60IN60 Day 29 - Mon Sept 30

It’s Day 29 and we’re in John 11.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verses 21, 32 - I like the fact that they could be honest about their questions and disappointments with Jesus and He doesn't condemn them for it. 

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 Sept 29

It’s Day 28 and we’re in John 10.

Remember that your daily reading in the Bible isn't about gaining information - it's about changing your life to be more like Christ. That means that you need to take action on what God speaks to you about. 

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 10 - He's not just offering adequate life; He's offering us abundant life.

Help:

- Verses 34-36 - This is a difficult saying. Unfortunately, it's really not an explanation that can be succinctly stated and I really don't have sufficient space here to explain it. Some answers take a whole sermon!

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 Sept 28

It’s Day 27 and we’re in John 9.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verses 6-7 - I like how Jesus' healings are not cookie-cutter. They happen different ways in different situations, just as He works differently in each of our lives.

Help:

- Verse 3 - Even in the midst of tragedy and heartbreak, God is working to bring something redemptive out of it.

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 26 - Fri Sept 27

It's Day 26 and we're in John 8.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 31 - This is what God expects of us. Obeying His teaching is not optional for a believer. 

Help:

- Verse 6 - What did He write? We don't know. One of the more interesting suggestions is that He was writing the sins of the men holding the rocks.
- Verses 58-59 - By using the phrase "I am," Jesus was equating Himself with 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.

Your Questions and Comments:

- "I wonder about the word slavery. In a broad sense, the term may be broadly interpreted as having an obligation to fulfill. That may be a harsh way of thinking given history. On another level, I have been fascinated with reading 1 Timothy. It has been the most readable section so far in the Bible. I can understand, and yes interpret in our time the messages herein. Great clarity." - The most important thing to know about that reference in 1 Timothy is that the slavery back in that day was more like an indentured servitude that was for a limited amount of time. The racially-based, permanent slavery of the American South in the early part of our history is something completely different and not in any way morally defensible.

60IN60 Day 25 - Thurs Sept 26

It's Day 25 and we're in 1 Timothy 6.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verses 6-8 - How badly do we need to heed these words in the culture in which we live? We have everything and we're still not content.

Help:

- Verses 1-2 - In other places, Paul advises slaves to get their freedom if they can, but he also puts a great emphasis on living out their faith even within their bonds.

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 24 - Wed Sept 25

It's Day 24 and we're in 1 Timothy 5.

One reason to be in the Bible regularly? It provides the answers to life's most pressing questions: "Why am I here?" "What value does my life have?" "What does God want out of me?" "What does a life well spent look like?" For all the time we spend daily on trivial things, it's essential that we spend some time on the big questions.

 

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 22 - We bear part of the responsibility when we put the wrong people in leadership positions. That's one reason we need to be careful and prayerful about those choices.

Help:

- Verse 9 - There was a list of widows who received financial help from the church and Paul is here talking about the requirements for being on that list.

- Verse 12 - "previous pledge" - Apparently getting on this list involved taking a pledge, perhaps to devote yourself to more prayer or something like that.

- Verse 23 - Timothy had some medical problems and Paul advises him to use a little wine to help with that.

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:

- "1 Timothy 2:12/1 Timothy 1:11 - I see these verses used by what you might call the 'Christian Pharisees' to discriminate against others and push them away from the church. However, it seems that these words of Paul are not consistent with the core teachings of Jesus: Love, Acceptance, and Equality. What should we make of this, and how can we be proactive when faced with the challenge of others abusing this scripture?" - That's a big question. I'll try to summarize the major contours of the issue briefly.

a. When facing the challenging teaching of 1 Timothy 2:12, there have been a few different approaches. Some have said it literally means what it says and it should be obeyed in that way. Others argue that often in Paul's letters he is addressing specific situations within the churches of his time and that instruction was for that moment and not mandated for all churches of all times to literally obey. (An example of this is Romans 16:16, where Paul instructs the Romans to greet one another with a "holy kiss." You may have noticed most churches today aren't greeting each other with a kiss on the cheek.)

b. A second issue at play here is the role of women in the church. Some Christians interpret the New Testament teaching in a way that is called "egalitarianism." That is, men and women are completely equal and are free to fill any roles in the church (i.e., for instance, it's ok to have women preachers). Others believe in what is called "complementarianism," which is that men and women are of equal value spiritually but have been called to different and complementary roles. Those believing that would argue, for instance, that the role of pastor is limited to men. There has been a lot of debate about this issue over the last 50 years.

c. Third, what was the specific problem here? Many argue the issue was that the women in the particular church Timothy was dealing with were being contentious and his instruction is not that they are not to say a single word ever in church (I don't know a single church that argues that) but that they weren't to cause problems.

d. You are right that this is a verse that can easily be abused and misused. I think the biggest safeguard against that is that we should not focus on one single verse but we should read the New Testament as a whole and bring all the relevant verses together in a way that provides a complete picture. We can get in trouble when someone just focuses on one verse and then doubles-down on that without looking at the rest of Scripture. Scripture helps us interpret Scripture.

As I said, this is a brief summary to a question that could easily have a book-length answer. I'd be happy to provide additional resources for those interested in studying deeper.

- "1 Timothy 4:3 - Is this implying that something like vegetarianism is bad?" - No. Back in Paul's day there were people who were trying to add conditions and requirements onto salvation. One example were the Judaizers, who believed you needed to believe in Jesus AND follow the Old Testament Mosaic Law to be saved. That's troubling because it's adding to the simple plan of salvation.

In this verse, there were people who were arguing that you couldn't be saved if you were married, so they were forbidding people to marry. There were others who were arguing that you had to abstain from certain foods (and of course they made that list) in order to be saved. We read something similar elsewhere in the New Testament when Paul talks about people who argued that the Christians of that day couldn't eat food sacrificed to idols or they'd be in spiritual danger.

So the point is not that vegetarianism (or something similar) is bad. Rather, it's that adding conditions to salvation (like, you can't eat certain things) is bad.

60IN60 Day 23 - Tues Sept 24

It's Day 23 and we're in 1 Timothy 4.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 7 - "discipline yourself" - Spiritual growth doesn't happen by accident.

Help:

- Verse 10 - Jesus is the Savior of all people because He died to make it possible for everyone to be forgiven, but there is obviously a sense in which He is especially the Savior for those of us who have accepted His sacrifice.

- Verse 12 - "youthfulness" - Timothy was relatively young.

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 Comments and Questions:

- 1 Timothy 2:14 - "Do you think Adam was also deceived; not just Eve? Yes, Satan deceived Eve first but Adam didn’t have to eat that dang apple just because she did." - It's an interesting question. The Scripture is not explicit about all the details because what it says in Genesis 3 is fairly brief. My best interpretation is that Eve was the one who was deceived and ate but I'm not sure you can say that Adam was deceived. I think it might have been worse. I think Adam might have known that Eve had been deceived, knew he shouldn't do it too, but ate anyway. If true, there is a willfulness in his sin that wasn't necessarily present in Eve's.

60IN60 Day 22 - Mon Sept 23

It's Day 22 and we're in 1 Timothy 3.

One problem that regularly bothers me as I read is a wandering mind. A word in the text will make me think of something that I have to do that day and my mind is off to the races, leaving the Bible behind. I've found it helpful to have something near me that I can make a note on when that happens so I can write down that thing I need to do later and get back to concentrating on the reading in front of me.
 

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verses 2-13 - As it lays out the requirements for being a pastor (overseer) and deacon, we need to remember that we need to be careful in choosing people for those roles.  I've seen too many situations where they were chosen with no thought to the Biblical requirements.

Help:

- Verse 1 - "Overseer" means pastor.

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 21 - Sun Sept 22

It's Day 21 and we're in 1 Timothy 2.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verses 9-10 - A reminder that as we come into church it's not our fancy clothes that God's interested in.

Help:

- Verses 11-12 - A variety of interpretations have been offered down through the years, including: a. This was only for the time of Paul and is not applicable to today; b. This means that women shouldn't be pastors; c. This only has to do with the particular church Timothy was ministering in at that time, where perhaps the women were not particularly spiritually mature.

- Verse 15 - This is an obscure verse that's meaning is not clear.

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 20 - Sat Sept 21

It's Day 20 and we're in 1 Timothy 1.

What's the Bible say about the book you're reading today? "All Scripture is. . . profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16). Reading the Bible will make your day more "profitable."
 

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 6 - "fruitless discussion" - Still a popular thing today.  Debating religion for the sake of proving yourself right is largely a waste of time.

Help:

- Verse 18 - "the prophecies previously made concerning you" - Prophecies had been made when Timothy was younger about how God would use him.

- Verse 20 - "handed over to Satan" - These men had pursued what was evil, so Paul essentially released them from God's protection and asks God to allow Satan to have his way with them.  The goal is for them to repent and return to the truth.

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 19 - Fri Sept 20

It's Day 19 and we're in Exodus 7.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verses 11, 22 - This is a reminder to me that the forces of evil can duplicate some of the amazing things that God can do.  I shouldn't be too impressed by the miracle in and of itself.

Help:

- Verse 1 - "I will make you as God to Pharaoh" - That simply means that Moses would be God's chosen representative before Pharaoh, not that God was going to make Moses into a "mini-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 18 - Thurs Sept 19

It's Day 18 and we're in Exodus 6.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 9 - Sometimes people struggle to believe that's what God is offering could be real because their current situation is so bad.

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 17 - Wed Sept 18

It's Day 17 and we're in Exodus 5.

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 7 - Sometimes the first step toward God's deliverance looks like a step backward.  Things don't always immediately get better.

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 16 - Tues Sept 17

It's Day 16 and we're in Exodus 4.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 1 - How many excuses can we come up with as to why we shouldn't do what God is calling us to do?

Help:

- Verse 21 - Does this mean that God was overriding Pharaoh's free will?  I think it was a combination of two things: Pharaoh was inclined to be hard-hearted toward Israel and God orchestrated the situation to accentuate that.

- Verses 24-26 - This is an obscure and weird passage that has stumped scholars for centuries.  I can't really say that I have a good answer to what's going on here.

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 15 - Mon Sept 16

It's Day 15 and we're in Exodus 3.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 11 - I think we all have moments of doubting that God could do something significant through us.  Ultimately, though, it's about how big He is, not how great we are.

 

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 14 - Sun Sept 15

It's Day 14 and we're in Exodus 2.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 5 - Even in the midst of something intended for evil, God is able to work so that His chosen servant is raised both with a Hebrew heritage and with a knowledge of the inner workings of Pharaoh's household.

 

Help:

- Verse 12 - Moses' thoughts were in the right direction (protecting the Hebrews), but he went about it the wrong way (in his own power).

- Verse 25 - Not saying that God had been distracted, but rather that their cries and prayers finally were sufficient to merit His move.

 

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 13 - Sat Sept 14

It's Day 13 and we're in Exodus 1.

We'll come back to John.  We're going to visit different parts of the Bible during our 60 days: gospels, New Testament epistles, Old Testament stories, Psalms, Proverbs.  Each brings something different to the table.

 

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 8 - "who did not know Joseph" - You can't rest on the way things used to be.  It's a new day and you have to face what's in front of you.

 

Help:

- Verse 1 - The context of this, for those who don't know, is that Israel has long been in Egypt and now God is going to bring them up to the Promised Land.

- Verse 15 - Because there were so many Israelites, either (a) these were the two midwives in charge of all the others or (b) the Israelites didn't normally call on the midwives at birth.

 

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 12 - Fri Sept 13

It's Day 12 and we're in John 7.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 17 - Obedience has to come first, then assurance and confidence follows.

- Verse 38 - I love that image - God overflowing from within us.

 

Help:

- Verses 8, 10 - Jesus means, "I'm not going to go up at the start of the festival and be the big presence you want me to be."  Instead, He went up secretly, waited until later in the festival, and then did a little teaching.

 

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 11 - Thurs Sept 12

It's Day 11 and we're in John 6.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 15 - Jesus didn't trust people's instincts to lead to the right thing.  Why do I sometimes?

 

Help:

- Verse 29 - This isn't saying that we just have to say we "believe" in Jesus and then we can go live our lives any way we want.  To truly believe in Jesus, I must then act on what He said to do (i.e. follow His teachings) because I believe that what He said is true is really true.  That's required to actually believe in Jesus.

- Verses 51-56, 60, 63 - This is the original "hard saying" from Jesus.  These are tough words.  The best way I think to understand it is that Jesus sacrificed His body and blood in my place, so therefore I have to receive that into my life in order to experience new spiritual life.  Obviously, we tie these words into what we celebrate at communion.

 

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 10 - Wed Sept 11

It's Day 10 and we're in John 5.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 13 - Most healers would gather a big crowd and publicize what they did.  Jesus quietly does it, then slips away without telling the man His name.  I like it.

 

Help:

- Verse 18 - We use the term "Father" so often in prayer that we take it for granted, but that was not something the Jews back then did.  They considered Jesus using that term to be provocative.

- Verse 29 - This is not saying that we're not saved by grace, but rather that our actions are going to reveal the true state of our heart - whether we've been changed or not.

 

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 9 - Tues Sept 10

It's Day 9 and we're in John 4.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 14 - "a well of water springing up to eternal life" - Nice image - I like the idea of God being within us and flowing out of us.

- Verse 34 - Is that what satisfies me?

 

Help:

- Verses 48, 50 - Jesus speaks those challenging words in verse 48, but then the man shows that he is willing to take Jesus by faith (and not by signs) by walking away without having seen the miracle.

 

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 8 - Mon Sept 9

It's Day 8 and we're in John 3.

Where God Spoke To Me:

- Verse 3 - "born again" - He's not offering a minor adjustment to our spiritual lives.  He's offering rebirth.

- Verse 20 - So true about why we shy away from God.  We have things we don't want to come to light.

Help:

- Verse 8 - The point here is that you can't see the wind but it still has an impact.  You can't see the Spirit, but he's still real and having an impact.

- Verse 14 - Moses raising up his staff (and people being saved by that from physical problems) is a picture of Christ being raised up on the cross (and us looking to that to be saved from our spiritual problems).

- Verse 25 - This question seemed to center around whether baptism was necessary for purification.

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 7 - Sun Sept 8

It's Day 7 and we're in John 2.

If you've got questions about your reading, I love answering those. Feel free to email me. Unless it's something personal, I'll usually anonymously share the question (and answer) in the following day's email so everyone can benefit from it.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 9 - I love the fact that with all the big important guests there the only ones who see the miracle are the servants.  God's not impressed with our power and position.

Help:
- Verse 10 - Despite what some Baptists will tell you, there is no way to have this story make sense without the wine that was made by Jesus being alcoholic wine.

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 6 - Sat Sept 7

It's Day 6 and we're in John 1.

You are not reading the Bible to gain trivia knowledge. You're reading the Bible for life change. Father, change our hearts to look more like Your's.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 39 - "Come and you will see" - That's a pretty good summary of what Jesus calls us to.  Come and walk with me and I'll show you what you need to know as we walk along.

Help:
- Verse 1 - "the Word" - The Word is Jesus.  That's just another name/title for Him.
- Verse 15 - What's John's statement mean?  To paraphrase it: Jesus came after me, in that my ministry started before His, but He was before me, in that He is preexistent because He's God.
- Verse 16 - "grace in place of grace" - This seems to refer to the fact that even before the fuller grace that we've received through Jesus, we received grace in God withholding His judgment because we were stick under the Law.  See verse 17.

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

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

60IN60 Day 5 - Fri Sept 6

It's Day 5 and we are in Psalm 135.

Where God Spoke to Me:

- Verse 6 - This is an interesting idea to me. (See further commentary below.) To be morally pure (like God is) means that you can do what you please and it is still good. What a wonderful way to live: that what you want to do is what is good.

Help:

- Verse 5 - This does not mean "There are other gods but God is the biggest among them." What it means is "People have manufactured their own gods but God is the real one." See verses 15-18.

- Verse 6 - That God does what pleases Him doesn't mean that He's off running after selfish things. No, God is morally pure so when He does what pleases Him He is still doing that which is right and best for us. This points us to something that God is accomplishing in us: as God makes me into someone who is Christlike, He is making me into someone where what I want and what God wants are increasingly the same thing.

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 4 - Thurs Sept 5

 It's Day 4 and we are in Psalm 130.

Where God Spoke to Me:

- Verse 5 - I've been there: my whole being waiting on God to come through for me. When there's something we want so badly and we have to wait on God to bring it about, we're in that moment. Unfortunately, His timetable isn't the same as ours; fortunately, He knows what's best.

Help:

- Verse 3-4 - Even in the Old Testament, there is the witness that we need God's forgiveness and that He is willing to forgive.

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

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

60IN60 Day 3 - Wed Sept 4

It's Day 3 and we are in Psalm 124.

Where God Spoke to Me:

- Verse 1 - "If the Lord had not been on our side . . ." - There are moments of my life I can look back on and wonder how differently things would have turned out if God hadn't been there to help me. It's a source of thankfulness and humility.

Help:

- Verses 2-4 - This is poetic language that Israel could not have stood in the face of the onslaught of their enemies. There are many Old Testament stories that emphasize that Israel wasn't strong enough on their own but only survived through the assistance of God on their behalf.

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

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

Your Questions and Comments:

- "I thought as I read your comments this morning and you were talking about out sometimes as Christians we come to church out of obligation and it made me think about Sunday before last I got to church at the same time as the Ellis family and little Cody came running to the church and up the stairs and I thought to myself that’s the way we should all be as Christians running to the church with anticipation  to see what good things God has in store for us inside."

60IN60 Day 2 - Tues Sept 3

It's Day 2 and we are in Psalm 122.

Where God Spoke to Me:

- Verse 1 - This isn't always true - that we are joyful to go to the house of the Lord. Sometimes it seems like people go more out of a sense of obligation. When you are able to actually look forward to worshiping with your brothers and sisters in Christ, when you are eager to see what God is going to do in the worship, that's a wonderful feeling.

Help:

- Verse 6 - This is a statement that is often repeated around the world: "pray for the peace of Jerusalem." It becomes especially popular when there is another round of violence that breaks out in that region. That is a good thing to pray, but the ultimate hope of that prayer, though, is not just for a temporary cessation to the hostilities in the Middle East. As Christians we believe that the only lasting peace that will come to that region will be when Christ returns someday. So that prayer is both a call to God for the current violence to stop and for Christ to return to set this world right.

- Verses 7-9 - It is verses like these that lead toward the idea that we as Christians should be pro-Israel.

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

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

60IN60 Day 1 - Mon Sept 2

It's Day 1 and we are in Psalm 121.

Where God Spoke to Me:

- Verses 1-2 - This is such a strong statement. God is on my side and I know He's there to help me.

Help:

- Verse 5 - This is lovely symbolic language of God placing His hands over us to protect us.

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 Next Round

 The next round of 60IN60 will begin Monday, September 2nd.