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Fully Known

Fully known. How do those words make you feel? Peaceful? Anxious? Calm? Ashamed? All of the above, maybe? Does it depend on the situation, or maybe the person? In John 8, our reading for today, Jesus makes it very clear that He knows the people around Him. And not only does He know them, He FULLY KNOWS them, He knows their thoughts, even when they don’t speak them aloud. He knows their actions, even before they take them. He knows them better than they know themselves. He knows their hearts.

Sometimes, Jesus reveals His knowledge of the people around Him in subtle ways. For example, when He speaks to the crowd who accuses the woman of adultery, He says, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” (John 8:7) Jesus knew that each of the accusers was a sinner. Yet He didn’t need to call each person out on his individual, specific sin to make His point clear. When the crowd heard His words, “they went away one by one.” (John 8:9) Likewise, in his conversation with the woman accused of adultery, Jesus did not need to name her sin to make His point. He simply says to her, “…go, and from now on sin no more.” (John 8: 11) Simple, and subtle.

Later in John 8, however, Jesus reveals to the Pharisees that He knows them as well, and this time, He is less subtle. In fact, He does not hesitate to name their sins. Here are several examples:

– He knew that the Pharisees judged according to the flesh (John 8:15)

– He knew that the Pharisees sought to kill Him, and He knew why – because His word had found no place in them (John 8:37) and because they couldn’t bear to hear His word (John 8:43)

– He knew that the Pharisees did not believe Him (John 8:45)

– He knew that the Pharisees did not know God (John 8:55)

Not only does Jesus know the adulterous woman’s heart and the hearts of the Pharisees. He also knows our hearts, yours and mine. David confirms this in Psalm 139:1-4: “O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.” I think that David’s tone here is not one of embarrassment but one of relief. He sounds thankful to be fully known by his Creator – and in this, David serves as a good example for us.

We, too, can give thanks that our God fully knows us and wants to have a relationship with us. Any relationship deepens as we allow ourselves to be fully known by the other person, and our relationship with Jesus is no different. Furthermore, relationships strengthen when we ourselves seek to more deeply know the other person as well. Jesus, too, wants us to seek to know Him better. I pray that the fact that we are fully known by our Creator gives us not anxiety and shame, but peace and comfort. And I pray that we would seek to know Him better as we rest in the security that we are fully known, and fully loved.

Tethered

Today’s reading is from Luke 19. As I read through this chapter, one phrase jumped out at me. In the last verse of Luke 19, we are told that “all the people were hanging on his words” (Luke 19:48). In the past few days, I have come across this idea of “hanging on” to the Word of God on several occasions. Sometimes the words used were “hold fast”, and other times the word “tether” was used to describe how we are to attach ourselves to Jesus and His teachings. When the same word or idea pops up several times within a short span of days, I pay attention!

In Jesus’ time, people were only beginning to understand who He was and how His death, burial and resurrection would impact their lives eternally. Yet they still knew, somehow, that they needed to pay close attention to the words He spoke. When I imagine people hanging onto Jesus’ every word, I picture a crowd pressed close together, leaning forward and straining to hear the words directly from Jesus’ mouth. In those times, people had to work hard to hear Jesus’ words. Hearing Him meant finding out where He would be, making their way on foot to that place, and then positioning themselves close enough to Him so that they could hear His voice. In many ways, we have it so much easier today, don’t we? We have relatively easy access to Bibles both in written form and on our electronic devices. But we also have an incredible number of distractions that can draw us away from pursuing God and His word.

In a world that is constantly changing, it is critical that we hold fast to God’s unchanging word. His word is as valuable and relevant today as it was on the day it was written. It is “living and active” (Hebrews 4:12) and God promises “it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).

So, what does it look like on a daily basis to tether ourselves tightly to God’s word? Here are a few suggestions.

– Spend time reading the Bible daily. This doesn’t need to happen at a specific time each day. The reading itself is what is important; when you do it is not.

– If you find yourself thinking you do not have time to read the Bible because you have so much else to do, consider this thought that my wise husband shared with our small group this week. He suggested approaching spending time with God during the week with the same mindset we approach taking a Sabbath rest. God asks us to rest once a week, and He asks us to trust that our work will get done throughout the remainder of the week. Likewise, we can set apart time to spend reading His word daily while trusting that He will enable us to accomplish what He has called us to do that day.

– Consider using a daily reading plan found in a Bible or online. There are hundreds to choose from, and the accountability of a daily plan can be helpful.

– Memorize Scripture verses that have personal meaning to you. When your Bible or your device isn’t near, the verses you have memorized are easily recalled when you need them.

The time we spend reading our Bible matters because the words we read on the page or on the screen are alive. His word accomplishes God’s purpose for us and for the world He created. I encourage you to try one or more of the ideas above as you seek to hang onto every word of Jesus!

Luke 5

Two weeks ago, when we were studying the gospel of Mark, I wrote about abundance. The specific verses that I focused on revealed that Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross so that we could have a full and abundant life in Him. When I first read Luke 5, our text for today, I noticed that the same theme of abundance is echoed in this chapter. This isn’t surprising. Abundance is a character trait of Christ’s, so we can expect this theme to pop up throughout the Bible.

In this chapter, Jesus responds to three different people by meeting their needs with more than was asked for or expected. In Luke 5:4, Jesus tells Simon (later known as Peter) to fish off the side of the boat. Simon hadn’t been fishing that morning because he had fished all night the evening before and caught nothing. Yet Christ, in his goodness, filled Simon’s net with more fish than he could ever have imagined. In fact, Luke tells us that the disciples and the onlookers were “astonished” (Luke 5:9) at the amount of fish that were caught.

Later in this chapter, Jesus heals a man with leprosy. In those days, people afflicted with leprosy were basically shunned because people were fearful of catching this untreatable disease. This man, though, walked boldly up to Christ, saying “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” (Luke 5:12). And again, Jesus did the unimaginable: He healed this man from this disease for which there was no cure, and He did this by reaching out and touching the leper. Some time later, a group of men brought their paralyzed friend to where Jesus was speaking, and Jesus told the man to stand up, walk, and go home (Luke 5:24). The people in the crowds following Jesus were first-hand observers of His early miracles, and as the news about His healings spread, Luke tells us that many “glorified God and were filled with awe”, calling what they had seen “extraordinary” (Luke 5:26).

Each of these examples – the overabundance of fish, the healing of the man with leprosy, and the healing of the paralyzed man – point to Jesus’ love for answering our prayers in overflowing ways. I think this chapter and its theme resonated with me so much because it reminded me of my favorite verse in all of Scripture, Ephesians 3:20-21: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” Remember to ask, because He is abundantly capable. And let us respond with awe, reverence, and praise.

Abundance

I love the book of Mark. At just over 11,000 words (overviewbible.com), it is far shorter than the other three gospels. I’m a reader; I love long novels and rich memoirs. So to find myself drawn to the shortest gospel surprised me. I think it is Mark’s simplicity that appeals to me: it seems like Mark pares down the life of Jesus to the essentials, letting His life and His actions speak for themselves. Only a few verses into Mark 8, however, I realized that although Mark’s style might be characterized by brevity, Jesus’ actions are marked by overflow and abundance.

Mark 8 includes the story of Jesus feeding a large crowd of people with only seven loaves of bread and a few small fish. Mark 8:9 tells us that in the crowd “there were about four thousand people.” It is believed that these four thousand only included the men; women and children were not counted in the total. In reality, though, four or five times that number could have been in that crowd. So, with a very small amount of food (Mark 8:6-7) Jesus fed perhaps 15,000 – 20,000 people.

A few chapters earlier, in Mark 6, we learned that Jesus fed even more people – 5,000 – with five loaves of bread and two fish. Again, the crowd probably numbered over 20,000 people. And Jesus? He doesn’t stop there, with simply satisfying their hunger that day. Instead, after all of the people “ate and were satisfied” (Mark 8:8 and Mark 6:42) He instructed His disciples to gather the leftovers, the broken pieces of bread and fish. After the 5,000 had been fed, Jesus’s disciples filled twelve baskets with the leftovers! And after the 4,000 had eaten, the disciples gathered 7 baskets of leftover bread and fish! Provision, and overflow. Scarcity, and abundance.

The provision of food for the crowd clearly reminds us to have faith that God will provide for our needs. The leftover food, though, speaks to the idea of abundance. Not only will God provide, but He will do so in an abundant way. This thought is echoed in other places in Scripture as well. In Ephesians 3:19-21, Paul references Jesus’ desire for us to live a full and abundant life in Him. Paul prays that Jesus’ followers would be “filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19), and writes, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21). When Jesus fed crowds of people with so little food, and fed them until they were satisfied, He reveals to them, and to us, that He loves to provide for his followers in ways that are more than we could ever imagine. And in John 10:10, Jesus tells his disciples that He “came that they may have life and have it abundantly”. The promise of an abundant life for His followers was Christ’s purpose in coming into the world. My prayer for us today is that we rest in that assurance and embrace the abundant life that Jesus offers.

Upside-Down

When my kids were little, they used to love to try to stand on their heads. They couldn’t, of course, because they were only toddlers at the time – but they sure loved to try. I think they enjoyed looking at their little world from a different vantage point: upside-down. This idea of looking at life from an upside-down perspective is what I first thought of when I read chapter 23 of Matthew, our scripture for today.

In this chapter, Jesus speaks plainly to the scribes and to the Pharisees. These men were known to be the most religious group of people in the land at the time. But instead of praising them for their devotion, Jesus calls them out for their hypocrisy. Hypocrisy occurs when a person does not behave according to the moral code that they say they believe in. Many times, hypocrisy looks like living an upside-down life: focusing on the non-important while ignoring the essential. Let’s take a look at an example from Matthew 23.

First, Jesus tells these religious men that they are actually being impediments to God’s kingdom, and that several of their behaviors are holding other people back from becoming followers of Christ. For example, He says, they are more concerned with their outer appearance than they are with the condition of their hearts (Matthew 23:25 and Matthew 23:28). Jesus tells them clearly to, “First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean” (Matthew 23:26).

Jesus also told the scribes and the Pharisees that they were guilty of ignoring some of the basic tenets of Christianity, such as justice and mercy and faithfulness (Matthew 23:23) and focusing instead on tithing to the exact penny. Indeed, He tells them, tithing and keeping accurate financial records is important – but, “the basics are required” (Matthew 23, verse 24, The Message).

These religious people, then, were living upside-down lives. They were professing to believe one way, yet behaving in a way that directly opposed those beliefs. They were like my kids standing on their heads, really – looking at life from the wrong perspective. Eventually, my toddlers tired of being in this position and stood back up, a little dizzy but none the worse for wear. The scribes and Pharisees, though, were adults who were held responsible for leading others in spiritual matters, which is why Jesus called out their upside-down behavior – their hypocrisy – in no uncertain terms. The thing about hypocrisy, though? Those around you, and those around me, are usually able to see right through it.

I love how Jesus’ reprimand is recorded in The Message version: “Do you have any idea how silly you look, writing a life story that’s wrong from start to finish, nitpicking over commas and semicolons?” (Matthew 23, verse 24b, The Message). Maybe it is because I’m a writer, but verse 24 really spoke to me. Am I, are we, focusing on the wrong things? Are we focusing on the punctuation rules, and not the telling of the story, His story? I know that I am certainly guilty of this! And so I’m thankful to read that Jesus also offers hope, saying that He wanted to bring the people of Jerusalem to Him as “a hen gathers her brood under her wings” (Matthew 23:37). He only asks that we be willing to change our behavior and turn back to Him. This repentance, this turning back, begins not in the posture of a toddler’s headstand, but in a posture of prayer. Join me?

Follow Me

“As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. (Matthew 9:9)

I’ve always been a planner. September 1 has long been my favorite day of the year, coming just before the beginning of a new school year. I grew up in New England, so our school year didn’t begin until after Labor Day weekend. Labor Day itself would usually find me organizing my new school supplies and setting up my planner for the academic year. I still love September 1 – after going to school for 17 years and then homeschooling for another 16, my love for the beginning of a new school year is probably here to stay. For the past few years, though, I’ve also come to love the first of January, New Year’s Day, almost as much. I love the beginning of a new calendar year filled with promise and dreams and plans.

So when I read Matthew 9, our text for today, in which Jesus calls to Matthew as he is working and says simply, “Follow me” – I’m amazed that Matthew simply dropped everything and walked away with Jesus. I’m amazed, and maybe even a little uncomfortable! Matthew was a tax collector, a man whose job involved important things like schedules and ledgers and money. He was probably a planner, too, like me. Yet Matthew didn’t even question Christ when He called to him to follow. He didn’t ask, “May I just finish this one thing?” He didn’t say, “Sure, but I have to come back next week for this reason.” Instead, Matthew stood up and simply walked away from the life he knew to follow a man he did not yet know.

To do as Matthew did would have been a challenge for me, to be sure, and in realizing this, it made me wonder if this step of obedience was difficult for Matthew as well. I would imagine that it was. Nonetheless, Matthew stood and followed, and in so doing he set a fine example for me – for all of us, really – to do the same. In Luke 9:23, Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Clearly, just as Christ called Matthew 2000 years ago, He calls us today – and he expects our response now to be the same as Matthew’s was then.

Even though today is January 10, and we are already almost two weeks into the new year, I’m still in planning mode, still thinking about the new goals I’ve set for this year and working to make progress on them. But my study of Matthew 9 has reminded me of Jeremiah 29:11, in which God reminds us that, “I know the plans I have for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” God has plans for me – and for you – that far surpass any I have for myself. So in order to follow Him well, I need to approach any plan I make by first seeking God’s input and His guidance. Each plan I make and every goal I set should be placed before Him first, filtered through His perfect plan for me. I encourage you to do the same! May we all follow Him well, together.

Prayer to trust His timing

Hello to our Bible Journal family!

Today’s post is from my youngest sister, Katie Pauley. She’s been deeply involved in BSF this year and witnessing her spiritual growth has been tremendous and inspiring. Thanks Katie for writing and sharing!!! – Jon Harris

Last week in my small group we had a conversation about what worries us the most as parents. Many of us fear the death of a child or spouse, worry about our children being self-sufficient and positive members of society as adults, or fear our own abilities to provide for our children. Fear comes in all forms as we all know but what about the fear that our children will not have a personal relationship with the Lord?

2 Chronicles 27 and 28 are about two men, King Jotham and King Ahaz, who are dealing with the same political problems. King Jotham chooses to do what was pleasing to the Lord…..while King Ahaz chooses to ……do what was not pleasing to the Lord . King Jotham “became powerful because he was careful to live in obedience to the Lord his God”. Meanwhile, King Ahaz failed to trust God out of FEAR. Instead of turning to God, he ignored the Lords help and chose to turn to the King of Assyria for assistance and continued to reject the Lord.

For the past two and a half years, my (almost 5 year old) daughter Elsa Jane, has been sleeping on a yoga mat in the floor of our bedroom. Reflecting over the past few years, I can’t help but identify with King Ahaz. I consumed myself with fear and anxiety over my daughters sleeping arrangement and turned to “the world” for assistance.

At night I would lay awake for hours worrying and creating imaginary scenarios in my head.

“Will she ever leave our bedroom?”

“Do they make yoga mat beds for 17 year olds?”

“Sorry, Elsa Jane, we can’t have a sleepover party, because we don’t have enough room on our floor for all your friends.”

“What’s wrong with my daughter?”

“I’m not a good parent.”

I would spend my free time researching the internet and reading mom blogs.

How do you get your kid to sleep in their own room………

What happens when your kid sleeps in your bedroom until college……

At play dates with other moms my conversation always revolved around Elsa Jane’s sleeping issues.

“What did you do?” “How long were your kids in your room?” “Do you think there is something wrong with Elsa Jane?” “I’m so frustrated!” “Why is this happening to me?”

I finally got to the point of acceptance. Elsa Jane was going to be in our room indefinitely. I tried everything I could. It’s out of my control and I’ll just live with it. Then, on November 22, she slept in her own bedroom the entire night! And has continued to do so for 28 days!

Now that she is in her own room I have some regrets of how I chose to handle this fear in my life. I wish I had been more like King Jotham and turned to God. Instead of consuming myself with anxiety and fear every single night, I could have knelt down beside my daughter and prayed for her salvation and walk with Jesus. The hours I spent on the internet could have been replaced with hours in God’s word and praying for Elsa Jane’s relationship with the Lord. My conversations at the park with other moms could have been opportunities to share the amazing things God IS doing in my life.

John 13:13 says “You call me Teacher and Lord, and it is right that you do so, because that is what I am.” I regret how I chose to handle this fear but God’s amazing grace taught me to see an area in my life where I am spiritually blind. Instead of turning to “the world,” I pray that I will live in obedience to the Lord our God and trust the timing He has for me and my family. I pray that I cast my fears upon Jesus and replace them with prayers of the salvation for my friends and family. Do you have a fear in your life you need to give to God? Who is God calling you to pray for? Will you trust Jesus to teach you how to live in obedience to Him?

Today’s reading link: 2 Chronicles 27–28; Revelation 14; Zechariah 10; John 13

Be Still

I was honored to have my talented sister-in-law, Lisa Pruitt offer to write this week’s Journal Post. She loves caving more than anyone I’ve ever met. She is the adored older sister of my wife Heather and the adoring mother to my wonderful nieces, Chloe and Camile. Thank you Lisa!

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” -Psalm 46:10.

Today’s reading: Judges 21; Acts 25; Jeremiah 35; Psalms 7–8

Imagine with me we are in a cave. It is a landscape beneath the landscape. Some enter caves with trepidation and fear. But a cave – to me – is the very essence of God’s work right before our eyes. Caves are a fragile ecosystem, dark, damp, flowing water, the pungent smell of earth. Caves are our final frontier and they contain indescribable beauty.

I am drawn to caves, not because they are dark and scary but because it is a place where I can experience God in a new way. I can be still there in the dark and quiet, my senses are tamped down. When I turn off my headlamp, sight is absent, taste is minimal, I can touch the cool damp rock and smell minerals and soil. I can hear the delicate musical and echoing sounds of water dripping somewhere. It is a perfect environment for meditation, for prayer.

The Celtic Christians appreciated a concept known as “thin places”. A thin place is where the divide between our earthly world and God’s kingdom are narrowed, where we can experience a glimpse of God’s majesty, feel his love in surround sound. Sometimes I experience a cave as a thin place. It is not a place of fear but a place of beauty, a place where I know that God is at work, molding and sculpting hard limestone into natural art. As written by T. Augustus Forbes Leith, “from the star-spangled canopy of heaven to the far bottom of the majestic ocean, created earth is teeming with wondrous beauty”.

I went with a group of people to a cave in Mexico a few years ago. We went in single file, walking and talking quietly in the dark, our voices echoing. We walked about 15 minutes before encountering water. We slowly and gently entered the water and got acclimated to our surroundings and the unfamiliar feeling of swimming and floating in a very dark cavernous space. The water was warm and so clear that it appeared to be only 6 or 7 feet deep but it was actually 60 feet deep. There were extravagant formations everywhere I looked, hanging from the ceiling, along the walls, some emerging from the edges of the clear deep water – as if an artist had placed them there. I felt so peaceful, so blissfully happy, so overwhelmed with all my senses – that I began to weep. I experienced a thin place that day.

When I read the scriptures for today, what I continued to ruminate over was Psalm 8. “Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” God has set his glory in the heavens and the earth. When I consider the tangible and visible things that God has created, the work of His fingers, the moon and the stars, the innumerable bugs – so colorful and specialized, high mountains, deep oceans, the rebirth of spring, the delicate soft features of a baby, the miracle of unfolding life, flowers, fungus, and the amazing array of colors our eyes can perceive, I am humbled. Our God is majestic.

Appreciating the beauty of our natural world around me reminds me of the Lord’s majestic name! Anytime I can stop and notice, anytime I can be still and think of God’s love, I am reminded of God’s majesty and I experience a thin place. Sometimes the cave’s environment facilitates my experience of a thin place, sometimes it’s a mountain top, other times it is when I lie in the grass at night and allow the grandeur of the night sky to flow into me.

These profound thin places are not experienced by me every day for they require 1) the right environment, 2) the proper state of observation by me and 3) most importantly – my willingness to be still. What I know is that without Jesus at my side, even at times when these three ingredients converge, they would be meaningless and would not coalesce into a thin place without Jesus, because I would not be worthy of the familiarity of a thin place. I would be there but could not reach out to God, could not feel Him.

The indescribable beauty of all that God has given us on this earth is majestic but it is nothing compared with the gift of Jesus.

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