60IN60 Day 57 - Mon Aug 31

It's Day 57 and we're in Nehemiah 6.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 3 - What a great phrase: "I am doing a great work and cannot come down." We should use that when people try to distract us onto secondary things.

Help:
- Verse 10 - He was a false prophet. (See verse 12.)
- Verse 15 - What would have once been considered "impossible" was done in 52 days.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

Your Questions and Comments:

- "When the daughters were sold, was it to be a maid type servant or used sexually? Is this chapter still on the area of the wall? How big is this area?" - The word that is used in verse 5 can mean either enslaved or raped, but the context favors enslaved.  It is certainly possible, though, that some of the daughters were sexually abused, knowing what we know about people's tendency to exploit that power situation throughout history.  On the wall, it is not definite that this chapter happened during the rebuilding of the wall (the wording leaves room to understand it either way), but I think it likely did happen during the rebuilding.  Chapter 6 has references to the wall work, but later in the chapter indications the wall is complete.

60IN60 Day 56 - Sun Aug 30

It's Day 56 and we're in Nehemiah 5.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verses 7-8, 10 - "Usury" is an Old Testament term for charging interest. This is condemned by Nehemiah as exploitative. It is a different context (a small town struggling to climb out of a mess), but it's still worth pondering that God is unhappy with them charging interest. And the interest was only 1% (verse 11). It really makes you wonder what God thinks of some of the things we do in banking.

Help:
- Verses 17-18 - Nehemiah would have had to tax the people to pay for all this stuff. Instead, he bore the cost himself.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 55 - Sat Aug 29

It's Day 55 and we're in Nehemiah 4.

Note that we skipped chapter 3 and are on chapter 4.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 9 - Once again: prayer and a plan.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 54 - Fri Aug 28

It's Day 54 and we're in Nehemiah 2.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verses 4, 7-8 - He prayed, but he also had a plan.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 53 - Thurs Aug 27

It's Day 53 and we're in Nehemiah 1.

Please note that as we're going through Nehemiah we'll be skipping a couple chapters. They have number details that aren't crucial to understanding the larger story.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 6 - It usually starts with repentance.

Help:
- Verse 2 - The context of this story is that it's a time when Israel (because of their sinful disobedience) has been scattered into foreign countries and what's left in Jerusalem is a pitiful remnant. See also verse 8.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 52 - Wed Aug 26

It's Day 52 and we're in 1 Peter 5.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 6 - Trust that He'll lift you up at the right moment to a place of greater fruitfulness.

Help:
- Verse 1 - "elders" - This is the word Peter uses to speak about pastors.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 51 - Tues Aug 25

It's Day 51 and we're in 1 Peter 4.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Nothing really jumped out to me today.

Help:
- Verse 1 - This is not saying that suffering means that we're not sinning at all, but rather that going through trials and suffering will move us closer to Christlikeness.
- Verse 6 - Most likely means "those who are now dead." That is, those who've heard the gospel and gone on to eternity.
- Verses 13-16 - We don't want suffering for the sake of suffering, but when we suffer in Christ's name, there is a sense in which it's an honor to go through that for the glory of Jesus.
- Verses 17-18 - Judgment begins with the house of God. He expects us to live to a higher standard.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 50 - Mon Aug 24

It's Day 50 and we're in 1 Peter 3.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Nothing jumped out to me today.

Help:
- Verses 1, 5 - The word "submissive" is obviously a controversial one. Interpretations of the verses range from "this is only applicable to that day and time" to "the husband is the head of the household."
- Verse 7 - "weaker" - That refers to physical strength, not spiritual importance.
- Verse 7 - "prayers. . . hindered" - Our relationships with those around us do impact the effectiveness of our prayers.
- Verses 19-20 - This is obscure, but some possibilities: a. Might refer to the idea that between His death and resurrection, Christ preached to the already-condemned demons; b. Might refer to the idea that between His death and resurrection, Christ preached to those people who were already dead at that point.
- Verse 21 - Thankfully it clarifies the statement that "baptism saves you" by going on and saying that's a reference to the spiritual baptism we undergo.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 49 - Sun Aug 23

It's Day 49 and we're in 1 Peter 2.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 11 - Our sinful lusts "wage war" on our souls. We need to understand that sin is out to kill us spiritually.

Help:
- Verse 2 - There are two aspects to our salvation. One is the justification part: I have been made right before God at the moment of salvation. The other is the sanctification part: I am being made into someone who is actually like Jesus. This refers to the latter part.
- Verses 4-5 - The analogy is that the church is like a house and we are bricks.
- Verses 7-8 - In the analogy of building a spiritual house, they rejected Jesus but now He has been made the chief Cornerstone of the church.
- Verses 13-15 - This is the general way we are to behave. Of course, when the king/government's edicts contradict what God expects of us, we have a higher obligation to God.
- Verse 18 - This is the general way it should have been. There are other passages that flesh out this truth with additional aspects, like to pursue their freedom if they had opportunity.
- Verse 24 - Our sins were laid upon Him and He paid the price for them in His death.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 48 - Sat Aug 22

It's Day 48 and we're in 1 Peter 1.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 9 - That's a pretty good "outcome"!

Help:
- Verse 1 - "aliens" - Obviously not UFO aliens, but the meaning of a stranger, like an immigrant from a foreign country.
- Verse 2 - "sprinkled with His blood" - Not a literal thing but a spiritual thing - it is the blood of Christ that cleans us from our sins.
- Verses 15-16 - "holy" - Holy doesn't mean "holier than thou" - it means that we want sin gone out of our lives and we want to be as close to Jesus as we can get.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 47 - Fri Aug 21

It's Day 47 and we're in John 21.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 11 - The God of abundance.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 46 - Thurs Aug 20

It's Day 46 and we're in John 20.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 17 - This is the change that has happened by Christ's death and resurrection: God can now be "my God." Before, I was kept away from Him by my sins, but now through Christ there is a path to Him.

Help:
- Verse 23 - This is an amazing statement. It's part of our mission: as we proclaim the hope of Christ with the authority of Christ, when someone says, "I want Jesus" and we say, "You're forgiven through Jesus," that's true. Same thing when someone rejects Him.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 45 - Wed Aug 19

It's Day 45 and we're in John 19.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 10 - Pilate thought he had a lot of power over Jesus. In reality, he had none except what was granted him by Jesus. We need to make sure we don't get too full of ourselves.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 44 - Tues Aug 18

It's Day 44 and we're in John 18.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 36 - He was not overwhelmed by circumstances. His Kingdom is bigger than this world. And this was part of the plan for that Kingdom's expansion.

Help:
- Verse 6 - Why did they fall down? We can't be sure, but it could have been (a) a divine display of power in His words to make it clear that He is being taken by His choice and not their power, or (b) simply a chain reaction caused by some of the soldiers being overwhelmed by being in His presence (He speaks to them, they know this is a wrong mission, they are overwhelmed by His presence and they step back away from Him, a chain reaction fall happens).
- Verse 14 - He didn't realize how prophetic his words were.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 43 - Mon Aug 17

It's Day 43 and we're in John 17.

If it's hard to understand what you're reading in the Bible, make sure you have a translation that's a good fit for you. Reading the King James (a great historic translation) can be particularly difficult because of the antiquated language. Among the good options available today: New International Version (good all-around translation), English Standard Version (good all-around translation), New American Standard (a more literal translation, closer to the original manuscripts), and New Living Translation (a translation that focuses on readability and understandability). 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 2 - That's an incredible gift: eternal life.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 42 - Sun Aug 16

It's Day 42 and we're in John 16.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 13 - I want to know more of the truth. Spirit, guide me into "all truth."

Help:
- Verses 8-11 - This unpacks some of what the Holy Spirit's specific job is. On "sin," the Spirit convicts people that they are not believing in Jesus; on "righteousness," because we don't have Jesus in front of us to give us an example of what perfect living looks like, the Spirit convicts us of shortcomings; on "judgment," that we would know that Satan has been condemned and we don't want to be on his side.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 41 - Sat Aug 15

It's Day 41 and we're in John 15.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verses 1-11 - This is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. It clearly lays out that we are expected to be fruitful with our lives as well as how to make that happen.

Help:
- Verse 7 - Note that the amazing promise of answered prayer is conditional on obedience.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 40 - Fri Aug 14

It's Day 40 and we're in Daniel 6.

Father, what do You want to teach us today through Your Word? 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 24 - I just don't like this verse. There are parts of the Bible that I don't particularly care for, but that doesn't mean they're not true. We have to keep seeking God's wisdom on those verses.

Help:
- Verse 14 - Apparently the king either hadn't thought through all the ramifications of his decision, didn't realize Daniel prayed publicly daily, didn't realize how hard-core Daniel would be about this, or just got entranced by the flattery.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 39 - Thurs Aug 13

It's Day 39 and we're in Daniel 5.

Note that we skipped chapter 4.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 27 - What a horrible thing to have God say directly to you: I have looked at your life and found it lacking. Live so that won't be said of you.

Help:
- Verses 11, 14 - "spirit of the holy gods" - As I mentioned yesterday, that is the way that this person understand Daniel's abilities. In fact, of course, there is only one true God.
- Verse 23 - Bringing out the items from the Jewish Temple was pretty provocative. "Don't poke the bear."

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 38 - Wed Aug 12

It's Day 38 and we're in Daniel 3.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Nothing really jumped out to me.

Help:
- Verse 14 - Given all that happened in chapter 2, you'd think that the king would know that the Hebrews weren't going to bow down. Perhaps he didn't think they'd be willing to maintain their conviction under such harsh conditions.
- Verse 25 - The presumption here is that the fourth was Jesus showing up.
- Verse 29 - The harsh penalty that the king prescribes isn't necessarily God's will. It's just his expression of amazement at what God did.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 37 - Tues Aug 11

It's Day 37 and we're in Daniel 2.

What's the Bible say about the book you're reading today? We have the Word so that as believers we can be "equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:17). Read the Word so you're ready for what life throws at you. 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 18 - First thing they did: pray.

Help:
- Verses 5-6 - This is a totally unreasonable demand. A reminder: the Bible does not condone everything it reports. In this case, the king's anger was not justified and his demand was not just.
- Verse 37 - "king of kings" - This was literally true since he had conquered other kingdoms.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 36 - Mon Aug 10

It's Day 36 and we're in Daniel 1. 

Where God Spoke To Me: - Verse 9 - God can go ahead of us and give us favor, opening up doors of opportunity. 

Help: 
- Verse 2 - They were delivered to a foreign power because of their disobedience as a nation. 
- Verse 8 - There were two areas of concern for Daniel: a. much of the food was sacrificed to idols; b. much of the food was unclean according to Old Testament Law. 
- Verse 15 - "fatter" - I presume here that doesn't mean obese, but just that they were healthy and stout. 

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link. 

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 35 - Sun Aug 9

It's Day 35 and we're in Galatians 6. 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 15 - What counts is the new creation.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link. 

If you have any questions or comments, email them to me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 34 - Sat Aug 8

It's Day 34 and we're in Galatians 5.

Where God Spoke to Me:
- Verse 16 - Living by the Spirit means that we're working against pursuing the lusts of our sinful nature.

Help:
- Verse 1 - This is not physical slavery, but the spiritual slavery of going back to the bondage of a rule-based religion.
- Verses 2-3 - The need to be circumcised was a big issue for the teachers who were leading the Galatian church astray. Paul is noting that if you feel like you have to be circumcised to be right, then you can't really just stop there - you need to go on and fulfill the whole Mosaic Law.
- Verse 4 - "fallen away from grace" - This idea of "falling from grace" has to be understood in the context of what's being said here. The obvious point that Paul is making here is that they are falling from the idea of being saved by grace and falling back down toward the ineffective idea of being saved by trying to keep the Mosaic Law. Some people say, "You can lose your salvation because the Bible says you can fall from grace." You have to read it in context, though, and the subject here is not salvation but wrong teaching.
- Verse 9 - Paul is saying that it only takes a few people within a church teaching things that are questionable to get the whole church messed up.
- Verse 12 - Paul is using a little exaggeration here to make his point. He's saying if these teachers think circumcision is so essential then maybe they should go all the way and emasculate themselves.
- Verses 13-14 - Rather than living under the tyranny of a rule-based religion (by trying to keep the Mosaic Law), we are called to be free. We each follow the Holy Spirit's guidance. That freedom, though, is not an open door to freely sinning, but rather to serving God and each other.
- Verse 24 - This is an important idea: when we are saved, our old, sinful nature is crucified with Christ. We are a new creation, fully capable of living victoriously for Christ.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 33 - Fri Aug 7

It's Day 33 and we're in Galatians 4.

Where God Spoke to Me:
- Nothing jumped out to me today. That's ok - we won't necessarily hear God speak every day.

Help:
- Verse 3 - Rough translation: before we became Christians (and therefore heirs of God) we were just (spiritually) children under the grip of sin.
- Verses 9-10 - Instead of living a life of grace, they had returned to trying to live by the rules and regulations that the Mosaic Law demanded. That's no way for a Christian to live.
- Verse 14 - Paul had some health problems while with them, but they were exceedingly kind to him anyway.
- Verse 15 - Many believe (although the Bible never says definitively) that Paul's health problems had to do with poor eyesight.
- Verse 27 - Rough translation: Even though Sarah was childless for so long, in the end she became a mother to countless children (both physical and spiritual) through the fulfilled promise from God.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 32 - Thurs Aug 6

It's Day 32 and we're in Galatians 3. 

One reason to be in the Bible regularly? It cuts through the clutter. We are surrounded by tons of information, but so much of it is essentially irrelevant to a meaningful life. The Bible speaks to the issues that matter. 

Where God Spoke to Me: 

- Verse 27 - A good reminder that we need to "clothe" ourselves with Christ each day - that is, we choose to "put on" all that He has given us. 

Help: 

- Verses 1-3 - They had heard the gospel of grace from Paul: you can only be saved by grace through faith. Then others began to convince them that their righteousness came from obeying the Law, which is something that can never create righteousness within us because we're always going to fall short of perfectly fulfilling the Law. Paul is asking them why they allowed themselves to get fooled.
- Verses 5-14 - Paul is here arguing that even Abraham (who lived before the Mosaic Law was given) was justified by faith and not works. The purpose of the Mosaic Law was ultimately not to provide a way to God (because we can't live out the Law perfectly) but rather to make us aware of how far short of God's perfect standard we're falling. 
- Verses 15-19 - This continues the point I just made about verses 5-14 and goes on to say that Christ is the One who was able to perfectly fulfill the Mosaic Law. 
- Verse 22 - We are imprisoned (spiritually) by our sin and Christ has come to set us free. 

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link. 

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 31 - Wed Aug 5

It's Day 31 and we're in Galatians 2. 

Where God Spoke To Me: - Verse 20 - This is an essential truth that most Christians don't grasp.  The old person is dead. 

Help: - Verses 2-3 - The first disciples were Jews.  Jesus was a Jew.  With the beginning of Christianity, there were questions about which parts of the Jewish faith were binding on the new Christians. 
- Verse 11 - There were disagreements on these Jewish issues between Paul and Peter, with Peter arguing for more of the old Jewish things being held onto and Paul arguing for more freedom.  Paul was right. 
- Verses 15-17 - You cannot get to God through the Mosaic Law.  The Law's primary purpose was to show us how far short of God's standard we are. 
- Verse 20 - This is an important truth.  My old self was crucified with Jesus on the cross.  As a believer in Jesus, I am a new creation. 

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link. 

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 30 - Tues Aug 4

It's Day 30 and we're in Galatians 1. 

A little reminder from James 1:22 - "Do not merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says!"  

Where God Spoke To Me: - Verses 8-9 - Truth matters.  It's not enough that we're sincere in our belief - we need to sincerely believe something that's true. 

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link. 

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 29 - Mon Aug 3

It's Day 29 and we're in John 14.

One thing that's important as we read daily: being eager to hear Him speak to you. Go into your reading expectant that God desires to share something with you. 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 12 - I want to see "greater things" - I'm tired of only seeing small prayers answered. I want to see Him pour out His power to overflowing.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 28 - Sun Aug 2

It's Day 28 and we're in John 13.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 22 - In each of them wondering if they were the one that would betray, it reveals that each of us knows that we have a weak place within us where we're capable of terrible things.

Help:
- Verse 23 - Back in Jesus' day, you didn't sit in a chair at a table but instead you reclined, leaning on one of your arms at the low table.
- Verse 34 - It's not a new thing for God to command His people to love each other, but it's a new thing for Him to command us to love each other with the sacrificial love that Jesus had.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 27 - Sat Aug 1

It's Day 27 and we're in John 12.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 10 - Rather than taking the miraculous resurrection of Lazarus as clear evidence of Jesus' divinity, the Pharisees instead plan to kill Lazarus. Crazy blindness. How often do I miss out on God's power and direction because I've decided ahead of time what I will do?

Help:
- Verses 7-8 - This is not an excuse to neglect the poor, but merely a statement that the present situation they found themselves in was an unusual one that merited the expensive sacrifice.
- Verses 20-26 - Jesus doesn't seem to directly answer their question. What's going on? If I had to summarize it, I would say that what Jesus had in mind is something like this: it's good that they want to talk to Me, but the time for talking is behind now and instead it's the time for My to pursue the action of going to the cross.
- Verse 25 - What does this mean? It means that rather than always pursuing what I want as the vision of my life, instead I need to be willing to pursue what God is calling me to do in order to see His abundant life. I have to "die to self" and instead of living for what I want, I live for what Jesus instructed.
- Verse 40 - This does not mean that God forced them into their blindness. It means that they were intentionally rejecting what He was saying (see verse 20-26) and so He gave them over to their desires, which resulted in spiritual blindness.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.