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Some use Sunday to catch up on Bible reading missed during the week. Others prefer to double up on their reading on Saturday in order to set aside the Sabbath for church and fellowship. Either way, if you consistently read Scripture in the 15 or 20 minute increments shown above for an entire year, you will read all of Scripture in just one year.

June

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

This month’s reading of Scripture includes the following books of the Bible:

• Ezra
• Nehemiah
• Esther
• Job
• Psalms

Throughout Holy Scripture, lists and letters play a significant role in the composition of God’s Word to man. The best known type of list in Scripture is the genealogy. The first book of the Old Testament (Genesis) contains several such lists, delineating the descendants of Adam, Noah and Abraham. The first book of the New Testament (Matthew) contains the genealogy of Jesus Christ.

Many, but not all of the names in these lists, are well-known "heroes of the faith." However, in this month’s reading, Ezra and Nehemiah present lists of otherwise unknown people (Ezra 2, 8, 10 and Nehemiah 3, 7, 10 & 12). 

The lists of names confirm that God uses famous and obscure people alike to accomplish His will and to present His story throughout history.

Letters also play a major role throughout Scripture. In a sense, Holy Scripture is one long letter from God to man. The Epistles of the New Testament refer to letters written by Christ’s apostles to the early Church. The letters in Ezra and Nehemiah are used to start and stop the work of rebuilding the temple as well as to communicate the delegation of authority from King Artaxerxes to Ezra to carry out reforms.

Although the final word of Holy Scripture has been written, God is still writing His laws onto the hearts of His people, giving them the desire and ability to obey Him: 

"clearly you are an epistle of Christ . . . written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of flesh, that is, the heart (2 Corinthians 3:2-3).

 

God has never allowed His people to be completely destroyed. He never will. God providentially uses apparently unrelated events and circumstances to covenantly protect and preserve His people.

In the life of Joseph (Genesis 37-50), we see an example of how God can use what man (Joseph’s brothers) meant for harm for good – that is, the preservation of God’s chosen people: "Do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life" (Joseph speaking to his brothers in Genesis 45:5).

In the book of Esther, we see a similar story line. Joseph was a slave in Egypt. Esther was, in a sense, a slave in Persia (she was acquired by King Xerxes to serve in his harem). Like Joseph, Esther used her position of influence to secure the preservation of the Jewish nation.

Mordecai, who raised the orphaned Esther as his own daughter, was instrumental in convincing Esther to intercede on behalf of her brethren: "if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet, who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14) It’s interesting to note that Mordecai acknowledged that God is not dependent on any man, but that a sovereign God can and does use man to accomplish His will.

From the Old Testament stories of Joseph and Esther, we see that God preserves His people. God’s faithfulness not only applies corporately, but also individually to His people:

"And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!"
(2 Timothy 4:18)

Job was "blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil" (Job 1:1). Yet Job suffered great adversity.

 What can we learn about God from the suffering of Job?
 What can we learn about man’s response to suffering from Job?

Before providing an admittedly brief and partial response to these questions, we should acknowledge that many are perplexed by the book of Job. In fact, many attempt to twist the messages of Job to fit their view of God. Scripture should determine theology, not theology determine Scripture. Any book of the Bible, can only be understood in the context of all of Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16). This may be especially true for Job.

"Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects. Therefore, do not despise the chastening of the Almighty (Job 5:17 and repeated in Hebrews 12:5-6).  

This Old and New Testament principle tells us something about God (He chastens those He loves) and something about how we should respond to God’s chastening (do not despise it).

Two of the reasons we struggle with this truth is that we do not possess God’s mind nor His perspective: "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways . . . . For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9). Suffering can be a consequence of sin or it can serve the purpose of God unrelated to sin, a purpose we may never understand (God never gave Job an explanation of his suffering).

In its midst, suffering seems to last forever (man’s perspective). But, from the viewpoint of time eternal (God’s perspective), suffering lasts less than a nanno-second. Job recognized this: "remember that my life is but a breath" (Job 7:7). Aren’t children thankful in the long-run for the Godly chastening of their parents? Shouldn’t we, as children of God, be likewise thankful for the "nanno-second" suffering (that God causes or allows) in exchange for the eternal benefits that only God may fully understand?

Only when we have the perspective of God and put on "the mind of Christ" (1 Corinthians 2:16) will we be able to confess with Job: "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him" (Job 13:15) - one of the greatest confessions of faith ever uttered.

We are blessed to begin the book of Psalms at about the half-way point in our trek through Scripture.

Psalms consists of: 1) hymns of praise, 2) laments, 3) thanksgiving psalms, 4) songs of trust, 5) kingship psalms and 6) wisdom psalms. Some psalms not only cry out for the righteous to be vindicated, but also for God to punish the wicked (imprecatory psalms).

The word "psalm" means "song" and comes from the Greek translation of the Old Testament. The related Hebrew word "mizmar" refers to a vocal or instrumental song.

The real significance and beauty of Psalms is that the object of its worship is Jesus Christ, Who has fulfilled all that was written therein:

"These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which are written in the law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me"

(Luke 24:44).