Maranatha – Psalm 15-16

Psalm 15

The child of God treats others justly and willingly lays aside selfish desires for the sake of others.  He does not lie and does not speak badly about anyone else.  He does no evil to others, and he especially honors those in the household of faith.  He does not take advantage of others.  He even is willing to endure some sort of hurt for the sake of others.  This last characteristic I find especially interesting and challenging.  Are you willing to sacrifice yourself and endure some pain for the benefit of those around you?

Psalm 16

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore (v. 11).

Think about the things that you expect to bring you joy.  Isn’t it true that often such things bring you a certain measure of joy but that there seems to be a deeper joy that you just can’t grasp?  That’s because nothing in this world can bring us complete joy.  With God, however, we have the blessing of the fullness of joy.  In Him, our joy is complete.

Think also about things that bring you pleasure.  Do they not only last for a short period of time?  The pleasures of this world are fleeting.  One moment, you experience pleasure and the next, unspeakable pain comes, and the pleasure is forgotten.  The beauty of the pleasures that God gives is that they will last forever.  In heaven, we will need not worry about pleasure being replaced by pain.

I’ll leave you with this quote that I liked from Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary:

Most take the world for their chief good, and place their happiness in the enjoyments of it; but how poor soever my condition is in this world, let me have the love and favour of God, and be accepted of him; let me have a title by promise to life and happiness in the future state; and I have enough. Heaven is an inheritance; we must take that for our home, our rest, our everlasting good, and look upon this world to be no more ours, than the country through which is our road to our Father’s house.

Tags: Bible, maranatha, notes, Psalm 15, Psalm 16, study

Maranatha – Psalm 13-14

Psalm 13:

It is a common temptation, when trouble lasts long, to think that it will last always. Those who have long been without joy, begin to be without hope. We should never allow ourselves to make any complaints but what drive us to our knees (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary).

When God seems far away, and enemies and trials seem to prevail over us, our natural tendency is to fall into despair just like David did in verses 1-4.  But note the change in attitude in verse 5: “But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.”  When life is difficult spiritually or otherwise, our focus must shift away from our problems and to God’s promises and the hope that we have in His salvation.  Additionally, as Matthew Henry wrote, when we’re struggling, it’s not one bit beneficial that we mope around; instead, we must fall on our knees and cry out to the God that promises to hear and answer our prayers.

Psalm 14:

The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’ (v. 14a).

Note here who the real fool is.  The atheists, agnostics, and secular humanists of our day would have us believe that we are the fools for believing in some magic being who lives in the sky.  But we are not the fools.  The fools are those who would rather believe that everything in the universe just happened to appear and come to its current form than believe that everything was made for a purpose by a higher being to whom we are all accountable.  Take heart when the ungodly mock you, for believing in God makes you anything but a fool.

This verse, however, does bring up an interesting question.  Do we ever live our lives as if there were no God?  Do we claim faith in Jesus, but then live as if we actually don’t believe in Him?  Do you live your life as if you are only accountable to yourself?  This practical atheism is characterized by the divide between what we say and what we do.  Examine yourself to see whether or not you might be living the life of a practical atheist.

Tags: Bible, maranatha, notes, practical atheism, Psalm 13, Psalm 14, study

Maranatha – Matthew 4

The temptation of Jesus in the wilderness as recounted in verses 1-11 highlights two reasons that it is absolutely imperative that we know Scripture and internalize it:

1. Take a look at what the devil used to tempt Jesus.  He used none other than the Word of God, albeit out of context.  The enemy loves false teaching, and he will use it in order to get us to stumble.  Thus, it is essential that we know what Scripture says and what it means in context.  We can’t have that knowledge unless we actually dig in with the help of the Holy Spirit.  Set aside time frequently (everyday is best) to study the Bible.
2. How did Jesus counter the enemy’s attacks?  By using God’s Word.  Since our example (Christ) fights temptation using Scripture, it is clear that we should do the same.  But again, how do you use Scripture to fight temptation if you don’t know it?  I think one of the most valuable ways of internalizing Scripture is to memorize it.  I know what you’re probably thinking: “How do you expect me to find time to do that?  I’ve got too many other things to think about and to memorize.”  I completely understand, as I was in that boat about two months ago.  I got motivated to start memorizing Scripture, however, and I realized that I had been just making excuses.  I may be a college student with limited time, but the real problem was motivation.  If you think about it, though, what better motivation is there than knowing that writing Scripture upon your heart and mind can help guard you from sinning against the Lord?  So get started; I dare you.  I think you’ll find that it’s easier than you imagined and that it’s definitely a worthwhile endeavor.  If you don’t know where to start, do what I’ve been doing.  Take part in the other half of Rocco Grimaldi’s Maranatha Bible study and memorize the passage he posts each week.

I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you (Psalm 119:11).

Tags: Bible, maranatha, Matthew 4, notes, study

Maranatha – Matthew 3

For [John the Baptist] is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,”The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.” (v. 3).

To make straight the paths of the Lord means to “remov[e] every thing which might prove a hinderance to his gracious appearance” (Wesley’s Explanatory Notes).  Are you making straight the paths of the Lord in your life, that He might reveal Himself to you increasingly more day by day?  Are you making straight the paths of the Lord in the lives of those around you, that they might finally see God for who He truly is?  What things in your life and in the lives of others hinder the revelation of God?

To prepare the way of the Lord, John the Baptist called his followers to repentance.  Almost two millennia have passed since John preached in the wilderness, but our preparation for the Lord is no different.  We must be people of repentance.  Repentance is not the mere confession of sin but rather confession followed by a complete turn in the other direction.  What things in your life require repentance?

Tags: Bible, maranatha, Matthew 3, notes, study

Maranatha – Matthew 2

And going into the house [the wise men] saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh (v. 11).

It’s only a few more days until Christmas, which means that two things are likely on the forefront of our minds.  First, we’re concerned about what gifts to buy for others during our last-minute shopping excursions.  Second, we’re anxious to find out what gifts other people bought us.  Christmas gift giving has largely become a sad display of American materialism.  Look at Black Friday if you don’t believe me.

I challenge us, however, to think of gift giving during the Christmas season in a different light.  Instead of wondering what materialistic things we can buy and receive from loved ones, what if we took more of the mindset of the wise men in the Christmas account of Matthew 2?  Let us instead ask ourselves, “What can I give Jesus in order to worship Him?”

Perhaps you feel like the little drummer boy in the classic Christmas carol and say, “I have no gift to bring… That’s fit to give the King…”  But what did the little drummer boy do?  He gave the gift that he was able to—playing the drums to the absolute best of His ability and as a result, pleasing the baby Jesus.

Let us not think we have nothing to offer.  Jesus doesn’t want our gold, frankincense, or myrrh, but rather, our lives.

Is a soul busy, seeking after Christ? Would it worship him, and does it say, Alas! I am a foolish and poor creature, and have nothing to offer? Nothing! Hast thou not a heart, though unworthy of him, dark, hard, and foul? Give it to him as it is, and be willing that he use and dispose of it as it pleases him; he will take it, and will make it better, and thou shalt never repent having given it to him. He shall frame it to his own likeness, and will give thee himself, and be thine for ever (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary).

Tags: Bible, Christmas, maranatha, Matthew 2, notes, study

Maranatha – Matthew 1

I know that I have the tendency to skip over genealogies in the Bible because quite frankly, they are somewhat dry reading.  The problem, however, with skipping over them is that they are there for a reason and there can be much to learn if you dig a little deeper.

The genealogy in Matthew 1 functions mainly to establish Jesus’ right to be the Messiah, the anointed one of God. Based on Old Testament prophecy, the Messiah needed to come from the lines of Abraham and David, and as this genealogy shows, such is true of Jesus.

Looking beyond this main function of the genealogy, however, I find something quite interesting.  Let’s look at some of the people who were Jesus’ ancestors.  Rahab and Ruth were Gentiles, not part of God’s chosen people.  Tamar, Rahab, and Bathsheba were women of questionable character—adulterers, prostitutes, and so forth.  David, though a man after God’s own heart, committed a great sin in the episode with Uriah and Bathsheba.  Solomon started well but in the final years of his life, turned on God in favor of riches.  Other kings that followed in the royal line were incomparably more evil.  Such is the line that Jesus came from.

If you think about it, it only makes sense that Jesus would come from such a flawed, sinful line.  He in His perfection stepped into man’s imperfection.  He humbled Himself to be born into such fallen humanity and to redeem it.  He can identify with our imperfections because He lived in the midst of them, yet never fell from His sinless perfection.

This perfect one who humbled Himself to dwell in the midst of our imperfections won’t just leave us stuck in our natural pitiful states.  He will day by day reshape our hearts, bringing us closer to His image with every passing moment closer to eternity.  Hallelujah!

Tags: Bible, Christmas, maranatha, Matthew 1, notes, study

Maranatha – Colossians 4

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving (v. 2)

“Continue steadfastly”—in the Greek, this is the word proskartereō, meaning ”to be devoted or constant to,” “to be steadfastly attentive to,” “to give unremitting care to”, “to continue all the time,” “to persevere,” and “to be in constant readiness for”.  I think you get the picture.  When Paul tells us to continue steadfastly in prayer, he isn’t commanding us to have the sort of prayer lives that most of us have at the present time.  For most of us, prayer is something we do before bed and before meals because that’s our routine and something we do when life isn’t going so great for us or for someone close to us.

Praying only for a routine short amount of time and for help in rough times, however, doesn’t match the type of devotion to prayer that’s being called for here.  Think of someone whom you consider to be a devoted athlete, someone whose dedication to his or her sport and team is unrivaled.  For me, that person is Tim Tebow.  A devoted athlete like Tebow doesn’t just throw a few passes at practice and call it good.  A devoted athlete is the first one on the field and the last one off.  A devoted athlete spends great amounts of time in order to get better.  Whether that athlete feels like practicing and getting in shape or not, he or she is going to do those things regardless.

We are called to follow in that example and become devoted prayers.  Prayer shouldn’t be something we just tack on to the end of our day.  It should permeate our entire day.  We need to set aside time every single day to get into the presence of God, thank and praise Him, and intercede for the lost world around us.  Throughout the day, we need to be aware of people and situations that need prayer, and then actually pray for such things.  Pray like an athlete who wants to win a world championship would train— with all-out relentless devotion.

Tags: athlete, Bible, Colossians 4, devotion, maranatha, notes, prayer, study