Contemplative Bible Reading

Exodus 14:13-14 (New Living Translation)

¹³ But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. ¹⁴ The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.”

Apologies to those who love or hate that t-shirt about “stay calm and fill-in-the-blank.”

Once again, we find the source of just about everything in western civilization. The people chosen by God are about to walk into the middle of an ocean—consider that one for a while—so that the enemy will follow and be destroyed—and consider that one for a while.

This translation ends with, “Just stay calm.” Earlier is the phrase, “watch the Lord.”

The world today is such a mess. When has that statement not been true? What are we to do? Surely it is time to pack up and head for the hills to hide from the latest coming disaster.

Or perhaps it is time to stay calm, stand still, be unafraid, and watch the Lord.

Let’s keep our eyes on the Lord.

John 11:43 (King James Version)

And when he (Jesus) thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

Jesus is standing among a group of persons. What if Jesus had said, “Come forth” or “Come here.” The persons standing around would look at each other and shrug and start walking towards Jesus. Jesus had to be speaking to them, right?

No, Jesus was speaking to the dead man. What? Why would He speak to a … many questions follow.

Hence, Jesus had to say, “LAZARUS, come here.”

Think quick. We are standing there. What did Jesus just say? Surely the day was too hot and Jesus was too tired to be thinking right, huh? He is talking to a dead person. Someone do something to … I don’t know, but do something.

Then the dead person came stumbling out of the cave. The world changed forever.

Thank you God.

Hebrews 12:28 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us hold on to grace. By it, we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe,

We have yet another benefit of God’s amazing grace. If we hold onto God’s grace, if we cling to it, if we are inseparable from it, then we can serve God acceptable.

Let us consider that. Let us consider our little attempts to serve the Creator of all acceptably. How could I ever in my wildest dreams think I could serve God acceptable. I cannot do it.

Add that to the list of things I cannot do without God’s grace. Add that to the list of blessings that come with God’s grace. Add that to the thanksgivings of daily life.

Isaiah 38:1-3 (New Living Translation)

1 About that time Hezekiah became deathly ill, and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to visit him. He gave the king this message: “This is what the Lord says: ‘Set your affairs in order, for you are going to die. You will not recover from this illness.’”

2 When Hezekiah heard this, he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3 “Remember, O Lord, how I have always been faithful to you and have served you single-mindedly, always doing what pleases you.” Then he broke down and wept bitterly.

This is the (hi)story of King Hezekiah. This could be the story of just about all of us.

Hezekiah doesn’t want to die. He served God single-mindedly. He broke down and wept bitterly at the thought of dying, of leaving this current life with its pleasures and miseries.

This is part of the human condition. We cling to this life. We cling to what we know and fear what we don’t, what we have not experienced. Even the future glory of heaven…it is strange, we want to go, but we don’t want to leave.

Lord, help my in my unbelief.

Jeremiah 16:13 (Christian Standard Bible)

So I will hurl you from this land into a land that you and your fathers are not familiar with. There you will worship other gods both day and night, for I will not grant you grace.

Through the prophet Jeremiah, God is telling His people of their coming punishment. Things will be bad. They will be confused day and night because they will live in a place where noting is familiar.

And then things will be worse.

God will let the people worship other gods. They will holler and sing and dance and perform rituals in front of polished rocks and carved sticks. They will feel like they are doing something, but only doing nothing. Well, worse than nothing. They will be magnifying their sins. God will allow them to do such.

And then things will be worse.

There will be no grace—no favor from God. That’s about as bad as it can be. Favor from God can overcome everything. Just a little favor from God can do the unimaginable. No favor from God? That’s just plain…well, just plain rotten and miserable and hopeless.

Thank you God for your grace, for your favor.

Isaiah 9:7 (New Living Translation)

His government and its peace
    will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
    for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
    will make this happen!

This is describing the coming government of the…

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Good economy? Secure borders? Those aren’t mentioned. Fairness (many translations use “righteous” or being right by God) and Justice.

Those are oft repeated descriptions of good governing. I guess we don’t talk about those things much anymore. Plus, not many folks seem to like the definitions of fair and just given in the Bible. How times have changed, or have they?

1 Thessalonians 4:12 (New Living Translation)

Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others.

Depending on other persons can be a dangerous thing. If I owe too much to another person, they control my decisions.

Well, if I owe the mortgage company for the next thirty years… Can I live within that? Many of us have, and we were fine. Some of us slipped and fell and … things didn’t go so well. We took jobs with the wrong people in the wrong places and strayed.

Dependence on other persons and other things can be a dangerous things. Let us strive to remain out of danger.

Genesis 18:13-14 (New Living Translation)

13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

Of course not. There is nothing “too hard” for the Lord. He caused an old woman to have a baby. Impossible, yet trivial.

My problem with this “nothing is too hard for the Lord” truth—and it is MY PROBLEM—is that the Lord doesn’t to do the impossible things of my choosing at a time of my choosing. I can create a long list of “things that aren’t to hard for the Lord” that I want the Lord to do today.

Why doesn’t the Lord’s list of things agree with mine? Doesn’t the Lord listen to me? Doesn’t the Lord know the value of the things I want accomplished?

The Lord can do. The Lord hears. The Lord knows. Perhaps my vision of the consequences of my list is a bit blurred. Perhaps—definitely, not perhaps—I am not God, and I want to be on some days.

Exodus 12:30 (New Living Translation)

Pharaoh and all his officials and all the people of Egypt woke up during the night, and loud wailing was heard throughout the land of Egypt. There was not a single house where someone had not died.

What a horrible night. Try to imagine this. Growing up in Sunday school and all that … this was a story of victory. God punished the bad guys—they lost. The good guys won after 400 years of suffering.

Step back as an adult and consider this. Consider the houses on your street, on your road. Consider one morning where someone had died the night before in every house. It is almost unimaginable.

This was the worst night in mankind’s recorded history.

Why? How did this happen? What went wrong?

One person—Pharaoh—one ruler was stubborn. One person misruled. One person. hhhhmmmmm I am one person. I don’t think I can bring death to every house in a community in one night, but what might I do that brings suffering?

And what might I do that brings joy, peace of mind and heart, and a calm sense of good to one other person and one community? And I don’t have to do this all by myself. Jesus is with me. Hmmm. Consider that one a while, please and pray for me that I might consider it as well.

Matthew 14:29 (New Living Translation)

“Yes, come,” Jesus said.

Sometimes the more powerful and meaningful messages Jesus gives us are also the briefest (hint to all of us who like to talk and talk and write and write and …).

This is what Jesus tells Peter right before Peter steps out of the boat and walks on water towards Jesus (consider that statement for a while).

Now I am going against what I just advocated:

“Yes.” Jesus is positive. Being a follower of Jesus is a positive, active life now and forever. It isn’t a “don’t do this don’t do that” existence. It is YES.

“Come.” It is obvious which way Jesus wants us to move. He wants us to move towards Him. The Creator wants me to be near Him. What a compliment. What an opportunity.

Yes, there is much in two words. Yes, there is much about our Savior in two words.