For a full description of the (Y4) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Ex. 19
We see at the end of the chapter that the people of Israel couldn’t so much as approach or even gaze at God without perishing. This was their starting point. At the beginning of the chapter, God told them His desired end point. “… you shall be My own possession among all the peoples” (Ex. 19:5b). The NASB has a footnote on the phrase, “own possession” with an alternate translation of “special treasure”. I like that. As God pointed out, the whole earth is His. So this wasn’t about mere possession, as He already had that. What He wanted was to set them apart as, “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” (Ex. 19:6a). He wanted to make them something special; a people who could draw near to Him and live.
Of course, God didn’t simply state His desire here. He offered the people a way to make it happen. He offered them a covenant. Obedience to God by keeping this covenant gave them their path to life. The way I see it, God did a really cool thing in all of this. Not only did He set up an entire system as a physical foreshadowing of the much greater thing to come, but He also demonstrated, through that same system, that the thing to come was truly the only real thing. God knew that the people could never successfully walk that path. But He wasn’t setting them up for failure. Rather, He laid down that path, showed them they couldn’t walk it, then came and walked it Himself on their – and our – behalf.
Luke 22
“And Satan entered into Judas…” (Lk. 22:3a). How did that happen? Judas lived in the physical presence of Jesus Himself, yet Satan found a way in. Scary! Clearly, Judas did something to open himself up to Satan. I think Peter gave us a clue to what happened when he tried to rebuke Jesus for speaking of His pending death. Jesus in turn rebuked Peter, saying, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” (Matt. 16:23b). I think Judas had likewise set his mind on his own desired agenda.
This really stresses to me the importance of examining my own heart. Or better yet, asking God to examine my heart, as David did in the Psalms. “Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not rule over me” (Ps. 19:12b-13a). I want to make sure that I am truly seeking God; that my desire is truly for Him and not for the interests of man.
Job 37
Who are we to challenge God? What can we say to Him? Or what can we teach Him? God does what He does. “Whether for correction, or for His world, or for lovingkindness, He causes it to happen.” (Job 37:13). Job didn’t turn from God but, with the help of his so-called friends, He became defiant in the assertion of his own righteousness, and he challenged God accordingly. Then Elihu stepped in with the better advice. “Stand and consider the wonders of God.” (Job 37:14b). If doing that doesn’t return us to humility, nothing will.