February 16 | Psalm 15:1-5

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DAILY READING

Psalms 15:1-5

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REFLECTION

Words to Live By

by David Thompson

Today's passage, taken literally (and we should strive to live up to these five verses), tells that it would be very hard to enter into the Lord's sacred tent or live on His Holy mountain. However, later I will speak to my beliefs on this passage.

When I was young, I grew up in an environment of rules for living a Christian life. Luckily, for me, my relatives took the list of rules to a whole new level. Sunday was considered a day of rest. You could not do anything much on that day. It was considered sinful to play sports, ride your bikes and read anything but the Bible or your Sunday School papers. On any day, you couldn't play with a regular deck of cards. The jack and joker were thought to be representations of Jesus Christ. It was fine to play a card game called "Rook," which was considered being OK. You couldn't attend movies, as the content was going to send you to Hell. And you absolutely didn't play games of chance (gambling) as this was of the devil. Taking the last point to its full expression, you couldn't go to the county fair as they had gambling games. There were obvious prohibitions against alcohol, cigarettes and even dancing.

So why wasn't all of that in my best Christian interest? Here are the commands of Psalm 15:1-5:

1. Your walk is blameless

   1. You do what is righteous

   2. You speak the truth from your heart

   3. Your tongue utters no slander

   4. You do no wrong to your neighbor

   5. You cast no slurs on others

   6. You despise a vile person

   7. You honor those who fear the Lord

   8. You keep an oath even when it hurts and don't change your mind

   9. You lend money to the poor without any thought of interest

   10. You do not accept a bribe against the innocent

Honestly, you would be a "good," person if you followed these ten rules. Another like Old Testament scripture is Isaiah 33:15. It reads, "Those who walk righteously and speak what is right, who reject gain from extortion and keep their hands from accepting bribes, who stop their ears against plots of murder and shut their eyes against contemplating evil." Again these words define a good person, but only modestly reflect Psalm 15's wise words.

Let's recall these two passages and many more that were written for the Jewish people and not for us. They had a sacrificial system to take care of sin when they didn't live up to the above. But they are good commands. So what is the harm of all of this? You see, you can have a list of "good person" items to live by and even check them off the list. I am sure many of you were looking at the ten and saying, "Yep, I lived up to that one." Or, "I need to work on that one." The answer can be seen in many places in the New Testament. I am reminded of the first verse I memorized as a child, John 1:12, "Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God." Ah, ha, the right answer. It's great to be good, but it is required to be saved!

You see, you likely should be a person of blameless character, but a "good person" could miss the door to Heaven. The whole New Testament is filled with the words ".. believe and you will be saved." Now, as you become a Christian, you will probably feel the Holy Spirit urging you to do certain things and also telling you to give up others. That is between you and God. As a parent, we should have rules for your house, but those rules might be better stated as "the way the Thompsons do things" than that they are mandates of God (except for those that are from God). There is a fine line, but pray about it and God will give you the answers.

PRAYER

Lord, help us discern the way our lives should be lived. And, when we mess up and sin, assure us you still love us and all we need to do is to ask for your forgiveness. You are a wonderful God and I am so glad that I am yours. Amen!

February 15 | John 9:1-12

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DAILY READING

John 9:1-12

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REFLECTION

Night is Coming

by Judy Webb

"As long as it is day, we must do the works of Him who sent me. Night is coming when no one can work." (John 9:4)

Jesus was feeling the urgency of His ministry. There was much to do and so little time to do it. Do you ever sense this type of stress, as though you are going to run out of time? Jesus had just declared, “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) Now he is continuing to instruct his disciples, as he heals a man who was born blind.

Jesus was working under the shadow of the coming cross and had to be diligent in his time. The healing of this blind man took place on the Sabbath, for there was no time to waste. The religious leaders had a major problem with this, as you would expect. Night is coming.

They questioned this man thoroughly, demanding to know who it was who healed him. Because he was sightless when he encountered Jesus, he could not identify his healer to these righteous leaders. All this man could say was, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I do not know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see.” (John 9:25) What a testimony!

Is there anyone you feel convicted to reach out to, someone who needs to hear about Jesus and His saving grace? It is better to make a move today, for tomorrow may not arrive. Night is coming.

Note: Be sure to read the rest of John 9, as the story only gets better. The blind man could see for the first time, but that miracle alone did not save him. He was still spiritually blind. Later in verse John 9:35–38 we witness his moment of true vision-the moment he actually saw the light of the world.

PRAYER

Dear Jesus, instill in us this sense of urgency. Help us understand that by waiting for just the right moment to reach out to someone, we might miss a divine appointment. Amen.

February 14 | Romans 14:5-9

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DAILY READING

Romans 14:5-9

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REFLECTION

We Belong to the Lord

by Beth Voltmann

If Paul could travel through time to speak to the church today, he might wring his hands in frustration. Have we given any heed to the message he gave to the churches or are we still wrestling with the same issues? How should we worship? What are we permitted to eat and drink? We say we follow the Lord Jesus, and yet, we remain mired in our man-made religious practices. 

The Bible says, “Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.” (1 Peter 1:15)

As believers, we take that and run with it, just as the early church did. Let me share ways my family and friends have practiced their deep devotion to the Lord over the years:

Within my family:

· Lutheran parents  - Weekly Sunday morning worship and Sunday School—wine served at Communion once a month

· Baptist grandmother — grape juice served at Communion every Sunday–worship held Sunday a.m., Sunday p.m., and Wednesday p.m.

· Catholic in-laws - Sunday mass not to be missed–wine served by common cup at weekly Communion

And for my friends:

· No pork - God said it was forbidden

· Vegetarian diet - God created man to eat only plants

· No consumption of alcohol—God frowns on that

· Saturday evening worship preferred

· House-church with a few friends on Sundays

· No football or movies to be viewed on the Lord’s day

· Worship online from home because of spread of illness

· Devotional time each morning

· Devotional time each night

· No specific devotional time

Who is right? Who is wrong? I would encourage you to read all of Romans 14 to fully understand the spirit of Paul’s exhortation to the church to stop judging one another. I can almost hear the refrain of Jesus from this past Sunday’s reading, “Do you still not see or understand?” (Mark 8:17)

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free! (Galatians 5:1) May we begin this season of Lent, with the sober consideration that we are “but dust and to dust we will return." Our finite, worthless attempts to honor God are only acceptable through Jesus Christ. In him alone, we have this great promise as believers:

“If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” (Romans 14:8)

PRAYER

Lord Jesus, we turn our eyes to you and ask that you cleanse us from all unworthy attempts to worship you. You alone are worthy. We are only able to stand before the throne of God because of the sprinkled blood of Jesus.

“To the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” (Jude 1:25)