April 20- Being at Rest

April 20, 2011

Scripture Readings:
Joshua 21:1-22:20; Luke 20:1-6;
Psalm 89:1-13; Proverbs 13:15-16

Lullaby, and sleep tight.

Hush! My darling is sleeping,

On his sheets white as cream,

With his head full of dreams.

~Johannes Brahms

Joshua 21:1-22:20

Back in the day when it was time to put the children to bed, either my husband or I would rock them in a rocking chair or sit on the edge of their bed and sing a lullaby to them.  Many times I could not remember all the words to the lullaby, so I would make up other lyrics that applied only to my child.  The lyrics might be about the color of their eyes or the goodness of their character.  The point was to put my child's mind at ease and help them to rest.  Today in our reading, God provides a lullaby of rest for the Israelites.

The Levites have been apportioned their land.  They are the last of the tribes to be designated their property.  Here is Joshua's account of this completion in Joshua 21:43-45,

"So the Lord gave to Israel all the land he swore to give their ancestors, and they conquered it and settled there. And the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had solemnly promised their ancestors.  None of their enemies could stand against them, for the Lord helped them conquer all their enemies.  All the good promises that the Lord had given Israel came true."  (NLT)

"All the good promises that the Lord had given Israel came true."  Wow.  What a great testimony.  What a way to put the Israelites minds at ease and help them to rest in God. Is this a message to you about what God can do in your life?  What enemies need to be defeated in order for you to rest in the land?  His good promises will come true for you, too. Are you resting in His promises?

After a lullaby and rest, people can be lulled into complacency.  Rest can be restorative or a vehicle for laziness.  Joshua shows vigilance against this possibility when he gets angered at the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half -tribe of Manasseh.  After commending these men for valiant fighting, Joshua sends them back to their property on the east side of the Jordan River.  Before crossing the river, these men build a large altar that can be seen from their side of the river.  Thinking that these men had already been lulled into Baal worship, an assembly of Israelites gather at Shiloh to go attack these men.  Before advancing, the group decides to confront these wayward tribes and confirm their intentions.  We will learn the results of that meeting tomorrow.

Are there altars built in your life that may confuse others about your faith in God?  For example, does excessive drinking on your part make people wonder if you truly love God?  How about constant conflict with others?  Perhaps you have built an altar of judgment against others?  Some of us have built huge altars of judging in our lives.

Luke 20:1-26

Jesus is confronted by the religious leaders today who are wondering what makes him think he has the authority to stop the business transactions in the Temple.  Rather than answering them directly, Jesus uses the Socratic method to teach.  He asks them if John the Baptist's teachings had authority from God.  This silences his critics.  If they answer in the affirmative, it will confirm that Jesus is from God, because John's ministry pointed to Jesus as the Messiah.

Jesus teaches the crowd through a parable called the Landowner and the Tenants.  There was a Landowner/Farmer (God) who planted a vineyard (world) and leased it to tenant farmers (Israel) to care for the crops (those who believe in God).  The Farmer (God) sent many servants (prophets) to check on the vineyard. Each servant (prophet) was killed.  He finally sent His son (Jesus) , who was also killed.  But one day, these wicked tenant farmers (unbelieving members of the nation of Israel) will be killed and the land will be leased to others (Gentiles).  The religious leaders would have had no doubt about what Jesus was saying in this parable.  Jesus concludes by saying that the stone that these builders rejected has become the cornerstone of the building and this stone crushes anyone on whom it falls.  The nation of Israel was the vehicle through which God built the foundation of the Law and the prophets. The Messiah comes and perfectly fulfills the Law and what the prophets predicted.  For a period of time, they reject their Messiah so that the Gentile nations can be grafted into the family of God.  Israel is reconciled again in the end times to their Messiah. See Romans 11 for more information on this.  But these religious leaders are being warned that they are going to be crushed by Christ.

The Pharisees try to trick Jesus into tax evasion by asking if they should pay their taxes to Caesar. They have a wrong assumption that Jesus is intending to be a military and civil king at this time.  Jesus does not take the bait.  He says, "Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's and render unto God that which is God's." Result: They are silenced.

Is Jesus the cornerstone of your life?  How does your life reflect that fact?

Psalm 89:1-13

Here is an interesting and true statement from this psalm, verse 6-7, "For who in all of heaven can compare with the Lord? What mightiest angel is anything like the Lord? The highest angelic powers stand in awe of God. He is far more awesome than those who surround his throne."

Amen.

Proverbs 13:15-16

Wise people think before they act.  Remember that!

What did you notice today?

Blessings,

Jubilee Gal
Kathy Fullerton
© 2011