How to use Explore 1
In this issue
Find a time you can read the Bible each day
The 92 daily readings in this issue of Explore are designed to help you understand and apply the Bible as you read it each day.
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Find a place where you can be quiet and think
It’s serious! We suggest that you allow 15 minutes each day to work through the Bible passage with the notes. It should be a meal, not a snack! Readings from other parts of the Bible can throw valuable light on the study passage. These cross-references can be skipped if you are already feeling full up, but they will expand your grasp of the Bible. Explore uses the NIV2011 Bible translation, but you can also use it with the NIV1984 or ESV translations. Sometimes a prayer box will encourage you to stop and pray through the lessons—but it is always important to allow time to pray for God’s Spirit to bring his word to life, and to shape the way we think and live through it.
We’re serious! All of us who work on Explore share a passion for getting the Bible into people’s lives. We fiercely hold to the Bible as God’s word— to honour and follow, 6 not to explain away. Pray about what you have read
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Ask God to help you understand
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Carefully read through the Bible passage for today
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Study the verses with Explore, taking time to think
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Welcome B
eing a Christian isn’t a skill you learn, like carpentry or flower arranging. Nor is it a lifestyle choice, like the kind of clothes you wear, or the people you choose to hang out with. It’s about having a real relationship with the living God through his Son, Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that this relationship is like a marriage. It’s important to start with this, because many Christians view the practice of daily Bible-reading as a Christian duty, or a hard discipline that is just one more thing to get done in our busy modern lives. But the Bible is God speaking to us: opening his mind to us on how he thinks, what he wants for us and what his plans are for the world. And most importantly, it tells us what he has done for us in sending his Son, Jesus Christ, into the world. It’s the way the Spirit shows Jesus to us, and changes us as we behold his glory. The Bible is not a manual. It’s a love letter. And as with any love letter, we’ll want to treasure it, and make time to read and re-read it, so we know we are loved, and discover how we can please the One who loves us. Here are a few suggestions for making your daily time with God more of a joy than a burden: Time: Find a time when you will not be disturbed, and when the cobwebs are cleared from your mind. Many people have found that the morning is the best time as it sets you up for the day. If you’re not a “morning person”, then last thing
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Tim Thornborough is the Publishing Director at The Good Book Company
at night or a mid-morning break might suit you. Whatever works for you is right for you. Place: Jesus says that we are not to make a great show of our religion (see Matthew 6 v 5-6), but rather, to pray with the door to our room shut. Some people plan to get to work a few minutes earlier and get their Bible out in an office or some other quiet corner. Prayer: Although Explore helps with specific prayer ideas from the passage, you should try to develop your own lists to pray through. Use the flap inside the back cover to help with this. And allow what you read in the Scriptures to shape what you pray for yourself, the world and others. Share: As the saying goes: expression deepens impression. So try to cultivate the habit of sharing with others what you have learned. Why not join our Facebook group to share your encouragements, questions and prayer requests? Search for Explore: For your daily walk with God. And remember, it’s quality, not quantity, that counts: better to think briefly about a single verse than to skim through pages without absorbing anything, because it’s about developing your relationship with the living God. The sign that your daily time with God is real is when you start to love him more and serve him more wholeheartedly.
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2 Kings 1
Monday 1 October
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2 KINGS: Two ways to fall This book is the story of the long road to exile: a story of continuing failure and loss, and yet of God’s ability to keep his promises in view.
The kingdom that flourished under David and Solomon has split in two—Judah in the south and Israel in the north. 2 Kings might be titled, What will happen after the death of Ahab? He was one of the worst kings God’s people ever had. Now Ahab’s son is king. Will things be any different?
Fall to idolatry Read 2 Kings 1 v 1-6
y To whom does Ahaziah turn for help and why (v 2)? How does Elijah challenge Ahaziah y (v 3-4)?
Ahaziah falls—literally, out of the window. If we needed a picture to see where he is heading spiritually, we get one. Ahaziah desperately wants a spiritual verdict on whether he will survive. But he turns to an idol. Elijah’s response (v 3, 6; see also v 16) targets Ahaziah’s assumptions. Is there no God? Is that why Ahaziah is looking for spiritual guidance elsewhere? The Bible always exposes what’s really going on below the surface of our lives. This crisis shows where Ahaziah looked for meaning. “Where your measure is, there your heart will be also”, we might say.
Fall in humility There is an ominous note as Ahaziah realises that Elijah—the scourge of his father Ahab—has not gone away.
Read 2 Kings 1 v 7-18
y How do the captains address Elijah (v 9 and v 11)?
y How does Elijah begin both of his responses, in verses 10 and 12?
The story now raises a further question: do we believe God’s verdict has power? Elijah’s repeated “If…” throws down the gauntlet: Shall we see if I truly deliver God’s word? The firestorm that follows is terrifying, but underlines the truth of God’s word.
y How is the third captain different (v 13-15)?
Pity the third captain, who has heard what happened before! He falls too. But on his knees. What’s the difference? This man acknowledges his helplessness before God. Wonderfully, he finds mercy.
r Apply The test for God’s people is always how we respond to his word. When and why do we look elsewhere? For us, those two ways to fall turn on our attitude to Jesus, God’s word made flesh. Is he where we turn first? Is he the One we fall before in humility?
Bible in a year: Ezekiel 27-29 • John 14
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Tuesday 2 October
2 Kings 2
God remains Chapter 1 showed us that even though Ahab was dead, spiritual problems persisted. Now another change is coming. Elijah is leaving. But God will provide another prophet.
Cloak and swagger Read 2 Kings 2 v 1-6
y What is made clear in this opening (v 1, 3, and 5)?
The tension builds quickly. It is time for Elijah to leave. Elisha cannot quite face it. What will happen to spiritual leadership in the land?
Read 2 Kings 2 v 7-15 We watch the scene unfold from the sidelines, as if we’re among the company of prophets. When Elijah parts the Jordan, it reminds us of the original crossing into the promised-land (see Joshua 3 v 15-16). It only makes the story more tense: will the apprentice now become the master? 2 Kings 2 v 14 brings great encouragement. The God of the first Jordan-crossing is the same God of this Jordan-crossing.
mouth of his prophet. He has not left his people without direction.
Scene 2: Read 2 Kings 2 v 19-22
y How does God’s word change the situation in verses 21-22?
God’s power remains. Through Elisha, God will mediate his transforming power, which brings healing and life.
Scene 3: Read 2 Kings 2 v 23-25
y How does God’s name work decisively in verse 24?
God’s judgment remains. This sounds like a scene that starts comically and ends harshly. But there is a note of deliberate contempt as a crowd of teenagers come out to mock Elisha. We’ve just seen that those who respond rightly to God’s prophet find mercy (v 21). The flip side is that those who have contempt for his prophet face judgment.
Leaders change, but…
r Apply
The chapter closes with three short scenes. At first they might seem hard to connect. But they all reassure us that God hasn’t left his people. It helps to think of them like this:
After Elijah, Elisha is now the agent of God’s word and will in Israel. The apprentice will soon outstrip the master, as Jesus surpassed John the Baptist. We can be encouraged by knowing that God doesn’t leave his people without an agent of his truth, power and judgment.
Scene 1: Read 2 Kings 2 v 16-18
y How is Elisha’s word proved right in verse 18?
God’s truth remains. We’re reminded that God’s prophetic word still rests in the Bible in a year: Ezekiel 30-32 • John 15
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2 Kings 3
Wednesday 3 October
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Sin spirals Things get worse before they get better. This tale of war shows us the escalating effects of sin.
We three kings Read 2 Kings 3 v 1-9 This episode takes us back to the situation mentioned right at the start of the book (1 v 1). In the past, the people of Moab had pledged allegiance to Israel under King Ahab. With Ahab gone, times have changed. Moab is in rebellion. The latest king of Israel, Joram, asks his fellow king in Judah, Jehoshaphat, for help in quashing the revolt. They are joined by the king of Edom (3 v 9).
Interpreting wisely Read 2 Kings 3 v 10-19 The three kings trudge around until they run out of water. How will they respond?
y What contrast do we see between the
king of Israel (v 10, 13) and the king of Judah (v 12, 14)? How is Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, a y positive example? Elisha gives us the divine perspective: to fill the valley with water is “an easy thing in the eyes of the LORD” (v 18).
Interpreting poorly
Blood on the valley floor! Now we get an example of misreading a situation—fatally so. Thinking they see an opportunity, the Moabites actually fall to their doom. Elisha’s prophecy (v 18-19) comes true.
Increasing blindness Read 2 Kings 3 v 26-27 This is the most telling part of the tale. The king of Moab takes 700 troops into a suicidal surge. Failing there, he then sacrifices his own son.
y Why end with this terrible story? What does it tell us about the effect of sin?
r Apply We’re reminded that spiritual blindness isn’t simply static or neutral. It makes humanity less and less able to see wisely.
y How do you see that in our world today? y How do you see it in yourself? This chapter leaves us crying out for someone who can bring light and life into that state of darkness. Be assured, light and life are coming in the next chapter!
Read 2 Kings 3 v 20-25
y What do the Moabites think they see in verse 23? How do they interpret it?
Bible in a year: Ezekiel 33-34 • John 16
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Thursday 4 October
2 Kings 4
The answer to despair The last chapter showed us the terrible outworking of spiritual blindness. This chapter asks: in dark times, who can bring hope?
The boy who lived Read 2 Kings 4 v 1-37
y What is the first woman’s financial and family situation (v 1)? What is the second woman’s financial y and family situation (v 8 and 14)?
We see two women in quite different contexts. One is poor, with two sons. Another is wealthy, and with no son. Their situations give us two quite different pictures of hopelessness. The poor woman is very up-front in verse 1, as if to say, we trusted God but look where we are now. All she has now is loss— literally, because they are in debt. The wealthy woman’s situation is more complicated. She is happy to provide regular bed and board for Elisha. But when offered help (v 13), she implies that she has no need for any assistance—I have what I need, thanks. Even when her son dies, she gives a strange reply, suggesting everything is fine (v 26). Finally her true feelings break through in verse 28: “Didn’t I tell you, ‘Don’t raise my hopes’?”
r Apply Consider the way hopelessness works: Like the poor woman, some of us may feel hopelessness as loss: “I had hope in God, but that hope is gone”.
Like the wealthy woman, some of us may feel hopelessness as dread: “I dare not hope in God because I am sure that hope will be dashed”.
y Which of these two would you recognise in yourself or in those you care about?
The wonder of this chapter is that God can act, whatever our sense of despair. The poor woman, faced with crushing financial loss, is provided for. God can bring hope again. The wealthy woman faces the most extraordinary turn of events. First she has no son. Then one is given, but then later taken away from her. Finally, he comes back to her. TIME OUT
Read Luke 7 v 11-17
y What echoes are there between Jesus’ raising of the son at Nain and the wealthy woman’s story here?
The one to hope In Read 2 Kings 4 v 38-44 These are all remarkable miracles. Taken together they establish Elisha’s credentials as the man of God. Elisha brings restoration (v 1-7), resurrection (v 8-36), reverses blight (v 38-41), and brings refreshment in abundance (v 42-44)! Elisha is one of the greatest pointers in the Old Testament to Jesus. He takes not twenty loaves to feeds 100, but five loaves to feed 5000.
Bible in a year: Ezekiel 35-36 • John 17
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2 Kings 5
Friday 5 October
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Surprising reversals Grace is harder to grasp than we think. The writer uses vivid contrasts in this encounter to help us see what it really means.
The young girl and boy Read 2 Kings 5 v 1-14
y How do Naaman and the girl differ in
status (v 1-2)? What does Naaman bringing gifts (v 5) y tell us about his view of God? y What does Naaman’s anger in verse 11 tell us about his view of himself? Naaman walks and talks the language of greatness. He expects to meet with other great people (the king of Israel, v 5-6). He communicates with cash (v 5). He feels he deserves a good show (v 11). The Israelite girl is the opposite: young, female, captive, powerless. But that’s what’s essential with God: grace comes to those like young children (Mark 10 v 13 -16). Will Naaman be humbled? After his initial protests (2 Kings 5 v 11-12), wonderfully, yes. When his skin is healed, we’re told he’s as fresh and clean as a young lad out of a bath! We’re not meant to miss the point: the young girl has been joined by a new young boy!
Growing and falling Read 2 Kings 5 v 15-27
y Naaman’s requests in verses 15-18 might seem strange. How is he trying to work out his new-found faith? How do Elisha’s words in verses 16 and y 19 guide our thinking about Naaman here?
y Why is Gehazi so troubled in v 20? Naaman is learning grace. Can he offer God payment? Elisha says: No, it is all a free gift. But then, Naaman asks two stranger questions. Can he take some earth with him? And what about tricky times in his job, when he has to go to another temple? We shouldn’t be too quick to judge either the man or the questions. Naaman is an outsider who’s working out how to worship Israel’s God in his homeland. Elisha’s blessing is a word of reassurance to this new believer. Meanwhile, a darker situation is brewing. Gehazi isn’t happy about “this Aramean” (v 20). The problem is not just Gehazi’s greed and lies; it’s his twisting of grace. He makes it seem that payment is needed after all. Gehazi is cursed with leprosy. This is the final, terrible reversal. Naaman, the outsider, has been brought in. Gehazi, the insider, is cast out.
n Pray Pray for fresh wonder at God’s grace that really does humble us. Pray that we won’t resent God’s grace to others who, we think, don’t deserve it.
Bible in a year: Ezekiel 37-39 • John 18 v 1-18
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