On Satisfaction in Life - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 8:17-19,

"He [Solomon] built up Lower Beth Horon, Baalath, and Tadmor in the desert, within his land, as well as all his store cities and the towns for his chariots and for his horses—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled."

Solomon engaged in all sorts of projects. In Ecclesiastes he said he did it as an experiment to see what might bring satisfaction in life. In the end, he found that satisfaction does not lie within the things us normal folks might think it does.

People waste their money on the lottery, thinking wealth might bring ultimate happiness in life. Those with wealth tell us satisfaction is not found there. Many think fame and recognition will bring satisfaction in life. I recall an interview with the late George Harrison of the Beatles, where he said satisfaction is not found there. We often think the things of this life we don't have will bring us satisfaction. And, the unfortunate thing is most of us refuse to listen to those who have those things when they tell us satisfaction and fulfillment are not found within those things.

In a very revealing passage in Ecclesiastes 2:4-11 Solomon says, "I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees. I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me. I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired male and female singers, and a harem as well—the delights of a man's heart. I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me. I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my labor, and this was the reward for all my toil. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun."

Satisfaction and fulfillment in life is found elsewhere. Perhaps one of Solomon's psalms, Psalm 127:1-2 provides us some insight, "Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat— for he grants sleep to those he loves."

In another psalm he observes,
"Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,
    who alone does marvelous deeds.
Praise be to his glorious name forever;
    may the whole earth be filled with his glory." Psalm 72:18-19

Here is where satisfaction in life is found. It is not what we accomplish, but what the Lord accomplishes through each of us that brings satisfaction in life. He alone does marvelous deeds. Just ask the man who should know. Solomon had done it all.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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The Lord Knows It All - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 8:39,

"... you [the Lord] alone know every human heart"

In Solomon's great prayer of dedication for the temple of the Lord he built, he confessed something rather important for us all to be aware of: the Lord knows "every human heart."

He knows us intimately, each and every one of us. Where we might even fool ourselves, he knows us better than we even know ourselves. Quite the sobering thought, isn't it?

We read in Hebrews 4:13, "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." This includes our hearts, our inmost thoughts, all our actions, all our feelings, all the decisions we make and as well as all the things we do.

He actively searches our hearts. As Paul explains how the Holy Spirit brings our needs before our Father God, he says, "he [God] who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God."

This, of course, is quite unsettling to me. I'm not like the lily-white clad saints seen in the stained glass windows of your local church. I don't walk about with a halo uttering verbiage only heard amongst the ones wearing the raiment of those who have achieved a "sainthood" bestowed by some ecclesiastical organization. That is just not me.

I'd like to think I pass muster with the high standards of religious zealots. I'd like to think I have lived my life in the purity and the sanctity of those who deserve a place in heaven. But, that is not my case.

I'm a sinner and the Lord knows it. I have done those things I am ashamed of. I have done those things that would prevent me from ever having a hope for eternal life. And, the Lord knows each and every detail. He knows all of my thoughts... every last one of them! Yikes! He knows every passing emotion and feeling I have ever experienced and entertained. He knows every last thing I have ever done! He knows my heart through and through!

Were it not for the mercy of the Lord, I'd be toast. No hope of eternal life. As God is my judge, he knows every last detail of my terrible plight and in his love and kindness, he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for every one of those things that would keep me from his presence in eternity. Jesus Christ paid my penalty on my behalf and all God asked of me was to trust in his love for me! Astonishing!

"But he [the Servant of the Lord, Jesus Christ] was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all."

It won't be because the Lord is uninformed of my sinful state that will get me into heaven. He knows every detail! It is due to his love, his mercy, his kindness, that he has made a way for me by sending his Son to die on that cross on my behalf! 

He has done so for you as well!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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The End of the Project - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 7:51,

"When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the Lord was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated—the silver and gold and the furnishings—and he placed them in the treasuries of the Lord's temple."

Perhaps in a rather obvious point, I see where Solomon completed the construction of temple with all of its furnishings. The various pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls, together with the pillars and capitals, the ten stands with their basins, the sea with its twelve bulls it sat on as well as all the other items were all brought into the temple he had built and the project completed.

It was built. It was furnished. It was completed.

I make the point because as I read about it, it brings to my mind the temple the Lord himself is building. We read Peter's words in 1 Peter 2:4-5, "As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ."

Today God is building his temple he dwells within out of all who embrace him in faith. The invitation to join his kingdom and become a part of that spiritual temple is still open. He calls to all of us with open arms, not wanting any to face his judgment at the end of the age, but to become a part of his temple here on earth, a part of his kingdom for eternity.

However, that invitation has a shelf life to it. Just as Solomon completed the building and furnishing of the temple, so too the Lord will complete the building of his kingdom. And, then, just as Solomon declared the temple completed, so the Lord will declare his kingdom complete, will terminate his invitation and bring this age to a close.

This age does not last forever. The reason it does not is that its purpose is to provide the Lord the opportunity to build his kingdom. When he completes it, real life starts for all those of faith as we move on to eternity with our Lord.

Don't miss the opportunity! Don't disregard the invitation! All we know will come to a close one day when the Lord completes his "spiritual house." The construction of it will come to an end when it is complete, just as the building of Solomon's temple.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Where Is the Lord's Presence Today? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 6:11-14,

"The word of the Lord came to Solomon: 'As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I gave to David your father. And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.' So Solomon built the temple and completed it."

The temple Solomon built was the locus of the presence of the Lord in Israel. Israel was God's chosen covenanted people due to their patriarch's [Abraham's] faith. God had promised Abraham a people and that he would provide a place for them, the "promised land". When he provided it, he promised David he would maintain his presence among the Israelites as long as they fulfilled their part of the covenant. This structure David's son, King Solomon, built was where the Lord's presence would be located.

In an interesting observation Paul made to his listeners at the Areopagus, he said, "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands." Acts 17:24. This helps us understand that our Creator exists beyond the dimensions of time and space and so does not reside in any temple, including the one Solomon built. However, it was at this very temple that the Lord maintained his presence among the Israelites. It was the place to go to worship, to offer sacrifices, to bring petitions before the Lord.

What an astonishing opportunity Israel had! Paul tells us the temple worship was one of the many wonderful blessings Israel had as God's chosen people. In Romans 9:4-5 we read, "Theirs [the people of Israel] is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen."

While the temple no longer exists, and there is no facility like it in all of creation, God now provides his presence in a different type of temple. "As you come to him [Jesus Christ], the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 2:4-5.

Where Solomon built a temple for the Lord by human hands, the Lord has built himself a temple within the hearts of his people. This is where the Lord's presence is found in the world today. 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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The Lord Delivers Wisdom As Promised! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 5:12,

"The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him."

In 1 Kings 3 we read about Solomon asking the Lord for wisdom, and
that is exactly what the Lord provided him.

As believers, we, likewise, have the opportunity to request wisdom
from the Lord. In Proverbs 2 wisdom is personified as a woman who
invites those needing her, "Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out
my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings." Proverbs
1:23.

The Lord tells us in Proverbs 2:1-6,
"My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding—
indeed, if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding."

The Lord gives wisdom when we seek it from him! We are told to seek it
from the Lord, "Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words
or turn away from them." Proverbs 4:5. When we do, we find ourselves
blessed,
"Blessed are those who find wisdom,
those who gain understanding,
for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.
She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her;
those who hold her fast will be blessed."

I don't know if any of us will attain the stature of wisdom Solomon
had, but we have been invited to pursue it and receive it from the
Lord!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

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me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are
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Alignment Brings Blessings, Misalignment Brings Misery - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 4:21,

"Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These countries brought tribute and were Solomon's subjects all his life."

Such was life in Israel in Solomon's day! In the previous verse we read, "The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore; they ate, they drank and they were happy."

Life in Israel in Solomon's day was blessed and full. With his neighbors in subjugation to him, Israel had peace on all sides along with a growing economy. A blessed national state. I am reminded of Proverbs 16:7, "When the Lord takes pleasure in anyone's way, he causes their enemies to make peace with them."

What was the cause of the Lord's blessing? Certainly a big part was Solomon's desire for the Lord. We are told Solomon demonstrated this love of the Lord by following his father David's instructions, "Solomon showed his love for the Lord by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David..." 1 Kings 3:3.

Under Solomon's leadership the nation followed the ways of the Lord and applied themselves to the part the Lord provided for them in his agenda of redemption.

All this would change following Solomon's reign. The nation would split and begin to follow the idols of the nations surrounding them. In placing themselves outside of the Lord's intentions for them relative to his agenda, Israel's international stature will be destroyed, her economy wrecked and her relations with other nations becoming a nightmare with conflict all about.

This is all a cautionary tale of what happens when we give ourselves to the Lord's priorities (building a family for himself) but then stray and go our own way. Israel is merely an example of what all mankind does. Our collective sinful nature as people always takes us from the Lord's blessings in directions we really don't want to go in.

Only when a nation aligns itself with what the Lord is afoot doing does it experience the Lord's blessing. The same holds true for any one of us as individuals.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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What Does My Life Reflect? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 3:3,

"Solomon showed his love for the Lord by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David... "

Following this comment is an exception: Solomon offered sacrifices and burned incense "on the high places." I note it was when Solomon was making an offering on the most important high place the Lord met him in a dream, asking whatever he wanted the Lord to give him. His response was wisdom to be a good king and govern the people. I'm sure you are familiar with the outcome.

What catches my eye this morning is the observation that Solomon showed his love for the Lord "by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David". In Acts 13:22, Paul observes, "God testified concerning him [David]: 'I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'"

David's fatherly instructions to Solomon would have been consistent with being a man after God's own heart. In walking according to his father's instructions, Solomon would have lived his life by making choices, by doing what he did, by saying what he did in the same vein, as a man after God's own heart.

Solomon's lifestyle and the choices he made manifested his love of the Lord.

I ask myself the question this morning: are the things I'm doing, are the things I am saying, are the choices I make reflecting a love of the Lord? Would others around me recognize a love I harbor for the Lord by my lifestyle? A sobering thought...

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Be Shrewd When Facing Evil - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 kings 1:15-16,

"'As you [Bathsheba] know,' he [Adonijah] said, 'the kingdom was mine. All Israel looked to me as their king. But things changed, and the kingdom has gone to my brother [Solomon]; for it has come to him from the Lord. Now I have one request to make of you. Do not refuse me.'"

This request of Adonijah would be his second attempt to seize the throne from Solomon. Both the Lord and King David had chosen Solomon to succeed him, but Adonijah, Solomon's half-brother, made his first attempt at the throne and was thwarted by the Lord through the prophet Nathan.

Now that Solomon sat on the throne, Adonijah approached Solomon's mother to request the hand of David's concubine, Abishag. I'm not clear as to why Bathsheba granted Adonijah's request and appeared before Solomon to ask it in Adonijah's behalf. Taking a previous king's wife or concubine would be a direct challenge to the current king. Not only that, but Adonijah's first attempt, had it been successful, would have resulted in the certain death of both Solomon and Bathsheba in order to establish Adonijah's firm control of the throne. See 1 Kings 1:12.

In any event, I notice the deception in Adonijah's request to Bathsheba, "the kingdom was mine." Clearly a ploy to demonstrate a (faux) great loss at his expense, redounding to Solomon's (and Bathsheba's) good fortune, in order to apparently secure her willingness to pass along the request.

The kingdom was never Adonijah's! He made an attempt, had gotten important backing from key figures in David's court and secured much support, but the kingdom was not his and never was. It was not his to take and the failure in his attempt merely demonstrated the opposite of his justification for approaching Bathsheba with the request.

I have to assume Bathsheba may not have been a woman wise to the deceptive ways in which evil men can act. Solomon's response to Bathsheba as she passed along Adonijah's request was, "Why do you request Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? You might as well request the kingdom for him—after all, he is my older brother—yes, for him and for Abiathar the priest and Joab son of Zeruiah!" 1 Kings 2:22. I might add to Solomon's visceral rejection of Adonijah's request Nathan's observation: Adonijah's ascension to the throne would bring about the certain deaths of both Bathsheba and Solomon to establish it.

All for naught as the Lord had chosen Solomon to take the throne and Adonijah paid dearly for this second, rather ill-conceived attempt, with his life.

I am reminded of Jesus' words in dealing with the likes of Adonijah in this life, ",,, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." Matthew 10:16.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Forget the Religious Trappings! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 1:9-10,

"Adonijah then sacrificed sheep, cattle and fattened calves at the Stone of Zoheleth near En Rogel. He invited all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the royal officials of Judah, but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the special guard or his brother Solomon."

Adonijah, David's son, attempted to seize the throne of his father, David, for himself. The Lord had determined that Solomon would succeed David, and David had made it known, nevertheless, Adonijah made his attempt.

What was Adonijah's first action in his attempt? To get religious! Where I am sure the normal course of events in Israel at that time was to commemorate the passing of the throne with all the trappings of worship and obeisance to the Lord - even the illicit and illegitimate are attempted with such.

And, nothing new under the sun. I'm certain we have all had the nauseating experience in our own day of witnessing the attempt to legitimize the illegitimate with religious trappings.

I no longer allow myself to be influenced by religious displays, religious trappings, religious "cover". I have long ago learned to look to the Lord himself to find what is on the "up and up".

Spare me the religious displays! All too often exploited by deceivers who have their own agenda, not the Lord's, just like Adonijah.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Beyond the Hope of Prayer - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 25;3,

"By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine in the city had become so severe that there was no food for the people to eat."

The plight of those living in Jerusalem when Babylon came calling was severe.

The king of Judah (Mattaniah, renamed Zedekiah) that the king of Babylon had installed rebelled against him. Zedekiah was the uncle of King Jehoiachin of Judah, and in an earlier military victory over Judah, the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, removed Jehoiachin and replaced him with Zedekiah.

As I say, Zedekiah rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar and so the Babylonian army was dispatched and set up a siege against Jerusalem lasting two years. Then the city fell. What were the folks doing inside the walls of Jerusalem? In addition to starving to death, I suspect many were on their knees praying to the Lord for deliverance. This would be a deliverance that would not come. The Lord would not answer those prayers.

The headlines in the papers of the day (had there been any) may have read, "Babylon's siege of Jerusalem results in her defeat." This reported without any reference to what the Lord was busy doing behind the scenes. Just like today. The Lord is busy doing things and what we read of only reports on outcomes and never the true source of effect behind the scenes - what it is the Lord is doing. This "back-story" is provided us in 2 Kings 24:20, "It was because of the Lord's anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust them from his presence."

The people of Judah had spurned the Lord and following what might be considered "well-beyond-fair-warning" from the Lord, he decided to "thrust them from his presence." No amount of prayer, no amount of pleading by the folks behind the walls in Jerusalem would bring about the Lord's mercy and deliver them. They had placed themselves outside of the Lord's mercy and deliverance. Our God of love is also our God of justice and it was only justice that faced them now.

This will be the plight of all who fail to place their faith and trust in Jesus Christ in this life. If anyone assumes they can presume upon the Lord's mercy and kindness on judgment day (as the folks in Zedekiah's day might have), they need to read this account and learn the horrific message it provides: yes, we can place ourselves beyond the Lord's kindness and mercy and find ourselves in the cross-hairs of his terrible judgment. "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Losing Mercy, Finding Wrath

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 24:4,

"... the Lord was not willing to forgive."

In Exodus 34:6-7 God revealed himself to Moses. As he passed in front of Moses he said of himself, "The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation."

In this very revealing disclosure of himself, the Lord points to the two aspects of his nature to help us understand him. On the one hand he is compassionate, gracious, patient, loving, faithful and forgiving. On the other hand he is a just and righteous God who punishes people for their sin.

This comports with another passage where he reveals the same things of himself. We read in Jeremiah 9:24b, "'I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,' declares the Lord." We also read in Psalm 33:5, "The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love."

The Lord wants us to know these two things of his nature: he is both loving and also just. His acts of love are demonstrated throughout his creation and most poignantly in his work of redemption of mankind. His acts of justice are also demonstrated throughout his creation, and of course, will be on full parade-ground display at the great white throne judgment where unbelievers will be cast into that fiery lake of burning sulfur, Revelation 21:8.

Nothing more clearly manifests these two chief character traits of our God as the cross of Jesus Christ. On the one hand we see our loving Savior give his life on our behalf, offering himself up to pay the sins for every human being who has ever lived. No greater expression of love can be given - that one give his life for others. On the other hand, we witness God the Father accepting the sacrifice of Jesus Christ of that payment for our sins as the satisfaction of his sense of justice. God truly is loving and just.

At times, within ecclesiastical circles, it seems the love of God has been the focus - to the neglect of appreciation of his justice. Love does not trump justice in God's economy and justice does not trump love. Each work hand-in-hand and each support the other in ways that confound us mortals.

In our passage above, we see that Judah had plumbed the depths of God's nature through her sin and rejection of him and found where God's mercy and forgiveness yielded to the threshold of his justice. No more forgiveness, only wrath.

Such will be for all who spurn the love of God today. Those who reject the love of God and his offer of salvation through faith will find the wrath of God's justice awaiting them on judgment day.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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A Person of Faith Does What? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 23:1-2,

"Then the king [Josiah] called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. He went up to the temple of the Lord with the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets—all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the Lord."

The "Book of the Covenant" was the Bible at a stage in its development, including what we have as the first five books in our Bibles. The people of Judah had become so estranged from the Lord they lost it! Now found, King Josiah read it to everyone!

The Israelites had lost their Bible, just like people lose their Bibles today - lost on their bookshelves, lost on their coffee tables... gathering dust and ignored - awaiting some preconceived point in time when some "religious" impulse may move them to crack it open.

Lets get real here... Josiah did the only sane thing a person of faith would do - when you hold in your hands the very words of your Creator, you avail yourself of them! You read them. You consider what they say. You order your life by what is written within. After all, this life comes and goes and then we all stand before the author of the Scriptures and give an account of ourselves. 

Anything less is either insanity to one degree or another or the simple manifestation of a lack of faith - a disbelief that God has spoken to us in the Scriptures. Since Jesus Christ himself taught the Scriptures were the very words of God, our neglect of the Scriptures means we disbelieve what he has to say and reveal our rejection of him.

Real people of faith immerse themselves in the Scriptures. It is what people of real faith do. Don't fool yourself.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Losing the Word of God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 22:8a,

"Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, 'I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.'"

This "Book of the Law" was the Bible at its point of development by that time. It had been neglected so badly that it had been lost! Such was the state of Judah before the Lord sent the Babylonians to destroy her and take a remnant of Israelites captive. So far had they drifted from the Lord their ancestors had made a covenant with, they had lost the book that contained his very words, as well as the covenant they, as a people, had entered into with him.

How valuable might a book be that contains the very things our Creator says? How important might a book be that contains the thoughts, the actions, the intentions and agenda of the One who created us all and who maintains the cosmos we exist in? How consequential might a book be that explains where we came from, where we are going, who it was that created us and what he is like?

All this cast aside and lost! My comprehension of this is dumbfounding! Yet, this is how far Judah had drifted from her God.

How about us? How much dust does that Bible have on it as it lays on our coffee tables or sits in the bookshelf? Are we to treat God's word with the same contempt Judah had for it?

May we all bear the reverence and awe that is rightfully due the Lord from us by our intensive exploration of the Scriptures to know just who our Creator is, what he is like, his character and nature, what he is doing in the world today, what he has done in the past and what he has for us in the future. May we all know him well as he has revealed himself to us, as opposed to our own version of how we may "define" him.

We need to get our Bibles out and read today!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

"The Devil Made Me Do It." Really? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 21:1-6,

"Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. His mother's name was Hephzibah. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, following the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites. He rebuilt the high places his father Hezekiah had destroyed; he also erected altars to Baal and made an Asherah pole, as Ahab king of Israel had done. He bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshiped them. He built altars in the temple of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, 'In Jerusalem I will put my Name.' In the two courts of the temple of the Lord, he built altars to all the starry hosts. He sacrificed his own son in the fire, practiced divination, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger."

Manasseh was clearly one of the worst of the kings of Judah's twenty monarchs. His father, Hezekiah, who preceded him on the throne, was one of the eight good kings of Judah who had done right "in the eyes of the Lord". Yet, here, his offspring, Manasseh, reversed the course of good Hezekiah pointed the nation to.

Such is that sinful nature of ours. We can have the best of upbringings, the most wonderful influences around us, and we can still, on a personal basis, fail to make our choice to follow the Lord. In Manasseh's case, he led an entire country astray... and, that country being God's own covenanted people!

Perhaps, because his reign began at twelve years of age, he was easily influenced away from his late father's disposition toward the Lord. Perhaps the opportunity for King Hezekiah to rear his son in the things of the Lord was cut short, his son failed to engage in the the things of the Lord.

Nonetheless, each man, each woman, regardless of their lineage, regardless of their upbringing, regardless of the influences that help shape their perspectives as they grow up, regardless of all those kinds of things, have their own free will to choose whether to follow the Lord or not.

I am reminded that each and every one of us will stand before the Lord and give an account of ourselves. The penetrating knowledge the Lord has of each and every one of us will leave us all without any excuse, without any exemption from the Lord's wrath over our sin. Because we each have a free will the Lord has given us, we will not be absolved of the decisions we make and actions we take in spite of the upbringing we have had.

"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." Hebrews 4:13.

We may try "the devil made me do it" gambit, but without fail, we will find ourselves in the cross-hairs of God's judgment of us. Since I have no excuse for my sin, and since I recognize my many sins and my unfitness for an eternity in God's family, how thankful I am for his Son, Jesus Christ!

He paid the penalty for my sin. He made the way for me. He provided for me (and all of us!) the opportunity to be made fit for heaven (righteousness). All he asks is that we turn from our sin to trust in him!

As Ann Coulter says, "You can't find a better deal than that!"

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

The Lord Has His Own Agenda - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 20:6c,

"I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David."

Jerusalem has been, and still is, called the city of David. It is where David built his palace and established his throne. It is also the city where his son, Solomon, when he became king, built the temple of the Lord. As such, it is not difficult to see why the Lord said he would defend Jerusalem against Assyrian aggression "for the sake of my servant David."

However, why did the Lord say he would spare the city for his own sake? What did he mean by that? How could sparing the city of Jerusalem redound to the sake of the Lord?

I suspect we all often think of those things that concern us, our cares, our goals, our aspirations. I also suspect we all spend time on our knees in prayer about those things before the Lord, e.g. the health and welfare of our children and our spouses; our jobs, our own health and safety, and so on.

Something that may get overlooked from time to time, however, is that which concerns the Lord, those things that he feels are important and need to be addressed. We may be on our knees addressing the Lord with our cares and concerns, but he may be afoot addressing directly those things he wants accomplished. The Lord has his priorities, his goals, his accomplishments that he pursues. We see this in passages like Isaiah 55:10-11, 

"As the rain and the snow
    come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
    without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
    so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
    It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
    and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."

Clearly the Lord has his purposes and his desires. These he accomplishes well. When we read the Lord has decided to defend Jerusalem for his sake, he is referring to just these priorities of his.

The Lord's goals and priorities for planet earth are not a mystery. He has revealed to us in the pages of Scripture his agenda of building a family for himself, the ultimate goal of all creation. His agenda, very clearly and very simply is the redemption of mankind for himself. He has provided for this redemption through the sacrificial death of his Son on that miserable cross. And, now, he seeks all who will embrace him in faith.

In all of history, all the great acts of the Lord find their appointed fulfillment in the redemption of mankind. It is when we understand this that we understand both what the Lord has done in history and what he is busy doing today.

It is my understanding that this is how sparing Jerusalem was for his own sake, as well as David's. Sparing Jerusalem until later, when the Babylonians took the remnant of Jews captive, did the Lord prepare his people for the eventual advent of his Son when he came to earth two millenia ago. Following the return of the Jews to the land, having their hearts impacted by their captivity helped set the stage for the Lord's coming when he arrived.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Whose God is He? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 19:15,

"Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth."

This was the confession of King Hezekiah of Judah when he sought the Lord's deliverance of Jerusalem from Sennacherib, King of Assyria. Sennacherib had sent a message of threat to Hezekiah, telling him that "the god you depend on" would not be able to defend Judah against Assyria's aggression.

Where Sennacherib pointed to the failure of the "gods" of other nations he had overtaken, Hezekiah recognized that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was the God of all nations of the earth, including Assyria, as well as her victims.

As God is the Creator of the heavens and earth, it was he that established all nations of the earth and sits as the Lord Almighty over them all. Paul points to God as the One who had instituted nation-states among all mankind, "From one man [Adam] he ["the God who made the world and everything in it"] made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands." Paul observes, "[God] is the Lord of heaven and earth". Acts 17:24-26.

Both King Hezekiah and the apostle Paul teach us that the God of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the Creator God who established all the nations of the earth. He is God of all peoples. He is the God of Muslim countries, he is the God of communist countries, he is God of all the nations that make up NATO and the European Union. He is the Lord God of all mankind. He is the God of atheists, he is the God of homosexuals, of murderers and rapists as well as the "pillars of the community." He is the God of liberals, conservatives, libertarians and progressives, of Democrats and Republicans. 

Somewhere along the line many folks have arrived at the notion that whomever you accept as your god is your god. Nothing could be further from the truth. Many folks assume that God is only the god of Christians and Jews. God is the God of all mankind, every human being who has ever lived, every nation that has ever existed.

Consequently, King Hezekiah could take his fears to his own God as well as his plea for deliverance from Sennacherib, because Sennacherib's God was one in the same.

The implications of this are far-reaching. As we face the challenges of the day, knowing God is God of every last human being and every last nation on earth should influence our thinking and help us understand what God is doing on planet earth as he rolls out his agenda of redemption among all mankind.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Who Speaks for the Lord? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 18:25,

"Have I [the commander of Assyria's army] come to attack and destroy this place [Jerusalem] without word from the Lord? The Lord himself told me to march against this country and destroy it."

This statement was made by the commander of Assyria's military to the representatives of King Hezekiah of Judah. The Assyrian army had come to do just what the commander had said: to attack and destroy Jerusalem - that the Lord told him to do it. However, we read of the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah in the next chapter, "This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me." 2 Kings 19:6. We then read that the Assyrian army withdrew according to the word of the Lord through Isaiah.

Clearly, though the commander of Assyria's army claimed the Lord told him to attack and destroy Jerusalem, the Lord had not and saved Jerusalem from him.

Unfortunately, it is not unheard of that someone claims to speak for the Lord when it is not the case. The many religions we see today. The many "expressions" of Christianity we see today, the many conflicting theologians, preachers and pastors, the many conflicting "Christian" and other "religious" books all testify to the reality that not all who claim to speak for God actually do. I suspect very, very few do. The reason I believe that is the Lord has already said what he has to say through his chosen apostles and prophets in the pages of Scripture. I'm not suggesting the Lord is done speaking to mankind... far from it. However, what it is he has to say to us has been said and sadly, is ignored by most "believers" who seem preoccupied with other "sources".

It seems to be rare to find those who are well trained in the Scriptures. It seems rare to find those who are informed of the things of the Lord, what he has done, what he is doing today and what is coming our way from him in the future. It seems rare to find those who really know the Lord, his character and nature, what he is like, what his agenda is, what he is doing. It isn't that folks don't have opinions, it is that those opinions that often get expressed are those derived from listening to others, who, like Assyria's commander, really don't speak from the Lord.

We need to be of those who are well informed. We need to know the Scriptures, we need to know what they have to say. When we do, we will know the Lord, we will know what he is like, we will know what he has done, what he is doing today and what he has coming our way in the future. Paul's admonition here is very fitting, "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15. Paul here is talking about the Scriptures. In the following chapter he reminds us, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Treasure From Trash - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 17:22-23,

"The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them until the Lord removed them from his presence, as he had warned through all his servants the prophets. So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there."

The Lord gave his covenanted people Israel more than fair warning of the disaster that awaited them if they turned from him. However, as we read in verse 14, "They would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their ancestors, who did not trust in the Lord their God." All about trust in the Lord, all about faith in the Lord. Israel had placed herself apart from any meaningful use by the Lord in his pursuit of the redemption of mankind. Since they had made themselves useless to the Lord's agenda, they were thrown out, just like trash. The judgment of the Lord can and has been overwhelmingly devastating.

One wonders what the thinking of the Israelites was. To what end did they suppose their existence as God's chosen people was owed? Why on earth did they fail to see their part in God's great redemption of mankind? How was it they missed their grand appointment, their lofty purpose, the unspeakable honor and prestige of being chosen by God for his purposes?

Sadly, such is sin. The grand appointment as God's covenanted people, the lofty purpose to what they were called to, the honor and prestige of being chosen by God for his highest purpose for mankind was tossed out like garbage, and so they were as well. "So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there." In captivity, estranged from God, separated from his purposes. Israel had made herself useless.

The remarkable thing about the Lord, though, is how he can make treasure from trash. The southern kingdom of Judah was still in existence at this time, however, they would be headed in the same direction in just a few generations. Israel, it might be thought, would be done. But... our heavenly father can do the remarkable. Paul tells us, "God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not." Romans 4:17b.

Following the fall of the southern kingdom of Judah in 586 BC, and her captivity of seventy years, the Lord brought Israel back to life, used her to prepare the world (through the instruction of the prophets and the Scriptures), and to bring his Son into the world, Jesus Christ, to provide for the redemption of all who place their faith in him.

Amazing how the Lord can make treasure from trash! Just look at all of us who have embraced Jesus Christ in faith!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.