DBRP_Jul15_2014 2King19-20 Ps132 John15a

The writer of 1 & 2 Kings was very brief about the sins of the people of Israel (in both kingdoms) until what we heard yesterday. He seems to have saved the moral of the story until chapter 17. And then we have the wonderful contrast with Hezekiah in chapter 18. Then the Assyrian king mocked the God of Israel at the end of chapter 18. We hear God's answer today and we are introduced to the prophet Isaiah.

 

It would appear that Solomon wrote this Song of Ascent, Psalm 132, as part was quoted by him at the dedication of the temple.

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus said that the disciples would be (in a literal translation) ‘in Him’ and He ‘in them’. This phrase crops up a lot in the New Testament, such as in statements like “in Him we have the victory.” ‘In’ does not mean ‘inside’, but ‘in oneness/unity’, such as we will hear today as Jesus says another of His great ‘I am’ statements: “I am the vine.” Note that this still is happening in the upper room.

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DBRP_Jul14_2014 2King17-18 Ps131 John14b

The writer of 1 & 2 Kings has been very brief until now about the sins of the people of Israel (in both kingdoms). He seems to have saved the moral of the story until chapter 17. And then we have the wonderful contrast with Hezekiah in chapter 18. And we have the Assyrian king's taunt at the end of chapter 18. We hear God's answer tomorrow.

 

God’s grace requires that we receive from the Lord, not insisting on gaining our good standing with him by ceaselessly earning brownie points. We can learn from children. 

 

Today we hear Jesus promise that He would send our Advocate/Helper, the Holy Spirit. He will lead us into all truth and be with us forever. And I think it is really due to Him that we can have a peace that the world cannot give or understand.

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DBRP_Jul13_2014 2King15-16 Ps130 John14a

Today we hear again of quite a few names, especially on the Israel/Northern side. And this culminates with Tiglath-pileser of Assyria deporting the people of Israel. Because of a heavy bribe, Judah avoids this by becoming a vassal state of Assyria. Actually, this was probably wise on king Ahaz's part. Judah has not always so wise in interpreting the signs of the time.

 

Today's psalm is one of the most beautiful of them all, and an expression of hope for anyone in despair.

 

In John 13 we heard of Jesus taking the role of a servant and washing the disciples’ feet. Judas left the upper room, and Peter was told that he would deny knowing Jesus three times.

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DBRP_Jul12_2014 2King13-14 Ps129 John13b

On the Israel (10 tribes) side today  we hear of Jehoahaz's reign. He was helped by Elijah in his final prophecy just before his death.  Then the names start getting confusing, as we hear of Jehoahaz's son Johoash.

In Judah we hear of Amaziah's reign. And it is confusing again because Amaziah's father was Joash, without any middle position h's. Amaziah was very unwise to insist on war with Jehoash.

 

Psalm 129 is an imprecatory poem against the people's who have persecuted the Jewish nation.

 

A fitting introduction to this chapter is found in  Philippians 2:

6 Though he was God,a

he did not think of equality with God

as something to cling to.

7 Instead, he gave up his divine privilegesb;

he took the humble position of a slavec

and was born as a human being.

When he appeared in human form,d

8 he humbled himself in obedience to God

and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor

and gave him the name above all other names,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

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DBRP_Jul11_2014 2King11-12 Ps128 John13a

Today we hear of Athaliah's seven year reign over Judah, of how Joash was saved from being killed, and of Jehoida's successful plot to end Athaliah's reign. Joash turned out to be sorta good, but disappointing at the end of his reign. And it is interesting to note that the people who worked on restoring the temple evidently had more integrity than the priests.

 

Today’s Song of Ascent has a similar theme about the Lord’s blessings for families as yesterday’s psalm, Psalm 127.

 

John spends several chapters in the upper room, and this is the first. We hear the most complete account here about Judas, and only here do we find the story of Jesus washing the disciple's feet. This is another time where we see Jesus consciously acting out a parable for us. And because of that event, the interchange with Peter is more poignant, although John takes pity on Peter and does not include details of that conversation that are found elsewhere.

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DBRP_Jul10_2014 2King9-10 Ps127 John12b

Today's story is of Jehu, anointed on Elisha's orders, and who executes the Lord's vengeance on Ahab and his whole family, and even his friends and the worshipers of Baal. However, after that, he still doesn't follow the Lord, but continues the idolatry of Israel.

 

Today's psalm is one of the few attributed to Solomon. And it is a masterpiece, however not particularly politically correct today in the last part. 

 

Jesus says words with a double meaning when He says, “when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.”

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DBRP_Jul09_2014 2King7-8 Ps126 John12a

One of my favorite Old Testament stories is this one about the three lepers and the famine in Samaria. Elijah's prophecy is so dramatically fulfilled. The scoffing officer could be a parable for modern times. Then we hear how the woman from Shunem returns and was blessed a second time. The narrative switches briefly to the kingdom of Judah and Ahaziah's reign.

 

Laughter, joy, and tears are in this often quoted psalm. And I thank Tabea St. Louis for reading this for us. Tabea is a member of our church.

 

Today we hear more about what happened with Mary,  Martha, and Lazarus, and that this had an impact on what happened in when Jesus was triumphantly welcomed into Jerusalem as a king.

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