For a full description of the (Y4) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Gen. 34
This story got me thinking about circumcision. More specifically, it got me thinking about how easy it is to give off the appearance of something without that something being true. The men of Shechem believed that circumcision would make them one people with Jacob’s family. But the physical act of circumcision did nothing to make them part of God’s covenant promise to Abraham and his descendants. The external action does not cause the internal change. This is exactly why Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees whitewashed tombs. They gave off the appearance of belonging to God, but their hearts no more belonged to Him than did those of these circumcised men of Shechem. Those external actions only matter to the extent that they are the result of what’s inside.
Mark 5
Dealing with interruptions is what came to mind with this story. Jairus came to Jesus with a plea for his sick daughter. How his hope must have soared when Jesus turned to follow him home! But then…a major interruption. How do we respond when interruptions jump between us and our hopes? I can only imagine how impatient, anxious, and maybe even indignant Jairus must have been in this situation. And then, when his worst fears were confirmed, the despair. Yet Jesus encouraged him by saying, “Do not be afraid any longer, only believe.” (Mk. 5:36b).
Jairus’ situation is pretty extreme, but we face lessor interruptions daily. And even when they get in the way of a hope as small as completing the task we are concentrating on, they are difficult for us to deal with. I see two things in Jairus’ story that I would like to commit to my heart and mind in dealing with those annoying, sometimes debilitating interruptions. The first is to have grace for the interrupter, when applicable. This is what it means to consider the needs of others before my own. God knows my needs and is able to take care of them more than adequately, even when not on my time schedule. Which leads into the second thing, which is to persevere in faith. Instead of getting impatient, anxious, and even indignant when interruptions happen, I want to face them with a calm, patient, and persevering grace.
Job 1
Job had true faith. We know because Satan proved it. Satan said to God, “Does Job fear God for nothing?” (Job 1:9b). He observed a truth that I have mentioned before. Faith is not really faith until it is tested. It is easy to claim to have faith, especially when things are going well. But what happens to that claim when things get hard? It is the fire of suffering that reveals if that faith is more than surface deep. And when things first got hard for Job, he proved his faith was the real thing. Instead of complaining, throwing blame, and crying, “Why me?”, Job worshiped.