Monday, February 3
Exodus 20:1-21
The Ten Commandments
Then God spoke all these words,
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above or that is on the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
“You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
“Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it.
“Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
“You shall not murder.
“You shall not commit adultery.
“You shall not steal.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female slave, ox, donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking, they were afraid and trembled and stood at a distance and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen, but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid, for God has come only to test you and to put the fear of him upon you so that you do not sin.” Then the people stood at a distance, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.
If someone came up to you and asked you to make a list of the twenty-five Bible passages or stories that are most important to you, what would you say? Another way to ask this question is “what is your canon? When it comes to the Bible what stories are most important to you?”
This week in the devotion we’ll have the opportunity to look at six very important stories in the Bible. Hopefully these six stories would make your list of twenty-five.
These six are not necessarily the most important Scriptures in the Bible. But each of these stories stands out for their significance.
Today’s reading is, of course, the 10 Commandments. You can also find the 10 Commandments in Deuteronomy 5.
The first four commandments have to do with the relationship of humans to God; the last six commandments have to do with humans’ relationship with others.
When you were growing up, did you memorize the ten commandments? Were the ten commandments or a picture of them displayed in a significant place in your church.
What was your relationship to the ten commandments when you were growing up? Please share.
Tuesday, February 4
Psalm 23
The Divine Shepherd
A Psalm of David.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.
This Psalm is probably the most well-known of the 150 Psalms that are in the Bible. At almost every funeral this Psalm is read. Which is almost too bad as it can be known as a funeral Psalm. When the Psalm is read in worship, people might think of a funeral.
The Psalm is remarkably relevant for people, especially for situations outside of a funeral.
God is always leading us to take the right path. God wants us to find green pastures, still waters and have our soul restored.
The Psalm never promised that hard or bad things would not happen. The reality of hard or bad things does not mean that God has abandoned us. Even though each of us will walk through a hard time like the valley of the shadow of death, we need not fear what is happening. God is always with us.
Have you memorized the 23rd Psalm? When did you learn about it? How has it played a role in your own spiritual development? Please share.
Wednesday, February 5
Micah 6:6-8
What God Requires
“With what shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” He has told you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?
The prophet Micah was wrestling with the question of what is most important to God. What would please God. What does the Lord require.
This book was written in the 8th century before Jesus. During this time many religious reforms were instituted in Israel. The leaders of Israel wanted the people to grow closer to God.
The words of verse 8 are remarkably relevant for our lives. God wants us to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God.
You might think of a situation in which you are struggling right now. You might be wondering what to do. If Micah was alive to counsel you, Micah would say that our task is to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God.
This is a big overarching teaching. It’s up to each one of us to fill in the blanks.
Doing justice means we have a heart for those who are most vulnerable—the poor and others on the outside of our culture.
Love kindness is an approach to our world. No matter how much suffering we are experiencing or how we’ve been hurt, we’re called to love kindness.
Walking humbly with God is our posture towards God. We’re always willing to set down our own needs or agenda and to seek what God wants.
What do these three verses mean to you? Please share.
Thursday, February 6
Luke 10:25-37
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
An expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”
But wanting to vindicate himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and took off, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came upon him, and when he saw him he was moved with compassion. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, treating them with oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and when I come back I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
The Parable of the Good Samaritan is the response of Jesus to the question, “who is my neighbor?” Jesus had just shared that what is most important in faith is to love God and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
This story is a specific application of this teaching.
The story is surprising as a Jew in the early 1st Century would not have thought of a Samaritan as their neighbor. Their neighbors would have been fellow Jews.
It’s also significant that a neighbor is someone who is lying almost dead on the side of the road. It’s messy to get involved. The Priest and the Levite saw that getting involved would be messy. They passed right on by.
How has this story of the Good Samaritan been important to you throughout the years? Please share.
Friday, February 7
Mark 12:28-34
The First Commandment
One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Then the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that ‘he is one, and besides him there is no other’; and ‘to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength’ and ‘to love one’s neighbor as oneself’—this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that no one dared to ask him any question.
This story is well-known at Chain of Lakes as it is referenced frequently. Our task as disciples or followers of Jesus is to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
This is most important in how we live out our faith.
It’s fun to see the illumination that came to the scribe as he was listening to this teaching of Jesus. The scribe had an “aha” moment. This moment probably stayed with him for the rest of his life.
The scribe realized what was most important. This agape love was more important than an offering or sacrifice that was offered to God.
Jesus saw the understanding of the scribe and told him that he was not far from the kingdom.
What does this story mean to you? Please share.
Saturday, February 8
John 20:1-18
The Resurrection of Jesus
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’s head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed, for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.
Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not touch me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and she told them that he had said these things to her.
Each of the resurrection stories are unique in their own special way. John’s story is unique because of Mary Magdalene. She came to a new understanding of the identity of Jesus.
May Magdalene was deeply sorrowful when the body of Jesus could not be located. Her entire world was coming crashing down.
Jesus approached Mary and shared that he had risen and was ascending to his Abba in heaven.
Mary Magdalene became the first person to communicate the message of the resurrection. She was the first preacher.
Imagine that you were Mary Magdalene in this story. How do you think you would have responded to what was happening? Please share.