Author: Rachael Perry

Today’s reading is from Genesis, chapters 31-32.

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. Gen. 32:24

This is one of those mysterious incidents found throughout the Old Testament, where an element of mystery is given without much explanation. Who is the masked man and what was he doing?? I am sure Jacob must have felt that way too. He thought he was all alone, having sent everyone and everything across the river, when suddenly out of the shadows steps a man, who to Jacob’s amazement begins to wrestle with him. As you read further, there is no doubt who the man is. In fact, at the end of the story, Jacob names the place of this encounter, Peniel, which means, the face of God, because he said, I have met God face to face and still survived. Here is a man who, in some strange way, in one of those Old Testament manifesetations, is God himself appearing in visible form, and he wrestles with Jacob.

What does all that mean? Taken in connection with the whole story there is no question that what we have here is God’s attempt to improve Jacob’s prayer life with a crash course on how to pray. God is attempting to break down Jacob’s stubborn dependence upon himself. Jacob’s problem was that he never really trusted God to do things. He always had that inward feeling that if he did not do it himself, God would probably not come through. Now God is dealing with him in a defining moment. Jacob has to face up to the fact that, though his prayers are eloquent and beautifully phrased they are useless because he does not actually believe that God is going to do anything. All his trust is in himself.  There is no expectation, but rather a stubborn refusal on Jacob’s part to give up and expect God to handle the situation.

Do you recognize yourself here? I recognize myself frequently doing that. The account continues, Verse 25: When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. That came after hours of wrestling. Jacob has resisted, struggled, and fought back. He will not give in until, at last, the divine hand touches him on the thigh and puts the hip socket out of joint. That is the end of it; nobody can wrestle in that condition. All Jacob can do now is to cling in helpless dependence upon this strange wrestler. Knowing by now something of who this man is, he hangs on desperately.

Many messages on this account comment on the fact that Jacob was mighty in prayer because he wrestled with God all night long and prevailed. But it is not true that Jacob wrestled with God. It is God who wrestled with Jacob, trying to break down his stubborn self-reliance, his feeling that it all depends on him, that he has got to do it or else it is not going to get done, that God is really going to do nothing in the situation.

Jacob did not prevail over God by wrestling. The moment of prevailing comes when his hip is broken, when he is absolutely helpless and can do nothing but hang on. That is when he prevailed with God. That is what this account is teaching us. God responds to that sense of human helplessness.

Today’s reading is Revelation 12

I particularly like verse 11.  I find it extremely powerful and motivating.

“They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” (Revelation 12:11)

Verse 11 points out to all of us that the critical blow for Satan came when the Lamb – Jesus Christ – shed His blood for our sins. This means that the ultimate victory was won and continues to be won by sacrifice – Christ’s death in our place to pay the penalty for our sins, and the sacrifices we are obligated to make when we are faithful followers of Christ.

I believe Satan is real and exists in the world today. Satan presents temptations to us and encourages us to act upon those temptations. As we face the battle with Satan we should not fear it but we should follow the example of Christ. Jesus Christ provides us the power to resist Satan’s temptations.

By resisting Satan, our testimony can be inspirational to others. Our actions can influence the actions of others, and this can help draw others into a relationship with Christ.

1 Timothy 1

Recently I was having a conversation with a lady in a courtroom. She had been found guilty of several crimes and was waiting for her sentencing, unsure whether she would be headed home or to jail for up to a year. Through the conversation she shared other struggles she was facing and her hopelessness. I invited her to come to church and suggested that she may be able to find useful resources through church that would benefit her family. Her response was, “Oh – I can’t go to church, that’s for religious people. People like me don’t go to church.”

Timothy says “…though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” 1 Tim 1:13-16

Sometimes I wish there were magic glasses that I could put on which would allow me to see only what is inside a person without the distraction of all that is on the outside. God is able to do that – appearance means nothing to him. How “religious” someone acts does not impress. He gave mercy so that through His mercy to us we would be an example to others of His perfect patience.

How do you think non-believers perceive Christ’s love and mercy through you?

 

 

 

 

 

Romans 3 is a reminder of the amazing gift of life given to us through Christ on the cross. Through our own actions, no matter how hard we try to be “good” and live as Christians, we are reminded that ALL of us are sinners. Without the blood of Christ – the gift given freely for all – heaven and eternal life would be unattainable.

My kids love to point out my flaws. I’ve never been so aware of how many mistakes I make (big, small or otherwise) as I am with four sets of eyeballs on me holding me accountable at all times. The mistakes can range from being incorrect about what time a certain restaurant closes to how closely I follow the speed limit. I realize that I am constantly in the wrong, whether intentional or not, and even over (seemingly) very insignificant things. The good in this though is that I am able to humble myself to my children and, swallowing my pride, admit to them that I am not always right, or that I do not always do the right thing. I am able to set an example for them in admitting fault. I am also then reminded about how many ways there are to fall short. Failing to remember, being wrong, getting angry, breaking the laws of our land (even if only by a few mph). If becoming perfect like God was in our own hands we would all be condemned. Be thankful for God’s willingness to fill the gap with the blood of Christ.

Our reading today is Acts 5, I’ll focus on verses 17-29.

¹⁷ But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees), and filled with jealousy ¹⁸ they arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. ¹⁹ But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, ²⁰ “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.” ²¹ And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach.

Now when the high priest came, and those who were with him, they called together the council, all the senate of the people of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. ²² But when the officers came, they did not find them in the prison, so they returned and reported, ²³ “We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them we found no one inside.” ²⁴ Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them, wondering what this would come to. ²⁵ And someone came and told them, “Look! The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people.” ²⁶ Then the captain with the officers went and brought them, but not by force, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.

²⁷ And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, ²⁸ saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” ²⁹ But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.

Peter and the apostles answered: “We must obey God rather than men.” 

In his powerful book Unspeakable, Os Guinness wrestles with the problem of evil in the world. In one section, he focuses on the Nuremberg trials that followed World War II. The Nazi officers, having been charged with crimes against humanity, offered the following defense: “I was merely following orders.” The verdict, however, was that the soldiers had a moral obligation to defy orders that – though legal – were clearly wrong.

In a much different context, Peter and the disciples were arrested for presenting the message of the risen Christ and brought before the religious rulers in Jerusalem. Rather than allowing themselves to be shaped by the mood of the mob, the disciples declared their intention to continue preaching Christ.

The orders of the religious establishment may have been legal, but they were wrong. When the disciples chose to obey God rather than the godless religious leaders, they raised a standard of conviction that rose above the opinions of the rulers of this world.

The trials we face may test our commitment. But we will find opportunities to exalt God if we trust Him for the strength to go beyond the words of the crowd-pleasers to do what is truly right – NOT just what is acceptable under the terms of legality in our society.

 

Today’s reading is John 14

My 5 year old son, Samuel, asks a million questions a day (at least it seems like a million!). Recently, he asks a lot of questions about heaven. What it looks like, who is there, what people do in heaven, etc. Inevitably the conversations eventually turn to the topic of losing someone, and he makes declarations that he doesn’t want to die and doesn’t want me or anyone else in our family to die. These kind of conversations are challenging – especially with a 5 year old child – but also with mature adults. God has given us so many things on earth to love and cherish that our finite minds have difficulty comprehending the eternity of heaven.

Growing up, I went every Memorial Day with my dad to the cemetery on the edge of town. Many of his loved ones were buried there. His father (who died in his forties), his sister (who died when she was 4 days old), his grandparents, and many more. We would tidy up the areas around their headstones and leave flowers. But the best part of the trip was that my dad talked about them. He told stories about their lives and made me feel like I knew them, although I had never met any of them. And always he spoke of their love for God. He would remind me that while we didn’t get to be with them now, that because they were in heaven with God we would all someday rejoice together for eternity.

As Christians, the concept of eternity is one of the most important things that separates us from non-believers. Death and what comes after should not be frightful for us. In fact, everything we do should be centered around the eventuality of reaching heaven and praying that everyone we know and love will be there too.

I am thankful not only for the memories made all those years ago with my dad, but for the way he was able to bring faith to life about what happens after death. Hopefully the talks that Samuel and I have about heaven will leave him at peace about the concept of mortality and eternity, both of which he is just beginning to grasp.

I am so thankful for the words of Jesus, which are not only comforting, but (to me anyway:) ) exciting as well:

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In my Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.” John 14:1-4

John 3

I can’t remember a time that I did not know the words to John 3:16. It’s one of the verses I learned when I was so young that I can’t even remember not knowing it. My first inclination when writing this post was to focus on verses other than that one, simply because, well – we all probably know it already. Reading through the chapter to prepare for today though, that verse kept popping out at me. I started realizing that, probably because of its familiarity, maybe it’s something I take for granted?

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” 

I want us to read this verse today like it’s the first time. Who does God love? The world. Everyone. All of the people of every nation and race, rich and poor, sick and healthy, etc. Jesus tells us God’s love is for each and every individual – no exclusions. Not only that, he loves us even before we acknowledge Him. “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

“He gave his only Son…” My children are so far from perfect it’s almost difficult to analogize this, but I cannot think of any earthly circumstance in which I would offer up one of them to be tortured and put to death on behalf of someone else. Much less if they other party was guilty and my child was innocent. As parents, we love our children and fiercely protect them from harm. My mind cannot even conceive of the kind of love that God has for the world that he could let His perfect and blameless son die the way he did for ME.

“…that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Notice what God asks of us in return? Nothing! Jesus doesn’t start talking about the 10 Commandments and all of the laws and rules of the Old Testament. The gift God gave us was given freely. The gift of Jesus’ death on the cross is for everyone and anyone – The only caveat is that we have to believe in Him. God takes away the punishment for our son in exchange for our Faith.

Challenge yourself today to really meditate on this verse. Think about (1) God’s love being for E.V.E.R.Y.O.N.E. (something my pride struggles with sometimes); (2) the only thing God of us asks is that we believe (no “to-do” list of good acts before God lets us into heaven); and (3) give thanks to God in prayer for His merciful love.

The terms contract, agreement, treaty and covenant have the same basic legal interpretation. Two or more sides, or parties, have agreed to carry out obligations or responsibilities in exchange for favors from the other party.

The Lord instructed Ezekiel to draw a picture of Jerusalem on a clay tablet and to stage a miniature siege of the city, complete with siege ramps, enemy camps, and battering rams. The prophet was also to place an iron pan between himself and the city. This action perhaps illustrated the unbreakable nature of the siege or represented the barrier between God and His sinful people.

God also instructed Ezekiel to symbolically bear the punishment of Israel. He was to lie on his left side for 390 days, corresponding to the years of the Northern Kingdom’s punishment. He was then to lie on his right side for 40 days, corresponding to the years of Judah’s punishment.

At the Lord’s command Ezekiel made bread from various grains and stored it in a jar. During the 390-day period he was to eat a daily portion of eight ounces of bread, supplemented by two-thirds of a quart of water. This restricted diet would symbolize the food rationing that would be necessary during the coming siege of Jerusalem. The Lord also told Ezekiel to cook his bread over a fire fueled by human excrement. Though the Old Testament law does not specifically prohibit this, it does suggest it would be regarded as unclean (Duet. 23;12-14). Ezekiel’s action would portray Judah’s spiritual uncleanness and the plight of the exiles, who would be forced to eat food in an unclean foreign land. When Ezekiel objected that he had always kept himself ceremonially pure, the Lord allowed him to use cow manure as fuel.

Applying this prophecy to my daily walk with the Lord, and putting something into words to share with you this morning was a challenge. What meaning do these prophecies have in our lives here and now? Probably more than my feeble mind can comprehend 🙂 Today though, my takeaway is this: How many of us would be willing to so dramatically portray the sins of our nation?

I need to pray for greater boldness in my witness for the Lord.