June 3 Bible Reading

Matthew 18

We must keep forgiveness at the center of our interactions with other believers.  We will be sinned against, and we will sin against others.  This is a natural consequence of an assembly made up of redeemed, implying that we are fallen, people.  We must not hold grudges or judge one another, but instead we must forgive.  For, hasn’t Christ paid the price that God might forgive our sin, a sin far greater than the ones that have been committed against us?  We were enemies of God, yet He died for us.  That should cause our hearts to become forgiving.  Not only should we forgive, but we must strive to help those who are battling sin, remember that bitterness is a part of that list.  The church should be a group of imperfect people striving toward Christ, picking up our comrades as they stumble, even if their falling injures us as well.  

Job 5&6

Eliphaz insists that Job must have done something sinful to deserve such terrible circumstances thrust upon him.  In response, Job searches his heart and begs that God would reveal these things to him.  He wishes for death, and would plead forgiveness, but there is no sin to be forgiven of.  We have to be careful how we deal with people in the midst of suffering.  It cannot be assumed that it has been caused by sin.  Job was in more torment searching his heart for what wasn’t there.

Genesis 36&37

The families of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all present pictures of dysfunctional families.  Often this was due to the fact that there was favoritism being shown among the children.  Sarah obviously preferred Isaac to Ishmael; Rebekah's favorite was Jacob, while Isaac preferred Esau.  Leah and Rachel themselves were disfavored and favored by their own husband, resulting in Jacob favoring Rachel’s children.  It is a solemn warning to parents to do the best they can to not inflict their children with the same difficulties.  

Isaiah 52-54

Isaiah 53 is an amazing picture of the death of Christ, seen hundreds of years before.  It perfectly describes His sacrifice of an innocent lamb being slaughtered for a sinful people.  We must keep Jesus and His sacrifice in the forefront of our lives.  It is what should motivate us and bring us joy.  God is faithful to fulfill His promises and He has promised great things for His chosen people.

1Corinthians 7&8

We must take not at Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthians to show grace to one another.  This extension of grace is rooted in the grace that Christ demonstrated to us.  This is a very important connection to remember as we show those around us attributes of God, they must be OF GOD.  It is imperative that these things that we are commanded to be to people are rooted in God, who dwells within us.  We do not have the strength or the godliness to carry out these things on our own.  They must be of Christ.

1Samuel 4-6

The glory of God is something so powerful and supernatural, that it is not to be messed with.  This glory is what was so important to Phinehas’s wife that she named her son Ichabod out of the sorrow of losing the Ark of the Lord, where God’s glory rested.  Then the Ark made the Philistine god Dagon fall.  God’s glory in the wrong hands also induced a plague and even when it was returned caused those who looked on it to die.  We must never forget the power of God’s glory.