2 Chronicles 30 - 5.8.25
SCRIPTURE: 2 Chronicles 30 - Hezekiah’s Passover
(1-5) The tribes of Israel are invited to celebrate the Passover.
(6-9) The letter to the tribes.
(10-12) The reaction to the letter in Israel and Judah. Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun; but they laughed at them and mocked them.
(13-17) Preparations and sacrifices made.
(18-20) God is merciful to the ignorant worshippers.
(21-22) Worship, teaching, and fellowship.
(23-27) The resulting joy and answered prayer.
OBSERVATION
To keep the Passover, Hezekiah sent this to all Israel and Judah, and also wrote letters to Ephraim.
Passover: This great feast celebrated the great and glorious deliverance of God on Israel’s behalf in the days of the Exodus (Exodus 12). It was a deliberate, emblematic reminder of the central act of redemption in the Old Testament (the deliverance from slavery in Egypt).
Since the time of Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel, there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem: Since those days there had not been a Passover in Jerusalem so widely and enthusiastically celebrated. And the LORD listened to Hezekiah and healed the people. This was the greatest assembly gathered for a Passover in generations. Not only had the Passover been neglected in Judah for many years, but this Passover also included those from the remnant of the northern tribes who responded to the invitation.
This shows the wonderful and warm mercy of God. By the letter of the command, the people deserved judgment for their disobedience. Yet God showed His mercy and goodness to those who had prepared their heart to seek God, though in ignorance they did not do it all according to the commandments.
Passover to Communion
Their pattern of preparing to receive the Passover is instructive for those who come to the communion table, especially those who feel unworthy to partake of communion.
· They forgot their differences and came together as one people.
· They removed their idols. Examples today: things we spend time on distracting us from spending time praying and reading our bibles, attending church.
· They prepared their hearts.
· Their sins and ignorance were confessed.
· They prayed.
In Numbers 6:22-27, it was the duty of the priests to bless the people with these words: The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.
APPLICATION
These promises were based on an eternal principle of God’s character: that He will not turn His face from you if you return to Him. God promises to draw near to those who draw near to Him. And for those of us who feel we aren’t participating enough, not sharing his word enough. Not seeing your prayers answered. And, maybe, feeling distant to HIM and not in His word enough, etc…SEEK HIM. His word is for everyone who seeks Him. And SEEK HIM in Prayer. AND always remember the purpose of communion.
PRAYER
Jesus, your word is a mighty sword—the sword of righteousness. And righteousness cuts down and destroys the doubts we may sometimes have of not being enough, not doing enough, not seeing prayers answered. And as Pastor Levi taught in his sermon, WHAT AM I DOING HERE!! You are the Lord, of purpose, patience and forgiveness and right now I pray, Jesus, this prayer for everyone who is in this season of life…SEEK HIM. and may HIS light shine upon you….the light of HIS glory.
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword
And Lord, I was reminded of the importance of communion. Let me/us never forget the sacrifice you made for me/us so that we no longer celebrate the Passover, as described in these scriptures. When we take communion, we are remembering Your sacrifice on the cross and we celebrate a risen savior. With humble gratitude, thank you Jesus.
- Charleen Zakarian
Psalm 96 - 5.7.25
Scripture; Psalm 96
Sing to the Lord a new song;
sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, praise his name;
proclaim his salvation day after day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples.
4 For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
he is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.
6 Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and glory are in his sanctuary.
7 Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
bring an offering and come into his courts.
9 Worship the Lord in the splendor of his[a] holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.
11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
12 Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
13 Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Observation
Psalm 96 is split into four sections, each highlighting a different command: sing, praise, worship, and rejoice.
Application
In the first section, the psalmist says “sing to the Lord all the earth.” At that time in history, only the Jews followed the one true God, but this psalm looks forward to a time when the whole world will know him. It tells us to sing a new song, a song of faith in the things coming and to declare his glory to all we come in contact with.
In verses 4-6, we are directed to praise him. I looked up the difference between praise and worship. “Praise is often about what God does, while worship is about who God is.” We are to praise him for his great works, for his creation, for his provision, for his healing – for all the things he has done for us. He deserves our praise.
Verses 7-10 tell us to ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name. “When praising the Lord, the Jews lifted their hands and voices and looked up, but in their worship, they reverently bowed down.” (Warren Wiersbe Bible Study) We serve a powerful, mighty, all-knowing, loving father. He is worthy of our worship.
And lastly, rejoice! The king of the universe reigns. He is a God who keeps his promises, from now until he comes again!
Prayer
Today I will take time to sing of your great love for me. I will praise you for what you have done, for all the times you have answered my prayers. I will worship you because you are holy and righteous and good. And I will rejoice because you hold the world in your hand and you are in control.
Goodness of God
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f4MUUMWMV4
- Debbie Dunn
Psalm 95 - 5.6.25
SCRIPTURE: PSALM 95:1-7
1 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.
3 For the Lord is the great God,
the great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to him.
5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;
7 for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.
OBSERVATION
I love this Psalm! Although the author of this Psalm is not noted, other scriptures and scholars have attributed this writing to David.
We are called to sing for joy because He’s the Rock of our salvation. Praise God He’s our rock – never changing, solid and stable, consistently providing protection and our salvation.
We are encouraged to be thankful and extol him with music and song. Praise God for worship music! Thank Him for the chance to even be able to praise him with music and song. There are some people in the world who can’t even do these things without persecution. We are blessed and that is one more thing we can praise God for in our lives.
Verses 3 – 5 gives us all the reasons why we are to sing, praise and extol God. It’s because of His power over everything. He binds everything on earth together. This reflects his sovereignty over creation. The visual of his hands that can reach deep into the core of the earth then to the mountaintops, to the ocean and to the desert shows He’s all powerful. God is above all gods because He is the one who created the earth, the mountains, the sea, and even the dry land. He is above all things on earth. It is all His and worthy to be praised!
“You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.” Nehemiah 9:6
Once we visualize and contemplate the meaning of verses 3 – 5, there is nothing else we can do but to bow down in worship as verse 6 invites us to do. When we bow down and kneel, we acknowledge his status as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Bowing down is a sign of submission and humility. We are giving him the honor and position that He is our God and we are his people. Verse 7 reflects God as our shepherd and we are the sheep in his care. He is King and holds the universe in his hands and yet we are called his flock and we are under his care. He loves us!
APPLICATION
When I started to read this section of scripture, I was reminded of Pastor Levi’s series on “I am.” If you’ve not yet had a chance to hear the series, I highly recommend it. Even if you heard it before, listen to it again. It’s amazing!
God gives us so many ways in which we can worship him in our daily life. Worshiping and honoring God can be something we can do with just the simple things in life. Waking up in the morning is a blessing. Having family, friends, and our wonderful church family is a great blessing we can thank God for each and every day. When we witness a glorious sunrise or sunset, we can thank God for what he created and provides for us. When we see the countryside, mountains, the sea, we can give God the glory. When we see all the stars at night, the glow of the moon, we can thank God because He not only created them but He is above them all.
“To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it.” Deuteronomy 10:14
PRAYER
Lord, thank you for being my rock and my salvation. You are worthy to be praised every second of every day. Everything in my life is because of your blessings and provisions. You continue to amaze me with your faithfulness and your love when I don’t deserve anything. Lord, thank you for the blessings of music that we can worship you with, giving you the praise you deserve. You are my maker, my shepherd, my lord, my savior, and I bow down to you. In Jesus name. Amen and Amen.
- Mary Oberg