March 3rd One Year Bible Readings

~ Click here for today's readings on BibleGateway.com ~
Leviticus 27:14-Numbers 1:54 ~ Mark 11:1-26 ~ Psalm 46:1-11 ~ Proverbs 10:23
~ Click here to listen to today's Scripture on BibleOnRadio.com ~

Old Testament - Today we wrap up Leviticus and transition into Numbers!  Congratulations on staying the course through the book of Leviticus!  Have you Learned to Love Leviticus this past month??  :)  Commentary on Leviticus chapter 27 by Bob Deffinbaugh titled "The Value of a Vow" is at bible.org at this link.   Numbers is an amazing book! I encourage you to reflect on words “Obedience” and “Disobedience” as we read through the book of Numbers. We’ll read much about both of these words in this book. And – I think as we read about both Moses’ and the Israelites Obedience and Disobedience, we will see many parallels in our own lives today. We have an opportunity with the book of Numbers to reflect upon where we have been both Obedient and Disobedient to God in our lives. We also have the opportunity to reflect upon the fruits and blessings of Obedience and the consequences of Disobedience – in Moses’, the Israelites, and our lives today. I hope you are ready to experience the book of Numbers!

~The Book of Numbers~
Author: Moses
Date: 1420 or 1220 B.C.
Content: This book deals with the journey of Israel from Mt. Sinai to the edge of Canaan and the Israelites’ preparation to enter the Promised Land. Because of sin and unbelief, however, they were not allowed by God to claim their inheritance but were condemned to wander in the wilderness for forty years. After the forty years they slowly made their way back to Canaan – this time ready to obey God’s commands. After winning some important battles to the east of the Jordan River, the Israelites prepared for the entrance into the land itself.
Theme: The book shows the continual faithfulness of God and the unbelievable sin of man. Israel rejected God but God remained true to his word, in leading the people through the wilderness and providing for their needs. In the New Testament the Christian life is likened to a wandering in the wilderness with the promise of a heavenly Canaan before us. (Above commentary is from “The One Year Bible Companion” pp. 2-3) Excellent commentary on the Book of Numbers is at this link.

Today in Numbers chapter 1 verse 1 we read: “The LORD spoke to Moses in the Tent of Meeting in the Desert of Sinai on the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt.” You’ll definitely notice as we read through the book of Numbers that God speaks to Moses, and through Moses to Israel. This fact is stated over 150 times and in more than 20 different ways in the book of Numbers – all the way from this first verse above until the very last verse of Numbers in chapter 36 verse 13 – “These are the commands and regulations the LORD gave through Moses to the Israelites on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.” The Israelites were dependent on Moses at that time to hear from God. How do you hear from God in your life today? Do you believe that you are hearing from God as you read the Bible? Do you believe that you can hear from God during times of prayer? Do you believe that today you can hear from God through your faith in Jesus and in your participation in the body of Christ, the church? Are you hearing from God today? Do you want to hear from God today?

New Testament - Today in Mark chapter 11 we read about Jesus' Triumphal entry in Jerusalem!  This entry is an important transition point in Jesus' ministry, in large part because it is the last week of Jesus' life, which inaugurates Passion Week.  But also because Jesus' ministry will now be focused in the confines of Jerusalem, the Holy City.  Jesus' triumphal entry is a deliberate Messianic action and the clue to its understanding is found in Zechariah chapter 9 verse 9: "Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." Hosanna in the highest!  (Hosanna is a Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise).  Commentary on Mark chapter 11 readings for today by Bob Deffinbaugh titled "The Triumphal Tragedy" is at bible.org at this link. 

Today we read in verse 17: "Jesus taught them, "The Scriptures declare, `My Temple will be called a place of prayer for all nations,' but you have turned it into a den of thieves.""

Psalms - Today we read Psalm 46, which is an incredible Psalm! This Psalm represents a song of hope celebrating the certain triumph of God’s kingdom – even in the midst of times of severe trouble. This Psalm served as the inspiration for Martin Luther’s famous Hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” Just after 9/11 I saw emails and posts on the internet floating around with the entirety of this Psalm. I would encourage you to keep this Psalm in your “back-pocket” as a Psalm to meditate upon whenever you personally might be going through times of severe trouble – or whenever our world might be going through times of severe trouble. Near the end of Psalm 46 in verse 10 we read a tiny little verse that I think is the key to this Psalm – “Be still, and know that I am God.” If you are going through a time of trouble in your life right now, will you take some time to meditate upon Psalm 46 and in particular verse 10? 

Proverbs - Today in Proverbs chapter 10 verse 23 we read: “Doing wrong is fun for a fool, while wise conduct is a pleasure to the wise.” This is one of those convicting Proverbs for me, as I have found myself on both sides of this coin. In my past, I’ve had fun in doing wrong. And in recent years I have found wise conduct to be a pleasure. As I’ve walked along the Way of following Jesus, I do know that I’m spending more time than ever enjoying wise conduct – thanks to the grace of God. However, this Proverb still makes me really examine how I am living my life today. Have I really stopped finding pleasure in doing wrong? Are there still some subtle ways perhaps that I am having fun doing wrong? Am I still acting foolishly at times? How about you? How does this Proverb speak to you? Have you found yourself on both sides of this coin? What does wise conduct look like to you in your life today? Will you seek to live a life of wise conduct? I believe we cannot live this life of wise conduct solely on our strength. Will you pray unceasingly to God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit to give you the grace and strength to live a life of wise conduct?

Worship God: Based on my Psalm 46 reflections above, here's Steve Green singing an incredible version of Martin Luther's "A Mighty Fortress is our God:"

Is God your mighty fortress?  Click here and be strengthened!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture this week: "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23 NIV

Comments from You & Question of the Day - Back to Psalm 46 verse 10 - “Be still, and know that I am God.”  What does it mean to you to “Be still, and know that I am God?” Do you believe that being still during times of trouble can draw you closer to God? Will you be still today before God? In this stillness will you seek to know that He is indeed God? Even in the midst of whatever might be troubling you, will you seek to know that I AM is your God?  Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

Love, Trust and Obey Jesus,
Mike

Comments

[John A.]

Psalm 46

It was composed in response to a terrifying event in the life of Good King Jehoshaphat. We read all about it in 2 Chronicles 20: the Moabites and the Ammonites and the Meunites-had made a treaty to attack and plunder their nation.

The king prayed, and God reponded through the prophet Jahaziel:
"Listen, King Jehoshaphat. This is what the Lord says to you; 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours but the Lord's."

The next day he and his army went out to meet their enemy with the choir leading the way still singing God's praises. And, as they crested the hill and looked down on the enemy camp, all they saw were dead bodies. It looked as if a great battle had already taken place-and it had. You see, in the night, God had confused the enemy soldiers so much that they had attacked each other and not one warrior in that vast army had remained alive. Well, this inspired Jehoshaphat's music minister to write the 46th Psalm.
======================================================
1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.

God is - God exists
God is our refuge - place of safety
God is our strength - when we take refuge in God - He is our strength.
God is ever-present - He will never forsake His chosen people, then or now.
======================================================
2 Therefore we will not fear,...

Do not fear, no matter what. Why? Because God is always with us and is our refuge and strength.
======================================================
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.

This is troublesome. There is no major river around Jerusalem. Until you look at the New Jerusalem in Revalation 22:

1Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2down the middle of the great street of the city.

God sees everything as a done deal. So while Jerusalem is referred to here as with a river, it is because God sees it as the end product of His plan. God will defend it and deliver the Holy City of God.
======================================================
7 The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah

Do not fear - the Lord Almighty - creator of the Universe is with us. This same God is also the God of Jacob (meaning cheat or swindler). So the same all powerful transcendant God is also the personal God of unworthy sinners. This verse tells us how much of a "personal" yet powerful God we have as our Lord.
======================================================
10 "Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth."

"Be Still" carries the idea of God saying to us, "When you face a terrifying situation, lay down your arms. Put down your 'sword and shield.' Step aside and acknowledge that I am the one and only victorious God."

How can we be still during tough times - every natural instinct in our bodies tells us we need to DO SOMETHING. The answer is we have something a non-believer doesn't have: WE KNOW that "God is" and he is fully capable of handling everything.

In the end God will receive all the praise and glory from everyone.

[John A.]

Proverbs 10:23

"A fool finds pleasure in evil conduct,
but a man of understanding delights in wisdom."

A fool amuses himself by getting into trouble; it’s his favorite sport. A man of understanding gets his pleasure in conducting himself wisely.

MacDonald, W., & Farstad, A. 1997, c1995. Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments . Thomas Nelson: Nashville

[Lisa K.]

Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God:

The bible says to meditate on His word day and night. So with each daily reading I try to take a nugget that stands out so that I may meditate on that word, verse, etc. So Psalm 46:10 is a good one.

As we grow spiritually in the Word - we must come to the conclusion that we must put "faith in practice" as my pastor would say.

At this point, I admit that I stand in the way of God when I need Him to answer a prayer. I pray and still try to answer my own prayers because my faith was displaced; and the situations I prayed to our Father about kept repeating themselves. Finally, I said I must put my faith into practice. Once I put my faith into practice by not answering and/or solving my own prayers in my own familiar way, I knew I had the peace of God. With His peace you will learn patience. I use to think I had the "patience of Job" until I did a scriptural based search on the word patience; and wow, did I understand with my heart what Job experienced in chapter 42, verse 5 where he says I HEARD with my ears, but now my eyes have SEEN!!

To conclude, I took an excerpt from the John Gill Exposition of the Whole Bible on Psalm 46:10:

“ … but that they should not be fearful, nor fretful and impatient, or restless and tumultuous; but be quiet and easy, resigned to the will of God, and live in an assured expectation of the appearance of divine Providence in their layout. And "know"; own and acknowledge that he is God, a sovereign Being that does whatsoever he pleases; that he is unchangeable in his nature, purposes, promises, and covenant; that he is omnipotent, able to help them and deliver them at the last extremity; that he is omniscient, knows their persons, cases, and troubles, and how and where to hide them till the storm is over; that he is the all wise God, and does all things after the counsel of his own will, and makes all things work together for good to them; and that he is faithful to his word and promise, …”

Trust God in ALL your ways and lean not to your own understanding.

Until the next time put your “faith in practice”.

Lisa K.

[art]

What great comments from John, and from Lisa K.! One of my very favorite stories from the OT is that of 2Chronicals 20. There is so much in that chapter to meditate upon, and I would miss very much if I only read it and meditated upon it on the one day that we pass through during our year's study. Same with Ps 46.

I thank those who provide their insights to these pages, bits and pieces that enrich my understanding and bring me ever closer to the true Word of God!

art

[John A.]

Mark 11:1-26

2saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here.

Fulfillment of prophecy, yes. supernatural miracle, probably not. Jesus had probably made arrangements during a quick visit to Jerusalem three months earlier.

How could Jesus known the date of His return to Jerusalem for His death if not supernaturally?

Jesus was a student of the scripture. All he had to know was the book of Daniel.

"Many years ago there was a brilliant lawyer who served for a long time as the director of England's famed Scotland Yard. His name was Sir Robert Anderson. He was also an avid and devout Bible student. Sir Robert Anderson, with his precise mind and his training in logic, analyzed the book of Daniel and determined the exact date when that decree of Artaxerxes was issued: March 28, 445 B. C. Counting from that date, and making the necessary corrections for calendar errors, he determined that on April 6, A. D. 32, Jesus rode into Jerusalem -- exactly four hundred eighty-three years later.

Now, if a man in the Nineteenth Century could take these Scriptures and figure out the very date on which this event took place, surely the Son of God, who also had the book of Daniel, and knew it very well, and was taught and illuminated by the Holy Spirit as he read its pages, would know the day that he was to come into Jerusalem." - Ray Stedman

http://www.whatsaiththescripture.com/Fellowship/Edit_Sir.Robert.Anderson.html
======================================================
Fig tree enigma

Jesus is deity. Do you mean to say he came to a fig tree out of season and got mad because there was no figs - cursed the tree - and it withered up on his command?????

Not exactly. doing some research one finds out then when leaves are budding there are little figs among the leaves. these pre-figs are smaller and inedible, but apparently when there are no pre-figs there will be no regular crop of figs.

So what is going on here? the fig tree is usually the symbol for the nation of Israel, and I believe it is used symbolically that way in Mark. When Jesus looked at this tree, he found no pre-figs, and so he knew that this tree would never have figs, but produced nothing but leaves. The life of the tree had been spent producing its luxuriant foliage, so that it looked like a healthy tree, but was not. And so he cursed it, and the next day it was withered to its very roots. That tree was a symbol of the nation Israel, the nation looked healthy as they were doing all the rituals and the temple was in use. however, like Jesus "seven woes" in Matthew 23 - it was hypocritical. It was all play-acting. The temple priests and people were not really connceted to God - oh it looked good with luxurious foilage, but there was no fruit (pre or eventually real) and thus the nation was not spiritually healthy.
======================================================
Jesus Clears the Temple

16and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts.

This was the busy season before Passover. In Levitcus and Numbers there are many prescribed activities for the priests to be scurrying back and forth bringing things into the temple. Jesus stopped all this dead in its tracks.

"which means that, as the authorized King of this nation, he rejected its worship and refused to acknowledge it as of any value any longer. Though the Jews later restored this traffic, and kept it up for forty years more until the temple was destroyed, never again did those sacrifices have any meaning before God." - Ray Stedman

[John A.]

Mark 11:1-26

The Withered Fig Tree

22"Have faith in God," Jesus answered.

Is this a cryptic answer, or one indicating the pre-requisite for doing meiracles? No.

21Peter remembered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!"

In context Jesus was saying - Have faith (pistis) - that is acknowledge, believe and trust in God. When you have that all encompassing faith (denoted by the Greek word) then you will bear fruit. You will be spiritually healthy. You will not be cursed by God for rejecting Him and his plan. You will bear fruit. But you MUST have complete faith.

"Jesus is not giving us a formula here for throwing mountains into the sea. He is telling us that to have faith in God at times is difficult to do. He knows that. There are mountains which oppose our faith and make it difficult for us. There are obstacles to faith. This nation had experienced those obstacles, and they were formidable, powerful obstacles. One was their slavery under the Romans. Another was the apparent silence of God. All the many circumstances which aroused doubt and fear in their lives were like a mountain which opposed the great fact that they were to have faith in God. Jesus says, "I tell you, if you ask in faith, that mountain will be removed." - Ray Stedman

In fact, if they were walking from Bethany to Jerusalem, and given where the fig groves are located - Jesus was probably looking at the mount at the corner of Jerusalem upon which the temple was built. Jesus may have been saying, - have faith - when you do, and you are spreading the gospel even the system of Jewish religion (represented on that mount) that opposes you will be cast away (as into the sea) as the gospel and church planting commences.

However, these verses do not give a person authority to pray for miraculous powers for his own convenience or acclaim. Every act of faith must rest on the promise of God. If we know that it is God’s will to remove a certain difficulty, then we can pray with utter confidence that it will be done. In fact, we can pray with confidence on any subject as long as we are confident it is according to God’s will as revealed in the Bible or by the inner witness of the Spirit.
MacDonald, W., & Farstad, A. 1997, c1995. Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments . Thomas Nelson: Nashville
======================================================
25And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

"What Jesus is saying is, "The great hindrance to having faith in God is pride, the pride which refuses to forgive. That is like a mountain which fills up your whole life. All you can see is that big mountain looming before you, and that is blocking the life of God in your life. You have the power to have that removed if, when you stand and pray, you will forgive those who have offended you." Because the only thing that stops us from forgiving one another is pride. We feel justified in wanting others to forgive us, but also in feeling that we have to exact a price for the hurt they have caused us. So when you stand and pray, life will flow from God when you are able to recognize that you, too, need forgiveness. God has forgiven you. Like the very person you are holding a grudge against, you need forgiveness also. God has offered it freely to you; give it just as freely to them.

The nation Israel lost its life because it would not forgive the Gentiles, the Romans, who had offended and grieved it. Instead, it gathered its robes of self-righteousness about it and looked with pride up to God and said, "I thank God I am not like these other people." God says that is what ends the life of a nation. That is what ends the life of a church. And that is what ends the spiritual life of an individual, cuts him off." - Ray Stedman

[John A.]

Numbers 1
The Census

"Counting, or taking inventory, is an essential step in organization and moving forward. In preparing to enter the Promised Land Israel had to be organized - God is an organized God, and moves through organization even when we can’t figure it out! Therefore it was essential that Israel took inventory and saw where they were.

Taking inventory is fine; even a necessary first step in organizing for victory in taking hold of God’s promises. But it must always be done understanding that some of the important factors - as the Levites were in Israel - cannot be counted. No inventory is totally complete, and God always works mightily through things that can’t be counted." - David Guzik

[Art]

Part of the truth of Psalm 46:10 is revealed, I think, in its opposite -- so terribly prevalent in our culture and many of our busy lives today.

I.e., Satan wants us to be so busy with worldly stuff that we don't take the time to 'be still'... for if we did, we would know God and Satan's plans to distract us and waste our time would be foiled.

The truth of this was also made plain to me on a backpacking trip I took in the wilds of Wyoming two years ago during which time I saw no one for four days. God was SO CLOSE in the silence and the stillness. The utter peace of that stillness and knowledge of God stuck with me quite palpably for almost a year. It is so hard to renew it amidst the distractions of daily life. We must *work* at the discipline of being still.