SOAP 01/10/2015; Genesis 15:16

Today's reading: Genesis 15


S) "¹⁶ Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete."

Genesis 15:16 (NASB)

O) There are two critical points to note that are highlighted in this single verse. First and foremost, God's character is revealed. His omniscience and timeless nature are on display, when He says, "in the fourth generation" and again when He says, "not yet" because He stands apart from our understanding of time. He knows when all things will happen. Also, it reveals His sovereignty, because He says "they will... the iniquity... complete." Those are the key words that make it quite clear, God is sovereignly monitoring and controlling elements of these events as they are to unfold. He is putting the descendants of Abram into the Promised Land by His sovereign hand. He is judging the Amorites for their iniquities, and not randomly, but when they reach a certain measure. He determines when enough is enough. He determines how justice is executed. He determines how grace is given. He is sovereign and omniscient. Secondly, on the note of the Amorites, this passage reveals to us that the Israelites did not go on a conquest to forcibly take over land to which they had no rights. The land belonged to God, just as it still does to this very day. God owns it all; He created the world and all that is in it. The Israelites were given a promised land, because of God's grace toward Abram. The Israelites were given the Promised Land, because of God's perfect judgment of the iniquities of the people who had been living there. In fact, if we look at the end of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, we see that their own sins drove them from those lands as well.

A) God will have His way, as well He should. It's easy for me to get caught up in the details of my tiny life. It's easy for me to forget, that the Kingdom of God is what is important, not the kingdom of Nic. Bills pile up, work stresses me out, my kids might be sick - these are all important attention-getters, but they all pale in comparison to the greater story. There is my story, which is infinitesimal. Then there is His story, which is infinite. I am reminded of a concept I read from Francis Chan (pastor/author), that I need to remember that God's glory is what's at stake. In my life, marriage, relationships, job, parenting; there are opportunities for God to be glorified or ignored. He can be magnified or robbed of what truly belongs to Him: praise and worship. So, when things in my life feel chaotic, uncertain, difficult, or otherwise troubling, I need to remember that He is sovereign and fully aware of all events in time, and that it's His story in the first place.

P) Father, Your magnitude is too large for me to measure. Through Your words, I see a glimpse of who You are, and even in the tiny bits I see, I am overwhelmed by Your greatness. I confess that I do not fear You as I should. I am not consumed by my fear of Your holiness and perfection. Open my eyes and ears, to know Your character better. Through that understanding, I ask for more wisdom and a heart that truly fears You. I can consciously make the decision to respect Your authority, but fearing You is a heart condition that I know I lack at times. I want to lack for nothing, when it comes to knowing, worshiping, and serving You and Your Kingdom. Let Your will be done in my life and on earth, as it is in heaven. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 01/09/2015; Genesis 14:18

Today's reading: Genesis 14


S) "¹⁸ And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; now he was a priest of God Most High."

Genesis 14:18 (NASB)

O) Melchizedek is another very mysterious person in biblical history. There are some references to him here in Genesis, and then again in Psalms. Then again, he is mentioned in the book of Hebrews. The driving characteristic is in his very name, as it actually means, "king of righteousness" but the time is also critical in the understanding. This meeting of Abram and Melchizedek took place hundreds of years before God's Law was written. His righteousnes and priesthood are both based on faith (see Hebrews 7). The example of Melchizedek also shows us the truth of Romans 1, where we read that the invisible attributes of God are plainly evident.

A) We don't know the details of his encounters with God, or what his relationship looked like, but the fact that he was called a priest shows us that it existed. This is a real comfort to me because, if all else fails and things in society deteriorate (thinking worst-case scenarios), nothing will take away my relationship with God. It is an obvious, tangible, serious blessing that I have my Bible, church body, Life Group, and all of those reliable tools in my Christian discipline and walk. But, even if all of those institutions were taken from me, like Melchizedek without an organized religion (so to speak), my faith in God, and the righteousness He gives because of it, and my relationship with Him; those things could never be taken.

P) Father, the careful planning and execution of Your will continue to amaze me. You chose Melchizedek to be Your priest, at the same time that You chose Abram to be the forefather of Your chosen people. You set them both up, as examples of faith beyond the Law, taking precedence and superseding the Law. The details of the life of this righteous king may never be known to me, and may never benefit me; You know, Lord. But I pray that his example becomes an inspiration and comfort to me. Remind me that my faith and relationship with You is not because of the Bible, or because of a church, or worship service, or community. Let me continue to cherish those things, but remind me that the basis of our relationship is my faith in You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 01/08/2015; Genesis 12:10-11

Today's reading: Genesis 12


S) "¹⁰ Now there was a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. ¹¹ It came about when he came near to Egypt, that he said to Sarai his wife, 'See now, I know that you are a beautiful woman;'"

Genesis 12:10-11 (NASB)

O) This begins a cycle of some fatal lies. Abram lies about Sarai being his wife and his fears are actually founded. Pharaoh invites Sarai into the palace and his household is struck with a plague. Abram lies in the same way, to Abimelech in Genesis 20, with similar results, and Isaac falls to the same fear and lie about his wife. In the beginning, and what really stood out to me in the verses above, is that it was Abram's decision to sojourn in Egypt in the first place. He voluntarily put himself in a dangerous position, and responded to his fear with lies.

A) Sometimes, danger and uncertainty are required of God's children (dangerous or uncertain from our perspective, not His). Sometimes, I might put myself in positions that are less than ideal, too. I can take those risks, if I am prepared to handle the pressures, fears, or trials in godly ways. Over all, though, it would be better to not put myself in those positions at all. The best discipline is direct obedience, so I should really be focusing on seeking His will first and only. If Abram had sought the will of the LORD, he may not have been in Egypt at all. Even if he had been, he would have had himself in a position to obey from the start, making it easier to follow the Lord's lead, when fear about his wife gripped him. If I am making a habit of seeking God from the start, then it will be easier to seek Him in those uncertain or dangerous situations.

P) Father, Your sovereign will is completely trustworthy. You put me in a position to succeed, thrive, and love. I want to seek Your will when I am faced with difficulties. I don't want to answer a bad situation with a terrible decision. Open my eyes to see the unavoidable dangers ahead, like the famine that Abram and Sarai felt, so that I can seek Your holy instruction about what I am to do. I don't want to just avert crisis, but I want to be effectively used by You, even in hard times. Forgive me, Lord, for the times I think I have it all in control. Thank You for te grace, for the times when I leap out of the frying pan and into the fire. Let Your will be done, not just in my life, but on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 01/07/2015; Genesis 10:8-10

Today's reading: Genesis 10


S) "⁸ Now Cush became the father of Nimrod; he became a mighty one on the earth. ⁹ He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; therefore it is said, 'Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the Lord.' ¹⁰ The beginning of his kingdom was Babel and Erech and Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar."

Genesis 10:8-10 (NASB)

O) My how times change. When I was growing up, I knew the name "nimrod" as slang for a dim-witted person. Turns out, the first Nimrod in recorded history was a mighty one, a tremendous hunter who (apparently) founded Babel (among other cities), and possibly ruled over them as well. When I did a little research, it looks like the name "Nimrod" was used to describe tyrants in the 15th century (although I couldn't find exact sources). Then, in 1932, the cartoon character Bugs Bunny sarcastically refers to his nemesis, Elmer Fudd, as a "poor little Nimrod." While the Bible doesn't exactly say that Nimrod ruled over Babel when they built their tower, he very well could have. If that's the case, maybe "Nimrod" shouldn't be for a person who is a mighty hunter, or a tyrant, or a dimwit, but for a person who foolishly seeks to attain heaven by earthly power.

A) There is a lesson to be learned, here, about carefully researching the language I use. Also, it will continue to serve me well, to know as many details of biblical history as possible - not just for trivial knowledge, but to better and more fully understand the character of my Father God. Last, this serves as an important reminder, that a careless and sarcastic comment can carry a lasting impression. I don't want to vilify the writer of that Bugs Bunny script, but I imagine that the devil is glad, any time some part of the Bible is taken out of context, twisted, forgotten, or misused. I could be wrong, but I imagine more people know the name "Nimrod" from the sarcasm of Bugs Bunny, than the history of the Bible. If I can alter that, even a little, then it must serve some good. Nimrod probably isn't a very good role model (besides, we don't know much else about him), but he probably wasn't a dimwit, either.

P) Father, these are the little details of Your history that I want to learn, so much. Open my eyes to see them, as I read through Your words. Help me to spread this knowledge, even if it's taken as trivial gain. Any opportunity I have to spread Your truth, even in tidbits of historical reference, I'd like to do just that. Let this also be a lesson to me, mostly in the caution of sarcastic words. I don't want to be careless with my speech or writing. Help me to be understood correctly, and help me be conscious of what I say and write. Let Your will be done. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 01/06/2015; Genesis 7:4-5

Today's reading: Genesis 7


S) "⁴ For after seven more days, I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will blot out from the face of the land every living thing that I have made.” ⁵ Noah did according to all that the Lord had commanded him."

Genesis 7:4-5 (NASB)

O) God speaks to Noah with unusual specificity in this passage. God gives Noah a very specific timeframe to see. He tells him exactly when the flood will start, and exactly how long it will rain. Notice how God didn't tell Noah when the flood would come at the start of his construction. God didn't tell Noah, "Hey, in one hundred years I will flood the earth." However, when the timing became critically close, God specified when it would start. It's also interesting that God told Noah how long the rain would go, that it would only last forty days. The flooding on the earth would last half a year, and they would be confined to the ark a little longer than that, but the rain - which I think must have been the scariest part - was defined for Noah and his family ahead of time.

A) There have been many times when I wanted to know the specifics of things happening in my life. Especially, I have longed to know the specific timing for certain things. God has not often obliged, that I could tell. However, the crucial lesson from the above passage, comes in v.5, not v.4, when we read that Noah did according to all that that he was commanded. All. Noah was living a life in full obedience. It is no wonder, then, that God would have confidence to give him specific details about what was coming, especially about timing. Knowing my past propensity, and current struggle, with laziness in the form of procrastination, it becomes obvious where the danger is, if I have too much information. If God told me the flood was coming on day seven, would I wait until the evening of day six to try to cram the animals into the ark? If I want warning, or for God to prepare me, by knowing the timing of things to come, I should first commit myself to immediate and complete obedience, with or without knowledge of details I wish to know.

P) Father, I trust Your commands, because I know Your character. You are a trustworthy Lord, and a loving God. I want to obey more immediately, Lord. I want to obey more completely, Father. When my mind is ensnared to the trap of thinking I need details in order to act, remind me again of the example of Noah. Show me again, that I don't need all the details, if I'm not the one forming the plans. I can obey without seeing the whole picture, if I trust the one who does. You are a holy, sovereign, loving, just, and gracious God. Let Your will be done. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 01/05/2015; Genesis 6:5-6

Today's reading: Genesis 6


S) "⁵ Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. ⁶ The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart."

Genesis 6:5-6 (NASB)

O) The flood is coming. We see a very important glimpse of God's character, in this passage. God actually reveals to us, that He has some level of regret. To be clear, the LORD is never surprised. In His foreknowledge of every event, in His complete omniscience and omnipresence, nothing escapes His notice, and nothing happens that He did not know would happen ahead of time. He knew Adam and Eve would fail. He knew how evil the world would become. Still, He chose to create mankind. He was not compelled to do it, but it was in His will to create us. However, He was still sorry that He did it. His regret was not borne from a lack of preparedness. Who can catch God off guard? His regret was not from a lack of understanding. Who can teach God? His regret was from unrequited love. He knew we would fail to love Him back, but He still chose to love us. From creation, through The Fall, The Flood, straight on through His perfect plan to redeem, and right on through the return of Christ Jesus, and our perfect reconciliation. He chose to love us, knowing full well that we would fail to love Him back. The pain of that one-way love is something we can never quite know, because we do not love unconditionally as He does. But, the evidence of the pain, the weight and severity of His sorrow over it, is plainly seen in the flood.

A) Countless times, I have heard people say they live without regrets. I've heard Christians say this too, especially with regard to their past mistakes which lead them to Christ. I think this is foolish and arrogant. If God can regret, then certainly we can too. God doesn't even make mistakes, but He was clearly sorry that He created man on the earth. If that is the case, then I should absolutely be sorry for my mistakes, and even sorry for the right choices I may make, which cause pain to others. To admit regret, is simply to say that we would go back and make a different choice, or make things different if we could. I think sometimes (especially regarding salvation), people assume that if things didn't play out the way they did, they wouldn't be saved. That could be. If Creation and the Fall didn't happen, maybe I wouldn't be here today, either. But it did happen, and it's okay to admit the grief that causes us and others. The key, however, is in our reaction to that grief. God took action - perfect action, as He is perfect. If I am prayerful about my reaction to my grief and sorrow and regret, then it is absolutely appropriate for me to admit that I am sorry and I regret my mistakes. Wallowing in regret is damaging, just as feeding the emotion of anger is damaging. Appropriately admitting and addressing regret, though, is completely okay.

P) Father, You are perfect in Your character. Thank You for leaving us so much insight on emotion and how to deal with it. I thank You, Father, that You are a God who deals with all of the emotions I have. You experience adoration and anger, longing and pain, jealousy and regret. Help me to follow in Your perfect example of reacting to, and dealing with, my emotions. Lead me to act in a manner worthy of Your name, and let Your will be done. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 01/04/2015; Genesis 5:21-24

Today's reading: Genesis 5


S) "²¹ Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. ²² Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. ²³ So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. ²⁴ Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him."

Genesis 4:5-7 (NASB)

O) This Enoch is one of the most mysterious men of the Bible. Very little is known about him, factually, but there are some things we can glean biblically. First, looking at the timeline, we see that the majority of his life was lived while Adam was still alive. Adam lived to be Nine hundred and thirty years, and he died (see v.5). Following the time frames given for the births of these first seven generations, we see that Enoch was born in the 622nd year. So, despite the fact that we are talking about half a millennia, the men were living long enough for Adam to give a first-hand account of who God is, what the garden was like, etc. That is not to say that Enoch was given this kind of testimony, but it certainly puts the timeline in perspective. Reading through it, we see that it was not very long between creation, and Enoch's life - relative to the lifespans of the time. The next thing we see about Enoch, is that He fathered children, just like all of the other men in this genealogy. Next we see some crucial words, in understanding who Enoch was, "[he] walked with God..." This may not seem like a significant phrase, but it proves to be. Just like we looked back to creation, and we saw how close Enoch was to it, if we look forward along the timeline, we see something else a little surprising: his life was only four years from Noah's birth. Noah was born into a time so evil, that God decided to wipe out nearly all of His creation, to end that evil. So, the fact that Enoch walked with God (for all of his remaining three hundred years, no less), becomes evidently remarkable. For further evidence of the significance of this, we see him included in the listing of men who had great faith (see Hebrews 11:5). Also, in Jude 1:14, we learn that Enoch was an actual prophet. Finally, we get to the most mysterious aspect of Enoch's life - when "he was not, for God took him." Again, the timing of this seems particularly important. Only four years later, Noah is born to Lamech. In an amazing display of mercy and grace, God spares Enoch from the sin of the world, and the destruction it will soon experience because of it. This makes Enoch the first of only two biblical examples we have, of men being spared death, and being taken directly to be with God (the other being Elijah in 2 Kings 2:11).

A) To be sure, it is not my life's ambition to escape death and be taken straight to heaven. However, Enoch is a great example of rebelling against culture. He was at an epic cross-section of time. He was born while Adam, the oldest and first man, was still alive. It was still another 600 years before the earth was actually flooded, but a lot of those evil men were already being born while Enoch lived. Yet, his faithfulness to God proved to be undefeated. He would not succumb to the pressures of the people around him; he walked with God. If I am to walk with God, then I must go where God is going, and do what God is doing. I cannot make the mistake of thinking that God is static. He is moving, and walking, and doing. If I am static (i.e., lazy), then I am not walking with God. If God moves, and I don't, that is the same as me moving in an opposite direction. Walking with God is, at its core, what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. Jesus walked with God. As I live my life, ordinary and plain, raising kids and having a job, being faithful to my wife, I can't get lost in complacent routine. I need to ensure that I am still moving. I need to be sure that I am still doing. I know I am not saved by works, but if my beliefs are to be proven as faith, then I will walk with God, just as Enoch walked with God. Maybe my flesh will die, or Jesus will return first. Whatever the case, I want to ensure that I am living my life in such a way, that my life is God's to take.

P) Father, You are worth all of my time. That is one of my biggest struggles, Father. My heart wants to play, and following You is not a game. Remind me though, God, that games are not joy. When I am being spiritually active, and walking with You closely, my joy is complete. You have already opened my eyes to this truth; I have seen it alive in my life. I am afraid I am still easily distracted though, God. Help me keep focused on You. As I seek to walk with You, step in step, let Your will be done in my life. I don't know what my last sentence says, but I trust that You do. I trust Your will for my end. I pray that the people I leave behind (whoever they are, at that time), are encouraged and strengthened by the life I lived. I pray that, between now and then, I am living my life everyday, ready to be taken by You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.