The AMI QT Devotionals from December 4-10 are written by Andy Kim. Andy, a graduate of Northwestern University and Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div.) currently serves as a staff at Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco. And this past November Andy got married . . . to Jane. Congratulations.
Devotional Thoughts for Today
Genesis 26:1-5
Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines. 2 And the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. 4 I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, 5 because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”
Over the past decade, millennials have gotten a bad reputation, especially from the previous generations. Time magazine writer John Stein describes the stigma of the millennials as the “ME, ME, ME” generation. While previous generations have been built on hard work and sacrifice for the next, millennials expect to simply ride on their coat tails. Stein writes that the consequences are feelings of entitlement and laziness. As a millennial, I feel that these generalizations may be debatable, but we can all agree that there is no such thing as a free ride in our world today.
In our passage, the writer makes it clear that Isaac is the benefactor of Abraham’s obedience. But if the blessings that came to Isaac were only because “Abraham obeyed God’s voice and kept his charge” (v. 5), then why make Isaac go through the same trials his father endured? Again and again, Isaac’s life seems to follow in the footsteps of his father—from living in famine, struggling under foreign rulers, to having no place to settle down (vv. 1-4). All of this is under the future promise that God will bless them later. Why? Perhaps God is trying to teach Isaac that even though the blessings have come through his father, he, too, must exercise faith in order to fully enjoy the promised blessings. But more than the blessings themselves, God wanted to ensure that Isaac, too, would have a personal relationship with Him.
Let’s take a moment to re-examine our faith: Why do we believe in the things we believe in? Is it because we were born into it, or we grew up in a believing community? Is it based on the faith of our church leaders, or perhaps how much we do for the church? While these are all important, ultimately, God desires that we would all personally know Him. J.I. Packer writes, “There is no peace like the peace of those whose minds are possessed with full assurance that they have known God, and God has known them.” While salvation has been freely given, it is by no means a free ride for anyone. It only is given to those who have personally experienced Him and believe in His word. And so as we look to the fathers of faith, may we continue to run with endurance the race that is set before us—only now, looking to Jesus the author and perfector of our faith (Hebrews 12:1).
Prayer: Father, we confess that oftentimes we focus more on the things You can do for us rather than in who You are. Help us to remember that You are the faithful God who knows what’s best for us. Give us the strength in our prayers to trust that You will move in Your perfect timing and way. Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 39
Lunch Break Study
Read Philippians 3:4-11: If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Questions to Consider
- How does Paul’s knowledge of God change in this passage?
- What is the result of Paul’s change in understanding? How does it change him?
- How do you see your knowledge of God changing you?
Notes
- Though Paul has quite an impressive resume and experience that shows he knows about God more than anyone else, he makes it clear that such knowledge is nothing in comparison to knowing Christ—making a distinction between simply knowing about God and His ways vs. knowing Christ. Paul states that to know Christ is ultimately to be found in Him—that is, to be in fellowship and relationship with Him. He realizes that only such a relationship with Christ is what makes him truly righteous.
- Commentator Melick writes, “It was impossible to hold on to the former values and still have Christ. It was one or the other, and Christ exceeded anything and everything else.” And so Paul is able to freely give up his past experiences and accomplishments because knowing Christ was far greater than these. When we find something of infinite value, all other things lose their significance in our lives. Thus, Paul’s pursuit of knowing Christ gives him the strength and power to endure through life’s sufferings.
- Personal response.
Evening Reflection
J.I. Packer writes that all the things we know about God mean nothing if we don’t actually know Him. In Knowing God he writes, “How can we turn our knowledge about God into knowledge of God? The rule for doing this is simple but demanding. It is that we turn each Truth that we learn about God into matter for meditation before God, leading to prayer and praise to God.” We can only really know a person when we spend time with them. Let us take a moment to think of some truth we know about God—maybe it’s a simple verse or even a phrase. Spend a few moments simply meditating on it. Sometimes it helps to declare those words over yourself. Even the simplest truths can speak volumes when the words come alive in the heart.
Over Thanksgiving, we laughed over past memories of my silly childhood and one stood out in particular. My mom would take me to prayer meetings and leave me in the back with the other kids to run around. In one service, the pastor went around praying and laying hands on the heads of the people. The next morning while my mom was praying, she suddenly felt a hand on her head. She had thought it was Jesus! But when she looked up, she was shocked to see her four-year-old son passionately jerking her head yelling gibberish! For many of us, we’ve learned to pray ever since we were young. But over time, such learned prayers can become repetitive and mundane. The danger is that these once faith-driven prayers can become mere afterthoughts.
Every year, America witnesses the inner savage in all humans—we call it Black Friday shopping. In the past, shoppers have actually pulled out guns but people still refused to let go of televisions and computers even as they were getting shot at. This year, a shopper threw a shoe at a poor innocent baby while trying to beat the rush. Suffice it to say, we can all agree that Black Friday shopping has taken over and destroyed the meaning of Thanksgiving. Rather than celebrating with families and friends and thinking of the years’ past blessings, people sit in tents waiting in lines, fighting one another. Over what? Just to save some money on items that will soon be outdated.
The AMI QT Devotionals from December 4-10 are written by Andy Kim. Andy, a graduate of Northwestern University and Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div.) currently serves as a staff at Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco. And this past November Andy got married . . . to Jane. Congratulations.
We have all given up something to be where we are today. For the sake of your career, think about all the fun you gave up with countless hours for that next promotion; for your family, all the sacrifices you made for your kids; for your health, all the sugary carbs with depressing diets and workouts. We call these “opportunity cost”: simply put, it is to give up something for something else usually of greater value.
The AMI QT Devotionals for November 27 to December 3 are written by David Son, who serves as the college pastor at Symphony Church in Boston. David, a graduate of UC Berkeley (B.S.) and Gordon-Conwell Seminary (M.Div.), is married to Grace, who teaches at a public school.
In order to become a US Navy SEAL, you need to be 28 years or younger, have near perfect vision, be able to run 1.5 miles in 9-10 minutes or less, do 100+ pushups in 2 minutes, 100+ sit-ups in 2 minutes, and swim 500 yards (5 football fields) in less than 8 minutes. And those are just some of the physical requirements; there is a whole lot more testing that you have to pass in order to potentially become a Navy SEAL. They are one of the elite forces in the United States military, and so their selection process is very stringent. Only the cream of the crop should even think about applying. But those who go on to become SEALs are some of the most honored, respected, and saluted service-men in our nation.
Growing up, I always believed it was utterly wrong to ask God for a sign, and not without good reason! There are many examples from Scripture where it was clearly wrong to ask for a sign: For example, when the Israelites tested God at Massah (Ex. 17), or when Jesus was tempted by Satan to throw himself down from the temple (Matt. 4), and also when Jesus rebukes an “evil generation” that seeks for a sign (Luke 11). But on the other hand, there are also some examples where it was right for people to ask God for a sign: When Gideon received his call, he asked for several consecutive signs to confirm his anointing as a judge over Israel. In 2 Kings 20, Hezekiah asks for a sign to confirm that he would indeed be healed of his deathly illness. Furthermore, in the book of Malachi, God even invites His people to put Him to the test when it comes to tithing!
Since the age of four, Cheryl Pruitt used to hang around her father’s country store; and each day, the milkman would arrive at the store and would greet Cheryl the same way: “How’s my little Miss America?” Many years later, Cheryl Pruitt went on to actually become the 1980 Miss America. The power that words can have is profound—even simple words from a neighborhood milkman! How much more powerful are the words of God in transforming our lives?
The city of Shanghai has a peculiar event called the “Shanghai Marriage Market.” Think local farmer’s market meets eHarmony. At this meet and greet, parents write the basic information of their child on a slip of paper, and it gets put on display on a wall, along with hundreds of other “advertisements.” Pertinent information includes age, height, job, income, zodiac sign, etc. The hope for parents is that they would meet another parent whose child is a suitable match for their own child. As you might expect, the children mostly despise their parents’ participation in the Shanghai Marriage Market. But it continues to take place on a weekly basis because of the strong desire of parents to preserve their cultural traditions for the next generation.
Vincent van Gogh is one of the most influential painters in the Western history of art. But during his life, he was never a successful artist and never made it big. His paintings were never highly regarded. He struggled with depression and psychosis. In fact, most people thought of Van Gogh as a miserable failure. It was only until after his tragic death that people began to take note of his mastery in painting. Generations later, Van Gogh’s masterpieces have become some of the most iconic and inspiring works known to man. Perhaps the greatest tragedy of Van Gogh’s life was that he had no idea of the impact he would have on future generations to come.
Most American retail stores don’t operate on a system where prices are negotiable. But in many parts of the world, negotiating prices is a normal part of the business culture. If you’ve ever sold or purchased anything through Craigslist, you may have an idea of how temperamental and even volatile these transactions can be. In our passage today, Abraham enters into a negotiation with Ephron the Hittite for a plot of land. If there is anything we can learn from this passage, it’s the exemplary integrity of Abraham in a business setting.