bible reading apr 6

Bible reading for April 6 -- Leviticus 9; Psalm 10.

"And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces." (Leviticus 9:24)

Good news, bad news (Lev 9 & 10). As is the case throughout biblical history a high point is followed by a low point, or vice versa. Aaron and his sons are anointed priests and begin service in the tabernacle (Lev 9). God's glory comes and fills the tabernacle and consumes the sacrifices. It's a high point and great beginning! But soon (not necessarily immediately after that day) two of Aaron's sons attempt to bring incense and worship in a different manner (Lev 10). They are consumed by God's fire of judgment where they stood. It was a tragic day. A very big lesson was, "You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean..." (Lev 10:10) There is a right way to approach God, and there are other ways, which are not ways to life: "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death" (Prov 14:12).

================

"Why, O LORD, do you stand afar off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?" (Psalm 10:1)

When I look at news from around the world and read about the persecution of Christians (usually not covered in the main U.S. media outlets), I resonate with this question, "why, O Lord..." Believers are cruelly treated in so many places. Children kidnapped in Nigeria. Church worship services shot up by thugs. Christian families in North Korean prisons for years and years. Why does it happen with such severity? Why does it go on for so long? Where is the vindication of God's justice?

The silence of God grieves David. He describes the violence and brutality of people who terrorize others and yet think God will never hold them accountable (10:2-13). Psalm 10 is one of the OT passages Paul cites in describing fallen human nature (10:7 => Rom 3:14). Note, describing all humans to some degree. I confess that at one time I felt malice toward God's people and toward those I thought simpler and weaker than me. I may not have acted out in violence, but the same proud, hateful disease infected my own heart. And yet, in God's mysterious timing I was shown mercy and grace, rather than judgment. I became a believer in the things I once scorned (1 Tim 1:13).

At the end of the psalm, David says of God, "But you do see..." (10:14). The Lord does see, and he hears, and helps, and strengthens the afflicted, and will take action on behalf of the oppressed (10:14-18). And so we pray with David: "Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand; forget not the afflicted" (10:12). I pray that God in his mercy would turn the hearts of persecutors to the Lord, to repentance. And if not, I pray the Lord would destroy them. But we await God's timing and judgment. We believe that there is coming a time when "...man who is of the earth may strike terror no more" (10:18).

Amen, come, Lord Jesus!

Image credit: photo by Ricardo Gomez Angel on Unsplash.
We are following the Robert Murray M'Cheyne (RMM) two-year reading schedule, as arranged by D. A. Carson.
Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The NET Bible is a free online resource of Bible.org.

clement quotes hebrews

Clement of Rome wrote to the church in Corinth around AD 90. This is perhaps the same Clement, companion of Paul, mentioned in Philippians 4:3. Many hold him to be the first bishop / pope in Rome, aka St. Clement I. Clement quotes from the letter to the Hebrews. Origin suggested that Clement was in fact the writer (as transcriber or amanuensis) of Hebrews. Perhaps this letter began as a "word of exhortation" given by Paul at the synagogue (Heb 13:22; cf Acts 13:15) which then became a circular letter for the churches. Other possible authors of Hebrews include Luke, Barnabas, or Apollos. The theology is Pauline, but the transcriber is obviously second-generation (Heb. 2:3-4). At any rate, this early church leader in Rome, is already quoting Hebrews in his letter in AD 90: CHAPTER 36 ALL BLESSINGS ARE GIVEN TO US THROUGH CHRIST This is the way, beloved, in which we find our Savior, even Jesus Christ, the High Prie...

a brief history of bcf

Blacksburg Christian Fellowship, or BCF as it is popularly known, was founded in November 1969. Prior to this time several families had been meeting for Bible study and prayer, with a particular concern that the Lord raise up an effective biblical ministry to the students of the Virginia Tech campus. Growing from these meetings, the Lord led them to begin a public ministry on Sunday mornings. The Wesley Foundation agreed to the rental of their facilities, and the first meeting was held in November 1969, with about 30 people in attendance. Since the first meeting BCF has been greatly blessed by the Lord and has seen a steady growth in ministry and in numbers. Two other local churches were formed in part from BCF. In 1974 the Lord led Houston Couch, who at that time was an Elder in BCF, to leave and start Dayspring Christian Fellowship. In 1980 Max Harris, who was a regular attender at BCF, was encouraged by the Elders and members to start a ministry which has now become Grace Cov...

evangelicalism over the next decade

I've been contemplating Michael Spencer's blogs on the future of evangelical churches in America ( iMonk blog ). His three articles on his predicted collapse of evangelicalism are found here . It is important, I believe, to read all three articles. I find myself in agreement with much he has to say. Here are a few quotes... The determination to follow in the methodological steps of numerically successful churches will be greater than ever. The result will be, in the main, a departure from doctrine to more and more emphasis on relevance, motivation and personal success….with the result being churches further compromised and weakened in their ability to pass on the faith. ... For some time, we’ve been at a point that the decision to visit a particular evangelical church contained a fairly high risk of not hearing the Biblical Gospel. That experience will be multiplied and expanded in the years to come. Core beliefs will become less and less normative and necessary in evangelic...

my burg

Search This Blog