Contemplative Bible Reading

Deuteronomy 4:7 (New Living Translation)

For what great nation has a god as near to them as the Lord our God is near to us whenever we call on him?

The nations who lived around God’s people had gods. Go to the capitol city, go to the high point in the city, and there you would find the gods of that people. The gods were carved in wood and stone and adorned with jewels. Travel anywhere, and you had to go back to that place to consult those gods.

Jehovah the God of Israel? Jehovah was near—as near as the heart.

I have traveled the world. I never felt that I was away from Jehovah the Creator and Savior. God is always right here right now. Let me never forget that blessing.

Hebrews 12:2 (New Living Translation)

We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

The writer is mentioning Christ on the cross while discussing how to move forward and live. Note how the writer mentions Christ on the cross.

Shame.

Not pain. Emotion. Not physical. On the cross, Christ held the SHAME of my sin. That shame was far worse than the immense physical pain he was enduring. Jesus was beaten to death—slowly. Nevertheless, it was my shameful actions that the writer mentions.

These words attempt to give perspective to what actually happened and how thankful I should be.

Deuteronomy 4:8 (New Living Translation)

And what great nation has decrees and regulations as righteous and fair as this body of instructions that I am giving you today?

God gave His people decrees and regulations that were amazing. How are they described? Progressive? Fundamental? Prosperous? What?

Righteous.

Fair.

Hmmm. Are we missing something today? Probably.

Romans 12:15-16 (New Living Translation)

15 Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

A little different view of “harmony.” In music, to be in harmony is to be in tune with the other music maker.

Be happy when with another person who is happy.

Be sad when with another person who is sad.

Harmony. Be in tune. Be in the same place and same emotion as the other person.

Don’t be happy when the other person is sad. Don’t be sad when the other person is happy. That shows indifference, not love. Love is the point.

Daniel 3:15 (New Living Translation)

I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what god will be able to rescue you from my power?

King Nebuchadnezzar is speaking here to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Worship the King or go into the furnace where death awaits.

Notice the last question posed by the King. The King puts himself above gods. There is no god that can rescue anyone from the power of this King.

At this time, King Nebuchadnezzar was powerful. Probably the most powerful person on earth. He reigned over the pinnacle of human achievement. This is not hyperbole. It is true. Check the history books.

And this King knew all about religion. He knew all about all the gods that people worship through the known world. He knew this because he had conquered all the people of the known world and brought all the gods back to his home.

This King collected gods. He put them in their proper place. He had not, however, met the God creator, the God of the people of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their descendants. He soon would and soon would be humbled.

He learned the difference between gods and Jehovah God the Creator. Let us all remember the lesson.

Daniel 1:18-20 (New Living Translation)

¹⁸ When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. ¹⁹ The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. ²⁰ Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.

Daniel and his three friends (more commonly known as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) were hand picked to serve the King. They were found to be better than all the … uh, er, is this a misprint? Better than the magicians and enchanters. Some translators use the words diviners and mediums.

These are occupations strictly forbidden by God of His people. Yet, here we are, they are chosen because they are better at this type of thing than those who profess it as a profession.

Daniel was later honored for “divining” the King’s dreams and visions.

We can certainly go too far with this point as we can claim that we do such-and-such for the glory of God where such-and-such is, uh, er, frankly ridiculous. Still, Daniel and his friends went on to proclaim the glory of God through unusual skills and occupations.

Joshua 5:1 (New Living Translation)

When all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings who lived along the Mediterranean coast heard how the Lord had dried up the Jordan River so the people of Israel could cross, they lost heart and were paralyzed with fear because of them.

The Kings west of the Jordan river had all heard about how Jehovah God of the descendants of Jacob had stopped the flow of water in that river so that this mass of people could simply walk across.

They lost heart.

In their hearts and minds they surrendered to the coming Jacob-ians or Israelites. No battles had been fought, but it was over. Finished.

A wise course of action would have been to tell these Israelites, “You’re God is above all. Teach us your ways. Let us know and serve your God.” That didn’t happen. Instead multitudes fought, suffered, and died.

Today? Wouldn’t it be great if raging flood waters were directed around a group of Christians, and this was shown live on Facebook or something? All hearts would melt and everyone in the world would want to know Christ.

Great idea, huh? Come on God, do it my way.

Perhaps not so great an idea. God’s miracles are right in front of all of us everyday. How can we not all worship and serve God? How is it that all of don’t lose heart and become paralyzed with fear at the thought of being in God’s presence? I guess we have to fight all our battles daily like those Kings west of the Jordan did. What folly.

Deuteronomy 4:6 (New Living Translation)

Obey them completely, and you will display your wisdom and intelligence among the surrounding nations. When they hear all these decrees, they will exclaim, ‘How wise and prudent are the people of this great nation!’

Moses is giving the people the instructions provided by God. This is the old law. This is past. We have a new covenant, a new testament. Still, let us consider the result of following God’s instructions and recommendations.

Do others see me as wise and prudent? Am I following God’s recommendations? If the answer to the second question is not a resounding “YES,” perhaps that is why the answer to the first isn’t either.

John 11:47-48 (New Living Translation)

“This man certainly performs many miraculous signs. If we allow him to go on like this, soon everyone will believe in him…”

Jesus, called “this man” above, had just raised Lazarus from the dead in the sight of many persons. The above statement was made in a quickly called council of leading Pharisees and priests.

Note the folly of what they say. They knew that this man—Jesus—was performing miracles, super-human deeds that no one can do. Yet, they were wondering if they should “allow” him to continue these super-human acts.

As if they had the power to stop super-human acts. Really? This is a Superman. Let’s put an end to this. Really? How? How do you stop a super man?

And these were smart, wise people. No kidding about that. They were smart, wise people, yet Jesus had reduced them to foolish considerations.

Sometimes God shows His power by allowing us to be foolish. When was the last time I acted the fool?

Numbers 6:22-26 (New Living Translation)

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, 23 “Tell Aaron and his sons to bless the people of Israel with this special blessing:

24 ‘May the Lord bless you
and protect you.
25 May the Lord smile on you
and be gracious to you.
26 May the Lord show you his favor
and give you his peace.’

What God gives us over all else is peace. Not wealth, not health, not fill-in-the-blank-with-what-I-think-I-want. It is peace. It is the ability to sit on the ground and not worry if someone is sneaking up behind me to konk me in the head. It is the ability to let me child or grandchild go out the door to play in the yard and not worry if something horrible will happen.

Peace.

Thank you God for your peace.