January 10 - Evening
"Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him. When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him."
- Genesis 21:1-5
- Genesis 21:1-5
Abraham Responds to God’s Blessing with Obedient Action
The text focuses on God's faithfulness to his word by making three statements:
- "Now the Lord was gracious...as he had said." - "The Lord did for Sarah what he had promised." - "...at the very time God had promised him."
Abraham and Sarah had waited twenty-five years for this promise to be fulfilled, but God had been gracious, faithful and on time throughout the entire twenty-five years.
Abraham responds with two acts of obedience: He names his son Isaac as the Lord had commanded in Genesis 17:19 and Abraham circumcised his son Isaac on the eighth day as God commanded in Genesis 17:10-11.
The name was given to the boy before he was even conceived. The given name of Isaac means "he laughs." We wonder who "he" is that laughs? Is it Abraham whose faith and patience has finally come to fruition? It doesn't seem so in the text since Abraham's emotions are not even mentioned. Only his quick and accurate obedience is documented. Surely, Abraham felt joy, but the anticipation of the future and his immediate responsibilities caused Abraham to set celebration aside and focus on the mission, which was: (1) naming the son, and, (2) circumcising the son. Abraham was more focused on being obedient with the blessing than rejoicing in the blessing. Abraham knew the blessing came with a purpose and that purpose gave the blessing meaning. Possibly, for Abraham the joy was demonstrated in performing purposeful obedience with the blessing God had given him.
After all, the text says, "Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him." Abraham had seen enough to know that this is a time for action and obedience. This is the moment Abraham had been waiting for. This is the result of 25 years of standing in faith and trusting God. It is now finally time for Abraham to put his faith into obedient action concerning his heir and his nation's future.
Hupakouo (Gr) - Obey (Eng) - hupakouo is a Greek verb made up of two words: hupo which means “under” and akouo which means “hear” and “listen.” This compound word means “under hearing,” and speaks of first being under the authority of the person and the words that are spoken, and, then, second, it means “obey.” Children, servants, employees are hupakouo, or under authority of someone. All people are in this sense to “obey”, or hupakouo, the Word of God.
There is a time to be obedient and wait on God.
But, there is a time to be obedient and act decisively with the blessing we have received from God.
There is a time for joy and celebration, but there is also a time for action and obedience.
I will rejoice in God my Savior, but I will also set celebration aside when it is time to act.
But, there is a time to be obedient and act decisively with the blessing we have received from God.
There is a time for joy and celebration, but there is also a time for action and obedience.
I will rejoice in God my Savior, but I will also set celebration aside when it is time to act.
Bible Reading Descriptions Here
Personal
Ask God to show you habits and practices and values that need to change
Church
Avoid immorality
Nation
Local mayors and city officials
World
Increased Teaching and Discipleship of believers
Someone to Quote
"People are usually more convinced by reasons they discovered themselves than by those found by others."
- Blaise Pascal
- Blaise Pascal
Something to Ponder
"Why twelve? Why not eight? Why not twenty-four? The number twelve was filled with symbolic importance. There were twelve tribes in Israel. But Israel was apostate. The Judaism of Jesus’ time represented a corruption of the faith of the Old Testament ...The twelve apostles symbolized judgment against the twelve tribes of Old Testament Israel."
- John MacArthur
Here’s a Fact
Lazarus’ tomb today is located outside of Bethany in an area where other first century tombs are located. This exact tomb was known by the early church and honored up to the days of Eusebius when he wrote about the site in 330 AD. In 333 the Bordeaux Pilgrim recorded having seen the crypt (sepulcher) where Lazarus had been laid. Jerome writes in 390 about the church that stood at this site. The remains of this church can still be seen today along with portions of the first century tomb of Lazarus. (Details Here)
Proverb
"Ill-gotten treasures are of no value, but righteousness delivers from death."
- Proverbs 10:2
- Proverbs 10:2
Coach’s Corner
You are not right all the time about everything. Everyone knows that. But, can you identify the things you are wrong about right now?
Genesis 17:9-14
New International Version (NIV)
9 Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. 13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
New International Version (NIV)
9 Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. 13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
Genesis 20
New International Version (NIV)
Abraham and Abimelek
20 Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.
3 But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”
4 Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.”
6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”
8 Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.” 10 And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”
11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ 12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”
14 Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”
16 To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels[a] of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”
17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18 for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.
Footnotes:
New International Version (NIV)
Abraham and Abimelek
20 Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.
3 But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”
4 Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.”
6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”
8 Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.” 10 And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”
11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ 12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”
14 Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”
16 To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels[a] of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”
17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18 for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.
Footnotes:
- Genesis 20:16 That is, about 25 pounds or about 12 kilograms
Job 27-28
New International Version (NIV)
Job’s Final Word to His Friends
27 And Job continued his discourse:
2
“As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice, the Almighty, who has made my life bitter,
3
as long as I have life within me, the breath of God in my nostrils,
4
my lips will not say anything wicked, and my tongue will not utter lies.
5
I will never admit you are in the right; till I die, I will not deny my integrity.
6
I will maintain my innocence and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.
7
“May my enemy be like the wicked, my adversary like the unjust!
8
For what hope have the godless when they are cut off, when God takes away their life?
9
Does God listen to their cry when distress comes upon them?
10
Will they find delight in the Almighty? Will they call on God at all times?
11
“I will teach you about the power of God; the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.
12
You have all seen this yourselves. Why then this meaningless talk?
13
“Here is the fate God allots to the wicked, the heritage a ruthless man receives from the Almighty:
14
However many his children, their fate is the sword; his offspring will never have enough to eat.
15
The plague will bury those who survive him, and their widows will not weep for them.
16
Though he heaps up silver like dust and clothes like piles of clay,
17
what he lays up the righteous will wear, and the innocent will divide his silver.
18
The house he builds is like a moth’s cocoon, like a hut made by a watchman.
19
He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone.
20
Terrors overtake him like a flood; a tempest snatches him away in the night.
21
The east wind carries him off, and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place.
22
It hurls itself against him without mercy as he flees headlong from its power.
23
It claps its hands in derision and hisses him out of his place.”
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
28
There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
2
Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.
3
Mortals put an end to the darkness; they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.
4
Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft, in places untouched by human feet; far from other people they dangle and sway.
5
The earth, from which food comes, is transformed below as by fire;
6
lapis lazuli comes from its rocks, and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
7
No bird of prey knows that hidden path, no falcon’s eye has seen it.
8
Proud beasts do not set foot on it, and no lion prowls there.
9
People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
10
They tunnel through the rock; their eyes see all its treasures.
11
They search[a] the sources of the rivers and bring hidden things to light.
12
But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell?
13
No mortal comprehends its worth; it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14
The deep says, “It is not in me”; the sea says, “It is not with me.”
15
It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
16
It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir, with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.
17
Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be had for jewels of gold.
18
Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
19
The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it; it cannot be bought with pure gold.
20
Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell?
21
It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed even from the birds in the sky.
22
Destruction[b] and Death say, “Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”
23
God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells,
24
for he views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
25
When he established the force of the wind and measured out the waters,
26
when he made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm,
27
then he looked at wisdom and appraised it; he confirmed it and tested it.
28
And he said to the human race, “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”
Footnotes:
New International Version (NIV)
Job’s Final Word to His Friends
27 And Job continued his discourse:
2
“As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice, the Almighty, who has made my life bitter,
3
as long as I have life within me, the breath of God in my nostrils,
4
my lips will not say anything wicked, and my tongue will not utter lies.
5
I will never admit you are in the right; till I die, I will not deny my integrity.
6
I will maintain my innocence and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.
7
“May my enemy be like the wicked, my adversary like the unjust!
8
For what hope have the godless when they are cut off, when God takes away their life?
9
Does God listen to their cry when distress comes upon them?
10
Will they find delight in the Almighty? Will they call on God at all times?
11
“I will teach you about the power of God; the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.
12
You have all seen this yourselves. Why then this meaningless talk?
13
“Here is the fate God allots to the wicked, the heritage a ruthless man receives from the Almighty:
14
However many his children, their fate is the sword; his offspring will never have enough to eat.
15
The plague will bury those who survive him, and their widows will not weep for them.
16
Though he heaps up silver like dust and clothes like piles of clay,
17
what he lays up the righteous will wear, and the innocent will divide his silver.
18
The house he builds is like a moth’s cocoon, like a hut made by a watchman.
19
He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone.
20
Terrors overtake him like a flood; a tempest snatches him away in the night.
21
The east wind carries him off, and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place.
22
It hurls itself against him without mercy as he flees headlong from its power.
23
It claps its hands in derision and hisses him out of his place.”
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
28
There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
2
Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.
3
Mortals put an end to the darkness; they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.
4
Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft, in places untouched by human feet; far from other people they dangle and sway.
5
The earth, from which food comes, is transformed below as by fire;
6
lapis lazuli comes from its rocks, and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
7
No bird of prey knows that hidden path, no falcon’s eye has seen it.
8
Proud beasts do not set foot on it, and no lion prowls there.
9
People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
10
They tunnel through the rock; their eyes see all its treasures.
11
They search[a] the sources of the rivers and bring hidden things to light.
12
But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell?
13
No mortal comprehends its worth; it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14
The deep says, “It is not in me”; the sea says, “It is not with me.”
15
It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
16
It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir, with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.
17
Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be had for jewels of gold.
18
Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
19
The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it; it cannot be bought with pure gold.
20
Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell?
21
It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed even from the birds in the sky.
22
Destruction[b] and Death say, “Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”
23
God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells,
24
for he views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
25
When he established the force of the wind and measured out the waters,
26
when he made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm,
27
then he looked at wisdom and appraised it; he confirmed it and tested it.
28
And he said to the human race, “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”
Footnotes:
- Job 28:11 Septuagint, Aquila and Vulgate; Hebrew They dam up
- Job 28:22 Hebrew Abaddon