Daily Bible reading and prayer, Monday, October 23, 2023
John 7-8 (chronological); Jeremiah 9-10, 1 Timothy 3 (OT/NT)
We are on our chronological journey through the New Testament.
Our daily plan usually assigns whole chapters, so we end up reading different gospel writers’ versions of the same account on different days. If you want to explore all the gospel writers’ accounts of a single event on the same day, I have compiled a Chronological Study of the Gospels, that is available by subscription. You should be able to preview it, here. As we follow various clues in the Gospel writers’ accounts and look at smaller segments consisting of particular verses from all the accounts about the events of Jesus’ life and ministry, sometimes in that study we find ourselves either behind or ahead of the daily chronological assigned reading plan. We have yet to cover in our study the events we’ll read about today.
Obviously, our daily Old Testament and New Testament plan will have us in the Old Testament through the rest of the year, but this will be the second time this year we have read each Old Testament reading.
A overview of our yearly Bible reading plan, with all edited summaries so far, can be found here.
Monday, October 23, 2023 chronological reading: John 7-8
John 7
v1-9 “After these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near. Therefore His brothers said to Him, ‘Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.’ For not even His brothers were believing in Him. So Jesus said to them, ‘My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune. The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.’ Having said these things to them, He stayed in Galilee.
v10-13 “But when His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He Himself also went up, not publicly, but as if, in secret. So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, ‘Where is He?’ There was much grumbling among the crowds concerning Him; some were saying, ‘He is a good man’; others were saying, ‘No, on the contrary, He leads the people astray.’ Yet no one was speaking openly of Him for fear of the Jews.
v14-18 “But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach. The Jews then were astonished, saying, ‘How has this man become learned, having never been educated?’ So Jesus answered them and said, ‘My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
v19-24 ‘Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you carries out the Law? Why do you seek to kill Me?’ The crowd answered, ‘You have a demon! Who seeks to kill You?’ Jesus answered them, ‘I did one deed, and you all marvel. For this reason Moses has given you circumcision (not because it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and on the Sabbath you circumcise a man. If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses will not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made an entire man well on the Sabbath? Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.’
v25-31 “So some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, ‘Is this not the man whom they are seeking to kill? Look, He is speaking publicly, and they are saying nothing to Him. The rulers do not really know that this is the Christ, do they? However, we know where this man is from; but whenever the Christ may come, no one knows where He is from.’ Then Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying, ‘You both know Me and know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. I know Him, because I am from Him, and He sent Me.’ So they were seeking to seize Him; and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. But many of the crowd believed in Him; and they were saying, ‘When the Christ comes, He will not perform more signs than those which this man has, will He?’
v32-36 “The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about Him, and the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers to seize Him. Therefore Jesus said, ‘For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.’ The Jews then said to one another, ‘Where does this man intend to go that we will not find Him? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks, is He? What is this statement that He said, “You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come”?’
v37-39 “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, “From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.”’ But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
v40-44 “Some of the people therefore, when they heard these words, were saying, ‘This certainly is the Prophet.’ Others were saying, ‘This is the Christ.’ Still others were saying, ‘Surely the Christ is not going to come from Galilee, is He? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the descendants of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?’ So a division occurred in the crowd because of Him. Some of them wanted to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him.
v45-53 “The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said to them, ‘Why did you not bring Him?’ The officers answered, ‘Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks.’ The Pharisees then answered them, ‘You have not also been led astray, have you? No one of the rulers or Pharisees has believed in Him, has he? But this crowd which does not know the Law is accursed.’ Nicodemus (he who came to Him before, being one of them) said to them, ‘Our Law does not judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing, does it?’ They answered him, ‘You are not also from Galilee, are you? Search, and see that no prophet arises out of Galilee.’ [Everyone went to his home.
John 8
v1-11 “But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they said to Him, ‘Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?’ They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, ‘He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. Straightening up, Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.’]
v12-20 “Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.’ So the Pharisees said to Him, ‘You are testifying about Yourself; Your testimony is not true.’ Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Even if I testify about Myself, My testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. You judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone. But even if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone in it, but I and the Father who sent Me. Even in your law it has been written that the testimony of two men is true. I am He who testifies about Myself, and the Father who sent Me testifies about Me.’ So they were saying to Him, ‘Where is Your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.’ These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple;and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come.
v21-30 “Then He said again to them, ‘I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.’ So the Jews were saying, ‘Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, “Where I am going, you cannot come”?’ And He was saying to them, ‘You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.’ So they were saying to Him, ‘Who are You?’ Jesus said to them, ‘What have I been saying to you from the beginning? I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these I speak to the world.’ They did not realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said, ‘When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me. And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.’ As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him.
v31-33 “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’ They answered Him, ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, “You will become free”?’
v34-38 “Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.’
v39-47 “They answered and said to Him, ‘Abraham is our father.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. You are doing the deeds of your father.’ They said to Him, ‘We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.’
v48-59 “The Jews answered and said to Him, ‘Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?’ Jesus answered, ‘I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.’ The Jews said to Him, ‘Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, “If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.” Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?’ Jesus answered, ‘If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, “He is our God”; and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.’ So the Jews said to Him, ‘You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.’ Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.”
Monday, October 23, 2023 OT/NT readings: Jeremiah 9-10, 1 Timothy 3
We are reading Jeremiah for the second time this year. We are also reading 1 Timothy.
We are not reading Paul’s letters chronologically (we’ll do that later in the year). We’ve finished, in chronological order of their writing, Galatians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, and Romans, all written before Paul’s imprisonment, and Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, written after his imprisonment. A summary of the events in the book of Acts, which is helpful in the timeline of the apostle Paul’s letters, can be found here.
Paul always has a purpose in his letters, but through them he always teaches theological truths his readers, including us, may not be aware of and how those truths impact how they (and we) should live in fellowship with one another and as followers of Christ.
Paul met Timothy early in his second missionary journey: “Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. And a disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek, and he was well spoken of by the brethren who were in Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted this man to go with him; and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they all knew that his father was a Greek” (Acts 16:1-3). He plays prominently in the rest of Paul’s life, being mentioned in ten out of his thirteen letters. He is not mentioned in Galatians, because Paul had not met Timothy when he wrote this letter, and he is not mentioned in Ephesians, during Paul’s early imprisonment. In 1 Timothy 1:3 Paul tells Timothy, “I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus.” It appears Paul wrote the letter to the Ephesians while Timothy was not yet with him, because he is mentioned as being with him in his subsequent letter to the Philippians.
1 Timothy is a letter of instruction from Paul to his “true child in the faith.”
Summary thus far:
Chapter 1: The apostle Paul writes to Timothy, his true child in the faith, who he had told to stay in Ephesus when he departed for Macedonia during his third missionary journey, so that he could instruct men not to teach strange doctrines or to pay attention to things which give rise to mere speculation, reminding him, “the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.” He warns that some men want to be teachers of the Law, “even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.” He teaches that, “the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murders and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God.” He thanks Jesus who showed him mercy because he had acted “ignorantly in unbelief” when he had been a persecutor of the church. He realizes he is an example, since he was the “foremost” of sinners, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” In Paul, Jesus demonstrated “His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” He commands Timothy, in keeping with prophecies made concerning him, to “fight the good fight, keeping faith and a good conscience.” He gives an example of men who rejected this and “suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith,” saying he has handed them “over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme.”
Chapter 2: Paul reminds that God our Savior “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”: “there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all.” Knowing God’s desire, Paul urges that “entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness in dignity.” Men should “pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and dissension.” He reminds that he was appointed “a preacher and an apostle…as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth,” even adding, “I am telling the truth, I am not lying.” Maybe he needs to remind us because his teachings are difficult. He reminds women to clothe themselves “moderately and discreetly…by means of good works.” Women “must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness” and not “teach or exercise authority over a man” because Eve, when she was “deceived, fell into transgression.” Women “will be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.”
1 Timothy 3
v1-7 “It is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do. An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money. He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil. And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
v8-13 “Deacons likewise must be men of dignity, not double-tongued, or addicted to much wine or fond of sordid gain, but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. These men must also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons if they are beyond reproach. Women must likewise be dignified, not malicious gossips, but temperate, faithful in all things. Deacons must be husbands of only one wife, and good managers of their children and their own households. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
v14-16 “I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.
By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness:
He who was revealed in the flesh,
Was vindicated in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world,
Taken up in glory.”
Dear Lord,
If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine
He who is of God hears the words of God
Helps us to truly be Your disciples, continuing in Your word. Thank You for the blessing of being able to hear Your words.
Do we understand the importance of the church of the living God, that it is the pillar and support of the truth? Thank You for the honor of being members of this household of God. Help us to know how to conduct ourselves, participating with gratitude and dignity so that the lost may come to a knowledge of the truth.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.