Daily Meditations on the Bible / We stand with Israel
… has given us everything we need for a godly life …
Summary: What is a godly life? It is a question we should spend some time thinking about. Jesus is God, so we know that we should be like him, but are we to be like him in every way?
Continue reading “2 Peter 1:3b — A Godly Life”
His divine power …
Summary: Divine power is different than physical power. In the physical realm, physical power is mostly what we see, but the Bible is full of stories about a different kind of power.
Continue reading “2 Peter 1:3a — A Different Kind of Power”
… because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin.
Summary: Peter tells us that it is possible to be ”done with sin.” The price is to stay focused on Christ and adopt Christ’s attitude toward suffering. Today we explore what this means.
Continue reading “1 Peter 4:1 (b) — Done with Sin”
For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
I have to confess that I do not have any direct personal experience with sheep (outside of seeing one in a petting zoo once or twice). I do know a couple of people who have had experience working with sheep and neither one much cared for it. Sheep are dirty, stubborn, stinky, and troublesome. It is interesting that Jesus would choose to use sheep as a metaphor for people as often as he did.
What I do have experience with is going astray. I have LOTS of experience there. I don’t know how much trouble a lost sheep can get into, but people seem to have an unlimited range of options when it comes to going astray. I am pretty sure that everyone reading this has their own experience in this department, so there isn’t any need for more description here.
Continue reading “1 Peter 2:25 — We are the Sheep”
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake…
Peter is asking us to do something none of us want to do. Now he tells us why we should want to: Because of Jesus.
How does that work?
Continue reading “1 Peter 2:13 (b) — For His Sake”
… now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
I don’t know why this should be, but there are some verses in the Bible that seem to jump off of the page. Then they grab me by the lapel and shout, “ISN’T THIS THE MOST AMAZING THING EVER?!” For me, this is one of those verses.
Peter has been talking about nourishing our spirit using the food we feed our bodies with. Specifically, he uses the example of a newborn baby craving milk. His example is ripe with all kinds of inferences that color our understanding of what he means. Then he goes on to say, “now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”
Continue reading “1 Peter 2:3 — Yum!”
…and the glories that would follow.
Today’s passage rounds out the thought that Peter is sharing with us in this passage. The prophets of old were hungry to know about God’s plan of salvation. They understood that the Messiah would come. The question was, “When?” They understood he would suffer for our sins. The question was, “How?” They also understood something else: Glory would follow suffering.
When Jesus finally came, the whole world turned against him and cried, “Crucify him!” When the whole world seems to turn against one person, how is there any glory in that for that person? The answer depends on your point of view.
If you are standing with the devil the sight of God’s Son dying on the cross seems like a victory. The glory goes to the victor and Satan appears to have won. But Satan doesn’t win. The victory is fleeting. Like everything else about Satan, this victory is false.
The Author of Life has endured death on the cross for a very specific purpose. He is, as Isaiah prophesied, our redeemer. (Isaiah 47:4) From the perspective of God, the death of Jesus was not a loss, but a gain. Having endured the shame, accusations, torture, abuse, and crucifixion, Jesus rises above it all and draws us to him. Jesus has accomplished the will of his Father. (John 19:30) That is glory. Everyone redeemed by Jesus knows what he has done. That is glory. When Satan himself is thrown into the lake of fire, he, too, will know that Jesus is King. That is glory.
Each victory over Satan, no matter how small, brings glory to our King. The “glories that would follow” include your victory over sin and mine. Praise God!
Application: Think about how far you have come and where you would be if it were not for Jesus. Then give glory to our God.
Food for Thought: What other thoughts do you have about glory?
Please click ‘’Continue Reading” for comments.
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:11 (c) — Glory”
… and sprinkled with his blood…
Let’s continue with our deep dive into Peter’s opening words. We’ve talked about who and what Peter is and then moved into his description of the people he is writing to. Looking at the key concepts he has included it reads almost like a creed. We who believe are chosen by God, exiled from the world, known intimately by our Father, sanctified and continuing in sanctification to be obedient to Jesus Christ. And then we come to being sprinkled with his blood.
The thought of writing about this is daunting for me. I don’t even like the sight of blood. Yet being “sprinkled in blood” is an important part of Jewish history. It is one of the key prophetic pointers in the Old Testament that foretell the work of the Messiah.
Continue reading “1 Peter 1:2 (d) — Sprinkled”
Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, ”Who is it you want?”
”Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.
”I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) When Jesus said, ”I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.
When I read this passage I smile to myself. Jesus is generally humble and gentle in all his dealings with people. Sometimes I wish he would just cut loose like he does when he cleanses the temple. You know… kind of like in the old Westerns on TV…
It is a hot, dusty day in Cutthroat Gulch. The only thing moving in the afternoon heat is the tumbleweeds that occasionally roll down Main Street. The sky is hot, and throats are dry. A stranger rides into town on a white horse. Out of every broken window of the second story boarding house, a dusty rifle bore slowly moves into the harsh sunlight. Every gun is aimed at the stranger. The bad guy sheriff slides his coat back revealing his holstered .44 Colt. Even the kid who’s dad owns the trading post pulls out his slingshot ready to have his fun with this unwanted visitor.
Before the first trigger is pulled or the first rock flung, the stranger smiles and sunlight glints blindingly off his pearly white teeth. His eyes glint with something akin to humor, and his hair, ruffled by the same breeze playing with the tumbleweeds peeks out from under his white hat.
”What’s your name, stranger?” Growls the cowhand in front of the saloon.
”Jesus,” answers the stranger.
”Jesus?!” Replies the cowhand. And then all hell breaks loose. Every trigger is pulled, every rock flung. Smoke billows from each gun, every barrel pointed at the man on the white horse. And then it happens…
Each bullet, every rock, and even the tumbleweeds all stop dead in their tracks. Jesus looks around sadly at the lost souls who inhabit this town. Then he raises his hand and speaks The Word. Each atom in every person whose heart is filled with hate suddenly stops and is repelled from every other atom in that person. Like a cloud of vapor or a mist in the wind, each gun, each slingshot, each barking dog and every person deserving death swells into a puff like the smoke from their guns. The atoms disperse and the souls sink down and out of sight. The only people left are those kneeling in awe.
Jesus rides on…
Somehow I just want Jesus to stomp the bad guys and make everything right. But that’s not his style. He is a loving God. He doesn’t want to hurt the good with the bad. He knows a price has to be paid to redeem those whom he loves. Instead, we only get a glimpse of his power, authority, and glory. When he speaks his name, they all draw back and fall to the ground.
Food for Thought: How do you feel about Jesus holding back his power when there is so much evil in the world?
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Continue reading “Cutthroat Gulch – John 18: 4-6”
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.
By my count, the word “world” is used fifty-seven times in John’s gospel alone. Fifty-seven! When Jesus uses the term it seems to mean something different than when us earthlings use the term. In today’s verse, Jesus once again refers to the world as something apart from the … world.
What do I mean by the world being apart from the world?
The way Jesus uses the word, the disciples are not part of the world. Yet we know that from a human perspective that until they died they still lived in the world. In yesterday’s verse, Jesus says, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.” So Jesus uses the word “world” two mean two different things. One world they remain a part of, the other world they are not part of. Or as Jesus puts it, they are “not of the world.”
As usual, Jesus grammar is telling. He sees things differently than the rest of us humans. What does he mean, “…not of the world?”
Continue reading “Worlds Apart – John 17: 16”