Blog

Bible Reading: Start With Jude

Tonight a group from my church will meet for another Biblepalooza. I have written about it before, but we call it Biblepalooza to contrast our love for God’s word against the worldly activities that use up our time. These are some long sessions of Bible reading and it is an exercise just to be prepared mentally and physically to sit through it.

Diligent Bible Reading

In our quest to be at home with God one day, we’ll have plenty of opportunity to fall away – to leave the path of that quest. Just like the Jews that were denied entry to the Promised Land, our disobedience and weakness of faith can keep us out. (Hebrews 3:16-19) God has given us his word so we can learn through diligent study how to avoid being “…tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine….” (Ephesians 4:11-14)

It is through this word that our faith grows. (Romans 10:17)

There is nothing like extensive study of the knowledge in God’s word

In our age of instant gratification, we have a hard time waiting. We hate having to put a great deal of effort into anything. This has sadly gotten into our churches and caused Christians to pass on serious or extended Bible reading. We have been tricked into believing that Google will give us all the answers on demand.

God expects a bit more effort than that. To get to that promised rest, we have to stay on top the knowledge he wants us to have. God’s word has a way of laying us open and exposing the blemishes that would cause his rejection of us. (Hebrews 4:11-13)

I put this site together as a way to help build a daily habit of Bible reading and study. Whether it be a few minutes or an hour or more, I want us all in the word daily…

BUT!

We need even more. We need to set time aside for an occasional extensive reading. Nothing gets you plugged into what a book of the Bible is trying to teach you than to read it in one sitting.

Our group’s Biblepalooza is one way of doing that. If you don’t have access to something like that, find another way. Do it with your family. Do it by yourself. Just do it.

The more you do, though, the more you want.

If you have to, start with Jude, and work backwards through the books. (In case you never noticed, the epistles are arranged longest to shortest) Once you get the thrill of reading a complete book, you will be ready for the longer ones.

Friends, Be Diligent. (2 Timothy 2:15)

Daily Bible reading for July 26

Song 4:9-5:1
Judges 5
Jeremiah 21
Hebrews 3:7-4:13

July 26, 2013
What is Doing Right?
Some people think they are doing right, but in the end it leads to death. – Proverbs 16:25 NCV

When the Blue Fairy and Jiminy Cricket told Pinocchio to “let his conscience be his guide,” the world thought (and maybe still does) they were getting good sound Bible principles. Here is a little food for thought on this “Disney theology:”
- The majority of people living in sin are not acting against their conscience.
- Incorrect worship is sinful yet it usually makes people feel good about what they have “done for God.” (Colossians 2:23)
- A philanthropist that never obeys the gospel will be passed over at the judgment even though most consider him “good”
What steps are you taking to know that you are “doing right?”
July 25, 2013
6 Ways Christ Was Better Than The Law
An ongoing theme in Hebrews is that Christ was better. Christians enjoy a better agreement with God than the Jews had under the old law -all because Christ came and died for us.

Christ Was Better
- Christ is better than angels (Hebrews 1:4-14) – The Angels worship him (Hebrews 1:6), He is God (Hebrews 1:8)
  Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek — by Dieric Bouts the Elder, 1464–67
- Christ is greater than Moses (Hebrews 3:1-6) – Christ was everything Moses was (prophet, mediator, king) and more (prophet, mediator, king, high priest)
- Greater priest than the Levites (Hebrews 4:14-5:10) – He was both high priest and king. (Hebrews 5:5, Psalm 110) More Details ->
- A priest like Melchizedek (Hebrews 7) – Christ’s priesthood is permanent (Hebrews 7:24), No need for daily sacrifices (Hebrews 7:27)
- Sealed a superior covenant (Hebrews 7:22, Hebrews 8) – Sins are no longer remembered once forgiven, made the first old(Hebrews 8:10), Does not apply only to the Jews (Galatians 3:29)
- A better sacrifice (Hebrews 9:1 – 10:39) – Used his own blood as a sacrifice once and for all (Hebrews 9:11-13)
And Three Things We Need to do to be Better

In return he expects better service. (Hebrews 12-13)
- We treat Christianity like a race, running with endurance and setting aside anything that would slow us down or encumber us. (Hebrews 12:1)
- We are to accept the discipline of a loving father that cares enough for us to make sure we are going the right way. (Hebrews 12:7-11)
- We are to pick ourselves up and go on when we notice we are down (Hebrews 12:12-13)
July 25, 2013
7 Warnings to Christians
Five times during the course of Hebrews, the writer digresses from the main text to give some specific warnings to the Christians it is addressing. If we believe Christianity is slipping away, then I suggest these are where we start looking to fix it.

Key Warnings For Christians

There are usually urgent conditions behind every warning
- Pay closer attention (Hebrews 2:1-4) – We should be more diligent in our Bible study. Anything that is neglected becomes old and useless faster than the things we use and protect. Neglect of our Bible study causes us to drift away.
- Care for your beliefs (Hebrews 3:7-11) – The lure of innovative worship and doctrine, or refusing to leave something old and familiar when the truth is before us will cause us to fall.
- Work toward maturity (Hebrews 5:11-6:20) – It is just as fatal to our salvation to do nothing as it is to commit outright sins. You see, doing nothing is an active decision and is therefore a sinful act.
- There are no more sacrifices (Hebrews 10:26-29) – The last and greatest sacrifice has been made for us. If we refuse to honor that through obedience, there is nothing more that can be done
- Listen to the voice of heaven (Hebrews 12:25-29) – God always acted as promised based on the words of his prophets, how much more sure is it that he will act upon the words delivered by his own Son?
Since I first worked on this lesson, I have added two additional points.
- Enter the rest (Hebrews 4:11-13) – Following the word of God takes a lot of work and focus. Whether or no we take it on, we will be exposed by it.
- Avoid strange doctrine (13:9-15) – Any doctrine that does not come from Christ is strange or foreign. It doesn’t matter if we grew up with it or our best friend taught it to us. Stick to the Bible.
These seven building blocks are required for strong churches, families and individuals. When properly applied, they make the rest of God’s word easy to follow and a joy to be a part of.
July 24, 2013
7 Reasons Christ is King
Hebrews opens with the writer explaining the superiority of Christ over all of the devices of the Jews – the law, the prophets – Judaism in general. The Jews worked hard to discredit Christ as the one they were expecting, but many came to realize the truth.

For those who were weakened by the efforts of the Jews to discredit Christianity, the writer opened the letter with seven reasons that they should recognize Christ’s authority and his qualifications as the King of kings.

The Credentials of Christ

Hebrews 1:2-3 packs seven things to look for in Christ:
1. He was appointed heir of all things (Psalm 2:8, Hebrews 1:5)
2. The world was made through him (Colossians 1:16, John 1:3, Genesis 1:26)
3. His excellence of character (John 1:14) – This is noted in Hebrews 1:3a as his radiance or effulgence
4. He is the image of God (Hebrews 1:3b)
5. He is a sustaining force (Colossians 1:16-17)
6. He purchased our sins (1 Corinthians 6:20)
7. He sits at God’s right hand (1 Corinthians 15:25, Hebrews 8:1)
Through every conceivable right of lordship, Christ is in authority. The Bible is brimming with proof that should encourage the faithful student to continue to follow him. This is the primary reason that reading your Bible is so important – it causes your faith to grow. (Romans 10:17) The seven credentials of Christ listed in Hebrews 1 are points that are continuously proven throughout the Bible – Old and New Testaments. Having these proven time and time again is what gives us solid hope. (Hebrews 11:1)
July 23, 2013
Disobedience for Convenience
Avoid letting sinful decisions become a thorn in the side

Man has a history of modifying God’s word to meet his needs.
- Nadab and Abihu made a custom mixture and created strange fire (Leviticus 10:1-3)
- Moses was too embarrassed to speak to the stone for water and struck it instead (Numbers 20:8-12)
- Jonah didn’t want God to save Nineveh if they repented (Jonah 4:1-4)
The children of Israel were no different. They were supposed to drive the inhabitants completely out of Canaan, but they did not. Their disobedience ranged from taking the natives as slaves to allowing the natives to live among them as they took control of the land. (Judges 1)

God revoked his promise to drive the natives out and allowed them to become a “thorn in the side” of Israel. (Judges 2:3) We see throughout the rest of the Old Testament that God’s chosen people were drawn away from him by the sins and temptations of Canaan’s descendants. In all of the cases of disobedience, we see that God did not clean up their mess.

Even now, man continues to modify God’s word to suit his needs. And even now, man is getting himself into sinful jams that are more and more difficult to get out of. Take for instance:
- Religious denominations: These were created by man’s slight changes from God’s word being taught as truth. How does a professional minister for one of these repent?
- Divorce and remarriage: Through recent years, divorce has gotten easy to get for reason other than adultery. How do you break up an unbiblical marriage that has produced children?
- Taking and keeping jobs that keep us away from the church: How does a person that becomes financially dependent on such a job quit so it stops weakening his or her faith?
This is the nature of disobedience. Making decisions contrary to God’s word to suit our needs and weakly justifying them has serious implications but fools us into thinking we’re OK. If you are not where you need to be spiritually, a serious look back at the choices you’ve made could help you see the way back to the correct path.

Daily Reading for July 22

Song 1:9-2:7
Judges 1
Jeremiah 17
Matthew 28
July 22, 2013