For a description of the (Y2) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Rom. 1
I love Paul’s introduction to this letter. He manages to cram the entire truth of God’s redemption plan into one single sentence. He says that God promised our restoration through His prophets and scriptures and that this promise was fulfilled in Jesus, who was shown to be man by His birth into the line of King David and shown to be God by His resurrection from the dead. Powerful stuff. He labels this message with a familiar word – the gospel. I know this word, and I know that it means “good news”. But it seemed to have a deeper meaning. So I looked into it.
I found a short video by “The Bible Project” (they do such good stuff!) explaining that very thing. The general gist is that “gospel” doesn’t refer to just any good news. It has more of a national implication, specific to its leadership – a royal announcement. In other words, it means good kingdom news. So Jesus’ story, both as the Promise of the Old Testament and as the Promise fulfilled in the New Testament, is the announcement of the victory of God’s kingdom through Him. And we know from this gospel that God’s kingdom is not like those of men. It is truly good and will never be corrupted or conquered. That is good news indeed!
Lev. 15-16
What was God’s basic concern behind the regulations in ch. 15? Behind the Day of Atonement in ch. 16? What does this tell you about God? God is holy. We are human, which is anything but holy. How can the two mix? God went to great lengths to provide a way for Him to dwell with His people. All of these laws and regulations were provisions of His mercy. However, these original provisions relied on the people. As a result, they were burdensome, continuous, and external. They were not lasting and did nothing to change the heart. We needed to know this.
As part of God’s plan from the start, however, He promised to go to even greater lengths so that He could dwell with us. He gave us His Son, Jesus, whose burden is light and whose sacrifice eternally changes us from the inside out. That’s the difference when God does the work. He is able to do what we are not. The thing that is most humbling to realize, however, lies in what both of these provisions of God’s mercy – the law and Jesus – have in common. In both cases, God came to us.
Ps. 23
Pray this psalm slowly, verse by verse, and let it speak to you. “The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.” (Ps. 23:1). What a powerful statement! What does it mean to “lack nothing”? David tells us. God provides our physical needs, like food, water, and shelter. But He also provides our emotional needs. He gives us guidance, protection, comfort, peace, and companionship. He even gives us vindication from our enemies. Furthermore, He provides our spiritual needs. He restores us to Him, making us royalty and giving us the ‘keys to His Kingdom’. With God as my shepherd, my eternity is secured and I have a lifetime of goodness and love that I surely do not deserve. Truly, I lack nothing.