Two year Bible reading program.

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 28:6 Understanding to grow in Peter finally sees. But as with the healing of v22-26, at first he sees only partially. He grasps Jesus is the God's Messiah. It means "anointed one" and refers to the king that the Old Testament prophets promised would be anointed with God's Spirit, and would therefore reign in perfect righteousness and justice as mighty God and prince of peace, and whose kingdom would span the earth and last forever (Is 9v6-7. 11v1-9). But what Peter cannot accept is that this king had come to be rejected and die. And by rebuking Jesus for teaching this, he is acting for Satan in tempting Jesus not to go through the very act by which he would achieve his kingly victor...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 28:5 Understanding to grow in No matter how persuasive the Christian might be, it can sometimes seem as if their hearer is deaf in just not getting it. It was always so. As Jesus performs another miraculous feeding, he is incredulous at his disicples' inability to grasp it's significance: "Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear" (8v18). Repeating feeding 5000 Jews, this miracle in a Gentile area shows the overflow of God's life on offer even to them, as seen with the Phoenecian woman (7v24-30). But the disciples are in danger of the "yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod" (8v15) who refuse to accept what the miracles point to, wanting more signs...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 28:4 Understanding to grow in "Hypocrite" is a charge non-Christians only too often put to the church. Here we see what hypcritical Christianity is. It is one that goes through the motions of worship, but a worship that is vain because the individual's heart is far from God. And how is this evidenced? Jesus' answer is simple: By letting go of God's commands in scripture and holding instead to human ideas. It's a striking indictment of leaders and members in today's church who claim that modern ideas reflect God's will and that the Bible is outdated. However, there is a word here for all of us. For what Jesus goes on to highlight is that all our hearts are corrupted -...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 28:3 Understanding to grow in Jesus' miracles do reveal his compassion. His is moved to see the people like sheep without a shepherd - wanding without the leaders they need. And so he teaches them and feeds them. But the bigger revelation intended by his miracles, is his identity. It was the LORD who miraculously fed Israel with bread and quail in the desert. And here Jesus' feeding with bread and fish is so abundant and generous that there are twelve baskets left over. The point is that the life Jesus offers, is more than enough for the twelve tribes of Israel. But there is more. As he walks on water we are reminded of Job 9v8 that tells us that our maker alone "treads on the waves of t...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 28: 2 Understanding to grow in We should not be surprised when people respond to our message negatively. They "took offence" at Jesus (6v3), and lacked faith because he was someone they had known. Strikingly, finding someone's words offensive in our own day, means they can be classed as hate speech. How likely then, that we will find people respond to us as they did Jesus. For, although we are not apostles, we too are called to share the message of repentance. And it was a message that led to John the Baptist's death, when the sympathetic but weak ruler was petitioned by someone he wanted to please. Again, it sounds so contemporary, as employers and even own police force act against...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 28:1 Understanding to grow in There are times in life we feel completely overwhealmed, facinig situations where none can help. However, there is always one who can: The experienced fishermen were nearly swamped, but Jesus calmed the storm with a word. None had been strong enough to subdue the demonized man (5v4) as the legion of demons within him were so many and so destructive as to inhabit and destroy two thousand pigs. But they were so subject to Jesus' as to require his permission to transfer to the pigs, and the man so delivered as to be "in his right mind" (5v15). Next is the woman who experienced bleeding. No doctor had been able to help. She had just got worse (5v26). But a touc...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:23-27 Understanding to grow in "Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother" (3v35). That's the context to today's reading. They are those who prove good soil. The seed of Christ's teaching is not snatched away, or given up on because of trouble, persecution, worry or wealth. Rather it bears fruit in obedience because God has given the hearer eyes to see and ears to hear. We should therefore consider the message that is made known to us carefully, as we will be judged on our response. And we should recognize the kingdom of God is all about growing a good crop through the word in readiness for the harvest on the last day.  Indeed, through that word, the kin...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:22 Understanding to grow in Everyone longs for rest. But the greatest rest is from the struggle with sin and the hardships of life. The Sabbath pointed to this. The rest from work looked to the rest of walking with God in Eden (Gen 2v2-3, 3v8). Here Jesus is clear that this rest is found with him as "Lord of the Sabbath" - the one in whom it is truly found and who governs how it is kept. We therefore see the disciples walking with him and enjoying God's creation. And we see Jesus stressing how appropriate it is on the Sabbath of all days to give life in healing. In what follows we then see, again, his ability to overcome sickness and Satan's works, as he commissions his disciples...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:21 Understanding to grow in Often someone has said they've felt unable to come to church because they are not living a Christian life. It betrays the assumption that Christ is only for the good. Of course they couldn't be more wrong. And that should reassure each of us every day, for who can claim to be without sin. The healinng of the paralysed man proves two key things: First, that people understood Jesus to be claiming to be divine. Second, that he really was, and so has God's authority to forgive sins. Levi's calling immeditaley shows us what that means. He has come for the spiritually sick, like the money swindling tax-collectors. And with forgiveness and a new start with God ...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:20 Understanding to grow in Early Christian tradition tells us Mark recorded his gospel from Peter. It was probably written in the 50s or 60s AD. And it starts, giving us a taste of what the kingdom of God will be like, for Jesus taught that with him it had "come near." First we see that it's centre is Jesus himself. He is the long expected Messianic king. But John testifies to him as "the Lord" himself, and the Father testifies at his baptism that he is God the Son. And he comes dispensing God's forgiveness to the repentant, so that they can enter the coming kingdom. Indeed, in being led by the Spirit to be tempted for forty days in the desert, he displays that he obey...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:19 Understanding to grow in Chapter 11 ends with a ruler encamped in readiness to attack the holy mountain (representative of God's people), only to suddenly come to his end (11v45). 12v1 implies his defeat will be because the angel Michael arose to protect God’s people. And so, although this will be a time of unsurpassable distress, all whose names are written in God’s book (recording those who are his) will be delivered. Whether this refers to the end of Antiochus Epiphanes or the end of history, 12v2 certainly speaks of the final resurrection. So how God’s people responded will matter. Some will be raised to everlasting shame and contempt (no doubt because of their compromises), and others ...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:18 Understanding to grow in As the book ends it becomes even more mysterious. Daniel sees a rather God-like figure that terrifies him, but then speaks words about the future of God's people (10v14). This figure reveals that behind key kingdoms are supernatural "princes" that influence them. So the angel "Michael" who is for the Jews, assists this figure in fighting against the demonic beings behind Persia and Greece - presumably in keeping them fulfilling God's purposes and protecting the Jews (10v13, 20-21, 12v1). What follows is a rather detailed prediction of what would lead to the rise of one who seems to fit Antiochus Epiphanes - a “contemptible person” who will se...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:17 Understanding to grow in 9v1 gives us the date 539BC and may imply Darius is another name for Cyrus (see Ezr 1v1). We learn that the book of Jeremiah was already considered scripture, and that Daniel regarded it as God’s word, gleaning that Jerusalem’s would remain in a state of destruction for 70 years. Counting from his exile in 605BC Daniel recognises the time is almost over and so fasts and prays that God would do as he promised – a model for us praying home God’s will. And God did. That year, the persian emporer decreed the exiles could return. The prayer appeals to God’s covenant love for those who love him. It also expresses solidarity with the people more generally, confessing their...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:15-16 Understanding to grow in This vision came after the previous one (8v1). In it, Daniel is in Susa, the center of the coming Persian kingdom. It confirms what we've seen so far. The ram with two long horns is Medo-Persia (8v20), the goat with a prominent horn that was then broken is Greece under Alexander who died suddenly (8v22). The description of the horn that comes from this and grows in power is astonishingly accurate with respect to Antiochus Epiphanes, who we mentioned yesterday. This horn is said to throw down and trample on some of the starry host, and set itself up against their prince (8v9-11). The later interpretation suggests the host are probably mighty kings or the people of ...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:14 Understanding to grow in 7v1 returns us to the reign of Belshazzar. Daniel's description of the four winds of heaven stirring up the great sea from which four great beasts came, probably implies God’s intent behind their rise (7v2-3). As with Nebuchadnezzar's dream, the choice of ferocious beasts shows they represent the inhumane and vicious cruel rule of four kingdoms (7v17), contrasting righteous rule which is to image God. Each is a specific ruler or kingdom: The first three represent Babylon, Medo-Persia and Greece. A good case can be made that the fourth is Rome. But to my mind, the apparent chronology of the accounts works best if it is the Seleucid Empire, founded by one of Alexa...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:13 Understanding to grow in Those with more knowledge are more accountable. And so Belshazzar is not given the lesson Nebuchadnezzar had, to bring him to acknowledge the LORD. He was aware of what happened to his father, yet still ignored Israel's God. The kingdom is therefore taken from him as Babylon is defeated by Medo-Persia in 539BC. And once again, Daniel acts with integrity, not allowing himself to be drawn into acting for the sake of wealth and prestige, but only for the Lord. However, the officials of the new king Darius are jealous of Daniel, and so they trick Darius to decree that any who do not pray to him are to be thrown to the lions. Daniel's sets an example to all in refusi...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:12 Understanding to grow in It's a dream to humble anyone, but especially those who rule. Their power and authority has been given them by God who alone is the sovereign ruler "over all kingdoms on earth" (4v25). And so when Nebuchadnezzar glories in himself as if the achievements of Babylon were not by divine gift, he is humbled. Becoming insane and animalistic is hugely significant, as ruling over creation is a key thing that sets humanity apart as made in the image of God (Gen 1v26-28). Arrogant and abusive rule is to be beast-like, whereas humble and righteous rule is to be God-like and so truly human. One cannot therefore think of Christ as the perfect man and king, who never gl...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:11 Understanding to grow in How far are you prepared to go for Jesus' sake? What are you prepared to lose? The example of Daniel's friends must have been a great challenge to others exiled in Babylon. They refused to worship the Babylonian gods, nor Nebuchadnezzar as if a god. And when given a second chance on threat of death by fire, they stuck to their guns - honouring God by testifying that they trusted and served him whether he chose to rescue them or not. The equivalent today might be the Christian who respectfully explains why their faith in Christ means they can't be involved in interfaith worship, in bowing down with assent to the state's view of sexuality and gender, or an...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:9-10 Understanding to grow in The Lord is the true only true and living God. That's the point here. Babylon's wise men are unable to tell the king his dream remarking that only gods could, and they don't live amongst men. But Daniel steps up and after seeking prayer, praises God for his wise knowledge and sovereign power and then gives the interpretation. As we'll see through the book, the dream speaks of successive empires: most likely Babylonia, Medo-Persia, Greece and then either the Seleucid or Roman Empire. The point is that the passing of each will be a step towards the setting up of the long awaited Messiah's kingdom, that will endure forever. This would have given great...

BEGIN WITH PRAYER "Lord open my eyes and my heart." Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world. Wisdom to chew on Proverbs 27:8 Understanding to grow in So how should we live as we work out our faith in an ungodly and sometimes hostile culture? The book of Daniel is about more than this, affirming God's supremacy and predicting something of Israel's future history to encourage the people to endure. But, along the way, it scatters instances of Daniel's faithfulness to model how to live for the Lord in a Babylonian society. 1v1-2 dates Daniel's exile to 605BC. And in Babylon, there was a danger he and his friends would assimilate, losing their identity as Jews and as worshippers of the true God. They are taught the language and literature and even given new names. This makes Daniel's refusal to eat from...