Tag Archives: scribes

The way of the cross (Luke 20:46-47) December 29, 2016

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Song of Songs 5-6

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 20:46-47
Jesus: Beware of the religious scholars. They like to parade around in long robes. They love being greeted in the marketplaces. They love taking the best seats in the synagogues. They adore being seated around the head table at banquets. But in their greed they rob widows of their houses and cover up their greed with long pretentious prayers. Their condemnation will be all the worse because of their hypocrisy.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Do you know any of those? Are you one of those? You know, people that dig into God’s word just to trip other people up? They nitpick words and phrases to get their point across and condemn everyone around them for failing to see the message those words send us from God’s word. They stand firm on their conviction that what they say is absolutely true because they pulled it from the Book. And if God said it, it must be true.

Those people are right in one respect. What God says is true. But we have to be careful not to take His words out of context. The Bible says there is no God – that is if we stop in the middle of the psalmist’s thoughts. The rest of the words around that phrase says there is no God in a fools heart.

But those people are deadly wrong in the misuse of God’s word. They play with fire when they misrepresent God using His words to guide people in ways contradictory to the plan He has for us. Remember Satan used scripture often to entice people to do wrong. He even used scripture against Jesus to tempt Him to take shortcuts to His rightful place as Lord of all nations and all people. Jesus didn’t fall for it because He knew scripture and knew the missing parts. Because He knew scripture, Jesus recognized the fallacies in Satan’s arguments and recognized him for who he was. The tempter. The adversary. A lion roaming the earth seeking whom he might devour.

Those folks Jesus talks about look good on the outside. They are members of churches. They sit on boards and councils. They determine the direction denominations will go over the next years. They collect and spend the offerings that pour into the churches in the form of tithes and offerings. They teach and preach from God’s word, but it is often a perverted message that doesn’t share what God intends His word to share.

I’m certainly not talking about every Bible scholar and every preacher who fills a pulpit. There are some great men and women sharing God’s word and doing their very best for the kingdom. But there are some that use their religious platforms for their own greed and power. They care more about the size of their wallet than they do the size of their heart. If you’re listening to God through His word, you can figure out who they are pretty quickly. His word does not steer you wrong.

Is there hypocrisy in my church? Unfortunately, I would have to say yes, there is. I can see it in the lives of some of the members. Is there hypocrisy in your church? If I were a gambler, I would bet a paycheck there are. And I would bet another paycheck that I’m not wrong in that assessment. Our churches are full of hypocrites. But that’s okay. Look who Jesus was talking to. He was addressing the scribes and Pharisees. The scholars who knew scripture better than anyone else. The leaders of the faith. They attended services faithfully. They participated in all the rituals faithfully. They gave their tithe and more faithfully. Yet Jesus called them hypocrites.

Did that stop Jesus from going to the temple to worship? Certainly not. Did it stop Him from participating in those same rituals? Absolutely not. He did them faithfully, understanding fully the reason behind those rituals. Did it stop Jesus from continuing to study God’s word and using it to support His messages to the crowds that followed Him? We see that most of His preaching took text from the ancient writings of the law given to Moses and the prophets and the writings that existed worship places of the Jews.

Jesus recognized the hypocrites wherever He went, but He still preached to them, healed them, ministered to them, invited them to follow Him. He never stopped them from being around Him to hear and witness the kingdom of God in their midsts. Jesus knew the only way to reach a hypocrite was to allow them to join into genuine, intimate worship. Until they see the difference between their fake religion and real righteousness, they will continue to fall prey to Satan’s lies. But when they draw near and listen, they have the opportunity to hear the message, make amends, repent of their hypocrisy and find their way back to God and His kingdom living.

Just stay in God’s word. You can pick them out. And when you do, be very careful that you don’t fall into the same traps they fell into. Stay rooted in the word. The whole thing, not just your favorite chapters and verses. The hypocrites will see your walk and maybe find a new way, a better way, the way of the cross. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

The election is over (Luke 11:46-52) November 11, 2016

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Zechariah 1-7

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 11:46-52
Jesus: Well, now that you mention it, watch out, all you religious scholars! Judgment will come on you too! You load other people down with unbearable burdens of rules and regulations, but you don’t lift a finger to help others. Woe to you; you don’t fool anybody! You seem very religious—honoring the prophets by building them elaborate memorial tombs. Come to think of it, that’s very fitting, since you’re so much like the people who killed the prophets! They killed the prophets; you build their tombs—you’re all in the same family business!
This is why the Wisdom of God said, “I will send these people My prophets and emissaries, and these people will kill and persecute many of them.” As a result, this generation will be held accountable for the blood of all the prophets shed from the very beginning of time, from Abel’s blood to Zechariah’s blood, who was killed in the temple itself between the altar and the holy place. I’m serious: this generation will be held accountable.
So, religious scholars, judgment will come on you! You’re supposed to be teachers, unlocking the door of knowledge and guiding people through it. But the fact is, you’ve never even passed through the doorway yourselves. You’ve taken the key, left the door locked tight, and stood in the way of everyone who sought entry.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

We are three days past the election in the United States and we’ve never needed to hear words like these more than today. Yes, Mr. Trump has won the Electoral College and will be the next President. And yes, it appears Mrs. Clinton will win the popular vote and lose the election. Those whose candidate won have rubbed it in the face of the losers, called names, demanded immediate change when no one has taken office yet. Those whose candidate lost have taken to the streets in protest and said Mr. Trump isn’t their President. I’ve been pretty amazed at the way people who say they are Christians have reacted on both sides of the fence.

What ever happened to grace? The election is over and whatever your personal opinion, the presidency has been decided. The framers of our Constitution were really brilliant men when they wrote the rules for electing the national leadership of the country. Even in the nation’s infancy, they knew a representative democracy allowed the smallest voices to be heard. So those who decry the outcome of the popular versus the Electoral College should look back in history at the other four times this has happened. Look at the election results by country and discover that the small and mid-sized towns went one direction and the metropolitan areas went another.

The country is divided urban against suburban and rural. Which life is better? Neither. They are different. Which one do you like? It’s your preference. Half the country lives and works in one, half the country lives and works in the other. Half the country voted for one candidate. Half the country voted for the other. This time, it just so happens those that feed the nation, the places considered the rural areas won the right to choose the next president. Is that bad? Not according to them. Is it good? Not according to the urbanites.

So what should we do? If the nation is so divided along the country lines described by this election? Should the rural areas just stop sending food to the cities since their political views are so different? Should the cities stop sending electricity and other metropolitan services to rural areas since they can’t seem to see eye to eye? Who wins in such a nation?

I mentioned Jesus earlier words, “A kingdom divided against itself will collapse.” So what will we do in the coming days? As Christians we can teach our brothers and sisters to act like Christ rather than the scribes He speaks to in the words we heard today. We can stand in the way and build those barriers. We can continue to criticize the other side and talk about how terrible the other party is and how corrupt the opposition has become. We can complain about how poorly run the government will be because of the divide and how nothing will get done.

Or we can do something remarkable as Christians. We can lift every newly elected official in prayer. We can send them messages of encouragement and stand behind them as our leaders regardless of their party affiliation. We can determine that together we can bring unity to our land, not a party member, but as an American. We can forget about color and gender and race and socioeconomic standing. We can begin to show the love of God to all the people who live in our neighborhood and show them what really matters is belonging to the Kingdom of God and nothing more.

Did your candidate win? It doesn’t matter because God allowed Mr. Trump to win the Electoral College vote. Never forget that! God allowed the 45th President of the United States to have never held a public office, never served in the Armed Forces, never been a government employee. God allowed the election to turn the way it did. This has not surprised Him. So what do we do now?

“If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” See, we have not elected the right candidate in a long time. It’s time we get down to business, quit complaining, quit acting like the scribes and Pharisees, humble ourselves, turn from our wicked ways, and pray folks. Our nation needs it, our leaders need it, we need it, I need it. It’s time.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Don’t sound a trumpet (Mark 12:43-44) September 4, 2016

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – 2 Timothy 3-4

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 12:43-44
Jesus (calling His disciples together): Truly this widow has given a greater gift than any other contribution. All the others gave a little out of their great abundance, but this poor woman has given God everything she has.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

I haven’t seen one in a long time, but I remember you could find them at least while my kids were little. Okay, stop the suspense. What I’m I talking about. I’m talking about those big yellow or red plastic or metal barrels with a funnel shaped top that you put a coin at the top and it spins around and around until it falls into the hole in the funnel and disappears into the big barrel. It’s fun to see how many times you can make the coins spin around the outside of the conical shaped top before it finally disappears into the cavern below.

We tried to limit the size of the contribution to those things to pennies at those amusement centers whenever we found them, because of course you’d never see the coins again and the only excitement was watching the coin spin around and disappear. But on the metal ones, nickles sounded so much better than pennies, and when dimes and quarters were real silver, the difference in sound was really incredible. The coins seemed to sing as they spun around that metal cone before the barrel gobbled them up.

So what does that have to do with Jesus’ words. Well, at the entrance to the temple, there were these contraptions similar to the devices I just described from my childhood that you’ve probably seen as well. But these were made of brass. They were designed so that when coins were dropped into them, the coins would fall into the container at the bottom, but no one could put their hand into the opening at the top and steal any. But this conical shape at the top made it easy to just toss money in without much fear of missing the opening. Surprisingly, the word used to describe these vessels in Hebrew, was the word trumpet.

So get this picture. When Jesus talks about not sounding your trumpets before men, picture these scribes and Pharisees and Sadducees dressed in their fine linens and purple robes. Picture them in all their tapestry and finery walking into the temple gates and brushing aside all those layers of robes to unveil their money purse. They watch in your mind as they loosen the ties and reach into that purse to find the right silver coin. He holds it up to the light and checks to see if it well rounded with no rough edges.

Then with years of practice, he puts a special spin on that coin and it twirls around and around that brass trumpet singing to the crowd as gravity finally pulls it into the hole and into the treasure chest. Finally, the clink of the coin echoes in the chamber and he looks around to make sure everyone heard that familiar sound. He has paid well. His trumpet has sounded before men!

Contrast that to the widow Jesus describes. She comes to the temple in her rags. She barely has enough to eat. Remember, women have no place in society. Without a husband, she is left to beg and hope that some family member will have mercy on her and give her some means of sustenance. But she still comes to the temple and as she approaches that same trumpet, she has already been holding tight to the only two coins in her purse. It’s only two pennies, but it’s all she has. It’s not much, but it’s everything.

She’s almost embarrassed to walk among these great men of prominence who have made their money sing in the trumpets, but she is determined to give what she has and so she reaches far over into the middle of the device and slips the coins into the hole, careful that they don’t touch the sides. She would place them on the pile of coins at the bottom so they would make no noise at all if she could. She wants no attraction. She just wants to give her offering and get to the court of women to pray.

Jesus admires the woman and her gift. Not so much those who want the fanfare for their “generosity”. He says they have already had their reward, the praise of men. But what is that worth? I’d much rather have the favor of God. When we do things to please men, we lose because we can never please everyone. And the next time, they will expect more anyway. But when we do things to please God, He knows our heart. He knows the motive behind the action. He doesn’t care about the size of the act, but about the heart behind the act. But remember He does know the heart behind the act.

God will be thrilled when He gets “C+” work from His “C” student. But don’t expect Him to get very excited when He gets that same “C+” work from His “B” student. He expects us to give Him our all, to work hard for Him, to commit everything to Him. After all, He is God and He deserves it. Don’t sound your trumpet, just do it.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Who should we follow? (Mark 12:38-40) September 3, 2016

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – John 13-15

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 12:38-40
Jesus: Watch out for the scribes who act so religious—who like to be seen in pious clothes and to be spoken to respectfully in the marketplace, who take the best seats in the synagogues and the place of honor at every dinner, who spend widows’ inheritances and pray long prayers to impress others. These are the kind of people who will be condemned above all others.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

They look righteous, but they’re not. They look like they are in touch with God, but they’re far from it. They have all the right trappings, but clothes don’t matter. They can pray up a storm. Well, maybe not, but they now how to put a lot of good sounding words together that sounds like they reach to heaven. But they don’t. People see them coming and bow their heads. They like it a little too much. They always sit at the head table and frown if they’re not at the head table. Not such a great attribute on God’s character scale. They know how to raise money. Well, they know how to spend other people’s money, anyway. Temple projects and needs draw from the poorest of the nation because everyone wants to contribute as their rhetoric builds enthusiasm for their pet plans. Only they don’t give so much, except their name to the project.

Sound familiar? Know anyone like that? I’m afraid there are too many of them around in today’s world. Those who want to call themselves religious leaders, but for all their pomp and ceremony, they really don’t have the goods. They look nice on the posters. Their flashy smiles and quick wit draws huge crowds. But their message is really pretty empty.

“Just be good and everything will be okay.” Only that’s not what Jesus said. He said we must come to Him in repentance if we want to see heaven.

“Don’t worry about being too religious. As long as you’re better than most of the people around you, God will look out for you.” Only that’s not what Jesus said. He said none of us meet the standard. It’s only because of His shed blood we have any hope at all.

“Don’t worry about all that sin talk from the fundamentalists. God loves everyone. He won’t send anyone to hell.” Only that’s not what Jesus said. He said those who do not repent will find themselves in an eternal hell where the fire is never quenched and the worm never dies.

So who do we look to for guidance then? Who do we follow to make sure we’re on the right path? Who do we emulate to ensure we make it through the pearly gates and don’t get the same pronouncement Jesus gave the scribes who act so righteous?

It’s really an easy answer. Follow Jesus. If you get your eyes on anyone else, they are closer to God that you are. They are between you and God. Interesting thought, isn’t it? And God doesn’t want His relationship with you to go over, around, or through anyone else. He wants it with you. So just watch Jesus.

You say, but He’s been gone 2,000 years. He ascended into heaven and I can’t put my eyes on Him like His disciples did. How am I supposed to watch Jesus and be like Him?

It’s really an easy answer again. He left His word with us. His spirit inspired men to pen His instructions and those letters, those scriptures, have passed down through the generations. There are more and older copies of the Old and New Testaments than any other ancient book. And remarkably, well, not so remarkable, God did it, the oldest manuscripts all the way to the most modern all say the same thing. The scribes who copied and preserved God’s word were so meticulous in their work that manuscripts from 500 years apart in production are identical in content.

So just read His word. See what He has to say. Read the stories of His life as recorded in the gospels. Observe how He treated people, how He taught and shared the message of God’s love and hope for all who would listen. Watch how He dealt with sin as He forgave those who came to Him. He never condoned their behavior, but He forgave them and built relationships with them.

Then read the letters from His Apostles and disciples to the earliest churches. Read the instructions Paul gave his proteges. Listen to the words again and again until they become part of you. Follow Jesus’ example in thought, word, and deed. That’s how you emulate Him. Just read what He has to say and then do it.

Then carry on a conversation with Him every day, several times a day. Get in the habit of asking Him the direction He wants you to take. If you truly want to follow Him, He will guide you. God has a funny way of getting involved in our lives when we ask. He’s a good Father. He’ll give you advice. Just ask.

So who do we follow, Jesus and that’s good enough for anyone. In fact He’s the only one to follow. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Is it blasphemy? (Mark 2:5-11) July 9, 2016

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Luke 19-20

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 2:5-11
5Jesus recognized the faith of these men.
Jesus (to the paralyzed man): Son, your sins are forgiven.
Some scribes were sitting in the crowd, and they didn’t like what they were hearing.
Scribes (reasoning to themselves): What does this Jesus think He is doing? This kind of talk is blasphemy, an offense against the Most High! Only God can forgive sins.
At once Jesus realized what they were thinking. He turned to them.
Jesus: Why do My words trouble you so? Think about this: is it easier to tell this paralyzed man, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to tell him, “Get up, pick up your mat, and walk”? Still, I want to show you that the Son of Man has been given the authority on earth to forgive sins. (to the paralytic) Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

The scribes were the authorities on scripture. They not only preserved them by coping them from one scroll to another, but they also spent years learning them. They learned what their forefathers thought about their interpretation and carried those interpretations from generation to generation. The scribes did the research on topics when the priests wanted to know something. They could find whatever subjects someone was looking for, which was a minor miracle in Jesus day. Remember, chapters and verses didn’t appear in scriptures until the Geneva Bible translation in 1599. So these guys were the PhDs of biblical knowledge.

Then Jesus comes on the scene. He’s pulling out information that confounds the scribes. They have to search deeper and find passages He quotes that they haven’t used because they’re not very familiar to them. His teaching doesn’t fit the normal pattern and they have to brush off their books and find what He’s talking about. But it’s there. He’s using scripture, but He’s using it in ways they’ve never heard before.

Now He’s talking to this paralytic who wants help with His disease and instead of healing him, this Man says his sins are forgiven. “Who do you think you are? What do you think you’re doing? No one can forgive sins but God and there’s a ritual you have to go through before that can happen. He has to make an offering in the temple. Payment must be made to the priest so a sacrifice can be made. It’s God’s way to ensure the priests make a living, after all. Why would He think He can side-step the temple and take away the priests’ livelihood? This is blasphemy!”

Now, maybe there’s the rest of the story. But maybe not. These scribes couldn’t see how God could come to earth in the likeness of sinful man. They couldn’t believe that God would wrap Himself in human flesh and live among us. So Jesus could not be the Son of God and so couldn’t forgive sins.

But the words are easy to say. Jesus knew that. The scribes knew that. Everyone in the room knew that. Even the paralytic knew that even though he immediately felt the guilt from his past lift from his heart as the words left Jesus’ lips. But to show Jesus had power over the hearts of men, He show those present He also had power over the physical bodies of men. He told the paralytic to get up, roll up the mat he was lying on and walk out the door. Then Jesus reached out His hand and help the man stand to his feet. I expect Jesus only watched as the man rolled up his mat and danced around the room on his way to the door, shouting praise and thanksgiving to the Lord of lords.

What do we need to learn from this scene?

Some have a hard time believing Jesus can forgive. They recognize Jesus as a good man, even a prophet connected to God and able to use that connection to do good things, even miraculous things for people. But God? Some have a hard time with that and so go through life like the scribes questioning His ability to rid them of the guilt that weighs them down. Some just can’t see past their own intellectual understanding of the universe, as finite as it is, to see that there are so many things that can only be explained by putting faith in God, the creator of all things. Some just can’t believe the Bible is not just a collection of stories, but the record of God’s love for humankind and His plan for our redemption.

Is the Bible accurate? Yes. Every time someone tries to prove something doesn’t fit historic facts, archeologists seem to uncover evidence that the Bible, not the historic facts are true. Is it scientific? No. It’s not meant to be. It’s the story of what God does for us and why, not how. Our finite minds can never wrap around the infinite wisdom of God. Just one simple thought to consider to boggle our finite mind: Scientists tell us everything is made of atoms. And atoms are mostly empty space. So much so that scientist tell us that if all the empty space in the universe could be removed and the solid mass of the universe condensed into a single object, some say it would take up the space of a house and some say as small as a basketball. So why can’t we just walk through walls? I know the quantum physics answer, but it does make you wonder about God’s design in it all, doesn’t it? After all, where did those, electrons and protons come from to repel each other in the first place to form those atoms we’re talking about?

So when the Bible tells us proves to be true, then when it says Jesus is God in the flesh, that must be true, too. And we exercise just a little faith in that truth, scripture opens up to us in incredible ways. Just try it. You’ll find He really can forgive sins. He forgave mine and He can forgive yours, too. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.