April 2

April 2
One Year Bible Readings:
Deuteronomy 21:1-22:30
Luke 9:51-10:12
Psalm 74:1-23
Proverbs 12:11
Supplemental Reading for The One Year Bible.
The following are excerpts from Mike’s One Year Bible Blog.

Deuteronomy:
It is interesting to read about the cleansing for an unsolved murder in Deuteronomy chapter 21.  I think God makes it crystal clear here that murder is such a horrible crime that affects the entire land and community.  The Ten Commandments are obviously clear on "do not murder."  These verses in Deuteronomy go into a bit of what happens to the land when one is murdered.  Interesting to think about these verses on murder - and then realize that Jesus, whose blood was wholly innocent, was murdered on a cross.  
Q: Was Jesus' murder unsolved?  Who is guilty for this murder of Jesus?  Whose sins put Jesus on the cross? Thankfully, whose sins does Jesus' blood cover?  Who does Jesus rescue and redeem through His innocent blood shed on a cross?

Luke:
Luke chapter 9 has a couple of challenging teachings for us from Jesus in verses 60 & 62 - "Let those who are spiritually dead care for their own dead. Your duty is to go and preach the coming of the Kingdom of God... Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God." How do these verses speak to you?  Today verse 62 is standing out to me - once we start our Christian journey we should not look back toward the life we left behind.  At least not in a way where we wish we were back in that old life.  Once Jesus rescues us, we are now His forever.  We have put our hand to the plow.  We will preach the coming of the Kingdom of God in the way we live our lives.  We should not look back longingly toward our old life.  It is behind us.  
Q: How have you set your hand to the plow?  How are you looking straight ahead joyfully?
 
Continuing this agricultural / farming theme - in Luke chapter 10 verse 2 today we read this teaching from Jesus to the disciples - "These were his instructions to them: "The harvest is so great, but the workers are so few. Pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest, and ask him to send out more workers for his fields."
Q: Do you believe that the harvest is great?  Do you pray to God to send out more workers for his fields?  Are you one of those workers?  How are you participating in the harvest?  If you're not participating in the harvest in some way, will you pray to God to show you where He would have you participate in the harvest?

Proverbs:
Proverbs 12 verse 11 is so true on quite a few levels - "Hard work means prosperity; only fools idle away their time."  I have been thinking about this "idling away time" issue recently.  I know that I idle away and waste a lot of time in my life.  And I know the Enemy wants us to waste time.  The Enemy wants us to be distracted.  The Enemy does not want us to work hard on things that are pleasing to God.  The Enemy does not want the Kingdom of God to be prosperous.  And if we buy into all of this that the Enemy tries to sell us each and every day, then indeed we are fools.  Don't buy into the Enemy's Fool's Gold!  
Q: Are you working hard in your life today? How are you redeeming the time?

Copyright © 2004-2012 One Year Bible Blog