Old Testament reading: Joshua 15-17
“That girl certainly holds the keys to her daddy’s heart.” As the father of a precious daughter, I can certainly relate to God’s man Caleb in Joshua 15. Not just any man was good enough to be Caleb’s son in law. Caleb found a brave and faithful man to whom he could give his daughter Achsah in marriage. Moreover, we see how a daughter, even though grown, can still pull daddy’s strings. In Joshua 15:18-19, Caleb’s daughter sought to convince her new husband to request an additional blessing of property and springs of water. Perhaps reluctant to approach a man of such renown, Achsah came to her husband’s aid in the matter by rushing to her father and lighting off her animal (the original language and her manner suggests urgency). Caleb immediately inquires as to the matter that caused her to be in such a rush. She notes the blessing of the land to the South, but also asks for springs of water to go with it. And, as many daddy’s are prone to do with their little girl’s requests, Caleb not only granted her request, but did so to perhaps an even greater degree than she asked! Note how the text indicates that Caleb gave her both the upper and lower springs.
New Testament reading: 2 Peter
2 Peter is a marvelous exhortation written shortly before Peter’s death (1:14). When one considers Peter’s faithfulness despite the horrible death Jesus had promised him in John 21:18-19, one cannot help but love and appreciate this great soldier of the cross. In spite of his well documented fleshly weaknesses, Peter remembered the most important words that Jesus spoke to him, “Follow Me.” How might we respond if Jesus told us that we would be crucified as He was because of our faith? Would we embrace it as did Peter? Or would we, like Jonah, run from the words of the Lord? Also of note is Peter’s use of the word “exodon” to describe his “decease” in verse 15. It is the same word translated “decease” in the conversation among Jesus, Moses and Elijah at the Transfiguration (Luke 9:31). This word refers to a departure or journey, such as the Exodus from Egypt to Canaan. Thus, the very language necessarily implies that death is not an end or a cessation of existence, but rather a single point or transition in a far greater and eternal journey.
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