A Passage, A Paragraph & A Prayer: Recent Episodes
Risen Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church
"A Passage, A Paragraph & A Prayer" is a biweekly devotional podcast. Each episode consists of a passage from the Bible, a paragraph meditating on that passage, and a closing prayer. This podcast is produced by Risen Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church in South Austin, Texas.
The psalmist says his soul treasures God’s testimonies. What does that mean? This devotion is basically brought to you by the late fourth century preacher, John Chrysostom.
Just as we noted the abnormally long lifespans back in Genesis 5, before the Flood, so we can’t help but note the shrinking lifespans after the Flood here in Genesis 11.
In this devotion we break down the beautiful description of the Christian life the psalmist gives in Psalm 119:166.
Back in Genesis 5, we noted that the meanings of the names of the men in the line of the Messiah from Adam to Noah seemed either to lament mankind’s fallen condition, or to anticipate the Seed of the woman who would undo the damage of sin. By comparison, the meanings of the names from Shem to Abram seem to be secular in nature.
In this episode, Pastor Biebert talks about the somewhat difficult subject of variant readings in the Scriptures.
The psalmist says he praises God seven times a day for the decrees of his righteousness. Is he referring to a specific prayer schedule we ought to set up? Or is he wanting to teach us something much more valuable and important?
Genesis 11:10 begins the fifth of the ten “accounts” that make up the book of Genesis. In this account Moses takes us from Shem, the son of Noah, to Abram, the great father of faith with whom the Lord would take his gospel revelation to a new level.
In Psalm 119:163, the psalmist urges us to ask: Do I love truth and hate falsehood and want my life and beliefs to conform more and more with the truth? Or do I have some presuppositions and views that are simply non-negotiable?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This episode is not meant to make any definitive statement about the location of the Tower of Babel. It is merely meant to help listeners to think critically about common assumptions made about its location. It also gives us an opportunity to pray for those who are considered experts in the field of Scripture studies.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Can you imagine stumbling upon great spoils or treasure of some kind, so that you were suddenly, instantly rich? How much joy would that give you? Do you realize that you already have an even greater treasure the provides a source of even greater joy?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
What did the Lord’s confusion of human language accomplish, apart from the physical result of scattering humanity over the face of the whole earth? What good came out of it?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We’ve made it to the twenty-first stanza of Psalm 119. The psalmist begins this stanza by confronting us with the question: Whom do you fear more—mortal earthly rulers or the eternal God of the universe?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God did not just confuse everyone’s language randomly and form the people into new groups arbitrarily. He still let the people taste of his mercy.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist concludes the twentieth stanza of Psalm 119 by stating, literally, that “the head of [God’s] word is truth.” What does he mean by that?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
To put a stop to humanity’s rebellion against him, the Lord came down and confused their language. Can you imagine the creative potential for a director if this were adapted for the big screen? What did this confusion look like?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:159, the psalmist contrasts what he sees in others, which he mentioned in vs. 158, with what he is confident God will see in him. Yet that is not the basis on which he wants God to deal with him.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God saw what was happening in Shinar, his response almost makes it sound like he is worried that humans might pose a threat to his authority. But God is concerned about humans, not himself. That’s why he imposed limitations on their project and abilities.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Why is double-crossing and deceitfulness so disgusting to God? Why should it be disgusting to us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses tells us in Genesis 11:5 that “the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men had built.” How are we supposed to understand expressions like this?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion, we reflect on the “even though” verses of Psalm 119, where the psalmist states some hardship or difficulty he must endure in the first half of the verse, but affirms his dedication to God and his word in the second half of the verse.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The building of the enormous tower in the Shinar settlement was also symptomatic of humanity’s disobedience toward God. But this tower also betrays the root cause of all their disobedient symptoms.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Your compassions are many, O Lord,” the psalmist says. It’s one of the many statements of the Bible that seem to be grossly understated. NOTE: Stay tuned after the usual sign-off message for information about how you can listen to even more audio Bible content.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The humans after the Flood wanted to settle together in a fertile area and build a permanent settlement with quality building materials. What was wrong with that?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How are you saved? What are the works that are pleasing to God? Just as important, do your answers to those questions originate with you or some other human, or with God?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God had told Noah and his sons and their wives to “throng in the earth and multiply in it” (Gen. 9:7). But we don’t get the impression that humanity wanted to do that, even a century after the Flood. (In the bonus content, we consider possible dates for the settlement in Shinar.)
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
It seems pretty bold to ask the holy and almighty God to take up your case, as if he were some nonprofit legal organization seeking justice for the innocent. But in Psalm 119:154, the psalmist encourages us to do so. In this devotion we consider how we can.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Even when we speak the same language as someone else today, we can’t always understand them. But from the beginning of the world up to about a century after the Flood, humans all spoke the same way and shared the same vocabulary.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist begins the twentieth stanza of Psalm 119 asking God to see his affliction. We have a good basis on which to ask the Lord of the universe to pay attention to us.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This devotion could also be called “The Descendants of Shem, Part 3.” Our last Genesis devotion was about Eber and Peleg. In this devotion we look at the descendants of Eber’s other son, Joktan, one of whom became renowned for gold.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
From where do the Scriptures get their authority? How do we defend them, or become more convinced of their eternal and reliable character?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After tracing the sons of Japheth and Ham, Moses now pursues the line of the Messiah, which will continue to be his focus in the rest of Genesis. In this devotion, we consider how Eber and Peleg received their names, and how their lives coincided with the events of the Tower of Babel.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Those who pursue evil plans are constantly drawing near to Christians. But there is Someone else who is always near, who is infinitely more powerful than all of them combined and whose word and promises never fail.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses is going to focus on Arphaxad and his sons, including Eber, because they will be in the lineage of the Messiah. But first he briefly covers the other sons of Shem, giving a little extra attention to Aram, due to the Aramaic influence on God’s people.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
This side of heaven, Christians are not immune from evil things or evil people and evil spirits. Those who pursue evil plans are constantly drawing near. What does this mean for us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The Canaanites were descended from Noah’s son Ham, and inhabited the Promised Land before the Israelites. Where did they settle, and what were they like?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The trial the psalmist introduced at the beginning of this stanza is continuing and is sapping his strength. But his devotional regimen provides him with bold and confident petitions to set before God.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
On the surface, the descendants of Mizraim just look like a lot of unpronounceable names. But these peoples would noticeably factor into the history of God’s people, for good and (more often) for ill.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:148, the psalmist leads us to think about why evening is a good time for devotion and prayer.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses continues telling us about the Israelites’ very distant relatives. But he is also showing us how it didn’t take long for people after the Flood to become like people before the Flood—Nimrod the hunter being a prime example.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:147, the psalmist leads us to think about why morning is a good time for devotion and prayer.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Ham and his sons are identified primarily with Arabian and African territory. In this devotion, we attempt to locate more precisely where Ham’s sons and grandsons settled. We also consider how much we have in common with them, in spite of our cultural differences.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In verse 145, the psalmist lamented his failure in the Christian struggle. In verse 146, the psalmist tells us what kept him from despairing and gave him the strength to keep fighting the good fight.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Japheth and his sons are identified primarily with European territory. In this devotion, we attempt to locate more precisely where Japheth’s sons and grandsons settled.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Do you ever feel like you’re living a lie or a contradiction as a Christian? You’re not alone.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses begins the fourth account of Genesis with an overview of Noah’s three sons and their descendants. He starts with Japheth and his descendants, who are likely the ancestors of majority of those listening to this podcast.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Righteousness has been a major theme of the eighteenth stanza of Psalm 119. To close this stanza, the psalmist explicitly spells out the means of our righteousness, and concludes with a fitting prayer.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Hearing about the sons of Noah fathering children after the Flood gives us an opportunity to reflect on how their parental attitude might have changed in their new circumstances, and to reflect on our own parenting.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We all know what it’s like to be under stress, to be in high-pressure situations, to feel like we’re restricted, even imprisoned by our circumstances. But do we also know that there is a pleasant diversion available, guaranteed to refresh and strengthen us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Noah was the last person the Bible records to surpass 900 years in age. Through his long life, God made him a vital link between the pre-Flood and post-Flood world, especially for the transmission of his Word.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Through faith in Christ, we are declared righteous; God imputes Christ’s righteousness to our account. And the psalmist tells us that that righteousness has no expiration date.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
We have looked at the curse of Canaan and the blessing given to Shem. In this devotion, we consider the blessing given to Japheth.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion, we consider how children and young people are often despised, and how that should not discourage them from learning and retaining God’s word. Scripture references for examples cited in this devotion: 1 Samuel 16; Mark 10:13–16; Luke 18:15–17; 1 Timothy 4:12.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 9:24–27, Noah doesn’t just pronounce a curse on Ham’s son Canaan. He also pronounces blessings on Shem and Japheth. In this devotion, we look at the blessing pronounced on Shem, or rather on “the LORD, the God of Shem.”
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
There are plenty of people who will challenge and defy God’s word. But here’s the thing: It’s been tested time and again, and it always passes.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Now that we know what the curse of Canaan was, and wasn’t, how was it actually fulfilled?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Have you ever noticed how those who care the most also tend to get worn out the easiest? In Psalm 119:139, the psalmist says this is true of himself. So what does he want us to take away from this?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Noah didn’t just pronounce a curse on Canaan so that the curse would be more limited than, for instance, a curse pronounced on his son Ham, but also because he saw, by divine inspiration, how Ham’s moral perversity would live on among the Canaanites.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
If you check five different translations of Psalm 119:138, you’ll likely find five different things being said (even if they’re related). In this episode, we wrestle with what the psalmist is saying about God, his word, and righteousness and faithfulness.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Especially in early to mid-1800s, when slavery was being hotly debated in our country, many pro-slavery preachers would speak of “the curse of Ham” to defend slavery. But was there actually any curse of Ham?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Since God is righteous, he also judges righteously. So how does he judge us not guilty, when we are in fact guilty?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 9:24–27, Noah pronounces a curse on his grandson Canaan and a blessing on his sons Shem and Japheth after waking up from his drunken sleep. These words have been widely misunderstood and misapplied. In this devotion, we consider how we should always listen to God’s word, regardless of the mouthpiece he chooses to use.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When was the last time you had a good cry? When tends to bring it on? In this final verse of the seventeenth stanza of Psalm 119, the psalmist gives us one of the best reasons to cry.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Shem and Japheth’s reaction to their father’s drunkenness was very different than Ham’s. In seeing the very different reactions of three men who all shared the same father and mother, we are reminded of how children inherit both the best and the worst of their parents.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The concept of God making his face shine toward us or on us is repeated in Scripture. But what does it mean?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
It quickly becomes clear after the Flood that God did not preserve Noah and his family on the ark because of their own merits, but out of his grace.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When we talk about God ransoming and redeeming, we are usually, and rightly, talking about his rescuing us from sin, the devil, and eternal death in hell. But in Psalm 119:134, the psalmist makes clear that God also cares about, and rescues from, human oppression.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
There is a place for noting and observing differences between humans and groups of humans. But it is also healthy for us to note the commonalities we share, including our common blood.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Christians are not just both sinners in themselves and saints in Christ. They are also both sinners and masters over sin.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God had told Noah before the Flood that he would establish his covenant with him (Gen. 6:18). Now, after the Flood, he makes a covenant not just with Noah, but with all flesh. Are these two covenants the same or different?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What’s in a name? These days it seems like less and less, as parents simply pick names for their children that have a nice ring to them. But when the psalmist talks about the benefits of loving God’s name, he doesn’t just mean we should love the way it sounds.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When the sun peeks through the clouds after a storm, we usually start looking around for a rainbow. It’s one of the most beautiful sights in nature, and can be observed throughout the world. But did you know it’s not merely a natural occurrence, but has a divine meaning?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist says that he longs for God’s word so intensely that he opens his mouth wide and pants. Really?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The covenant God makes in Genesis 9:8–11 is not his most generous covenant, but it is his most inclusive, including all creatures on earth, both humans and animals, until the end of time.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
God’s word gives light and understanding to simple people. Does that category exclude you?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
We sometimes hear about overpopulation and population control. But is there such a thing?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What do you think of when you hear about a cave of wonders or a palace filled with wonders? We have heavenly wonders, of infinitely greater value than those wonders, right at our fingertips.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The reason God gives for his prohibition against taking human life is that he made mankind in his image. Is this referring to a present reality? Is mankind still made in God’s image? Or is this referring back to when God first made mankind, and what he desired by making mankind that way?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
There are plenty of churches and church bodies today that have narrowed their doctrinal basis for membership or fellowship down to just a few basics, and have said or implied that we can agree to disagree about anything beyond that. Is that a Christian attitude?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Romans 13 Paul says that God has established all governing authorities. To where can we trace that divine establishment? And within that establishment, is the death penalty acceptable, or is it inherently evil and un-Christian?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist says he loves God’s commands even more than pure gold. Is he just trying to avoid the threat of God’s punishment by flattering him? Or is God’s word actually that valuable and lovable?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In explicitly giving “all that lives and moves” to humans for food, God makes two exceptions. The first we covered last week. We now begin covering the second, that human life should not be taken for food, or for any reason, except as punishment for the taking of another human life.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How and when can we tell the Lord that it is time for him to act?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 4:2–4 seems to strongly suggest that humans were already eating meat from animals before the Flood. So why does God specifically sanction the human eating of meat after the Flood? And why does he only give one restriction here, when he gives many more later?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
As Americans, we don’t like the idea of being someone else’s servant or slave. But the psalmist freely confesses that he is God’s servant. In this devotion we consider what being God’s servant means for us.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Why do animals that could easily overpower and kill humans run away from them? Why do bugs and critters and fish fly and scurry and swim away as humans approach? Moses gives us the answer as he continues to record God’s promises to Noah and his family after the Flood.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:124, the psalmist asks God to deal with him according to his mercy. What is mercy, as opposed to other love words that are used of God?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Think of the load of responsibility on the shoulders of Noah and his sons as they look out over the vast and empty earth and realize that the future of mankind depends on them. Except God graciously makes sure it doesn’t.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:123, the psalmist literally says his eyes are languishing for the saying or utterance of God’s righteousness. Sometimes “of righteousness” can just be a fancy way of saying that the subject under discussion is righteous (e.g., an act of righteousness is a righteous act). But is that what the psalmist means here?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Many fear tactics, like the threat of global flooding due to the melting polar ice caps, are used today in an effort to persuade humans to take better care of the earth. We should be good stewards of the earth, but God’s promise in Genesis 8:22 makes it clear that such fear tactics are completely invalid.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:122, the psalmist pictures himself going with the Lord to the bank, only instead of going to obtain a loan for money, they are going to obtain the psalmist’s well-being, with the Lord serving as the guarantor. In this devotion we explore the Messianic overtones of this picture.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After Noah and his family left the ark, he killed animals and then put each entire animal on an altar and burned the whole thing to the Lord. Why was this a soothing smell to the Lord, and why did it prompt him to add more promises to his existing promises?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist begins the sixteenth stanza of Psalm 119 with the statement, “I have done what is just and right”—a bold claim, especially after having just talked about his dread of God’s judgments at the end of the previous stanza. How can he make this claim?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Can you imagine all the thoughts, concerns, and questions that Noah would have had on his mind after disembarking from the ark (after more than a year) onto a completely new and reshaped earth? Yet one thing was on his mind above all, and it was the right thing.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
No one has higher standards, no one is more strict, no one issues worse punishments than God. If we don’t come to grips with this truth, we will never truly come to grips with God’s grace.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Many of us have experienced how, when humans given more power than usual over other humans in a vulnerable position, they are typically very reluctant to give it back up. They like have despotic control. Not God.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Dross is undesirable material or junk that floats to the top when you are melting metal. The psalmist says that God discards all the wicked of the earth as dross, and that is why he loves God’s testimonies. In this episode we consider what he means by that.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
By the time God finally commanded Noah and his family to come out of the ark, they had been on the ark together, along with the animals, for a year and ten days. We can only imagine what an eternity that must have seemed like. But as always, God’s timing was the right timing.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:118, the psalmist says that God tosses aside, as if they were junk mail, those who stray from God’s Word and deceive others with their lies.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“Doves are not considerate birds who bring men tokens of the state of affairs upon the earth. That this dove brought a leaf in its beak [to Noah] is to be attributed alone to an impulse divinely directed” (Leupold, Exposition of Genesis, 1:3:16). In this devotion, we reflect on what this leaf signified for Noah and his family.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:117, the psalmist says that God’s sustaining and saving merits our constant attention to his Word. When we give constant attention to other things, it is usually called an unhealthy obsession. Why is it different with God’s Word?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses definitely wants to draw our attention to the two birds Noah released from the ark. So we give a little more thought to them in this devotion—the unclean black raven that feeds on death and keeps its distance, and the pure white dove that feeds on life and returns to Noah in the ark.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Do you remember the first time you encountered someone who tried to make you feel stupid and ashamed for having your Christian hope? Sometimes this is a turning point for the worse in the lives of Christians. The psalmist leads us to pray that that doesn’t happen to us.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Since it had taken forty days to flood the earth, Noah waited forty days after the ark came to rest to conduct some experiments to gauge the living conditions out of the ark. For his first experiment, he released a raven.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Too often we’re eager to go along with the suggestions and plans of evildoers, because what they want to do seems more cool and fun and exciting than what God wants. The psalmist teaches us the correct attitude to have when we’re in the middle of a tug-of-war between evildoers and God.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Delayed gratification, when people are willing to wait for a bigger payoff down the road instead of gratifying their desires right now, has been called “the most effective trait of successful people.” Christians in the habit of waiting on God’s timetable have long known that patience in God always pays off in the end, including Noah.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:114, the psalmist calls God his shelter and shield. What is the difference? And what do those names or descriptions means for us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When the wind began to blow on the one hundred and fiftieth day of the Flood, initially Noah and his family may have thought that things were getting even worse. But God had a twofold plan with that wind.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:113, the psalmist says he hates vacillating people. That’s strong language. Whom does he mean? And why does he hate them?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
What was going through the minds of those treading water and clinging to floating debris during the Flood? What should we take away from this complete and devastating destruction?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Quote Source: Carl J. Lawrenz and John C. Jeske, "A Commentary on Genesis 1–11" (Milwaukee: Northwestern, 2004), 262.
Is your heart something you follow, or something you bend? And if you bend it, in which direction do you bend it?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Have you ever stopped to think about what those first forty days of the Flood must have been like for Noah and his family? How did they cope with it? And what applications are there for us in our dark days?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Have you ever received an inheritance? How did it become yours? How long did it last you? In Psalm 119:111, the psalmist tells us that God’s word is an inheritance, but one unlike any other.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The day had arrived. It was time for Noah and his family and the animals that had come to him to board the ark. Noah made sure he had everything and everyone he was supposed to. And the Lord took it upon himself to shut the door behind Noah.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:110, the psalmist helps us to be on the lookout for the sinful allurements all around us every day. The devil wants us to see them as exciting opportunities to inject some fun into our lives, but the psalmist helps us to see them as the traps they really are.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses names two sources for the floodwaters. In this devotion we look at the second one—the opening of the sluice gates of the heavens. (Sluice gates are sliding gates or other devices for controlling the flow of water.)
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Generally speaking, Americans used to be more religious years ago than they are now. Part of the reason for that may be that modern comforts have led us to forget what the psalmist says in this verse—that our lives are continually at risk.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses names two sources for the floodwaters. In this devotion we look at the first one—the rending asunder of the springs of the greet deep.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist describes the words that he directs to God as “freewill offerings of [his] mouth.” But it is the words that God directs to us that put the “freewill” in our mouth-offerings and make them pleasing to him.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses wanted his audience to know the precise chronological framework of the Flood. The dates that he gives us suggest that, when the rain first began falling, it was expected. Which is precisely why its ultimate disaster was unexpected.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 119:107 is the sixth verse in which the psalmist has explicitly referred to himself being afflicted. This tells us something about Christians and affliction, and the psalmist also tells us where we find restoration and revival in our affliction.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Did you know that Noah loaded up his family and all the animals into the ark seven days before the Flood came? What were those days and nights like, as they made sure they had everything they were going to need and that everything was prepared? What was their peace in the midst of that stress? What is ours?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:106, the psalmist says he has made and ratified a vow to keep the decrees of God’s righteousness. Christians are not always comfortable with religious vows, so this verse gives us the opportunity to talk about them.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In 1 Peter 3:20–22, the apostle Peter says that the water of the Flood was a type, foreshadowing, symbol, or picture of the water of baptism. What the water of the Flood did for Noah and his family, the water of baptism does for us.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Where should I go?” “What should I do?” “What is the right course of action?” These are all questions about where we should step next on life’s path, and they are all questions God’s word helps us to answer the right way and the best way. NOTE that the main devotion is fairly short, but there is some bonus content on choosing a career, after the usual closing podcast information.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
There are only seven days left before God sends his destruction. Here we see the perseverance of Noah’s faith (by God’s grace), and here we see the stubborn persistence of the world’s unbelief.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode, we wrap up our meditation on the thirteenth stanza of Psalm 119. The psalmist tells us why God’s word is the only path for him, and why it should be the only path for us.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 7:1–3 God modifies his earlier instructions from 6:19–20. This simple modification highlights truths about God’s character and about the priority of worship.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Honey tastes good. It makes life more pleasant. The psalmist says God’s sayings are even more pleasant to his taste than honey. So do our own tastes need improvement?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Imagine what kind of ridicule and rejection Noah and his family faced in the 120 years between God’s announcement of a flood and the actual flood. There is a parallel between what Noah’s family faced and what Jesus said we will face in the days leading up to the ultimate day of destruction.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist makes some pretty bold and ambitious resolutions—to keep his feet from every evil path and not to turn aside from God’s decrees. In Psalm 119:102, he makes clear the only way this is possible.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After God spoke to Noah, Noah’s perspective changed. He now saw all his usual haunts and acquaintances (besides seven of his family members) as places and people that would be under water and completely destroyed. God wants us to have a similar perspective.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The poet Robert Frost famously talked about two roads diverging in a yellow wood. In Psalm 119:101, the psalmist talks about forks in the road of our life that we encounter every day.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God gave Noah enormous tasks, and then Noah went to work and did them, just as commanded. How do we do a better job complying with what God has commanded us?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 119:100 concludes a string of three verses where the psalmist reflects on the outstanding effects of God’s word by listing three groups of people who cannot stand up to its wisdom. In this devotion, we consider how God’s word gives us more understanding than our elders, even those recognized for their wisdom.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Even though it might not be very devotional content, at some point when talking about Noah’s ark, we have to talk about dinosaurs—both to satisfy human curiosity and to address the criticisms of skeptics.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 119:99 continues a string of three verses where the psalmist reflects on the outstanding effects of God’s word by listing three groups of people who cannot stand up to its wisdom. In this devotion, we consider how God’s word gives us more wisdom and insight than our teachers, especially when they do not approach their subjects from a biblical, Christian worldview.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God commanded Noah to bring pairs of all the land creatures with him on the ark. But to enable him to fulfill that command, God also performed a miracle—which would be essentially the last sign and call to repentance for the rest of humanity.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 119:98 begins a string of three verses where the psalmist reflects on the outstanding effects of God’s word by listing three groups of people who cannot stand up to its wisdom. In this devotion, we compare the wisdom God’s word gives to the wisdom of the Church’s enemies.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The Bible doesn’t record the history of Noah and his family just because they were the sole survivors of the Flood. There is another, even more important reason that Noah and his family figure prominently in the Scriptures.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
A really good novel or well-written essay can give you food for thought for weeks or even months, but only God’s word gives you subject matter you can muse on throughout the day, every day, no matter what else you may be doing.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The construction assignment God gave Noah put him in a situation where he would have to testify about God’s word to his unbelieving neighbors. The commandments we have from God are really no different. We need God’s mercy and strength to fulfill them.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion, we wrap up the twelfth stanza of Psalm 119 by considering the unexhausted and inexhaustible treasures lying there for everyone, of every age and ability, in God’s word.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
How could God say to Noah, “An end to all flesh has occurred to me,” and not include Noah and his family? How could Noah and his family be exempted from ”all flesh”? Perhaps more importantly, how do we exempt ourselves from the destruction that is coming on all flesh on the Last Day?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The wicked love to lie in wait for the faithful and to trap them—to trap them doing wrong, or to trap them with questions they can’t answer. What is the solution for the faithful?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
As we read the description of the earth in Genesis 6:9–11, we can’t help but ask, “Is this describing life on earth more than 4,000 years ago, or life on earth today?”
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Even though we don’t like the idea of belonging to someone else, it’s simply a fact that everybody is the property of someone else, to one extent or another. (Think of how often you use “my” or “mine” in relation to those around you.) So when the psalmist says that we belong to God, the question is not whether that is morally right. The question is whether that is to our advantage and what kind of owner God is.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Noah is described as “blameless in his generations,” and that really meant something in his time.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Memorials often urge us never to forget the tragedy or atrocity being memorialized, so that we don’t repeat it. The psalmist urges us to follow his lead in resolving never to forget God’s precepts for a very different reason.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 6:9 begins the third of the ten “accounts” that make up the book of Genesis (2:4ff; 5:1ff; 6:9ff; 10:1ff; 11:10ff; 11:27ff; 25:12ff; 25:19ff; 36:1ff; 37:2ff). The “account of Noah” begins by talking about Noah’s righteousness and blamelessness. In this devotion we consider what those two traits entail.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How are you doing with your affliction? Whether your affliction is a disease, adverse people or circumstances, wrestling with your conscience, wrestling with unhealthy desires, wrestling with the meaning of life, or facing up to the reality of death, are you able to successfully confront and deal with that affliction, or are you perishing in it?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 6:9 we’re told that, in the midst of an increasingly and breathtakingly wicked world, Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generations, and he made his way through life with God. But before we get there, Genesis 6:8 tells us where that righteousness came from—not from Noah, but from the favor of God.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In the first three verses of the twelfth stanza of Psalm 119 (vv. 89–91), the psalmist praises the Lord’s word by going back to its first use, the creation of the universe, and noting how we can still see the effects of that first use to this day. In vs. 91, he also uses this evidence to comment on God’s name, the Lord of Hosts.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The only reason we are able to rage is because we humans were originally created in the image of God, and God is capable of rage too. But his rage is much different from ours.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In the first three verses of the twelfth stanza of Psalm 119 (vv. 89–91), the psalmist praises the Lord’s word by going back to its first use, the creation of the universe, and noting how we can still see the effects of that first use to this day.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
How does God feel about our sins? What do they do to him? Genesis 6:5–6 answers these questions in soul-stirring language.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion, we begin looking at the twelfth stanza of Psalm 119. In the first three verses of this stanza (vv. 89–91), the psalmist praises the Lord’s word by going back to its first use, the creation of the universe, and noting how we can still see the effects of that first use to this day.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The Lord says of mankind before the Flood that “every formation of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil all the time.” But before we think that humans were somehow extra corrupt during that time, we need to remember that the Lord says the exact same thing about humans after the Flood (Gen. 8:21), when only Noah and his family were on the earth.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
By the time we get to the end of the eleventh stanza of Psalm 119, we're probably left with two impressions: 1) Being a Christian can wear a person out, and 2) the psalmist has nearly superhuman resilience. But the psalmist himself makes it clear in the final verse of this stanza that the resilience he has does not originate with himself.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When interpreters go astray in interpreting Genesis 6:1–2, they also go astray in identifying the people that Moses calls “the Nephilim.” In this episode, we explore who the Nephilim were and see how they continue to be a cautionary example to us.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:87, the psalmist acknowledges the harm that persecutors can do and have done to him. But he also makes clear that they are incapable of actual destroying him.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Two of the toughest traits of good parenting to put into practice are setting consequences for wrongdoing and enforcing them. The Lord does both, because he cannot just wink at sin, both because it would be contrary to his nature and because it would not be good for us.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:86, you can almost see the psalmist clenching his fists or wringing his hands in frustration at what is happening in his life. He is asserting and doing what is right, but is getting persecuted for it. Who can help a person in such situations?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Even many Christians see Genesis 6:1–4 as describing spirit beings having intimate relations with human women and producing children that are sort of half-spirit, half-human. Having already seen that this interpretation cannot be correct, in this devotion, we consider what the only correct interpretation can be.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“The proud dig pits for me that are not in keeping with your law,” the psalmist writes. So is it possible to dig pits for others that are in keeping with God’s law?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Apart from the creation account, Genesis 6:1–4 are probably the most scrutinized verses in the book of Genesis. Even many Christians see these verses as describing spirit beings having intimate relations with human women and producing children that are sort of half-spirit, half-human. In this devotion, we finish seeing from the Scriptures why that interpretation cannot be correct.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Sometimes the authors of Scripture highlight the brevity of our lives, how quickly we pass away and are gone. But when we are in the middle of persecution and hardship, the author of Psalm 119 acknowledges that time seems to crawl.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Apart from the creation account, Genesis 6:1–4 are probably the most scrutinized verses in the book of Genesis. Even many Christians see these verses as describing spirit beings having intimate relations with human women and producing children that are sort of half-spirit, half-human. In this devotion, we begin considering why that interpretation cannot be correct.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:83, the psalmist compares himself to a wineskin in thick smoke. What does that mean? And what does it mean for us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Apart from the creation account, Genesis 6:1–4 are probably the most scrutinized verses in the book of Genesis. Even many Christians see these verses as describing spirit beings having intimate relations with human women and producing children that are sort of half-spirit, half-human. In this devotion, we introduce these verses and ask God to guide us in interpreting them.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Have you ever heard of talking eyes before? The psalmist mentions talking eyes in Psalm 119:82, but he uses this metaphor to teach us how and where to seek God’s comfort.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
On the surface, Genesis 5 just looks like a boring genealogy. In this devotion, Pastor Biebert discusses the fourfold purpose of the chapter, and also uses its information to give us an idea of the age of the earth and the universe.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Verse 81 begins the eleventh stanza of Psalm 119, a stanza that has a fairly well-defined theme of being worn out, tired, and on the brink of ruin as we wait for God to keep his word to us and to bring the wicked to justice.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Just like with Eve and her firstborn, Cain, Lamech may have thought that his son Noah was the promised Messiah, and named him accordingly. Even though he was not, God does still continue to bring Christians comfort through Noah’s life and ministry.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In the closing verse of the tenth stanza of Psalm 119, the psalmist reminds us of the kind of blamelessness God is looking for—a blamelessness that should always prevent us from claiming we have the innate ability to keep God’s commandments.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
There isn’t a lot we can say about the meanings of the names in Genesis 5, because we don’t even know for sure if they are Hebrew names (was Hebrew around before the Tower of Babel?), and even if they are, we aren’t entirely sure what most of them mean. But we can note what appear to be some general trends, and some interesting details about Enoch’s and Methuselah’s names.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
”You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” Randy Newman sang for the "Toy Story" movies. In Psalm 119:79, the psalmist leads us to pray that our fellow believers would see us as a friend they can turn to in need.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 5, the refrain “and he died” repeatedly rings out like a funeral toll. We do well to figuratively walk past the graves of these deceased men, to ponder the consequences of sin, and to consider our own impending death. Are we ready for death?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion we cover the three predominant worldviews (guilt-innocence, fear-power, honor-shame), so that we can answer the question: What is the psalmist leading us to pray for when he says, “Let insolent people ashamed”?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When people read in the Bible about early men routinely living over 900 years, they often can’t help but wonder if a different time scale isn’t being used. Pastor Biebert discusses this question in this devotion, but also reminds us that a 900-plus-year life is still a limited life.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion, we review the way this psalm uses various synonyms for God’s word. We then apply that to a verse might initially seem to be saying that God gives us compassion and life in exchange for our obedience to his law.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Many Christians will say that all humans are still made in the image of God. While that is true in a limited sense, such people have not sufficiently grappled with what Moses writes in Genesis 5:1–5.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Last week we grappled with the uncomfortable thought that sometimes God decrees affliction for us. The psalmist immediately follows up that truth with a prayer for the comfort of God’s—a prayer that also assures us that God will give us what we are asking of him.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 5:1 begins the second of the ten “accounts” that make up the book of Genesis (2:4ff; 5:1ff; 6:9ff; 10:1ff; 11:10ff; 11:27ff; 25:12ff; 25:19ff; 36:1ff; 37:2ff). Its name, “the written account of Adam,” might initially appear to be poorly chosen, but in this episode we’ll consider why it’s a perfect title.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion we grapple with an uncomfortable thought, but one the psalmist makes believers come to grips with: Sometimes God decrees affliction for us.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Have you ever wondered when the first church services were held? In this devotion, we not only look at the first church services, but also consider why they were not held until about 150 years after the creation of the world.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Those who are loyal to God and his Word above all don’t just have haters. They also have supporters, admirers, and cheerleaders, who derive great admiration and joy from their godliness.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After losing a son to a violent murder, many mothers would shake their fist at God. Eve did not. She charged her son’s murder to her other son who committed it, but she ascribed to God the new life God gave her to help heal the wound of loss.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
God made us for himself, but we are no longer inclined to live for him and we do not naturally understand what he says. We need to be reprogrammed. We need to be restored.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 4:23–24, Lamech uses poetry and music to threaten abuse to his wives and to force them to “love” him. In this devotion, we look at the third (and final) couplet of his poem, where he basically tells his wives they should fear him more than God.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In the final verse of the ninth stanza of Psalm 119, the psalmist says that God’s word is better for him than lots of money. That statement both teaches a straightforward truth about God’s word and implies something about those who think little of it.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 4:23–24, Lamech uses poetry and music to threaten abuse to his wives and to force them to “love” him. In this devotion, we look at the second couplet of his poem, where he tells his wives why they had better listen to him.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We already saw how Psalm 119:67 was one of the most important and straightforward Bible passages about affliction. Psalm 119:71 qualifies too, in which the psalmist stresses how affliction prompts us to learn more of God’s word.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 4:23–24, we learn where Jubal and Tubal-Cain got the inspiration to be pioneers in their various fields—from their father, who used poetry and music to threaten abuse to his wives and to force them to “love” him.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:70, the psalmist uses a unique expression to describe the hearts of the insolent people who smear him with lies. It’s a comparison that could be used to describe our own hearts, were it not for the grace of God.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In the last two Genesis devotions, you may have caught the detail that Lamech, the great-great-great-grandson of Cain, took two wives. In this devotion, we take a closer look at this perversion of God’s institution of marriage.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Early mankind was not as commonly depicted—wearing crude loincloths, dragging their knuckles along the ground with protruding foreheads, and communicating in monosyllabic grunts. In fact, it didn’t take long for mankind to make significant advances in nomadic ranching, music, and tools for war, work, and play.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this devotion we explore the concept of God’s goodness.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses records that the first technological advances—in nomadism, ranching, music, and metallurgy—were all made by unbelievers. Why? And does that mean that they’re sinful?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 119:67 is one of the most important and straightforward Bible passages about affliction. In this devotion we explore how God uses affliction to teach attention to, and retention of, his word, at times in our life when we’re lacking in either or both.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
We often take comfort in the fact that God knows us better than we know ourselves, and thus sympathizes with us (when appropriate) and knows how to help us. But God also intimately knows his, and the Church’s, enemies, which should also be a tremendous comfort to us.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:66, the psalmist asks God to teach him good taste (or judgment) and good knowledge. In this devotion, we pursue what exactly he is asking to be taught.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
There’s a lot to consider in Genesis 4:16–17. In last week’s Genesis devotion we looked at the where and the when. In this devotion, we look at the who and the what.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist concluded the previous stanza by talking about the big picture of the Lord’s mercy. He now begins a new stanza by talking about it on an individual level.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
There’s a lot to consider in Genesis 4:16–17. In this devotion we look at the where and the when. In next week’s Genesis devotion, God willing, we’ll look and the who and the what.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Have you ever taken a walk with the intent of observing as much evidence of the Lord’s mercy as possible? It’s everywhere.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After Cain has ignored the Lord, murdered his brother, and falsely accused the Lord of being too harsh, why does the Lord still keep him alive—and even protect him?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
On what ground do you connect with others? Sports? University? Hobbies? In this verse, the psalmist speaks of the greatest bond we can have with others.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“My punishment is too great to bear!” Cain told the Lord. Was it too harsh and unfair?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
You’ve maybe heard a guy tell a girl, or vice versa, that he would cross the ocean for her, or got to the moon for her. In other words, he loves her so much he would do anything for her. How much do we love God? To what lengths would we go to worship him?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 4:11, we hear God specifically tell a human that he is “cursed” for the first time. Why? And what did the curse consist of?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Many Christians are frustrated with the direction our country has been heading for a while. While some of that is righteous disgust, could some of our frustrations also reflect a fear that if the wicked cords tightening around us get tight enough, our faith might actually cave? The psalmist addresses these worries and fears.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Abel's blood cried out to God against his brother Cain. How many people have blood that is crying out to God against me? Is there any blood that cries out for me that is stronger than that crying out against me?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The church father Augustine famously prayed in his early years, “Give me sexual purity and self-control, but not yet.” Psalm 119 tells us to take the opposite approach—not to delay the keeping of God’s commands.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“Listen! Your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground,” God told Cain. In this episode, we listen to Martin Luther tell us what a comfort this is.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
One way to think of the purpose of God’s law is to think of it flooding the course of our life with rain, so that all of our tracks, everywhere we have been, is now visible in the mud. What should we do when we see how often we have gone astray, and where it has led?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When we read of Cain murdering his brother Abel, we are confronted for the first time, historically speaking, with the mystery of why God allows such unspeakable evil to occur on earth, even to people who are faithful to him.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When we read of Cain murdering his brother Abel, we are confronted for the first time, historically speaking, with the mystery of why God allows such unspeakable evil to occur on earth, even to people who are faithful to him.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this verse, the psalmist portrays us as peasants entering the massive, ornate throne room of the King of kings. How should we do so?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God had already warned Cain before he murdered his brother, but Cain had gone and done it anyway. But God still didn’t give up. He came to call Cain to repentance after he murdered his brother. No sin is too great for God’s grace.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode, we begin looking at the eighth stanza of Psalm 119. As the psalmist has regularly done, the first verse of this stanza connects us back to the last verse of the previous stanza. In Psalm 119:56, the psalmist talked about what we truly cherish. In this verse, he talks about our true portion.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
It didn’t take long after Adam and Eve’s fall into sin for the new sinful condition of humanity to reveal itself in a shockingly deceptive and horrifying way.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What do you cherish? Chances are that it’s what you jealousy say, “Mine!” about, what you jealously guard. Is that something earthly or heavenly?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When someone points out your wrong, how do you react? Do you get angry, or do you seek to remedy what is wrong? God pointed out Cain’s wrong, and warned him of the consequences if he didn’t master sin in his life.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist says that he remembers the name of the LORD at night. Why does he specify that specific time of day?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Adam’s family began bringing offerings to the Lord not long after their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. But God looked with favor on some of the offerings, but not on others. Why?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What do you sing, or sing along to, at home? In Psalm 119:54, the psalmist encourages us to remember that whatever we sing, we are singing in a temporary lodging-house, and to let the songs that we sing be shaped by that fact.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 4:1–2 tells us that the first human family engaged in the pursuits of farming and shepherding. In this devotion we explore what that would have all entailed, and seek to appreciate the blessings God continues to give us through all the various godly jobs that make the world go around.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Everyone gets angry, and even the psalmist says, and teaches children to say, “Indignation seizes me.” But what drives the anger is important, as the psalmist also makes clear.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Different English versions will translate Genesis 4:1 different ways. One common translation is: “I have brought forth a man with the help of the LORD.” But another possible translation (one that, for instance, Martin Luther preferred) is: “I have acquired a man—the LORD.” In this devotion, we explore what was likely behind the name Eve chose for her and Adam’s firstborn.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist says he takes comfort in the Lord’s decrees from of old. What are those decrees, and how do they comfort us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The first angels mentioned in the Bible are cherubim. In this devotion, we take a closer look at this particular class of angels, which are usually portrayed as standing guard.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We like to be liked. That can make it difficult to remain a Christian, since God promises that those who hold to the truth will face insults, mocking, and worse.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God not only proclaimed Adam and Eve banished; he had to drive them out. We, too, often have difficulty accepting the realities of a fallen world.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
One familiar evening hymn describes a scenario “when other helpers fail and comforts flee.” Psalm 119:50 describes one comfort that will never fail us, even in the worst affliction.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Once again, just as he did in Genesis 1:26, God refers to himself here as “us.” What is he teaching us about himself?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How tragic it is when a person’s hopes are dashed so often that he no longer even desires to have hope. In this first verse of the seventh stanza of Psalm 119, the psalmist asks that God would never disappoint him like that—and he asks this of God on the firmest possible basis.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
By banishing Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, God deprived them of a number of good things he himself had given them. But he did so for their own good.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“I will lift up my palms to your commands,” the psalmist says. What does that mean? In this devotion, we learn both about prayer and about what we can expect to received from God’s word.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After the fall into sin, Adam and Eve, with their sense dulled from sin, clothed themselves with fig leaves. God now clothes them properly, and in so doing reinforces their sense of shame and reinforces the consequences of sin.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We amuse ourselves with what we love, both because what we love naturally leads us to have fun with it, and because amusing ourselves with it helps to ensure we will continue to love it. The psalmist encourages us to do that with God’s word, our greatest love.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Eve’s name, which means “life,” didn’t just allude to the fact that humans got to keep on living, instead of all being struck dead. It also alluded to the spiritual and eternal life that God would give humans through faith in his promises.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Karl Marx once famously described religion as “the opiate of the masses,” which implies it’s for simple people leading ordinary lives. But the psalmist reminds us in Psalm 119:46 that we cannot be put to shame even when testifying to God’s word in front of the high and mighty.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
For all the consequences of sin Adam and Eve and their descendants would have to endure, there was one they didn’t, or at least didn’t have to, if they believed in God’s promise. And that fact was a source of monumental disappointment to the devil, and was celebrated in the name that Adam gave to his wife.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Many people feel trapped and stuck in a very small world due to their circumstances and, more importantly, their religion. Only Christianity gives us perfect freedom, no matter how limiting our physical, earthly circumstances.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The other consequences for sin would be trivial if it weren’t for the ultimate one—death. We can shake our fist at the reality, thick-headedly try to undo it ourselves, try to hide from it as long as possible, or seek the remedy.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Having resolve to keep God’s law is a good and Christian thing. But what does it mean to “keep God’s law”? And where does the strength come from to act on that resolve?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Ever tried to plant a garden? Weeds and animals try to ruin your work, and in the meantime, delicious fruit grows in the wild all on its own. God talks about this consequence of sin in Genesis 3:17–19.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist’s prayer in Psalm 119:43 might lead us to conclude that God actually snatches his word of truth from our mouths, and that we need to ask him to restrain himself. What the psalmist is actually describing is something to which all Christians can relate to a greater or lesser extent.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this devotion, we consider how God’s rebuking of Adam and Eve, and his consequences for each of them, both tell us something about his wiring of the sexes, and how sin ruins our lives precisely where we find our greatest fulfillment.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
There are two slightly different ways to translate Psalm 119:42. But both of them underscore that only God gives us the strength and the words to answer those who criticize us when we believe and live according to God’s word.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this devotion, we consider how God rebuked Adam for putting his wife’s voice ahead of God’s own voice. Have you stopped to think about what that would have meant for Adam if he would have put God first?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist opens the sixth stanza of Psalm 119 by expanding on his conclusion to the fifth stanza. In so doing, he reminds us of a basic truth of our salvation: God comes to us; we do not come to him.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Not only did God announce pain in conception and childbearing for the woman in consequence of her sin; he also announced that her desire or longing would be for her husband. In this devotion, Pastor Biebert explores what God is referring to.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist concludes the fifth stanza of Psalm 119 reminding us what we should long for most and why.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Even though Genesis 3:16 occurs within a structure where the first gospel promise, the crushing of the devil’s head, is the focus, there are still consequences for sin for both the woman and the man. These consequences are meant to help us associate sin with pain—the opposite of that with which Satan wants us to associate sin.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
John Donne’s poem, “A Hymn to God the Father,” serves as a wonderful commentary on, and prayer for, Psalm 119:39.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the eighth and final devotion on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we consider how this is not just a promise fulfilled in Jesus, but also in his believers.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Fearing God has both a law- and a gospel-aspect to it. We explore both aspects in this devotion.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the seventh of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we consider how God already hinted at the virgin birth of his Son in this promise.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Cause my eyes to avoid sights of emptiness; revive me with your word,” the psalmist says. In this episode Pastor Biebert explores the concept of sights of emptiness—sights that we look to to be perked up and revived, but that actually do the opposite.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the sixth of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we consider how the promise was vague enough to frustrate the devil, but clear enough to communicate to him that he would lose and to communicate comfort and hope to Adam and Eve and their offspring.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Even when the total population of the earth consisted only of believers, right after the Flood, God still said that there was a problem with the way their heart was inclined. So it is no surprise that the psalmist teaches us to pray that God would incline our heart a different way than its natural way.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the fifth of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we take a closer look at the mutual hostility that God established between the devil’s seed (unbelievers) and the woman’s seed (believers), which continues to the present.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
If you delight in doing something or going somewhere, you don’t need help doing it or going there. You just do it. But in spiritual affairs, we need God to cause us and strengthen us to walk in the path in which our delight is found.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the fourth of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we see, and thank God, that he didn’t limit the hostility he established to the devil and Eve alone, but also included their “seed” or offspring.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
It’s not just enough to know what God’s law says. We also need to understand what it means and the heart of God behind it. That means that Jesus isn’t just the key to the gospel; he’s also the key to the law.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the third of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we consider how God addressed the first gospel promise to Satan, for the benefit of Adam and Eve, and all Satan could do was listen as the loser.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
This is the second of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we consider how God alone needed to redirect mankind’s hostility after the fall into sin. He could not simply advise or command mankind to have such hostility.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Direct me in the way of your decrees,” the psalmist says. The idea is that we need to be an arrow in God’s bow in order to persevere on the path to heaven.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Did you know that those humans (and animals) who are consistently the best and most powerful long-distance runners not only have a strong body, but also a large heart? We, too, need a large heart for the race of life, and the psalmist tells us where we can get one.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the first of eight devotions on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. In this devotion we consider how God needed to redirect mankind’s hostility after the fall into sin.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What does it mean to be put to shame? And what shame do you fear most?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When we hear God’s curse on the serpent in Genesis 3:14, questions naturally arise: Why did God punish the serpent, when the devil was the one tempting Adam and Eve through the serpent? Did the serpent not get around by crawling before God cursed it? In this devotion, Pastor Biebert addresses these questions while reminding us of the important truths at the heart of this curse.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“The way of truth I have chosen.” Is that even possible for us? Doesn’t Jesus himself say elsewhere, “You did not choose me, but I chose you” (John 15:16)? How then should we understand this psalm verse?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God pronounces a curse on the devil and gives mankind the first gospel promise before they have even expressed their repentance. This is a clear demonstration of God’s grace or undeserved love.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist asks God not to turn him away from falsehood, but to turn the way of falsehood away from him. Why does he phrase it that way? What are we praying when we repeat his words?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“What have I done?” “What have you done?” In rhetorical questions like this, we detect the anguish in the person asking them. In Genesis 3:13, as God moves on to the woman to call her to repentance, we detect God’s anguish over the fall into sin.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 119:28, the psalmist describes his soul melting away in grief. What does grief do to you? And where can you go to find relief from it?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 3:12 we note how fallen humans tend to point the finger at other people and things, even God, for their own wrongs, and how sin not only ruins our relationship with God, but also with one another. In this devotion we look at how sin hurts our relationships with those close to us.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What is at the heart of God’s word? And what then should be the effect of studying it?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 3:12 we note how fallen humans tend to point the finger at other people and things, even God, for their own wrongs, and how sin not only ruins our relationship with God, but also with one another. In this devotion we look at our tendency to point the finger.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The popular hymn “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” emphasizes that we can share anything with God. Of course, that idea didn’t originate with the hymn writer. It’s right here in Psalm 119. NOTE: When the psalmist talks about God answering him; we shouldn’t imagine that he does so in some sort of mystical way, whispering to us or directly planting answers in our thoughts. The psalmist himself tells us how God answers us: “Teach me your statutes.” We need to know God’s word in order to know God’s answers.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
After asking Adam an innocent, open-ended question and then a question that would have required a more complex answer, God finally make confession of sin as simple as possible for Adam. Did you or didn’t you? Yes or no?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
This Bible verse is a good prayer for us to pray when we feel healthy and invincible, and death is the farthest thing from our minds. In reality, we live every moment in the company of death. Yet with God’s word, we also live every moment in life eternal.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Those who teach their students how to teach others have a rule: Only ask one question at a time. It initially seems like God breaks this rule in Genesis 3:11…until we remember that God is the perfect teacher, and so it’s more likely that Adam simply didn’t have an answer to God’s first question.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Maybe we’re too proud to admit it, but how often don’t we need reliable advice and counsel? In God’s word we have an advisory team that never fails us in life or in death.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When someone starts questioning us after we’ve done wrong, what do often do? Stall for time. We’ll blubber and mumble and talk about details that don’t directly relate to the question and don’t really answer the question. Our father Adam did the same.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
If peers who are younger than you or who aren’t your friends oppose you for your faith, you probably won’t think anything of it. But when about when those with influence and power do so?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God doesn’t just model fatherhood in his creating and protecting us. He also models fatherhood in the way he continues to uphold his created order in confronting Adam and Eve after they have fallen into sin.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Guarding God’s testimonies doesn’t tend to earn respect in a fallen world. Quite the opposite. So what do we do with that burden of reproach and contempt from others?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God had only done tremendous good for Adam and Eve before they ate the forbidden fruit, so why do they attempt to hide from him among the trees? In Genesis 3:8 we see another wretched side effect of sin—our sin foolishly causes us to think that it has changed something in God.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We tend to romanticize insolence and rebellion and make it attractive, but God rebukes such people as cursed.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The devil promised a kind of enlightenment, and in sinning, Adam and Eve’s were opened in a sense—to a firsthand knowledge of evil that only filled them with shame and guilt. On the whole, though, sin only made them stupid.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The concept of having a crush is as old as the psalms, except the object of the psalmist’s crush is not a person of the opposite sex. He seeks to cultivate in us a crush on God’s decrees.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses, the author of Genesis, tells us that Adam was with Eve the entire time she was being tempted. Yet he said and did nothing. That means that he was just as involved in the fall into sin as his wife was.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How much more wisely would we all live our lives if we remembered and realized that earth is no one’s true home?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Usually we assume that the only way we can know the truth is if we perceive if with our own sense. (Think of the saying, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”) But what the Fall into Sin makes clear is that the devil also uses our senses to deceive us about the true reality.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Gregory the Great once said that Scripture is a stream an elephant can swim in and a lamb can wade across. In other words, a child can grasp and express its message with little effort, but it also has an endless supply of “Aha!” moments waiting inside.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the first of a three-week series on the first in Scripture that describes humanity’s fall into sin. Genesis 3:6 is one of the saddest verse, if not the saddest verse, in the Scriptures.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In mainstream American Christianity, obedience to God is often presented as our free choice. But in this verse the psalmist makes clear that God must act before we can act in a godly way. He must give before we can give to him. His grace comes before our obedience.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The devil mixes some truth with his lies, even his bold-faced lies, and thereby he makes them sound rational.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Did you know that God himself encourages us to make games out of his Word, especially for children and young people?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When we stand our ground against Satan’s initial temptations, he eventually shows his true colors—calling God a liar, and in so doing, revealing himself as the ultimate liar. He takes what God says in black and white and says the opposite.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Does worship ever get ruined for you because of what someone else is doing? The psalmist has something to say to us about our focus and attention in Psalm 119:15.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Sometimes Eve gets a bad rap for engaging with the serpent or for saying that they are not allowed to touch the fruit. In reality, Eve did a good job responding to the devil…at first.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How does wealth, yes, all the wealth of the earth, compare to God’s testimonies?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
We already considered how the devil questions the goodness and wisdom of God’s word. But the first temptation also shows us how the devil twists God’s word, in order to portray it, and God, in the worst possible light.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist bookends Psalm 119:13 with our lips on the one side and God’s mouth on the other. In this devotion, Pastor Biebert talks about what we could call the cycle of heavenly pollination.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this episode we begin looking at the devil’s tactics of temptation. The devil begins by questioning the reasonableness, goodness, and kindness of God’s word, especially when he tells us we cannot do something.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Blessed are you, O LORD,” the psalmist says (Psalm 119:12). How can God be blessed? Isn’t he the One who blesses, and we are the ones who are blessed? In this episode, Pastor Biebert talks about the two main ways the Bible uses the concept of “bless” and “blessed.”
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Sometimes after Day 6, when God saw that everything was “very good” (Gen. 1:31), the devil came to tempt Adam and Eve. But how did there come to be a devil in the first place?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What do you put in a treasure chest? And what do you do with it there? In Psalm 119:11, the psalmist tells us to think of our hearts as treasure chests for the sayings of God, and he tells us how it will benefit us.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The serpent was also one of God’s good creations in the beginning, and his craftiness or shrewdness was good too. But the devil took these creations and abused them for his own evil purposes—the same thing he does today.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Why do we make commitments and promises to God when we’re always going to violate them until he brings us to heaven?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Before the fall into sin, humans went about naked without any shame or embarrassment. Can you even imagine that? Our difficulty imagining that (without imagining other shameful and horrifying things accompanying it) should also help us appreciate the honorable way Jesus had wooed us as his Bride.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Youthful innocence is often therapeutic for us when we get older and start growing jaded and cynical at the world. But what can we do to help our children and young people retain their (relative) innocence and bring it with them into adulthood? The psalmist has the simple answer.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The author of Genesis 2:24, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, recognizes that what God has done for and with Adam and Eve is the way he wants it to be on earth as long as the earth endures.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In the final verse of the first stanza of Psalm 119, the psalmist nicely sums up his thoughts.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Remember the instructions and prohibitions (with attendant consequences) that God gave Adam in Genesis 2:15–17? Who would pass those along to Eve?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Understanding the concept of God’s righteousness as expressed especially in the psalms was at the heart of the Reformation. Unfortunately, many English versions of the Bible don’t reflect this understanding in their translations. The psalmist says he thanks God with uprightness of heart as he learns the decrees of God’s righteousness (Ps. 119:7). That can only be true after what he just said in verses 5 & 6 if “the decrees of God’s righteousness” means something gloriously different from what we naturally expect.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Oftentimes Bible translations render Genesis 2:23 along the lines of, “This is now bone of my bones...” But Adam actually used a word that means “finally” or “at last,” which says a mouthful not only about his attitude, but also about the ideal, godly attitude of every husband and wife.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
If a writer inspired by the Holy Spirit had shame when surveying not some, but all of God’s commandments, then what does that say about us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God brought Eve to Adam to be his wife, Adam couldn’t help himself. He spontaneously broke out into the first human poem.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
After telling us that God’s precepts are to be kept thoroughly, the psalmist leads us in crying out to God for help with our paths.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Why did God build Eve from Adam’s rib?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Is our attitude toward God’s word an indifferent, ho-hum, or casual one? If so, God wants to correct that.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God walked Eve down the aisle to Adam, so to speak, and introduced her to him, Adam would have noticed the complementary differences between him and Eve—differences in shape and soul. In this devotion, we consider some of the general differences in soul (reason, emotions, and will) between men and women.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How can the psalmist say that those who walk in the instruction of the Lord do no wrong?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God walked Eve down the aisle to Adam, so to speak, and introduced her to him, Adam would have noticed the complementary differences between him and Eve—differences in shape and soul. In this devotion, we consider some of the general differences in shape between men and women.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When we consult God’s word for knowledge, wisdom, and guidance, we are encountering God himself. How does this fact affect our treatment of God’s word and our attention to it?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 2:22 records the first wedding. One big difference between Adam and Eve’s wedding and the typical modern wedding is that Adam had never seen his wife before God brought her to him. What did Adam see? What exactly had God built when he created the woman as a helper for the man?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode, Pastor Biebert introduces you to the largest chapter in the Bible, and leads you in reflecting on its first verse.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The Bible says that God “formed” the man, but that he “built” the woman. Why the difference?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Praise the Lord, for…he is coming to judge the earth!” That doesn’t sound like something we can say without either having a death wish or being extremely arrogant. But the psalmist encourages us to rejoice in anticipation of the Lord’s judgment, without being either deranged or arrogant.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 2:20, we learn God’s main purpose in having the animals brought to Adam and in having him name them.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Have you ever thought some piece of news was so good and joyful that you honestly thought it was a crying shame that the grass, ponds, and hills weren’t able to join you in your happiness? Such is the news of the wonderful works of the Lord.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“So the man gave names to all the domestic animals, to the birds of the sky, and to all the animals of the open country.” Sounds pretty simple, until you start unpacking the logistics of it.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In these verses of Psalm 98, the psalmist encourages us to respond to the Lord’s salvation with sincerity, energy, and joy, and he encourages us to pair our words with dignified and joyful music.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this episode, we begin to look at Adam’s naming of the animals, which starts with God’s forming of the animals from the ground.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The questions, “Is there a God?”, “Is there life after death?”, and “Are we alone?” are often presented as unanswered questions. That couldn’t be further from the truth, according to Psalm 98.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
At the end of the first five days of creation, God saw that what he had made was good. But on Day 6, the words “not good” make their first appearance. God’s world will be incomplete and imperfect, until he has instituted marriage.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The psalmist gives us an occasion to talk about the Bible use of anthropomorphism with God—ascribing human features to the supernatural, spiritual.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God says that it’s not good for the man to be alone, we usually think of ordinary companionship. But God is also teaching us something about worship.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Does the command to sing a new song to the Lord mean that no hymns and Christian songs from the past should ever be sung?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“On the day you eat of it, you shall sure die” (Gen. 2:17). Pretty important information, right? God only gave that information to Adam. Why? And what does that tell us about God’s will for families?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Sinners will be consumed from the earth, and the wicked—they will be no more” (Ps. 104:35). This is both a reason for our earnest prayers and a reason for our praise.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this episode, Pastor Biebert addresses the age-old question: Why did God put the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden in the first place?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When we think of all the beautifies of God’s creation and how he preserves them in working order to this day, then we realize our need for the arts.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In a perfect world, in a perfect garden, the Lord gave work and responsibility to Adam. This tells us something important about work, from God’s perspective.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The author of Psalm 104 closes with a prayer and song of praise. What does it mean when he asks that the glory of the Lord would endure forever? What is the glory of the Lord? How does it endure?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Moses says that the river originating in Eden separated from there and turned into four headwaters—the Pishon, the Gihon, the Tigris, and the Euphrates. Where were they?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When living creatures gather, are satisfied, are dismayed, die, are created, and are renewed, who is behind it all? The psalmist tells us, and in the episode’s prayer, we ask God to help us apply the answer to that question to our lives.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In Genesis 2:20, Moses switches from talking in a narrative past tense to talking as if he were observing something breathtaking in the present. It’s the first time, but not the last, that the Scriptures describe a river of paradise.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In spite of the fact that creatures “without number” inhabit the “vast and expansive” seas, the psalmist says that “all of them are putting their hope in [God] to give their food at the proper time.” If that’s what they do, what about us?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God planted the Garden of Eden for Adam, he caused all kinds of trees to grow up from the ground, not just so that they would produce food for him, but also so that they would be “pleasing to the sight.” In this episode, we think about the fact that God has made us for beauty and the arts.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 104:25, the psalmist reaches Day 5 of creation and the creatures that God created to fill the sea. With its vastness and the innumerable life-forms that fill it, the sea is a tremendous example of God’s power and wisdom.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 2:7 highlights both the custom-tailored way God created man and the special way God animated man. In this devotion, we take a closer look at God’s animating of dust to create mankind.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 104:24 serves as a transition verse between Day 4 and Day 5 of creation. It allows us to pause and consider something the scholars of the world generally keep people from thinking about—how the natural world attests to God’s wisdom.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 2:7 highlights both the custom-tailored way God created man and the special way God animated man. In this devotion, we take a closer look at God’s custom creating.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode we consider and thank God for the beauty and benefits of the orderly progression of time.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this episode we look at how Moses contrasts the way the earth was watered in the beginning with how it is watered now.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode we consider how the psalmist frames the darkness as the workday of the wild animals.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Genesis 2:4 begins the first of the ten “accounts” that make up the book of Genesis. That means that Genesis 1:1—2:3 was only an introduction to the main body of Moses’s work. Now we are getting into the rising action.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
When was the last time you took notice of the moon? In this episode, the psalmist leads us to consider the blessings God has given us especially in the two great lights of the sky.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the second in a series of two episodes containing concluding thoughts on the first week of history. In this episode, we think about the fundamental assumptions of Christianity and science, and weigh them against each other.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalm 104 follows the creation account in Genesis 1. Yet in verses 16–18, which cover Day 3 of creation, the psalmist already mentions the living creatures created on Days 5 & 6. Pastor Biebert explores the reason for that in this devotion.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
This is the first in a series of two episodes containing concluding thoughts on the first week of history.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Have you ever seen a California redwood or a giant oak or cypress tree? It’s an impressive sight. And they are an impressive testimony to God’s provision.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Did you ever notice what is missing in Genesis 2:3? There is no “There was evening, and there was morning.” That’s because, in a way, this seventh day was meant to have no end.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
God doesn’t give us food products just to nourish us and keep us going until we die. In this episode, Pastor Biebert discuss the three different uses of food products covered by this psalm. If you're poetically or musically inclined, make sure to listen to the very end for an interesting sidenote.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this episode, Pastor Biebert begins to discuss what it means that God blessed the seventh day and made it holy.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Who brings forth bread from the earth? We do, and God does. In this devotion, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on these juxtaposed truths.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“On the seventh day God rested from all his work.” What does that mean? In the last Genesis episode, we considered what it doesn’t and can’t mean. In this episode, we consider what it does mean.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
From 104:10–12, the psalmist talked about God’s watering of the valleys with springs, and how those springs quench the thirst of the animals living in the valleys. But what about areas of higher elevation? In this devotion, the psalmist reminds us to thank God for his gift of rain.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
“On the seventh day God rested from all his work.” What does that mean? In this episode, we first consider what it doesn’t and can’t mean. In next week’s Genesis devotion, we’ll consider what it does mean.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The birds have it so good, they sing every day. How good, then, do we have it, since God’s own Son gave his life for us, and not for the birds? In this episode, Pastor Biebert discusses the care God gives the beasts and the birds, and how that care should encourage us and deflate our worry.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In the Old Testament, God is regularly called “the LORD of hosts” or “the LORD of armies.” Just who or what makes up these armies? Moses answers that question in Genesis 2:1.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 104:10–11, David begins talking about God’s creative activity on Day 3, and how it still benefits both man and beast today.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
The Germans have a proverb: Das Werk lobt den Meister. “The work proves (or praises) the craftsman.” That means that when Moses tells us that God surveyed his finished creation and saw that it was “very good,” we aren’t just learning about God’s work. We’re learning about God himself.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Sometimes people with good intentions, who want us to be better stewards of the earth, unnecessarily and mistakenly turn into alarmists, warning us that the oceans will rise and cover all or most of the inhabitable land if we don’t act. However, in Psalm 104, David allays our alarm and tells us about the boundaries God has set for the seas.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
For those wishing to take God’s word seriously, Genesis 1:29–30 perhaps provides us with the greatest challenges. In this episode, Pastor Biebert discusses those challenges and why God left those difficult questions for us in his word.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Last week we considered the power and immediate effect of God’s word. Today we consider the beauty it brings into being, as evidenced by its work on Day 3 of creation, which Psalm 104 describes in poetic language.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
If God had not blessed humans with the ability to reproduce on Day 6, neither you nor I would be here today. But because he did, you and can say that we have been created by God every bit as much as Adam and Eve could.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
There are few passages that portray the power of God’s word more beautifully, vividly, and dramatically than Psalm 104:5–7.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Are the differences between men and women simply a social construct? Or are they simply fodder for jokes and ridicule? In this episode we look at God’s beautiful creation of humans as male and female.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
No matter how firm a foundation we lay for any project or undertaking, what we build on that foundation will only last so long and will eventually be destroyed. The firmest foundations are always and only laid by God.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
A lot of Christians like to talk about humans being made in the image of God. But do they actually know what they mean? What is the image of God? Pastor Biebert answers this question from Scripture in this episode.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
David gives us some ambiguous phrases in Psalm 104:4. Are the natural elements of wind and fire God’s messengers and ministers, or are God’s messengers and ministers, the angels, like wind and fire in their work?
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
When God created humans, he made it clear that he was about to create the pinnacle of animated life, the crown of his creation. In this episode, we consider God’s amazing handwork in his creation of humankind.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
How can a loving God allow things like hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes to do such horrible damage? Have you ever heard that argument against the existence of God? (By the way, that’s not really an argument against the existence of God; it’s an argument for not liking him and having nothing to do with him.) In this episode, Pastor Biebert notes how Psalm 104 actually gives us extraordinary comfort in the midst of such natural disasters and phenomena.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
In this episode, Pastor Biebert shares a true story to illustrate the truth that the animals have not gradually evolved from one kind of life form into another until arriving at their current kinds, but were created by God according to their kinds in the beginning.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In both Hebrew and Greek (the original languages of the Bible), the word for “sky” and the word for God’s dwelling (what we call “heaven”) are the same. God wants us to think of the latter whenever we behold the former. The author of Psalm 104 helps us to do that.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
Christians will commonly ask whether dinosaurs actually existed. In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you square the evidence for dinosaurs with the Spirit-given truths of the Scriptures.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 104, the psalmist starts with his conclusion about God, before he tells us what he has learned that has led to that conclusion. His conclusion? The LORD has become very great. In this episode, Pastor Biebert explores what the psalmist means by that, and tells how he can become very great to you too.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God begins Day 6 of the first week in world history by speaking the land animals into existence, in three broad categories.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Psalms 104 is one good psalm to read and meditate on when you’re feeling less than cheerful. Because everything God does, he does for us, there are plenty of reasons to bless the Lord—to acknowledge his greatness with awe and gratitude—if we only take the time to find them.
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
God’s effective blessing spoken to the sea creatures and winged creatures on Day 5 of the first week deserves further and deeper thought. In this episode, we especially relate the power and effect of God’s word to baptism.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In the second half of Psalm 32, David teaches us that freely forgiven forgiveness on God’s part leads to freely given obedience on our part. What a life of peace and joy God has given us in Christ!
Music Credit: Johann Sebastian Bach, Trio from Brandenburg Concerto, No. 1, Movement 4
On Day 5 of the first week of history, God spoke to what he had created for the first time. In this episode, we begin to consider God’s effective blessing.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
You may have noticed the lack of new episodes in the past several months. In this episode, Pastor Biebert explains the reason for the inactivity and describes the changes to the podcast as it transition from Season 1 to Season 2.
Is admitting wrong a sign of weakness? We certainly get that impression from the way famous people try to cover up. But David leads us to take the opposite viewpoint in the opening verses of Psalm 32.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
The same day the Lord created the so-called sea monsters, the fish, and all the other sea creatures, he also created every flying creature of wing. In this episode, we consider some of these flying marvels of God’s creation.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In prayer, we don’t just cry out and appeal to God; we trust him. David opens and closes Psalm 6 with some parallel thoughts in order to demonstrate his confidence in God.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
God divides the sea creatures that he created on Day 5 into two categories. The first category is “the great sea creatures” or “the sea monsters.” In this episode, we consider a couple of those giant demonstrations of God’s creative power in the sea.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In Psalm 6:5–7, David gives the Lord two reasons to be merciful to him and to deliver him from his misery.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
On Day 5, God creates for the first time what he calls “living life” or “animated life.” In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you think about the biblical concept of soul.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Do you want the Lord’s discipline? In this psalm, David teaches us how to pray when we find ourselves in hardship and difficult circumstances.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
On Day 5, God began creating living creatures. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in exploring a principle that even modern biology acknowledges: Life can only come from pre-existing Life.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Do we really want God to search and examine our hearts? We do, the more we search and know God.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
When David looked up into the night sky, he asked, “What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” (Psalm 8:4). Yet God does indeed care for us—and this is ultimately where God wants to leave us when we consider the vastness of outer space.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Aren’t we supposed to love our enemies? And if so, then what does David mean when he says that he hates those who hate the Lord—yes, that he hates them “with utter hatred”? In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you to understand these difficult words of David.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
God says he placed the sun, moon, and stars in the sky to serve, in part, “for signs.” Does this mean that God approves of astrology? Not at all. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on God’s purpose in placing the stars in the sky as signs.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
What are we to make of the psalms and Bible verses where the writer calls down evil, sometimes violent evil, on his enemies? In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you properly meditate on, and find value in, the imprecatory psalms.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Starlight doesn’t only seem to take a long time to reach our planet, but it also contains intel suggesting events that took place much too long ago (when compared to the Bible’s chronology). In this devotion, Pastor Biebert helps you wrestle with this and reminds you of the ultimate reason we believe the Bible’s creation account.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Are God’s purposes precious to you, or frustrating and repulsive? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on what is needed in order to realize God’s innumerable precious purposes behind everything.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
If the light from a given star, traveling at light speed, takes billions of years to reach our planet, so that we can view it, then the universe must be at least that old, right? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on the relationship between light and the light-bearers.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
If God wove us together in our mother’s womb, does that mean that all of our habits, traits, and inclinations trace back to him? In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you to think properly about the way God made you. NOTE: Pastor Biebert mistakenly cites the same verses as last week’s devotion (Psalm 139:13–16), but this devotion only focuses on verses 13 & 14.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
The sun in the daytime sky and the moon and stars in the night sky are amazing things to behold. But even more amazing is the fact that God made everything that you can locate in the sky for you.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
David already highlighted God’s all-knowingness and his omnipresence. Now he leads us to consider God’s just one aspect of his omnipotence—how he wove together each one of us in our mother’s womb. NOTE: In my prayer, I do not mean to deny the eternal existence of God’s Son. It’s just that this psalm leads us particularly to reflect on God’s wonderful work in giving his Son flesh and blood in the womb of the virgin Mary.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
The apostle Paul says that death entered the world through sin (Romans 5:12). How do we square that with the fact that God created fertile soil on Day 3, since soil is by its very definition the history of the death of organisms? In this episode, Pastor Biebert discusses possible answers to this difficult question, and the devotional value of the question itself.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
David already highlighted God’s all-knowingness. Now he leads us to consider God’s omnipresence.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
How old were the trees and plants on Day 3? Only one day old. But they didn’t look that way. For instance, the trees presumably had age growth rings inside them, even though they weren’t even one year old. In this episode, Pastor Biebert introduces the concept of apparent age vs. actual age.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Do we sometimes deceive ourselves into thinking that God isn’t paying attention to us, or that we can keep secrets from him? King David helps us to have a better grasp of God’s knowledge in Psalm 139.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
On Day 3, Moses is careful to state that God caused the land to produced vegetation “according to their various kinds.” The order, beauty, and stability of the natural world around us all hang on this clause. And, like it or not, it cannot be reconciled with the evolutionary theory.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in thinking about ways you can follow David’s encouragement to “let the King of glory in” today.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Genesis 1:11 describes what God caused the land to produce. Have you ever stopped to think about all the blessings we enjoy on earth through trees, plants, and all of the natural world around us?
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you visualize and apply what David was visualizing—a powerful king of renown approaching a walled city filled with people ready to welcome him.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Genesis 1:9–10 describes what God did with the waters beneath the sky. Side note: “Pangaea” is the term for the hypothesized single landmass that may have existed before the Flood divided it into its present-day continents.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“Who is this guy?” That’s a way of complimenting someone that doesn’t declare the tremendous thing the person has done, but focuses on the impressive doer of the accomplishment. It’s therefore the most appropriate victory chant for Jesus.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Genesis 1:6–8 describes God’s creating of the sky on Day 2 of the world’s history. In this episode, Pastor Biebert helps you take a closer look and think a little more about the waters under the expense of the sky and the waters above it.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
God has made us, but just that fact alone doesn’t give us what we require in order to stand before him and to dwell with him. In this devotional prayer, Pastor Biebert reminds us that, in the words of Augustine, God must first give what he requires, and then he can require of us whatever he wishes.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Genesis 1:6–8 describes God’s creating activity on Day 2 of the world’s history. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on how God created the sky.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
“You don’t own me.” “It’s my life.” Have you ever heard anyone say something like this? Have you yourself said it? We do take pride in being free and independent in the United States, but someone does own us. However, as David helps us to see in Psalm 24, God’s ownership of us is not something to dread or resent, but something to cherish.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Have you ever wondered about the order of time in Genesis 1—“And there was evening, and there was morning”? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in viewing the day from God’s perspective, which means adjusting our view of work and rest.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Since deliverance is not just God’s possession, but his very character, those who trust in him in the name of his Son Jesus have no reason to doubt it.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
“And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.” What does “day” mean there? A period of daylight? A thousand years? A million? Longer? Shorter? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in seeing how God uses the word “day” in Genesis 1.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
We often only think of Jesus as gentle. But in this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you to see that he is also a champion and a warrior, who demolishes the enemies of his faithful.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Why did God speak light into existence? We considered part of the reason last week (God is a personal being), but there is more. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in considering how God’s word works, and how it’s received.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
Even in the midst of his troubles, David was able to “lie down and go right to sleep.” In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in seeing how this ability was not tied to some mental trick, but to God’s sure protection.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
There’s a lot more in Genesis 1:3 than first meets the eye. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on God’s transcendence, that he is separate from his creation; his immanence, that he is close to his creation; and his personality, that he is not just some powerful, impersonal force.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
David wrote this psalm while fleeing in danger and shame from his son Absalom. Yet David still has protection and glory in the Lord. In this episode, Pastor Biebert continues through Psalm 3.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
On Day 1 of history, God created light. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on how he did so, and on why it is entirely appropriate that light was the very first element created out of nothing by God’s word.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
David wrote this psalm during one of the darkest times of his life. He was being betrayed by his own son. But the fact that he shares his devotional thoughts with us means that we can expect dark times and betrayal too. But we also have a God who gives us hope and the strength to endure.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Genesis 1:2 says that “the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters” at the creation of the world. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on who this Spirit of God was and is and exactly what he was doing when the world was founded.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
King David concludes Psalm 61 by talking about another king—the King who is the basis and strength of all his other petitions in this psalm. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on this eternal King in whom David placed his eternal hope.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
When God first created the physical realm, it wasn’t beautiful. It was a formless, watery mess. But God had a reason for that. In this episode Pastor Biebert leads you to see it’s a reason we still do well to remember when our lives look like a mess.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
The apostle Peter calls us “temporary residents in the world” (1 Pet. 1:1), but he was by no means the first to do so. In Psalm 61 King David refers to the fact that, whether he is at home or away from home, he is sojourning. But David reminds us that we have a constant companion, with whom we are always protected and “at home” as we do so.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
We talk about humans creating, but our creating is nothing like God’s creating during the first week of history. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on the astounding wisdom we see in God’s activity in Genesis 1.
Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).
David describes himself as someone who has sought refuge, but has found his position to be a helpless and vulnerable one. So he turns to the only One who is always there as a refuge for us. Join us as we continue meditating on Psalm 61.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Have you ever asked about yourself or anything else, “Am I or is this thing uncaused, or caused?” In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on how the existence of everything in the universe originates with something or someone before it—except the Being that Moses identifies in Genesis 1:1. You may be able to hear some of God’s creation (cicadas) in the background.
Music Credit: “Ballet à 4,” arr. Michael Praetorius, in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 268.
When we have problems and get emotional, it’s sometimes hard to find anyone who is willing to listen. But David reminds us in Psalm 61 that there is always someone who cares and wants to hear about what’s troubling us.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
There is so much to learn about God in the opening verse of the Bible. In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in meditating on God’s active nature and his unique, three-in-one essence. You may be able to hear some of God’s creation (cicadas) in the background.
Music Credit: “Ballet à 4,” arr. Michael Praetorius, in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 268.
In the second half of Psalm 1, the psalmist contrasts the blessings enjoyed by the person who regularly muses and meditates on God's word with the curses and judgment that await the person who has no respect or time for God's word.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Is that just a summary statement, or a distinct action of God on Day 1 of creation? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in a meditation on the first verse of the Bible.
Music Credit: “Ballet à 4,” arr. Michael Praetorius, in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 268.
What is the blessed life? Of what does it consist? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in a meditation on the opening verses of Psalm 1, which talk about what the blessed life does not consist of, what it does consist of, and what blessings the blessed person enjoys.
Music Credit: Michael Praetorius, “La Canarie,” in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 31.
Have you ever wondered what God was doing before the beginning, before he created the world? In this episode, Pastor Biebert leads you in a meditation on just the first four words of the Bible: “In the beginning, God . . .”
Music Credit: “Ballet à 4,” arr. Michael Praetorius, in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 268.
In this episode, Pastor Biebert briefly introduces this devotional podcast and tells you what kinds of episodes you can expect each week.
Music Credit: "Ballet à 4," arr. Michael Praetorius, in _Terpsichore_ (Wolfenbüttel, 1612), no. 268.