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August 6, 2026August 4, 2026

Stephen, Isaiah, and Confronting God’s People

Links for today’s readings:

Aug 6 Read: Isaiah 66 Listen: (5:20) Read: Psalm 144 Listen: (1:56)

Scripture Focus: Isaiah 66.1-2

1 This is what the Lord says:

“Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool.

Where is the house you will build for me?

Where will my resting place be?

2 Has not my hand made all these things,

and so they came into being?”

declares the Lord.

“These are the ones I look on with favor:

those who are humble and contrite in spirit,

and who tremble at my word.

3 But whoever sacrifices a bull

is like one who kills a person,

and whoever offers a lamb

is like one who breaks a dog’s neck;

whoever makes a grain offering

is like one who presents pig’s blood,

and whoever burns memorial incense

is like one who worships an idol.

They have chosen their own ways,

and they delight in their abominations;

Acts 7.48-51

48 “However, the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says:

49 “ ‘Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool.

What kind of house will you build for me?

says the Lord.

Or where will my resting place be?

50 Has not my hand made all these things?’

51 “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52 Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him—53 you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”

Reflection: Stephen, Isaiah, and Confronting God’s People

By John Tillman

Stephen’s final point of his final sermon quoted Isaiah’s final chapter. Both men had false worship on their minds. Both men so offended their audience that they faced death.

Isaiah condemned every aspect of Temple worship as corrupt. The rituals followed the letter of the law but, absent humility and contrition, they were an abomination. When God spoke, they refused to listen. Stephen strummed Isaiah’s chords, and his listeners knew the melody’s notes. It’s not a coincidence that they “covered their ears” when they rushed at him to kill him (Acts 7.57).

Unlike Stephen’s, Isaiah’s death is not described in scripture. Most scholars agree that Manasseh killed Isaiah. Some traditions say Isaiah hid from Manasseh in the hollow of a tree. When he was discovered there, Manasseh killed him by sawing the tree down with Isaiah inside.

The mention of holy people being stoned in Hebrews 11.37-38 implies Stephen’s death and being “sawed in two” could imply Isaiah’s. But, beyond tantalizing conjecture, what does this matter?

People don’t like being told their worship is fake. Doing so got Stephen and Isaiah killed. But it is an important thing people need to know.

Stephen and Isaiah stand in a long line of those who were killed for confronting God’s people with hypocrisy. Not pagans. Not enemies. God’s people.

Christians of my generation, growing up in the Cold War, were taught to fear persecution and death from pagan, secular, Muslim, or “Communist” governments. That was and is a legitimate fear for some Christians today. However, many of the martyrs the writer of Hebrews would have been thinking of, including Stephen and Isaiah, were killed not by servants of foreign gods or governments, but those who called themselves by God’s name and self-identified as God’s people. A “Christian” government is no guarantee that Christians won’t be persecuted, harmed, or even killed. Just ask William Tyndale or thousands of others.

Don’t cover your ears to Stephen and Isaiah’s message. Don’t fear persecution. Fear your own false worship. Fear a lack of humility and contrition. Fear our tendency to ignore and not listen to critiques. Fear our desire to take up and throw stones.

Make sure your worship is pure. Circumcise your ears. Speak with humility. Show contrition. Tremble at God’s word. Do not ignore challenging passages and interpretations.

And remember: You are not without sin. Casting the first stone is not for you (John 8.7).

Photo Notes: Today’s photo is of a memorial tower dedicated to William Tyndale in Gloucestershire.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Call to Prayer

Let the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; let them be merry and joyful. — Psalm 68.3

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Two-Item Wishlist

Links for today’s readings:

Aug 5 Read: Isaiah 65 Listen: (5:00) Read: Psalms 142-143 Listen: (2:35)

Scripture Focus: Psalm 143:8

8 Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
for to you I entrust my life.

Reflection: Two-Item Wishlist

By Erin Newton

In 1 Kings 19, there is a story of an exhausted and downtrodden prophet, Elijah. Fleeing from Ahab and Jezebel, who sought to kill him, he cries out to God, “I have had enough, Lord. Take my life.” But he lies down and falls asleep. An angel wakes him to say, “Get up and eat.” So he eats the divinely supplied bread and water…then goes back to bed. The nap and meal repeat a second time, finally restoring Elijah with energy and hope for the next task.

When decisions seem overwhelming, we often suggest someone should “sleep on it.” We might even cry ourselves to sleep during times of deep sadness. Cranky children are told to take a nap. Our sluggish thinking and snippy attitudes are blamed on a bad night of sleep.

We know that sleep is good for us. But what about the hope of the coming morning? Isn’t that sometimes even more encouraging?

I love this verse for the fact that the night is still assumed. The psalmist is weary from his or her day. Maybe she is existentially exhausted (a phrase I’ve used just this past week). Maybe he is being wrongfully accused or purposely bullied.

Psalm 143.8 is a sigh of resignation—resigned hope that things are not okay right now, that night is coming no matter what, but that the sunrise brings new possibilities. Maybe I’ll feel the love of God tomorrow.

I try to begin my days asking God to make himself known to me, especially when I wake up knowing it will be full of dreaded appointments, hard conversations, and unmet expectations. When I drove to the high-risk pregnancy doctor back in 2016, my only prayer was that I would feel God’s presence in that room. That would sustain me. That would be enough to help me endure.

The psalmist asks for two things: Let me know you love me. Show me what to do. We could live our whole lives just asking God for these two things. A two-item wishlist.

The two requests also function fairly well alone. I can rest in God’s love for me when I do not know what to do or where to go. I can also do what God calls me to do with gritted teeth, not feeling God’s love very clearly at that moment.

When the next sunrise comes, ask God for these two things—love and guidance.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence

Show your goodness, O Lord, to those who are good and to those who are true of heart. — Psalm 125.4

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Treasuring Our Temples

Links for today’s readings:

Aug 4 Read: Isaiah 64 Listen: (2:01) Read: Psalms 140-141 Listen: (2:44)

Scripture Focus: Isaiah 64.5-7, 10-11

5 You come to the help of those who gladly do right,

who remember your ways.

But when we continued to sin against them,

you were angry.

How then can we be saved?

6 All of us have become like one who is unclean,

and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;

we all shrivel up like a leaf,

and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

7 No one calls on your name

or strives to lay hold of you;

for you have hidden your face from us

and have given us over to our sins.

10 Your sacred cities have become a wasteland;

even Zion is a wasteland, Jerusalem a desolation.

11 Our holy and glorious temple, where our ancestors praised you,

has been burned with fire,

and all that we treasured lies in ruins.

Reflection: Treasuring Our Temples

By John Tillman

Isaiah’s visions held up shocking images from a not too distant future.

The most shocking image to Isaiah’s readers would not be destruction, fire, and death sweeping Jerusalem. It would not even be the king’s sons led away naked, castrated, and in chains to be eunuchs. (Isaiah 39.7) The most shocking would be the one thing Judah thought God would never allow to fall, the Temple, being razed and burned with fire.

It is difficult to overstate how confident Judah was that God treasured the Temple and, for the sake of his name, would never allow it to be defiled or harmed. It was unthinkable that the Temple would fall.

Yet, the Temple had already fallen. God had already allowed the Temple to be defiled. The kings and religious leaders of Judah had done it themselves.

They partnered together against the widows and orphans. They collaborated together to oppress the foreigners. Yet they called themselves righteous. The worship they thought that God so prized had become annoying noise that God could not bear to hear and wished would stop, because there was no justice established when they stopped singing about justice.

Comfortable, powerful, western Christians can be guilty of similar thinking. We easily feel that we are so special, so holy, so entitled to our place atop the culture, that we cannot imagine we might ever fall.

Surely God can’t be unsatisfied with our glorious worship and the music industry it spawned?

Surely God wouldn’t allow our sanctuaries to be attacked, our institutions to be sued, or our rights to be stripped away?

There is a telling line in Isaiah 64.11, “All that we treasure lies in ruins…” God will ruin whatever we treasure more than him.

Judah treasured the Temple’s importance but not its inhabitant. They treasured the regalia, not the relationship. Through the Babylonian destruction, God did not allow the Temple to be defiled. He took the first step to cleanse it. May we take warning.

Our first step must be to join Isaiah in confessing our part in collective, systemic sin, saying as he did, “I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips!” (Isaiah 6.5)

It is by our lament for our sin that we are given mercy, forgiveness, and the hope of reconciliation, restoration, and resurrection.

May he purify our lips and send us forth.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons

The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. — Psalm 118.14

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Carving Jesus Into an Idol

Links for today’s readings:

Aug 3 Read: Isaiah 63 Listen: (3:25) Read: Psalm 139 Listen: (2:26)

Scripture Focus: Isaiah 63.7-8

6 I trampled the nations in my anger;

in my wrath I made them drunk

and poured their blood on the ground.”

7 I will tell of the kindnesses of the Lord,

the deeds for which he is to be praised,

according to all the Lord has done for us—

yes, the many good things

he has done for Israel,

according to his compassion and many kindnesses.

Psalm 139.19-20

19 If only you, God, would slay the wicked!

Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!

20 They speak of you with evil intent;

your adversaries misuse your name.

Reflection: Carving Jesus Into an Idol

By John Tillman

Imagine a warrior who single-handedly kills scores of enemies while defending his family. It shouldn’t be hard. Many films and TV shows tell similar stories. When the bloodied hero (or heroine) rises from battle, having saved what was dear to them, we cheer.

But what if the blood-soaked hero is God?

Isaiah describes the tender loving-kindness of God right after a bloody battle in which God (or God’s servant) tramples nations in anger. Psalm 139 has tender-hearted lines about God’s care for life in the womb, but also imprecatory calls for the death of the wicked.

Do passages like these make you uncomfortable? My discomfort with these passages has to do with their abuse, not their true meaning.

Don’t misunderstand these passages of divine violence. These actions are not ours to emulate. Vengeance, when it comes, belongs to God, not us. Our role is pulling people out from under wrath, not pushing them toward it.

Some, however, twist these passages to bless “hatred” (Ps 139.22) of certain groups and to sacralize violence that defends themselves, their family, and their “culture.” (Which usually means their race.) The Nazi regime wooed and corrupted many German Christians by celebrating Jesus as “the greatest warrior” and not a “sufferer.”

“Warrior Jesus” is a false Jesus, but he’s not the only one.

God has revealed himself to us most fully in the image of Jesus (Col 1.15; Heb 1.3; John 14.9). But many people treat Jesus as a block of wood, stone, or metal that they can carve, chip, or shape until he fits comfortably in their life without poking, prodding, or challenging them.

We often carve Jesus into an idol that blesses our sins and condemns others’ sins. The violent carve away Christ’s compassion, mercy, and long-suffering love. Libertines carve away Christ’s calls for holiness. The slothful carve away Christ’s commissioning us to work for the kingdom. The legalists carve away Christ’s free and gracious offer to all humanity with no barriers.

We are supposed to conform our image to Jesus, not the other way around (Rom 12.2; 1 Pet 1.14). Put down your carving and shaping tools and accept Jesus as scripture shows him. He is the king on a donkey, the servant with a towel, the sufferer on the cross, and the coming, conquering King of Heaven.

Beware any version of Jesus who demands no repentance, challenges no assumptions, never warns of destruction, blesses all your desires, and confirms all your cultural dogmas.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons

This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him. — Luke 9.35

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

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July 31, 2026July 30, 2026

Songs of Ascent Playlist – Unity Tour

Links for today’s readings:

Jul 31 Read: Isaiah 60 Listen: (3:55) Read: Psalms 132-134 Listen: (2:42)

Links for today’s readings:

Aug 1 Read: Isaiah 61 Listen: (2:23) Read: Psalms 135-136 Listen: (5:03)|
Aug 2 Read: Isaiah 62 Listen: (2:09) Read: Psalms 137-138 Listen: (2:13)

Scripture Focus: Psalm 133:1

1 How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!

Psalm 134:1

1 Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord
who minister by night in the house of the Lord.

Psalm 135:1-2

1 Praise the Lord.
Praise the name of the Lord;
praise him, you servants of the Lord,
2 you who minister in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.

Reflection: Songs of Ascent Playlist – Unity Tour

By Erin Newton

Each year elite cyclists from around the world compete in Le Tour de France. In our house, it’s practically a holiday. Each day we watch the athletes race through towns, up hills and around curves at ridiculous speeds.

Whenever there is a steep climb on one stage of the race, the first one to the top receives a white and red polka dot jersey to wear on the next day. There are other jerseys: solid white for the best young rider, solid green for the best sprinter, and solid yellow for the overall leader.

Even if most cyclists never wear one of these jerseys, they are all headed to the same place. They arrive at different times, but they celebrate together. Many friendships extend beyond team lines. This year’s leader was heartbroken when a fellow rider broke his collarbone and had to withdraw from the Tour. They wear different jerseys and different sponsor logos but they are like brothers.

In these next few psalms, we have another mountaintop moment—a chorus of singers arrive and join in worship. Psalm 133 aptly proclaims, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity.” The psalmist reflects on the diverse and varied community that had taken the trek up to Jerusalem, those who ascended the mountain together.

The next two psalms refer to “all you servants” who minister day and night and in the house and courts of God. All servants. Unity. These are surely words of restoration and worship.

I’ve been involved in church dynamics before that included members seeking to create boundaries or barriers for other believers. There were a series of rules, hoops, or processes that were said to be for the preservation of the faith, but they actually functioned in a divisive way.

I left one day saying, “Surely Jesus didn’t mean our persecution would be from the hands of one another!” How good and pleasant unity is indeed.

In what ways have you been part of a group that discriminated against other travelers on the way to commune with God? Have you been on the receiving end of such discrimination? How has disunity festered among God’s people?

We are all called servants of God, each ministering in our own ways. We are all traveling the same roads from rescue to restoration. May we enjoy the pleasantness of unity in the house of God!

Divine Hours Prayer: The Call to Prayer

Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; let those who love your salvation say forever, “Great is the Lord!” — Psalm 70.4

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Links for today’s readings:

Scripture Focus: Isaiah 66.1-2

Acts 7.48-51

Reflection: Stephen, Isaiah, and Confronting God’s People

Divine Hours Prayer: The Call to Prayer

Read more: A Righteous Government

Read more: Breath, Reconsidered

Links for today’s readings:

Scripture Focus: Psalm 143:8

Reflection: Two-Item Wishlist

Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence

Read more: Unprecedented Spirit

Read more: When Celebrating Earthly Kingdoms

Links for today’s readings:

Scripture Focus: Isaiah 64.5-7, 10-11

Reflection: Treasuring Our Temples

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons

Read more: The Consequence of Carelessness

Read more: Whose Table Are Your Feet Under?

Links for today’s readings:

Scripture Focus: Isaiah 63.7-8

Psalm 139.19-20

Reflection: Carving Jesus Into an Idol

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons

Read more: Missing the Kingdom for the Empire

Read The Bible With Us

Links for today’s readings:

Links for today’s readings:

Scripture Focus: Psalm 133:1

Psalm 134:1

Psalm 135:1-2

Reflection: Songs of Ascent Playlist – Unity Tour

Divine Hours Prayer: The Call to Prayer

Read more: Songs of Ascent Playlist — From War to Peace

Read more: Songs of Ascent Playlist — From Badlands to Highlands