May 11 – Sighted and Hearing

“He who planted the ear, does He not hear? He who formed the eye, does He not see?”  Psalm 94:9 (NASB)

This verse might cause us to pause just a moment with the question, “He who planted the ear..?” But, this is a common use of the word to speak of creation. When God created our human ancestors in order to have fellowship with them, He gave His creatures the ability to know what is going on. Each of us was given the ability to see what is around us and to hear sounds happening around us. Not every creature sees and hears equally well and some not at all, but such circumstances were not in God's plan at the beginning. We are reminded today that the ability to see and to hear were given to us by the one who created us.  God wanted us to experience a part of what He has always experienced. God gave us the ability to see in part because He sees everything. He made us able to hear some sounds because he hears every sound. Yes, our God sees us in our needy time and he listens when we pray – that is the promise he made when he made us. Let's be thankful.  

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April 13 – Holy Wednesday – When a Seed Dies

“And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” John 12:23-24  (ESV)

 

During the last week before Jesus died on the cross he was in contact with many people in Jerusalem. In John's record we read in Chapter 12 about some people from Greek regions who came looking for Him. They said, “We would like to see Jesus.” When the disciples tell Jesus what the Greeks asked, His reply is found in today's verse. Instead of responding to the curious sight-seers Jesus begins to talk about his coming death. When Jesus says “the hour,” He refers to the time of His death, resurrection, and exaltation. Up to now, Jesus’ hour had always been future. He knew that by dying on the cross He would do more good for those Greeks (Gentiles) than by just satisfying their curiosity.  We think of Jesus' death like a seed planted which sprouts to bear many seeds. So Jesus, through his death and resurrection has brought many people into the family of God. We don't know if those Greeks ever believed in Jesus as their Savior but they could have. They wanted to see Jesus. Maybe they did. Because He died, we have come to know Him and one day will see Him in heaven.

 

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October 5 – Hope and Faithful Waiting

“For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?  But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.”  - Romans 8:24-25   (ESV)

Hope as we find taught in our Bible is a hope that has assurance and expectation of fulfillment and is not a wishful kind of hope.  But what are we hoping for in our lives as followers of Jesus Christ?  We are hoping for what we know will be ours but we do not see it yet.  We hope for an eternal life in heaven with God and we are assured that is ours but we do not yet see it, do we?  This is the promise of our verse today.  This is the hope that we have because we are now children of God.  We do not hope for what we hold or have but we do hope for what we have been promised but is not yet manifested.  Our verse tells us that this hope goes with patient waiting.  Patience in our hope because we hold the confidence that we will see our hope fulfilled. It is already ours in waiting so we can trust in it and that is what faith is also.   

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September 4 – Trust and See

“Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”  John 11:40  (NIV)

The context of this promise by Jesus is important.  Jesus' friend Lazarus was sick unto death and his sisters sent word to Jesus asking him to come to them.  Jesus, when He heard the news replied that Lazarus's illness would not end in his death but in the glory of God.  But Lazarus did die and when Jesus arrived, the burial had been done.  All there had given up hope that Jesus could do anything about it.  The words of our verse were spoken in front of the tomb where Lazarus was buried. Jesus calls Lazarus back to life and out of the grave.  It is through our believing in Him that we see His glory revealed in our lives.  God is ready to show us how great and loving He is as we trust Him to meet our needs.  Whatever our circumstances, whether our needs are material or spiritual, He knows when we are trusting His promises.  He might even say to us, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the Glory of God?” just when we face overwhelming situations.  God has promised that if we believe we will see the glory of God work in our lives.   

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May 18 – Living Because He Lives

“After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.”  John 14:19-20  (NASB)

Jesus spoke these words to His disciples while observing His last Passover meal  with them in the Upper Room.  It was the night that He knew He would be arrested and taken to be crucified.  His disciples were not yet fully aware of the significance even though Jesus had repeatedly told them what was going to happen.  Now, it was unfolding and about to happen.  Jesus was preparing them for the time when He would return to heaven after His resurrection from the dead.  Knowing that His followers would be affected He is giving them this promise as an assurance that He would still be with them and even though the world would not see Him, they would still see His work in their lives.  We have received eternal life by believing in Jesus and we live this new life by faith in Him.  We are alive in in Jesus today and He is alive in us and this is essential part of our Christian experience every day.  Let's commit to live this truth and promise out each day.    

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May 9 – The End Result of Faith

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 1:8-9 (NIV)

The Apostle Peter wrote these words in the first letter he wrote and sent to Christian believers who had not actually been eyewitnesses of Jesus.  Some time had passed after Jesus died, was buried, and rose again to return to heaven. The Good News message had spread to many who had never had the opportunity to see Jesus but had believed in Him. Peter is assuring them that God knew that they had believed and He was promising a great joy was theirs even in the midst of trials and difficulties they were facing.  It is not easy to face tribulation and persecution for what one believes and such difficult times tend to test our faith in Jesus.  Peter is assuring the readers of His letter - and that includes us today - that inexpressible joy is also a blessing and result of our faith.  Our faith brings salvation of our souls.  So, we know that we have eternal life because we believe even though we have only heard, and have not seen our Savior Jesus in person . This is the promised end result of the faith we have in God. 

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July 20 – Open Eyes, Thrilled Hearts

“Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” Psalm 119:18  (ESV)

From Psalm 119 we look today at verse 18 and find the psalmist praying to God.  In this psalm the scriptures are often called God's Law.  This word means much more than the 10 Commandments which God has given.  For us it includes all the instruction and revelation which God has given to us in the Bible.  For the psalmist, much of the Bible, as we have it, was not written yet and the focus was likely on the Mosaic Law, or the Pentateuch, or Torah which are the first five book and what believers had at that time.  But we can pray as the psalmist did in this verse and ask God to open our eyes to see the wondrous things in all of the Bible that we have. We remember that Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to do just that – to open our hearts and minds to understanding the Word of God.  Yes, the Holy Spirit is here with us to open our eyes to discern the wonderful truths in the Bible.  Remember the times your heart has been thrilled as truths are revealed to you from the Bible.  That is the promise of today's verse.  

Notes on Psalm 119

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May 11 – Seeing and Hearing

“Does he who fashioned the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see?”  Psalm 94:9 (NIV)

When God created our human ancestors in order to have fellowship with them, He gave His creatures the ability to know what is going on. Each of us was given the ability to see what is around us and to hear sounds happening around us. Not not every creature sees and hears equally well and some not at all, but such circumstances were not in God's plan at the beginning. We are reminded today that the ability to see and to hear were given to us by the one who created us.  God fashioned the ear to hear and the eye to see because God wanted us to experience a part of what He has always experienced. God gave us the ability to see some things because He sees everything. He made us able to hear some sounds because he hears everything. Yes, our God sees us in our needs and he listens when we pray – that is the promise he made when he made us. Let's be thankful.  

March 28 – Holy Wednesday – When a Seed Dies

“Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” John 12:23  (NIV)

During the last week before Jesus died on the cross he was in contact with many people in Jerusalem. In John's record we read in Chapter 12 about some people from Greek who came looking for Him. They said, “We would like to see Jesus.” When two of the disciples inform Jesus what the Greeks said, he replied beginning with the words in today's verse. Instead of responding to the curious sight-seers Jesus begins to talk about his coming death. He knew that by dying on the cross He would do more good for those Greeks (Gentiles) than by just satisfying their curiosity.  Just think of the results of Jesus' death like a seed planted which sprouts to bear many seeds. So Jesus has brought many many people into the family of God. We don't know if those Greeks ever believed in Jesus as their Savior but they could have. They wanted to see Jesus. Maybe they did. Because He died, we have come to know Him.

May 9 – Eyes Opened By Faith

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy” 1 Peter 1:8 (NIV)

Peter, the disciple of Jesus became one of the apostles who helped spread the news of the early Christian Church. Peter walked with Jesus and heard him teach and watched him do miracles and heal people. He many times ate meals with Jesus and talked with him face to face. Peter wrote these words in his first letter because he wanted to help those who would be reading it who had never seen Jesus. In the same way we have never seen Jesus as Peter did but we love him and we believe in him. These words can be taken by us and applied to us personally. We can experience the inexpressible and glorious joy because we have believed in Christ – even though we have never seen him.  Our faith has opened the eyes of our hearts and minds to believe in Him as our Savior and Lord.  It is hard to express sometimes but in our hearts we know He is true. What a joy it is to have that assurance.