2 Kings 17:1-18:12 ~ Acts 20:1-38 ~ Psalm 148:1-14 ~ Proverbs 18:6-7
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HALF-WAY - Big news! We cross the halfway threshold in our One Year Bible readings today! Whoo-hoo! Yep, June 30th marks the end of our first 6 months of readings and July 1st marks the beginning of our final 6 months of readings. Congratulations!
If by chance you’ve stopped reading the One Year Bible at some point this past six months, how about starting back up with us again as we embark on our final six months? We’d love to have you on the journey with us once again! Let's go!
Old Testament - 2 Kings 17 is a HUGE and very sad chapter today! This is a huge chapter because it is the end of the northern kingdom of Israel. Israel is invaded by Assyria and its people are exiled. It is so sad because the Israelites could have avoided this strife - but the chose to follow in the sins of Jeroboam and worship other gods. After much patience and many second chances by the True and Living God, Israel was allowed to be invaded & exiled for their disobedience. Sad stuff. You can learn more of the history of how this all transpired at this link. An overview map of the Assyrian empire at this time is below:
In 2 Kings 17 verse 41 we will read this about the foreigners in Israel: “Even while these people were worshiping the LORD, they were serving their idols.” If the foreigners both worshiped God AND served idols at the same time back then, do you suppose that we can fall into this same trap today? What would some examples be today of both worshiping God and serving idols at the same time? Are there any areas of your life where you might be serving idols? Will you allow those idols to be turned over to God for his healing and transformation of you? Will you worship God only? Will you leave the idols behind?
Verse 15 stands out and relates to the paragraph & photo above: "They worshiped worthless idols and became worthless themselves." How true is that? Maybe another way to look at it - you are what you worship! (like you are what you eat...) If we worship worthless idols, we become worthless ourselves. If we worship the true living God, we become more like his son Jesus. Would you rather be worthless or becoming like Jesus in this lifetime? And how about after this lifetime? So, who or what are you worshiping these days?
In 2 Kings 18 we are introduced to King Hezekiah of Judah! This is a great day for the southern kingdom of Judah. Check out verses 5 through 7 for an overview of who Hezekiah was - "Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was never another king like him in the land of Judah, either before or after his time. He remained faithful to the LORD in everything, and he carefully obeyed all the commands the LORD had given Moses. So the LORD was with him, and Hezekiah was successful in everything he did." Below is a coloured woodcut from Henry VIII´s Great Bible, from the year 1538, of King Hezekiah burning idols:
New Testament - Acts 20 verse 7 is a great look at an early church service! "On the first day of the week, we gathered to observe the Lord's Supper. Paul was preaching; and since he was leaving the next day, he talked until midnight." Paul preached until midnight? That had to have been one great sermon I am sure!
Well, and yes, Paul raised to life a young man named Eutychus who fell from the window sill during his sermon if you didn't notice! Wow... that's amazing. I honestly think I've kind of flown by this little tidbit before. Paul raised Eutychus from the dead!
Okay, later in the readings Paul gives a powerful farewell address to the elders of the church in Ephesus. Great stuff... Verses 36 & 37 do kind of bring a tear to the eye, no? - "When he had finished speaking, he knelt and prayed with them. They wept aloud as they embraced him in farewell, sad most of all because he had said that they would never see him again. Then they accompanied him down to the ship."
Bible.org's commentary on today's Acts readings titled "Paul's Parting Words" is at this link.
Psalms - Psalm 148 is a call for all creation to praise God! I love it. As I was reading this Psalm I was reminded of the Matt Redman song that we sometimes sing in church that goes something like - "Let everything that. Let everything that. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!" I love how the Psalms can stir up worship songs in our minds!
We read this in verse 5 - "Let every created thing give praise to the LORD, for he issued his command, and they came into being." Do you agree with this verse? That you came into being because the Lord commanded it? Do you give thanks to God frequently? And joyfully? Even in the midst of maybe some challenging times in your life, can you still give praise to your Creator?
Proverbs - Proverbs 18:7 today teaches: "The mouths of fools are their ruin; their lips get them into trouble." As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I'm sure all of us probably can think of someone else we think this Proverb really applies to... :) And yet, again, perhaps should we think about ourselves when it comes to this Proverb? How is the condition of your mouth these days? Is it bringing peace, joy, love, teaching, truth, encouragement to others? Or is it bringing talk about you, yourself, and you all of the time... and worse, bringing talk of hate, judgment and ultimately ruin? Let us examine the words that come out of our mouths each and every day! Let our mouth be a fountain of life and love for those around us!
YouTube Video: Today's readings in Acts reminded me of Sidewalk Prophets "You Love Me Anyway:"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8BBCYFAYRI
Do you know that God loves you anyway? Click here for true love!
Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "Let every created thing give praise to the Lord, for he issued his command, and they came into being." Psalm 148:5 NLT
Prayer Point: Pray a prayer of praise to God today for creating you! Pray a prayer of praise every day for God's loving care for you and all of His creation.
Comments from You & Questions of the Day: How have the first 6 months of our One Year Bible readings been for you? Has God changed you in any way these past 6 months because of our readings? What are you looking forward to as we look toward our next 6 months of readings coming up? Alos, 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!
II Kings 17:1-18:12
Mike you ask the question, “If the foreigners both worshiped God AND served idols at the same time back then, do you suppose that we can fall into this same trap today?” Sadly the answer is yes and we can fall into that trap and not even know we are in it. Many of us scope-our-horror (horoscopes) while reading the bible and confessing Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We idolize the god of Chance as we stand on line to purchase lottery tickets, or head to Atlantic City or Vegas to try our luck. We network in groups with people we don’t like to advance careers we hate by celebrating the god of Business Contacts. We join others in-group worship raising our voices to the gods of group think, Might-Makes-Right and There-Are-More-of-Us-Then-You. We don’t trust God to do what He said He will do.
In truth anything we place above God as our source, provider and protector, to name just a few, is idolatry. We even can idolize God’s laws and commandments instead of looking to the God who gave us the directives.
Acts 20:1-38
Paul had singleness of purpose. He knew what he was called to do, he knew where he was suppose to do it and he was willing to pay whatever the price to accomplish his assignment. The only way one could imitate what Paul did is to know only one thing, “Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (I Corinthians 2:2) and what that means. We must not only believe by faith but also somehow translate that faith into a dedicated conviction to stay the course despite hardships and yes, maybe even death.
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)
20 22 "And now I am going to Jerusalem, drawn there irresistibly by the Holy Spirit, not knowing what awaits me, 23 except that the Holy Spirit has told me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. 24 But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus--the work of telling others the Good News about God's wonderful kindness and love.
Psalm 148:1-14
The best prescription for depression, sadness and just feeling lousy is giving God Praise. Doing this takes your mind off the situation and gives you a godly perspective of what you are going through.
Proverbs 18:6-7
Ah, the running off at the mouth has consequences, for the fool the penalty is squabbling and violence perpetrated upon them. In other words, keep the Mouth Shut!
Grace and peace,
Ramona
Posted by: Ramona | June 29, 2014 at 06:26 PM
Even while these people were worshiping the LORD, they were serving their idols.
This is a very convicting verse. We hope and often believe that when we are worshipping a God we are acting in a way that will please a God. Of course, the big BUT is whether we are also serving other idols at the same time. If we consider our lives, we likely will find other idols which may not be as important to us are nevertheless things we worship Ito some degree. Our call to worship our God only and to the exclusion of other idols is something different than worshipping Him primarily and above other things.
Posted by: Greg Johnson | June 30, 2014 at 11:41 AM
"I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing."
I wish all Christian leaders could say this today
Posted by: Andrew Jones (tallskinnykiwi) | June 30, 2014 at 01:41 PM
Acts 20:22 Now I feel that the Holy Spirit has taken me captive. I am being led to Jerusalem.
Acts 21:4b Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.
This is a curiousity for me because the Holy Spirit tells 2 people different things? Any thoughts?
Posted by: Bob Bieberdorf | July 01, 2014 at 01:36 AM