Monday: Luke 15—Joy in Heaven
What fills heaven with joy? What makes angels happy? In Luke 15,
Jesus told us three stories to describe the emotional explosion that
occurs in heaven when one sinner repents. He told these stories in
response to the protest of the religious leaders as they watched a
crowd of “sinners” come to Him. “He receives and eats with sinners,”
they grumbled. The first story emphasizes the effort the Savior puts
into searching for and finding a lost sinner and the tender affection
He expressed as He carried the sinner home. Once home an
exuberant celebration broke out. Verse 10 tells us that even the
angels join these celebrations. The third story emphasizes the
patience of the father, as He waited for the prodigal son to return
home, confessing his sins. Even as the son was a long way off, the
Father ran to him and hugged him with affection. The result was a
family celebration with music and dancing. What the grumbling,
religious protestors failed to realize was that Jesus was not accepting
sinners into His kingdom, but rather He was changing sinners’ lives,
bringing them to repentance. Each repentance triggered a universal
celebration. Religion failed the sinner and the grumpy, religious
people despised them. The coming of Jesus opened a new way.
Compassionately reaching out to a lost sinner instigates a repentance
that fills both the earth and heavens with joy. Do you want your heart
to be filled with joy? Cooperate with Jesus to bring a sinner to
repentance.
Tuesday: Numbers 20—Hitting the Rock Twice
Numbers 20 is one of those Bible stories that catches one by surprise.
The people complain and quarrel with Moses as was their habit.
Moses and Aaron turn to God, as was their practice. God gives them
water. Moses is punished. Wait. What? Moses is punished? Yes. God
told Moses, “You did not believe in Me to uphold Me as holy in the
eyes of the people.” A closer look at this passage shows that Moses
lost it. He struck the rock twice (probably out of anger) and lashed
out, “Here now, you rebels. Shall we bring water for you out of this
rock?” Regardless of whether Moses was reacting to their unmerited
accusations against him or thought he needed to rebuke them for
their ungratefulness to God, his outburst was unacceptable. It
misrepresented God. God was not angry with the people. He ignored
their quarreling and complaints and simply wanted to answer their
request for something to drink. It is too easy for church leaders to
lose their composure when quarrels and complaints break out in the
congregation. Disparaging words and contempt can carelessly spew
out of the mouth of a discouraged leader. A church leader is one who
loves God’s people through thick and thin, who uplifts and serves
them whether they are personally honored or disgraced. The church
belongs to God and should only be judged by God.
Wednesday: Numbers 21—The Bronze Serpent
The people complained again. God sent poisonous serpents to lead
them to confession and repentance. When Moses prayed for them to
be saved, God told Moses to make a brass serpent, put it on a pole,
and instruct the people to look at it. Anyone who looked at the
serpent was healed. In John 3, Jesus used this story as a metaphor of
His death on the cross: “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, so must the Son of Man [Jesus] be lifted up, that whoever
believes in Him may have eternal life.” The poisonous serpents who
bit the people were offspring of the serpent in the Garden of Eden
that deceived Eve. However, the serpent on the pole was not an
actual serpent, but the image of a serpent, made of brass. Brass
represents judgment. What an awesome picture! Jesus was on a pole
(the cross) pictured as a brass serpent (not an actual serpent). His
death on the cross was the judgment (brass) and termination of the
actual serpent, Satan. We were “bitten” with the poison (sin) of
Satan, but when we “look” at Jesus on the cross, we are healed. The
punishment for sin is death, but those who believe in Jesus Christ and
His death on the cross have eternal life. As the hymn, “Amazing
Grace,” says, “I once was dead, but now I live.” This is truly amazing
grace.
Thursday: Luke 19—Unexpected Change
When Jesus enters our personal space, amazing things happen. In his
wildest dreams, Zacchaeus never saw this coming. He was not only a
con man, he was a chief tax collector. Luke made it clear that he
became rich from his extortion of the innocent and poor. How unlikely
that such an infamous sinner would dramatically turn his life around.
But, when Jesus enters the house, light streams into the heart.
Zacchaeus was powerfully convicted of his past, which caused him to
openly confess, pledge restitution that was above and beyond what
the Mosaic law required of convicted thieves (Exodus 22:8) and
donate half of his possessions to the poor. This encounter began with
Zacchaeus having just enough curiosity to climb a tree to get a
glimpse of Jesus in person. He didn’t expect that Jesus would notice
him and ask to visit his house. Moreover, he surely didn’t expect that
his life would be turned upside down as soon as Jesus entered the
door. When Jesus comes, lives are changed: sinners are turned into
saints, wrongs are made right, and the crooked become straight. It
was not what Jesus said, but who He was. Caution: a little curiosity
about Jesus may trigger a monumental upheaval in your life. Like
Zacchaeus, you may also hear the assuring words of Jesus, “Today,
salvation has come to this house.”
Friday: Numbers 22-25—Balaam’s Teaching
Nothing sours the testimony of God on earth like immorality. This is
illustrated by the story of Balaam in Numbers 22-25. King Balak of
Moab greatly feared the people of Israel, so he hired Balaam, a
prophet, to curse God’s people. He brought Balaam to three mountain
peaks that overlooked the Israeli camp and set up offerings to God.
The hope was that if some of the imperfections of the people were
exposed, Balaam could weaken the people with a curse so that they
could be defeated. After all, every nation has a dark side. But, the
attempt backfired. God put only blessings in Balaam’s mouth. Balak
was incensed and sent Balaam on his way, or so it seemed.
Revelation 2:14 tells us the rest of the story. Balaam “taught Balak to
entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and
committed sexual immorality.” It worked like a charm. After the
attempt at a curse failed, Numbers 25 tells us how Balak sent his
beautiful women into the Israeli camp to seduce the men with sex
and through immorality introduce worship to other gods. Bingo! In no
time at all, immorality tarnished God’s holy testimony and idolatry
drove a wedge between God and His people. Indeed, immorality and
idolatry are like inseparable companions in numerous failures of God’s
people in the Old Testament. The companions popped up again in the
New Testament church of Pergamos. Nothing brings the church to its
knees faster than immorality and nothing crushes our relationship
with God like sexual impurity.
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