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Read: Exodus 2:11-3:22, Matthew 17:10-27, Psalm 22:1-18, Proverbs 5:7-14

“You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” (Matthew 17:20)

Relate: I remember going to a conference when I was a student at Central Bible College. Tommy Barnett was doing a leadership thing and Nixa Assembly was sending its ministry team to hear him. He was speaking on faith, I don’t remember the specifics, but at the end everyone was to write their dream on this little piece of paper then go up and leave it at the altar and pick up this mustard seed in exchange.

Up to that point I’d never seen a mustard seed before. I knew conceptually that they were small. I’d been told so in countless Sunday School classes. But this little seed was tiny. I’d say it’s less than half the size of the little bullets you use in a BB gun. On the flip side I knew that mustard trees were a pretty good size. I saw them on those Sunday School flannel graphs. That, up top, is a mustard tree. That grows out of a seed that is less than two millimeters in diameter.

React: There are different gifts given to different people in the church. Some people have faith. I can look at them, listen to them, and I am amazed. I’m more of a “trust, but verify” type of guy. You might say my faith is as small as a mustard seed. Good thing that is enough. I remember there used to be a magazine called Mountain Movers. It was chuck full of miracle stories of missionaries in other parts of the world. Each of those stories seemed to have two things in common, the missionary needed, God provided. There would come a point when a missionary realized they couldn’t possibly do what needed done, and then God would step in. Sometimes it was protection, sometimes provision, sometimes healing, always God would move.

I don’t need a lot of faith to see God do the miraculous in my life. All I need it to attempt the impossible. If I am always doing what is easy, if I am always living in the safe and the comfortable, I will never see a miracle. There won’t be any need. It is only when I step out that I will see Him step in. If I want to see Him move in big ways, I need to take my tiny faith and attempt big things with it. It will grow, but only when planted.

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”600″ height=”400″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOU1JiFCmHI” id=”0″]

God, help me to trust You. I don’t have much faith, help make the little that I have to grow. Let me be used by You wherever and whenever You desire.

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Read: Genesis 35:1-36:43, Matthew 12:1-21, Psalm 15:1-5, Proverbs 3:21-26

These are the names of the twelve sons of Jacob: (Genesis 35:21)

Relate: There’s twelve sons but there’s actually thirteen tribes of Israel. In a few chapters Joseph is going to be sold into slavery, then raised up to the role of VP (vice Pharaoh). He’s going to have a couple sons and then be reunited with dad and his brothers. His two oldest boys are Ephraim and Manasseh. Jacob blesses them and they become two of the twelve tribes of Israel. Do the math. 12 kids – Joseph + E&M = 13 tribes. But everywhere in the Bible it always speaks of 12 tribes. How does that work?

Well, when the land is being divided, it is Levi that gets left out. He’s the priestly tribe and his inheritance is the Temple, not land. Later on, when the nation divides it is Simeon that gets left out. His land was originally inside the land given to Judah and by that point it no longer existed as an independent tribe. In Revelations it is Dan that doesn’t make the list.

React: So why do Levi then Simeon and later Dan not make the cut? We’ll read the reasons for Dan in Judges but the short of it is that they rejected the land God wanted to give them and instead (through idolatry, deception and murder) stole their own land. The reason for Simeon and Levi was seen in the last chapter. Circumcision was a part of the covenant between God and Israel. It was what made them unique and was a visible sign that they had been set apart. It should have been something that made others desire to join them. Instead Simeon and Levi abused it as a means to get revenge. Rather than being respected and honored, the children of Israel became detested and feared.

That’s great but what does any of this have to do with me? I am a child of God. I can stand secure in that fact. But that security does not give me a right to irresponsibility or a license to sin. Like Dan, I have the tendency to try to do things my way rather than accept and live in the blessings of God. Like Simeon and Levi, I run the risk of taking that which sets me a part from the world to push the world away rather than to point them to God. Does the way I speak and interact with those around me cause them to want to know the God I serve? The Church, by the world, is viewed as hypocritical, self-righteous, and judgmental. Am I helping to change this perspective or am I part of the problem? They should know I’m a Christian by my love. Do they? Or when the final tally is counted will I be part of that thirteenth tribe? Will I be one of the ones who doesn’t count?

Respond: God, keep me. I have the tendency to wander. There is so much in me that still needs to come under the authority of the cross. Take my pride and give me instead Your love. Take my greed and self reliance and help me instead to trust You. When the world looks at me, don’t let them see me greed, my pride, hatred, or condemnation. Let them instead see You through me. And let them want more. 

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Read: Genesis 32:13-34:31. Matthew 11:7-30, Psalm 14:1-7, Proverbs 3:19-20

“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.” (Genesis 32:28)

Respond: Israel. Yitzra-el. Fights God. I’m not a fan of watching fighting. I don’t like MMA or boxing and I certainly don’t like WWE or RAW or whatever it’s called these days. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good war movie or a good Jet Li/Bruce Lee type movie. That’s different. It’s cinematography. It’s artistry. There’s something I find repulsive about two guys stepping into a ring and beating each other’s faces in. If you like it, more power too you. Me, I’d rather watch a chick flick or pull my fingernails off with a spoon.

But that’s exactly what Jacob did. He separated his family into two groups, crossed this river, and had an all night long, no holds barred cage match with God. Crazy thing about it, he actually won. At the end God tells Jacob to let Him go. Jacob says, “Not until You bless me.” So God gave him a new name. No longer was Jacob known as a tricky deceiver. Now he was known as a prize fighting champion.

React: Jacob was rightly afraid. His past was catching up with him and he feared for his life. More than that, he feared for the lives of his family. The sin of Jacob’s past was threatening to come back around and destroy everything he had and loved. Have I run away from my past sin? Have I ignored, or hid, or tried to escape from the consequences of my past sin? When my past is threatening to destroy not just me but everything I hold dear, what am I willing to do about it? Am I willing to go toe to toe with God? Am I willing to get away from this world to fight, and keep on fighting until I have the victory? How serious am I? How desperate am I for a change? Am I willing to do whatever it takes?

Respond:[videoembed type=”youtube” width=”600″ height=”450″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NA8qP6gjHDs” id=”0″]

God, sometimes I don’t want to fight, even when I need to. It is easier to run. It is easier to hide. But there are demons in my past, there are mistakes I’ve made that I need to deal with. It is not just about me. There are people I love, people who trust me, that deserve to have me at my best. Help me to hold on to You. Help me to wrestle with You until You have changed my nature.

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Read: Genesis 31:17-32:12, Matthew 10:24-11:6, Psalm 13:1-6, Proverbs 3:16-18

If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. (Matthew 10:38-39)

Relate: The Esqualine Gate was the gateway between the City of Rome and the Emperor’s gardens. Some of the most luxurious parts of the city, like Nero’s golden house and the bath houses of Titus and Trajan, were located near the gate. Just outside the gate sat the Gardens of Maecenas atop the Esqualine Hill. These were the property of the Emperor and only those he favored were allowed to visit them. But it wasn’t the bathhouses, the Golden house, or even the gardens that the Esqualine Gate was famous for. This gate was the place of the cross. It was the place that Roman criminals were crucified.

Crucifixion was not a private, quiet matter. As much as it was a method of torture, it was also a preventative measure. The condemned criminal was to pick up the 125 pound crossbeam and carry it, paraded through the streets from the place of sentencing to the Esqualine Gate (or in other cities, a highly trafficked gate just outside the city). The world would see the criminal’s shame. Those in the city would be able to see the condemned walk by. Those coming to Rome by the Labicana or the Praestina roads would have to pass by the cross. Everybody would see, and know, and be warned.

React: Jesus said that anyone who refuses to take up their cross is not worthy to be called his follower. The only way to pass from the luxuries of this world to the gardens on the hill (heaven) is through the gate of the cross. Following Jesus is not a private affair. If people that I know are surprised to find out that I am a Christian, then I am probably not. If I am not willing to publicly bear my shame, and His glory, for all the world to see then I cannot be a follower of Christ. How willing am I to carry my cross? How willing am I to die?

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”600″ height=”450″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NA8qP6gjHDs” id=”0″]

God, help me to be willing to carry my cross. Sometimes it gets heavy. Sometimes it gets a bit embarrassing. But You endured the shame. You carried the weight of the world. You carried the weight of my sin. Help me to be willing to publicly, proudly, with the whole world watching, follow You to the place of death, that I might live again.

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Read: Genesis 1:1-2:25, Matthew 1:1-2:12, Psalm 1:1-1:6, Proverbs 1:1-1:6

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)

Relate: Last night, a ball dropped. Thousands upon thousands of people watched it with plenty of fanfare. Tens of thousands of people packed into New York City as bundled up and inebriated as they could get to see it live. For every one person watching it there, dozens more gathered around TV’s in homes, bars, restaurants, churches, and bowling alleys throughout the east coast to see this sacred event. With a minute left, the ball began its slow drop and the volume began to rise. Big yellow numbers ticked down as the dropping ball glowed first blue, then purple, to red, to yellow. It went from green to a bright white as the number 10 was reached. Both live, and around the TV’s everybody joined together to count down. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… Confetti dropped, champagne glasses clinked, kisses were given, and Auld Lang Syne was sung out. A new year had begun.

“In the beginning…” There’s something about a beginning, that brings hope. Even those that were saying that it is just another day, deep inside, knew that wasn’t true. We all want a clean slate. We all want a fresh start, and getting one gives us joy and brings new commitments. Most of us make resolutions. We promise to do better and, for a while, we believe we can. The new year is an opportunity to begin over. To start again. It is something we all want, and we all desperately need.

React: “In the beginning, God…” He is the only way to truly begin again. Without Him, the clean slate of New Years is just an empty concept. It cannot truly happen. But with God… He makes all things new. If you are reading this and you have never really made God a vital part of your life, I encourage you to do so. Let Him give you a new start. If you have made resolutions this year for eating, fitness, work, etc. why not make one more? Why not commit to doing something great for, or with God this year? Why not start this new beginning off with God? Why not commit your life, for the first time or for the hundredth time, to Him?

Respond: God, I give You 2013. As I start out this new year, help me to do it by following You. Take me down paths in these coming days that are far more than I could ever have imagined. Help me to follow You today, tomorrow, this year, and for the rest of my days. I’m Yours, again, for the very first time.

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Read: Habakkuk 1:1-3:19, Revelation 9:1-21, Psalm 137:1-9, Proverbs 30:10

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

Relate: What does glory look like? “We have seen His glory.” When I read that, I think of Isaiah. He saw the Lord, high and lifted up and the train of his robe filled the temple. I think of Daniel. He saw the Ancient of Days with a throne of fire and ten thousand times ten thousand standing before Him. I think of John in Revelations. He saw one seated on the throne before a sea of glass with lightening and thunder, and before the throne the four living creatures never stopped singing, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.” This is glory.

But this is not the glory John says we have seen. John says we have seen the glory of the Word made flesh. He left heaven to become our neighbor. And he doesn’t come in power and majesty, he comes in grace and truth. We see the glory of a simple man who wrote in the sand. He came in grace “neither do I condemn you” and truth “go and sin no more.” We see the glory of a man preaching on the mountainside (truth) while healing the sick and feeding the hungry (grace). We see the glory of a man despised, beaten, bruised, shamed, and nailed up on a cross. (Who didn’t stay dead) We see the glory of of the word made flesh, a baby born in a garage.

React: The glory of Jesus is most clearly seen through humility. He had the potential for power. In the garden when the soldiers came to arrest him, he told his disciples that he could call down legions of angels. In the desert, when Satan tempted him to turn stones into bread, Jesus didn’t say he couldn’t do it. He said he wouldn’t do it. Jesus had the potential for power, but he only used it for the good of others.

When I say I want to be more like Jesus, usually I am saying I want to live holy. This is a noble goal, but the more I see who Jesus was,  the more I think that being like Him is more about living humbly than it is living holy. When I saw I want more of the power of God in my life, I am usually saying I want to speak or act with authority. I want to see miracles. But when Jesus spoke, it was always for the benefit of others. When he performed miracles, it was an act of grace, to meet the need of another. If I want to be like Jesus then shouldn’t I be full of grace and truth, living in humility always seeking to meet the needs of others. Isn’t that what Christmas, what giving, is all about? Maybe if I can become better at disappearing, we the world might be able to see what glory really looks like.

Respond: God, help me to get out of the way. The world desperately needs to see Your glory, but I’m too concerned about radiating my own. Help me to learn better what it means to live like You. Help me to learn better what it means to be full of grace and truth. Help me to live humbly, that the world may see Your glory.

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Read: Nahum 1:1-3:19, Revelation 8:1-13, Psalm 136:1-26, Proverbs 30:7-9

A cry was heard in Ramah – weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead. (Matthew 2:18)

Relate: All week I’m going to be grabbing verses out of the Christmas story as my verse of the day rather than something from the daily reading. While I believe there is no end from the daily readings that I can pull from, this is Christmas week. I’m willing to bend a little, I guess. Considering the events of this past weekend, it only felt right that I should start with this.

Bethlehem was a small town. There was a major influx of people for a short while, the place was busting at the seams when everyone arrived for the census, but the crowds had long since gone home. Except Joseph and Mary. Their child was around a year old, maybe two when some very distinguished visitors arrived with some very expensive gifts. It must have been the talk of this little town of around two hundred people. For a short while it must have been… pretty soon they would forget all about it.

An angel showed up in a dream and warned Joseph. He managed to skip town before the soldiers arrived. But what about the rest of the fathers? What about the rest of the kids? In a town that size, at that time, there were probably between 10-30 kids two and under. It’s not nearly the mass slaughter we sometimes hear it portrayed. It wasn’t even a significant enough event to make it into Josephus’ history. But that made no difference to 10-30 families. Why didn’t they get a warning? Jesus was spared, but why weren’t they? If you have a good answer for that, I’d love to hear it. I don’t. There’s a lot of things I don’t have an answer for. Why on earth… No. Why in hell, didn’t God do something to prevent the slaughter in Newtown CT this past week? I don’t know.

React: I know what survivor’s guilt is. I’ve seen tragedy and asked why did they have to go and why not me instead? I’ve asked God why someone else had to see what they saw, to experience what they experienced and not me? Can you imagine the survivors guilt some poor little kids must be experiencing? He was hidden in a closet. She was locked in a bathroom. But they heard the gunshots. They heard the teacher lie to protect them. They saw her body. They were there at the firehouse picking up their kids while watching their neighbors look in vain. Why them and not me? Why that classroom and not mine? Why were we allowed to escape to Egypt while the neighbors had their baby ripped from their arms and murdered by a brute masquerading as a soldier?

There are many questions that I cannot answer, but they must be asked. I don’t know. I wish I did, but any rationalization, any explanation about free will or God’s larger plan or… anything will sound just as shallow in my ears as it would to anyone listening. It won’t bring comfort to a Christmas reunion that is missing a loved one.

But there is something I do know. God hears. More than that, God came. A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more. A voice is heard. He hears. A voice is heard in Newtown. Mothers weeping for their children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more. This world can be a bitter, hard, cruel, evil world. God knew that and He entered into it anyways. He was a hero who stepped into an impossible situation knowing it would cost Him His life, but that it would save ours. Victoria Soto‘s story is what Christmas is all about.

Respond: Please continue to pray for the friends and families of those who have lost their lives at the shooting this past Friday. Pray also for the many for whom Christmas is a time of sadness and loss as they are have lost someone they love.

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Read: Amos 7:1-9:15, Revelation 3:7-22, Psalm 131:1-3, Proverbs 29:23

Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. (Revelation 3:20)

Relate: If you ever heard an altar call, been a part of an evangelistic outreach, or read a book or article about witnessing, then you’ve probably heard this verse before. In fact, I am guessing that most people reading this are so familiar with the verse that they were jolted by reading it in the NLT rather than the KJV or NIV. I know for me, it is one of those verses that I memorized early and often.

Respond: It is also one of the most misused scriptures in the Bible. This verse is taken out of context more than any other verse with the possible exception of Luke 6:38 (Give and it will be given to you…) God, through John, wasn’t talking to non-christians in this verse. He wasn’t talking to unbelievers the way this verse is almost always being used. God was talking to the church. More specifically, He was talking to the church that most closely resembles that in America.

Most commentators agree that the church of Laodicea described here closely fits that of the church in America. We think we are rich, but we aren’t. Compared to most of the other churches (in our world and in their time) we are not experiencing true persecution. We are relatively financially stable and culturally influential. But we are also lukewarm. We are neither on fire for Him nor have we turned our back. We go through the motions but with no zeal, no love. Despite our appearance of power, we are actually wretched, miserable, poor naked and blind. It is to this church that God calls out. He stands knocking. Will we open? Will I?

Respond: God, on behalf of the Church in my culture, in my community, I repent. I repent of our misplaced priorities. Show us how poor we really are. I repent of our lack of vision. Reveal and heal our blindness. I repent that we have clothed ourselves in the trappings of this world. Expose our nakedness. I repent of our lukewarmness. Set us on fire. I repent that we have left you outside the door to our hearts. Help us, help me to open up to You again. Show me what it really means to be a friend of God.

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Read: Amos 1:1-3:15, Revelation 2:1-17, Psalm 129:1-8, Proverbs 29:19-20

But I have this complaint against you. You have lost your first love. Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don’t repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches. (Revelation 2:4-5)

Relate: I went to a Christian school from kindergarten up to seventh grade. One of the disadvantages of being a student at a Christian school was that they had the right to spank you. It wasn’t the spanking at school that was so bad, it was the knowledge that when I got home, I would get a real spanking when I faced the wrath of the father. All of my many spankings in those years were unjust and the first of many happened when I was in kindergarten. I hit my best friend in the head with a house. That, I got a spanking for but he had the audacity of trying to kiss my wife and received no punishment beyond what I meted out myself. Yes, I said wife. Yes, it was kindergarten. We had a wedding ceremony. I made her a ring and she cut my hair. My best friend was jealous. So I brought the house down on him.

React: As time goes by we tend to complicate things. As we mature and become more intelligent things should get easier (I don’t even have any more hair to cut) but instead we over think and over analyze and generally make a mess of it all. But coming to Christ should be simple. Do I still love Him as much as I did as a young child? Why not? Do I have the same simple faith that I did back then? Why not? Do I still believe in miracles? Am I still amazed by His love?

Like the church in Ephesus I can say I have worked hard in my walk with Christ. I have been faithful. I have pursued holiness. I have held tightly to sound doctrine. I have not quit. But where is my love? Where is the love of a kid staying up all night trying to read his way through Leviticus? Where is that kid, when he found out one of the guys on his baseball team didn’t believe in God asked, “why not, are you crazy?” Then he pestered him (and daily prayed for him) until the poor teammate relented and said the sinners prayer. What will it take to get me back to a childlike faith? What will it take to find again, my first love?

Respond:  God, I love You. Help me to love You more. Help me to love You like I did as a child. 

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Read: Hosea 6:1-9:17, 3 John 1:1-14, Psalm 126:1-6, Proverbs 29:12-14

I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings. (Hosea 6:6)

Relate: It’s the late 1920′s and a bad man, a really bad man, is having a crisis of conscience. Things haven’t gone well for him, he’s just seen some friends die, and now the shock, the frustration, the guilt bring him into an empty church. He takes a seat three or four rows from the front and sits down in a pew. After making the sign of the cross he folds his hands to pray:

“I just need to get this said. With all due respect, You put me down in this scheme. I didn’t ask for that, not even a handshake. Make me want things, things I can see, that I can almost touch, then You take them away. Not for me, right? Everyone else, but not me. I’m what, a mistake You made, like some leftovers. And I’m supposed to go through life, no friendship, no love till I’m pissin in my bed, coughing up blood in the sheets. Then I’ll know, right? Then it’ll all be clear? Put it in front of me, take it away. Why would You do that? Just to screw with me? What kind of sick [jerk] thinks that way? I’m supposed to trust You. Based on the treatment so far, what are You up to, huh? I’m here. I’m listening. I’m ready for any kind of explanation.”

From the back of the church he hears a voice:

“Are you all right?”

The man looks over his shoulder to see a priest walking over towards him:

“I’m praying.”

The priest has an excellent opportunity to make an impact here. This man is at a point in his life where he is ripe for a change. He is ready for a new start. The priest responds:

“You’re yelling, please keep it down. This is a church.”

Opportunity missed.

React: True, this is just a fictional scene from the TV show Boardwalk Empire. But the reason I was able to remember it, the reason it was even written in, is because it resonates with truth. How many times has my desire to be religious caused me to miss an opportunity to show God’s love. The cliche’ is said time and again, “I don’t have religion, I have a relationship”, but what the speaker is usually saying is, “my religion is not the traditions you normally expect.” According to James, true religion was to live holy and care for those in need (namely, the widows and orphans). What would it look like if more of us got this kind of religion. What would it look like if we used our tithe to buy a Christmas dinner and presents for a neighbor’s family we know is in a tight spot? What would it look like if we stopped watching TBN and used our cable money to support missions? What would it look like if we offered up love rather than sacrifices?

Respond: God, I’ve missed far too many opportunities. I can look back on times in my life when I should have spoken up but didn’t, when I should have shut up but had to be right, when I should have shown love but failed. Forgive me for those times and help me to be more aware of the opportunities all around me. Please help me to never, ever use You as an excuse to not be You in the life of someone who needs to see You.

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