Through the Bible in one year - Day 60

 

Psalm 60:4 & 11

You have set up a banner for those who fear you,

that they may flee to it from the bow.

Oh, grant us help against the foe,

for vain is the salvation of man!

This Psalm today is a cry for help and a recognition of a place to flee – and at the last a knowledge that we cannot save ourselves. This speaks to my mind of why we need the salvation that Christ offers freely.

Exodus 4:21

And the Lord said to Moses, "When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power.”

This seems to me the setup for the rest of what we will read in this book of salvation – this exit from slavery – make sure to do all the things that God has put in our power – and has charged us to use on behalf of his people. Tomorrow we may begin to read of some of these miracles – but it doesn’t sound as if it will end well for Pharaoh, since from the beginning he will not listen.

Our reading from 2 Chronicles today is one long object lesson on first what not to do, and next how to turn that around. Why, do you suppose it is that we wait until we are in distress before we recognize we need God? Twelve year old Manasseh went to great lengths to make a mess of things to the extent of getting carried away in chains and even then when he cried out to the Lord, he was heard and saved – there was a second chance for him. Wow, when Manasseh dies his son takes up where his father began – rather than where his father ended and is so terrible his servants conspire against him and kill him. Will Josiah be better? Tomorrow we will find out.

Today we leave the Acts of the Apostles and head to the book of Romans, as is fitting since we have been reading about Paul in Rome. But the funny thing is I thought we would be reading from Acts 29 today – but of course there is no chapter 29 in the book of Acts – but the reason it was in my mind is that there is an understanding that we are living in the 29^th chapter of Acts now – this is the chapter where we live out the things that we have seen and read about. And so we begin reading in the letter from Paul to the Romans. This is how today’s reading ends:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17)

Today’s readings: Psalm 60, Exodus 4, 2 Chronicles 33, Romans 1:1-17