my burg

Bible reading for October 30.  2 Kings 12. "Then they would give the money that was weighed out into the hands of the workmen who had the oversight of the house of the LORD. And they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders who worked on the house of the LORD..." (2 Kings 12:11)  HIGH PLACES. As we proceed through 2 Kings the accounts will alternate back and forth between the southern kingdom (Judah; capital: Jerusalem) and the northern kingdom (Israel; capital: Samaria). The "high places" (v 3) were regional places of worship, scattered throughout the land. These locations might be on the high point of a hill, or under a grove of trees, or at some convenient place where people could come and give offerings without having to travel to Jerusalem. It decentralized worship, making it easier, and thus detracted from worship at the temple in Jerusalem. It also opened the door for the introduction of idolatry on those sites, making the high places a sort of one-sto...

Bible reading for September 22.  2 Samuel 18. "And the king was deeply moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept. And as he went, he said, 'O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!'" (2 Samuel 18:33) ABSALOM DIES. The conspiracy fails, Absalom's army falls to David's, and Absalom is caught by his head (or long hair) in a tree: "...suspended between heaven and earth..." (v 9). It was a humiliating death as he hung there and was speared multiple times. There is much tension in this story between the gentleness David desires for his son and the judgment Joab inflicts. The characters in this story vacillate between the bad news of the loss of David's son and the good news that the insurrection was over. It was the most emotionally wrenching time of David's life.  REFLECT. I cannot say with certainty that this event is a "type", that is, a divinely-intended prop...

Bible reading for May 1.  Numbers 8. "...Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that they may do the service of the LORD." (Num 8:11) DEDICATION OF THE LEVITES. The Israelites are wrapping up a year at Mt Sinai and preparing to hit the road.  The tabernacle has been consecrated for service, as were the priests, and now those carrying the tabernacle are dedicated to that service.  NO RETIREMENT?   I've often heard it said that the concept of retirement is not biblical.  I would respond to that -- yes, and no.  No, we never stop loving the Lord, walking with him, serving him, serving others, and generally, being useful to God and community.  But our usefulness varies with life stage and ability . There are seasons to life and ministry.  Verse 25 says, "And from the age of fifty years they shall withdraw from the duty of the service and serve no more." These men could serve guard duty,...

Bible reading for April 26.  Numbers 3. "They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle." (Num 3:7) A friend and I were attending a Hokies' basketball game at an instate rival university a few years ago.  Two men in front of us, noticing our colors, turned and said to us in a friendly way, but with no uncertain terms, "You're in our house now."  The rivals defended their arena well, and we went home chastened with our loss.   Guarding his house.  As I noted at the beginning of Numbers, the Levites were charged with guarding God's house and the people worshiping there.  This word [ shamar, "keep watch, protect", 8 times in this chapter] was the same word used by God to command Adam to "keep" the garden of Eden (Gen 2:15), that is, to preserve its holiness and to protect it from evil encroachment. (Adam failed.)  God's sanctuary in Israel ...

Bible reading for April 15 -- Leviticus 19; Psalms 23-24.  "You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD."  (Leviticus 19:18)  Set apart for the Lord.   "You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy" (Lev 19:2). This is a continuing theme, that God's people are to be separate , distinct, and set apart for the Lord and his purposes.  "I am the Lord" is repeated often. That is, the people belong to the Lord and are expected to love and exemplify his character. In the new covenant a desire for holiness begins with God's work in our hearts, to change what we love, and desire, and value. Holiness is not a separate add-on to the Christian life, nor is it something that we in ourselves are expected to achieve.  The work of the Holy Spirit empowers us to bear good fruit (Gal 5; Rom 8). The good works are ready for us to walk in: "For we ...

If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed.   (1 Timothy 4:6 ESV) He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.  (Titus 1:9 ESV) "Every pastor is called to be a theologian. This may come as a surprise to some pastors who see theology as an academic discipline taken during seminary rather than as an ongoing and central part of the pastoral calling. Nevertheless, the health of the church depends on its pastors functioning as faithful theologians—teaching, preaching, defending, and applying the great doctrines of the faith. Athanasius  "In the earliest eras of the church, and through the annals of Christian history, the central theologians of the church were its pastors. "The managerial revolution has left many pastors...

I'm enjoying reading An Exhibition of the Law, the Gospel and the Holy Spirit , by Charles Simeon (1759-1836).  This is a selection of sermon outlines taken from his Horae Homileticae Commentary (21 volumes).  Simeon served faithfully as pastor at Holy Trinity Church in Cambridge (UK) for 53 years.  The many trials and oppositions he faced are related by John Piper in "Brothers, We Must Not Mind a Little Suffering"   Bishop Handley Moule's biography of Simeon can be downloaded for very little cost.  It's a very readable account of the life of Charles Simeon, who is an outstanding example of faithfulness in ministry, as well as, a preacher of great simplicity, clarity, and power.   Here are some highlights from Simeon's teaching on the gospel... It is the pride of the human heart which interposes the great obstacle to men's reception of the Gospel. They are averse to see the extent of their necessities: they will contend for some remnant of goodness ...

"If I am scholarly, it is not in any sense because I try to stay on the cutting edge in the discipline of biblical and theological studies. I am far too limited for that. What 'scholarly' would mean for me is that the greatest object of knowledge is God and that he has revealed himself authoritatively in a book; and that I should work with all my might and all my heart and all my soul and all my mind to know and enjoy him and to make him known for the joy of others. Surely this is the goal of every pastor."  -- John Piper,  The Pastor as Scholar and the Scholar as Pastor: Reflections on Life and Ministry (Crossway Books, 2011) And here's Martin Lloyd-Jones with a similar viewpoint: