Tag Archives: Prophets

Chapter-a-Day

Mountains of Meaning

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Mountains of Meaning (CaD Matt 17) – Wayfarer

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
Matthew 17:1 (NIV)

I have recently been slowly making my way through a series of podcasts by The Bible Project on the theme of mountains in the Great Story. It’s been a fascinating study, as it is yet another metaphorical theme that runs throughout in ways I’ve never seen or understood until now. In fact, the Garden of Eden in Genesis and the Holy City at the end of Revelation are both on mountains. Mountains are revealed as metaphorical thin places where heaven and earth meet. Mountains are full of meaning.

In today’s chapter we come across one of the most strange and mystical episodes of Jesus’ Story. He takes His inner circle of three disciples (Peter, James, and John) and goes us “a high mountain.” There, He is transfigured and the trinity of disciples are allowed to see Jesus revealed in His glory. A cloud descends and from the cloud the voice of God speaks. Moses and Elijah appear and have a conversation with Jesus.

If you have a moment, I urge you to quickly read Exodus 24. It is the story of Moses going up Mount Sinai to receive the Law from God. It has all the same elements. God descends in a cloud, and when Moses returns in chapter 34, his face is so radiant with God’s glory that he has to cover his face so that people can look at him.The two are connected. In Exodus, God is making a covenant with the Hebrew people. He is giving Moses His Law and to the same Hebrew people He will send His prophets. “The Law and Prophets” were how God spoke to His people. Now, Jesus stands on the high mountain. A new covenant is being born that Jesus even said is a “fulfillment” of everything that has come before a la the Law (represented by Moses) and the Prophets (represented by Elijah).

The mountain of transfiguration is Sinai 2.0. In our recent chapter-a-day trek through Leviticus I regularly made the point that the Law was God’s instruction manual for humanity in the toddler stages of civilization. Humanity is now at an age of accountability. The black-and-white paternal rules for which there was a reward-and-punishment paradigm that we use with toddlers is now evolved into the more mature understanding of spiritual principles (think Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7) that a young adult is given as he or she leaves the nest and begins living independently as a responsible adult who must face the consequences of their own willful actions and decisions.

History has moved forward. Humanity has moved forward. The Great Story is moving into a new chapter. This new chapter, however, is not fully understood without the context of the mountain of Eden, mount Sinai, the Law, the Prophets, and the ultimate destination of the eternal Holy City on the “high mountain” in a new heaven and new Earth at the climactic end of the Great Story. It’s all connected. The strange and mystical story of the mountain of Transfiguration in today’s chapter is an important link in the metaphorical mountain chain tying the entire Story together.

So, in the quiet this morning, I find myself ending another work week meditating on my own story in context with the Great Story. Next week on Wednesday I’ll celebrate my 59th trip around the sun. I’ll enter my sixth decade on this life journey. A new chapter.

As I meditate on Elijah’s presence and conversation with Jesus on the mountain of Transfiguration, I can’t help but think about his story. He experienced an incredible victory on Mount Carmel, but then ended his journey in depression, defeat, and being dismissed by God on Mount Sinai, the very mountain that launched Moses into a successful new chapter of his life journey. I don’t know what this new chapter of my earthly journey looks like, but I know I would rather be launched like Moses into a powerful and purposeful new chapter than be depressed and dismissed like Elijah. I’m thinking that I have a role to play in how things ultimately pan out. That’s a good conversation for Wendy and me to have as we celebrate my birthday and the birthdays of friends this weekend.

Enjoy your weekend, my friend. Lord willing, I’ll see you back here on Monday.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!
Chapter-a-Day

The Wise and Learned

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Wise and Learned (CaD 1 Cor 1) – Wayfarer

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.
1 Corinthians 1:27-29 (NIV)

Over the Christmas holiday I enjoyed getting together with two dear old friends. It just so happens that both of them have spent their careers in higher education. Both of my friends have been very successful in their respective positions. Over lunch, however, they regaled me with stories about what it’s like to work and live in that institutional system. Let me just say that I’m glad I’m not them. I am, however, glad that they are there. That system needs good people.

As the cultural and political divide in America has grown, I’ve observed an increasing backlash against Christianity in my lifetime. I have heard it argued that the world would be far better off had Christianity never existed, and that Christianity is the root of all cultural ills. Much of this criticism comes out of the academic world.

Along my life journey, I’ve learned to try and avoid sweeping generalizations. My point in bringing this up is simply the observation that faith has always had its critics among the world’s intellectual elites. Jesus’ harshest critics were among the most learned of His own people. His chosen disciples were certainly not highly educated. One of the reasons Paul was such a key figure in the early Jesus Movement was the simple fact that he was highly educated in the Jewish system and he happened to be from Greece, the center of intellectual learning in that day. Paul crossed over into both of the cultural worlds that were at the heart of the Jesus Movement.

Today’s chapter is the opening of a letter that Paul sent to the fledgling group of Jesus’ followers in the Greek city of Corinth. Paul had received news that there were a number of troubles among the Jesus followers there, so he is writing to address those troubles. He begins his letter by reminding the believers of something that God had been proclaiming for centuries. God’s ways are not humanity’s ways. The way of Jesus flows against the tide of typical human thinking and feeling, especially among those who consider themselves wise and learned.

The prophet Isaiah wrote,

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.

Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.”

So, in the quiet this morning, Paul reminds me that I shouldn’t be surprised when the world misunderstands, belittles, and/or maligns my faith in Jesus. Quite the opposite, I should expect it, especially from the world’s institutions of knowledge and learning. I have observed that they have their own brand of faith, but it’s in something completely different. I find it fascinating that Paul begins his letter with this simple observation. God’s ways will always run against the grain of the ways of the world. If I am truly following in Jesus footsteps there will always be people who think I’m crazy. It’s one of the ways I know I’m on the right track.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!
Chapter-a-Day

Of Prophets and Plants

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[Jesus] told [His disciples], “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
    and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”
Mark 4:11-12 (NIV)

One of the most important themes in the Great Story up through the start of Jesus’ ministry is the heart relationship between God and the Hebrew people. God made a covenant with His people but they time and time again broke their end of it. For roughly four hundred years God’s prophets were center stage warning God’s people to repent and turn their hearts back to Him. They warned God’s people of the consequences of not doing so. The people continually refused to listen. They lost their Kingdom and were taken into exile. They eventually returned from exile and rebuilt their lives, clinging to God’s promised Messiah.

One of the things that is often lost on casual readers of Jesus’ teaching is His relationship to the ancient Hebrew prophets. In Matthew 5:17 Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” If Jesus came to abolish the prophets, then I can justify ignoring the ancient prophets. Since He said He came to fulfill them, then I think I’d better understand the prophets and their message.

In today’s chapter, Mark records Jesus’ famous parable of the Sower who scatters his seed and it falls on different types of soil. The eventual fruitfulness of the seeds was determined by the quality of the soil. When His disciples asked Jesus to explain the parable and why He spoke in them, Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah:

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
He said, “Go and tell this people:
“‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
    be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
Make the heart of this people calloused;
    make their ears dull
    and close their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
    hear with their ears,
    understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”
Isaiah 6:8-10

The relationship between God and His people had always been like a rocky marriage. Some, like the prophets, had their hearts were in the right place. They were sincere in their faith, and devout in their covenant. But most were hard-hearted and calloused towards the things of God. Jesus claims that He is the fulfillment of the prophets, God’s Messiah who has come to reveal God’s Kingdom and fulfill the promise made through Abraham that through His people would come a blessing and salvation for all people. The irony is that God’s people, the Hebrew people, will continue to be just as they always have been. Some will see it, but many won’t.

The parable of the Sower and Jesus’ quote from Isaiah are linked. Jesus’ own people, especially the institutional religious establishment have rock-hard hearts. Jesus’ words will have no effect, any more than Isaiah’s words did to the royal and religious institutional establishments of his day.

And, of course, that is the whole point of Jesus’ parable for me as a reader. What’s the quality of soil in my heart, mind, and life? Do the spiritual seeds of this chapter-a-day journey germinate? Take root? Grow? Bear fruit in my thoughts, words, and actions during the day? If so, then the fruit of the Spirit will be increasingly evident with my wife, my family, my colleagues, my clients, my friends, and my community. They will experience in me love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, and self-control.

May it ever be.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Interpersonal and International

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Interpersonal and International (CaD Ezk 23) – Wayfarer

“Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you have forgotten me and turned your back on me, you must bear the consequences of your lewdness and prostitution.”
Ezekiel 23:35 (NIV)

In this election year, the headlines and pundits have gone into overdrive in analyzing the United States’ relationships with the international community and certain individual nations. Foreign policy is a major issue. I have regularly read think pieces purporting that World War III is near. Lord, have mercy on us.

I have grown up reading and hearing a euphemism that addresses political alliances between nations. That euphemism is that one nation “is in bed with” another nation.

I’m no etymologist, but given today’s chapter, it’s obvious that the euphemism has roots in the ancient prophets like Ezekiel.

In today’s chapter, God through Ezekiel offers a raw and rather shocking metaphor regarding the unfaithfulness of the divided kingdoms of Israel (Samaria) and Judah (Jerusalem). They are presented as daughters of the same mother who become prostitutes, getting “in bed” with other nations. The language is neither subtle nor ambiguous, and it would certainly make my late mother blush. Ezekiel’s message is certainly worthy of a parental advisory as he describes one wantonly promiscuous “daughter” as lusting after her lovers, “whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses.” (I’m sorry, who said the Bible is “boring?”)

It was, of course, the shock value that God was trying to leverage in giving this explicit message through Zeke. He was trying to get through to His people who, the chapter reports, were committing acts of child sacrifice in Solomon’s Temple, the temple dedicated to Him who demanded of His people that they look out for, protect, and provide for orphans, widows, and foreigners. To get through to their shockingly hard hearts, God is resorting to a shockingly hardcore metaphor.

So what does this have to do with me?

There are a couple of thoughts rattling around in my head and heart as I meditate on today’s chapter.

First, my 40+ years of being a follower of Jesus has taught me that God is not like the uptight “Church Lady” type caricature that the world likes to paint. Though I admit that certain self-proclaimed followers help to promote the notion. When Jesus talked about His willingness to leave the flock to rescue one last sheep, He was speaking of the great lengths to which He would go to get through to the lost. In Ezekiel’s message we learn that He’s willing to get downright crude, if necessary, to get through to deaf ears and the thick walls of a hardened heart.

Second, I continue to believe that Jesus’ teachings were specifically addressed to individuals and intended to direct a person’s interpersonal relationships and behaviors. They were not intended as prescriptions for international politics. When one confuses the two, things get wonky.

That said, it does not mean that God is not concerned about kingdoms and nations. The Great Story makes clear that He very much is concerned with kingdoms and nations. They play a crucial part in the Great Story, as today’s prophetic chapter makes clear. It is, however, a very different type of relationship. The Great Story makes clear that the nations and “kings of the earth” are currently under the dominion of the “Prince of this World” who, while standing condemned, will lead “the kings of the earth” into an ultimate conflict against God (Revelation 19:19).

So, where does that leave me?

In the quiet this morning I am reminded of the things that I control and the things that I don’t control. I control my thoughts, words, and behaviors. As a disciple of Jesus, this means following His instructions regarding those thoughts, words, and behaviors in my interpersonal relationships, my daily life, and my dutiful citizenship. It means that I am mindful and prayerful about current events and the individuals affected by them, being generous and active as I am able and led to do so. But it also means having faith with those things that I don’t control, and trusting God with the Story He is authoring with each passing day.

Speaking of which, it’s time to once again enter the fray. Have a great day, friend.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

The Perpetual Contrast

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The Perpetual Contrast (CaD Ezk 22) – Wayfarer

“‘‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood in her midst and defiles herself by making idols…’”
Ezekiel 22:3 (NIV)

One of the repetitive messages of the prophets was the railing about idolatry. I have found as a modern reader that it is easy to get focused on the idolatry in the prophets’ messages and then mentally zone out because, let’s face it, the notion of worshipping strange little statues is such a foreign concept in a world that has predominantly monotheistic for centuries.

What is often missed in the prophets messages is that it was never really the idolatry alone that was the problem in God’s eyes. It was behaviors that went with it and the human outcomes. Pagan worship in those ancient times was often a pretense for all sorts of bad behavior from sexual immorality to selfish ambition to cursing and eliminating one’s enemies. Pagan culture promoted a self-centered mentality of selfishness, immorality, and violence.

In today’s chapter, Ezekiel lists the common behaviors that had resulted from Jerusalem’s being turned into a pagan carnival (see verses 6-12):

Corruption
Violence and murder
Contempt for family
Oppression of foreigners
Mistreatment of orphans and widows
Desecration of the holy and sacred
Slanderers
Dishonesty
Profiting off the poor
Extortion
Sexual immorality including:
Incest
Adultery
Rape

Now look at a list of what Paul describes as “the acts of the flesh” which stand in contrast to the “Fruit of the Spirit” in Galatians 5:

Sexual immorality
Impurity
Debauchery
Idolatry
Witchcraft
Hatred
Discord
Jealousy
Fits of rage
Selfish ambition
Dissensions
Factions
Envy
Drunkenness
Orgies

In the quiet this morning I am reminded that the prophets were never just about idolatry and bowing down to funny little statues. They were standing against the same things that God has always stood against, that God still stands against as He asks me and every other believer to, by the power of God’s Spirit, live daily lives of:

Love instead of hatred
Joy instead of criticism
Peace instead of anger and violence
Patience instead of selfish impatience
Kindness instead of meanness, prejudice, and harshness
Goodness instead of corruption
Faithfulness instead of falseness
Gentleness instead of violence
Self-control instead of immorality

Through Ezekiel and the other prophets of his day, God was crying out for His people to have a change of heart and life. Daily life looks much different than it did 2500 years ago, but human behavior is still given to the same contrasts. As a disciple of Jesus, I’m called to follow Jesus in moving against the world’s behavioral traffic flow.

Even Jesus acknowledged this contrast when He said:

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV)

For the record, Jesus never mentions a middle road.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

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God’s True Desire

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God’s True Desire (CaD Ezk 14) – Wayfarer

…even if these three men—Noah, Daniel and Job—were in it, they could save only themselves by their righteousness, declares the Sovereign Lord.
Ezekiel 14:14 (NIV)

There was a credit card company who used to use the tag line: “Membership has its privileges.” And, there are certain places in life when this is true. After three decades of regular business travel, I now have certain lifetime perks as a member of various hotel and airline loyalty clubs. It certainly makes travel a little easier.

I have observed along my life journey that it’s easy to think that being a member of a church or denomination has its privileges, as well. There is, however, danger in that line of thinking. Jesus repeatedly reminded the most religious people of His day about this. Just as Ezekiel is doing in his prophetic messages.

In today’s chapter, Ezekiel is given a prophetic word for the elders who served as leaders of the exiles in Babylon. God warns them of the people’s continued idolatry and specifies that they have “set up idols in their hearts.” The original Hebrew is, however more aptly translated “set up idols upon their hearts.” It was customary and fashionable in ancient Babylon for people to wear idols and amulets on necklaces. It is possible that the Hebrew exiles had taken up this practice themselves.

In his prophetic message, Zeke mentions that God’s anger was so great that even if “Noah, Daniel, and Job” were present they alone would be spared. To Ezekiel’s listeners, this would have been a brash statement that’s lost on modern readers.

The Hebrews were proud of their status of being children of Israel, referring to Israel (aka Jacob), the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham. But before Israel or the people of Israel existed, there were characters of antiquity regarded for being righteous. They were never considered Hebrews because they existed before the Hebrews existed and were therefore considered non-Jewish gentiles.

Two of these characters we know from the Great Story itself. Noah and Job. The third figure, Daniel, is not the Daniel we know. That Daniel, of the lion’s den fame, was a contemporary of Zeke, and his story is being lived at the same time Zeke is delivering his prophesies. The Daniel Zeke is referencing is found in non-Biblical ancient texts from Canaan. They mention an ancient king from the region named Dan-el who was a man known for his incredible righteousness and justice. He cared for the widows, the orphans, and ruled with unparalleled goodness.

I find two important lessons in Zeke’s reference to these three men.

First, they were characters renown for their righteous faith and corresponding lives. Noah was a man of righteousness and goodness while the world around him was going to hell in a hand-basket. Job, despite his incredible suffering at the hands of the evil one, refused to curse God and held fast to his faith in God despite the physical, mental, and spiritual trials his suffering put him through. Dan-el was a man of justice who cared for the poor, the needy, and the outcast.

Throughout the prophets, it’s easy to focus on the idolatry that is the surface problem the Hebrews are dealing with. But it’s not just the idolatry that God is mad about. It’s the consequences of the idolatry in which the people have become self-centered, arrogant, and immoral. They aren’t doing the things that God desires most: to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with Him.

It’s important to recognize that in referencing three gentile characters from antiquity who were not Israelites, Zeke was making the point that even gentiles who didn’t have the Law of Moses acted more righteously than God’s people were. They should not expect that simply being a member of God’s people to mean they had the privilege of escaping God’s judgment. It would not shield them from God’s anger because God even considered non-Jewish gentiles more righteous than they.

I’m reminded in the quiet this morning that even today it’s easy to fall into the trap of dutiful religion (e.g. being member of a church, throwing a buck in the plate, volunteering) while ignoring the things that God tells us He really cares about. God’s true desire is that I live daily life in a way that reflects His love, generosity, mercy, and righteousness. That includes how I treat my wife and family, how I live with my neighbors, how I conduct my business, and how I conduct myself in every situation. If my heart isn’t seeking after God’s Kingdom and His righteousness, then my religious acts and church membership are a hollow waste of time.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Paths and Footsteps

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Paths and Footsteps (CaD Ezk 8) – Wayfarer

He said to me, “Have you seen this, son of man? Is it a trivial matter for the people of Judah to do the detestable things they are doing here? Must they also fill the land with violence and continually arouse my anger?
Ezekiel 8:17 (NIV)

Over the past week or two, Wendy and sat down to re-watch the first three seasons of The Chosen before we dug into the fourth season. We’re halfway through the fourth season, and we’re thoroughly enjoying it. It has done a great job of contrasting Jesus’ teaching and example with the fundamentalist religious legalism that God’s people had turned God’s law into. It will prove to be lethal.

As I read today’s chapter, it is obvious that Ezekiel is dealing with an entirely different problem than Jesus, and I find the comparison fascinating. Today’s chapter is the beginning of a vision that will take us through chapter 11. It has five major sections and begins with God taking Zeke to Jerusalem to show him the extent of the idolatry being practiced inside Solomon’s Temple.

What’s not immediately clear to modern readers is that the “tour” of idol worship inside the temple includes Canaanite, Egyptian, and Mesopotamian deities. The final act of idolatry mentioned refers to the men of Jerusalem turning their back on the altar of God and bowing down to worship the sun. It’s interesting to note that the date of this vision at the beginning of the chapter places the timing of this vision with the autumnal equinox when the rising sun would shine directly through the doors to the Temple. All of the cultures that surrounded ancient Israel worshiped a form of sun-god worship. Many scholars interpret this act of sun worship as the people adopting a mixture of sun-god worship into their worship of Yahweh.

As the chapter draws to a close, God says something very interesting to Zeke. It’s not just the idolatry being practiced that has stirred God to wrath: “Must they also fill the land with violence and continually arouse my anger?“

When God established the Hebrews as a nation in Exodus He gave them laws and a system of worship that was about living clean and ordered lives in which people loved God and loved others through gratitude, respect, honor, and respect. As the people forgot God’s laws and adopted the forms of pagan worship from the people groups around them, they also adopted the acts and behaviors that went along with them. Often this included behaviors that were completely contradictory to God’s ways. It wasn’t just the idolatry, it included adultery, sexual immorality, and the cursing of others. It also led to violence and a disregard for others and for life itself.

The history of Kings and the words of multiple prophets describe King Mannaseh of Judah, who was largely responsible for turning Solomon’s Temple into a carnival of idol worship. They all speak of his violence and the “innocent blood” he spilled.

One of the things that I’ve observed throughout the Great Story is the fact that human beings repeatedly fail to find the heart of what God, what Jesus, is asking of us. In Ezekiel’s day, God’s people chased after lustful appetites that the paganism of their day catered to, which led to many of the acts of the flesh Paul describes in Galatians:

sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; drunkenness, orgies, and the like…

By the time Jesus arrived on the scene, the pendulum had swung to the other side. God’s people had turned God’s rules into a fundamentalist system of legalistic and religious rule-keeping. This produces the other acts of the flesh that Paul lists:

hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy

In both cases, the people were missing the heart of God’s intent. To love God and love others in such a way that our lives increasingly produce love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. When that happens, our lives, our families, and our communities become places of peace, generosity, and order.

In the quiet this morning, I look back on my life journey. There are stretches of my journey in which I ran headlong down the path toward the world and the things of this world. The consequences were disastrous for me and the people I love. I also have had stretches of my journey when I followed a path into legalistic, religious rule-keeping. The consequences were equally disastrous but in a completely different way.

The further I get in my journey, the harder I find myself ignoring paths and simply following Jesus’ footsteps. As I walk in His footsteps, follow His example, and obey His teaching (His actual words, not the religious rule books and religious hoops that people turn His teaching into), I find life much more spiritually fruitful in all the good ways.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Purpose & Timing

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Purpose & Timing (CaD Acts 2) – Wayfarer

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
Acts 2:1 (NIV)

One of the things I’ve observed throughout the Great Story is the fact that God does things with both purpose and timing. The purpose and timing happening in today’s chapter can easily go unnoticed by the modern and casual reader.

In reading and meditating on the first two chapters of Acts, I couldn’t help but notice a pattern:

Before His ministry began, Jesus spent 40 days of preparation fasting, and praying. He was then baptized by John, the Holy Spirit descended on Him, and His ministry was effectively launched.

Before their ministry began, Jesus’ disciples spent 40 days of preparation. According to their own testimony, the risen Jesus appeared to them during this period and taught them. They were then baptized in the Holy Spirit and their ministry was effectively launched. (FYI: At this point, the disciples [“follower”] became known as apostles [“sent”]).

But that’s just the top layer. The pattern gets even deeper and better, because the events of Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and the outpouring of Holy Spirit are purposefully timed. They correlate to events and festivals God established through Moses back in Exodus and Leviticus at the time God established His law. What God was doing through Moses and the Law are linked to what God was doing through Jesus and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

The Passover festival was a celebration of God’s deliverance of His people in the final climactic plague on the Egyptians that led to the end of their slavery and the beginning of their freedom. In that plague, death came to the first-born male of every household unless the blood of a sacrificial lamb was spread across the door. The spirit of death “passed over” the households whose doors were covered in the blood of the lamb.

Jesus’ death and subsequent resurrection at the time of the Passover festival marked God’s deliverance for any who believes, leading to the end of slavery to sin and the beginning of spiritual freedom. Jesus became the sacrificial lamb, His blood poured out for all. His victory over death and resurrection made it possible for death to pass over any and all who would believe.

Pentecost was another ancient Hebrew festival, known as the Festival of Weeks. The first fruits of the harvest were celebrated and brought to the Temple as offerings. It was also traditionally commemorated as the day when God gave Moses the Law back in the book of Exodus.

So on the day of commemoration of God giving the Law through Moses, God gave the Holy Spirit to all believers. In His Message on the Mountain, Jesus said, “I didn’t come to abolish the Law (of Moses) and the Prophets, but to fulfill them.” The outpouring of the Holy Spirit was this fulfillment. To the believers in Corinth Paul wrote: “You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” (emphasis added).

In kicking off the harvest celebration by the bringing of first-fruit offerings, Jesus has all of the disciples, the first fruits of His early ministry. As He once told them, “I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” With the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the launched ministry of taking Jesus’ Message to the world, it is a celebration of a spiritual harvest of souls reaping eternal life.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself comforted in the reminder that God works with purpose and timing. I believe this is not only true in the events described in today’s chapter, but in my life, as well. There was a lot that the Apostles still didn’t see or understand about what was happening. In the same way, I often find myself on life’s road without clarity or understanding of what God is doing or where I’m clearly being led. Nevertheless, I know God works with purpose and timing, and I will continue to trust that today as I press on in the journey.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Shepherd and Sheep

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Shepherd and Sheep (CaD Jhn 10) – Wayfarer

“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me…”
John 10:14 (NIV)

I mentioned in previous posts that John’s account of Jesus’ story is put together thematically, and John chooses seven miraculous signs of Jesus to introduce us, his audience, to Jesus. Seven is not an arbitrary number. Throughout the Great Story, the number seven is repeatedly used and indicates completeness. At the very beginning, in Genesis, God creates everything in seven days, calls it good, and establishes a complete week. In Revelation, the final judgments come in three sets of seven, where three represents the divinity of the judgments and seven indicates their completeness.

John also chooses to share seven metaphors and “I am” statements that Jesus used about Himself:

“I am the Bread of Life.”
“I am the Light of the World.”
“I am the Gate.”
“I am the Good Shepherd.”
“I am the Resurrection and the Life.”
“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”
“I am the True Vine.”

These metaphors are not confined to Jesus’ declaration as each has deep connections throughout the Great Story.

The metaphor Jesus uses in today’s chapter is that of the Good Shepherd. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob/Israel were shepherds and Israel referred to God as the Shepherd of their lives. Moses was a shepherd. David was a shepherd. The prophets repeatedly referred to the kings of Israel and Judah as the appointed shepherds of God’s people. Jesus repeatedly used the metaphor of the Shepherd and sheep in His parables. In Revelation, Jesus is referred to as the Shepherd who leads His sheep to springs of living water. In claiming to be the Good Shepherd, Jesus is channeling the metaphorical thread that God has woven throughout the Great Story itself from beginning to end.

As I meditate on the metaphor of Jesus being the Good Shepherd, I can’t help but focus on David’s famous lyrics in the 23rd Psalm. As a life-long follower of Jesus, the opening line is particularly poignant: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” There is a relationship and intimacy between the Good Shepherd and His sheep. The Shepherd is a provider, protector, and guide. The Shepherd knows and calls each sheep by name. The Shepherd will leave the flock to find one lost sheep. When predators attack, the Shepherd will lay down his life for them.

Having grown up on a small farm, Wendy loves to reminisce about the sheep and lambs they raised and cared for. “They’re so dumb,” she tells me. This fact also gets added to the mix as I meditate in the quiet this morning. It’s easy to observe people, recount my own poor choices in life, and conclude that people are “dumb” too. I present myself as Exhibit A. We wander aimlessly through life, afraid, threatened, and needy. “Like sheep without a Shepherd,” is what the ancient prophets liked to say.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself comforted as I think about the Lord being my Shepherd. I am currently in a season of life in which many things are uncertain. It’s easy to feel fear and anxiety. Then I look back at my entire life and can easily recount the many ways that God has always led, directed, provided, and protected me. He has been a Good Shepherd to this dumb sheep, and I can trust Him to continue being so. It’s who Jesus is. He said it Himself.

I’m back on Facebook for those who liked to read my chapter-a-day posts there! Facebook refuses to give me access to my old, hacked account, but I have started a new account. Please search for me on Facebook and friend me. If Facebook won’t let you friend me, please go to my Facebook profile and “Message” me, which should then allow me to friend you. Cheers! -Tom

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Chapter-a-Day

Journalistic Prophets

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Journalistic Prophets (CaD Mi 3) – Wayfarer

This is what the Lord says: “As for the prophets who lead my people astray, they proclaim ‘peace’ if they have something to eat, but prepare to wage war against anyone who refuses to feed them.”
Micah 3:5 (NIV)

Over the past few years, I have personally migrated to reading more and more independent journalists who write on sites like Substack, along with subscribing to non-traditional news outlets that ascribe to the journalistic principles of integrity and objectivity that I was taught in journalism classes in school. I find it refreshing to read the work of those who are presenting facts and drawing conclusions based on those facts, even if it makes me uncomfortable.

We recently crossed the 100-day mark from the events of October 7 and the consequential dominoes that have fallen in its wake. Wendy and I have participated in lively conversations with individuals on both sides of the conflict in Gaza. Passions run high on both sides, and I have observed those on both sides of the conflict who are quick to ignore, obfuscate, and reject facts and inconvenient truths.

Yesterday, I read a piece in one of the independent journalistic outlets I previously mentioned. It was a hard read because it challenged some of my own thoughts and feelings with cold, hard facts and objective clarity that I couldn’t ignore. It also affirmed with equally cold, hard facts some of the truths that others I’ve spoken with outright refuse to accept as anything but lies.

One of the things that modern readers of the Great Story often fail to understand is that in ancient society, “prophets” were an entire workforce in the culture. Every religion (and there were many) had its version of prophets. Every monarch and emperor had an entire staff of prophets to provide “divine” guidance.

In today’s chapter, the ancient prophet Micah contrasts himself with the mainstream prophets who served in the King’s court and the pagan temples. What Micah calls out in his peers is the fact that they are driven by selfish motives. Being a prophet is their job, and they are worried about their paycheck and their social status. These prophets, Micah reports, will say whatever their boss wants to hear if it provides job security.

Micah and those prophets we know from the Great Story, were a different lot. The reason we still read their words thousands of years later is precisely because they were willing to say what no one else was willing to say. They were willing to present cold, hard facts about the events of their day even if it meant they were ostracized, canceled, unemployed, beaten, and (in some cases) killed.

Micah makes the point that the “prophets” of his day would prophesy anything that would keep food on their table. I couldn’t help but think of the prophet of Elijah (1 Kings 17:1-4) who, in contrast, told King Ahab that there would be a severe famine in the land, then went to the wilderness where God provided food for him from scavenging ravens. What a contrast.

In the quiet this morning, I found myself mulling over the fact that journalists today are not unlike the ancient prophets. Our society looks to them to interpret the events of our times and predict what’s going to happen. In an increasingly secular society, I find that some ascribe faith and an almost religious zeal to these modern-day, secular prophets. And, I observe that most mainstream news businesses (they are, after all, first-and-foremost profit-driven businesses) hire an entire staff of journalistic prophets who will say what their faithful consumers want to hear.

Reading the ancient prophets like Micah is a constant reminder to me that hearing and reading only those things that make me comfortable and affirm my worldview is ultimately not a spiritually healthy thing for me. As a disciple of Jesus, I am equally reminded that Jesus Himself was executed by the good religious people of His day for saying things that were true, but threatened the powerful and wealthy elites who wanted to keep the revenue flowing. Jesus also told His disciples to expect the same when we truly follow in His footsteps.

It’s that time of the day when I join Wendy for coffee and we read the latest news. God, give me discernment as I partake in what the modern-day secular prophets have to say this morning.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.