Category: Year C

2 Chronicles 34:1-7

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Josiah started out as a boy king.  Evidently, he had some good training because by the time he became a teenager, Josiah was raring and ready to exercise his kingship in the best sense of leadership.  After generations of kings before him who followed other gods, Josiah committed himself fully to Israel’s one true God.  And, as a twenty-year old king, he showed the real muster of his reign.
 
            Josiah took charge to do what was right in the eyes of God – no matter the consequences.  He did not just worship God, but aggressively took active steps to rid his kingdom of all the false gods that permeated the land.  Josiah did not stick his toe in the water to test what the response might be to removing a high place of Baal or an Asherah pole; he jumped right in and put his entire kingship on the line.  All of the power brokers who were dealing in false gods could not have been happy about this turn of events in Judah.  But any kind of pushback did not prevent Josiah from doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord by eradicating idol worship.
 
            Josiah’s clear sense of purpose led him to do the things he did.  He had a direction from God in order to lead people back to God.  This is not only an ancient purpose; God is still in the kingdom business of bringing all of his creation back under his rule and reign.  It still remains the purpose of God’s people to lead others, caught in the web of idolatry, back to the one true God.  Like the ancients before us, there is still a need to exercise courage and confidence in following God by making disciples who will worship him alone.  Reconnecting with our overarching purpose in life is quite necessary in order to take bold steps of faith in this idolatrous world.
 

 

            Holy God, you alone are the Sovereign of the universe.  Expose the things in my life that I might be trusting in other than you.  Wean me away from evil, and bend my heart and mind to truth and good.  Help me to be aggressive in my Christian walk so that I will follow Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, leading others to faith along the way.  Amen.

Luke 4:38-44

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            One of the most fundamental truths about the person of Jesus is that he healed all kinds of people.  Even people who know very little about the historical Jesus know that he was a guy who brought healing to people while he was here on this earth.  For many Christians, the fact that Christ healed people is almost a “ho-hum” moment because we are so familiar with the Gospel stories about him doing the supernatural.  Yet, like with most Scripture stories we encounter, we really need to slow down a bit and let the story sink in:  “Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them.”
 
            Every one of them, Jesus healed.  There apparently was no disease, no infirmity, no sickness, no malady, and no situation that was too much for Jesus.  He healed every one of them.  Each and every person, without exception, no matter the problem, was healed by Jesus.  What is more, please notice how they came to Jesus:  All those who had any who were sick brought them to Jesus.  That is, it was the family, the friends, and the neighbors of the sick persons who brought them to Jesus for healing.
 
            We are not to simply exhort sick and infirmed people to look to Jesus for healing.  We are to bring them to Jesus ourselves.  Perhaps one of the main reasons we are not seeing more healing and new life in the Western church is because we are not bringing the needy to Jesus.  Maybe it is our lack of faith and action, and not the sick person’s that prevents healing from being realized.  Methinks that a profound dearth and lack of prayer for others might be at the core of all the physical, mental, and spiritual sickness that abounds.  Let us bring people to Jesus, and let him heal every one of them.
 

 

            Healing God, there is no problem you cannot rectify and no disease you cannot overcome.  I bring all those with cancer, chronic illness, and debilitating depression to you now, in Jesus’ name.  Let the healing come in whatever form you choose to bring it.  Amen.

2 Corinthians 7:2-12

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            I’m in the soul business.  Not in the Detroit Mo-town Aretha Franklin kind of soul business (although that would be very cool) but in the sense of engaging in the craft of leading human souls to God and building them up in Christ.  Key to the Christian life’s soul is the term “repentance.”  To repent means to turn around, to stop going in one direction and start going in another one.  It is repentance that makes all the difference in the orientation of our souls in life.
 
            Certainly, no one can really judge the heart of another.  Yet, today’s New Testament lesson lets us in on how to truly measure the sincerity of a person’s repentance.  Worldly sorrow or grief does not lead to repentance, but only death.  The person with worldly sorrow beats himself up but never really changes direction.  Like Judas Iscariot of old, he just hangs himself instead of admitting his guilt to Jesus.  But godly sorrow leads to repentance, a change of direction.  And here is the evidence of the real change:  owning up to the problem; an eagerness to make things right; indignation over what has been done or said; seeing that there is more pain in avoiding the problem than there is confronting it; a desire and energy to do what is best for the person whom we have wronged; and, a willingness to accept whatever consequences that might result from the offense.
 
            Crying and tears can be necessary, but they can also be a cheap form of avoiding true repentance.  Instead, there must be solid action that changes direction and seeks to rectify offenses, as much as it is within our control to do so.  Deliverance from the power of sin can only come through repentance.  There are no shortcuts or easy routes to the soul’s orientation to practical godliness.  There is nothing romantic about repentance; it is typically messy, usually ugly, and often painful.  Yet, there must be suffering before there is glory.  Trying to take true repentance out of the equation is to eviscerate the Christian life and leave our souls vacuous and empty.
 

 

            Holy God, I confess to you the things which I have done and the things I have left undone.  And, yet, your mercy is from everlasting to everlasting.  Open my eyes to the ways I have offended others, and help me to step boldly into repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

1 Corinthians 14:1-12

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Sometimes we need to look at a section of Scripture and see its big picture message, not losing sight of the forest for the trees.  At first glance, it might be tempting to question whether tongues and prophecy are for today, or not.  But, please keep in mind that this was not Paul’s driving concern when he wrote to the Corinthians.  Paul wanted the Corinthians, who were into puffing themselves up like peacocks so that others would admire their gifts and abilities, to get a basic important message which is found at the beginning and the end of our New Testament lesson for today:  “Pursue love…. strive to excel in building up the church.”
 
            There you have it.  If we miss this, we have lost sight of God’s Word to us.  We are not to be pre-occupied with tongues and prophecy, but to keep thinking about how we show love to all our brothers and sisters in Christ and to put some significant effort into doing our part to build up others.  Love and encouragement are focused toward other people, and are not inwardly directed.  God has gifted us for love and the building up of the church.  I am a teacher of God’s Word.  It would be really weird if I got up Sunday morning, got dressed, looked in the mirror and taught at myself, then when back to bed dreaming about what a great teacher I am.  Spiritual gifts are meant to be unpacked for the church.
 
            One of the great temptations of humanity is to finagle our efforts so that other people will notice and give props to our wonderful work.  Indeed, we can write Facebook messages to garner as many “likes” as we can get; post things on Twitter and our favorite blogs hoping to look smart and funny in the eyes of a community of people we may not even know personally; and, to withhold our love to actual people right in front our faces because they may not give to us the attention we crave.
 
Perhaps with Lent coming in just a few weeks, you might want to consider a fast from social media in order to better connect with people within your direct sphere of human touch and influence.  Or maybe ask someone close to you what they believe your primary spiritual gifts are, with the expressed intention of using the information to explore fresh avenues of love and service to others.  Whatever you do, pursue love and excel in building up the church.
 

 

Loving God, you have graciously gifted us all for love and service.  May I continually see your love expressed to me through Jesus Christ so that I will be always inspired to pass on that same love to others for whom you also love.  Amen.