“Saved by Faith”

May 9, 2024

May 9, 2024

Read Deuteronomy 23, Proverbs 4, Romans 4

Have you ever thought about what someone in the Old Testament was granted salvation by? After all they did not know about Jesus (for good reason) yet? Although the full revelation of God had not been given yet through Jesus’s incarnation the criteria were the same from the Old and New Testaments. The answer is “by faith.” Paul answers this question in Romans 4 when he discusses the topic with the Christians in Rome.

“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” v. 3. It was Abraham’s belief that granted him status as righteous. It was not anything He did or had to earn by following a list of laws. “Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before!” v. 10. The circumcision that Abraham obediently followed was because of his faith in God and not to receive faith afterward. The good news is that Paul calls Abraham the father of all who believe. Not just the circumcised Jews, but also for the Gentiles who were not circumcised.  

What else stands out to you as you read these chapters? Any words, phrases, repeated ideas?
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Posted by John Weldon

“God Told Me…”

May 4, 2024

May 4, 2024

Read Deuteronomy 18, Psalm 149, Acts 27

There are a lot of voices in our culture that are claiming that God told me… _________ (fill in the blank).
God (supposedly) told Joseph Smith to start another church, because all the others were corrupt and wrong. God (supposedly) told Charles Taze Russel and the Watch Tower Tract and Bible Society that the world was going to end in 1874, 1914, 1975, etc. God (supposedly) tells many progressive Christians today that living a life in line with the LGBTQ lifestyles is okay with Him. God (supposedly) tells some preachers that certain political leaders are going to win the presidency. Many people claim that God speaks to them today through the Holy Spirit, a dream or vision. So how do we know when God speaks to us and when He doesn’t?  There are things we can do to help us determine when God speaks to us and when it’s just bad case of Mexican food.

  • Does it agree with God’s Word? The Holy Spirit, the author of all Scripture (1 Peter 3:xx) is not going to tell you something contrary to what He has already said. God does not change, nor does his nature and moral law.  
  • Does it bring peace? This is not a full proof test. Some people can find peace in their own sins, but if a person is truly a believer and seeking to follow Jesus the decision, they make will either bring peace (Philippians 4:7) from the Holy Spirit or a sense of unrest.
  • Does it test well with the Fruits of the Holy Spirit? Does it foster the nine fruits of the Spirit in your life and the life of others? (Love, peace, Joy, faithfulness, gentleness, patience, etc. Galatians 5:22-23).
  • Does it come with confirmation? Do other mature believers agree with you? (Proverbs 15:22) Does God tell the same thing to others or at the same time?

There are a few other things we can examine when we are questioning if God has spoken or not. We find one of them right here in Deuteronomy 18. God warned Israel not to listen to or follow false prophets that came into their cities claiming to speak for God. He gives them a two question test they can use to determine whether or not God has spoken.

“You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD?” 22 If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him” vv. 21-22.

First, has the prophet called to speak in the name of the Lord? Second, does what he said come true? This will tell us everything. When God truly speaks, He does not lie or make mistakes. We must be careful to not use the phrase “God told me…” to flippantly. If God didn’t tell you and then it comes back to you, you could lose your trust with others but most importantly, cause someone to doubt God’s Word He has already spoken.

What else do you see in these chapters? What words, phrases, or themes stand out to you?
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Posted by John Weldon

“Saw It Coming”

May 3, 2024

May 3, 2024

Read Deuteronomy 17, Psalm 148, Acts 26

Have you ever been in a situation where you saw something coming. I’m not saying you had a vision or that you are a prophet, but your wisdom and experience allowed you to see what was lying ahead. Maybe it was something you were going to go through or maybe you saw a family or someone you loved headed in a direction that was not good? What did you do? Did you try and stop the person from going through it?

In Deuteronomy 17 we find a passage where God tries to warn the nation of Israel about their future kings and leaders. “When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” 15 be sure to appoint over you the king the LORD your God chooses. He must be from among your own brothers” vv. 14-15. Moses continues to give them details about the future kings. “The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.” 17 He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold” vv. 16-17. God warned the people to keep the king humble and not allow him to gain wealth and multiple wives. Is anyone else thinking of a certain king who fit this description? Solomon comes to mind for me.

Even further God tells the Israelites that the king must keep a copy of God’s Law with them and read it regularly. “When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. 19 It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees 20 and not consider himself better than his brothers and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel” vv. 18-20.

This is great advice for us today. If we find ourselves in a place of power and authority. We must remain humble and keep ourselves from being distracted by other things. We must remain faithful in reading and digesting God’s Word so that we will stay inside God’s blessings for our lives.

What else do you see in these chapters? What repeated words, phrases, or themes do you find here?
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Posted by John Weldon

“A Divided Family”

April 29, 2024

April 29, 2024

Read Deuteronomy 13, Psalm 144, Acts 22

Do you have a close family or are they a little bit on the continuous side? There are many stories in the Bible of families that were very dysfunctional to say the least. Jacob and his twelve sons and David and his son Absolom are a few that come to mind. In Deuteronomy 13 we read some shocking words from Moses and the Lord. “If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (gods that neither you nor your fathers have known, 7 gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), 8 do not yield to him or listen to him. Show him no pity. Do not spare him or shield him. 9 You must certainly put him to death. Your hand must be the first in putting him to death, and then the hands of all the people” vv. 6-9. We must remember that this was in the Old Testament and under the Old Covenant that we are not bound today to follow. But we should take note from this passage of how serious God took those who would worship and also entice others to worship the false gods of the other nations. It would be morally better for one person to die rather than for one person to mislead many others to join in and fall away from worshiping God. What else do you see in these chapters? What words, phrases, or themes stand out to you?
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Posted by John Weldon

“Compelled”

April 27, 2024

April 27, 2024

Read Deuteronomy 11, Psalm 142, Acts 20

What compels you most? Is it a goal, a role model or personal friend that encourages you? Is it the Lord? Paul was the apostle who was volun-told to serve Jesus as a missionary to the Gentiles. God had called him on the road to Damascus and he surrendered to a life of service. Paul faced many hardships and difficult situations in his serve to God. ““And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. 23 I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. 24 However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace” – Acts 20:22-24. Paul was compelled by the Holy Spirit, he was driven to serve the Lord in obedience and at whatever cost may come. Most people today will jump ship at the first sign of trouble or hardship. We must take a play from the life of Paul and be compelled by the Spirit to serve the Lord no matter what.

What else do you see in these chapters? Write you thoughts below.

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Posted by John Weldon

“A Record of Sins”

April 21, 2024

April 21, 2024

Read Deuteronomy 5, Psalm 130-131, Acts 14

What kinds of things do you keep a record of? Do you track your exercise, your diet, your time spent on some particular activity? I recently started helping my father to catalog and inventory his model train collection that he has built up over the last few decades. Keeping a record is a good thing most of the time. There are some times when we would prefer not to keep a record. 1 Corinthians 13:5 says the Love “does not keep a record of wrongs.” We do not want people to remember our past mistakes and we shouldn’t keep a record of their mistakes either. Here in Psalm 130 we find this encouragement, “If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? 4 But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared” vv. 3-4. We can be glad most of all that God does not keep a record of our sins. When he forgives us, he loses the record or deletes it from his tally. We should take note do practice the same thing when it comes to our forgiveness of others.

What else do you see in these chapters? What words, phrases, or themes stand out to you?
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Posted by John Weldon

“Counted Worthy”

April 14, 2024

April 14, 2024

Read Numbers 34, Psalm 119:81-120, Acts 5-6

When’s the last time you rejoiced over something? Getting a good grade in school, getting a promotion at work, or maybe you celebrated something with your family like a birthday or anniversary? Whatever it was that you rejoiced over, I bet it was something good. In Acts 5: 41 we find the disciples rejoicing over something that most people would not rejoice over. “His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.” The disciples took a beating, they were flogged and questioned and ordered not to continue talking about their faith and testimony in Jesus. They rejoiced because they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of their Savior. Jesus reminded them of this suffering before He returned to Heaven. He told them they would have trouble in this life, but to take courage, because Jesus had overcome the world.  Let this be a reminder for all of us, that when we face persecution from the world for our faith that we too can rejoice and be a part of good company like the disciples and Jesus himself who have faced persecution.

What else do you see in these chapters? What stands out to you most?
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Posted by John Weldon

“Do Not Harden Your Hearts”

April 4, 2024

April 4, 2024

Read Numbers 24, Psalm 95-97

We have a responsibility to respond to the Lord when He works in and around our lives. Psalm 95 challenges us; “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the desert, 9 where your fathers tested and tried me, though they had seen what I did” vv. 7-9. This passage is echoed by the author of Hebrews as a warning for us not to turn away from the Lord. Our free will is one of the greatest gifts that God has bestowed on us. The ability to choose to love and freely give or reject that which God has placed before us is powerful. We should be cautious to not continue to away from the Lord like the Israelites did in the wilderness and like so many others have done. It is a scary thing to consider that our hearts would harden and cause us to miss out on the blessings of God because we continually rejected the Lord or continually participated in some form of sin that turned us deaf to the voice of the Lord. Have you become hardened of heart in some way or area? Do we allow the world to influence us in ways that are dangerous to our eternal destiny?

What else do you see in these chapters? What words, verses, or themes stand out to you?
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Posted by John Weldon

“Snake on a Pole”

April 1, 2024

 April 1, 2024

Read Numbers 21, Psalm 91, Mark 15

Most people are fearful of snakes and who would blame them since the first time we find on in the Bible it is busy deceiving Adam and Eve. Here in Numbers 21 we find an instance of snakes that were scary and that saved some lives. “They travelled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go round Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way” v. 4. Their impatience turned into talking bad about the leaders again. “they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!’” v. 5. Here is where the snakes come in. “Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, ‘We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.’ So, Moses prayed for the people” vv. 6-7. The people realized just how their actions had stirred the Lord’s anger, and they confessed their sin. The solution to the snakes was another snake. “The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived” vv. 8-9.  Jesus mentioned this another snake on a pole in the Gospel of John. “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” – John 3:14. The verb “lifted up” in John 3 has a deeper meaning than we might know. It’s not referring to being “lift up” as being praised, rather it refers to being lifted up on the cross. A few chapters later we see this in John 12. “But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die” vv. 32-33. This is another symbolic reference in the New Testament that Jesus and the disciples connected to Jesus.

What else stands out to you in these chapters? What words, phrases, or themes do you notice?
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Posted by John Weldon

“Speak Not Strike”

March 31, 2024

March 31, 2024

Read Numbers 20, Psalm 90, Mark 14

Have you ever had directions to follow and you may not have followed them close or carefully enough? What happened? Did you leave an ingredient out of a recipe, miss a turn when you were driving, or maybe it was something more costly? In Numbers 20 we have what seems to be a very harsh punishment for Moses from the Lord simply because he struck the rock that God told him to speak to. “The LORD said to Moses, 8 ‘Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so that they and their livestock can drink’” vv. 7-8. There was a problem, Moses in his anger did what he had done before. He struck the rock with his staff and while water did come out, it was not how God had wanted him to do it. Why? We might find a clue in Moses’ comment to the Israelites. “He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank” vv. 10-11. Moses and Aaron had gathered the people together to give them a lecture. Moses said, “must we bring you water out of this rock?” v. 10. This could either been seen as “we” meaning Moses and Aaron or “we” meaning Moses and God. Either way Moses was equating himself with God or leaving God out of the whole process of providing water for the people. It might have been just as much about his words that he actions. Instead of speaking to the rock, Moses chooses to speak about himself rather than the Lord.

We must be careful to follow God’s commands when know God is instructing us. There are plenty of examples in Scripture of people who only half-heartly obey and God was not pleased.

What else do you see in these chapters? What words, phrases, or themes stand out to you?
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Posted by John Weldon

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