Friday, 3/20/2015

“This grace of God is a very great, strong, mighty and active thing. It does not lie asleep in the soul. Grace hears, leads, drives, draws, changes, works all in man, and lets itself be distinctly felt and experienced. It is hidden, but its works are evident.”   ~ Martin Luther

JOSHUA 1-3

The leadership of Joshua begins...

1After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: 2“Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. 3I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. 6Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.

LUKE 1:57-80

John the Baptist is born and his Zechariah prophesies his future...

76And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;

for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,

77to give his people the knowledge of salvation

through the forgiveness of their sins,

78because of the tender mercy of our God,

by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven

79to shine on those living in darkness

and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

80And the child grew and became strong in spirit^d ; and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel.

JOURNAL

Joshua is now in charge.  He immediately sends 2 spies into Canaan.  God shows his grace and provision through the unlikely kindness and help of a prostitute named Rahab.  The spies return and are convinced that the city of Jericho is ripe for the taking.

The Biblical stories are fascinating.  There is so much hidden drama and unlikely heroes.  It is such good drama because...it is true.  It is the same reason we are fascinated by "reality TV".  The best stories are those that are true...and the best story in my own life is my own.  

I know sometimes it is hard to be grateful for our failures.  It is hard not to walk in shame for all the ways I fail to measure up.  However most of that shame is based on my comparison to the world around me...not out of repentance to God.  That shame can also have a way of robbing me of the amazing grace and redemption of God. 

32“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. (Acts 20:32)