Born again, from above

New Guest: Like this one, most posts are devotional; those related to CAR BIZ can be found by searching for that title. You might start with 'Welcome,' the first post in the archives, dated November 12, 2008, where I introduce myself and the blog. I invite to you add in any reflections or comments you may have.

Blessings and best wishes,
Dr. Will

Monday and Tuesday, January 18 and 19, 2010
Devotions: Ps 9, 15, 25, 26, 28, 36, 39; Gen 8:6-9:17; Heb 4:14-5:14; Jn 2:23-3:21

I praise You, God, for Your constant protection and help. You are Master, enthroned forever. Continue Your grace, I pray, and let me know Your power and goodness! Only the blameless can abide Your presence, YHWH, and I am vindicated by Your grace and mercy. I will live by Your precepts today, God helping me, and I shall not be moved! Make me know Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths, Your truth, Your goodness. According to Your steadfast love, remember me. All Your paths are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep Your covenant and testimonies. Pardon my great guilt, and sustain me in this stressful life; my eyes are ever toward You, my Deliverer. Relieve the troubles of my heart and forgive all my sins. May integrity and righteousness preserve me, for I wait upon You. I walk in faithfulness to You. I shun the company of the wicked and their ways. I walk in the integrity of my God. Requite my enemies, O Lord, according to their harmful intentions. YHWH alone is my Rock and my Shield; my heart trusts in God alone, the Strength of His people. The wicked are dragged off by temptation and sin; I am protected by God’s righteousness and holy love. I will guard my ways, with God’s help and guidance. Lord, let me not become the scorn of fools!

After the rains stopped, and the waters receded until the mountaintops could be seen, Noah opened the windows of the ark and sent forth a raven and a dove. At first, the dove returned—she found nowhere to land. A week later, Noah tried again; the dove came back with an olive leaf in her beak. A week later, he released the dove, and she did not return any more. About 10 ½ months after entering the ark, Noah removed the ark’s covering. A bit over a year after the flood began, God told Noah to go forth from the ark with his human household and the animals from the ark. Noah built an altar, and before YHWH he sacrificed from every clean species of animal and bird. God pledged never again to curse the ground or destroy all life as in the flood. ‘While the earth remains,’ God resolved,’ seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will not cease.’ God blessed Noah and his sons, and directed them, ‘Be fruitful; multiply; fill the earth.’ Dread of humankind would fall on every form of animal life; and God permitted them to eat animal flesh as well as plants. But God forbade them to eat blood; blood has been precious to God from time immemorial; and God requires accounting for shed blood—for humans are in God’s own image. God covenanted with Noah and his sons and even the animals from the ark, so that ‘never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never will a flood destroy the earth.’ God set his rainbow amid the clouds as a sign of this covenant which God established ‘between Me and all flesh that is upon the earth.’ From Noah and his sons, all the earth was populated.

Since we Christians have a great High Priest Who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, we will hold fast our confession. He was tempted in every way as we are, yet He did not sin. Therefore, let us draw near to the throne of grace with confidence, to receive mercy and grace in time of need. Human high priests were appointed to act on behalf of humanity towards God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. They are mortal and sinners, too, so they should be gentle with the wayward and ignorant, as they are themselves beset with weaknesses. Consequently, they had to offer sacrifices for their own sins as well as for those of the people. And high priests are not volunteers; they are called, as Aaron was. The Messiah was called by God: ‘You are My Son; today I have begotten You. You are Priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.’ During His days in mortal flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears, to Him Who was able to save Jesus from death; and His prayers were accepted because of His godly fear. Though He was a Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered. And thus being made complete and perfect, He became the Source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, as God designated him High Priest in Melchizedek’s order. All Christians should understand this by now; but you are dull to hear, and still children in spirituality. You need milk, not solid food; milk-fed children are unskilled in the lore of righteousness. Solid food is for the mature, those trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.

Among those who witnessed Jesus’ miracles, many believed in Him; but Jesus did not entrust Himself to them, knowing human nature. He needed no one to tell him about humanity, for He Himself knew what was in humankind. A Pharisee named Nicodemus, one of the Jewish rulers, came to Jesus at night and said, ‘Rabbi, we know You are a teacher stent from God; no one could do the signs You have done otherwise.’ Jesus responded: ‘I tell you most solemnly, no one can seen God’s kingdom unless he is born anew.’ Nicodemus didn’t understand: ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter his mother’s womb again and be born?’ Jesus continued, ‘Truly, truly, I tell you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Flesh gives birth to flesh, and Spirit to spirit. Don’t marvel that I told you, ‘You must be born anew.’ The wind (Spirit, breath) blows where it wills; you hear its sound, but know not whence it comes or whither it is going. It is just like this with everyone born of the Spirit.’ Nicodemus said, ‘How can this be?’ And Jesus answered, ‘Are you not a teacher in Israel? Yet you cannot understand this? I tell you truly, We speak of what We know, and witness to what we have seen.