Read the Bible in 2009-2010

If you've struggled to read the Bible through in a year, the two-year pace might be better. I know many people for whom this is just right--fast enough to get through without taking forever, yet slow enough to allow some reflection and distillation. It comes out to about 15 minutes a day, on average. Click here for the 2009-2010 reading plan.

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God in Action in Acts

The Acts of the Apostles also recounts the sovereign Acts of God. I think back on preaching through this gripping biblical narrative in 2008, and so many of the Lord's mighty deeds come to mind, including:

The dramatic ascension of Jesus up to heaven (1:9); moving of the Spirit, sound of wind, visions of flame, giving of speech in foreign languages (2:1-13); doing of many signs and wonders through the apostles (2:43); healing of man crippled from birth (3:7); saving of 5,000+ to form the Jerusalem church (2:41; 4:4; 6:7); striking down Ananias and Saphira (5:1-11); miraculously freeing Peter and John from prison (5:19); a vision of God in his glory given to dying Stephen (7:55); turn­ing the persecution-driven scattering of believers into Christian mission (8:4); sending the Holy Spirit with power (8:15); navigating Philip to meet the chariot of the Ethiopian and lead him to Christ, and then whisking Philip away (8:26-40); boldly “arresting” Saul on the road to Damascus, blinding him, and transforming his heart (9:1-19); healing of Aeneas (9:32-35); raising Tabitha from the dead (9:36-43); giving coordinated visions to Peter and Cornelius so they’d meet (10:1-43); bestowing of the Spirit upon Cornelius and his household to speak in tongues and give praise to Christ (10:44-48); deliverance of Peter from prison as believers prayed (12:6-11); calling the worshipping Christians at Antioch to set aside Paul and Barnabas for mission (13:1-3); blinding of Elymas the magic­ian (13:4-12); joyful believing by Gentiles who were ordained to eternal life (13:48); granting signs and wonders at Iconium (14:3); healing of a crippled man at Lystra (14:8-10); preserving Paul through stoning (14:19-20); opening a door of faith to the Gentiles (14:27); blocking ministry in Asia to redirect Paul and Silas to Macedonia (16:6-10); opening Lydia’s heart to believe (16:14); sending an earthquake to break open the Philippian prison (16:26); speaking to Paul in a vision to encourage bold witness (18:9-11); tongues and prophecy accompanying baptism of new believers (19:1-7); doing of many miracles through Paul (19:11-17); raising Eutychus from the dead (20:7-12); giving prophecy by Agabus that Paul would be arrested (21:11); the Lord’s appearance to Paul in prison to say he’d testify in Rome (23:11); uncovering the plot to murder Paul (23:16); speaking to Paul on the ship to promise that all would survive (27:22); protecting Paul from a poisonous snake bite (28:5); healing many people on Malta (28:7-10); overall, the spreading of witness (1:8) all over the Roman world and to Rome itself (28:30-31).

Our God is an awesome God! Stand in awe. Bow in wonder.

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Facebook Wisdom

For a great article on making the best and avoiding the worst of Facebook, click here.

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The Acts of God

Spending a year preaching through the Book of Acts has been stretching and enriching for me. Along the venture through dark valleys and over spectacular peaks, I’ve noticed some familiar “sights”—recurring patterns, themes, truths. Such as:

· God is sovereign. In fact, he’s so powerful and ingenious that he can even weave hardship and persecution into a beautiful tapestry of church growth and joy-filled spiritual life in the hearts of his people as they scatter to the ends of the earth. Human authorities make their plans, including hostile advances against the church and Christians, but God overrules such rulers at will (e.g., 4:27-28). This book called “The Acts of the Apostles” is, at root, the story of “The Acts of God.”

· Healthy Christians and their churches are forward-moving and outward-oriented, taking the truth and love of Christ to others. That’s the “thesis” of the book (1:8), and it’s the outcome of the story as well: the Gospel is spread all the way to Rome. Spiritual healthy believers don’t circle the wagons and retreat from the world, but instead they step forward as Jesus’ witnesses—in both word and deed. They are sojourners in the “foreign land” of today’s world, not settlers.

· Honest Christian discipleship involves bearing a cross and following Jesus through trials (14:22). Notice that Paul’s in custody and on trial all the way from chapter 21 to 28. Also, he’s repeatedly targeted by would-be killers, and he’s accused over and over even though the charges against him are hollow and contrived. But in spite of this outrage, Paul doesn’t cling to his rights or moan about how unfair it is. Instead, he seizes the opportunity to probe the hearts of adversaries and author­ities, sharing his story of new life in Christ! Paul realizes (as we should too) that trials are really opportunities in disguise.

Amazing stuff, this action-packed, apathy-wrecking, joy-inspiring Book of Acts! I trust that God is feeding your faith as you study and savor his Word (Romans 10:17).

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