Daily Light devotional

Daily devotionals, publications that provide spiritual readings each day, offer a great way to remain active in prayer, and there are many from which to choose, across a wide variety of formats.

In this post, I'd like to draw attention to the "Daily Light on the Daily Path" option, often shorted to "Daily Light." Originally published in 1875, the Daily Light devotional provides twice-a-day (morning and evening) collections of short bible verses connected through a common theme. The devotional offer no other commentary -- just bible verses, which makes it unique among devotionals.

Due to its age, the devotional is widely available on the internet. I prefer the website https://dailylightdevotional.org/, but there are many other sources.

Try it out for a few days. Read the verses, morning and evening, and reflect on the common theme. See if it enhances your prayer life!

The bible makes it clear

Proverbs 22:20-21 (KJV) states,

Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge, that I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee?

As with so many parts of the bible, those words appear to hold dual meanings. On one hand, those are the words of Solomon to all who seek spiritual wisdom.

But on the other hand, those are the words of God, spoken direct to us. He's making clear that the words of the bible are there for our "counsels and knowledge," that we might know the "certainty of the words of truth," and that we might "answer the words of truth" to others.

So as we read, study, and pray the bible, never lose sight of the fact that the bible makes God's will clear through the plainness of clarity of written form.

The importance of blood

Leviticus 17, in dealing with where and how to conduct animal sacrifices, contains (at least) two important spiritual lessons.

First, verses 3-4 (KJV) stress that sacrifices must be conducted at the tabernacle.

What man soever there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp, and bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation ... that man shall be cut off from among his people.

This requirement was meant to counter the widespread practice of offering spiritual sacrifices anywhere and everywhere, a practice that tended to foster attendant pagan activities.

Now, recognizing that the tabernacle (later Temple) was a precursor to Jesus, and also recognizing that Jesus replaced the system of animal sacrifices with deeper sacrifices of prayer, the implication of this passage for us is that our focus must be directed toward Jesus, and not toward the materialistic concerns of this world.

Second, verse 10 forbids eating blood.

Whatsoever man there be ... that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people.

This rule about not eating blood also appeared at the Council of Jerusalem in the New Testament, indicating that even those early church fathers struggled to understand the meaning of this rule. Yet we clearly don't adhere to this in modern times. After all, people eat rare steaks, without concern for the spiritual implications. Is that a sin? Of course not; the bible makes clear that God is not concerned about dietary trivialities.

The prohibition on eating blood was meant to highlight that, in the system of animal sacrifices, the only way to remove sin was to shed blood. Something had to lose its life, and the dietary rule was a way to emphasize that point. Jesus, by shedding the ultimate blood, did away with animal sacrifices and removed sin forever. So once again, blood had to be shed. The "dietary" rule, as it applies to us, is that we must recognize the importance and meaning of Jesus' sacrifice, but that recognition does not, in turn, imply any sort of rule about food. For our sake, the Old Testament dietary rule was yet another precursor of Jesus.

So try re-reading Leviticus 17 with these points in mind. The chapter becomes something much more than a list of rules about animal sacrifice!

The disobedient prophet in 1 Kings 13

Various spots in the bible contain strange stories that don't seem to fit within the larger narrative. But those stories are there for a reason!

One example occurs in 1 Kings 13. A prophet is sent to deliver a dire message to the wicked king Jeroboam. God evidently has told the prophet that, after delivering the message, he is to refuse any and all offers of food or drink and return to his home.

But during his journey home, an elderly prophet hears of the visit by the first prophet and invites the visitor to his home to eat and drink. When the first prophet says that he cannot, because that goes against God's orders, the elderly prophet offers the following lie (1 Kings 13:18, KJV),

An angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water.

The reason for the deception is not clear, but the first prophet, evidently convinced, follows the elderly prophet to eat and drink. That act of disobedience displeases God, who then sends a lion to kill the first prophet.

But why is the first prophet punished? Doesn't fault lie with the elderly prophet who lied about speaking with an angel?

The point, it seems, is that the first prophet already had his orders from God. He should have trusted and followed those orders without question. Instead, he was lead astray by another person's interpretation of right and wrong.

We all risk being lead astray is similar ways. After all, we have the bible, God's word, which unambiguously lays out what is right, what is wrong, and what we are to do. But then when something earthly, be it a person or institution or societal norm, tries to interpret right and wrong in a manner that contradicts God's word, we don't have any excuse for ditching God to conform to that earthly source.

Therefore, we must pray without ceasing, so that our actions and thoughts remain consistent with God's will.

The Songs of Degrees

Immediately following the monster Psalm 119 (the longest psalm, and the longest chapter in the bible) comes the Songs of Degrees, also called the Songs of Ascent. Comprising Psalms 120-134, those fifteen psalms were sung by the ancient Israelites as they made pilgrimages to Jerusalem to worship at the Temple.

We're no longer required to physically transport ourselves to a temple structure, because, as the bible makes clear, Jesus himself now supersedes any physical structure (John 4, 21:24). But the Songs of Degrees still serve a useful purpose as we attempt to "ascend" to an improved relationship with God.

In particular, those fifteen psalms make a great fifteen-day bible study plan. Each of those psalms is a prayer, and dedicating a day to each over an (approximate) two-week period is a great way to force the bible into our hands, while also kick-starting our prayer lives.

David repents again

Despite being referred to as "a man of God's own heart," David, of course, was far from perfect. His most scandalous episode involved his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of her husband. But, following that episode, David famously repented, and had his sin washed away.

Note that David's confession does not take the form of some complicated speech to God, nor does it involve deep philosophy. He just repents.

Another depressing episode, appearing toward the end of 2 Samuel, has David ordering a census of his kingdom. The census, itself, was not sinful. Rather, David's haughty attitude in wishing to quantify his power showed a disregard for God's role in the accumulation of that power.

Yet, when David become aware of his sin, he follows the same script as the Bathsheba affair -- his just repents (2 Samuel 24:10, KJV),

David said unto the Lord, I have sinned greatly in that I have done: and now, I beseech thee, O Lord, take away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.

David's life, both the positives and negatives, serves as a prime example of how we should approach God. Let us do likewise.

Canst not tell whence it cometh

The bible includes several passages that emphasize our inability to understand heavenly matters. One example occurs in the book of Judges, when an angel announces to Samson's parents that they will have a son. Samson's dad asks the angel his name, to which the angel replies (Judges 13:18, KJV),

Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?

The Hebrew word translated as "secret" means something close to "incomprehensible."

Another example occurs in John 3, when Jesus is dining with Nicodemus. Nicodemus expresses confusion about people being "born again" with the spirit of God. How can that actually happen? Jesus responds (John 3:8, KJV),

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Jesus says that, although we hear the wind, we neither know where it comes from nor where it goes. And the same goes for the spirit of God.

Passages such as these serve to remind us that we should adopt a humble attitude toward spiritual matters. The point of faith is not to understand everything. Rather, the point simply is to believe and trust in God.