation’s message is that God’s business is making everything new.  It isn’t just something God does only at the end of time, but something that is already going on in this present age.  We are meant to understand that our contemporary experience is not merely a holding pattern until we reach heaven someday; rather, God is at work transforming lives, rooting-out systemic evil, establishing his will, and, well, making literally everything in his big world new.
 
            It is only human, at times, to lose hope and to wonder if things will ever be different.  But there is hope because God is patiently, mercifully, and lovingly restoring all things to their original Garden of Eden luster.  His words are true and can be trusted.  So, write it down and don’t forget it.  Put it in your journal and come back to it again and again.  “I am making everything new” is the Christian’s mantra in a time of uncertainty and of trial.
 

 

            Renewing God, your home is with your people.  Make your home with me and renovate my life in an extreme makeover so that I can dwell with you forever; through Jesus Christ, my Lord.  Amen.