Daily Bible Reading

Articles

Colby Junkin
01/13/25 - Daily Bible Reading

Every year we start a new reading schedule and every year I try to make daily thoughts on the verses/chapters that we read. This year to help keep me on schedule I am planning to post some of those thoughts in our weekly bulletin. These are not intended to be commentary, but rather a potpourri of ideas and questions that I had for myself derived from the daily Bible reading.

Day One - Genesis 1-2; Psalm 19
- “In the beginning…” - There may be no more fitting introduction ever written than the affirmative that God is the source of all things. He spoke into existence all that surrounds us and He is the One who continues to sustain all living life. The One who is the Creator has not only supplied all of our physical needs, but has also supplied to mankind our greatest spiritual need through His Word. It is our ability to hear, believe, and obey coupled with the abundant grace and mercy of God that enables us to have salvation, forgiveness of sins, and the hope of eternity with Him!
Day Two - Genesis 3-5
- “Then the eyes of both of them were opened…” - The sad reality of sin is that its consequences never hurt until after its completion. We see the immediate “good” and the rush of feelings, emotions, and everything else that transpires with sin, but we seemingly forget every time is that sin leads to death (James 1:15). It leads to shame, regret, sadness, and then attempting to hide from God. Sin is not a trivial thing, but rather a highly deadly poison that without remedy will condemn one’s soul in eternity away from the presence of God.
Day Three - Genesis 6-8; Psalm 104
- “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.” - The condition the world was in shambles and mankind had quickly grown to the point of complete rebellion against their God. The God who had amply supplied all of His creation with all things necessary for life had been rejected and replaced by man’s own schemes and violence. The Lord looks down upon this wicked and cruel world and saw Noah. Noah was a blameless man and walked with God. In the midst of all the darkness, Noah sought the light and was a child of it. Am I willing to be like Noah today?
Day Four - Genesis 9-11
- “Come, let us build for ourselves a city…” - The results of man’s determination and grit cannot be denied. These individuals joined themselves at Babel and began to build a tower whose top would have reached to the heavens. The dilemma was that man was operating without the consent and desire of God. In their attempt to make a name for themselves, they were displacing the One who should have been the focus of their lives. The Lord stopped their building project not by famine, pestilence, or invasion, but rather by confusing their speech. The people were scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth, but all of this was a part of God’s wisdom in drawing all men together through His Son!
Day Five - Genesis 12-13; Psalm 148
- “…and there he built an altar to the Lord.” - Abram’s reliance upon the Lord failed in his pilgrimage to Egypt, but the Lord did not allow him to stay there. Abram was brought back to the promised land and reminded of the Lord’s promises. Those three promises are the central focus for the remainder of the Bible’s narrative. The Lord promised to make Abram a great and mighty nation (Deuteronomy 26:5), to inhabit the promised land (Joshua 21:43-45), and finally that all the families of the earth would be blessed through his seed (Galatians 3:16). All that the Lord has promised has been fulfilled. Do I trust in the Lord’s promises like Abram?
Day Six - Genesis 14-15
- “Then he believed in the Lord…” - Abram’s faith may have had moments of weakness, but he trusted in the Lord and His power to fulfill what had been promised. Abram continued to make mistakes and fall short of what God would ultimately desire, but we see both God’s grace/mercy and Abram’s penitence and humility. Abram viewed the countless stars of the sky and while not being able to comprehend the HOW, he understand the WHO. Far too often, we become so enamored with how something is going work that we forget WHO it is that has promised. Abram believed in the Lord and this was sufficient to do all that He would command of him.
Day Seven - Genesis 16-18
- “Is anything too difficult for the Lord?…” - The Lord has now consecutively told Abram and Sarah both that a child would be born from their union. This was impossible from their earthly perspective because they were both beyond their years of having children and their age was definitely showing, but this did not keep the Lord from fulfilling His word and promise. The Lord told Abraham that a son would be born from Sarah and his name would be Isaac. There was a son of promise coming from an unlikely source, but this was not dependent upon man’s ability, but rather the power of God. This served as a shadow of the birth of Jesus who came in the most unusual of circumstances and it was only made possible by God’s power.