October 2 – Matthew 1 & Luke 2

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Matthew 1 & Luke 2. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

The story of Jesus birth and all that happened are simply wonderful and amazing. Matthew starts his Gospel with what some might consider a boring genealogy. This genealogy however establishes Jesus as first being a Jew and second being from the right family tree as predicted by God. This was an incredibly foundation for Matthew to build upon.

What I also love about our reading is the awesome events that play out.

•   Joseph is visited by an angel in a dream – Matthew 1:18-25
•  Shepherds are sent to Bethlehem to see the child because angels visited them – Luke 2:8-20
• When Jesus is presented at the temple two people offer amazing prophecies, first by Simeon – Luke 2:25-35 and second by Anna – Luke 2:26-40.

 This birth is special. There is now way around it. Joseph and Mary had to know that what was happening was all because of God. How would you have felt to be chosen by God to do something so great? Would it have been hard or easy to accept knowing your life was going to drastically change? These are tough questions to answer. 

September 24 – Esther 6-10

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Esther 6-10. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

One of the many things I love about God is His ability to use anything for His purposes. From the time man disobeyed God by eating the forbidden fruit in the garden, God has been on a relentless pursuit of mankind. When He selected Abraham to be the man to father the nation He was building, that family became His people. Overtime the name of Abraham’s decedents went from being called Hebrews, to Israelites, and finally to Jews. Jew is the English understanding of the Hebrew word Judah, the tribe that many of today’s Jews descend from (Using the term Jew to describe the Jewish people is not racist or condescending when used as a noun. It is when we use it at as a verb, like to jew someone down on their price, or in such a way that racism is implied from use and tone that the word is wrong!). It is with this remnant of people that God uses to bring people back to Him.

As followers of Christ and as people living nearly twenty-five hundred years after the events of Esther we know that Jesus is the ultimate piece of the puzzle that restores the torn relationship. But God was about restoration all along. In Esther 8:17 in the latter part of the verse the writer records for us these words … “And many of the people of the land became Jews themselves, for they feared what the Jews might do to them.” (Ester 8:17 NLT) In their king granted strength the people became scared of the Jews. So they bought into the old adage … if you cannot beat them, join them. This put a few more people in the path to the restoration of God’s relationship with mankind.

God will use anything. What did He use in your life to restore the relationship with you? What has you used in others lives? What situations and circumstance are currently happening in the lives of those around you that God may be using? Keep and observant eye open, always ready to share the good news of Jesus. 

September 2 – Ezekiel 21-22

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Ezekiel 21-22. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

Do you look for hope as you read through all the destruction of the prophets? I hope you do because God has planted it throughout. In our reading today we saw just another example of that … “Destruction! Destruction! I will surely destroy the kingdom. And it will not be restored until the one appears who has the right to judge it. Then I will hand it over to him.” (Ezekiel 21:27 NLT) As I have said before I love the fact that God doesn’t only paint a picture of destruction, but he also gives hope.

What we see here isn’t just hope of restoration as a nation. The kingdom talked about here is much more than they could imagine. We know that the Israelites understood that there was coming a messiah to offer deliverance. We know that during Jesus life they were looking for a military or political leader in their messiah. And we also know that even Jesus own disciples didn’t fully understand Him. But as people living after the resurrection we have historical perspective. We can understand God’s words here on a level 1^st century Israel didn’t.

I am grateful for that. Because I can look at the Bible, the wonderful story it weaves and see God preparing the world for the coming of the Messiah! I can see the language of the one who has the right to judge, and know that person is Jesus Christ. Jesus was God in the flesh; He had the full authority to judge and the full authority to forgive. Had they understood this passage, the Pharisees might not have questioned Jesus like they did in Matthew 9:1-8. I love that I can look at that and understand what God is saying. Do you cherish that ability as well?

August 23 – Jeremiah 49-50

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from 46-48. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

Photo Credit: Microsoft Clip Art

I love projects where I can see immediate results. That is what I loved about my high school job. When I would mow a lawn, I immediately saw the results of the cut grass. With each pass of the mower beautiful stripes were put into a lawn. With each pass of the mower I was one step closer to being finished with that particular lawn. That brought about a lot of gratification.

My other high school job was working at a movie theater. Sometimes that work seemed like it was never done. When selling concessions it seemed like as soon as one customer was served, the line was only getting longer. It was really difficult to enjoy the job at the movie theater because there was no immediate gratification.

In our reading it has been hard to see exactly what God is up to. Just imagine if you were living it as Israel and Judah did. The once proud (in the proper context of proud) nation of Israel has been torn in two, and now because of sin has been completely destroyed. As we have read it can be a challenge to see what God is doing through all of this. Sometimes it is simply hard to read all the death and destruction God is planning to dish out. No wonder so many people read the Bible and walk away confused.

At West Side we are doing a thirty-one week study through the Bible based on the book The Story. Through our study we have talked about God’s upper story and God’s lower story. The lower story is what is happening to the people in their every day lives. The upper story revolves around God’s overall plan. The lower story often supports the upper story. Sometimes it can leave you scratching your head to figure out how God will use the lower story to fulfill his upper story plan.

Photo Credit: Microsoft Clip Art

What I love about God is the fact that there is a plan. Even when the lower story seems a mess, like it does right now for Israel, God has not been thwarted. God has a plan, a prosperous plan of hope for Israel … ““In those coming days,” says the LORD, “The people of Israel will return home together with the people of Judah. They will come weeping and seeking the LORD their God. They will ask the way to Jerusalem and will start back home again. They will bind themselves to the LORD with an eternal covenant that will never be forgotten.” (Jeremiah 50:4-5 NLT). God’s plan was restoration; a restoration that would allow Him to continue in His upper story plan of bringing hope to the entire world.

So how can you look at your lower story and find hope in God’s upper story? Maybe right now the daily pains of life are hard to bear. Maybe right now it is hard to see any hope. Maybe those days are behind you or have not come yet. Maybe for you the best hope you can turn to is the promise of spending eternity in the presence of God in Heaven. I do not know about you, but that is a pretty good hope to me. 

August 20 – Habakkuk 1 - 3

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Habakkuk 1-3. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

There is no real spiritual edification that is about to be bestowed on you for what you are about to read in the next few sentences. One of my favorite books of the Bible to pronounce is Habakkuk. I love letting it thrust from my throat. I loved to smack the back of my tongue against the roof of my mouth at I stress the K’s. For some reason I feel I am German and must sound angry when I am saying it (When I was in Germany I felt every one was always angry when they were talking; they could be saying I love you and to me it sounds angry). You can go to Wikipedia and play the pronunciation suggestions at the beginning of the description to see how to say it. Both versions are correct. Now to some real spiritual edification …

In God’s response to Habakkuk in chapter two God reveals the truth about false God’s. In a way I feel as if God is taunting the proud, greedy, murders, and strait up sinners. God says … “What sorrow awaits you who say to wooden idols, “wake up and save us!’ To speechless stone images you say ‘Rise up and teach us!’ Can an idol tell you what to do? They me be overlaid with gold and silver, but they are lifeless inside.” (Habakkuk 2:19 NLT)

Are we like the people in the last days of Jerusalem? Have we put our hope in man made images and objects? Sure they may not be idols carved of wood and stone that serve as a deity to us. But they are physical man made object that have become our hope. Things like retirement accounts, sports, television, the internet, alcohol, and so many more fill our hope. Now many of these things are not wrong and if used right can be a tool of God for His blessing. But when our hope is in them, and not in God, we are doing what Judah did. When we turn to them for fulfillment, the internet, television, and alcohol, just to name a few, instead of God, we are doing what Judah did.

Friends, put your hope in God. He is so much more than a carved image and so much more than any escape we might find. He is creator and sustainer of everything we know. He has shoulder broad enough to carry any pain, any hurt, and any worry. He loves you so much that He sent Jesus to pay the debt of your sin. Turn to Him!

July 31 – Isaiah 59-63

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Isaiah 59-63. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

Photo Credit: Microsoft Clip Art

I am not big on hellfire and brimstone preaching. When I lived in Virginia I used to attend a Wednesday breakfast with some men from the church. The food was great, the fellowship was wonderful, and the worship was fine. There were two reasons I stopped attending; the early time meant for a long day and the teens on Wednesday nights were not getting the best out of me. However, the main reason I stopped attending was the preaching that took place. Every other week the pastor of the church spoke. Each time he spoke his preaching was directed at how bad our world is getting. Often I felt beat down and not uplifted. I could not take all the negativity that overwhelmed that place.

Now, there are times preaching and teaching has to have some corrective elements. Negativity has to rear its ugly head from time to time. If it never does, correction may never happen. But constant negativity just wears people out. Isaiah was one who brought a lot of negative news to the people of Judah. Fortunately for him, his news was not all bad. From time to time he had the privilege of bringing good news. He was able to one of the first to announcing the coming Messiah. His news even spoke of the return from exile.

He knew his mission was both the bearer of bad and good news. Read his words again … “The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, for the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners be freed.” (Isaiah 61:1 NLT) Good news always needs to follow bad news. Hope always needs to be seen.

I hope your teaching, sharing, and preaching to your friends, relatives, and co-workers who may know Christ and have strayed, or who do not Christ is not always full of negativity. I hope in there you are pointing to hope, pointing to restoration, bringing good news. That is exactly what gospel means … the good news of the work of Jesus! Bring some good news!

July 13 – 2 Chronicles 27 & Isaiah 9-12

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from 2 Chronicles 27 & Isaiah 9-12. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

Hope. Do you live your life understanding you have hope? Do you feel like you have hope? Do you pursue your dreams, ambitions, desires knowing hope for you has been taken care of. Today’s reading is full of hope.

In chapter nine of Isaiah the added title (If your Bible has section titles this has often been added by the publishers and translators of your particular translation) tells about the hope of the Messiah. This chapter tells about one who will come from Galilee, the region north of Judah which is in the land of the nation of Israel, to reign forever on David’s throne. That idea of reigning forever on David’s throne signifies that this will be a different kind of kingdom than what Israel and Judah had ever experienced. We know the fulfillment of this prophecy to be the virgin birth of Jesus, born in Bethlehem but raised in Nazareth of Galilee.

The reading is also full of glimmers of hope for Israel and Judah. Destruction and exile has been hinted at over and over throughout the prophetical books. The end of the kingdom as they know it is going to be over. But God doesn’t leave them without hope. Throughout it he reminds them that they will return to their homeland. One day they will find a faithful remnant back in Jerusalem.

One of the strongest messages of the Bible is hope. If you belong to Jesus, if you call him Lord and Savior, then you have hope. You have hope in eternal life with Jesus in heaven. That is the greatest hope ever. 

April 26 – Psalms 73, 77, & 78

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Psalms 73, 77, & 78. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

One of the questions that seems to come up when things happen such as the Boston Marathon Bombings, or when we see cancer strike a loyal and faithful follower of God, is why do bad things happen to good people and why do good things seem to happen to bad people? David seems to ask that same question today in Psalms 73. Read again just a sampling of his words … “They wear pride like a jeweled necklace and clothe themselves with cruelty. These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for!” (Psalms 73:6-7 NLT)

It’s something we have all seemed to ask from time to time. It’s an observation we have all made at some point. We see the wicked, the crooked, and the relentless get the bigger house and the nicer cars, all while seeing people who seem to sacrifice everything live on the edges of poverty. In our earthly mind something just does not seem to add up right. But let me remind you what David realized himself … “Then I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I finally understood the destiny of the wicked. Truly, you put them on a slipper path and send them sliding over the cliff to destruction.” (Psalms 73:17-18 NLT) Remember, this world is not our home. If we belong to Christ our rewards are not on this earth. While those who pursued the lustful desires of this world, while skipping a relationship with Jesus Christ, got their rewards here in this life, those who belong to Christ will spend eternity experiencing their prize … God himself!

At West Side we believe highly in prayer. We are asking people to join with us in praying daily for West Side. If you would like to join us please click here and subscribe to receive daily emails containing a short prayer request for West Side. We appreciate your partnership.

April 16 – Psalms 56, 120, 140, 141, & 142

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Psalms 56, 120, 140, 141, & 142. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

Photo Credit: foxnews.com

Yesterday afternoon we were unfortunate witness to another attack on our fellow citizens at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Sadly these news cycles have become too familiar. In our world today it is not uncommon to see evil triumphing greatly. As I ponder these event, I am reminded that evil has always been around, and unfortunately it will always be around. Our reading for today reminds us where our strength must come from.

Read these words from David again … “O God, have mercy on me, for people are hounding me. My foes attack me all day long. I am constantly hounded by those who slander me, and many are boldly attacking me. But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?” (Psalm 56:1-3 NLT) or … “I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.” (Psalm 120:1 NLT) or … “O Lord, rescue me from evil people. Protect me from those who are violent, those who plot evil in their hearts and stir up trouble all day long. Their tongues sting like a snake; the venom of a viper drips from their lips.” (Psalm 140:1-3 NLT).

David knows where to turn when evil takes place. Let me encourage you to do the same in your hour of need. Let me encourage you to turn to prayer when evil streams across the screens of our televisions, computers, and electronic devices. And let us remember that our home is not this world, but eternity in the very presence of God himself.

At West Side we believe highly in prayer. We are asking people to join with us in praying daily for West Side. If you would like to join us please click here and subscribe to receive daily emails containing a short prayer request for West Side. We appreciate your partnership.