Note to Myself: God Is in Charge - Deuteronomy 32:8-9

"When the Most High assigned lands to the nations, when he divided up the human race, he established the boundaries of the peoples according to the number in his heavenly court. For the people of Israel belong to the Lord; Jacob is his special possession." These verses are part of a song that Moses composed under divine inspiration as a witness to God's covenant with Israel (see 31:19-22). Presumably, the people of Israel would sing the song as part of a regular covenant-renewal ceremony to remind themselves of the covenant’s judgments and promises (see 31:21). These verses describe God's sovereignty over His created order. We, like the ancient Israelites, need to be constantly reminded that God is in charge. Ultimate control and supreme authority over the universe emanate from the throneroom of God, the unseen Kingdom of Heaven where God resides and rules over the universe. The events of this world--and your life--are decreed, ordered, and managed from heaven. So you need to remember that you belong to God; He has plans and purposes for your life. Therefore, all you do in life should be directed toward fulfilling His life plan for you. Live your life in this world as if it was preparation for an eternity in fellowship with God, because it is!

Choices - Deuteronomy 30:11-16

"Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster." (vs. 15). We begin each day by making a choice between walking in the way of life or walking in they way of death. No, I'm not saying that you have to get saved everyday, but, in a way I am. Getting saved and staying saved are different aspects of the same grace that God gives us. Jesus told us to do both--be born again (John 3:3) and endure to the end (Matthew 10:22; 24:13). So, when you wake up, you need to make a choice to walk in the way of life each day: "For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways" (vs. 16). It's not really that hard of a choice to make because God places the power to do so within your reach: "This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach. It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey? It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey? No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it." (vs. 11-14). So, when you wake up each morning, reach over and pick up your Bible (or Kindle or iPad with a Bible app) laying on the stand beside your bed and read and study it. Then you will be enabled to enter into your day with the words and way of life resonating in your mind and renewing your spirit!

Eternal Accountability - Deuteronomy 29:29

"The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions." Anticipating his death, Moses preached a farewell address to the Israelites. In the sermon he briefly reviewed Israel’s history since the Exodus. He charged the nation to be faithful to God. Moses made it clear that the sovereignty of God undergirds every aspect of Israel’s relationship with Him and they are accountable for the knowledge of God they have received from Him. The Israelites still had a lot to learn about their covenant with God: "But to this day the Lord has not given you minds that understand, nor eyes that see, nor ears that hear!" (vs 4.). Yet, what they did know and understand, they were accountable for--not just in the present but for eternity. When you receive a revelation of God's saving grace through Jesus Christ, you are eternally accountable for it. There's no going back; there's no quitting; there's no do-overs; there's no work-arounds; God doesn't take any of it back, He gives you more. Jesus told His disciples: "When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required" (Luke 12:48). You don't receive more and more grace and knowledge of God without the corresponding responsibility. God doesn't reveal Himself without a reason. He wants you to share more and more of your revelation of Him and His grace with others.

How to Have a Bad Day - Amos 5:18-20

"What sorrow awaits you who say, If only the day of the Lord were here! You have no idea what you are wishing for. That day will bring darkness, not light" (vs. 18). In these verses Amos confronts the distorted view of the Israelites concerning their status as God's chosen people. In the Old Testament the day of the Lord was a time when God would intervene in the world to set right those things that had gone wrong. The Israelites thought that on that day God would save them despite their bad behavior. Unfortunately, tragic circumstances awaited Israel and Assyria conquered the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BC, fulfilling this prophecy. In our own lives we can become self-assured like Israel was. Because we are God's people, we think we should somehow be exempt from crisis and tragedy. But sometimes we just have a bad day, or a series of bad days. Amos explains what a bad day is in vs. 19. A man runs from a lion only to meet a bear and he escapes from the bear and while seeking refuge in his own home leans against a wall and is bitten by a snake. Now that's how to have a bad day! And it can happen just when you think everything is going great. In fact, that's usually when a bad day comes along. When everything is going great, we have a tendency to forget God and get secure in our own selves. Then, when misfortune strikes we bemoan God for our difficulties. Don't let bad days be obstacles in your spiritual development; rather let bad days be opportunities for spiritual renewal. When you seek the Lord for restoration and deliverance from your troubles, He will more fully become your hope and joy!

Today! - Deuteronomy 27:9-10

"O Israel, be quiet and listen! Today you have become the people of the Lord your God. So you must obey the Lord your God by keeping all these commands and decrees that I am giving you today." Israel is preparing to enter the promised land when Moses makes this declaration to the Israelites. Although the Israelites were already God's people, each time they affirmed themselves to be God’s people and renewed the covenant with God, they became God’s people in a fresh, new way. Recommitment to the Lord is like beginning a new relationship with Him. We should recommit ourselves to the Lord daily. God is the God of today, but we like to make Him the God of tomorrow. Tomorrow I will start reading the Bible and praying more. Tomorrow I will have more time to help at church or serve in ministry. Tomorrow I will start being a better Christian. With us, it's always later, with God it is today. "If only you would listen to his voice today" the psalmist (Psalm 95:7) implored us and the Hebrew writer reiterated (Hebrews 3:7). We must reaffirm our relationship with the Lord and receive the empowerment of the Holy Spirit daily so sin does not slip into our lives and so we can persevere in our faith in God: "You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ" (Hebrews 3:13-14). Eternal life starts now, not later, not when we die--your eternal life starts today!

What's Jonah's Problem? - Jonah 4:1-3

"This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry. So he complained to the Lord about it: Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen." The book of Jonah presents some difficult theological issues, not least of which is represented by Jonah's memorable complaint to God in these verses. His complaint seems so reprehensible that it's enough to make you question, "What's his problem, anyway?" Jonah is given the hardest conceivable assignment by God--to go to the capital of Assyria, the greatest earthly power in his world and the archenemy of Israel. So Jonah, like others, is a most unlikely prophet but reacts to God's call not with expressions of inadequacy and reluctance but by taking action. When told to go east, he gets on a boat heading west. Jonah's flight proves futile and he himself becomes a receipient of God's mercy in a most remarkable way by being swallowed by a large fish (a whale, possibly) and preserved from drowning at sea. When Jonah finally does reach Nineveh, he has only to preach a half-hearted sermon in order to achieve astonishing results. Everyone in Nineveh repents and turns to God to the extent that even their livestock are included in their acts of repentance. In response to their repentance, God relents from executing judgment upon the Ninevites. Then the storyline turns into a dialogue between Jonah and God about the meaning of what has happened. This dialogue is where this discussion takes up. What's Jonah's problem with God's amazing grace? Jonah complains to God that He is too merciful--His grace too amazing--and therefore, God should therefore kill him. Maybe Jonah despaired of life because God is so merciful (towards the unrighteous) that it was difficult to discriminate between who are God's people and who are not God's people. The prophet Malachi raises that same concern: "On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child. Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not" (Malachi 3:17-18). Possibly, Jonah despaired because he thought the Ninevites just didn't deserve God's mercy or because of the potential risk to Israel by the dispensation of God's grace on Assyria. My personal belief, however, is the story of Jonah describes a simple case of selfishness--selfishness about the mercy of God and how he personally conceived of God's mercy. Jonah received divine mercy himself, yet selfishly begrudged it to others, an attitude that itself nullifies the very nature of that mercy. Unfortunately, we all have a little Jonah in us and so Jesus warned us against such behavior in the Lord's prayer and the postscript to the prayer: "If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins" (Matthew 6:14-15). The parable of the unforgiving debtor in Matthew 18:21-35 reinforces this teaching: "Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart" (Matthew 18:34-35). So here's the moral of the story of Jonah. God is predisposed to save rather than destroy--we are not. Therefore, we must not begrudge the mercy of God that we have received to others because doing so nullifies His grace in our own lives. The imperative of receiving God's mercy is to show mercy to others!

Signs of the Times - Luke 12:49-59

"You know how to interpret the weather signs of the earth and sky, but you don’t know how to interpret the present times" (vs. 56). Jesus told His disciples His ministry would radically change the status quo by bringing judgment on the wicked and purifying the righteous. Then Jesus turned to the crowd and prevailed upon them to recognize that He was the bearer of God's judgment and justice. The people could interpret the weather patterns, He said, but they didn't recognize the coming judgment of God (vs. 54-56). They filed lawsuits against each other to get justice but failed to reckon with God when His day of judgment was at hand (vs. 57-59). And as the end draws closer, we are yet still the same--maybe even more so. There are whole television channels devoted to weather and then we watch it on the morning and evening news. You may even have a weather radio and a weather app installed on your cell phone! While we prepare for each day according to the daily weather report, the fact that the time of God's final judgment is near should impact the way we live each day. We file lawsuits against one another seeking justice for ourselves when we should be getting right with God before He comes to judge us. Jesus is saying the Kingdom of God has come and even now the King is assembling His new government and you should anticipate it by preparing yourself for this new world order. You should recognize the signs of Jesus's coming and be prepared for Him to return and administer judgment and justice on the earth.