Read To Me Daily Semester 3Sample

1KINGS 8:
Yesterday in 1st Kings we heard lots and lots of details about the building of the temple. A man from Tyre, Huram, must have been an efficient and artistic technician in working with bronze casting. He corresponds to the two craftsmen who designed and constructed the first tabernacle.

PSALM 119:97-112:
Today we start reading Psalm 119 at verse 97. Again we are focussing on what God’s Word means to us. A favorite verse from yesterday’s portion is verse 89: 

Ps. 119:89 GNT “Your word, O Lord, will last forever; it is eternal in heaven.”

JOHN 6b:
Today we open again to John chapter 6. There is an important play on words between Jesus and the crowd in Capernaum which does not come out clearly in either the NLT or the GNT. It involves the word ‘work’. Observe verses 27-29:

John 6:27 GNT Do not work for food that spoils; instead, work for the food that lasts for eternal life. This is the food which the Son of Man will give you, because God, the Father, has put his mark of approval on him.”

28 So they asked him, “What [work] can we do in order to do [the work//what] God wants us to do?”

29 Jesus answered, “[The work//What] God wants you to do is to believe in [me,] the one [whom] he sent.”

The irony captured in this play on words is that normally the act of believing is not considered a ‘work’. In fact, in later NT writings there is a strong contrast between working for salvation vs. believing for salvation. (As we have said before, this is not really a contradiction.) I bring this up to remind us that ‘believing’ is an act of the will. It is something one can choose to do, and therefore it can be called a ‘work’. 

Let’s pray:
Lord Jesus, we thank you that John records how the people did not understand the spiritual meaning of Jesus feeding the 5,000. They must have liked your food and wanted to make You king. But they missed the main point: Following You was not going to be about flashy miracles and doing outward acts. You told them that the work God wanted them to do was (paradoxically) to believe in You. Lord, we want to follow you that way! We believe in You. Thank you for being the bread of life to us. Thank You for your promise that we will never be spiritually hungry or thirsty. And we thankfully cling to your words, “Everyone whom my Father gives me will come to me.” Plus You promise, “I will never turn away anyone who comes to me.” That’s assurance! We come now in belief in You. Thank You that we have your promise that You will raise us up on the last day to eternal life.