I Peter 2:6-7 NLT
Matthew 3:3 ESV
Matthew 3:11 ESV
Revelation 1:8 ESV
Scripture from the Jar
In my lifetime God has often led me to do things without showing me the reason why I’m doing it. What I know is that God has eventually made it clear when the time is right.
When I sense the Spirit moving from one Series to another, I begin praying about what the next subject will be about. I’m not sure why, but my brain is ‘wired’ in such a way that I organize the blog posts into segments. I think those will eventually be individual books. I say eventually because the Spirit hasn’t led me to publish those in book form yet. I suppose the time isn’t right yet.
For this next Series of lessons I’m going to share scriptures from a special jar I was recently given. The jar is a canning jar filled with colorful pieces of paper. Each piece of paper has a Bible Verse on it. Today’s lesson was selected from the jar.
I don’t always know what God wants me to do next, so when that happens I pray and wait. After I selected a random verse from the jar I pray about what I’m supposed to write about.
I’m waiting…I’m waiting.
Sometimes I don’t get an instant answer so I sit in silence and wait.
In my younger days that was a bit maddening, but I would go to my dad and ask him why God won’t tell me what I’m going to do next. I want God to show me the big picture.
My dad would question me. “Why do you need to know?”
Well…after thinking for a minute I’d say, “well, I’d just like to know”.
He would give me his, ‘Really’ look and say, “is that because you want to be in control?”
Hummm…well maybe.
Then he would ask, “why? Do you think God isn’t capable of running the universes?”
At this point I’m starting to get uncomfortable.
My dad knows that and he says, “Let God BE God. God does know what’s what.”
Well, yes. Looking back I’m very grateful that my dad always pointed me back to God. He reminded me that God is God and I am not.
Today, as I prayed about what God had for us from this scripture from the jar I started to think about the progression of events through time.
I knew that God sent His son (who is God) for a purpose. It was (is) because God knew we needed help.
We know from the Old Testament that God sent the prophets to help us but they were rejected. After the last prophet died there was a four hundred year period when there were no prophets…no people who had a message from God.
Then God sent a baby. He sent His Son. He sent Jesus for a purpose.
I Peter 2:6-7, we learn, “As the Scriptures say, “I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”Yes, you who trust him recognize the honor God has given him. But for those who reject him, “The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.”
It’s difficult for us to understand why the people in the 1st Century didn’t immediately believe in Jesus.
Israel had been without a prophet for 400 years.
They didn’t know what it would be like to have a prophet.
In order to prepare them God sent John the Baptist to prepare the way. The Baptizer was the warm up act for the headliner.
Still there were people who were confused about who they should follow. In Matthew 3:3 John told them, “For this 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.’”
Later in Matthew 3:11, John said, “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
He is the cornerstone.
He is the Son of the Living God.
He is the One who was and IS and Is to come.
Revelation 1:8 tells us, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Today’s Spiritual Practice is: Sit With
Sit in silence with the Alpha and the Omega. Breathe in strength. Breathe out frustration.
In God, Deborah
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