Category Archives: Daily Bible Study

I am using this website ( http://www.oneyearbibleonline.com/ ) to attempt to read through the Bible in a year. I am going to try to blog each day on the reading.

Daily Bible Study

September 27, 2017 Bible Study — The Righteous Will Live By Faith

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Nahum and Habakkuk.

    OK, I was mistaken the other day when I wrote that Obadiah was the only Old Testament prophet who had prophesied exclusively against foreign nations. I had forgotten that Nahum prophesied against Nineveh and the Assyrians. However, unlike Obadiah, Nahum does not describe the sins for which Nineveh is being punished. Instead, Nahum praises God for His power and warns that those who oppose Him will be brought low. The Assyrians had power and wealth which allowed them to lord it over other peoples, but when God chose to bring about their end that power and wealth was of no aid in preventing their destruction. The Assyrians had used their power and wealth exclusively for their own benefit so that when they fell no one mourned their destruction.

    Habakkuk prophesied about the same time as Nahum, possibly a few years later, but not many. Habakkuk cries out to God for judgment on the society around him. He sees that the people have twisted the law so that there is no justice. “Justice” has become a word with no meaning. People use it to gather power and wealth for themselves. Then when he sees what God has in store, Habakkuk fears that the judgment will be harsher than he wished. God’s second response to Habakkuk is the heart of the message. Those who trust in their own strength, wealth, and/or power will be brought low. The proud worship themselves or the tools through which they acquire wealth and power. The righteous live through faithfulness to God. Perhaps the most telling warning in this passage is that those who worship power and/or wealth can never have enough.They are never satisfied and will always seek more.As a result those who worship wealth and/or power will always oppress and mistreat the poor and the powerless. Seeking wealth and power for their own sake will always end in sorrow, but those who seek the Lord will find joy.

Daily Bible Study

September 26, 2017 Bible Study — Destruction For Sin Followed By Restoration To Righteousness

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Micah 3-7.

    In this passage Micah goes back and forth between condemning the people of Israel for their sins and offering hope of restoration by God. The condemnation is because the leaders of the people use their position for their own benefit, at the expense of the common people, rather than using their position to serve those who have been placed under their care. Micah tells us that no one is honest, neither among the leaders nor among the common people. Officials and judges apply the rules according to the bribes they are given. Prophets lead the people astray by promising peace to those who benefit them and attacking those who refuse to give to them. Those appointed to teach religious truth tell people that which gains them money and are silent about God’s word which might offend someone. Those with influence conspire to twist the law to their own advantage. Everyone considers honesty a fool’s game. Yet for all of that, Micah tells us that God promises to restore the people of Israel, teach them to follow His ways, and use them to bring His word to all nations.

Daily Bible Study

September 25, 2017 Bible Study — Do Not Desire Punishment For Sinners. Instead Desire That They Turn To The Lord

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Jonah 1-4and Micah 1-2.

    There are many themes woven through the Book of Jonah. Jonah tried to run from God’s will for his life and discovered that this led to disaster, both for himself and those around him. However, he also discovered that as long as we are alive we can repent. If we acknowledge our sins, turn from them, and seek to do God’s will, God will give us another chance to serve Him. Then the passage illustrates a message which God gave to Ezekiel: if God has determined to bring death and destruction upon people because of their sin and they turn from their sin, He will turn aside that death which He had promised them. The final point of the story, and the reason this book is in the Bible, is about our attitude towards sinners. We should not desire to see sinners punished for their sins. The purpose of telling sinners about their sin should not be to gloat about their coming suffering. Rather, we should wish that sinners turn from their sin and come to God, thus avoiding His anger. We should tell them of their sin and the destruction it will bring them because we love them and want them to live.

    Micah begins by warning the capital cities of Israel and Judah (Samaria and Judah) that they will soon face destruction. He warns that those who cheat and lie and twist the law to get what they want will pay the price. His condemnation is mostly directed at the ruling elites, but there is an element to which it applies to everyone. Look around, rather than wanting justice to apply even the common people want to manipulate things so that they get favors at others’ expense. The rich and connected use their wealth and power to unjustly increase their wealth. However, the poor and weak do not seek even-handed laws and justice. They seek for the government to use its force to take the wealth of others for their own benefit. Instead of listening to the words of prophets calling them to turn from their sins and follow God’s commands the people, both wealthy and poor, do what they can to silence them.

Daily Bible Study

September 24, 2017 Bible Study — A Famine Of Hearing The Word Of The Lord

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Amos 6-9 and Obadiah.

    Amos continues to prophesy against Israel and Judah (with the focus on Israel). Here he more directly focuses his condemnation on the elites of both countries, those who thought they were more important and better than the common man. They drink the finest foods and wines; they think themselves the arbiters of the fine arts. Yet, the things they call art is trivial and of no consequence. They do not fear the coming disaster because they think they are above such things. Amos reminds us that it is exactly those people who will suffer first when God’s judgment comes.

    Amos prophesied that part of God’s judgment against the people of Israel would be a famine of hearing God’s word. People would seek spiritual guidance and not be able to find it. I think we are seeing this today. People have rejected Christianity without really knowing what it is. Then they are confused when their search for spiritual fulfillment fails. Recently in a conversation on Facebook a friend of mine used an idiom based on a Biblical passage, one which was common when I was a child. He and I were the only people in the thread who even knew what it meant, let alone where it came from. This is but one example. There are numerous idioms in common use which derive from the Bible which have become distorted because few people know the passage from which they come (my favorite is the transition of “scape goat” to “excape goat”). I hear people describe the characteristics of the spiritual system they are looking for, characteristics which are fulfilled by Christianity. Yet, they summarily reject Christianity. Once, biblical themes and ideas were the bedrock of our culture, even among those who rejected faith in God. Today that is no longer true and people believe about the Bible what people who hate God tell them about it.

    Obadiah is the only Old Testament prophet whose focus is entirely on God’s judgment against foreign nations. Obadiah primarily prophesied against Edom, but he extended his warning to all of the surrounding nations who followed Edom’s example. The people of Edom were confident that their geographic location made them safe, but nothing could protect them from God’s judgment. Nothing can protect us from God’s judgment. Let us look at their sins, and be warned. They gloated when the people of Israel were taken into captivity. They took advantage of the suffering of the people of Israel in order to profit. Actually, it was more than that. When the people of Israel were suffering the people of Edom made that suffering worse for their own profit. They actively prevented the people of Israel from escaping their enemies. That last reminds me of the many nations who prevented European Jews from escaping the Nazis during WWII. However, I do not want to look at the actions of a generation which has died (those who are still alive who were alive during WWII had no role in the decisions made by their governments). Let us be careful not to repeat this sin. Let us not lend our support to those who would turn over those who are fleeing violence to those who are perpetuating the violence.

Daily Bible Study

September 23, 2017 Bible Study — Seek Justice and Righteousness, Not Just the Appearance of Justice and Righteousness

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Amos 1-5. Before I get started on my Bible study, I want to thank my wife for 17 wonderful years. It was 17 years ago today that my wife gave me the birthday present I could ever receive. Every year she asks me what she can get me for my birthday and I tell her that she has already given me the best possible birthday present. OK, I will stop here on that since I cannot possibly express how incredibly happy she has made me.

    The people of Israel and Judah must have been happy with the beginning of Amos’ prophecy. Amos starts by condemning their various enemies and warning them of God’s coming judgment against them. The overarching theme of the condemnation of Israel’s neighbors was their oppressive treatment of the people of Israel. There are a couple of other reasons that one or more of them are condemned for that I want to bring up. Several of them were condemned for enslaving and/or selling the people of Israel as slaves. The people of Ammon were primarily condemned for the killing of the unborn. The people of Edom were condemned for committing something approaching genocide against the people of Israel. And interestingly enough, the people of Moab were condemned for war crimes against the people of Edom. That last is noteworthy because the people of Edom were condemned by God for their actions, but Moab was still condemned for what they did against them. All of the things which Amos condemned Israel’s neighbors for are going on in the world today, and God will bring judgment against those who are following these practices.

    However, the happiness the people of Israel and Judah felt when Amos began to prophesy would not have lasted long. Once he had condemned the pagan nations around them he began to list out their sins in greater detail. At least part of the reason for the greater detail was because the people of Israel and Judah should have known better. Amos condemns them for many of the same sins for which he condemned their neighbors; in particular, selling people into slavery. The part of that which strikes close to home is “They sell…poor people for a pair of sandals.” That hits close to home because of the reports of U.S. companies buying shoes (and other items) from factories which employ slave labor. I am not going to say that those who buy those products are the subject of Amos’ condemnation, but those who knowingly profit out of such companies are. As we go further in the passage, Amos tells us more about those subject to condemnation. He mentions those who cause Nazirites (people who had dedicated themselves to God) to sin and tell prophets to be quiet. I see a comparison to what Amos is saying in those who encourage celebrities who start out with an innocent, wholesome image to become more “edgy”, or who set out to seduce (either directly or indirectly) male celebrities who attempt to avoid sexual immorality.

    Those whom Amos is condemning think they are righteous because they offer sacrifices, which they believe they are offering to God. Amos offers us guidance for knowing if we are making offerings to God, or to an impostor. Do those accepting our offerings call us out when we commit injustices? Or, do they congratulate us on our righteousness? If the place we are giving our offerings does not call us to act justly and to live righteously, we are hypocrites and God will bring judgment against us. God calls us to live righteously, not to put on the appearance of righteousness. God wants us to live righteously and to treat our fellow man justly more than He wants our material possessions.

Daily Bible Study

September 22, 2017 Bible Study — Turning To God In Time Of Disaster

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Joel 1-3.

    As I read the beginning of this passage it made me think of the devastation in Puerto Rico from the two hurricanes which hit it this month. The passage describes a devastation which the people of Israel could see coming, but which they were powerless to stop or escape. As I think about the response which Joel called for from the people I want to add in the other areas devastated by hurricanes this year, the parts of south Asia devastated by flooding, and the areas of Mexico struck by earthquakes. Joel called on the people who suffered the disaster he described to turn to God and give Him their hearts. Looking at the world today, I believe that God is calling us to come together and mourn before Him. This is not just a message for those who have suffered these devastating disasters. This is for all of us. Let us tear our hearts and plead with God for forgiveness. I believe that if we humble ourselves before God, He will give us the resources to restore things better than before.

    And it is for all of us. If those of us who did not bear the brunt of these disasters do not tear our hearts in prayer and fasting before God, we will be counted among the enemy nations recorded at the end of this passage. Those who are counted among the “enemy nations” in this instance will be held accountable for the suffering which went on in many of these lands before these tragedies struck. If the people of these lands turn to God and call out to Him in repentance, He will restore them and punish those responsible for their previous suffering. We have a choice, we can take this warning and seek God, or we will be counted among the enemies of God’s people. Seeking God is not just a mental, emotional, and/or spiritual exercise. It involves our material and physical selves as well. What that involves will be different for different people. For some of us, it will involve contributing from our material resources to restore those who were in the path of these disasters. For others of us, it will involve travelling to the devastated areas and helping them rebuild. For some it will involve both. It may involve other activities as well. Each of us will have to listen to what the Holy Spirit is telling us is our part in the activities of the Body of Christ.

Daily Bible Study

September 21, 2017 Bible Study — Sow the WInd, Harvest the Whirlwind

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Hosea 8-14.

    I am struggling to write this blog entry today, not because there is not a message which speaks to me in this passage, but because there are many. Hosea condemned the people of Israel for claiming to worship God and calling out to Him for rescue while worshiping an idol as God (the golden calves which Jeroboam built). They created sites for worshiping God and covering their sins, but they used them to follow practices which God had forbidden. The people loved to follow the practices which made them appear righteous, but ignored the laws which actually affected the way they lived their day to day lives. Those who speak God’s word or seek to follow His commands are called crazy or fools. Sound familiar?

    There is a line further on in the passage which has the people saying “We have no king because we did not fear the Lord. But even if we had a king, what could he do for us anyway?” When I first read that it seemed like an acknowledgement of their sin and that their problems resulted from their sin. However, as I read it again in the context it seems more of a rejection of God and goodness. In context with the rest of this passage that reads to me more as “Sure, our failure to fear God means the government is dysfunctional, but what’s in it for me if the government functions well?” God was calling the people of Israel to plow up the hard ground of their hearts and plant righteousness. He is calling on us to do the same today. But instead of doing as God asked the people of Israel cultivated wickedness, as do so many people today. If we sow the wind, we will harvest the whirlwind. When we sow wickedness we will harvest destruction.

Daily Bible Study

September 20, 2017 Bible Study — Which Will We Choose? The Long Term Good Things of God? Or the Short Term Pleasures of Sin?

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Hosea 1-7.

    I always feel bad for the prophet Hosea because God had him marry a woman (Gomer) who would not be faithful to him. Of course, my next thought is that perhaps God chose Hosea as a prophet because of his poor choice in a wife. Then I feel bad for Gomer’s daughter and second son because of the names God had Hosea give them. I want to note that before the end of the first chapter, Hosea foreshadows changing their names from negative names to positive names. Gomer left Hosea to pursue sexual relations with other men, which Hosea uses as a metaphor for the people of Israel worshiping other gods. Rather than acknowledge the good things in her life that came from her husband, Gomer pursued gifts from other men. This reflects how we so often overlook the good things which God has given us and commit sin in pursuit of pleasure. When we turn from God to pursue the pleasures of sin there is a very real risk that God will stop giving us the good things which He had previously given us. If that happens God will attempt to woo us back to Him and show us how much His love can truly mean to us.

    Hosea tells us that no one should accuse others. We are all sinners. Men who visit prostitutes have no moral authority to condemn women for being prostitutes. Men who are having adulterous affair are in no position to condemn women for adultery. It goes further than that. Christians today find themselves in a society which wallows in sexual sins. Yet, that is partly a result of those very same Christians getting caught up in the desire for wealth and comfort. We failed to discipline ourselves when we found ourselves worshiping material things, so we lost our ability to provide a moral compass to the society around us.

Daily Bible Study

September 19, 2017 Bible Study

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 11-12.

    The final visions in the Book of Daniel are of the end times. It is unclear to me if these are really two separate visions, or merely two parts of the same vision. In addition, I am unclear how we are intended to take these since the details match up partially with the rise of Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Empires he created. I am convinced that at least part of the purpose of these visions was to show the Jewish people how God controlled history. The power and might of the various kings was insufficient for them to escape from God’s will. I am sure that to a large degree this passage refers to the ongoing battles between the Ptolemaic Empire and the Seleucid Empire followed by both being conquered by Rome. However, I also believe that the reason they are referred to as the “King of the North” and the “King of the South” is so that we view this passage as more of a description of God working in the world than specific history.

    The key take away from this passage for me is where Daniel says, “The wise will shine like the brightness of heaven, and those who lead others to righteousness like the stars forever and ever” (paraphrased). Then later he says that many will be purified, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. I really believe that if we seek and accept God’s wisdom we will be purified so that we shine before others. If we allow God to work through us He will make us an example so that others will be led to righteousness. However, we need to recognize that some will refuse to leave their wickedness. We are not responsible for those who will not accept God’s word.

Daily Bible Study

September 18, 2017 Bible Study — Daniel Prays For Jerusalem’s Restoration

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 9-10.

    I found it interesting to note how Daniel reacted to reading the prophecy where Jeremiah prophesied that the exile from Jerusalem would last 70 years and realizing that those 70 years were up, or almost up. He did not rejoice and celebrate the imminent restoration of Jerusalem. Instead, he began praying and fasting, dressing himself in sackcloth and ashes as one did to mourn. His prayer was an admission that his people, including himself, had sinned in such a way as to deserve the punishment which they had received. Then when he prayed for God to fulfill the promise He had made through Jeremiah he did so with humility, asking God to do so for God’s sake. He did not cray out, “God you promised us.” Instead, Daniel prayed, “We do not deserve to be restored, if you restore us it will merely be a sign of Your mercy. Restore us to bring honour to Your name.” This should be how all of our prayers for God’s intervention should be phrased. Let us acknowledge that our sins and the sins of our ancestors caused the suffering we are experiencing. Our prayer for redemption should seek it so that God can be glorified, recognizing that we do not deserve God’s mercy.