Day 199..."Ahab and Naboth...Isaiah begins...Parables"

Today our reading includes a parable a day to go with our Cokesbury Lenten Study of the "Parables Then and Now." Thanks to Betty Hendricks planning back in August we aligned the reading of the parables with "Discovering God's Word a 365 Day Journey." This is why we will take a break from the Book of Acts and resume... when Lent is done. Ahab lives with victory over Ben-hadad but cannot resist Naboth's vineyard. Jezebel plots to kill Naboth similar to a David and Uriah story. Everything goes downhill when Ahab gets greedy. Isaiah is one of my favorite books. We begin with Israel suffering the consequences of sin in chapter one...and the longing for forgiveness..."though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow." Israel will have gloom and doom in the forecast through chapter thirty-nine. Hang in there...Isaiah will be a wonderful message of hope, when we complete the book. Just like life...we have to endure the hard times first before the hope is evident. I will say more about the structure of Isaiah tomorrow. Our parable is on the "Growing Seed." The parable teaches that growth is sometimes invisible but always in process...and one day the fruit arrives. God does bring the growth. I am reminded of Paul's words..."I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow." (I Corinthians 3:6).