THE LORD SPOKE (January 13)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: Genesis 31-32

Moses was a wordsmith. When Jacob sees “the angels of God” (Gen. 32:1), Moses records that he names the place “the camp of God” but the word is Mahanaim, which means “two camps”. Shortly after, Jacob divides all his possessions into two camps (same words used), fearing that Esau might be set on revenge. In the story of Jacob wrestling with God (Gen. 32:22-32), Moses has Jacob (ya’aqob) wrestling (ye’abeq) by the Jabbok (yabboq) River. Then, when Jacob realizes that the man he wrestles is actually God, he calls the place Peniel, “the face of God”.

In the middle of that story, Jacob’s own name is changed. From Jacob, “the grabber” (his name literally means “he grasps the heel”, see Gen. 25:26), his name is changed to Israel, “one who struggles with God”. The one who spent much of his life wrestling with men (Esau, Laban) is now the one who wrestles with God and overcomes. It seems to be a pattern set for all his descendants ever since.

The history of Israel (both the Patriarch and the nation) has been one of struggle. In both cases, much has been self-induced. Even more has been Satan-inspired. The devil has repeatedly tried to thwart the plan of God and bring about the downfall of Israel. He did it back then and he’s still doing it today.

Israel today wrestles with God, wrestles with the world, wrestles with the Devil, wrestles with the descendants of Ishmael and Esau, and wrestles with herself. She seems bound to struggle, and struggle she must, or be destroyed. Yet God has promised to guard her as the apple of His eye. He will never leave her, never fail or forsake her, never allow her to be destroyed. She is essential to His declared plan for the ages. His purposes in and through her are eternal.

The God of Abr’ham praise, who reigns enthroned above,
The Ancient of eternal days and God of love.
Jehovah, great I AM, by earth and heav’n confessed;
We bow and bless the sacred name forever blessed.

He by Himself hath sworn; we on His oath depend.
We shall, on eagles’ wings up-borne, to heav’n ascend.
We shall behold His face; we shall His pow’r adore
And sing the wonders of His grace forevermore.

The God who reigns on high the great archangels sing,
And “Holy, holy, holy”, cry, “Almighty king!”
Who was and is the same and evermore shall be;
Eternal Father, great I AM, we worship Thee.

The whole triumphant host give thanks to God on high;
“Hail, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!” they ever cry.
Hail, Abr’ham’s God and mine! With heav’n our songs we raise;
All might and majesty are Thine, and endless praise.

Thomas Olivers (based on Hebrew Yigdal of Daniel Ben Judah)


New Testament: Matthew 13

“He told them many things in parables” (vs. 3). It was a convenient way to teach the teachable. It also served to hide the truth from those not prepared to receive it.

Hide the truth?? That’s exactly what Jesus said. When the disciples asked why He taught in parables (vs. 10), His first response was that knowledge of the kingdom of heaven is given to some but not to others (vs. 11). Does that chafe against your sense of justice? Remember, not one soul deserves salvation. We are all sinners by choice and deed. God in His mercy and grace reaches down to redeem some (the Bible actually says many).

The purpose of parables then is to reveal the truth to some and to hide it from others (vs. 13-15). As soon as Jesus completes the parable of the sower and this exchange with the disciples, He gives them three more parables in quick succession - the parable of the weeds, the parable of the mustard seed, and the parable of the yeast.

With their minds reeling, the disciples say, “Slow down a little! Please explain the first one to us.” So He does. In amazingly few words (vs. 37-39) He identifies each of the elements of the parable and then gives its application (vs. 40-43). It seems so simple when it’s explained that way.

So now He gives them three more quick ones as if to practice. How well did you do on the parable of the hidden treasure, the parable of the pearl, and the parable of the net? Need some more practice too? This chapter is the perfect place to start.

Here are three simple rules for interpreting parables that may be of help:

1) Define the SETTING. To whom was Jesus speaking and why? What gave rise to the parable? How would the original hearers have understood the details of the parable? Recognize that there are two audiences being addressed by the parables: the audience to whom Jesus originally spoke and the audience of the early church to whom the evangelists wrote.

2) Determine the SIMPLICITY. Expect the meaning to be simple and straightforward. That is why Jesus used very familiar every day situations and events to illustrate His teaching. Parables are not complicated riddles!

3) Discover the SINGLE PURPOSE. The golden rule of interpreting parables is that a parable aims to teach one main truth. Normally it is not too difficult to discover the purpose of the parable in the context in which it is given. Don’t go beyond the author’s intent and don’t look for meaning and significance in every detail, word, or phrase, beyond what is given in Scripture itself.