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John 18
The Bible story is so full of irony! When the Jewish leaders took Jesus to Pilate, they would not enter the governor’s palace. To do so would have made them unclean and thus ineligible to participate in the coming Passover feast. The irony is that they were in the process of taking the true Passover Lamb to His slaughter. In true Jewish religious leader fashion, they gave preference to their empty rituals and missed the real thing.
Though they were good at keeping their bodies clean and pure, their hearts remained rotten. While they excelled at obeying the letter of the law, they completely failed to love God or the people around them. And they remained untransformed by the ceremonies they were so faithful to keep. Though they sacrificed the Passover Lamb, they failed to cover the doorway to their hearts with His blood or to partake of His flesh. And they couldn’t even see it.
2 Chron. 9-10
What is the author’s purpose in telling of the Queen of Sheba’s visit and describing Solomon’s splendor? How does the chapter end? I very recently realized that Psalm 72 is David’s prayer of blessing over Solomon when David handed him the throne. As with so many of the blessings we read in the Bible, this one was prophetic, or answered by God. I don’t know what significance the Queen of Sheba held. However, I now know that this story fulfills David’s prayer / blessing from Psalm 72. It is also evidence of the scope of Solomon’s fame and splendor, a fulfillment of God’s direct promise to him. So, to me, it is yet one more piece of evidence of God’s hand working out His great plan according to His promises.
Ps. 80
This is a prayer for restoration (v. 3, 7, 19). Where do you need restoration? Pray this psalm for yourself. Another random thought from me with this Psalm this morning. Reading it made me think of how we are to share in Jesus’ death so that we can likewise share in His life. “You have fed them with the bread of tears; you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.” (Ps. 80:5). Jesus is the bread of life and the path to God’s restoration. Jesus said we must eat His flesh – the bread of tears – to find that path to life.
The Psalm goes on to say, “You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors, and our enemies mock us.” (Ps. 80:6). That sounds an awful lot like the suffering Jesus endured. When we share in His death, we share in His suffering. But then, “Restore us, God Almighty; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.” (Ps. 80:7). The bread God feeds us and the suffering He puts us through are all part of the process of taking up our cross, denying ourselves, and following Jesus to eternal, abundant life in God.