Daily Dose of Hope

April 22, 2024 

Day 2 of Week 4

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 43-44; Psalm 24; Galatians 1

Welcome to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional that complements New Hope’s Bible reading plan.  Today we are continuing in Genesis, we have a Psalm to read, and we also get to start a different New Testament book – Paul’s letter to the Galatians.  This is good stuff!

Let’s dig in to our Genesis reading.  Joseph’s brothers have now journeyed to Egypt two times, seeking food.  The famine that was described in Pharoah’s dream (which Joseph interpreted) has come and affected the whole region.  When the brothers come down to Egypt, they don’t recognize Joseph; he probably had changed quite a bit from the young man they sold into slavery.  But Joseph does immediately recognize his brothers.  As he interacts with them, he has to leave the room to weep several times. 

I’m going to jump ahead a little.  Tomorrow, in chapter 45, we will read about how Joseph reveals himself to his brothers.  He has been kind of playing with them, hiding various things in their bags, including a silver cup in Benjamin’s bag, testing them at different times and trying to learn about his father.  Understandably, the brothers are incredibly fearful of Joseph, as they know he is Egypt’s second most powerful man.  He has the power to punish or kill them with just a word. 

It’s at a large banquet that Joseph tells them who he is.  This really scares the brothers!  But Joseph forgives them.  He totally and completely forgives them and weeps over them.  He embraces them and provides for their needs.  He goes to great length to help them bring their father, their wives, and families, down to Egypt where they can be safe and fed.  Do they deserve any of this?  Of course not.  They were horrible to Joseph.  But this bold act of forgiveness foreshadows another one, one all of us have experienced.  Despite our denials of Jesus, he forgives us totally and completely and has gone to great lengths to welcome us into his family.

I think there is another piece of the story here that we need to address – the issue of God’s sovereignty.  The brothers sold him into slavery.  It was horrific.  Joseph was successful at various times in Egypt, but he also experienced extreme hardship.  God took care of him.  In the good and in the bad, God had a bigger purpose of Joseph and he seemed to accept it with faithful confidence and peace.  If he cried out to God in anger, we don’t know.  What we do know is that God took all the really terrible things and used them for his glory.  What man meant for harm, God turned into good. 

Now, let’s take a moment and discuss Psalm 24.  I’m afraid I haven’t spent enough time talking about the various psalms.  They are certainly important and I do hope you have been reading through them and maybe doing some of your own research.  Psalm 24 is another Psalm of David.  He begins by stating that everything belongs to God, The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it;  for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.  When we look around our world, at the skies, ocean, animals, trees, and even all the various kinds of people, it’s easy to forget that all of it belongs to God.  He is creator and sustainer of this place.  While we like to think in terms of “ownership,” the reality is that God is the real owner.  Our own lives belong to him.  So David is asking what right is it of ours to have any of it?  Can we go to heaven and stand in the holy place?  Only if God makes it so and invites us in.  

Our New Testament reading for today is the first chapter of Galatians.  During Paul's three missionary journeys, he established churches throughout what is now Turkey, Greece, and in Rome.  Once the church was started, he sent pastoral letters, providing both encouragement and rebuke to the new believers.  Over the next six devotionals, we will be reading through the pastoral letter sent to the churches at Galatia. The region of Galatia included several cities where Paul evangelized during his first missionary journey, including Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe.  In fact, this letter may be the earliest pastoral letter that Paul wrote, penned around AD 48 or 49. 

Since Paul had established the various congregations in Galatia, the churches had been plagued by false teachers. They fiercely rejected the Gospel that Paul preached, which was that people are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone.  Rather, the false teachers were saying that to be saved, people must also be circumcised and follow the whole law of Moses.  Besides rejecting the Gospel, they also attacked Paul's credibility. Throughout the letter, we will see Paul continually going back to these two themes-his credibility and apostleship AND the gift of grace offered by the Good News of Jesus.

There is a lot of great substance here.  But what I want to focus on today is Paul’s astonishment at their falling away.  He speaks of how there is no other Gospel that the one he taught.  He is emphatic that if anyone preaches anything other than the truth, then they should be under God’s curse.  He concludes the chapter by giving some of his own testimony, in order to provide credibility of the call he received from God. 

Paul is clear that anything less than the true Gospel is not the Gospel at all.  Those who teach that something other than faith is needed for salvation are twisting the Good News and Paul expresses shock that the Galatians would be so quick to believe this false teaching.  Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus is the core teaching of our faith. Are there times in which we try to twist this doctrine?  Do we add or subtract from it?  What can we do to ensure that this teaching stays central to the church's teaching?

More tomorrow.  Have a wonderful day.

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 21, 2024 

Day 1 of Week 4

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 41-42; Mark 16

Welcome to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional that complements New Hope’s five day a week Bible reading plan.  We have made it to week four!  Good job everyone.  Please give me feedback.  I am learning a lot, but I want this to be useful for you as well.

Let’s start with our two chapters in Genesis.  It’s obvious God’s had his hand on Joseph.  Whether Joseph is in prison, interpreting dreams, or running Pharoah’s food operations, he leans on God.  Let’s be clear that Joseph did not flourish because of any special skills or abilities.  He did so well because he listened to God in everything.  He made no compromises, didn’t take short-cuts, and simply trusted completely in God.  We will talk more about Joseph’s brothers visiting Egypt tomorrow, but it’s obvious that Joseph’s character is exceptional even when faced with grief and uncertainty.

Okay, I really want to spend most of our time today on Mark 16.  We have made it to the best part of the story–the resurrection!  I absolutely love this passage.  But before we dig in, let’s talk context.   Jesus was crucified on a Friday because the Jews had to have it done and over with before Sabbath (which for them runs from Friday sundown to Saturday sundown).  Thus, the women who wanted to anoint Jesus’ body for burial had to wait until the Sabbath was over before heading over to the tomb.  

Three women are specifically mentioned: Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome.  I want to point out that these women were also specifically mentioned at being present at the crucifixion.  They watched Jesus die.  I want you to think about how the reality of suffering and intense grief is hanging over this whole scene. These were women who walked alongside Jesus, took care of his needs, and loved him.  It is because they loved him that they wanted to ensure that his dead body was properly prepared for burial.  Jews did not embalm but they ceremonially washed the body, wrapped it in cloths, and used herbs and spices to help with deterioration and smell.  In that culture, a proper burial was quite important, it demonstrated honor for that individual; for these women, this was an act of love and respect.

As they head over to prepare the body, they discuss what they think will be their biggest obstacle and decide it’s going to be the heavy stone.  They were at the crucifixion.  They knew that a large stone was rolled in front of the tomb.  How will they move it?  What’s interesting to me here is that they have no inkling that the tomb would be empty.  Jesus has taught about his death and resurrection but no one got it. 

Now, when they get to the tomb and the stone was the least of their worries. It had already been rolled away.  When they entered the tomb, it’s completely empty except for a young man dressed in a white robe just sitting there.  Mark doesn’t say so, but it’s implied this man is an angel.  The scripture says the women are alarmed.  They have been so consumed by their grief and suffering, so focused on taking care of this final act for Jesus, and then the stone is gone and there is this angel-like character sitting inside the tomb.  Of course they are alarmed.  And this man/angel person tells them that Jesus wasn’t there because he had risen, just as he said he would. This is all a bit much for these ladies. They were scared.  They flee and say nothing to anyone. And the book of Mark ends.

Over the years, people have added more appealing endings to this Gospel.  You may even have some of these manuscripts added to the end of chapter 16.  But most scholars agree these were added on later. While Mark’s Gospel may feel a bit unsatisfying in how it so abruptly ends, it also creates a sense of anticipation and yes, even HOPE.  We don’t have to make up fake endings for Mark like some of the church fathers may have done.  

What Mark tells us is enough.  Why?

Because the tomb was empty!  Jesus was resurrected. 

Because death could not keep Jesus down!  Death was defeated. 

Because the women were given the message to “Go and tell, Jesus is risen!” 

Because all the promises that Jesus made have come true. 

Every single one.

Just as Jesus said, he suffered, died, and was raised.  Just as he said, Judas betrayed him, the disciples scattered, and Peter denied him.  We know that eventually these women speak and they must speak a lot.  Because the message was shared.  After they get over their initial shock, it all begins to sink in. Yes, Jesus had told them this would happen. Yes, they would choose to believe and share the good news.  He wasn’t dead but alive!  They chose to believe and share.

Will you?  Will you share the Good News of the resurrection?

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 18, 2024 

Day 5 of Week 3

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 38-40; Psalm 12; Mark 15

Hello, everyone!  This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.  It’s also the final reading for week 3.  We will take Friday and Saturday off for you to catch-up, get ahead, or simply rest and spend time in prayer.

Oh my, there is a lot to cover today.  Let’s start with Genesis 38.  Judah (who is Jacob's oldest son) arranges for his oldest son, Er, to marry a woman named Tamar.  But Er was evil in the eyes of God, so God took his life.  Judah then arranged for Tamar to marry his second son, Onan.  In levirate marriage, which they practiced at that time, if a man died before he produced a male heir, then the next oldest brother would sleep with his sister in law to try to produce an heir.  The baby would then be considered a child of the dead brother. This may sound weird to us but it was one of several systems that God put in place to ensure that the most vulnerable segments of society would be cared for.

But Onan also did evil in God’s eyes, because he prevented Tamar from getting pregnant by spilling his semen on the ground.  (I bet you didn’t realize the Bible is this explicit.)  So, God took Onan’s life too.  At this point, Judah’s third son, Shelah, was too young to marry.  But what we know is that Judah has decided he didn't want to risk his third son with Tamar.  If Shelah dies, then Judah will be without heirs, and any inheritance he may gain from Jacob will be lost.  Judah misleads Tamar into waiting until Shelah is grown up. I'm not sure that we can understand the significance of this. This was a grave sin, denying Tamar the ability to have a husband, a male heir, or any kind of meaningful life.  He doesn't release her from the marriage-he tells her to go live as a widow which means she could not remarry-but he doesn't offer her the option of his third son. Tamaris in a no-win situation here.  She is doomed to live a life of poverty and/or prostitution.  Keep in mind, women were very vulnerable at that time if they didn't have a male to provide for them.

After some years go by, Tamar takes matters into her own hands.  Judah has basically abandoned her. Shelah, the third son, is definitely marrying age and Judah has never sent for Tamar.  She knows he isn't planning to, nor is he planning to release her from living as a widow.  She knows that her fate isn't good unless she does something drastic.  She takes off her widow's clothing and dresses like a prostitute. She hangs out where her father-in-law will see her and he propositions her.  So, this gives us more insight into Judah's character.  Maybe he frequented prostitutes, Tamar must have somehow known that he would be willing to solicit her.

This is a small thing but when Judah originally solicited Tamar as a prostitute, she was not a shrine prostitute.  Shrine prostitutes were part of the worship of Canaanite fertility goddesses.  It seems that Judah simply acted out of regular old lust and probably a bit of impulsiveness.  Later, he asks his friend to go look for the shrine prostitute, possibly because it seemed more acceptable.  Of course, both were really bad in God's eyes.

Tamar gets pregnant by Judah.  When Judah finds out she is pregnant, he considers her guilty of prostitution and is ready to have her killed.  Of course, he has no idea that he is the father of the baby.  Tamar then presents a cord, seal, and walking stick, saying the father of her baby is the owner of these items.  Just so we know, his cord, seal, and walking stick would be the equivalent to a driver’s license and credit card.  When Judah finds that he was the guy who got his daughter in law pregnant, he declares her righteous.  Even though she was deceptive, she was the one who managed to continue to family line.

Okay, so this whole scenario seems kind of strange, right?  Evil sons, so evil that God kills them. A conniving father-in-law who doesn't care for the well-being of his daughter-in-law or his family line.  A desperate daughter-in-law who pretends to be a prostitute so her father-in-law can get her pregnant.  This story really demonstrates how God uses broken, messed up people to achieve his purposes.  Judah was far from godly.  Tamar, though God called her righteous and she was certainly courageous, was still a bit deceptive and scrappy.   Yet, God chose these two people to carry on the line of Jacob.  It was the union of these two flawed individuals that produced an heir in the direct line of Jesus.  If you look at Matthew 1, Tamar is the first of four women specifically mentioned by name in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.  God could have chosen anyone, but he chose them.

There is a great quote by Vance Havner, a preacher and evangelist, "God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It is the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It is Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever.”   God uses imperfect people like you and me to achieve his purposes.  We may not have a great past.  We might not even have a super present, but he wants to use us, flaws and all, to expand his Kingdom, to carry out his mission in the world.

Please take some time to also read through Genesis 39-40.  These chapters are about Joseph after he became a slave in Pharoah’s palace.  Because he was so upstanding, leaning on God the whole time, he flourished.  But then the Pharoah’s wife tried falsely accused him of sexual assault.  This ended up landing him in prison.  But he flourished there too, because he walked so closely with the Lord.  God’s has his hand on Joseph.  More on this tomorrow…

I can’t finish today without touching on the Mark passage.  In Mark 15, we read about the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. It was a horrific death.  He was beaten and mocked by the soldiers, betrayed by his own people, and nailed to a cross to die.  I won’t go into the gory details of crucifixion, as you have probably heard them before, but it was a terribly painful and humiliating way to die.

Most of us have read this a lot but there is one piece that we often gloss over.  It’s about Simon of Cyrene. Simon was just passing by when he is stopped and forced him to carry Jesus’ cross.  Cyrene was on the tip of Africa so this man was far from home!  And here he was, going about his business, and he is enlisted, or more likely seized, to carry the cross of the Savior of the world.  I’m guessing that Jesus’ physical body was incredibly weak and bloody by this point.  Simon walked by him, carrying the cross that would serve to execute Jesus but also save all humanity from their sin. 

We don’t know what happened to Simon after the crucifixion.  He isn’t mentioned again in Scripture. But my guess is that his life was never the same again.  Afterall, he had an encounter with Jesus.

Let’s chat again tomorrow.

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 18, 2024 

Day 5 of Week 3

Daily Dose of Hope

April 17, 2024 

Day 4 of Week 3

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 35-37; Psalm 12; Mark 14

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the daily devotional that complements the New Hope Bible Reading Plan.  We have a fair amount of Scripture to cover today so let’s get right to it.

The family drama continues in Genesis.  It seems that Jacob has not learned anything from the favoritism and rivalry in his family of origin and begins to repeat it among his own children.  It is amazing how family dysfunction breeds more family dysfunction.  Unless an intentional effort is made the break the cycle, it isn’t going to change.  Joseph, Rachel’s oldest son, is blatantly favored by Jacob.  Joseph certainly doesn’t help the situation either.  In his own immature arrogance, he is more than happy to share his vivid dreams with his brothers, dreams that had his older brothers bowing down to Joseph.  Some things we really should just keep to ourselves. 

As we learned before, favoritism never turns out well.  It always, always, always leads to toxicity.  Not surprisingly, the brothers’ resentment turns to intense anger and bitterness, so much so that they plot to kill Joseph.  In the end, they decide on selling him into slavery and lying to their father, saying that a wild animal devoured the boy.  Jacob is understandably broken-hearted.  But God uses this for his purposes as well as we will find out over the next couple days. 

Let’s briefly touch on today’s Psalm.  It is kind of shocking.  David complains that no one is faithful anymore and everyone’s a liar.  Maybe some of you felt that way just this week.  David makes a definite connection between being wicked with an abuse of the poor.  You can kind of see the progression as David finally trusts that God will bring vengeance upon those who are evil.  My big takeaway from this Psalm 12 is that people are people.  We tend to get upset and say things like, “this generation is so far from God, this culture is so evil.”  Y’all, this has been going on for millennia.  This isn’t a new thing.  Evil has been present and will be present in different forms until Jesus returns.  As God’s people, we should be actively working AGAINST evil, to free people from oppression in Jesus’ name, to be agents of healing, and to boldly proclaim the Gospel.  At the same time, we have to trust that God is in charge and Jesus is on the throne.  In the end, God will hold everyone accountable.  There will be a day of reckoning.

But I don’t want to end before talking about Mark 14.  This chapter begins the passion of Jesus Christ. It starts with an unnamed woman anointing him with expensive perfume at Simon’s home in Bethany.  Then, we have the Lord’s Supper, when Jesus celebrates the Passover meal with his disciples and turns things upside down (as Jesus was prone to do), pointing to his own death.  Then, there is Jesus’ prediction of Peter’s denial (which we get to experience later in the chapter), Jesus’ prayer and the disciples’ nap in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus’ arrest, and his time before the Sanhedrin.  It’s a rather long chapter and a very important one so try to go through it slowly and take it all in. 

I did want to spend a little time on Peter’s denial of Jesus. I don’t know why but I’ve always been fascinated by this passage. Peter was Jesus’ closest friend. He swore that if all the others fell away, he would not. And yet, he did. What made Peter deny Jesus? Probably fear. Fear does all kinds of things to us as human beings. Maybe he was scared of being arrested himself, or of being ostracized by the Jewish leaders, we don’t really know.  But whatever the reason, he vehemently denies Jesus three times.  When Peter realizes this, he has tremendous remorse and begins to cry.

Maybe I’m fascinated by this text because I have so often found myself in the same boat.  I have denied Jesus.  I haven’t spoke up when I knew I should have, I haven’t stood firm on certain issues, I haven’t loved others the way Jesus calls me to, I haven’t put Jesus first, I could go on and on.  I have denied Jesus.  I hope that I’ve gotten to the place in my spiritual walk in which I deny Jesus less.  But I know that I am far from perfect and there are still those times.  When I realize my denial, like Peter, I cry and I’m filled with sorrow and I have to go back to Jesus and repent.  And just like he did for Peter, I’m forgiven and restored. 

Think about your own life. How have you denied Jesus? What has been your reaction when you realize this?

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 16, 2024 

Day 3 of Week 3

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 32-34; Psalm 145; Mark 13

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the daily devotional that complements the New Hope Bible Reading Plan.  We’ve been working our way through Genesis, some of the Psalms, and the Gospel of Mark.  It’s been an interesting daily combination and I hope you are learning as much as me!

Today’s Genesis reading leaves a lot to think about.  I’m only going to focus on certain pieces of it.  If you want to go deeper, I would suggest you do so.  I can always suggest some commentaries and there are some pretty good free ones online. 

Jacob knew he needed to leave Laban and go home but he is fearful of meeting up with his brother, Esau.  Afterall, he has tricked Esau out of his birthright and his father’s deathbed blessing.  He expects that Esau will still be quite angry, possibly angry enough to kill him and his very large family.  Jacob prays and comes up with a plan of action.

Jacob begins sending huge quantities of animals over to Esau as gifts.  This includes 200 female goats, 20 male goats,200 ewes, 20 rams, 1530 female camels with their young, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, and 10 male donkeys.  You see, he is essentially returning Esau’s birthright to him plus some. And he tells the servants who deliver these animals to refer to Esau as “the master” and Jacob as “the servant.” (They belong to your servant Jacob, but they are a gift for his master Esau. Look, he is coming right behind us.)  Again, he is returning the blessing that belonged to Esau in hopes that Esau will have mercy on him and spare his life and the lives of his family members.  Jacob is scared. He feels desperate. Now, Jacob has done everything he can do. He sends off his family across the river, half in one direction and the other half in another direction to reduce the bloodshed. He stays behind in the camp alone. 

It was then, when Jacob was alone, that a man showed up and wrestled with Jacob all night. Jacob believes firmly that this man is God himself.  This was a pivotal moment for Jacob. He is 60 years old, he is at the lowest moment of his life, and God shows up (maybe not in the way he expected, but he shows up!)  Now, God could have defeated Jacob quickly but he allows him to keep holding on, and God doesn’t let go of Jacob either.  Then, God changes Jacob’s name.  He asks him his name and Jacob tells him (remember the name Jacob means deceiver) and God changes it to Israel.  Here is where Jacob has come full circle.  He is no longer the arrogant deceiver who could care less about his brother, his dying father, his many wives and their maidservants, but he is someone who says, “I’m not going back. I’m going to hold on to you, God. I’m going to be the man YOU knew I could be.”

Have you wrestled with God?  This is our story, is it not?  We wrestle with God all the time.  We wrestle with God when we do something that we know we shouldn’t be doing.  We wrestle with God when we are somewhere we know we shouldn’t be.  If you are like me, you hear that still small voice, “Vicki, don’t make that choice.  Don’t talk about that person.  Don’t answer in anger.  Don’t be judgmental.”  We wrestle with God when we answer the question, Is there a God?  We wrestle with God when we deal with tragedy, when we are disappointed, when we’ve prayed and prayed and prayed and still our loved one dies, or we lose our job or our marriage.  We wrestle.  We want to believe but we are angry, tired, and weak.

But like Jacob, our wrestling with God is actually an act of faith.  It’s saying that, yes, I do believe in you, God, and I am going to hold on.  I am going to hold on even though I don’t want to, even though I feel let down and grief-stricken.  I will not let go!

By the way, things turn out okay for Jacob and Esau.  Esau offers forgiveness and doesn’t even want to accept Jacob’s many gifts because he too has done pretty well for himself.  It’s a great picture of reconciliation.

The topic of this Mark 13 is eschatology, or end times.  Scholars agree that this chapter most likely gathers all of Jesus’ teachings on the topic and consolidates them here.  I think one of the key features of this text is that Mark warns readers against making timetables and searching for the signs of the end of time.  Instead, Jesus tells his disciples to be watchful, to be ready, and to be on guard.  They are not to be deceived by the various signs or the people who think they know the signs.  After all, Jesus himself does not know the day or hour.  Simply be ready. Are you ready?

I find it fascinating how people have been trying to predict the end of time for hundreds, possibly thousands of years.  Around the world, people have pointed to various geographical and sociological signs and said, “This day will be doomsday!”  I mean, we just saw that with the most recent solar eclipse!  I’ve been around many people in Christian circles who want to point to this event or that event and say, “The end times must benear.” And yet, Jesus clearly warns us against doing this in today’s reading.  As Christians, there is not anything for which we need to fear.  We simply have to be ready.  Are you ready?

Until tomorrow.

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 15, 2024 

Day 2 of Week 3

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 30-31; Psalm 11; Mark 12

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope.  I do hope these devotionals are helping provide some valuable context to our Bible reading.  I know some of this reading is hard to make sense of at times.  But we plug along faithfully.  It’s actually quite a blessing for me to write these because I learn so much in the process.  I hope you do too.

Today, we continue the saga of Jacob and his wives.  As we mentioned yesterday, it seemed that Leah got the raw deal, discarded by her dad and not really loved by her husband.  But God saw her pain and blessed her with many sons.  With each child, we see a spiritual change in Leah based on what she names her boys.  Reuben was the first-born and his name means “behold, a son.”  When Leah had Reuben, she felt like the Lord had seen her misery.  Simeon was second and his name means “God has heard.”  Levi was third and his name means “joined in harmony,” because Leah thought after three sons, her husband would finally feel attached to her.  By the fourth son, Judah, we see a change in Leah.  Judah’s name means “the praised one.”  It took four births before we see some healing.  Instead of lamenting about her life, she begins to see God’s hand and starts to praise him!

But while Leah has born Jacob four boys, Rachel has been unable to conceive.  Now, she is incredibly jealous of her sister.  This is when the drama begins!  Rachel has Jacob sleep with her handmaiden and through her, they have two sons.  Leah, who has stopped having kids, responds by having Jacob sleep with her handmaiden and they have two sons together.  Rachel is desperate for a baby of her own and there is this interesting interaction between sisters, sharing some mandrakes (which were thought to increase fertility in barren women) and making arrangements about who gets to sleep with Jacob when.  As a result, Leah has two more babies, a boy and a girl, and Rachel finally has Joseph. 

So, what in the world was Jacob thinking???  Scripture certainly doesn’t mention him having an opinion or taking any kind of stand against this craziness.  It appears to the outside observer that he was perfectly fine being thrown from wife to wife to handmaiden to handmaiden.  It appears he will sleep with whomever and whenever.  We have perspective, of course, so what we know is that God’s purpose is for all of these sons to be the leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel.  God was planning to fulfill the covenant he made with Abraham through these sons. We just get to see the messiness of getting there.

Today’s Psalm is written by King David.  Listen to some of these verses, “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne. He observes everyone on earth; his eyes examine them. The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion.”  As much difficulty as David was going through, he rested on the truth that God is always in control.  Take some time and think about your own life.  Do you trust that God is in control?

Mark chapter 12 is filled with many different teachings that are quite important to Jesus’ ministry.  We can’t discuss all of them today but I do encourage you to read through the whole chapter if you haven’t done so already. 

I’d like to just touch on the first part of the chapter, the parable of the tenants.  I’m sure most of you have heard it before.  A man plants a vineyard and hires some tenant farmers to tend to it.  Tenant farmers rent the land from the owner and typically pay their “rent” in either money or crops.  In this parable, the landowner is seeking his rent in some of the fruit that was produced.  He sends several servants to go collect the produce from the tenant farmers and each servant is either beaten severely or killed.  Finally, the landowner sends his own son to collect the debt but the wicked tenant farmers kill him as well. 

As with all parables, this has much deeper meaning. The tenant farmers represent the Jewish leaders and teachers of the law.  God continues to give them chances to respond to his prophets and the prophets are continually rejected.  Finally, God sends his own son and he is killed.  At any point, the chief priests and teachers of the law could have turned away from their plot to kill Jesus.  They actually stood there and listened to this parable as Jesus shared it.  Rather than being convicted, they became all the more intent on killing this man who threatened their way of being.  Something to think about…

Until tomorrow.

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 14, 2024 

Day 1 of Week 3

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 28-29; Mark 11

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope.  I hope that you took the two off days to spend extra time in prayer or catch up on your reading. 

Let’s dig into our Genesis reading for today, chapters 28-29.  Here we find Jacob, the deceiver, actually getting deceived himself.  Jacob, at his father’s request, goes to the land of his people to find a wife.  He is searching for his uncle, his mother’s brother, Laban.  He quickly falls in love with his uncle’s younger daughter, Rachel (you’ve probably figured this out, but that would have made her Jacob’s first cousin).  But Laban is sneaky man.  He agrees to let Jacob marry Rachel after seven years of work on his land.  But when the time comes, Laban switches out his older daughter, Leah, for Rachel.  So, without knowing it, Jacob marries Leah and sleeps with her.

I know, I know.  How in the world could Jacob not notice he was marrying a different woman?  They may have been about the same size but wouldn’t they look different?  There are several possible reasons that Jacob didn’t notice.  First, Leah was probably wearing a veil.  Second, it was dark.  And lastly, Jacob may have had a bit too much to drink at his wedding celebration.  Still, it does seem weird to us.  When Jacob finds out he married Leah instead of Rachel, he gets quite angry with Laban.  Laban decides to allow him to marry Rachel as well, but in turn, Jacob owes him seven more years of work.

More deception.  More dysfunction.  I’ve always felt really sorry for Leah in this scenario.  I kind of picture Rachel being the pretty and popular girl at school and Leah is the one living in her shadow.  She seems to be unwanted by her father and now her husband.  Can you imagine her husband looking at her the day after they got married and being enraged that she wasn't her sister?  Talk about putting a dark mark on wedding memories.  But, as we find out in tomorrow’s reading, God has not forgotten Leah in her sorrow.  He does bless her and she begins to praise God as well. 

Let’s at least touch on Mark 11 as well.  The first part of the chapter is the Palm Sunday scripture, what we call in church language, the triumphal entry.  This is when Jesus rides on a colt into Jerusalem and gets a royal welcome, from the branches and cloaks being thrown on the ground to the shouts of Hosanna, the people were welcoming a king.  Of course, they think that Jesus would be the kind of king who would save them from the oppressive Romans.  In reality, he is a different kind of king, who intends to save them in a much more significant way. 

But what I want to focus on in this chapter is Jesus’ clearing of the temple in verses 15-18.  Let’s talk a bit about the temple.  This was Israel’s third temple and it was still under construction. It was huge!  It had four sections: the Court of the Gentiles (which was a large open air area), the Court of Women, the Court of Israel (for circumcised Jewish men), and the Holy of Holies.  The three latter sections were in the inside sanctuary. 

In today’s passage, Jesus encounters the unholy commerce in the Court of the Gentiles. There were many merchants selling animals for sacrifice and there were money changers present for foreign Jews to exchange their money to the local currency for the temple tax. 

So why was Jesus so upset?  Wasn’t this all part of the sacrificial system?  This was the one area of the temple designated for Gentiles (the nations) to pray. They weren’t allowed in any other area of the temple. And the Jewish people had taken over the entire area for trade and profit. Lots of money was being made here.  Jesus is beyond angry.  The religious leaders have an interesting reaction to this.  They are scared.  I’m thinking that they know they are in the wrong but they don’t want to submit to this Jesus character.  Thus, they begin to plot how to kill him.

More tomorrow…

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 11, 2024 

Day 5 of Week 2

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 26-27; Mark 10

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the daily devotional that complements New Hope Church’s 5 day a week Bible Reading Plan.  We have now made it halfway through the book of Genesis!  Keep up the good work.  As difficult as some of these passages can be, they were included in God’s Word for a purpose.  I would love to hear some of your big takeaways thus far.

Let’s get right into our Scripture for today.  In the beginning of chapter 26, God confirms the covenant he made with Abraham to his son, Isaac.  God emphasizes to Isaac how he plans to make his descendants numerous and give him the land of Canaan, and that all nations will be blessed through his offspring.  Isaac, following in his father’s footsteps, passes off his wife as his sister in their new residence.  Like so many of us, Isaac is deceitful in some ways but incredibly obedient in others.  But obviously, Isaac's heart wants to serve God and God continues to pour his blessings into his life.  Remember, God looks on the heart.  God looks on our hearts too!

But in the very next chapter, things turn darker.  Isaac’s boys are at it again.  Here we have Jacob stealing his father’s deathbed blessing that was truly intended for the older son, Esau.  Let’s be real.  This is a family whose dysfunction has been fueled by parental favoritism and ugly rivalry between brothers.  Just in case you didn’t know, parental favoritism of one child over another always leads to toxicity.  And in this family, the toxic ripple effects will last for generations.  After stealing Esau’s birthright in chapter 25 (which Esau carelessly allowed because he was hungry for a bowl of soup), today we read about Jacob scheming with his mother to steal even more from Esau - his father’s blessing. Words are powerful, but this deathbed blessing wasn’t just words. When Isaac speaks a blessing over Jacob, he’s passing along a divinely ordained covenant with Yahweh. He’s bringing Jacob into the Abrahamic covenant, and essentially saying, “It’s through your family that God will redeem the world.”

As a mom, I have to wonder why Rebekah did what she did.  Why did she favor Jacob so much?  What was her issue with Esau?  Maybe they weren’t as close, maybe Esau wasn’t as bright and maybe his wives were annoying, but he was still her son.  I think what is most distressing is her deceit and dishonesty.  Everything is so conniving and manipulative, so sinful. Scripture holds nothing back.  And yet, God continues to use this totally imperfect family to carry out his purposes. 

After a few chapters of Genesis, I’m usually quite ready to move onto the Gospel of Mark.  Today’s chapter, Mark 10, has Jesus turning things on their head.  I love this!  Jesus is teaching that following him will affect how we behave in the most fundamental parts of our lives.  He starts the chapter by teaching on divorce; teaching that marriage is not simply a contract, but a creation of God, and that both men and women are equal partners in the marriage. At that time in Jewish marriages, divorce was common but the men were clearly in control, as they could easily discard their wives and remarry.  But Jesus is turning this upside down.  He is saying, no, in God’s Kingdom, marriage is a covenant between the man, the woman, and God.  The commitment is sacred. 

He goes on to teach about children. Parents were bringing children to him to be blessed and the disciples scolded them.  Jesus intervenes and says, “No, let the little children come to me.”  Keep in mind that children in the first century weren’t seen as having much value.  Again, Jesus is flipping things upside down. He says that to follow him, we have to actually become like little children–vulnerable, powerless, needing someone else to provide safety and sustenance.  I wish I could see the faces of his listeners as he said this.  They were probably shocked.

Then we come to the really tough teaching.  A man comes to Jesus and asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”  Jesus says, “Well you need to follow all the commandments.”  He lists them, you shall not murder, commit adultery, steal, or give false testimony.  You shall honor your father and mother.  Than, he adds one - you shall not defraud.  This wasn’t in the ten commandments, possibly Jesus added it because many of the wealthy were wealthy because they had taken advantage of the poor.  If that was the case with this man, we don’t know.

The man simply says, “Yes, I’ve done all those things since I was a boy.”  Then, Scripture says, “Jesus looked at him and loved him.”  The word for love used here, in the Greek, is the highest form of love in the New Testament, meaning love that characterizes God.  There must have been something really rare and admirable about the man, because this is the only place this form of love is used in Mark.  Because he loved the man, Jesus looks at him and says there is still one thing you lack.  

It was assumed that if one followed the law perfectly (we know that’s impossible but if one did a good job following the law) then they would receive eternal life. Jesus is saying, that is not the case.  Jesus isn’t denying that this man is following the law.  This is obviously a man of high integrity who is clearly doing all he can to be obedient to God’s laws.  “One thing you lack,” Jesus said.  “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 

The text says that the man’s face fell. He went away sad because he had great wealth. This is the irony. The children in the former story who possess nothing are told that the kingdom of God is theirs; yet this man who possesses everything still lacks something!  Only when he sells all he has—only when he becomes like a vulnerable child—will he possess everything.  But he isn’t willing to do that.  He decides to walk away from Jesus. The man wasn’t expecting to have to make that kind of sacrifice.  He had no idea following Jesus would be so hard. 

The disciples are really confused by this.  At that time, most people believed that being wealthy was a sign of God’s blessing.  Jesus is saying that this man has to sell everything and give it to the poor.  And that’s when Jesus says the really, really hard thing...it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  They ask, “Then who possibly can be saved?” Jesus says, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” 

Most of us should feel at least slightly uncomfortable when we read this passage. Don’t dismiss that feeling, rest in it a bit before you move on.  The reality is that we are all wealthy in comparison to the rest of the world.  Jesus isn’t saying that having possessions is a bad thing. Allowing our stuff, our resources, to get in the way of our relationship with Jesus is a bad thing though.  What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus?  I think we have so often fallen into the trap of thinking that following Jesus, being a disciple, is about following a list of rules: following commandments, generally being a good person, going to church, giving some money to good causes, and doing good “Christian” things.  But here Jesus is saying that being a disciple is not about following a list of rules.  If that were the case, then the rich young ruler would have been a shoo-in.  Jesus is saying, following him is about denying yourself and picking up your cross.  We just talked about this, how we don’t like to deny ourselves. We don’t like to be uncomfortable.  This means looking at our lives and renouncing any part that gets in our walk with Jesus.

Following Jesus isn’t simply one activity in a busy life filled with lots of great stuff.  No, following Jesus means radically reorienting our life.  Jesus comes first and our devotion to Jesus as Lord and Savior affects every other area of our lives.  Our dedication to Jesus affects how we treat other people, it affects how we spend our money, it affects how we spend our time, it affects how we behave.  Following Jesus means a radical adjustment to priorities. 

What is it that keeps you from fully following Jesus?  What part of your life have you not yet submitted to him?  What do you need to renounce in order to submit your whole life to Christ?

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 10, 2024 

Day 4 of Week 2

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 24-25; Psalm 4; Mark 9

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope.  We are going to switch things up today and start with the New Testament Scripture, Mark 9. 

Today, we join Jesus, Peter, James, and John, on the mountaintop. This text is referred to as the transfiguration. They all trek up to the top of the mountain and Jesus “transfigures” right before their very eyes. For just a moment, put yourself in the position of these three disciples.  They had only known the flesh and blood Jesus. We know Jesus as risen Lord and Savior.  Thus, I think we would expect Jesus to wear dazzling white robes and be all shiny and glorious. But they didn’t.  Then, right before their very eyes, they get a glimpse of Jesus’ glory, as they had never seen it before.  Jesus was radiating the very presence of God and these three disciples got to be witnesses to it. 

Then, Moses and Elijah appeared before them and they were talking to Jesus.  We don’t know why Moses and Elijah appear on the mountain with Jesus except that they were two Old Testament figures who anticipated the coming of Jesus, the final prophet to come and deliver God’s people once and for all.  Their work, their ministries, are basically fulfilled by the person of Jesus.  They were servants of God but they weren’t God.  Jesus, on the other hand, is God and the disciples get a glimpse of that right here.

But there is something about being confronted by the power and glory of God which can make us uncomfortable and even fearful.  In awe, yes, but also frightened.  Maybe you’ve been there. Peter is there.  He struggles to simply rest in the presence of God’s glory.  He doesn’t know what to do or say so he blurts out, “let’s set up three shelters–one for you, Jesus, and one for Moses and Elijah.”  Now, Peter is referring to the festival of booths or tabernacles which faithful Jews participating in every year.  They make structures in their yards as a sign of when God will tabernacle with his people.  Thus, this might seem like a weird thing for Peter to say to us but it wasn’t too off the wall.  He is like, “umm...I think God is tabernacling with us and we need to make the shelters.”  He is kind of panicky.  It seemed like a good thought at the time.  What Peter doesn’t quite understand yet is that before his eyes God’s dwelling with humanity is present, for Jesus is the new tabernacle of God dwelling with humanity. The shelters aren’t needed.  God is present with his people through Jesus Christ. 

There is something about mountain-top experiences–times in which we get a glimpse of the glory and presence of God in our lives.  I’m hoping you have each had some kind of mountaintop experience in your walk with Jesus, times in which the veil is removed and you’ve gotten a taste of the presence of God. These are times in which we are confronted with God’s power and it can’t help but change us. You realize that Jesus wasn’t just a good, wise man and teacher who walked the earth 2000 years ago but rather was God himself, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.

Be sure to read through the Genesis chapters today.  It’s the passage detailing Isaac marrying Rebekah, Abraham’s death, and the animosity between Jacob and Esau.  Yes, there is still more family drama.  We’ll chat more about that tomorrow.

Have a great day.

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki

Daily Dose of Hope

April 9, 2024 

Day 3 of Week 2

Scripture reading for today – Genesis 21-23 Psalm 107; Mark 8

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope.  Please keep me posted on how you are doing with your daily Bible reading.  I know keeping up with the reading can be a challenge but I do feel like it is worth it.  God is good and he will honor our efforts.  We have to know God’s Word to live God’s Word.

The drama continues in Genesis!  What I find so fascinating is that nothing is really held back in Scripture.  There is no pretending that these people who God works through don’t have faults.  Rather, their faults are front and center for all to see.  And today we see more of the this.  Isaac, the son of Abraham and Sarah, is born and Sarah is once again enraged with Haggar and Ishmael.  She feels like Ishmael is mocking Isaac so she decides to throw them both out of household.  Thus, Haggar is back out in the desert with her son.  There is probably a lot to say about Sarah’s cruelty and jealousy, but for now I just want to focus on how God once again meets Haggar in the desert.  In her darkest hour, God shows up.  He provides everything her little family needs to survive.  Think about your own life.  How has God shown up in the middle of your deserts?

The next chapter has Abraham almost sacrificing his son, Isaac.  This passage has always kind of bothered me.  It seems inconsistent with God’s character to want Abraham to kill his son.  And remember, when something seems off, we need to dig deeper.  What is God doing here?  In the past, Abraham doubted God.  Think about all the mishaps we have been reading about.  He tried to have children his own way instead of waiting on God.  He repeatedly tried to pass Sarah off as a sister instead of his wife. By asking Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, God was testing Abraham.  Does Abraham finally trust God?  He is finally ready to trust in God’s provision?  I don’t think God ever intended harm to come to Isaac.  I think he wanted to see how much Abraham had grown.

Besides that, this passage is a beautiful foretelling of another sacrifice.  God himself sacrificed his only son in order for us to be reconciled to a holy God.  John 3:16, For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 

Now, let’s jump to Mark 8.  Again, there is a lot of great substance here but I want to focus on the end of the chapter, specifically verses 34-38.  This is a pretty tough passage about what it means to truly be a disciple of Jesus. 

Somehow, in our American Christian lifestyles we have lost sight of what it means to really be a disciple. We tend to think that being a disciple is about going to church, being a good person, and maybe sometimes giving some money to a worthy cause. We have narrowed down discipleship to a list of tasks. We have accepted comfort and being good enough. How wrong we have been.  Being a disciple of Jesus is not about tasks, it is certainly not about comfort, but all about heart.  There is self-sacrifice and maybe even some pain involved.  Jesus says, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” Wow. How many of us like to deny ourselves?  That doesn’t sound very comfortable.  We also have to take up our cross.  Ouch. Carrying a cross doesn’t sound like much fun either.  I would imagine it would be heavy and quite difficult.  And yet, this is how Jesus describes following him. Then, he says that those who want to gain their lives will have to lose them. Total surrender to him.  We are no longer our own.  We belong to Jesus.  Are you ready to be a true disciple of Christ?

I didn’t touch on Psalm 107 today but do take some time to read through it. 

Let’s chat again tomorrow.  Have a great day!

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki