Texts
- Job 7— (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job%207&version=31)
- Matthew 5: 1-20--(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205:1-20;&version=31;)
- Marriage Blog- Tuesday, May 29, 2007, “Two’s Company, but Three’s a Crowd”, (http://marriagegodsway.blogspot.com/2007_05_01_archive.html)
- Eaton’s Devotional – John 1:12-13, Chapter Two (Available Upon Request)
Summary of Job 7—Job begins this chapter by revealing how hard his life is…wishing every moment of the day for the nighttime when he can rest. But, when night comes he finds no rest and counts the moments until morning. Without hope, and with his time running out Job states that he will not keep silent—why should he?—but will complain in the midst of his bitterness. Job asks who is he that he should be worth so much trouble to God. Why is he of such importance that such pains would be taken to torment, examine, and test him every moment. He ends asking that if he has done wrong—will he not be forgiven?
Job is still down in the dumps—life is all uphill for him right now. He can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel yet, and he doesn’t know what on earth happened to make things like this. He calls out to God, pleading for an answer—how could one man be worth so much trouble to God? Will God not grant him even forgiveness from whatever it was that he’d done? Things are hard. Job is struggling…a ton…
Summary of Matthew 5:1-20—Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount with hope for those who are struggling, seeking, and striving in life. He goes on to say that, as His disciples we have goodness and guidance to share with the world, but if we do not share that, it is worthless that we have it. Instead, fill the world with goodness, and let the whole world gain guidance to bring glory and men to God. Jesus goes on to say that He has not come to abolish or change the Law, but to fulfill it. Anyone who goes against the law and leads others in doing the same is against God, but whoever “practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom.”
Jesus begins talking by starting where His disciples were at. Some were weak and poor, others were mourning, hurting, some were timid and scared, others were seeking and striving to do the right thing, and still others were making a difference and being persecuted and insulted for it. Jesus addressed those issues, giving them hope and encouragement to continue on. He went on to say that no matter where they were at, they have something to give, something to share with the lost and dying world. He challenged them to not hide what they had—it’s worthless that way—but to boldly display and share it. Continuing on, Jesus said that He hadn’t come to change the way the law was, but instead by fulfilling it, He gave them more reasons to stand up even straighter for what they believed. He encouraged them…but also warned them to not lead others astray, but to lead by example and to build one another up.
Summary of “Two’s Company, but Three’s a Crowd”—When talking about the marriage of people, this blog post is summarized to say that God joined the husband and wife together and meant for them to stay together. Unfortunately sometimes we allow marriage to become uneventful and stale—and begin looking elsewhere for something to appease our boredom…which God speaks against very strongly.
When we apply this to our spiritual lives, remember that we are also in a marriage relationship with God. God meant for our relationship with Him to last. Unfortunately, sometimes we let this relationship slide when other things begin to seem more important, or too time consuming, or when things just get slow and we get bored. This relationship is one of the most important relationships we can invest in—if other things are taking too much time, cut out something, or trust God to take care of things anyways, and make time for Him. If things are getting slow or boring, change it up a bit. Find someone else’s devotionals, read different passages, rewrite a Bible story, listen to worship music and soak in the words, write a poem about different theological ideas, try to get a new perspective on things, whatever it takes. Look for ways to push yourself, to keep your end of the relationship strong. If a relationship with a special someone or spouse was weakening, do something extra special, or surprise them…don’t wait for the normal times—and do the same with God.
Summary of Joe’s Devotional on John 1:12-13—Joe begins by redefining salvation—so that one may have a better understanding of what happened to those “who did receive Him.” He goes on to show that salvation is a privilege, a gift from God; because we were dead, but God made us alive in Christ. Continuing, Joe points out the three things John 1:12-13 says that salvation is not. (1) Salvation is not of blood—we are not born into Christianity, not saved through tradition or works… (2) not the will of the flesh—we are all born with a sin nature that separates us from God that we can’t overcome ourselves… (3) not of the will of man—we cannot understand or seek God on our own (Rom 3:10-11) while we are dead in our sins. Then the climax (in Joe’s own words) “Salvation is “…of God…” I was dead in my sins, and God made me alive. Isn’t that awesome? I am as used to living in sin as a fish is to living in water, yet this holy, holy, holy God, who will not have sin in His presence, “drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure” (Psalm 40:2)! Amazing. And I had nothing to do with it. I cannot even claim that I called Him Lord on my own strength (see 1 Corinthians 12:3). Christ has made me alive; He has given me eyes to see His glory.”
Salvation truly is a gift from God. Our relationship with God is the most precious thing we have been given, yet, are we letting it get stale or becoming bored with it? Are we allowing it to crumble away? We may be struggling in some areas, and having a hard time in our physical and/or spiritual lives, we may not have a clue what’s going on or why, but God is willing to meet us where we are and He offers hope and comfort to us. When we accept that hope, that comfort, and the grace He offers to us, He also places a challenge before us to continue seeking Him and striving after Him, and to encourage others to do the same. But, we are not doing it alone…. Take hope.
May the Lord bless you, and may you take the hope He offers and walk with Him with a renewed joy and fellowship in your relationship as together you bring glory to His Name.
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