Welcome to River of Life, First Baptist Lake Monroe and Ridge Crest Bible Church’s Chronological Bible Reading Plan.  Over the next several years, the members of these sister churches will be reading through their Bibles together in a chronological way, following the events of the Bible in the order in which they occurred rather than in the order in which they were recorded.  In addition the pastor and adult Bible study teachers will be teaching from the same passages we read each week.  At times, additional passages from the Psalms will be provided along with the chronological reading portion.

     I hope that you will prayerfully consider making a commitment to reading through the Bible with us.  As you approach each days’ passage and questions let me encourage you to: 

Pray – Pray before you read.  Ask God to make the scripture real to you and show you how it applies to your life.

Read – Read the scripture passage(s).

Ask – Ask yourself, “in what I just read is there a lesson to learn, a truth to embrace, an example to follow, a sin to avoid, a mistake to dodge, a change to make or a promise to claim?”

Meditate – Think about what you have read.  We are to be doers of the word and not hearers only (James 1:22).

Remember God’s promise and condition in Jeremiah 29:13

 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

If you miss a lesson and would like it emailed to you,

 send me an email at rolwebperson@yahoo.com

Want a link to read the Scriptures?

http://www.biblegateway.com/

Monday, January 17 – Read for today: Isaiah 32

Better Days Coming

     Much better days are ahead for Israel as described in this passage. Israel has suffered much due to sin in the nation and hard times prevailed but now the righteous King will come and shelter them from the storm.  He will come as a refreshing river in a desert and the eyes of Israel will be opened to God. So many times the people of God suffer unnecessarily because of wrong choices in turning from God.  Israel would rush after other false Gods in idol worship and sinful choices and then pay the consequences. God would rather us follow Him from the beginning and reap the benefits of a holy life.

      The good days coming speak of righteousness prevailing and the evil being pushed away.  The ungodly and atheists will be shut down and the true King will rule in purity and firmness.  God knows how to get the attention of people. When His protection is gone then the people understand the real source of blessings and appreciate the blessing that only God can give. How about where we live today? Are we under the bright sun of God’s blessings or have we placed ourselves in the dark corner of judgment. Living under God’s judgment for a while gives one a new appreciation for the life of obedience. Poor choices remove us from all that God would want to bless us with but He leaves the choice to us as to where we want to live.  So where are you living today?  First are you truly a believer, born again into God’s family? Have you received Christ as your Savior from your sins and entered the family or body of Christ? Next are you living in obedience to our Lord in every area so that we may live in the place of blessing and fruitfulness.  Israel had to learn some bitter lessons but God in His mercy made a way for them to repent and then enjoy His blessings once again. Where are you today? Come to Him for salvation if you have not and if you have then live a holy life in obedience to Him. There are wonderful blessings waiting for the obedient child of God.

Things to Consider:

Genesis 15:1-Remember that God himself is our reward as well as protector. Let’s rejoice in the person that He is.

Psalm 19:9-Consider the steady foundation of a life that fears God and rests in His holiness.

For further study:

Psalm 58:11-What shows people around us that we belong to God and we are blessed because of this fact?

Isaiah 62:11 & Jeremiah 31:16-Consider the joy of having God as our Savior. Think of the truth of His Word being proclaimed and how His justice and truth will prevail.

Tuesday, January 18 - Read for today: Isaiah 33

A request of God

     “O Lord, be gracious to us.” When we ask God to “be gracious,” we are asking Him to show us His compassion and mercy, especially when we are hurting. We are petitioning Him to be kind and generous to us when we have a need. And we are requesting that He bestow His divine favor upon us. Isaiah reveals in another passage: “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion…You will weep no more. How gracious He will be when you cry for help! As soon as He hears, He will answer you.” (Isaiah 30:18,19 NIV) The truth is that God is eager to “be gracious” to us--to show us His merciful compassion by hearing and answering our pleas for assistance and relief. So we can pray, “O Lord, be gracious to us,” with boldness and confidence, believing that He will act on our behalf.

     “We long for You.” When we say that we are “longing” for God, it means that we are waiting for Him, counting on Him, and expecting Him to keep His promises to us. The author of Psalm 130 says it this way: “I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on Him. I have put my hope in His Word. I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn, yes, more than sentries long for the dawn.” (Psalm 130:5-6 NLT) God loves to hear us say that we long for His presence and His help. When we confess these things with sincerity, He will not delay in answering us in unexpected and astounding ways.

     “Be our strength every morning.” We need the Lord’s strength and power every moment of every day. But since we are often at our weakest and most vulnerable when we first open our eyes in the morning, it’s critical that we pray for the Lord’s strength early in the day. What we have to remember is that our mindset when we first wake up can chart the course for our entire day. So allowing negative thoughts and emotions to linger can rob us of the victories and blessings that God has for us that day. Scripture says: “I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need.” (Philippians 4:13 NLT) By asking for--and depending upon--the Lord’s strength each morning, we will receive all the divine help we need to think right and to do right, for the glory of God.     “[Be] our salvation in time of distress.” When we ask the Lord to be our “salvation,” we are asking Him to come to our aid. Psalm 118:21 (AMP) says: “I will confess, praise, and give thanks to You, for You have heard and answered me; and You have become my Salvation and Deliverer.” “Be our salvation,” can mean, “Hear and answer my cries for help. Deliver and rescue me!”

     Each time we pray Isaiah 33:2, we are praying the will of God. And the Bible says that when we pray according to His will, we can confidently expect an answer. (1 John 5:14-15) Could the Lord be waiting for you to begin reaping the rewards of this prayer today?

Questions for thought:

  1. Do you often pray prayers from the Bible?

  2. Are you comfortable praying other people’s prayers?  How about when they are people’s prayers out of the Bible?

  3. Can you pray those prayers with the passion of your own prayers?

For further study:

  1. Read 2 Timothy 3:16.  How does this verse impact “Bible prayers”?

Wednesday, January 19 -  Read for today: Isaiah 34

God gets angry?

      When I was in Junior High school, there was a boy who often picked on me.  At the time, thought weighing about 120 pounds soaking wet, I did pushups every night, preparing for the day I would have to fight with him.  To say I was angry with him was an understatement, because of how much he picked on me and because of what a bully he was.

     Now, when you think of the anger I felt toward that guy, imagine the just, righteous, and holy anger God must feel toward a world, that He has created and blessed, that continues to deny Him and who go out of their way to pursue and worship false Gods.

     This passage makes it very clear that God gets angry, and He does so with mankind.  Does He love us and want to bless us?  Yes!  But being just, and holy and righteous, He also gets angry.

     How very different from what so many billboards in our area seem to say.  Does God love us?  Yes.  Does He want the best for us?  Yes.  Does He, like the prodigal son’s Father, want us to turn from our wickedness and return to Him?  Yes.  Does He get angry and punish?  Yes.  It goes hand in hand.       How does a father whose child is trapped in drugs not get angry?  How does a parent whose child abandons her family chasing the things of the world, not get angry?  How does a loving and creator God, not get angry when His children reject Him and try everywhere in the world to find peace, but Him?  He doesn’t.

There will be a payday someday.

Questions for thought:

  1. Can God be loving and still get angry?

  2. How do you feel when you see those billboards in our area that say, “God is not angry with you”?  Are they partially right, completely right, or do the not have a clue?

For further study:

  1. Read Exodus 32:7-10.  What do these verses tell us about God?

Thursday, January 20 - Read for today: Isaiah 35

Anticipation

      Isaiah was describing both the Jews return from Babylonian captivity, as well as their ultimate return from the worldwide scattering, before the millennial reign of Jesus the Messiah. In both cases, “the ransomed of the LORD shall return.” We alive today can see this prophecy beginning to be fulfilled as Israel continues to accept more and more Hebrew immigrants from around the world. How fascinating and strange that many still do not see this as evidence of God’s faithfulness to His Word. But when we consider the Old-Testament prophecies that were fulfilled at Jesus’ first coming, and the many religious, 1st-century people who refused to believe, we should not be surprised at all. The question remains for each person as they carefully study and consider God’s Word: “What do you believe?”

     Dr. Joseph Stowell, President of Moody Bible Institute, liked to share about a visit he made to a home for mentally handicapped children. While walking through the corridors, he noticed that the windows were covered with tiny handprints. He asked the director about them, and the director explained, “The children here love Jesus, and they’re so eager for Him to return that they lean against the windows as they look up to the sky.” That is exactly where we should be when facing storms and difficulties in life, leaning against the window, looking up to the sky. When we remind ourselves Jesus is coming back, we will be encouraged and strengthened. And it then becomes simple, when we see others struggling, to remind them of this simple but comforting fact: “Jesus is coming soon.”

Questions for thought:

  1. Do you find handprints on your windows?

  2. What do you do to help others prepare for His return?

  3. Are you ready for His return?

For further study:

  1. Read Matthew 24:46.  What promise does this verse give us?  What warning?

Friday, April 14 - Read for today: Isaiah 36

     In 701 BC Sennacherib, King of Assyria, marched down the Mediterranean coast to attack Judah. Judah’s king, Hezekiah, had withheld the tribute the Assyrians were seeking to extract from Israel, so Sennacherib had sent his army to capture all the northern cities and they were now camped outside the walls of Jerusalem.

     Hezekiah was a good king, a godly king who had tried to purify Israel of its pagan gods and to encourage the people to worship the one true God at the temple in Jerusalem, according to the Law. So, at this point in their history the people were in right standing with God and could expect Him to act on their behalf - but first they had to resist the strategies of the enemy.

     Sennacherib’s representative began by trying to undermine the people’s trust in their deliverance. He distorted the truth of Hezekiah’s spiritual clean-up operation by suggesting that God had been displeased by it (v.7). He even claimed that the God of Judah had sent the Assyrian army to destroy the nation on His behalf (v.10)! He belittled the abilities of the Judahites to fight (v.9) and used intimidation to try and persuade the people that the battle was a lost cause (v.10, 12). He also used the tactic of undermining the unity of the people, by trying to drive a wedge between Hezekiah and his subjects (vv.14-18). He even sought to sway the people by making the option of surrender sound attractive (vv.16-17). But the people remained loyal to the king and resisted everything the Assyrian said.

     Isn’t this the same way the Devil works against us?  Isn’t this the same way he tries to work in our families and in our churches?

      This whole chapter is a picture of ourselves (God’s people) and the warfare we fight against our spiritual enemy, satan, who uses these same tactics to try to draw us away from God’s will and give him ground in our lives. Using the same mixture of threats and lies, he tries to intimidate us into becoming fearful and to deceive us into thinking that God either can’t, or won’t help us in our situation. He draws attention to our weaknesses with the aim of making us forget our strength in Christ and seeks to bring disunity with other Christians, particularly our leaders, by encouraging us to take offence against them. By distorting the truth, he even manages to make sin look attractive and appealing. We need to recognize these tactics and be on our guard so that we can stand strong like the people of Jerusalem did.

Questions for thought:

  1. What fears or doubts does the Devil use against you?

  2. How do you deal with those fears & doubts?

For further study:

  1. Read Isaiah 41:10.  What reason does the Lord give us for confidence in this verse?

  2. Read Genesis 15:1. What reason does the Lord give us for confidence in this verse?

Monday, January 24 - Read for today: Isaiah 37

Fear Not

     In verses 10-11 we read, “Say this to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Don’t let your God, whom you trust, deceive you by promising that Jerusalem won’t be handed over to the king of Assyria. Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries: they completely destroyed them. Will you be rescued?”

     This communication came in the form of a letter to Hezekiah. Clearly, it was intended to keep his heart fearful and anxious. It was a threat for the future, saying that although the king of Assyria was leaving for the moment, he would return again to wreak a terrible vengeance on Judah. Had Hezekiah taken the Assyrian message in that way, he would have lived in constant fear.

     It is very important for Christians to understand that God does not want us to live in fear. Fear is one of the great perils of our day. Anxieties beset us on every hand. We need to hear again the words of Jesus that we should not be anxious about tomorrow. Again and again our Lord told his disciples, “Fear not.” Paul told us that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and a sound mind. It is not within our power to remove these threats to us, but we can meet them with faith. This is what Hezekiah does. Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord.

     The only proper response to a threat to your person or faith is to take it to the Lord. Here is the king's wonderful prayer. “Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Give ear, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see; listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to ridicule the living God. It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are the only God.” (Isaiah 37:15-20)

     Notice how accurate this prayer is. Hezekiah acknowledges the facts as they are. Assyria is a powerful force that had already swept other kingdoms away before it, but these nations were depending on idols to protect them, while Hezekiah's and Judah's dependence is on the Lord of heaven and earth. To him Hezekiah prays, simply and plainly, for help.

Questions for thought:

  1. Have you ever gone into your bedroom, knelt beside your bed, and spread your problem before the Lord?

  2. How often do we turn to the Lord as last resort instead of beginning there?

For further study:

  1. Read 2 Chronicles 6:40.  Is this prayer necessary?  What’s the purpose of a prayer like this?

  2. Read Psalm 74:22. Is it necessary, appropriate to pray in this way since the resurrection of Jesus and the arrival of the Holy Spirit?

 Tuesday, January 25 – Read for today: Isaiah 37

The Humble Cry

     King Hezekiah was greatly stressed at the news of Assyria’s upcoming attack. It was true that many others had fallen before to him and now he was coming for Judah. The difference was that Judah was God’s people and He was the true God unlike the other nations that worshipped idols of wood and stone. Today as believers we know that our Lord is supreme and no one can overtake Him yet in our weakness we can become afraid. Hezekiah approached God humbly which was the right way and God responded with assurance and power.  We will be challenged along the way keep a strong faith in a strong God.  Satan will try to frighten us and leave us in dismay if he can which can hinder our service to our Lord and effectiveness if we let him succeed. God gave him an initial assurance when he redirected the king of Assyria to another war front but then the threat returned. God did not tell Hezekiah the second time exactly what He would do so there was space for Hezekiah to just trust in Him.  We also have threats is various forms come to us in our lives and we are tested to see what kind of faith we have. We don’t have to see the answer or the way of escape but just know that God is working and will work in our behalf as we trust and call on His name.  God delights in coming to our aid and is honored when we come with a humble cry of dependency.  He already knows what He will do and is never caught off guard so we should take great confidence in that fact. When the day came God took acre of the situation without one arrow being shot.  The enemy was simply destroyed as He stopped their hearts and they died in the early morning.  185,000 soldiers simply stopped in their tracks and the king of Assyria was killed by his own sons when he returned home.  We must remember today that no enemy has an advantage on our God. When we come humbly to Him He is ready and able to defend us bringing glory to His name.

Things to consider:

 II Chronicles 29:12-Consider the complete power of our mighty God. He is the source of wealth, honor and all the power we need to live in our world today.

II Chronicles 25:8-Remember that God has the power to give us victory or defeat. Let us remain close to him being obedient so He will bless us as He desires.

For further study:

Psalm 8:2-Think of the simple faith of small children as they depend on their parents. This praise is very pleasing to our God and He has power over all our enemies.

II Corinthians 12:9-Consider our strength comes out of weakness as we depend humbly upon our Lord.  His grace is fully able to sustain us in any time of trouble. Reflect on other Bible accounts where God showed Himself strong in the time of need. 

Wednesday, January 26 - Read for today: Isaiah 38

The prayer of faith

     In verses 4-6 we read, “Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah:’ Go and tell Hezekiah that this is what the Lord God of your ancestor David says: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I am going to add 15 years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the power of the king of Assyria; I will defend this city.’”

     In yesterday’s passage we saw that the king knew that the Lord’s promises are given not to make us passive but to encourage us to act, so he went to the temple and spread before God the letter of the Rabshakeh of Assyria that demanded Jerusalem’s surrender (vs. 14–20). As John Calvin comments on these verses, Hezekiah did not do this so that the Lord could read the text and find out what was going on; rather, Hezekiah did this to encourage himself to pray more fervently. Modern commentators contend that Hezekiah also did this to vindicate, to defend the Lord’s honor. By opening the letter, it was as if Hezekiah was saying: “O God of Israel, this blasphemy, by which Assyria thinks You are just one god among many, cannot stand, for You are the only God, the Creator of all. Please, my Lord, answer Assyria’s arrogance and deliver Jerusalem so that Assyria might know that You are the only God who is.”

     The Lord said yes to Hezekiah’s prayer. Life would be hard in the short term, and food would be scarce because of what Assyria would inflict on the land, but Jerusalem would be spared (vv. 30–35). Then God sent the angel of the Lord to Assyria’s camp, killing 185,000 men. The angel may have done this with a plague of mice, for the ancient Greek historian Herodotus records such a plague afflicting the Assyrian army on the border near Egypt at about this time. Sennacherib himself was murdered some twenty years later by his sons while worshiping his gods. Ironically, the one who defied the only true God was killed in the service of the false gods in whom he trusted (vv. 36–38).

     Hezekiah’s intercession shows the power of prayer before our sovereign Creator, which is also confirmed in today’s passage. This record of Hezekiah’s illness and recovery, Isaiah 38:6 reveals, took place before the events recorded in chapter 37. (Biblical authors sometimes do not order their accounts chronologically.) Therefore, the promise Isaiah gave in 37:5–7 was not the Lord’s first pledge to deliver Jerusalem from Assyria. In His grace, God repeats His promises to us, increasing our confidence in His Word.

     Unlike his father, Ahaz, who lacked faith to ask for a sign from God, we know that Hezekiah asked for a sign of his recovery and Jerusalem’s rescue (2 Kings 20:8). God granted this sign, healing Hezekiah and adding fifteen years to his life (Isaiah 38:4–6).

     God’s granting fifteen more years of life to Hezekiah does not mean He changes His mind like we do. Instead, such accounts show us that the Lord has a real relationship with His people in time and responds to our prayers and actions. Hezekiah did not know how God would answer His prayer for healing, but the Lord did. Similarly, God knows how He will answer our prayers even before we offer them, but that must not keep us from interceding for ourselves and others.

Questions for thought:

  1. When you get bad news, how do you usually respond?

  2. Have you seen the Lord answer your prayers miraculously before?

  3. Why do you think some folks are so hesitant to pray and pray in faith when difficult times come?

For further study:

  1. Read Matthew 21:18-22.

  2.  Read James 5:16.  What promise are we given in this verse?

Thursday, January 27 - Read for today: Isaiah 39

The dangers of blessings

     Isaiah 39:2 Hezekiah was pleased with them, and showed them his treasure house—the silver, the gold, the spices, and the precious oil—and all his armory, and everything that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his palace and in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them.     Taken in by the flattery of Babylon, the king trusted these ambassadors despite the fact that Isaiah had spoken very clearly of the threat from that quarter: what Babylon represented in spiritual terms, and what Babylon's ultimate fate would be. But the king ignored Isaiah's words, as many today ignore the clear warnings of Scripture.

     So Isaiah pays another visit to Hezekiah. The old prophet says to the king, “I see you have had visitors. Who were these men?” “Oh,” replies Hezekiah, “they are ambassadors from Babylon, the great power to the east. This superpower has recognized our tiny kingdom, and that makes me feel proud and honored.” Doubtless he had shown the letter to his wife, exclaiming, “Look, dear, the king of Babylon has now taken note of us.” Asked by Isaiah what he had shown these ambassadors, Hezekiah replied, “I showed them everything we've got—all our treasures, all our defenses, everything.”

     Isaiah goes on to give a prediction of what will result from the king's foolishness: “Hear the word of the Lord Almighty: The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your predecessors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left,” says the Lord. “And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” (Isaiah 39:5b-7)     What this is meant to teach us is that prosperity, wealth and blessings are a greater threat than difficulties. When we are challenged, attacked and insulted, we naturally run to the Lord as our defender. But when we are offered a new position, with a higher salary, and to take it we must remove ourselves and our families from the influences that have shaped us morally and spiritually; or when our work is of such a nature that we are taken away from time we should spend seeking first God's kingdom, it is then we are being exposed to the subtle trap of Babylon. We have all known people who have fallen into this trap, losing spiritual vitality sometimes for years because they failed to listen to warnings about the allurements of the world.

     Alexander Solzhenitsyn tells of once having a very close friend while he was imprisoned in the Gulag. They saw eye to eye on everything. They enjoyed the same things, they liked to discuss the same subjects. Solzhenitsyn thought their friendship would last a lifetime. To his astonishment, however, when his friend was offered a privileged position in the prison system he accepted it. That was the first step in a change in his friend that ultimately saw him end up as a torturer who devised horrible and cruel torments against Soviet prisoners. Solzhenitsyn described the fear in his own heart when he realized that simple decisions, made in a moment, in the face of an offer of prosperity, could wreck a life, where personal attack and insult had been unable to shake one's faith.

     The great test of faith comes not when we receive news that offends us, insults us, or seems to threaten our lives. Rather, we ought to take offers of prosperity and blessing and spread these before the Lord, and listen to his wise words in evaluating what we are being offered.

Questions for thought:

   1. Have you seen someone distracted by the world, before?  What was the outcome?

  2. Have you been distracted by blessings or the world before?  If so, what price did you pay?

  3. What suggestions can you make to someone blinded by the world?

  4. How can someone protect himself from being distracted by compliments, promotions, or blessings?

For further study:

  1. Read Genesis 39:9.  How was Joseph able to resist this temptation?

Friday, January 28 - Read for today: Psalm 76

The Patience of God

       In verses 11-12 we read, “Make and keep your vows to the Lord your God; let all who are around Him bring tribute to the awe-inspiring One. He humbles the spirit of leaders; He is feared by the kings of the earth”.

     When the psalmist said, “Make vows to the LORD your God, and pay them” he meant surrender your life into God’s hands. God had delivered Israel when they did not deserve it, turned their desperate situations around, and greatly blessed them. Because of these truths, the psalmist encouraged them to dedicate themselves to God. When he says, “He is awesome,” or as the Old King James says, “terrible,” it means we would be wise to fear God, but not because He is scary to those who know Him and love Him. In the New Testament when Jesus was transfigured, or metamorphosed, into His pre-incarnate form, His disciples fell down in fear and awe. But Jesus came and touched them, which He still desires to do today to anyone who will humble themselves before Him.

     During the psalmist time and for 3 millenniums since, humans have continued to misunderstand the patience of God, mistaking it for indifference. There was a famous atheist named Robert G. Ingersoll (1833–1899), who was an Illinois lawyer and politician. He was also a gifted public speaker and delivered many lectures against God and the Bible to large crowds. One night after an inflammatory speech, in which he attacked faith in a Savior, he dramatically took out his watch and said, “I’ll give God a chance to prove that He exists and is almighty. I challenge him to strike me dead within 5 minutes!” First there was silence, then people became uneasy. Some left the hall unable to take the nervous strain of the occasion, and one woman fainted. At the end of the allocated time, the atheist exclaimed derisively, “See! There is no God. I am still very much alive!” After the lecture, a young man said to a woman he knew was a Christian, “Well, Ingersoll certainly proved something tonight!” Her reply was memorable: “Yes, he did. He demonstrated that even the most defiant sinner cannot exhaust the patience of God in just 5 minutes!”

Questions for thought:

  1. What causes someone to make promises to God in the first place?  Why might someone make promises to God and then not keep them?

  2. Why does God show us patience?

For further study:

  1. Read Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 What do these verses tell us about promises made to God?

  2. Read Deuteronomy 23:21. What does this verse warn us of?