Day 26

In the last entry, we read a passage that alluded to cleaning the outside of a cup and leaving the inside dirty. As we discussed, it's easy to focus on outward behavior and most religions emphasize outwards actions. But Jesus wants to get to the heart of the matter. As CS Lewis puts it in Mere Christianity:

The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says ‘Give me all. I
don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your
work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it.
No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a
branch there, I want to have the whole tree down…Hand over the natural self, all
the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked—the
whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you
Myself: my own will shall become yours

It's an inward heart thing that then flows out into everything else that we do. So let's look at that transformation a little closer today.

Ask the Living God to make your heart new. Spend 2 minutes just talking with the Living God and sharing what's going on in life. Then spend 5 minutes just listening to him.

Check out Hebrews 4:12; Proverbs 4:20-27; Matthew 12:33-37; 1 Peter 1:22-23; Philippians 4:4-9; Psalm 119 (yep the whole thing).

1. What is the word of God compared to? What does it do? This passage refers to both the written Scriptures and to Jesus (often referred to as the Word). How does reading Scripture help us encounter Christ and be transformed according to this? How deep inside us does it go?
2. What advice are we given in Proverbs 4:20-27? What are we instructed to do "above all else"?
3. How does Jesus echo that advice in Matthew 12:33-37? How can we be made into good trees? How can we have our hearts transformed?
4. How does 1 Peter 1:22-23 explain the way that we are purified?
5. What protects and guards our hearts and minds?
6. How can we gain the "peace of God" according to Philippians 4:4-9 (list at least 3, there are at least 4)?
7. Congratulations on making it through Psalm 199- the longest chapter in the English Bible. What is the psalmist's attitude towards the Scriptures, or the Law?
8. What does the psalmist recommend in verse 9-16 to keep ourselves pure and be purified?
9. Count how many times the Psalmist mentions the Law/Scriptures/Precepts of the Lord. Do you think it/they were a big deal to him?
10. Is Scripture a priority for you? Why or why not? What can you do to make Scripture more of a priority for you?

Take some time to thank the Living God for speaking to us and making us pure. Confess anything that needs confessing and ask Him to show you ways to obey Him today.

Peace

Richard