Revised Common Lectionary

ZEPHANIAH 1:1-2:7 ‘The great Day of the Lord is near – near and coming quickly… That Day will be a Day of wrath… I will bring distress upon the people… because they have sinned against the Lord’ (Zephaniah 1:14-17). This, Lord, is Your Word of warning. You’re calling us back to Yourself: ‘Seek the Lord – before the fierce anger of the Lord comes upon you, before the Day of the Lord’s wrath comes upon you.’ Help us, Lord, to seek You in ‘righ teousness’ and ‘humility.’ This is the way of being ‘sheltered on the Day of Your anger’ (Zephaniah 2:2-3). You’re calling us to ‘worship You in Spirit and in truth’: ‘Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His service and pleasing to Him. This is the true worship that you should offer’ (John 4:24; Romans 12:1). 2:8-3:20 We read, Lord, a story of sin – ‘Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled! She has not obeyed His voice. She has not accepted correction. She has not trusted in the Lord. She ...

"This is the Word that the Lord spoke to Zephaniah" (Zephaniah 1:1). Straightaway, our attention is drawn away from the prophet to the Lord - "The Lord spoke His Word" (Zephaniah 1:1). How are we to hear the Word of the Lord? - "Be silent in the presence of the Almighty Lord" (Zephaniah 1:7). How can we hear what the Lord is saying to us, if we're too busy speaking? We must listen to God, if we are to hear what He is saying to us. What we hear from the Lord may not be what we want to hear. It will be what we need to hear. He speaks to us His Word of judgment so that we might see ourselves as sinners and come to Him for salvation. "Search for the Lord, all you humble people in the land... " (Zephaniah 2:2). Even when the people have wandered away, far from God, and the land has become deeply affected by ungodly and unrighteous ways of thinking and living, God continues to call the people to return to Him and enter into His bles...

Our help comes from the Lord. The glory goes to the Lord. Barak is an example of ‘faith’ (Hebrews 11:32-34). Faith involves believing God’s promise - ‘I will give...’and obeying His command - ‘Go’ (Judges 4:6-7). God still says, ‘Go... I am with you always...’ (Matthew 28:19-20). Barak needed Deborah’s help (Judges 4:8-10). Both needed God’s help - ‘Our sufficiency comes from God’ (2 Corinthians 3:5-6). In Deborah’s song, we learn of the importance of giving all the glory to God: ‘Bless the Lord... To the Lord I will sing, I will make melody to the Lord... Bless the Lord’ (Judges 5:2-3, 9). We are to repeat the triumphs of the Lord’. This is our high calling as ‘the people of the Lord’ (Judges 5:11). ‘Awake, awake, Deborah … Arise, Barak …’ (5:12) – God is still calling His people to wake up, to rise up: ‘Rise up O Church of God, awake!’ (Church Hymnary, 477; Mission Praise, 178). ‘I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the House of the Lord”’ (Psalm 122:2)....

In the beginning, there is love, eternal love, the love of God. ‘Genesis’ means ‘beginning’. These opening verses challenge us to get our priorities right - (a) The priority of God (Genesis 1:1). God comes first. Before anyone else is mentioned, He is there. (b) The priority of God’s Word (Genesis 1:3). God is the first to speak. Before any human word is spoken, there is the Word of the Lord. (c) The priority of God’s Spirit (Genesis 1:2). All was ‘empty’, all was ‘darkness’, yet the ‘Spirit of God’ was at work, and transformation was set in motion. Here, we have God’s priorities, set out in the Bible’s first three verses - Putting God first and listening to His Word, we are to pray for the moving of God’s Spirit, ‘hovering over’ our lives to transform them. For those who make God’s priorities their own, there is a promise of great blessing (Psalm 1:1-2). It is the great blessing of knowing Jesus Christ, our Saviour, as ‘God with us’ (Matthew 1:23). God speaks, and i...

Day 243 Micah 5:1-7:20 ;  2 Corinthians 5:1-10 ;  Proverbs 21:17-26 God wipes out the shadow of our past - He “pardons sin” ( Micah 7:18 ). He shines in the light of His future - “We will be “clothed with our heavenly dwelling” ( 2 Corinthians 5:4 ). From this standpoint of privilege, we are called to fulfil our responsibility: to be soldiers of Christ ( Proverbs 21:22 ). Day 244 Isaiah 1:1-2:22 ;  2 Corinthians 5:11-6:2 ;  Psalm 105:1-11 The ministry of Isaiah calls for reality, for transformed lives. this renewal of our lives can only be achieved through the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. We don’t have the power to change ourselves. It is in Christ that we become “a new creation” ( 2 Corinthians 5:17 ). This great Gospel blessing gives us much reason for praising the Lord and giving thanks to Him ( Psalm 105:1-2 ). Day 245 Isaiah 3:1-5:7 ;  2 Corinthians 6:3-7:1 ;  Psalm 105:12-22 “Those who are left ... will be called ho...