December 31

The Revelation to John (Continued and completed) - Triumph of Christ and His Church - Revelation 19:1-21, 20:1-15, 21:1-8; Glory and Grandeur of Heaven - Revelation 21:9-27, 22:1-5; Epilogue - Revelation 22:6-21

Photograph of the actual morning star - the star that signals the end of the night and ushers in the dawn.

I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star. Revelation 22:16

Jesus' last recorded words in the Bible. He is the morning star - It is the brilliant star (actually Venus) that appears to signal the end of night and the coming of morning. Jesus has signaled the end of all that is dark and the dawn of a new day of light.

I love Christ's close - a rich symbol that encompasses our looking forward to the skies for His coming and the hope of heaven. Christ is the morning star and we wait for him to signal the coming dawn.

I also can't help but think of Thoreau's last line in Walden, an obvious allusion to this verse: "The sun is but a morning star."

I feel that same sense of satisfaction and joy and hope in the completion of another read (walk/adventure) through the Bible in a year. Somehow it made me feel like an insider. A bit closer to God - not in understanding Him, because now I think I have even more questions. But closer in spirit and encompassed by His love. I still hold that the Lord is alive in nature and the world around us and we can feel and know Him there. But this does not replace the importance of scripture and His Word. There are times to be in the Book and times to get up and look up and out and beyond the pages to see the Word, living and breathing and moving and at work in the world and in people around us.

Lord knows.

December 30

The Revelation to John (Continued) - Hope of the Faithful - Revelation 14:1-13; Judgment Against Unrighteous - Revelation 14:14-20, 15:1-8, 16:1-21; Special Judgment upon Babylon - Revelation 17:1-18, 18:1-24, 19:1-5

The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more.... Revelation 18:11

Your merchants were the world's great men. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. Revelation 18:23

Interesting to be reading this during our current economic downturn that was essentially fueled by personal greed - the greed of individuals and institutions and banks and the government's willingness to empower greed. Instead of Babylon, it's the United States whose greed has lured the nations and our fall has led to the economic troubles of people and businesses everywhere.

We heralded our bringing of the free economy to the world. But now, in shame, teaching greed has led to everyone's misfortune and trouble.

Are we the modern Babylon? Lord knows.

December 29

The Revelation to John (Continued) - Wrath of God Against Evil - Revelation 8:7-13, 9:1-21, 10:1-11, 11:1-14; Righteousness of God Seen in Coming of Christ - Revelation 11:15-19; Opposition to Christ's Church - Revelation 12:1-17, 13:1-18

I'm underlining very little here. Just letting the dreamlike waves of scripture wash over me. Here, picking up the name of an angel I'd never heard of before - "Apollyon." [Revelation 9:11] Letting it wash over and hopefully soak in. I can't always read scripture and assign precise meaning. If I could, than I would know the mind of God and God would be as small and limited as my own mine. Sometimes I can only read and trust the Holy Spirit to bring to me what I need.

And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. Revelation 12:7-8

A battle in heaven? How do I understand this? A war in a place of peace and love? A battle of spiritual beings. How does that look and feel? And where is God as Michael fights. Did He avert His gaze as He did with His son on the cross because fighting was so offensive and even pornographic in heaven's peace? The waring of angels. Is it a physical battle or a fight for souls and spirit and mind?

Lord knows.

December 28

The Revelation to John (Continued) - Majesty and Centrality of God - Revelation 4:1-11, 5:1-14; Destructiveness of Sin - Revelation 6:1-17, 7:1-17, 8:1-6

...And He who sits on the throne will spread His tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Revelation 7:15-17

There's my tent thing again. This time, however, the tent symbolizes God's care and protection and not a symbol of our temporary dwelling on earth.

"And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." Amazing. How intimate a portrait of God, the Creator of the Universe. How much He cares for us. How individual, how personal and how He touches us at our most vulnerable moments - when life overwhelms and the tears come.

Lord knows. And Lord knows us.

December 27

The Revelation to John - Revelation 1:1-8; Origin and Purpose of Revelation - Revelation 1:9-20; Letters to the Seven Churches - Revelation 2:1-29, 3:1-22

Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy.... Revelation 1:3

I don't understand much of what I'm reading in Revelation - what prophecy is fulfilled and what prophecy is yet to be fulfilled and what all of the symbolism means. But I do understand this - even in reading the words, I am blessed. And I truly feel that. Blessed. Just in the reading. It's difficult to explain. There is an energy here, a positive hopefulness in the power of the Lamb and Lion and Morning Star and Angels. While I might question the meaning, there is no questioning of the outcome. God is in control. Satan has and will be vanquished.

Lord knows.

December 26

First Letter by John - 1 John 1:1-4; Walking in Light of Righteousness - 1 John 1:5-10, 2:1-17; Warning about Antichrists - 1 John 2:18-28; Living as Children of God - 1 John 2:29, 3:1-24; Distinguishing Unbelievers from Believers - 1 John 4:1-21, 5:1-12; Assurances in Christ - 1 John 5:13-21

For everything in the world - the cravings of the sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does - comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:16

What is the first question we [men specifically] typically ask someone when we meet them? What do you do? How do we measure a person's success? Too often, what we do and what we have define us in the eyes of people...in the eyes of the world. That's why we miss that the carpenter who wanders with a group of fishermen is really the Christ. Or that the homeless stranger we pass by is an angel...or, at the very list (really, at the very most), is a son of God.

What we have and what we do is not who and whose we are. God knows our value. Man's measure is wanting and flawed. Forgive me Lord when I apply man's measure instead of yours. And Lord knows I do this.

December 25

Letter to the Hebrews (Continued) - Exhortation to Continue Faith in Christ - Hebrews 10:19-39; Examples of Great Faith - Hebrews 11:1-40; A Call for Steadfast Faith - Hebrews 12:1-29; Various Exhortations - Hebrews 13:1-17; Closing Thoughts - Hebrews 13:18-25

Here's a photo that came up from Flickr when I googled the image: "entertaining angels unaware." It's an encouragement taped by someone to a public phone. It included the encouragement to "Be careful how you treat people, you just might be entertaining angels unaware. You see, the person that you hate, or look down on, could be your blessing."

By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. Hebrews 11:9-10

There's that tent thing again that I'm so fond of. Live in a tent for a week if you never have and then read the tent scriptures. You'll have a whole new view after week. It will give you a new perspective of how we should view our stay here in the body on earth.

By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Eqypt and gave instructions about his bones. Hebrews 11:22

Ah, it's December and we've come full circle. We're back to Joseph's bones.

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Hebrews 13:2

How do we entertain angels? In church? In Bible study? In meditation on scripture? No, by entertaining strangers...in benevolence. We come in contact with angels in the field of service and not the sanctuary of religion.

Lord knows.

December 24

Letter to the Hebrews (Continued) - Christ Superior to Priesthood - Hebrews 6:13-20, 7:1-28; Superiority of Christ's Covenant and Sacrifice - Hebrews 8:1-13, 9:1-28, 10:1-18

Melchizedek? Who is this guy? He's a priest or more precisely - "This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High." Hebrews 7:1 Ok. So this is a dispensation they didn't talk about in the Jewel Miller filmstrips. (Wow...I googled Jewel Miller filmstrips and there's no official site. That's an opportunity for someone.) Melchizedek is a priest of God...before the priesthood was even set up. He was a priest before there were even Jews. Once again, God can and does anything he wants to do. We want to codify Him and He resists this. That's why the Jews missed Christ. He didn't fit. They didn't see Him because He wasn't within their frame of reference or expectation.

God is exceptional.

I wonder what we're missing? Lord knows.

December 23

Letter to the Hebrews - The Majesty of Christ - Hebrews 1:1-14, 2:1-18; Christ Superior to Moses - Hebrews 3:1-19; Christ Superior to Joshua - Hebrews 4:1-13; Jesus as High Priest - Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:1-10; Parenthetical Thoughts Regarding Readers - Hebrews 5:11-16, 6:1-12

Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? Hebrews 1:14

I like this. Cool, comforting thought. Wonder what my angel's name is? I'll call him Elvis or just E for short. Wonder what E. is up to? I always joked that any angel that had to ride with Mariana (my wife) was probably a chain-smoker. Can just see him shaking and lighting one up after a trip to the grocery store with the wife.

I'm not making fun of my wife with this.... Lord knows.

December 22

Second Letter by Peter - 2 Peter 1:1-2; Value of True Knowledge - 2 Peter 1:3-21; Danger of False Teachers - 2 Peter 2:1-22; Regarding the Second Coming - 2 Peter 3:1-18

I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things. 2 Peter 1:13-15

I think I've blogged about this before - but I really appreciate the tent-of-this body concept. A tent is a temporary dwelling. Living in a tent you are intimately aware of the environment and changes in the weather. Things you'd be insulated from in a more permanent dwelling. Maybe if we truly viewed our earthly stay as a temporary dwelling, we'd be more aware of the evil in the world all around us instead of removed and distant. You're not overly concerned with the appearance of your tent either. It's merely a functional piece of equipment. It's not who you are. Who you are is what's protected inside the tent. A tent will be blown away if it's not staked down. Tents need anchors. Also, living in a tent encourages you to simplify your life. When you live in a tent, you don't fill it with a lot of stuff. Because you realize you have to carry everything with you. Stuff is just baggage. So the less the better. Carrying too much inhibits your ability to keep moving ahead.

This metaphor has sooooo many layers of meaning.

Something else interesting about this reading is the end of the verse: "And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things." Peter intends to watch and help them in the next life. I've always imagined that when I die, I'd watch over and help out the ones I love. Perhaps I can. Lord willing. I love this thought and hope. Lord knows. (And my family knows, too, I've warned them that I intend to be there with them - actually I use the word haunt - for a year after I'm gone.)

December 21

First Letter by Peter - 1 Peter 1:1-2; The Blessings of Redemption - 1 Peter 1:3-25, 2:1-10; Glorifying God for Redemption - 1 Peter 2:11-25, 3:1-12; Steadfastness in Persecution - 1 Peter 3:13-22, 4:1-19, 5:1-11; Concluding Thoughts - 1 Peter 5:12-14

"Even angels long to look into these things." 1 Peter 1:12

Makes you wonder if the angels watch us like we watch television? What do the angels know about the script ahead of time and how much do they sit and watch in wonder? They know how the shows going to end, but it must be interesting to see the plot twists God introduces along the way. Every once in awhile their Father calls them away from the TV. "Hey, Michael, I've got something I want you to do. Can you run down to earth for me?" I wonder if in God's TV Guide our lives are marked drama, action or comedy?

"For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God." 1 Peter 2:19

I can't help but think of Coach Don Meyer when I read this. He was basketball coach at Lipscomb when I was there. A December 15, 2008, Sports Illustrated article about him, titled The Game of His Life, had this to day about his recent near-fatal car accident:

A Blessing. Even now, three months after the accident nearly claimed his life, Don Meyer calls it a blessing. "You can't look at it any other way," he says. It was a a blessing to crash into a semi that was carrying 90,000 pounds of grain while driving to a team retreat on Sept. 5. It was a blessing to lose his left leg below the knee, to endure eight surgeries, to spend weeks in the hospital fighting pain so intense that he would croak church hymns as tears streamed down his face. It was a blessing, Meyer says, and here's why: If the wreck hadn't happened, if the doctors hadn't performed emergency surgery to remove his spleen and reattach his diaphragm, they wouldn't have discovered the cancer burrowing into his liver and small intestine until it was too late.

It was a blessing to survive, to know what he's facing and now, more than anything else, to coach again. "I just wonder sometimes because I shouldn't be here," says Meyer, the coach at Division II Northern State in Aberdeen, S.D., the man who, with 898 career victories at week's end, needs just five wins to pass Bob knight as the alltime leader among NCAA men's basketball coaches. "There's no realistic way I should be here right now, when you get down to it, unless there's something I've still got to do."

If you haven't read Meyer's story in SI, you can read it all here. It's amazing how what most have perceived as tragedy God and Meyer are turning into a witness to the world on a national stage. Lord knows.

December 20

Letter by James - James 1:1; Preparation for Oppression - James 1:2-18; Consistency Between Faith and Conduct - James 1:19-27; 2:1-26, 3:1-18; 4:1-12; Exhortations for Suffering Saints - 4:13-17, 5:1-20; Letter by Jude - Jude 1:1-25

I'm really struck by this notion of Jesus' brother. Just think about it. Growing up with Jesus. Having him beat you at some kind of ancient Jewish kid's game - kick ball or Yahtzee (that sounds sort of Jesus and ancient and like casting lots). I bet Jesus won all the time and when you did beat him you were always wondering if He let you win. It blows my mind away when I think of it in real terms and not just as a story in the Bible. Someone actually being a brother to the son of God. There'd be resentment, too. Jesus always doing things perfect. Your mom, Mary, telling you to be more like your brother, Jesus. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.

And then it hits me. We are His brother.

I know scholars have difficulty determining just who wrote the book of James. But I believe it was Christ's brother because of the language. James just sounds like his older brother Jesus. So much of what you read here sounds like the Sermon on the Mount. So much of the New Testament outside of the gospel are about doctrine and the church. James, like his brother Jesus, is more concerned about how we live.

Some really, really great stuff in this little book.

"If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord...." James 1:5-7

This is why I think we see so few miracles today in America and in Middle Tennessee and the churches of Christ. We do not believe in them. We believe in miracles in the Bible and that God has the power to do miraculous things. But, even when we pray for someone to be healed, it is typically a prayer for the doctor's skill rather than God's miraculous healing. The exception to this seems to be when they are prayers for our loved ones. At any rate, I don't know why we think that God has gotten out of the miracle business. Because we don't see them? Because sometimes God's answer is "No" to our requests for miracles? I believe God can and does do whatever He wants. Without a doubt.

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27

Don't get me started. In brief: one of the only scriptural reasons for collecting money in my reading of the Bible.

"Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgement!" James 2:12-13

I try to be careful about judging someone else's religious beliefs and rejoice that they have them. I try to preach only Christ and let the rest of the world sort through the instrumental music/hair covering/drinking/divorce issues. I prefer in sermons we talk about what we do that isn't good rather than talk about what we've seen in other congregations. Why? Because I'm looking for a whole lot of mercy.

In Jude, I found the mention in the editor's notes that Jude includes references to "extrabiblical writings (the book of Enoch)" in his letter interesting. I've always wondered if we've got it all, all of what God intended to be in the Bible. And perhaps we had a book or two that He didn't intend to be there. I mean how many classes are taught from or sermons preached from the Song of Solomon? Lord knows.

December 19

Second Letter to Timothy - 2 Timothy 1:1-2; Exhortations to Timothy - 2 Timothy 1:3-18, 2:1-26, 3:1-17, 4:1-8; Concluding Thoughts - 4:9-22

"Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy." 2 Timothy 1:4

"May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains." 2 Timothy 1:16

This murderer of Christians now derives so much joy from his relationships with them. He places so much importance on people. He preaches love and avoiding "quarreling about words" and "godless chatter." How often do our "doctrinal discussions" become "quarreling about words"?

"Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this." 2 Timothy 2:7

Rightly or wrongly, this is how I've approached my reading of the Bible through the year. I've read, reflected and looked to the Lord for my insight. Yes, there is a place for teachers. I've spent a lifetime listening to them and still on every Sunday of my life. But how much time have I given the Lord to give me his sermon, his insight? Here is my resolution for the new year. Listen less to man and more to the Lord in 2010.

Will I fulfill my resolution? Lord knows.

December 18

Letter to Titus - Titus 1:1-4; Concerning Church Leaders - Titus 1:5-2:1; Teaching Various Groups - Titus 2:2-15; The Christian Life - Titus 3:1-11; Concluding Thoughts - Titus 3:12-15

Along with more about avoiding "foolish controversies" and "arguments and quarrels about the law," which echoes yesterday's reading, Paul talks about the real heart of doctrine - how the gospel inspires us to do good. And it is this good that will do far more to convince people of Whose we are than all of the arguments over what we believe. You can argue with words and beliefs but you can't argue with service. Which is why most members of the Church of Christ have great admiration for Mother Teresa.

Writes Paul:

"I want you to stress these things [doing good], so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone. But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law because these are unprofitable and useless." Titus 3:8-9

Having said all of this about avoiding quarrels about the law that Paul picks a lawyer out to mention in this letter: "Do everything you can to help Zenas the lawyer..." Titus 3:13

Ironic? Lord knows.