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.)