YEAR 2, WEEK 30, Day 1, Monday, 24 July 2023

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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Monday, 24 July 2023:

Jeremiah 16:10-12 — “And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’ then you shall say to them: ‘Because your fathers have forsaken me, declares the LORD, and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, and because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of you follows his stubborn, evil will, refusing to listen to me.”

We all need the grace of God. We were born into a world of sin with sin natures, and we have all fallen short of God’s standard. Sin is so ingrained in us, we cannot control it within our own abilities, and we don’t even perceive many of the sins we commit daily. Apart from salvation by grace (God’s gift), through faith in Christ, and the subsequent gift of the Holy Spirit which reveals truth perceivable in no other way, we are dead in our sins, and we have no hope. There is not life outside of the Spirit, and there is no life apart from Christ.

• Romans 3:10-12, 23-25 — …as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” … for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
• Romans 6:23 — For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
• Romans 5:8 – … but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
• Romans 10:9, 13 — …because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved…. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
• Romans 5:1 – Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
• Romans 8:1, 38-39 — There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Jeremiah 16:14-15 — “Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when it shall no longer be said, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’ but ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them.’ For I will bring them back to their own land that I gave to their fathers.

“Christ Himself says that He places a light yoke on His people (Matt. 11:25–30). He bears the burden we cannot carry—to be perfect as the Lord is perfect (5:48)—by keeping God’s law fully, securing the perfect righteousness that is imputed to us by faith alone (Rom. 3:21–26; 2 Cor. 5:21). Having purchased us with His blood, He gives us the easy yoke of living a life in gratitude for the salvation He accomplished entirely by grace.

However, we dare not think that an easy burden means an easy life. God regularly calls His people to suffer, to be rejected by the world for the sake of “the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14). For Jeremiah, this meant a life of celibacy and solitude. In today’s passage we read of three charges the prophet received from the Lord, namely, that He was not to marry, or to attend funerals or feasts (Jer. 16:2, 5, 8). These commands were likely given at or near the time of Jeremiah’s call as a young man.

Modern culture is highly individualistic, so we may have trouble grasping the difficulty of these charges for an ancient Judahite. Today, it is not that unusual for a man to marry late in life or to remain single until death, but such was almost unheard of in the ancient world. In a culture that saw children as great blessings (Pss. 127:3–5; 128:3–4), getting married and having a family was the norm. Moreover, ancient Jews were accustomed to esteeming their community more highly than we might. To not mourn with those who mourned or celebrate with those who celebrated was dishonorable (Eccl. 7:2; see Rom. 12:15).

Many people would have asked Jeremiah why he did things as odd as remaining unmarried and shunning funerals and celebrations, giving Him the opportunity to explain these object lessons. Judgment so severe as to leave no women left for anyone to marry was coming. Things would be so awful that celebration would be unheard of and no true comfort could be offered to those who wept for the dead (Jer. 16:3–4, 6–7, 9). Jeremiah’s singleness and childlessness depicted the horror of the exile to come.

Yet hope was not entirely absent from Jeremiah’s preaching. For with the other prophets, Jeremiah foresaw blessing on the other side of exile. Though God would drive Judah out of the land, He would bring His people back (vv. 14–21). The glory of this restoration would overshadow the wonder of the exodus to such a degree that humanity would forget the exodus and remember only the restoration of His people from Babylon.

When the Lord first called Israel out of Egypt, He had not yet given them His law and their sin, however gross, could not measure up to the sins of later generations who knew and wantonly flouted God’s law. To save a people who knew and openly violated the Lord’s commandments would take a greater mercy and display more power than salvation from Egypt. If this was true of the restoration from exile, how much more true is it of the abundant salvation we have been shown in Christ Jesus.” (Ligonier Ministries)

Jeremiah 16:16 — Behold, I am sending for many fishers, declares the Lord, and they shall catch them.

Compare this prophetic verse with the call from Jesus to his disciples: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19) Are you a good fisherman?

Note: Here is a short video overview of Luke, chapters 1-9: https://youtu.be/XIb_dCIxzr0

Luke 1:2 – …those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses….

The Gospel rests on eyewitness accounts and is historically true.

Luke 1:3-4 – …it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Luke wrote to a Gentile who needed historical assurance.

Luke 1:5 – In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

Bible events are related to political and historical events.

Luke 1:6, 7 – And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

Righteousness is revealed in obedience that is not motivated by personal reward but rather by love. Though obedient, Elizabeth was not blessed with a child, but she was obedient nonetheless.

Luke 1:11 – And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

God meets us in prayer.

Luke 1:12 – And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.

Our first response to holiness is overwhelming reverence. When was the last time you felt that?

Luke 1:15-17 – …for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.

John the Baptist was given the mission of preparing people to receive Jesus, a mission of reconciliation, preparing people to be reconciled with God through Jesus. Reconciliation with Jesus would also result in reconciliation between believers, changed hearts turned towards God and each other. While John the Baptist was given the message of reconciliation to prepare people for Jesus’ earthly ministry, we have, likewise, been given the message and ministry of reconciliation, imploring people to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior and preparing believers (discipling) for Jesus’ Second Coming –

• 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 — Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

“…for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit….” John’s mission and calling was not self-appointed, and it wasn’t something he could accomplish in His own power and authority. God chose John and gave Him the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish His mission, and John was to remove any other influence in his life which would quench the Spirit within him, such as alcohol. Likewise, you have been chosen by God and given the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish your mission of spreading the Gospel and making disciples. Do not allow anything to control you other than the Spirit, and don’t allow anything to distract you from your calling.

• Ephesians 1:13 — In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit….
• John 16:13-15 — When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
• Galatians 5:16 — But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
• Romans 8:5 — For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.
• Ephesians 5:18 — And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit….
• Romans 14:17 — For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit
• 1 Thessalonians 5:19 — Do not quench the Spirit.
• Ephesians 4:30 — And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
• Galatians 5:25 — If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.
• Matthew 28:18-20 — And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
• 1 Corinthians 2:13 — And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.

“And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom.” John the Baptist’s message was that unity and peace on earth could only come through repentance and unity with Jesus. The evidence (the fruit) of love and oneness with Christ is genuine, observable, extraordinary love and oneness with fellow believers. This oneness with God and others was the focus of Jesus’ prayer to the Father as Jesus prepared for the Cross –

• John 17:22-23 — “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

How is your oneness, and does it proclaim the truth of Christ in your life “that the world may know” that Jesus is Lord? Are you being used by God to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom”?

• John 16:33 — I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

“…to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.” Are you ready for Jesus’ return? Do you have a great sense of urgency to make others ready for Jesus’ return? What will you do today to prepare others?

• Matthew 24:44 — Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
• Luke 12:35-38 — Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit. Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them. Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.
• 1 John 2:28 — And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.
• Romans 13:11 — Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.
• Jude 1:17-23 — But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.

Luke 1:18-20 – And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.’ And the angel answered him, ‘I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”

What does it take for you to believe God and obey Him? Some ask for a sign, but evidence is not the problem; our hearts are the problem.

Luke 1:20 – And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.

God doesn’t want you proclaiming what you don’t really believe.

Luke 1:23 – And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

Though stricken with muteness by God and in the midst of a life-changing event, Zechariah finished his duty.

Luke 1:25 — Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.

Elizabeth patiently and faithfully waited on the Lord and was rewarded beyond everyone’s expectations.

Luke 1:28 – And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”

God chooses people. Angels and prophets only deliver the message given to them by the Lord, and God does the convicting through the Holy Spirit. Sharing the Gospel with people who won’t accept it is not a sign of failure but rather faith and faithfulness. Withholding the Gospel from those you don’t believe will accept it is presuming salvation comes by your power rather than God’s. Be faithful with the message you have been given, trusting God to do what only He can do.

Luke 1:32-33 – He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.

God gave Jesus the Kingdom. As the Lord and Savior, Jesus appointed us with the following words: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

Luke 1:34-37 – For nothing will be impossible with God.

God does the impossible to bring glory to Himself and not to us.

Luke 1:38 – Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

Mary was usable by God because her life was wholly surrendered to God.

Luke 1:45 – And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.

Blessings come when we trust God, regardless of circumstances, to fulfill His word. Blessings come from believing not in what we want but rather what God has said. It isn’t “Name it and claim it.”

Joy comes from unity to God as we become one with Him and what He is doing for His glory. There is no room for self here.

Luke 1:46-47 – And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.”

The activity of God in our lives results in a wholly changes life, which is obvious to others and obviously not the result of our self-determination and uncontrollable thanksgiving and praise. “Praise is the spontaneous response of a grateful child of God in His presence. The person who knows God and experiences Him intimately sings to the Lord with deepest praise!

Mary was overwhelmed by the Lord’s goodness to her. In response she sang one of the most beautiful and profound songs of praise found in Scripture. Trying to stop the praise of a thankful heart would be like trying to arrest the flow of a mighty waterfall! God created us to praise Him; praise will be our activity when we are gathered around His throne in heaven.

You should never have difficulty thinking of reasons why God deserves your praise. You should enjoy the times you have to praise your Lord, both privately and publicly in worship. If your life is not filled with praise, it may be that you have lost your appreciation for God’s merciful activity in your life. Never forget what God has saved you from. Never take for granted what it means to have the assurance of eternity with God. Do not disregard the spiritual kinship you enjoy with other believers. Take time often to recount the blessings He has poured out upon you and your family. As you contemplate the boundless love and mercy God has shown you, you will want to sing His praises as Mary did. Spontaneous praise is authentic praise. It does not have to be manipulated or orchestrated. It is a real and personal expression of a grateful heart and wonder-filled life that has encountered holy God!” (Blackaby)

Luke 1:48 – …for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed….

God uses people society ignores. God does this intentionally to demonstrate that it is He who appoints and empowers, not man. You don’t need a seminary degree, a license given by a man-made institution, or liturgical robes to proclaim the Gospel and make disciples. You require the power of the Holy Spirit and wholehearted submission to the authority of the Lord. If you have the Holy Spirit, and are submitting to Him, nothing within His will is impossible for you, but you may create your own barriers by quenching, grieving, or getting out of step with the Spirit you have been freely given.

Luke 1:50 – And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.

Not everyone receives God’s mercy, only those who fear Him.

“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 24 July 2023: Be a faithful ambassador for Christ today, faithful with the Gospel, the message of reconciliation. Proclaim the Gospel in word and deed to all around you. Let the evidence of the power of God be revealed to others by your obvious faith, hope, peace, thankfulness, grace, love and unity with fellow believers.