READINGS FOR DECEMBER 25, 2024: JOSHUA 4, REVELATION 16, PSALM 129 JOSHUA 4 Once all the people had crossed, they did not keep marching ahead double-time. God wanted them to stop and establish a memorial that would remind them, their children, and all the nations of the earth of the miracle God performed for them that day. Our current practice is to put up memorial stones for our loved ones who pass away. That’s fitting. How could we memorialize those times when God did something out of the ordinary for us so that we, our children, and even unbelievers might reflect on God’s love, faithfulness, and power? It used to be a practice in some churches many decades ago to have times of testimonies. People would stand in the service and share about how God had or currently was working in their lives. (This is close to Paul’s model for church services in 1 Cor. 14.) It is surprising how we squirming kids remember some of those testimonies decades after the fact.
Today is Christmas. (Have a blessed Christmas, by the way.) Some families share the biblical story of Christmas as they sit down for their meal or mention items for which to be thankful as they eat their Thanksgiving meal. All these family rituals could serve the same purpose of provoking discussion so that our children could learn what the Lord has done for us. One such memorial ceremony that almost all Christian churches practice is communion. Its purpose, according to Jesus, is to remind us of what He has done for us at the cross: “And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ And likewise, the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood’” (Luke 22:19-20). Sometime this Christmas Day, remember Jesus came to earth as an infant to later pay the price for our sins on the cross.
REVELATION 16: The chapter details the events that occur when the seven bowls of God’s wrath are poured out on the earth.
First Bowl: Ugly and painful sores break out on people
Second Bowl: Sea turned to blood killing all sea creatures
Third Bowl: Rivers and springs of water turned to blood
Fourth Bowl: People seared with intense heat from the sun
Fifth Bowl: Darkness comes over land
Sixth Bowl: Demons come to prepare for the final battle at Armageddon
Seventh Bowl: Great earthquake and huge hailstones
In the face of massive death and destruction, people refused to repent and instead cursed God for all that was happening. But in the middle of the chapter, when demons are at work, Jesus gives a word of hope for those who belong to him, "Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed" (16:15).
READING FOR DECEMBER 25, 2024 CONTINUED: REVELATION 16, PSALM 129
This week we remember and celebrate Jesus’ first coming as a baby in Bethlehem, but there is another coming that has been promised in Scripture. Jesus is coming again! Several times the Bible speaks of Jesus coming like a thief.
But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Matthew 24:43-44
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 1 Thess. 5:1-4
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. 2 Peter 3:10
But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. Revelation 3:3
To come like a thief does not mean no one will see him but rather he will come unexpectedly. Unlike the first coming when only a few people recognized him, when he comes again, every eye will see him for he will come in his glory with all his angels. “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.” (Matthew 25:31) Rather than trying to figure out dates and times of this second coming, the Bible calls us to focus on being ready. Are you ready if Jesus comes today?
PSALM 129: This is an interesting Psalm in that on first reading seems to be a complaint about the Psalmist’s difficult position in life. Yet, on closer reading, reveals itself to be a Psalm testifying to God’s faithfulness in the past and trust in His goodness for the future. The Psalmist states and immediately restates the reality that “they,” whoever they are, have been afflicting him all his life. He is also perhaps using his own experience to represent that of the entire nation when he adds “let all of Israel now say.” In verses 3-4, the Psalmist identifies to whom the pronoun “they” refers: wicked men who hate God’s people, who are called Zion. But even though the wicked have “ploughed his back with long furrows,” in other words have made quite a negative impact on him, they have not prevailed against him.
Why haven’t they prevailed or why won’t the wicked or those who hate Christians today prevail? It is because the Lord is righteous. Jesus put it this way: “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matt. 16:18). Knowing of God’s unbeaten track record and His and eternal attribute of righteousness, the Psalmist confidently asks God to make His enemies like grass that withers on the roof. Because it has little root, it is not even necessary for the reaper to collect it; it withers due to its own inadequacies. We as believers should pray against the forces and powers arrayed against God today: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12). They also wither like grass, but what will never wither? “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isa.40:8).
