Today’s Bible Reading
Old Testament
Genesis 1:1-2:25
New Testament Matthew 1:1-2:12
Psalm 1:1-6
Proverbs 1:1-6
Read the Word and Know God
The Creation account in Genesis 1-2 reminds me about the glory of God. Who has such power and authority? It is startling to think that God simply spoke and things came into being.
“The Creation of the universe is nothing but God’s manifestation of his own perfection and excellency” – Jonathan Edwards (1723-1729).
God is certainly the main character in these first two chapters. We read about Him being there from the beginning. He spoke, He saw, He separated, He made, He called, He blessed, He formed, He planted, He finished, He rested. As the scripture unfolds we often fail to recognize that God continues to be the main character. Although He is not explicitly mentioned through many pages he is ever present throughout the story of scripture. C. S. Lewis put it like this:
“He walks everywhere incognito. And the incognito is not always hard to penetrate. The real labour is to remember, to attend. In fact, to come awake. Still more, to remain awake.”
Psalm 1:1-2 encourages my heart to delight and meditate on the law of the LORD for another year. For those who do there is a promise of blessing, “Blessed is the man” (v1). How much do I cherish my time with God and knowing Him through his laws? My prayer is to increasingly “taste and see the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8) day and night.
“We can begin each day with the deeply encouraging realization, I’m accepted by God, not on the basis of my personal performance, but on the basis of the infinitely perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ – John Owen
“Because I love to sweeten my mouth with the supremacy of God before I go to sleep.” – John Piper
Considering the first six verses of Proverbs this morning I see some responsibility on my part if I desire to be wise. No one likes to be the fool. Jumping ahead to verse 7 “fools despise wisdom and instruction.” So if I desire to be wise I must ready myself to receive instruction with an attentive ear and then understand what is being taught.
The book of Matthew begins with the genealogy of Jesus Christ. Throughout the Old Testament there are whole chapters devoted to genealogies. People who make reading through the Bible in a year often get distracted or discouraged in those sections. Yet in Matthew 1 we see something remarkable. The genealogies end. Jesus is the fulfillment of those genealogies. Just like the sacrificial system pointed to the person of Jesus, so do the genealogies. He is the climax of the genealogies.
I pray you will give time daily to the reading of God’s Word and for Him to use it to guide you for the purpose of knowing and enjoy Him.
Further Resources
The Bible Project creates videos that walk through the narrative of the Bible in a very creative and memorable way. If you don’t understand big story of the books of the Bible this is a helpful resource. Here is Part 1 of Genesis and Matthew
On the subject of personal performance Becky Harling’s book Freedom from Performing: Grace in an Applause-Driven World.
You can also listen to an interview with Becky on Moody Radio’s Midday Connection program from December 29, 2015.