2015 Bible Reading Challenge - Week 1

On Fridays this year, I will plan to post the devotionals I wrote that week as a part of our 2015 Bible Reading Challenge at Drakes Branch Baptist Church.  The only way to receive them on time for the day they were written is to sign up to receive them through email.  You can sign up by sending me an email at adam@drakesbranchbc.com.

Here are the Week 1 devotionals.

January 1, 2015

Today's Reading: Genesis 1-3 and Matthew 1

Devotional:

I am excited and thankful that you have chosen to embark on this journey through the Bible with me.  Psalm 19:10 says in reference to the Scriptures, "More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb."

There will be days this next year when you will not feel like reading your Bible.  Remember Psalm 19:10.  There will be days when you may forget to read your Bible.  Get back on the horse, and catch up by doing the reading you missed when you get a few extra minutes.  This is not about checking a box each day.  It is about hearing from the God of the universe who has revealed Himself to you in His Word.

Today you read the very first verse of the Bible.  The Bible begins, "In the beginning, God…" (Gen. 1:1).  What a marvelous way to begin!  This book is all about God and His work in the world.  This is the God who has always been, is right now, and will always be.  He is the God who hung the moon and the stars (Gen. 1:16).  He is the God who created a people for Himself.  He is the God who promised to provide a way to reconcile sinful man to Himself (Gen. 3:15).

He has kept that promise and provided that way through His Son Jesus Christ.  Not only is this book about God the Father, but the focus of every page is what God is doing through Jesus.

As you read the Bible this year, look for God.  Ask yourself, "What does this passage teach me about God?"  Also ask, "How does it fit into God's narrative throughout the Bible?"  You may consider keeping a running lists of His attributes as you read, things like His power, faithfulness, grace, mercy, love, justice, etc.  I think if you do this, along with the Scripture references where they are found, you will be amazed at how many times they come up.

We serve a God who is worthy of our worship.  He is worthy of our time and study.  We will never fully mine the depths of His character.  But He has given you this day to grow in intimacy with Him.  He has given you His Word for that purpose.  That is what this challenge is all about, knowing God better through His Word.

Prayer Focus:

My prayer for you this New Year is that you will know God more intimately as a result of reading through the Bible this year.  Spend some time praying and asking God to grow your love for and knowledge of Him and His Word this year.

January 2, 2015

Today's Reading: Genesis 4-5 and Matthew 2

Devotional:

Today's readings demonstrate very clearly the devastating effects of sin, which first entered God's good creation in Genesis 3.  The injustice of these two events jumps off the page as you read.

Genesis 4 records for us the very first homicide in the history of the world.  While in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him in a spirit of anger and jealousy.  The spreading of Adam and Eve's sin to their offspring is seen very vividly in this passage. 

Then in Matthew 2 we see Herod's efforts to wipe out the newborn King by having every baby boy in Bethlehem age two and under killed.  Herod was an unstable man jealous for his own power and authority.  The idea of a "new" king angered him to the point of murder.  This is a shocking example of example of injustice.

I hope you have not heard these stories so many times that you have grown numb to them.  Take a moment to consider them again.  Can you imagine how Adam and Eve must have wept, knowing that indirectly, Abel's death was a result of their sin?  Can you hear the wailing in Bethlehem as babies are snatched from their mother's arms and killed?  Such evil seen in the hearts of men!

The evil heart behind such acts seems so distant until you consider the news lately.  The effects of Adam and Eve's sin in Genesis 3 are still being felt today.  Things like terrorism, torture, racial tension, and murder dominate the evening news.  We are reminded by these things and more that we live in a broken world.  We are reminded that things are not as they should be, as God created them to be.

In both Genesis and Matthew you have the lives of God's image bearers wiped out with no regard for the value of human life.  As you read in Genesis 1:27, we are all created in the image of God.  There is something special about humanity that cannot be said about the rest of God's creation.  God has created us to reflect Him, and in reflecting Him, worship and glorify Him.

God cares about life, particularly human life.  And we too ought to care about life.  As we look and see examples of injustice all around us, we must seek to protect the vulnerable.  We should seek to see people as God sees them, bearers of His image.  We must learn to value all human life.

There is coming a day when there will be no more injustice, but that day is not here yet.  There is coming a day when Christ will return and right every wrong.  For this reason, as we seek justice, we can trust vengeance in the hands of the God who says, "Vengeance is mine; I will repay."

Prayer Focus:

Will you pray and ask God how you can get involved in caring for the least of these, those who are vulnerable and oppressed?  Think of a specific situation of injustice with which you are familiar.  Pray that the righteous judge of the all the earth, the Lord Jesus Christ, would one day right that wrong.