The Bible Reading Challenge Presented by VCY

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 19:1-20:9
  Luke 19:28-48
  Psalm 88:1-18
  Proverbs 13:12-14

Joshua 20:2 — What’s the big deal with these Cities of Refuge? Moses spent a whole chapter (Numbers 35) talking about them! John Barnett of Discover the Book explains that Hebrews 6:17-20 talks about those who have fled for refuge to Jesus. Here’s an excerpt from this great sermon on, “Christ, Our City of Refuge“:

The elders of the city would investigate the case. If he was acquitted of intentional killing he must remain within the city until the death of the high priest. We have fled to Jesus Christ, and He is our eternal refuge. As our High Priest, He will never die (Heb. 7:23-25); and we have eternal salvation….

1. God Himself appointed these cities of refuge (John 3:16)
2. God’s Word announced these cities of refuge (Joshua 20:7-8, Acts 4:12)
3. Anyone could access these cities of refuge (Joshua 20:9, John 3:16)

Luke 19:38 — Jesus the KING enters as Zechariah 9:9 prophesied. He also rebuts the Pharisees by referencing Habakkuk 2:11, part of the passage prophesying judgment coming upon Israel (Habakkuk 2:8).

Luke 19:43-44 — Jesus the PROPHET foretells the destruction of Jerusalem, as reported by Adam Clarke:

Cast a trench about thee – This was literally fulfilled when this city was besieged by Titus. Josephus gives a very particular account of the building of this wall, which he says was effected in three days, though it was not less than thirty-nine furlongs in circumference; and that, when this wall and trench were completed, the Jews were so enclosed on every side that no person could escape out of the city, and no provision could be brought in, so that they were reduced to the most terrible distress by the famine which ensued. The whole account is well worth the reader’s attention. See Josephus, War, book v. chap. xxii. sec. 1, 2, 3.

Luke 19:45 — Jesus the PRIEST cleansed the temple again in preparation for the destruction of Jerusalem. Joel McDurmon has a long post on why Jesus cleansed the temple twice:

Jesus [is] fulfilling the role of the High Priest visiting and inspecting the touch of affliction/corruption in the house. This is described in Leviticus 14:33–53. It accounts for the multiple visitations and the repeated act of removing the corruption, then finally pronouncing the house (temple) unclean and decreeing the total destruction of the house.

Psalm 88:1 — What to do when in despair facing destruction? Call out to the Lord daily (Psalm 88:9)!

Proverbs 13:14 — What chapter of the Bible does this sound like? Perhaps Psalm 119?

IMPORTANT: Just a reminder – I may reference other sources from time to time. Quotes and hyperlinks are not an endorsement of ministries, but merely indicate that I found a resource interesting. No authors are endorsed by me … I can’t even endorse myself! Search the Scriptures daily to see if these things are so (Acts 17:11)!

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 16:1-18:28
  Luke 19:1-27
  Psalm 87:1-7
  Proverbs 13:11

Joshua 17:16, 18 — Similar to Judges 1:19. Charles Spurgeon preached a great message on “Chariots of Iron.”

Joshua 18:1 — The tabernacle was setup at Shiloh. In 1 Samuel 1:3, the tabernacle is still at Shiloh during the time of Samuel. Jeremiah writes that it was the first place where God set His name (Jeremiah 7:12).

Luke 19:10 — From Earl Martin:

Luke 19:2 — Zacchaeus’ story is only found in Luke.

Here’s a video of the story:

A pastor shared with me a simple outline for preaching on this passage:

• Jesus sees me (Luke 19:5)
• Jesus knows me (Luke 19:5)
• Jesus saves me (Luke 19:9)

Luke 19:13 — Occupy till I come. How are you doing with your occupying? Are you faithful, or are you burying your talent?

Psalm 87:2, 3, 5 — If you have never been to Jerusalem or the Holy Land – make plans to go! You’ll never read the Bible the same way again! John Newton, author of the hymn “Amazing Grace,” used Psalm 87:3 to inspire the hymn “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken.” Instead of an English rendition, here’s a Korean rendition so you can see the worldwide impact of godly music.

Proverbs 13:11 — Diligence is a virtue. Proverbs 6:6-8, 10:4, 12:24, 13:4, and 21:5 emphasize this. As does Galatians 6:9, James 1:12, Ecclesiastes 9:10, and Philippians 3:14.

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 15:1-63
  Luke 18:18-43
  Psalm 86:1-17
  Proverbs 13:9-10

Joshua 15:63 — The Jebusites weren’t driven out in the time of the Judges (Judges 1:21), and the Levite refused to spend the night in Jebus (Judges 19:10). It wasn’t until 2 Samuel 5:7 that Jebus was taken and became Jerusalem.

Luke 18:18 — This passage is the first to note that he was a ruler. Interestingly, this account is in all three synoptic gospels.

Luke 18:37 — Like the blind man, let’s call on Jesus before He passes by!

Pass me not, O gentle Savior,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.

Savior, Savior, Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.

Psalm 86:1 — What kind of person will the LORD hear? The poor and needy (Psalms 40:17, Psalm 70:5, Psalm 72:13, Psalm 109:22, Jeremiah 22:16). The contrite (Psalms 34:18, Psalms 51:17, Isaiah 57:15, Isaiah 66:2). The poor in spirit (Matthew 5:3). The broken hearted (Psalm 34:18, Psalm 51:17, Psalm 147:3). The humble (Psalm 9:12, Psalm 10:12, Psalm 10:17, Proverbs 16:19, Proverbs 29:23).

God resists the proud, but giveth grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5, James 4:6).

Proverbs 13:10  — Speaking of pride, it not only separates you from God but from your friends through contention.

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 13:1-14:15
  Luke 18:1-17
  Psalm 85:1-13
  Proverbs 13:7-8

Joshua 13:1 — A pastor and his wife called their kids together to let them know that the mother was expecting once again. Growing up with the KJV, one of the kids replied, “But mother, you’re well stricken in years!” We’ve seen Moses lead and pass on, and now it’s Joshua’s time to pass on. But there is still work to be done!

Joshua 14:6 — Notice some things about Caleb’s request of Joshua – he was asking for the scariest part of Canaan – the land of the children of Anak that scared off the other ten spies (Numbers 13:22). We have here an …

• Old promise (Joshua 14:6) given to an …
• Old man (Joshua 14:10) who was eventually buried in an …
• Old tomb (Genesis 23:19, Genesis 25:9, Genesis 49:30, Genesis 50:13) … this was where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were buried 450 years ago!

Because of Caleb’s faithfulness, he regained the burial place of the Patriarchs and the monument to God’s faithfulness to His people. He left his descendants a legacy:

• Place of refuge (Joshua 21:13)
• Place of Miracles (Judges 16:3)
• Throne of David (2 Samuel 2:11)

Joshua 14:12 — As we talked about earlier, Caleb waited 45 years to take the mountain. That inspired the song:

I want that mountain! I want that mountain!
Where the milk and honey flow, where the grapes of Eshcol grow,
I want that mountain! I want that mountain!
The mountain that my Lord has given me.

Luke 18:1 — From FaithLife:

GEORGE MUELLER, the great Victorian Christian and social reformer, tells a story of persistent prayer in his diary:

In November 1844, I began to pray for the conversion of five individuals. I prayed every day without a single intermission, whether sick or in health, on the land, on the sea, and whatever the pressure of my engagements might be. Eighteen months elapsed before the first of the five was converted. I thanked God and prayed on for the others. Five years elapsed, and then the second was converted. I thanked God for the second, and prayed on for the other three. Day by day, I continued to pray for them, and six years passed before the third was converted. I thanked God for the three, and went on praying for the other two. These two remained unconverted.

Thirty-six years later he wrote that the other two, sons of one of Mueller’s friends, were still not converted. He wrote, “But I hope in God, I pray on, and look for the answer. They are not converted yet, but they will be.” In 1897, fifty-two years after he began to pray daily, without interruption, for these two men, they were finally converted—but after he died! Mueller understood what Luke meant when he introduced a parable Jesus told about prayer, saying, “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up” (Luke 18:1).

Are you crying day and night to Him?

Psalm 85:6 — Revive us again!

We praise Thee, O God!
For the Son of Thy love,
For Jesus Who died,
And is now gone above.

Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Hallelujah! Amen.
Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Revive us again.

Proverbs 13:7 — Riches are not obtained by accumulation.

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 11:1-12:24
  Luke 17:11-37
  Psalm 84:1-12
  Proverbs 13:5-6

Joshua 11:6 — Interesting to note God’s warning against trusting in chariots and horses. In Deuteronomy 17:16, God commanded that the kings of Israel should not multiply horses. In Deuteronomy 11:4, Moses reminds the Israelites that God took care of the Army of Egypt and their horses and chariots. In today’s reading, Joshua faces a number of horses and chariots (Joshua 11:4), but God says that Joshua will hough (“to hamstring”) their horses. Not capture but disable. In 2 Samuel 8:4, David houghed most of the horses, but not all. In 2 Samuel 15:1, Absalom prepared for himself chariots and horses. In 1 Kings 4:26, Solomon built stables for 40,000 horses (a clear violation of Deuteronomy 17:16), and even worse, they were Egyptian horses (1 Kings 10:28 and Deuteronomy 17:16)! However, God is not against horses – He happens to have chariots of fire (2 Kings 6:17).

Luke 17:19 — Because of the faith of the unclean Samaritan leper, he not only had physical healing, but he also had spiritual healing too!

Luke 17:34-36 — From Jimmy DeYoung:

At the Rapture those who are Christians will be “taken” into the heavenlies to join Jesus, forever. However, when a passage is referring to the Second Coming the ones “taken” are the ones who go to “judgment” and the ones “left” will “rule and reign” with Christ in His Kingdom to come.

To better understand this principle Jesus gives us the last verse in Luke 17. When asked where the people would be “taken” the Lord said, to “where the eagles be gathered together”, verse 37.

In that context, you may want to read Job 39:27-30 which explains that where the “eagles gather together is a place of judgment.” Therefore, those “taken” in Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 17 and 21 are all taken to judgment.

The ones “left” are the ones who will join Jesus to rule and reign. At the Rapture, a different event from the Second Coming, separated by at least seven years, the ones “taken” are the Christians.

Psalm 84:2 — What is your heart longing for?

Proverbs 13:6 — There doesn’t seem to be a middle way between righteousness and wickedness.

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 9:3-10:43
  Luke 16:19-17:10
  Psalm 83:1-18
  Proverbs 13:4

Joshua 9:14 — 

“When we neglect prayer, we can be easily deceived and make wrong decisions. And when leaders do not pray, they also fail the people under them.”

GraceValley.org

Joshua 10:13 – What happened here? BlueLetterBible.org lists seven theories of what happened, as well as cautioning against “reports of a ‘missing day’ in ancient Egyptian, Chinese, and Hindu sources … [and] the story of a Yale astronomer who found that the earth was twenty-four hours out of schedule.”

Reverence for God’s Word should encourage us to suspend judgment until more evidence is available. In the meantime, no single explanation can be made a test of orthodoxy.

(Donald H. Madvig, “Joshua,” The Expositors Bible Commentary, p. 304)

Joshua 10:32 – Lachish now entered into the Israelite orbit. “Among cities in ancient Judah, Lachish was second only to Jerusalem in importance (Biblical Archaeology Review).” Lachish is mentioned twenty-four times in the Old Testament.

Luke 16:20 – 

In the story, Lazarus never speaks. He is silent; he’s only there for contrast. He is not the object of the story. The story is not about his experience; it’s not about heaven. It is about the rich man’s experience in hell.

John MacArthur

Luke 17:10 – Serving the Lord is not doing Him a favor; it is but our reasonable service (Romans 12:1).

Psalm 83:18 – Not that they may be like the Most High (Isaiah 14:14), but that they may know Who is the Most High.

Proverbs 13:4 – Will you be a sluggard, or will you be diligent?

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 7:16-9:2
  Luke 16:1-18
  Psalm 82:1-8
  Proverbs 13:2-3

Joshua 7:21 – Did you notice the illogicality of sin? What would you do with a Babylonish garment? You can’t wear it in public, and if you hide it under your tent, it will deteriorate. Sin relies on coveting, not on honest work.

Joshua 8:1 – If you get your feelings, followers, and focus right, your fruit will follow!

Joshua 8:28 – Join Dr. Bryant Wood of Associates for Biblical Research (ABR) as they search for the Lost City of AI.

Joshua 8:30 – We read earlier about Moses’ command to the Israelites to read the blessings and curses. Here it is fulfilled!

Luke 16:9 – Jesus says to take of your perishable time, talent, and treasure, and reach people who can be new citizens of heaven who will welcome you into everlasting habitations!

Psalms 82:2 – Those who take a position of importance will be held responsible (Luke 12:48). Beware of promotion!

Proverbs 13:3 – When in doubt, say nothing! Beware of the tongue!

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Joshua 3:1-4:24
  Luke 14:7-35
  Psalm 80:1-19
  Proverbs 12:27-28

Welcome to Day 101! We’re into the triple digits of faithfully reading the Bible!

Joshua 3:13 — Did you catch the phrase “Lord of all the earth?” We serve a big God!

Joshua 3:17 — God was demonstrating to Joshua that just as He was with Moses, He would be with Joshua (Joshua 3:7). How? With the same miracle that He used to lead Israel out of Egypt (Exodus 14:22). This miracle would also signify Elijah and Elisha’s transition at the same place (2 Kings 2:8, 14).

Joshua 4:3 — At the Ark Encounter, they “add 12 stones at the base of the life-size Noah’s Ark. These stones signify that it was built to remind future generations and the whole world of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the truth of God’s Word.”

Luke 14:15 — Many people like to name drop the famous people they have been with. This man was able to eat dinner at the home of one of the chief Pharisees; but far more special, he ate with the LORD Jesus the Messiah! He heard the teaching and wanted to say something to this distinguished guest. But the distinguished guest was criticizing the other guests who were fighting for the seats at the main table. And if that wasn’t enough, he’s criticizing the guest list! The unnamed host of Luke 14:15 tried to make a spiritual comment. Maybe he thought, “I may not be the chief Pharisee, but even the mediocre Pharisees should be at the upcoming heavenly feast.” Jesus proceeded to say that all the proper guests of the kingdom will be distracted with lands (Luke 14:18), goods (Luke 14:19), or relationships (Luke 14:20), and be replaced with not just the poor, maimed, halt, and blind (Luke 14:13, 21), but even those out in the highways and hedges. Jesus then left the feast (Luke 14:25) and said, “If you want to come with me to the kingdom, be willing to give up your family, yourself, and be horribly crucified. Don’t follow me. Sit down and do the math – are you willing to give up everything?”

Psalm 80:19 — Three times in this chapter the people cry out to the LORD. As we read in Jeremiah 17:14, the LORD is capable of saving. How can we be saved? By calling on the LORD (Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13)!

Proverbs 12:28 — Eternal life is the result of the way of righteousness. The Righteous One is the Way (John 14:6)!

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Deuteronomy 34:1-Joshua 2:24
  Luke 13:22-14:6
  Psalm 79:1-13
  Proverbs 12:26

Deuteronomy 34:1 — The view from Mount Nebo today:

Deuteronomy 34:10 — Jacob saw God face to face (Genesis 32:30). Gideon saw the Angel of the LORD face to face (Judges 6:22). One day the LORD will plead with His people face to face (Ezekiel 20:35). So why does the Lord say He knew Moses face to face? Perhaps because we see the phrase “And the LORD spoke unto Moses” 105 times in the Bible. God spoke to others in the Old Testament as well, but as far as I can tell no one as much as Moses.

Moses only had 5 books of the Bible and limited access to God. We have 66 books and unlimited access to His throne. What are you waiting for?

Joshua 1:2 — The LORD told Joshua to Go (Joshua 1:2), take the Gift (Joshua 1:3), a Great gift (Joshua 1:4), with His Guarantee (Joshua 1:5). We have a similar guarantee (Matthew 28:20).

Also note the LORD told Joshua twice (Joshua 1:6, Joshua 1:9) to be strong and of good courage!

Joshua 1:8 — The only place the word “success” is found in the KJV Bible is in this verse. By meditating on the Torah – the only books of the Bible that Joshua had – he could be prosperous and successful. How exactly?

• Be strong (Joshua 1:6)
• Go straight (Joshua 1:7)
• Be searching (Joshua 1:8a)
• Be submitting (Joshua 1:8b)

Joshua 2:10 — Isn’t it great to hear that people are testifying not of how wonderful they are but of how amazing the LORD is? This leads people to recognize who the LORD is (Joshua 2:11).

Also notice the LORD’s earthly ownership (Joshua 2:9a), emotional ownership (Joshua 2:9b), and eternal ownership (Joshua 2:11).

Luke 13:26 — Sobering words from our Lord.

Luke 13:31 — Jesus had an interesting relationship with Herod as well as the Pharisees. Here it seems that the Pharisees are trying to protect Jesus, and in Luke 14:1, one of the chief Pharisees is hosting Jesus.

Psalm 79:8 — An echo of Psalm 51.

Proverbs 12:26 — Seduce:

to attract (someone) to a belief or into a course of action that is inadvisable or foolhardy.

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.