Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 15-16

“Even if Moses and Samuel stood before Me, My mind would not be favorable toward this people” (15:1). What a stinging indictment against God’s people! Moses and Samuel were two of the greatest intercessors in Israel’s history. Moses’ intercession and pleading in Exodus 32:11-14, 30-32 is perhaps the greatest ever recorded in Scripture. Samuel’s call to return to the Lord, his offering and his ceaseless prayer on Israel’s behalf was heard and answered by God in the deliverance from the Philistines (1 Sam 7:2-14). But as great as these two men were, their righteous pleadings would not be enough to persuade the Lord to relent from the evil He intended to do to Israel for her sin. Specifically, the Lord identified the sins of Manasseh as the cause of this calamity. I find this interesting as 2 Chronicles 33:10-17 records Manasseh’s repentance as the cause of this calamity. I find this interesting as 2 Chronicles 33:10-17 records Manasseh’s repentance following a period of captivity in Assyria. Even though he was able to save his soul, the damage to the nation had already been done. We should remember that though we might be saved from sin, there may still be serious consequences to be paid.

New Testament reading: Mark 7-8

“It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.” This is one of the most perplexing statements recorded from the mouth of the Lord. At first, it appears as though the Lord is insulting the woman by not only referring to her as a dog, a despicable animal in the eyes of the people of that day, but as a “little dog.” Of course, our Lord never committed a sin, and it would have been a sin to so insult her in this way. The Lord is here testing the sincerity of the woman’s faith. The woman responds with a beautiful statement, revealing both her wit and sincerity. Her wit is seen in her immediate acceptance of the Lord’s label and her sincerity with her ready retort that implies her understanding of her station in life and society: ‘If I must be a dog, I shall accept it as even dogs are satisfied with the Master’s crumbs.’ Her persistent faith was rewarded as the Master spoke the words of healing for the woman’s daughter. She epitomizes the Lord’s parable concerning prayer in Luke 18:1-5.

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 13-14

The parable of the linen sash (Jer 13:1-11). I am ashamed to admit that I have never studied this text until now. We often think of parables as being New Testament literature, but the Old Testament is filled with parables, most notably the one Nathan told David in 2 Samuel 12:1-15. The linen sash was a precious item and required great care. Keeping it free from water, at God’s command Jeremiah traveled to the land of the Babylonians and hid it in a rock near the Euphrates River. Many days later, Jeremiah was instructed to return and fetch the sash, only to find it ruined and “profitable for nothing.” So was the state of Judah. Filled with great pride (v 9), God would soon carry Judah to Babylon in throes of captivity, represented by the ruin of the sash. A second parable follows this one in the bottles of wine. Again Judah’s sickening pride is on display as Jeremiah speaks of the bottles being filled with wine. “Well of course they are going to be filled! Everyone knows that!” was the response of the people. But what God had in mind and what Judah thought were not the same. God was going to smite the people with drunkenness, a reference to their staggering and helplessness in the day of their destruction. They would run to and fro and dash themselves against one another. Once again (14:11), Jeremiah is instructed not to pray for the good of Judah.

New Testament reading: Mark 5-6

It was a test of faith from Day One. Although all the accounts of our Lord calling the twelve are not recorded, the five that we have in Mark 1-2 are intriguing. Jesus gave a simple command to “Follow Me.” All five left their jobs behind and followed Jesus. In Mark 6, Jesus takes it a step further… a BIG step further. It is one thing to forsake all to follow a man whom you have seen and believe to be the Messiah. It is another altogether to leave His side and start traveling to preach with nothing but a staff and the clothes on one’s back. No money, no food, no change of clothes, nothing but faith in the man Jesus. Moreover, the message they were sent to preach was the same as John’s (Matt 3:2) and of Jesus Himself (Matt 4:17) – “Repent!” Preaching repentance is no way to fill one’s coffers or his stomach, but they went and preached as they were told. Now that’s faith!

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 11-12

Today’s reading again reveals how God’s word is not diminished by time. Jeremiah 11 begins with a Divine exhortation to Jeremiah to call to remembrance the covenant made between God and Israel as they prepared to enter Canaan. Jeremiah 11:3 makes reference to Deuteronomy 27:26 –“Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant.” This covenant had been made some 800 years earlier as Israel stood at the threshold of the “land flowing with milk and honey” (Jer 11:5), yet God refers to it as if the ink is still wet. There is an unusual statement in Jeremiah 11:14 that was first seen in 7:16, wherein God forbids the prophet to pray for the people. In the first instance, God says He would not hear Jeremiah. In the second appearance, God says he will not hear Judah when they cry out in the day of trouble. There is a similar text in 1 John 5, wherein Christians are instructed not to pray for forgiveness of those who refuse to repent and cease from sin. In that context, such is called “sinning a sin unto death” (v 16). Chapter 11 also contains the first threat to Jeremiah’s life (vv 19-21). Being a faithful prophet was serious business, and many literally gave up their lives to proclaim God’s word.

New Testament reading: Mark 3-4

For some reason, everyone believes they’re the good soil. In the parable of the soils in Mark 4, we find four different results from the seed being planted. The stony ground, the thorny ground and the good ground all represent those who believe and obey the gospel. Those on the stony ground are easily identified today. They stick around a little while, but they don’t last long. The good ground is also easily identified. Those who obey the gospel and bear fruit are easily seen. But what about the “thorny ground Christian?” There are far more thorny ground Christians than we might think. Look at the characteristics of the thorny ground Christian and consider, how many Christians are “too busy” to read their Bibles every day, too busy to attend all the assemblies, too busy to teach Bible class, too busy to do the work of the church, including evangelism? Many churches are full of thorny ground Christians who look the part but do not bear the fruit. Let us examine ourselves to find our true soil type!

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 9-10

Today’s reading contains what is perhaps the most well known verse in all of this great book: “O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps” (10:23). “Walk” here is used as it often appears in the New Testament, meaning to live and go through life. Chapter 9 is a continuation of Jeremiah’s mourning over Judah that was begun in Jeremiah 8:18. Jeremiah was mourning over the hurt of his people (8:21) for which there appeared to be no balm or medicine (8:22). Now Jeremiah turns his attention to his own sorrow over Judah’s sins and his desire to remove himself from such a wicked people. Jeremiah 9:3 condemns them as liars and lacking valiance for truth. “They proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know Me, says the Lord.” Isaiah put it this way, “Rebellious children… add sin to sin” (Isa 30:1). Judah could not be satisfied with sin, for no sooner had they brought one sin to a conclusion that they ran to commit another. There is an interesting allusion in Jeremiah 9:17-19, wherein reference is made to the hiring of professional wailers to bewail the sins and punishment of the people. This was a common practice among the Jews, and it continued even into the days of the New Testament (cf Mark 5:38-39).

New Testament reading: Mark 1-2

I need to obey Jesus, even if it doesn’t make sense to me. In Mark 1:40-45 we see an account of Jesus healing a leper, but instructing him not to tell anyone of the deed, only to show himself to the priest and offer a sacrifice for his cleansing according the law of Moses. Instead, the man “went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter.” The result was that Jesus could no longer walk freely in the city. Thus, this man’s disobedience caused untold people to miss the opportunity to see and hear Jesus. Perhaps the man thought, “Jesus is just being modest; He doesn’t want to be a braggart, so I will do the bragging for Him.” Even the noblest of motives is no excuse for disobedience. Jesus always knows best! God’s directives and prohibitions are always for our good always (Deut 6:24). Moreover, when I do what God says it also blesses others. Failure to obey is a blight on me and a curse to those around me.

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 7-8

“You will speak to them, but they will not obey. You will call to them, but they will not answer” (Jer 7:27). How would you like to be sent to preach to a people already knowing that they will not respond to God’s pleas for repentance? Jeremiah had been instructed to stand in the doorway of the Temple and call out to God’s people (7:2). God’s offer to forgive and secure the continuation of the nation stood firm, provided Judah was willing to forsake the lies of idolatry, amend her ways and execute judgment among the people (7:3-7). Of interest here is verse 4. At first the text seems odd, with three repetitions of “the temple of the Lord.” It seems the Jews had fallen into the same error as their forefathers, namely, believing their outward religious exercises were some magic shield of protection against their enemies. As Hophni and Phineahas trotted out the ark in 1 Samuel 4, the Jews of Jeremiah’s day continued their religious service to God, while at the same time practiced all the disgusting rites and rituals of idolatry. Outward religiosity is no substitute for genuine spiritual service and is of no efficacy to the body or soul. In closing today, Jeremiah 8:20 is one of the saddest verses in all the Bible.

New Testament reading: Matthew 27-28

He made his decision in spite of all the evidence to the contrary. The name Pontius Pilate remains a scourge and a byword, even though two millennia have passed since he “washed his hands” of Jesus. Unlike other historical figures, the passage of time has not softened the image of the man who decided to kill Jesus despite the mountain of evidence that told him to let Jesus go. The Bible is clear that Pilate knew the impetus behind Jesus’ arrest (27:18). Pilate was told by his own wife to extricate himself from any dealings with Jesus, as she had “suffered many things today in a dream because of Him” (27:19). “Suffered” here means to be vexed or troubled. Add to this the “marvelous” demeanor of Jesus (27:14). Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent and should have been released. But, like others after him, he sought to keep peace with the Jews and delivered Him to be crucified. As I once heard Wendell Winkler say, “Pilate may have washed his hands, but he didn’t wash his heart.”

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 5-6

One mistake I often hear made when folks make reference to the prophets and specific statements from them is to apply the text to our nation. 2 Chronicles 7:14 is a prime example of this. Today’s reading also contains one such statement in Jeremiah 6:15 – “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed, nor did they know how to blush.” This statement was made in regard to a nation, but it was the nation of Judah, one that was (supposed to be) governed by the word of God. The United States lost her ability to blush long ago. In fact, she has gone much further than that. Not only can she not blush at her gross abominations, she flaunts her indiscretions in the face of and openly ridicules those who uphold biblical morality. But this text is not given for America, neither should it be. This text was being applied to the people of God! Tragically, we are moving more and more toward hedonism, that is, doing whatever makes us feel good or happy. Some of what is passed off as preaching would be an embarrassment to any reasonably capable Bible student. What is passed off as faithful Christian living is less demanding than ever before. Are we ashamed off what we have become in these cases? Can we even blush?

New Testament reading: Matthew 26

The last time we came to this text (Day 190), we spoke of “the box broke ‘round the world.” Today we consider “the cock crow heard ‘round the world.” The world’s most famous rooster crowed to awaken Peter to many truths to which he had formerly been blind. The rooster awakened Peter to the word of Jesus (vv 74-75), who had prophesied of Peter’s denial only hours earlier. The rooster woke Peter to the distance between him and his Lord (cf Luke 22:31-34, 54). The rooster woke Peter to the eyes of Jesus (Luke 22:61). One can only imagine the pain in Jesus’ eyes as he heard Peter call curses upon himself as he denied knowing his Lord. The rooster woke Peter to his pride (26:35). Finally, the rooster woke Peter to repentance (v 75). Unlike Judas, Peter went out and wept bitterly because of his sin – “for godly sorrow produces repentance not to be regretted (2 Cor 7:10). Ask yourself, “Do I need a rooster to wake me as it did Peter?”

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 3-4

I’m still trying to process Jeremiah 2, but the format demands me to continue on! God’s intense and abiding love for Judah is seen in Jeremiah 3:1. Despite her repeated harlotries with a host of illicit lovers, God pleads with His people, “Yet return to Me.” The reference at the beginning of the verse is to Deuteronomy 24:1-4. In this text, if a man puts away his wife and she becomes the wife of another, she cannot return to her first husband if he puts her away or dies. This principle was not applicable in Judah’s case. Though she had played the harlot with many lovers, God was still her only true husband, and any hope of deliverance and salvation could only be found by returning to Him. God speaks to Jeremiah concerning Judah’s gross immorality and goes so far as to say she is worse than backsliding Israel. How? Because Judah was witness to God’s punishment of Israel for her adulteries, yet she did not learn the lessons of her sister, and persisted in following the exact same path of harlotry.

New Testament reading: Matthew 24-25

Do you really want to be taken as opposed to “Left Behind?” Untold millions of “believers” have been deceived by the errors of premillennial theology. They are convinced that there will be a secret catching away of the saints prior to the revealing of the anti-Christ. This taking or catching away is commonly referred to as the rapture (cf Day 243). Matthew 24 speaks of a time when the Son of Man will come and men will be separated, one taken away and the other left. One problem with this doctrine, (aside from the fact that it is patently wrong), is that is fails to consider the context of Matthew 24, which primarily concerns the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. Another is that it fails to note the immediate context and illustration, namely that of the flood of Noah. Those who were carried away in the Flood were sinners, not saints (vv 36-39). This is the example given for those who are taken as opposed to “left behind.” The truth is, premillennialist have this concept exactly backwards. Most of those taken by the Romans were killed and the rest were enslaved, while those left behind were the fortunate ones.

Old Testament reading: Jeremiah 1-2

“I only like positive preaching. Negative preaching is so unloving.” The one who thinks this doesn’t know much of Jeremiah. Jeremiah is known as “the weeping prophet” because he loved God’s people very much, and it broke his heart to see them in a state of stubborn rebellion to God. His deep love for Judah notwithstanding, what instructions does God give Jeremiah concerning his preaching? “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and plant” (Jer 1:9-10). As my grandpa used to say, “Would you looky there?” God gave Jeremiah four negatives (root out, pull down, destroy and throw down) but only two positives (build and plant). Gus Nichols once preached it like this, “Sometimes we have to be positively negative” (“Upholding Sound Doctrine,” 1974 Freed-Hardeman Lectures). Those who think negative preaching is unloving will need to take up their case with God. This also shows us that the negative has to precede the positive. The first word of John the Baptizer and Jesus in their preaching was “Repent!” (cf Matt 3:2, 4:17). When one desires to grow a garden, he must first remove the weeds. Whoever considered removing weeds as a negative thing? When we consider the good received from biblical rebuke, we won’t consider such as being negative either.

New Testament reading: Matthew 22-23

I must love what Jesus loved, but I also must hate what Jesus hated. If the amount of ink given to the things Jesus hated is any indication of where it ranks, then hypocrisy and self-righteousness are at the top of Jesus’ list. Matthew 23 is dedicated to Jesus’ denunciation and condemnation of the Pharisees (“the separated ones”), the most hypocritical and self-righteous sect among the Jews (cf Luke 18:9-14). Jesus described them as “do as they say but not as they do” hypocrites. They knew were unwilling to live according to the standards to which they held others. Full of themselves, they dressed the part to draw attention and admiration from the “common” Jew (vv 5-7). We must take care not to allow such “Look at me!” attitudes destroy our good light and influence (v 28; cf Matt 6:1-5).

Old Testament reading: Isaiah 65-66

It is with some degree of melancholy that I arrive at the end of Isaiah. The reading and contemplation of this marvelous book has been so enriching! I hope you can say the same. Isaiah 65 is another beautiful statement of the inclusion of the Gentiles in the Gospel or Christian Age. Isaiah 65:1 is a clear reference to the Gentiles, as they are here identified as “a nation that was not called by My name.” The Gentiles are here spoken of as those who sought and found God as He said, “Here I am; here I am.” On the other hand, the Jews are condemned as a rebellious people who reject God’s outstretched hands. Paul quotes Isaiah 65:1-2 in Romans 10:20-21, and marks the distinction between Gentiles and Jews in verse 1 and verse 2 with this contrast, “But to Israel He says…” (Rom 10:21). Isaiah 65:3-7 contains some of the strongest language anywhere in Scripture to describe the depths of Israel’s depravity, beginning with, “A people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face.”

New Testament reading: Matthew 19-21

The account of the Rich Young Ruler (Matt 19:16-22) is one of great potential gone to waste. Almost everything we see in this account is right or proper. Mark’s account says he came in the right manner: “he came running” (Mark 10:17). He came to the right source: he was running to Jesus. He asked the right question: “What good thing shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He received the right answer: “Keep the commandments… Go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come, follow Me.” Everything up to this point is right, but tragically, here is where all that is right ends, as we see him with the wrong response: “when he heard this, he went away sorrowful.” In the ASV, Mark 10:22 records his response as, “his countenance fell.” This word is used in regard to dark and gloomy skies in Matthew 16:3. What began with such great promise was now lost in gloominess. We have pictured in this young man one of the greatest problems in America today, namely, putting our confidence in our wealth and earthly possessions rather than in God who gives us richly all things to enjoy (1 Timothy 6:17). More on this when we get to Mark 10 (Day 286).

Old Testament reading: Isaiah 61-64

We referenced Isaiah 62:2 on Day 226 and our discussion of the name Christian, a name given by God to His people (Acts 11:26) after the Gentiles (Cornelius – Acts 10) became recipients of God’s righteousness. This text bears mentioning again as it is monumental in the context of the Great Commission (Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8) and the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy that God would pour out His Spirit upon all flesh (i.e., both Jews and Gentiles, cf Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:16-17). I also love the references made to this new people of God! In verse 3, those who would later be called Christians are described as “a crown of glory” and “a royal diadem” in the hand of our God. What a beautiful blessing is ours, that we might adorn the unspeakably glorious head of our God and Father! Through Christ the Father brings many sons to glory (Heb 2:10)! Moreover, God is said to rejoice over His people as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride (62:5). Undoubtedly the church is the Lord’s bride (2 Cor 11:2; Eph 5:23-32), and to think He rejoices in us in such a fashion ought to instill in us the fullest measure of love and devotion to Him.

New Testament reading: Matthew 16-18

The Bible teaches that Jesus coexisted as both God and man. While such is (for me) impossible to grasp or explain, today’s reading gives evidence to that truth. In our recent reading of Matthew 8-9 (Day 273), we saw Jesus exercising authority that only God could possess. Here we see the omniscience of our Lord in that He knew of the conversation between Peter and those who received the temple tax (17:24-27). Jesus was said to have “anticipated” Peter, meaning He knew what Peter was going to say before Peter introduced the matter. Moreover, He performed a miracle in providing the money for Himself and for Peter to pay the temple tax. Matthew also here writes of Jesus’ existence as a man. In Matthew 16:21-23 and 17:22-23, Jesus began and continued to instruct His disciples in the impending matter of His suffering and death at the hands of men. As God exists from everlasting to everlasting (Ps 90:2), Jesus had to set aside some aspect of His divinity for the purpose of tasting death for every man (Heb 2:9, 14). Again, don’t ask me to explain it. I just know the text teaches it!