This Site in 2010

This site will remain online after 2009 – however it will be under its normal domain: http://dailyreaderonline.wordpress.com . I will not be actively updating it, but it will stay online in case you want to look up a book introduction or anything else that is on here. Thanks for using the site in 2009. I hope it has been helpful!

Introducing Revelation

Revelation is the final book in the Bible and it tells the end of the story. After sixty years of serving Jesus, elderly John is imprisoned on the island of Patmos when he gets to see his beloved Jesus again. This book is the revelation of Jesus Christ! It begins with a glorious and overwhelming presentation of Jesus, the beginning and the end, the One whose resurrection transforms everything. This Jesus gives letters to seven local churches to urge them to live out their present calling in light of their eternal future. By the end of the book John is allowed to see the end of the story – the glorious return of Christ, His reign and the New Jerusalem descending to the New Earth. With sinners fully and finally judged, and the sin problem completely answered, redeemed humanity has a glorious future dwelling in the presence of God! Yet Revelation is often neglected, perhaps because of the debates swirling around the meaning of the evocative imagery used. The bulk of the book consists of series of judgments pouring out on the earth from heaven. Is this strictly symbolic, or in some way tied to history? Were these somehow descriptive of historical events and persecution in the first century? Do they represent an ongoing spiritual battle throughout the age? Or are they specifically describing the final events leading to the return of Christ to the earth? Revelation may spark debate as to its meaning, but it promises blessing to the one who reads it. Read it, be blessed, find hope in the midst of a hopeless world, and allow your eyes to be lifted from today to the future, to the day when we will be with Jesus! Maranatha, even so, come quickly Lord!

Introducing 2 and 3 John

2 & 3 John are a pair of brief letters sent to leading members of small churches. They deal with questions about itinerant teachers, which were a big feature of early church life. 2 John confronts the inappropriate hospitality offered teachers with flawed views of Christ – love needs truth. 3 John confronts an inappropriate lack of hospitality because of the influence of self-centred Diotrephes – truth needs love. Diotrephes was wrong in motive and action, and caused great problems in the church. In contrast Gaius was doing well as a leader in a difficult context, and John urged him to offer an appropriate welcome to Demetrius. This pair of letters show how love must be guided by proper values and sound doctrine.

Introducing 1 and 2 Chronicles

1 & 2 Chronicles really go together, but were divided at the point of the transition from King David to King Solomon. The books offer a history from Adam to Cyrus’ decree at the end of the seventy years of exile. However, everything before King David is covered by genealogy (perhaps showing how anyone associated with God and His city are important). While focusing on the same period as 2 Samuel and the books of the Kings, Chronicles offers a different perspective on the history of David and Judah under his successors. The concern here is more with the community than the personal affairs of the leaders or prophets. So David’s sin and family scandals are barely noticed. However the importance of the Ark of the Covenant, the Tabernacle, and the Temple are reported in some detail. The spiritual and political welfare of David and his dynasty in Judah are a major concern. It is the right worship of God and His honour that seems to motivate the writer with his focus on priestly aspects of this history. Interestingly, in this Hebrew ordering of the books, the Old Testament ends with the return from exile still a prospect, rather than a partial reality as in our contemporary ordering of the Old Testament. When will the exile be over? When will God’s purposes be resolved?

The 1 Year Spreadsheet for 2010

If you are wanting to follow through The Daily Reader schedule in 2010, here’s a link to the spreadsheet for that.

Click here

Spreadsheet – Start Anytime, Any Number of Months!

Steve has produced a great resource – a spreadsheet that allows you to start the Daily Reader read through at any time!  All you need to do is click on the link, save the file, adjust the start date and the number of months you want to take to get through the Bible and then follow the plan!

Thanks Steve!

Here’s the file!

Finishing Up – Encouraging Comment!

Steve wrote to me and shared the following, which he was happy for me to put online:

I hope you’re getting lots of comments from people about coming to the end of the year of reading through the Bible. I found that as I started a month late and lost lots of time in the middle when school was crazy I had to read some slightly bigger chunks to get back on track. The advantage of that was I got into things like Daniel and just read the whole lot in one go. Then because of momentum I kept going and have already finished. So what have I done? Gone back and started again of course. And unsurprisingly for me as a Maths Geek I have put another spreadsheet together. I figure that as I lost 3 months during the year and finished a month early that I don’t need 12 months next time, so I have put a spreadsheet together that can start any day and have a target to complete in any number of months. I know that’s a little sad but I guess it’s some form of OCD coming out.

Great!  Another spreadsheet . . . I’ll put it in the next post.

Introducing 1 John

1 John is one of the last books in the New Testament, written by the last remaining apostle. It was written to an unnamed church struggling with a split. Some of the church members had left the main group and were trying to recruit others. Behind all this were leaders who claimed to have a special knowledge of God’s will. John confronts the claims of the false teachers and reassures the faithful members in the church of the certainty of their standing with God. Their faith was genuine. They did have fellowship with God. This was clear from their love for God and each other. It showed in their resistance of the false teaching and the improper conduct that went with it. It was evident in their personal experience of the Spirit within them, affirming their love and commitment to the truth. At the root of John’s response to the false teaching stood the history of Christ’s incarnation – since Jesus truly did become flesh, true human fellowship with God is truly possible!

Introducing Nehemiah

Nehemiah is the second part of the story of the people back in the land after the exile. Ezra focused on the reconstruction of the Temple, but Nehemiah focuses on the reconstruction of the city wall. Again the leader discovers that projects are much easier to lead than peoples’ hearts. For a moment there seems to be a breakthrough as the people celebrate the autumn feasts with Bible reading, explanation and significant response. Yet as the large-scale repentance is described, the book ends with Nehemiah still struggling to lead as a shepherd of the hearts of the people. Would there be lasting fruit in the nation? The silent years between the end of Old Testament history and the coming of the Messiah suggest not. The people of Israel would need a greater leader than Nehemiah to address the deeper issues they faced.

Encouragement Sheet, December

Here it is:

Encouragement Sheet – December 2009

Introducing Ezra

Ezra is the first half of a book now split into Ezra and Nehemiah. After the exile, a relatively small number of Jews took the opportunity given to them to return to the land. The leaders of the people had to face the tasks of rebuilding the temple and protecting the city. They also had the greater challenge of shepherding the hearts of the people. These were tough days to lead the Jewish people, because opposition was rife both from within and without. Yet in the midst of the tensions, God providentially provided support from the Persian kings Cyrus and Darius. Ezra’s part of Ezra-Nehemiah is concerned primarily with a review of the reconstruction of the Temple, and then with major tension over the issue of intermarriage. While rebuilding provides one level of challenge, peoples’ hearts provide the greater challenge for a leader. Have the Jewish people learned the lesson of the exile? Have they turned from the sin that led them into such strong divine discipline, or is intermarriage with other nationalities an indication that they are still prone to slide into idolatry. Ezra takes the strongest possible action to make sure idolatry is really a thing of the past.

Introducing Daniel

Daniel was a prophet during Judah’s exile in Babylon. The book combines dramatic narratives, prayers and visions of events still future from Daniel’s perspective. Daniel and three friends were taken to Babylon in the first siege on Jerusalem. They were trained in Babylonian values and beliefs to become leaders in the captive cultural assimilation project. Would they lose sight of their God? Not at all! They retained their devotion to Yahweh and lived out their faith in the higher echelons of this foreign empire. But there was a bigger question looming in light of Judah’s defeat to this foreign army with its foreign gods – was Yahweh, the one true God, really sovereign? Absolutely! Daniel saw the great emperor humbled and honouring God, he saw the empire defeated by the Medo-Persians, and he saw numerous visions presenting the sovereignty of God. The predictions in the book were so accurate, for instance, in anticipating the later transfer of power to the Greeks, that many have denied that Daniel could have written the book at all! Human kingdoms come and go according to God’s plan, but only God remains on the throne, and only God will establish the ultimately victorious kingdom. Daniel is a book about the sovereignty of God in His faithfulness to His promises, and the faithfulness possible from His people, even in the toughest of times.

 

Introducing Esther

The hero of the book goes unmentioned, but not unseen. God is never named in Esther. After the exile was over many Jews chose to stay in the Persian heartland, rather than taking the opportunity to return to their homeland. The two main Jewish characters, Mordecai and Esther, are woven into a web of intrigue and threat from the nasty Persian character, Haman. While God may be forgotten by His people, they are not forgotten by Him. Esther’s riveting ten chapters weave a tale of intrigue, comic timing and apparent coincidences through which God continues to prove Himself faithful to His people. Esther becomes Queen, and with Mordecai’s prompting she is able to help avert a near disaster for God’s people at the hands of Haman. Take the time to read the story straight through in one sitting. God
is clearly at work, even behind the scenes!

Introducing Lamentations

Lamentations is traditionally considered an addendum to the great prophetic work of Jeremiah. Judah has sinned. Jerusalem, the capital, had been besieged and conquered. The prophet had observed the worst days in Judah’s history, and was left to lament the tragic suffering of God’s people. Lamentations lives up to its name in the five poems that make up the book (each originally in the form of an acrostic – each line, or group of lines beginning with the next letter in the Hebrew alphabet). Yet in the lamentation is woven a thread of divine mercy and faithfulness. Notice the verses in the heart of the book that gave rise to the great hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. In this book we see honest wrestling with God’s terrible judgment that has left the heart of Judah in rubble. Yet God is not the enemy, for it is certain that God’s great love and compassion will eventually prevail, and the enemies of God’s people will themselves face judgment for what they have done.

Introducing Ecclesiastes

Ecclesiastes has a tone of apparent pessimism that causes many to struggle with the book. Life is futile, but does this mean that life is not worth living? No, but it does mean that the best of humans won’t be able to figure it out for themselves. God is the only one that makes sense of the mysteries of life. The author, probably King Solomon, attempted to find meaning through pursuing wisdom in philosophy, through materialism, pleasures of every kind, work as an end in itself, prominence and power. But nothing done “under the sun” satisfies. The apparent meaninglessness of life should not cause us to live it up, or to give up, but rather to look up. Only when we believe in God’s providence are we able to live with mystery. Only in knowing that God is just can we truly live responsibly. Only when we trust that God is good can we find enjoyment in life. God does not give us all the answers, but He does offer us Himself, and perhaps, when all is said and done, that is enough?

Introducing Song of Songs

Song of Songs is a love song that doesn’t hold back in its vivid description of marital intimacy. It presents the developing romantic and intimate love of a man, perhaps King Solomon, and a beautiful young woman. In the swirling voices of the poem we hear both main characters, as well as various other voices too. We feel the very real and vivid swings of emotion from exhilaration, to despair, to delight, as the relationship moves through times of separation and restoration. Early Jewish readers linked this song to the messianic Psalm 45 and decided that the song prefigured Israel’s relationship with the coming Messiah. Some Christians follow this approach and see it as a picture of Christ the king and the Church as His bride. Whichever way the song is read, it certainly celebrates the wonder of human intimacy – which is both a gift from God, and a picture of God’s relationship with His people.

Introducing Ruth

Ruth follows on the heels of Proverbs 31. Who can find a wife of noble character? This short romantic story is set in the times of the Judges, when everyone was doing what was right in their own eyes. A Jewish family leaves the land because of famine and heads to Moab, where things just go from bad to worse. After three deaths, Naomi is left with two widowed Moabite daughters-in-law. Ruth accompanies Naomi back to her home in Bethlehem, showing her commitment not only to Naomi, but also to Naomi’s God. Naomi is transformed from bitterness to joy as God works in Ruth’s life to bring her to a new husband – Boaz. As a relative of Naomi, Boaz took on the role of “kinsman redeemer,” claiming not only the land, but also the foreign bride as his own. At the end we discover how Ruth sits in the royal line of David, the great grandson of Boaz and Ruth’s son, Obed.

Encouragement Sheet – November

The November encouragement sheet is now online, just Click Here

Introducing Proverbs

Proverbs is often considered the classic expression of Hebrew wisdom poetry. The initial chapters lay out a contrast between lady wisdom and lady folly, as a father disciples his son for the challenges of life. From chapter 10 onwards the book moves into the familiar 2-4 line statements that contrast wise and foolish living. The book is written in the context of Jewish life under the Old Covenant. While our circumstances are different, the wisdom offered in Proverbs will serve us well if we grasp the basic issue of the book – the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding (1:7). Wisdom is not developed by accident, it takes diligence on our part to choose wisely in each circumstance of life. Choose lady wisdom, not lady folly. The book appropriately ends with a beautiful description of the wife of noble character.

Introducing Job

Job offers a hard look at suffering from both the human and divine perspective. In the first two chapters we catch a glimpse of the spiritual background as Satan and God discuss righteous Job (and then Satan is allowed to bring disasters into Job’s life). From chapter 3 on we see Job responding, without the perspective of chapters 1-2. Much of the book is a cycle of debate between Job and three men, plus a fourth nearer the end. The “friends” are clear that suffering is a consequence for sin, so Job must be a terrible sinner. Job calls on God to disclose his righteousness. Where does wisdom come from in the harsh realities of life? It cannot come from human thought, it must come from God. Finally God speaks and Job is humbled by dozens of questions from the Almighty One. God is God. Job is dumbfounded. Finally God restores Job’s fortunes again. There is no easy answer for undeserved suffering, but Job urges us to look heavenwards in every circumstance.

Introducing John

John was the last gospel to be written and has a very different feel than the three “synoptic gospels” (“one-view”). His goal is clearly stated in 20:31 – John was written so that the reader will believe that Jesus is the divine Messiah and thereby have everlasting life. The first half of the book is built around a series of seven “signs.” These begin with turning water into wine, and conclude with the compelling miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead. Throughout the book Jesus’ claim to be God is found in his “I am” statements. There is repeated emphasis on faith and its counterpart – unbelief. The crowds want Him to be their king, but the leaders definitely do not “believe” in Him. Those who will believe in Him receive eternal life, life to the full! So the story moves toward Calvary, Jesus heading to his death with the calm dignity of a King in control of his circumstances. In the suffering and death of Jesus, we actually see His glory revealed! Is it possible to know God, to have sins forgiven, to become part of God’s family? John’s answer is a resounding yes!

Introducing Philemon

Philemon lived in Colossae and was a believer in the church there. One of his slaves, Onesimus, had robbed his master and escaped, traveling to Rome. Somehow he came into contact with Paul and became a believer in Christ! Onesimus had become useful to Paul, but they knew he had to return to his master Philemon. So Paul sent Onesimus back to Philemon along with this tactful and affectionate letter. Roman law stated that a runaway slave could be punished or killed very violently – only the power of the Gospel transformed this situation so that Onesimus could return to His master as a useful brother in Christ!

Introducing Titus

Titus is similar to 1 Timothy – a letter written to a representative left behind as Paul pressed on during his final days of freedom. This time it was Titus, left on Crete to establish the spiritual leadership of the local church there. For the church to survive and thrive in a difficult culture, it needed spiritually qualified men to lead and protect it. Paul also urges Titus to involve all the believers in the ministry of the church, so that their good doctrine would be dressed up in the good deeds of Christian ministry.

Introducing 2 Timothy

2 Timothy is Paul’s final letter – a very personal and touching letter to the younger man he has mentored over many years. Paul is imprisoned again and is aware that his time is running out. He is passionately concerned that the baton of the gospel be effectively passed to the next generation of leadership. Paul is deeply concerned about the challenges facing the church from without and from within. He urges Timothy to moral and spiritual purity. He urges Timothy to remember what he’s learned from Paul in their ministry together. He urges Timothy to hold fast to the Scripture – God’s provision for maintaining the health of the Church.

Introducing 1 Timothy

1 Timothy is a letter from Paul to his younger colleague. Paul had left Timothy in Ephesus and so wrote this letter to encourage him in his leadership within the church. Actually, the letter not only encouraged Timothy, but also served to reinforce his authority as a representative of the apostle. How should the local church function? How should men and women behave in light of the amazing mercy of the gospel? What are the qualifications for elders and deacons? How should the church care for the vulnerable? This letter is brimming with relevant material for the church in every generation, including ours.