June 27: In Matthew 18:7 Jesus says, "Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!" It then goes on to speak of things that cause offenses as if they are our own hand, foot or eye. I see a potential double application in the way it's done: the offenses most often come from our own walk, our own hands or our own temptations, and we'd do better to excise them than indulge them. The church is also a body with many members; and offenses come through those members, even to little ones. It'd be better if we were thrown in the ocean that for us to do so. Far better for Solomon, for instance, to live more modestly. Far better for us to take no offense than to endure greater affliction due to our own susceptibility.
1 Kings 6-7: In the transition from 1 Kings 6 to 1 Kings 7, is there an implication in the statement that Solomon's own house took him 13 years to build? With all the opulence of the Temple, there was plenty left over for him to revel in his wealth. Did Israel revel in it with him, or was it a source of resentment? In chapter 4, the major officers in Solomon's retinue were listed, including the priests, the scribes, the recorder, the captain of the host, the counselor, the master of the house, and "Adoniram the son of Abda" [who] "was over the tribute." Does this, taken together with 1 Kings 12:4, indicate that the tribute to provide all of this was heavy? Did Solomon's self-indulgence hurt his advocacy for the law right away?
Psalm 119:81-96: What is the cry of the faithful when afflicted? "When?" It's even echoed in heaven by the martyred saints (Revelation 6:10). We know in Job's story that we're unlikely to understand "why" even if He told us. We know we're destined for eternal life in His house (Psalm 23:6). How long is the remaining question for those who have settled themselves on His settled Word. We acknowledge that all our hope is there.
John 6:1-40: The disciples had just been instruments of Christ's most dramatic miracle to that point. When He left them and they decided to go back to Capernaum, what were they expecting? Certainly not a life-threatening storm and Jesus walking on the water. Was it they who decided to go where they thought they'd find Him? Or He who decided to meet them on the water? Let us find ourselves in His Way, seeking His Face, that He may be predisposed to look on us with favor when we are in trouble.
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