For a full description of the (Y4) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Lev. 4
There is a hard truth about sin. Somebody or something has to die for it. This isn’t because God is cruel, it’s simply the natural consequence of sin. Sin creates separation from our holy God, who is life, and separation from life is the essence of death. God is, in fact, the opposite of cruel. He is loving and merciful. That’s why we don’t physically drop dead on the spot when we sin and why He allowed animals to die in the place of humans. Those innocent animals didn’t die simply to cover the sins of the people, however. They served as a shadow of God’s innocent Son, who died once, not just to cover our sins but to change our hearts and permanently remove our separation from God. They don’t show us God’s cruelty – they show us His mercy.
Ps. 1-2
This Psalm describes the one who delights in God. “He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither” (Ps. 1:3a). This made me think of the river of life described in both Revelation and Ezekiel. Ezekiel says, “By the river on its bank, on one side and on the other, will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail.” (Ez. 4:12a). So this Psalm tells me that we who belong to Christ are those trees by the river of life.
Prov. 19
“The foolishness of man ruins his way, and his heart rages against the LORD.” (Pr. 19:3). People get mad at God for all sorts of things. They say that He is cruel, unkind, and unjust. They point the finger of blame at Him when things don’t go the way they think they should, and they turn away from Him when they hurt and don’t understand why. We see this in life as well as in the Bible story.
But the Bible story also shows us the other half of this proverb. It is our own foolishness, both as individuals and humanity as a whole, that ruins our way. We defy God, then rage at Him when it doesn’t go well. This doesn’t always happen on a direct individual basis, but even those bad things that happen to good people without direct cause are a result of our human condition of foolish defiance. It is only when we understand and accept this truth that we are able to see God’s grace and mercy in our hardship.