One Year Bible Blog

August 8th One Year Bible Readings

Ezra 7:1-8:20 ~ 1 Corinthians 4:1-21 ~ Psalm 30:1-12 ~ Proverbs 20:28-30
~ Click here to read today's Scripture on BibleGateway.com ~ // Mobile Site Link
~ Listen to today's Scripture on One Year Bible Online Audio or ESVBible.org: OT, NT, Psalms, Proverbs or DailyAudioBible.com (podcast) ~

Old Testament - We have great readings in Ezra today!  It is very encouraging that King Artaxerxes wrote such a strong letter of endorsement for Ezra, the priest and scribe.  It made me think that government and religion can work together for good.   Below is a wonderful engraving from Gustave Dore of King Artaxerxes proclaiming freedom for the Israelites from Babylon:

I found chapter 7 verses 9 & 10 intriguing: "He had left Babylon on April 8 and came to Jerusalem on August 4, for the gracious hand of his God was on him. This was because Ezra had determined to study and obey the law of the LORD and to teach those laws and regulations to the people of Israel."  What I noticed here is that it says about Ezra - "the gracious hand of his God was on him."  And why was this?  "Because Ezra had determined to study and obey the law of the Lord AND to teach those laws and regulations to the people of Israel."  Ezra was living his life not just for himself.  He was committed to studying God's law and teaching it to those around him.  And thus, the gracious hand of God was on him.  And this just makes me wonder about our lives today.  Are we committed to studying God's Word, the Bible, and then teaching it to those around us?  Are we like Ezra in any way?  Should we be?  Below is an image from a 14th century illuminated Bible of Ezra teaching the law:

New Testament - Allright... so Paul has a little bit of scolding for the church in Corinth in our readings today!  Perhaps we would do well to listen to some of this scolding today too?  Verse 5 is powerful for us to consider: "So be careful not to jump to conclusions before the Lord returns as to whether or not someone is faithful. When the Lord comes, he will bring our deepest secrets to light and will reveal our private motives. And then God will give to everyone whatever praise is due."  I think far too often we ourselves try to judge others - saying that someone is wholly righteous or that someone is a doomed sinner.  Neither this excessive praise nor condemnation is ours to give.  It is only for God.  God is the judge.  We are not.  So be careful not to jump to conclusions about someone else...

If you blinked, you just might have missed verse 20 today - "For the Kingdom of God is not just fancy talk; it is living by God's power."  Great stuff!  I am afraid that sometimes we do indeed reduce the Kingdom of God and living out our faith to just fancy talk.  We sometimes talk a lot, but we do not practice what we preach.  Rather than focusing on our fancy talk, how about if we simply live by God's power?  It's a revolutionary idea!  :)

Bible.org's commentary on today's readings in First Corinthians titled "Follow the Leader" is at this link.

Psalms - Today in Psalm 30 verses 4 through 5 we read: “Sing to the Lord; you saints of his; praise his holy name. For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” How does this verse speak to you? Do you believe that God’s anger can last only a moment, but his favor last a lifetime? If you are weeping now in some area of your life, do you believe that God can bring rejoicing to you? Will you pray to God to grant you favor in this life and in life everlasting? Will you pray to God to heal any situation that you are weeping over today, and to bring you rejoicing tomorrow? Do you look forward to this rejoicing that will allow you to sing to the Lord as a saint and to praise his holy name?

Proverbs - I love Proverbs 20 verse 29 today! "The glory of the young is their strength; the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old."  I think the beauty of this Proverb is to show that there are unique values & contributions we can make both when we are young and when we are old.  When we are young we are full of strength.  We can do much and with much energy.  However, when we are young, we do not have much experience, so we will likely make some mistakes in our youthful zeal.  When we are older, we are blessed with experience.  So that when we act, we act wisely.  We know how to spend our time and what type of activities are important.  We don't have the strength perhaps that we had when we were younger.  We may not be able to do as much with as much energy.  But the experience focuses us, such that we can prioritize what we do.  Whether you are young or old, are you utilizing your strength or your experience for Kingdom purposes?  Are you spending your time on things that have eternal value rather than things that are fleeting and temporal?  How are you using your strength and experience for God this very day?

Worship God: Chris Tomlin songs seem to be on my mind this week. First Corinthians chapter 4 verse 20 reminded me of Chris' song "Enough."  I ended up finding this great YouTube clip below of Chris and Louie Giglio being interviewed on how "Enough" was written (and Chris plays the song around the 3 minute mark):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaLNjeTEeE4

Is God enough for you? Click here for more than enough!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on two verses of Scripture today: "Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name. For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. " Psalm 30:4-5 NIV

Prayer Point: Pray for rejoicing in your life, if you are going through a dark night of the soul. Pray for the morning. Pray in thanksgiving that God's favor lasts a lifetime for those who love Him. Praise His holy name!

Comments from You & Questions of the Day:  What verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

God bless,
Mike

p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our One Year Bible readings at this link.

p.p.s. Download a schedule of our One Year Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.

p.p.p.s. I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this One Year Bible Blog ministry today. Thanks!

August 7th One Year Bible Readings

Ezra 4:24-6:22 ~ 1 Corinthians 3:5-23 ~ Psalm 29:1-11 ~ Proverbs 20:26-27
~ Click here to read today's Scripture on BibleGateway.com ~ // Mobile Site Link
~ Listen to today's Scripture on One Year Bible Online Audio or ESVBible.org: OT, NT, Psalms, Proverbs or DailyAudioBible.com (podcast) ~

Old Testament - We have great readings today in Ezra about the completion of the second Temple!  Note that this second Temple, which was completed on March 12, 516 B.C., is the same Temple that existed during Jesus' ministry.  This second Temple was then destroyed by Roman armies in 70 A.D.  This second Temple was a lot smaller than the first Temple built by Solomon.  And less ornate.  And the big thing of course was that this second Temple did not have the Ark of the Covenant nor the tablets of the Law, as these were believed to have been destroyed when Nebuchadnezzar burned Jerusalem in 586 B.C.  Nonetheless, the completion of the second Temple was a great cause of celebration for the Israelites who had returned from exile!

New Testament - This may be a somewhat of a controversial reflection here, but I'd like to put it out for discussion.  Please feel free to let me know your thoughts in the Comments section of the blog below.  Today's readings in First Corinthians made me think about all of our various Christian church denominations that we have in our world today.  In our readings today, some followed Paul.  Some followed Apollos.  Some followed Peter.  And in our churches today, some follow Calvin.  Some follow Wesley.  Some follow Knox.  And so on.  And I guess I just wonder would the church today look any differently today if we simply all followed Jesus?  I don't mean to knock denominations here per se.  I myself go to a church affiliated with a denomination.  I just pray that each of us could look beyond our denominations and look fully toward Jesus.  And that we come to realize that no matter what our denominations, we are brothers and sisters through faith in our Lord Jesus.  We inherit eternal life through God's grace and our faith in Jesus.  We all - no matter our denomination - are "the church" through our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior.  As Paul teaches us in First Corinthians 3:21-23 - "So don’t boast about following a particular human leader. For everything belongs to you—whether Paul or Apollos or Peter, or the world, or life and death, or the present and the future. Everything belongs to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God."

Bible.org's commentary on today's readings in First Corinthians titled "A Different Look at Leadership" is at this link and "A Call to Repentance" is at this link.

Psalms - Psalm 29 today is a beautiful hymn of praise to God the Creator!  Verses 3 and 4 are awesome - "The voice of the LORD echoes above the sea. The God of glory thunders.  The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty."  And verse 2 is something for each of us to joyfully obey - "Give honor to the LORD for the glory of his name. Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness."  Amen!

Proverbs:  Proverbs 20:27 today is a powerful teaching:  "The Lord’s light penetrates the human spirit, exposing every hidden motive."  I love this thought!  God's Light penetrates our human spirits, exposing our hidden motives.  And this is a very good thing!  I believe that most all of us have some "blind spots" in our lives.  Blind spots meaning we have sins or issues or motives or bad habits that we don't even know we have!  We're blind to them.  And God's light - His Light of the world, Jesus - can expose these hidden things to us!  I think sometimes this can happen via solitary prayer or worship.  However, I think this can also often happen through brothers and sisters in Christ who we ask to point out any blind spots to us.  Have you ever asked anyone in your life to point out a blind spot?  Was this painful?  Was it ultimately helpful to you?  Do you think you have any blind spots in your life today?  Will you ask someone who knows you well if you have any blind spots?

Worship God:  Psalm 29 today reminded me of Chris Tomlin's song "Indescribable." Here's a great live version of this song sung by Avalon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMkvZx477w4

Do you know our Indescribable God? Click here for His description!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?" 1 Corinthians 3:16 NIV

Prayer Point: Pray in thanksgiving that if you are in a saving relationship with Jesus Christ that you yourself are God's temple. Pray in thanksgiving that God's Spirit lives within you! Pray that you will not grieve the Spirit through any sort of abuse or neglect of your body, God's temple.

Comments from You & Questions of the Day:  What verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

God bless,
Mike

p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our One Year Bible readings at this link.

p.p.s. Download a schedule of our One Year Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.

p.p.p.s. I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this One Year Bible Blog ministry today. Thanks!

August 6th One Year Bible Readings

Ezra 3:1-4:23 ~ 1 Corinthians 2:6-3:4 ~ Psalm 28:1-9 ~ Proverbs 20:24-25
~ Click here to read today's Scripture on BibleGateway.com ~ // Mobile Site Link
~ Listen to today's Scripture on One Year Bible Online Audio or ESVBible.org: OT, NT, Psalms, Proverbs or DailyAudioBible.com (podcast) ~

Old Testament - Today in Ezra chapter 3 we read about the Israelites rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem. We read in verse 10 – “When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests in their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites (the sons of Asaph) with cymbals, took their places to praise the LORD, as prescribed by David king of Israel.” There are some powerful chapters in Ezra as we read about the start of the rebuilding of the Temple, the opposition to it, and then its final completion. I like that verse 10 above tells us that the priests and the Levites praised God after the foundation to the Temple was laid. And I wonder about this in our lives today. Is there perhaps a “Temple” of some sort in your life that needs rebuilding? Is there a good habit that you have lost? A bad habit that you have picked up? Have you lost some of your zeal for God that you had earlier in your life? Do you want things to change? Do you want to rebuild a “Temple” in your life? How will you do so? Will you perhaps follow the example of the Israelites in Ezra and begin with the Foundation? Will you take the very first, maybe seemingly small steps to begin to rebuild your Temple? And – when you get to even just the foundation of your Temple being rebuilt, will you praise God as the priests and Levites did in Ezra? Many blessings to you as you begin your journey with God of rebuilding a Temple in your life!

New Testament - Bible.org's commentary on today's First Corinthians readings titled "True Wisdom" is at this link and "Substandard Saints" is at this link.  Below is a powerful image for First Corinthians 3:3 from today's readings:

Psalms - Psalm 28 verse 2 stood out to me today - "Listen to my prayer for mercy as I cry out to you for help, as I lift my hands toward your holy sanctuary."  The thing that stood out to me is the image of the Psalmist "lifting his hands" in prayer.  I'm curious about this - if you don't mind sharing in the Comments section below - do you periodically lift your hands in prayer?  Do you kneel when you pray?  Close your eyes?  Bow your head?  What do you do to really signify your worship and praise of God?  Do you think lifting our hands or doing other body movements can change the way we pray to God - rather than doing nothing unique with our body?   Let me know if you have Comments on this below...  thanks...  My quick thoughts are that we can absolutely pray at any time in any place without lifting our hands or closing our eyes or bowing, etc.   I think this gets toward the idea of "praying unceasingly."   However - I do think there is something special about the times in our day when we can really spend some quality quiet time with God in prayer.  And the best way for me to personally do this is by really changing my body language first - by kneeling down, closing my eyes, bowing my head, maybe lifting my hands, etc.  This somehow I think brings me closer to God - it doesn't bring God closer to me - he's always close.  But, somehow, what I do with my body before & during prayer can definitely make a difference in how long I will actually pray to God and how deep into prayer & listening I will go.  How about for you?

Proverbs - Today in Proverbs 20 verse 24 we will read – “A person's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand his own way?” This is a powerful Proverb for us to consider. Do you believe that your steps are directed by God? I think so often we want to be in control of our own steps. And when we really try to take control of our own steps is when we so often stumble. . . It is so powerful for us to realize that the best thing we can possibly do in our lives is let God direct our steps! Let God lead us. And then let us pray we will follow. The question posed by at the end of this Proverb above is probably frustrating to our modern minds – “Whaddya mean I can’t understand my own way! That ain’t right. I am in charge around here!” Are we really? I mean, really? The question posed by this Proverb reminds me of another wise and famous Proverb in chapter 3, verses 5 through 6 – “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” We should not ever try to make our own paths straight! Let God do it. He knows where we should be going. All we need to do is trust God. Simply trust. Do you trust God to direct your steps and make your paths straight?

Worship God:  Today's Psalm reminds me of the Chris Tomlin song "Our God is Greater:"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6YCrWhUdDs

Do you know true greatness? Click here to meet our Great God!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "A person's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand their own way?" Proverbs 20:24 NIV

Prayer Point: Pray that all of your steps are directed by the Lord. Pray that you trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. Pray that the Lord will make your paths straight.

Comments from You & Questions of the Day:  What verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

God bless,
Mike

p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our One Year Bible readings at this link.

p.p.s. Download a schedule of our One Year Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.

p.p.p.s. I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this One Year Bible Blog ministry today. Thanks!

August 5th One Year Bible Readings

Ezra 1:1-2:70 ~ 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5 ~ Psalm 27:7-14 ~ Proverbs 20:22-23
~ Click here to read today's Scripture on BibleGateway.com ~ // Mobile Site Link
~ Listen to today's Scripture on One Year Bible Online Audio or ESVBible.org: OT, NT, Psalms, Proverbs or DailyAudioBible.com (podcast) ~

Old Testament - Today we begin the book of the priest & scribe Ezra!

Author: Ezra
Date: Fifth century B.C.
Content: The book of Ezra deals with the return of the Israelites to the land of Palestine after their captivity in Babylon. After describing first the return and how the work on the Temple was begun, the author tells us the problems that arose. After a great deal of trouble and early failure, the Temple was finally finished and rededicated to the glory of God. The ministry of Ezra is described in some detail, stressing the intercession that he made to God for the wayward people of the restored community.
Theme: When the people of Israel returned home they saw this as the fulfillment of the promise of God. God had said he would never abandon his people, and although they were judged for their sin, God never stopped loving them. That God should care for the world to this degree is the deepest of mysteries. God desires our worship in return for his love, however. This may be seen in that he sent the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to speed the rebuilding of the Temple after the people, in discouragement, had ceased to work upon it. (Above commentary is from Tyndale Publishers “The One Year Bible Companion” p. 8) More commentary on Ezra is at this link: https://bible.org/article/book-ezra

New Testament - Today in First Corinthians 1 verse 18 we read – “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” What does this verse say to you? Does it speak to you in any way? What is the message of the cross? What does the message of the cross mean to you personally? Is it foolishness? Or, is it the power of God? I don’t know what it is about this verse, but it really is so powerful for me. I think that it brings the Gospel message back to the central point in time in history – Jesus on the cross. And what Jesus did on the cross changed everything. Jesus changed history. The power of the cross is such that Jesus continues to change things this very moment. He is changing you. He is changing me. To us who are being saved, is the message of the cross literally the power of God? Do you meditate upon the cross regularly and meditate upon what the message of the cross truly is? Are you sharing the message of the cross with others in your life?

Below are two wonderful images for verses 27 and 30 & 31 courtesty of hearlight.org (link on the menu to the left):

Psalms -  I love verse 11 today - "Teach me how to live, O LORD. Lead me along the path of honesty."   Teach me how to live...  what a beautiful prayer!  God - Teach us how to live!  Lead us along the path of honesty!  Teach us how to live...   And Psalm 27 verse 14 today is wonderful for us to meditate upon: "Wait patiently for the LORD.  Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD."  Is there an area of your life where you feel like you are waiting for the Lord to show up?  Do you believe that the Lord will show up?  I pray that this Psalm will encourage within you the virtue of patience.  The Lord will show up.  Be brave and courageous.  Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

Proverbs - Proverbs 20 verse 22 today teaches us: "Don’t say, "I will get even for this wrong." Wait for the Lord to handle the matter." This is a great reminder that Justice is not for us to carry out.  Justice is the Lord's!

Worship God:  Today's readings in First Corinthians 1:18 reminds me of the Chris and Conrad song, "Lead Me to the Cross:"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zuwm5H8-Kw

Do you know the message of the Cross? Click here for the Message!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." 1 Corinthians 1:18 NIV

Prayer Point: Pray that the message of the cross is the power of God in your life through your saving faith in Jesus Christ. Pray for those in your family, your friends, and others you know who feel that the message of the cross is foolishness. Pray that they won't eternally perish.

Comments from You & Questions of the Day:  What verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

God bless,
Mike

p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our One Year Bible readings at this link.

p.p.s. Download a schedule of our One Year Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.

p.p.p.s. I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this One Year Bible Blog ministry today. Thanks!

August 4th One Year Bible Readings

2 Chronicles 35:1-36:23 ~ 1 Corinthians 1:1-17 ~ Psalm 27:1-6 ~ Proverbs 20:20-21
~ Click here to read today's Scripture on BibleGateway.com ~ // Mobile Site Link
~ Listen to today's Scripture on One Year Bible Online Audio or ESVBible.org: OT, NT, Psalms, Proverbs or DailyAudioBible.com (podcast) ~

Hungry? For Junk Food or God’s Food?
 

I know that a few of you reading this are behind on our readings. If you fall too far behind in our readings, please don’t get discouraged! Just skip ahead to today’s readings and start keeping pace with us once again. I don’t want you to stop reading the Bible just because you feel like you’re so far behind. It’s kind of like if you fell behind in eating a meal. You wouldn’t stop eating meals would you? Of course not. We need food. And likewise, we critically need the spiritual food the Bible offers us. So, please, don’t just read these blogs and not read the Bible. . . :) Skip ahead to today’s readings and jump back on board with us! Aren’t you hungry for God’s food?

Old Testament - Today we wrap up Second Chronicles. Ezra begins tomorrow!

New Testament - Today we begin Paul's first letter to the church in Corinth!

First Corinthians
Author: Paul the apostle
Place: Ephesus
Date: A.D. 55
Content: Paul had established a church in the Greek city of Corinth on his second missionary journey (see Acts 18:1-8), but things had gone very badly after his departure. He felt it necessary to write them concerning the many problems that had arisen. They were challenging his apostleship, abusing the Lord’s Supper, wondering about eating meat sacrificed to idols, going to court against one another, condoning immorality, denying the resurrection, arguing about marriage – to name a few of the problems. Paul felt that he had to deal with the situation, lest everything in Corinth fall to pieces. As Paul more or less systematically goes through these problems, he touches upon many of the fundamental teachings of the faith.
Theme: Paul’s major purpose in writing this letter was to correct some glaring abuses in the church at Corinth, showing the importance of how we live. It is not enough to say that we are Christians; we must also act like Christians. Not to do so is to bring dishonor upon the name of Christ. Paul also stresses the all-sufficiency of Christ for the believer. In Christ we are made pure, holy, and acceptable to God. (Above commentary is from Tyndale Publishers “The One Year Bible Companion” pp. 24-25)

More commentary on First Corinthians is at these 3 links –
https://bible.org/article/i-corinthians-introduction-and-outline
https://bible.org/seriespage/7-1-corinthians-introduction-argument-and-outline
https://bible.org/article/argument-first-corinthians

Psalms - Psalm 27 verse 1 is so powerful: "The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?" How is the Lord your light and salvation today? How is the Lord your stronghold? Are you afraid of anything?

Proverbs - Proverbs 20 verse 20 today teaches us: "If you curse your father or mother, the lamp of your life will be snuffed out."  This is a great reminder to honor your father & mother! How have you learned to honor your father & mother in your life? Have there been blessings because you have honored them?

Worship God: Today's readings in Psalm 27 reminds me of the Newsboy's song "God's Not Dead:"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_OTz-lpDjw

Do you know our Living God? Click here for LIFE!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "If you curse your father or mother, your lamp will be snuffed out in pitch darkness." Proverbs 20:20 TNIV

Prayer Point: Pray that you won't curse your father or mother. Pray that you will honor your father and mother. Pray for your father and mother.

Comments from You & Questions of the Day:  What verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

God bless,
Mike

p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our One Year Bible readings at this link.

p.p.s. Download a schedule of our One Year Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.

p.p.p.s. I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this One Year Bible Blog ministry today. Thanks!