Year 1 Week 10 Day 64-70

Transcription

1 Year 1 Week 10 Day 64-70

2 Year 1 Week 10 Day I. Invocation and Adoration: 1. Invocation Prayer Our Father, we realize our dependence on Thee. When we are weak, then we are strong. Afflictions may be our crosses, but they can become crowns if we will sanctify them as is our privilege. Help us to take the sickness, the burdens, the losses, the calamities and use them as means of grace to center our affections on our Savior. Give me this kind of courage, this kind of faith. In Jesus Name. Amen. (Francis Asbury 18th c.) 2. Adoration through Psalm 10 We ll use this Psalm, not for today s Bible reading, but for the sake of focusing our thoughts on God. Read slowly this passage at least three times and each day gather one thought about this psalm that points to God s character that should be reflected in our lives and translate it into a prayer of adoration. II. Confession Pause now and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you your sins and ask for forgiveness. III. Thanksgiving List, one by one, things for which you should give thanks.

3 Day 64 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 21:12-17 We shall continue with the study of the Book of Matthew this week. Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. As a service to the worshippers, the priests allowed people to sell doves for sacrifices and to operate money changers to facilitate offerings. But Jesus accused them of being robbers and drove them out of the temple (court s area). How might the priests justify their actions to allow these things to happen? How did Jesus accusation serve to purify their motives? (1) Jesus rarely used violence, why did He in this very occasion? What can we learn about the heart of Jesus? (2) Jesus expresses His desire that My house will be called a house of prayer. a. In what way(s) may the church truly be called such? b. And how may you, yourself, participate in making the church a house of prayer? (3) Why were the chief priests and the scribes indignant over the healing of the sick and the children s shouts? a. Which might have made them more indignant? b. How did the children learn to shout Hosanna at Jesus? c. What can we learn from these children? (4) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life? V. Meditative Reflection: House of Prayer When I was a young boy, I was curious to see another young man in his late teens walk alone by himself in the late afternoon heat in proper shirts and pants, as if he were going to school. He would not tell me where he was going. So, one day I decided to follow him. After walking about 15 minutes, he arrived at a church, and after making a sign of the cross, he walked in and knelt on a kneeling pad and prayed. I did not see anyone there, but him alone. It was, of course, a Catholic church. I was not born again then, and I seldom went to church. My contact at that point had been with Protestant churches only, not Catholic churches. So, it was quite an experience for me to find a church that is open all the time and welcomes anyone who wants to go in and pray!

4 All these years, that picture of my friend kneeling and praying in an empty church has stuck with me. In all honesty, whenever I read about Jesus word that My house will be called a house of prayer, I long that my church will be like the one my friend went to that late afternoon. I am afraid, in our zeal to reform, we have thrown out the baby together with the bath water. What I mean is, in the restoration of sola scriptura (Scripture only), we have thrown out the emphasis on prayer as well. It is such a pity. Most Christians go to worship services to sing hymns and listen to sermons. The Holy Spirit often graciously speaks to us through songs, through Scripture reading and the sermon, only to find that whatever He has impressed upon us is lost, after a moment of silent prayer at the end of the service, never to be remembered again during the week. I believe that this moment of silent prayer is the most critical moment of our worship. It is a crucial time for us to quiet ourselves, to reflect on what the Holy Spirit has spoken to us, and to carefully respond in a prayer of truthful response. Alas, for most churches, especially those with multiple services, we are forced to bow our heads in seconds and be ushered out of the sanctuary, and our souls are satisfied that we have worshipped we have been to God s house of prayers. It is time that we stop deceiving ourselves and short-changing our God! Day 65 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 21:18-22 Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. (1) The story of the fig tree is a little odd which makes it very interesting. Can you carefully jot down all that seemed odd or unusual to you? (Think of Jesus hunger, His foreknowledge, His curse He never cursed anything before.) (2) Obviously, Jesus did it on purpose. What might be the purposes or lessons that He wanted the disciples to learn by cursing a fruitless tree? (3) Jesus was using the withering of the tree as an object lesson on faith as well and He extended it even to moving mountains. What might take greater faith the withering of a tree or the moving of a mountain if you were to pray? (4) How did the apostles apply faith in the Acts of the Apostles? Did they pray for the moving of mountains?

5 (5) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life? V. Meditative Reflection: Nothing but Leaves! I invite you to slowly reflect on the lyrics of this old hymn and examine yourself in light of Jesus cursing a tree in Matthew 21 the only account of Jesus cursing anything in the gospel: 1. Nothing but leaves I ve gathered, Yes, nothing but worthless leaves, When from the field of labor Others bring golden sheaves; Then in the day of judgment Shall I be found with tares, When God rewards the faithful With crowns of shining stars. o Refrain: Gathering nothing but leaves, Gathering nothing but leaves; Spending life s precious moments Gathering nothing but leaves. 2. Nothing but leaves I ve gathered, So sad, but, alas, tis true, What I have done I never, Nevermore can undo; Past is the harvest season, The summer has come and gone, Reaping for future burning The thorns and briars I ve sown. o Refrain: Gathering nothing but leaves, Gathering nothing but leaves; Spending life s precious moments Gathering nothing but leaves.

6 3. Nothing but leaves I ve gathered, Dear sinner, oh, hear the cry; Swiftly your days are passing, Soon you ll be called to die; What are the seeds you re sowing? What will you reap at last? Sometime you ll surely gather Sheaves from the seeds you ve cast. o Refrain: Gathering nothing but leaves, Gathering nothing but leaves; Spending life s precious moments Gathering nothing but leaves. William J. Henry, 1911 Day 66 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 21:23-27 Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. (1) Jesus preaching and healing powers were well known to all of the people, why didn t the chief priests and the elders join the people in listening to Him preach? (2) Was it not strange that these religious leaders did not question if Jesus performed those miracles, but rather His authority in doing these things? What does it tell you about these leaders and their hearts? (3) Jesus has made it clear to them the basis of His authority by always calling God His Father. What then was their problem with Jesus? (4) Why did Jesus not address their question directly, but instead direct the issue to John s baptism? What was their problem with John the Baptist then? (5) So, how did Jesus reveal to them what really was their problem? (6) Most of the times, Jesus would choose the opportunity to answer directly His opposition, but here He chose not to. What might be the reason?

7 (7) What lesson can we learn when we complain that God does not answer our questions? (8) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life? V. Meditative Reflection: Lest we Repent! When Jesus was questioned by the religious leaders as to by what authority was He doing those things, meaning His healing of the blind and lame, and perhaps the driving out of traders in the temple court area in Matthew 21, He, in essence, refused to answer their question. I believe here is an important lesson for us to learn. God is not obliged to answer our questions. As our Heavenly Father, He is certainly delighted to have His children come to Him often, to talk to Him, to share our latest with Him and to listen to Him. All loving fathers do. But if we come before Him without the desire to obey Him, it is a waste of His time to answer our questions. The chief priests and the elders of the people came to ask Jesus a question that they had no intention of obeying. Why would Jesus waste time answering them? But Jesus was so gracious, as much as they did not deserve to be answered, He directed them to see what their real problem was. By contrasting their rejection of John the Baptist with the reception of the tax collectors and even prostitutes to John s baptism of repentance, Jesus pointed out their real problem: And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe Him. (Matt. 21:32) Since the tax collectors and prostitutes were hopeless sinners in their eyes, and yet the power of God was such that they would respond to John s Baptism, then they really had no excuse not to honor John the Baptist as a prophet from God. But they didn t. As a result, it was totally futile for Jesus to prove to them who He is! As Isaiah foretold, they were bent on not willing to accept the truth, because if they did so, they would have no choice but to repent, which was the last thing they wanted to do. Thus, they would hear but never understand, they would see, but never perceive. (Matt. 13:14) Next time, if we realize that we have not been touched by the Word of God for quite a while, it is time to examine ourselves and see if we have the same spirit as these religious leaders.

8 Day 67 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 21:28-32 Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. In most parables of Jesus, He was contrasting the religious leaders against the repenting sinners whom they despised. This is one of those parables: (1) Why did Jesus use sons in this parable? (2) What was the problem with the first son? (3) Why did he rectify his error? (4) What was the problem with second son? (5) How were the religious leaders like the second son? (6) Here, Jesus clearly told us who the sinners so despised by the leaders were. Who were they? (7) Why and how did they (these despised sinners) rectify their erring way? (8) Were the religious leaders hopeless then, according to v. 31? (9) Why should the repentance of the tax collectors and prostitutes have an impact on these religious leaders according to v. 32? (10) What then is the essential message of this parable and how may you apply it in your life? V. Meditative Reflection: Tax Collectors and Prostitutes? The Synoptic Gospel writers often mention about tax collectors and sinners (see Matt. 9:10, 11; 11:19; Mk. 2:15, 16; Lk. 5:30, 7:34 & 15:1). We know who the tax collectors are, Jews who bought licenses from the Romans to collect taxes (often extra taxes) from the people. They were regarded as traitors and were despised by the people. But who are the sinners then? In Matthew 21: 31, Jesus gives us the answers when he says, I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you (the religious leaders). To tell you the truth, when I first realized that these sinners refer to the prostitutes, I was quite shocked, because that means unlike us, our Lord Jesus Christ did not avoid these prostitutes like a plague. He even ate with them as He taught them the Word of

9 God. Our avoidance of prostitutes is understandable, in a way, so that we (men) may not be tempted. But it does not mean that we can discriminate against them when it comes to the sharing of the gospel. I was privileged to accompany a young Christian man who was very passionate in reaching out to the marginalized. One night, way past midnight, he and I teamed up to walk along the streets of Vancouver, carrying with us a pot of hot chocolate and some cookies as well. Among the people we greeted and served was a prostitute. It was more than obvious that she had abused her body with drugs. She stopped and received our goodies, and she shared her pain with us. With words of kindness and encouragement from the Scripture (which she knew quite well), we prayed for her. I felt that we had treated her as Jesus would. Before this encounter, I was also privileged to lead a team of brothers and sisters to visit a motel nearby that houses some of the marginalized in the area. It was run by a brother from a downtown church I used to pastor. At one point he had confronted me with these words, If you allow prostitutes to come into the church to worship and sit by my family, we will leave the church. By the grace of God, he has come to embrace the heart of Jesus and dedicated himself to bring tax collectors and sinners into the Kingdom of God. Day 68 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 21:33-46 Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. (1) (T)hey knew He was talking about them (v. 45): the vineyard obviously refers to the nation of Israel. What then is the relationship between Israel and God as depicted by this parable? (2) Who are the servants? What is being highlighted in the successive sending of the servants? (3) Can you think of one prophet that was being mistreated by the people and how? (4) What is the reasoning behind the sending of the son? Is this expectation reasonable? Why? (5) What is the penalty suggested by the people? Is it reasonable? Why or why not?

10 (6) What has the quote from Psalm 118:22-23 in v. 42 got to do with the parable? Reflect on these emphases: the builders, the capstone, the Lord has done it and marvelous. (7) Jesus is obviously the rejected stone. a. What is meant by He who falls on this stone? b. What is the result of such a fall? c. What is meant by he on whom it falls? d. What is the result of such a fall? (8) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life? V. Meditative Reflection: Hostility against Christians Many of my Christians friends are leery about Christian athletes thanking God and praying in public. I heard many well-meaning Christians say, God does not care about football! I prefer taking a rather simple approach and ask, is God interested in my career as His child? The answer is obvious. God is interested in my total person, including my career. And for Teebow and Lin, football and basketball are their careers and I am absolutely confident that God is interested in them and their careers. We all know that if they really love the Lord, their public display of thanks to God is no different from my public display of thanks when I say a word of grace before my meal. If people take offence at it, it will not stop me from doing it. And if they really love the Lord, their prayers are not so much for being able to win, but for being able to do their best and accept whatever the outcome gratefully and with submission. I am sure Teebow and Lin would tell you that. So, if their public display of their faith offends the secular world, it is not unexpected, but to hear other Christian athletes attack them just as non-christians do, it is sad. Both Teebow and Lin are providing great incentives for young Christians, not only to pursue their dreams, but to emulate their faith in Christ. So, let us pray for them, not necessarily for success in what they do, but for God s protection that they will remain true to Christ, and not be tainted by success and glamour. To be honest, both rattle the elites in their respective sports in that Teebow does so in a very unconventional fashion, and Lin is such an underdog as well. But this is in tune with the way God always works, raising the humble in the eyes of the world, so that the proud will be silenced.

11 Day 69 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 22:1-14 Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. (1) In what ways is this parable of the wedding banquet different from the previous parable of the vineyard a. What is the occasion being depicted? b. What is the purpose? c. Who is the inviter? d. Who are the invitees? (2) In this parable, servants are being sent to those who had already been invited: a. What are the responses being depicted? b. In each case, how does it vividly depict the negative response to the gospel of the people today? c. Jesus parable describes them as the invitees. In what sense were the Jews the invitees? (3) Why did the King say that those people, did not deserve to come in v. 8? (4) Who are those being invited next? What do street corners represent? (See Eph. 2:12) (5) Why is both the good and bad being invited? (6) Why would some end up coming without wedding clothes? What are the wedding clothes? (See Rev. 7:9-14) (7) When confronted, why would the man be speechless? (8) What is the result of not being part of the wedding banquet? (9) What is the meaning of For many are invited, but few are chosen? In this parable a. Who are being invited? b. Who end up enjoying the banquet? c. Are they the ones being chosen? Or are they the ones who make their choice (to respond to the invitation and put on the wedding clothes)? Who chooses whom? (10) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life?

12 V. Meditative Reflection: Whose Choice is it? In the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22, we find that the original invitees (who are the Chosen People, the Jews) turned down the invitation. Some paid no attention and went off to their field, and some left to manage their business. They had no time for God. This is perhaps the picture of the majority of the people in the secular world. They are so caught up with life s pursuits that they think religion is a waste of time. But the rest of the invitees were very different, they were not only very religious, but were religious to the point that they seized...mistreated and killed the messenger. These are religious fanatics who would resort to violence to silence or eliminate those they do not agree with theologically. The religious leaders of Jesus time did exactly that to Jesus. Then the parable goes on to talk about us gentiles, in the corners of the street, not part of the original invitees, but as Paul points out in Romans, we are grafted because the original branches (the Jews) are broken off because of their unbelief. (11:17ff) It is quite hilarious to read the tone of the parable in that it was almost like a casual affair that the servants went out to draft everyone who was willing to come, the good and bad alike. But it does point out that the gospel is for everyone who would accept it. Ultimately, those who would not come, and those who would come, both made a conscious choice. It is their choice, and as a result, those who end up not being part of the banquet were speechless. They had only themselves to blame. But why would Jesus end the parable by saying, For many are invited, but few are chosen? I believe Jesus points out to us the two equally true aspects concerning our faith. On the one hand, salvation is offered to all people, because God so loved the (whole) world. (Jn. 3:16). So, many, in fact, all are invited. On the other hand, everyone has to make a choice, either to reject it, or to receive it. Even if a decision is not made, it has been made, that is not to accept the salvation offered by Jesus. But, our all-knowing God remains the one that chooses. Thus, Jesus says, You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit fruit that will last. (Jn. 15:16)

13 I know it is a mystery, but our attention should not be on its mystery, but on the fact that we have been chosen for a purpose not ours, but God s. Day 70 IV. Scriptural Reflection: Matthew 22:15-22 Read slowly and reflectively the assigned passage twice at least and consider the questions below each day. (1) These messengers from the religious leaders gave a rather detailed description of the character of Jesus: Examine yourself in light of Jesus character and reflect on how you may imitate Jesus: a. Man of integrity b. Not swayed by men c. Paying no attention to who they are d. Teaching the way of God in accordance with the truth. (2) Without reading Jesus reply, come up with your own reply to their question about Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar? (Remember like most Caesars who were ruthless and violent, Tiberius who was the Caesar in Jesus time, was also slothful, self-indulgent, hypocritical and greatly despised by historians, not to mention being a foreign occupying ruler of the Jews) (3) If the image on the coin confers authority to Caesar, what image confers God s authority on earth? (4) Since what belongs to Caesar really belongs to God, how does Jesus reply speak to our relationship with the government of our land? (Refer to Dan. 2:21) (5) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life? V. Meditative Reflection: In the Image of God Jesus wisely sidestepped the trap set by the Pharisees who allied with their enemies, the Herodians, in order to trap their common enemy, Jesus. (Matt. 22:15-22) In His famous declaration: Give to Caesar what is Caesar s, He used the portrait on the Roman denarius to make His point. In essence, He was saying that the image on the coin confers authority to Caesar. The question I can t help but ask is, What image confers God s authority on this earth then?

14 The answer is obvious: each one of us, because we all bear the image of our Creator. (Jas. 3:9) This is an awesome thought, because if we bear the image of our Creator, every part of our being belongs to the Creator. We have to give God what is God s. As Christians, we like to think that if we tithe, we have fulfilled our obligation in honoring God as our God. But the truth of the matter is, our tithing is our acknowledgement that 100% of us, 100% of our income, 100% of our wealth, in fact, 100% of all we have, material belongings and otherwise, belong to God. It is in this sense that we are stewards of God. We are still not free to use anything left in our possession. It reminds me of a servant of God whose Bible has these words printed on its cover: For the use of so and so. The Bible is hers, but she understands that nothing belongs to her; all is God s. We bear His image; as a result, this image confers to Him absolute authority and possession over us, the image-bearer.

15 VI. A Time for Silence You have meditated much with your intellectual faculty today. Now have a moment of silence (the length is up to you, 5 or even 30 minutes), and ask God quietly, Lord, is there any important message from you today that I might have missed? Show me, your servant is listening? VII. Supplication Use the following chart to cover people and ministries that you want to remember before the Lord: Sunday Your family Other people Church Ministries Other Ministries City & World Others Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday VIII. Benediction Heavenly Father, open my eyes to your presence; at church, at home in daily life. Help me be fully yours as I follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. In Jesus name. Amen. (Adapted from Upper Room, Oct 26, 2005)