Daily Meditations on the Bible / We stand with Israel
Imagine two old shepherds sitting around the fire reminiscing about the “good ol’ days” when they were younger and would spend all of their time with the sheep. The fire crackles gently as the cool of evening settles in around them like a dark blue shawl on their shoulders. The stars begin to come out and one shepherd says to the other, “Remember that night when the stars came alive and we heard angels speak and saw the baby Messiah?”
Continue reading “Remembering”
Have you ever noticed that sometimes people write IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS to make a point? Sometimes we get in the habit of putting an exclamation point after every sentence! Oftentimes, we abuse such things!!! Until they lose their meaning all together!!!!!
Continue reading “Exclamation Point!”
The power and majesty of God’s angels must be something to see because they always begin their message with, “Do not be afraid…” In this encounter the message is:
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.
The fact that Jesus has been born in a stable and is lying in a manger becomes a “sign” to the shepherds. In effect, the angel’s message is that the verification of what we have told you about the Messiah will be the unusual sight of a baby in among the sheep in the barn.
Continue reading “The Sign”
We normally compress a lot of things into what is the traditional Christmas nativity story, yet the timeline of the story itself plays out over several years. Luke begins nine months to a year before the birth of Christ with the angel visiting Zechariah to announce that he would have a son. Then, about nine months before the birth of Jesus (which is three months before John the Baptist is born) the angel Gabriel visits Mary. Sometime later Joseph is visited by an angel and then they receive the news that they need to travel to Bethlehem for the census. Finally, they arrive in Bethlehem just in time to give birth to Jesus. Shortly after that …
Continue reading “More Angels”
Birthdays are a time for celebrating life, and this birthday for Jesus is no different. Even though his life will bring him suffering and pain on our behalf, we still celebrate his arrival with great joy and gladness, worshipful music, and the giving of gifts.
While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
Somehow being merry on this special day seems out of place from a worldly perspective. After all the young couple had been forced to travel well over 70 miles on foot and by donkey. When they arrived at Bethlehem from Nazareth there was no place to stay.
Continue reading “Merry Christmas!”
Centuries ago before Israel had even entered Canaan as a nation they were near the end of their forty years in the desert, They were camped in the plains of Moab near Jericho and there were so many people in the camp that they appeared to cover the face of the earth. There were so many people in Israel that they could not all be seen from one of the hillsides that surrounded them. The king of Moab hired a seer named Balaam to place a curse on Israel for him. Instead, Balaam blessed Israel and prophesied over her. At one point he says:
Continue reading “Planning”A few days ago we took a look at Joseph and his adoption of Jesus as his son. Before that could happen, he had to be convinced that going against tradition and his better judgment was a good idea. After a visitation by an angel, he was convinced. About seven centuries before the birth of Christ God told his people what was to come through the prophet Isaiah:
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
The idea of God becoming human is something that boggles the mind.
Continue reading “A Sign”
In the days when Israel had newly entered Canaan and the land was being divided up by lot for each of the tribes, there were two towns called Bethlehem. One was in the north in the territory of Zebulun, the other was in the south in the territory of Judah. The Bethlehem in Judah was in a territory known as Ephrath, thus the reference to Bethlehem Ephrathah. It was probably not unlike saying Portland, Oregon, or Vancouver, B.C.
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times.”
The prophet Micah not only nails the precise location of Jesus’ birth, but he makes sure there is no confusion by distinguishing between the two Bethlehems. This particular Bethlehem is mentioned in the first chapter of the Book of Ruth and is the place where Ruth and Naomi return to live after the famine is over. Naomi marries Boaz and they have a son, Obed who grows up and fathers Jesse, who in turn fathers the man who would become king of all Israel, David. Thus it is David’s hometown that Joseph and Mary must return to.
Continue reading “A Tail of Two Towns”While we wait for Mary and Joseph to arrive at Bethlehem so Jesus can be born, let’s look back in time to the beginning of mankind. It is only the third chapter of the first book of the Bible and mankind has already discovered sin. The other thing that was discovered along with sin was a game called, “Passing the Buck.” Adam blamed Eve, and Eve blamed the Serpent. Punishment, as you might recall, was divided up between all three of them, but in addition to the punishment there was a prophecy:
So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed are you above all livestock
and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust
all the days of your life.
And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
The offspring of the woman mentioned here is referred to as a “he.” A specific, single, person who would crush the head of Satan. Many people look at this passage as the first reference in the Bible to the need for a redeemer.
Continue reading “Prophecy”
I often think of the Bible as a family photo album. God’s family extends back to Adam and Eve and includes an amazing assortment of people whose lives have been recorded in the Bible. Sometimes photo albums have little notes on the edges of the photos or on the back saying who was in them, what they were doing and where they were. The Bible also shares this kind of information with us, telling us a lot about the people, places, and activities of ancient times. The places mentioned in this passage all have histories in the Bible.
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.
When you read through the Bible it takes a while for the faces and names to become familiar. The Bible is not a book that is read once and then fully understood. The Bible is as deep and wide as space itself. Yet, by reading it through, again and again, relationships and places become clear. The “pictures” of the people in the books of the Bible start to come into focus.
Continue reading “Family Album”