by Shannon Tillman | Sep 25, 2025 | Bible Study, Theology, Thoughts
Years ago, a fellow staff member called me to chat. I had been in a great mood before the phone call. However, by the end of the conversation all of life seemed bleak. She had one negative thing to say after another about every situation: work, health, relationships, everything. I was drained by the end after listening to her complaining to me for over an hour.
While I fell apart with just one person’s gripe session, poor Moses had to listen to millions of negative voices rising up against their situation and against him.
Exodus 15:22-23
Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.)
These people faced life-threatening circumstances. This is a serious matter. There is no water. It had been three days. Children kept telling their parents, “I’m thirsty.” Imagine their fear. If water was not found soon, people could die. Finally, in the distance, they saw water. Picture their joy of coming close to what seemed like an answer. Hope was renewed. They rushed onward, with dry mouths and parched lips, eagerly anticipating a refreshing drink. Yet, their hopes were dashed as they took a sip. The water was bitter, harmful, undrinkable. What they thought was an answer just added to the problem.
How do we respond to difficult situations? What do we do when our hopes are crushed? There is a choice to make. The people decided to complain.
Exodus 15:24
So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?”
Imagine millions of people grumbling. If my heart was disturbed by one negative phone call, how would a murmuring crowd impact Moses? It would be easy to join in and become a part of the complaints. Yet, in the midst of all this grumbling, he took a different approach.
Exodus 15:25a
Then Moses cried out to the Lord…
The people complained; Moses cried out to God. Millions of people focused on their circumstances. Moses focused on the only One who could help with the problem. Moses called on the Lord to intervene. God gave Moses a creative solution.
Exodus 15:25b
…and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink.
Millions of people stood around and complained. One man prayed and received an answer that helped millions. That is the power of crying out to God compared to complaining about circumstances.
Each difficult situation brings a choice. Will I complain or cry out? Maybe the Lord will reveal to us creative solutions that will help others as well if we choose to cry out to Him.
by Shannon Tillman | Sep 18, 2025 | Bible Study, Theology, Thoughts
Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France competitive bike race seven consecutive years, from 1998 to 2005. Due to the grueling nature of this race, speculations arose that he may have used performance-enhancing drugs. Armstrong denied the allegations for years. An investigation, however, concluded that he had been doping throughout his biking career. Finally, in 2013, Armstrong admitted to the drug use. His awards were stripped from him and he was punished with a lifetime ban of involvement in professional sports.
Everything can be lost in a moment by our own sinful choices. Even future generations can be impacted. The nation of Israel experienced consequences from their sins. Children from eleven out of the twelve tribes of Israel were impacted by their forefathers’ idolatry for over a thousand years.
The nation of Israel had been miraculously rescued from Egypt by the hand of God. The Lord brought them to Mount Sinai in order to meet with them, to establish a covenant with them.
Exodus 19:5-6
Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”
If the nation would obey God, all of them would be a kingdom of priests. The priesthood was for everyone. What a privilege granted to them! However, the honor was soon to be stripped away from the nation. They chose to worship a golden idol shaped like a calf, instead of the Lord.
Exodus 19:19
When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain.
The covenant between the people and God was broken. Their idolatry, their sin, their breaking of the rules led to drastic consequences.
Exodus 32:25-28
Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies. So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him. Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died.
Only one tribe of Israel responded to Moses call of being “for the Lord”. The Levites came to Moses and were given the gruesome task of killing idol worshippers. They chose to do what was right in a wrong situation. Because of their choice, they received a blessing.
Exodus 32:29
Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”
The rest of the tribes had the priesthood stripped from them. Only the Levites and their descendants were able to keep the position of their priesthood.
Numbers 3:5-7, 11-13
The Lord said to Moses, “Bring the tribe of Levi and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him. They are to perform duties for him and for the whole community at the tent of meeting by doing the work of the tabernacle…The Lord also said to Moses, “I have taken the Levites from among the Israelites in place of the first male offspring of every Israelite woman. The Levites are mine, for all the firstborn are mine.
The Levites replaced the firstborn of every tribe. What was meant for every tribe was given to the Levites instead. The other tribes had this honor stripped from them and their children.
However, a miraculous turn around takes place after the death and resurrection of Jesus. He became the lasting High Priest on our behalf.
Hebrews 6:20a
where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever…
Jesus from the tribe of Judah, not Levi, is now the High Priest. What Judah lost with the golden calf was regained by Jesus at the cross. Jesus, the First Born son, implements the regaining of the priesthood for all believers. It is not reserved for a few but the office of priesthood is open to all.
1 Peter 2:9-10
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
We received the priesthood back! We are now the priests of God. Think of the honor the Lord has given you through Jesus. You are not “just saved”; you are chosen to be in the royal priesthood. This is beyond just being a serving priest but being bestowed with royal lineage as well! We have been set apart to be holy. Together, believers from all over the world, through all of history make up a new nation of people that are the special possession of God Himself! That is a reason to give a shout of praise! This honor of priesthood is for the privilege of serving Jesus, the one who suffered to grant us this sacred office.
Revelation 1:5-6
…and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
I do not know what you thought when you looked at the mirror this morning, but it should be “I am a royal priest of God”. We will be celebrating the One who gave us this honor not only on earth but heaven as well. One future song is recorded in the book of Revelation honoring what Jesus has done and what Jesus will do.
Revelation 5:9-10
And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”
Everyone is called to the priesthood. This is not for a special few. Your past does not disqualify you. Your age is not a factor. Your excuses have no place. You are the royal priest of the Lord, serving under the High Priest of Jesus. It is time to step up into the fullness of your holy calling.
by Shannon Tillman | Sep 11, 2025 | Bible Study, Theology, Thoughts
He was chosen. He worked with wood and had other skills in creating items. He was one man in a nation of millions of people. He was called to the work. No other person in history accomplished the task that he alone could do. It was a sacred job. He was commissioned by God to create the place of mercy. His name was Bezalel.
Exodus 31:1-5
Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.
The nation of Israel had been rescued from Egypt. In the wilderness, the Lord instructed Moses to build a tabernacle, a place of worship. Bezalel was to lead this sacred task of constructing the house of worship for the Lord. There were numerous holy items that were made.
Exodus 31:6b-9
…make everything I have commanded you: the tent of meeting, the ark of the covenant law with the atonement cover on it, and all the other furnishings of the tent— the table and its articles, the pure gold lampstand and all its accessories, the altar of incense, the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, the basin with its stand…
The most holy object of them all would be the ark of the covenant. This box was the meeting place between God and the people. It would be housed in the section of the Tabernacle called the “Holy of Holies” or “The Most Holy Place”. Once a year, the High Priest was allowed to go behind the curtain and sprinkle blood on the ark. It was the time of forgiveness of sins for the people. It was Bezalel who would have the great honor of making the holy box.
Exodus 37:1
Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood—two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.
Bezalel had to take a rough tree, smooth it down, and fashion it into the shape of a box. The box was then covered with precious metal.
Exodus 37:2
He overlaid it with pure gold, both inside and out, and made a gold molding around it.
The Lord gave specific instructions about the lid of the ark. It would be adorned with angelic creatures looking downward at the top of the box.
Exodus 37:6-9
He made the atonement cover of pure gold—two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. Then he made two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. He made one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; at the two ends he made them of one piece with the cover. The cherubim had their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim faced each other, looking toward the cover.
The ark was not empty but contained objects from the wilderness journey.
Hebrews 9:4
This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.
Bezalel completed his beautiful ark without the full understanding of how it would picture one of his relatives who would be born over fifteen hundred years later. Bezalel was from the tribe of Judah. Jesus, also from the tribe of Judah, fulfilled the purpose of the ark. The ark was the meeting place between God and His people.
Exodus 25:22
There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites.
However, the ark could only be approached with the blood sacrifice, and only once a year by the High Priest. The Lord wanted to meet with all of His people. The ark was the picture of what was to come.
Let us ponder the fulfillment of the ark from the inside out. First, inside the ark was the jar of manna. This was the miraculous bread that came from heaven for the daily provision of the people, to sustain them in the wilderness until they reached the Promised Land. Jesus declared Himself the true Manna from heaven.
John 6:32-35
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Another object in the ark of the covenant was the ten commandments. This was the requirements for the people. However, everyone failed. Each one sinned until Jesus. He lived perfectly. Thus, He fulfilled all of the law.
Matthew 5:17-18
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
The last object in the ark was Aaron’s staff. There had been a dispute where Israelite leaders believed they deserved the high priesthood just as much as the descendants of Aaron. The Lord spoke to Moses on how to handle the dispute.
Numbers 17:1-4
The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes. Write the name of each man on his staff. On the staff of Levi write Aaron’s name, for there must be one staff for the head of each ancestral tribe. Place them in the tent of meeting in front of the ark of the covenant law, where I meet with you. The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout…
The following morning, the Lord miraculously showed His chosen tribe for the priesthood.
Numbers 17:8
The next day Moses entered the tent and saw that Aaron’s staff, which represented the tribe of Levi, had not only sprouted but had budded, blossomed and produced almonds.
This staff shows that only God’s chosen priest can serve before the Lord. Jesus, our High Priest, is chosen to approach God.
Hebrews 6:19
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
The High Priest, the one who is the Mediator between God and man, is Jesus. He approached heaven, not with the blood of an animal, but with His own blood. His precious blood was shed on a wooden cross. What was the ark fashioned out of? It was made of wood. Wood of the ark pictured the wood of the cross where the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of mankind was made. He took on the sin of the world. He was able to die for us because He was perfect, He was God in a human body. The wooden ark was covered with gold, representing the deity of Jesus. The God-man died for us, making atonement for our sins.
The word “ark” in Hebrew means “ark, or chest, or coffin.” The very name of the ark gives a picture of the final placement of a dead body, a coffin. After Jesus died on the cross, He was laid in a tomb. Also, recall the ark of the covenant had a lid with two cherubim looking downward at an empty space between them. Now picture the tomb of Jesus as it was discovered by the women on the third day.
Luke 24:2-4
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.
I think that those two angels had sat at each end of the body of Jesus, watching over his body until He rose from the dead. Then they enjoyed staring at the empty place and telling the people who came:
Luke 24:5b-7
“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’”
Jesus is the fulfillment of all the symbolism of the ark of the covenant. A distant relative, from the tribe of Judah, made a precious box that was a telling a story of what Jesus would do on behalf of His people. Bezalel created the ark, but he would never see it again. For the box was placed behind the curtain in the Holy of Holies. Only the High Priest could access this room and only one time a year. This changed, though, when our High Priest, Jesus, who was also our sacrifice, died on the cross.
Matthew 27:50-51a
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.
The curtain which shielded the ark of the covenant from all the people, all the priest, and even the High Priest except one day a year, was miraculously torn! Access to God through Jesus, became available to anyone who would believe. That ark pictured Jesus and gave a picture of what He would do for us. We can now freely approach the mercy seat of God.
Hebrews 4:14-16
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
We can approach God boldly today because of Jesus. In the past, the nation of Israel did not have complete access to the Lord. That is why Bezalel toiled in his labor. He completed the ark so that the nation of Israel could access the room of God through the High Priest once a year. Jesus completed His work so that every person could enter in the Holy place of the Lord at any time, for any reason. We have access to the true Ark of the Covenant, Jesus, at this very moment. May we all take the time to enter into His holy Presence today.
by Shannon Tillman | Sep 4, 2025 | Bible Study, Thoughts
I know little to nothing about farm animals. Usually, my only contact with the critters stem from petting zoos at the local fair. I admire them from afar due to allergies. I may think they are cute, but I do not take time to ponder their importance in the agricultural world.
A verse of wisdom caused me to think more in depth about a particular animal on the farm.
Proverbs 14:4
Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox come abundant harvests.
I am embarrassed to say that I thought oxen were their own type of animal. I did not realize that the term is used for well-trained cattle. I only found this out by using the handy information at Wikipedia:
In the New England tradition, young…cattle selected for draft are known as working steers and are painstakingly trained from a young age. Their teamster makes or buys as many as a dozen yokes of different sizes for each animal as it grows. The steers are normally considered fully trained at the age of four and only then become known as oxen.” (Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Ox. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ox)
Based on the verse from Proverbs, if oxen are not taken through an intense training process, then eventually a time will come when the manger, or feeding trough, is empty. In other words, taking the time to plan and train the next generation of cattle, ensures that there is future harvest for the people and their children.
Spiritually, the church is responsible for creating “oxen”. The church is to invest in the next generation and train them on how to labor for the gospel. In other words, we are called to make disciples.
Matthew 28:19-20a
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
Just like the oxen are trained on farms through a series of steps, we must make a deliberate plan of action to disciple others. The church must grow others up in the faith, so they in return can repeat the process to go and make disciples. This is what answers the prayer request of Jesus.
Luke 10:2
He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.
Why are the workers few? We are not training them how to work in the fields. Discipleship is not taking place. If this continues, the manger will be empty at a future time. In other words, at the time when the cattle are supposed to be oxen bringing in the harvest, there will not will not be disciples to go. Eventually, it leads a culture that is spiritually starved. I believe the evidence of this is all around us.
Generations of churches have not raised up spiritual disciples. Too often, there was erroneous thinking that left the responsibility of discipleship-making to only church leaders. Sadly, church leaders encouraged this false ideology due in part to believing a bible degree or a church title somehow made them more spiritually mature. However, the great commission did not put a qualification on those who are to make disciples. It is given to all believers, which means there are no age requirements, degree requirements, intelligence requirements, skill requirements, personality requirements, or any other excuses that are used to disqualify those from disciple making.
By the way, discipleship is not about programs. Discipleship is a partnership. A young calf was yoked to a mature ox to learn how to plow the fields, how to work on the farm, how to respond to the plowman. Eventually, the calf is labeled an ox and will be used to train other cattle. Discipleship is about showing others how to walk with Christ, live for Christ, make decisions that honor Christ, tell others about Christ. Discipleship is showing what a Christ-life looks like on earth today. This cannot happen in a one-hour Bible study once a week. Discipleship requires an investment of time, energy, resources in order to see true oxen, true disciples made.
Discipleship is what Jesus modeled. The disciples followed Jesus for three and a half years. Interestingly, it takes about four years for a calf to become an ox. The disciples lived with Jesus, in a sense, yoked to Jesus each day during this time. This gave them a first-hand look at how Jesus lived on a daily basis. The disciples saw how Jesus understood the Word of God, interacted with others, made decisions, prayed, told stories, ate, slept, handled difficult people, taught, and everything else that took place. This is discipleship. His disciples understood what He was calling them to do when He told them to go and make disciples. They were to walk side by side by others and teach them everything, show them how to live, let them be a part of their daily lives.
In this context, please note that the true disciple makers of the family are the parents. The children are yoked together with their parents. Discipleship is taking place no matter what? Are they being discipled in the ways of Christ or the ways of the world? Once again, it is not the “church leaders” responsibility to disciple your children. Instead, God has gifted the parents with little disciples in their home. Parents have the privilege of training them up in the ways of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 11:18-19
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
Discipleship happens as life happens. We have distorted discipleship to a sermon or a class. Our churches reflect the lack of true discipleship. Discipleship is not obtained in masse. True discipleship comes in small groups, like Jesus with the twelve. Yet, those twelve changed the world. Now, we see a world that is changing the church! We cannot blame an unplowed, unfruitful field on the world. The community reflects the church. Is your church discipled and discipling others, or is it just going through a few programs which does not train people or transform people into true followers of Christ?
It is time to evaluate the fields. We can no longer just go through the same old motions that have not worked and will not work. If we continue in our bad set of programs, the manger will be empty. The only ones to blame would be the church that did not disciple others. In fact, we are already seeing this in culture. In recent statistics, the younger generation is more likely to classify as “nones” (meaning no religious affiliation) than as a Christian. The manger’s supply is dwindling. The church must take notice and make changes!
We cannot change the entire church; we may not even be able to influence our local church. However, we can evaluate ourselves. It comes down to this: Who is yoked to us? Who are we discipling? If there is no one there, then we are not obeying the command of Jesus to make disciples. If there is no one there, then we are not answering the prayer request of Jesus for laborers in the field. If there is no one there, then we should not be surprised that the manger will soon be empty.
by Shannon Tillman | Aug 28, 2025 | Bible Study, Thoughts
I am not observant. If someone gets a haircut, it could take me a month or so for me to notice. I can look straight at my keys and still not know where they are. I live lost; and I have often called my husband to help me find my way back home. Details are not my thing.
This blog stems from a detail that a Bible teacher named Sally noticed. We were discussing women in the Bible and she mentioned a previous study on the book of Ruth. She wondered why Naomi, who wanted to be renamed “bitter”, spelled her name as “Mara” compared to the bitter waters which are called “Marah” in the book of Exodus. Why did one have the letter “H” and the other one did not? I had never noticed this detail before (which is not surprising for me). I decided I wanted to delve further into this mystery.
The word “Marah” in the book of Exodus is found after the Israelites had been rescued out of Egypt. In the desert, God led them to a body of water that was bitter. The Hebrew word for “bitter” is transliterated as “Marah”.
Exodus 15:23
When they came to MARAH, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called MARAH.) (emphasis mine)
However, we see the proper noun of “Marah” spelled differently when used in the book of Ruth. Here, a woman named Naomi changed her name to Mara. In Hebrew, Naomi means “pleasant”. However, after the loss of her husband and sons in a foreign land, she wanted her hometown of Bethlehem to call her “Mara”, meaning bitter.
Ruth 1:20-21
“Don’t call me Naomi,” she told them. “Call me MARA, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.” (emphasis mine)
Before I write any further, please let me warn you that I do not know Hebrew. This is not from the desk of an expert. All I can do is recognize the letters and make the sounds. I am basically a Hebrew toddler, not scholar. I hesitated even writing this blog because I knew I would get on the nerves of everyone who knows the Hebrew language. Yet, the message to me was powerful. If my methodology is incorrect, please forgive me.
With all that being said, I want to share what struck me in Naomi’s name change. She named herself “Mara”, instead of “Marah”. The name “Marah” ends with the letter “H” in English, which in Hebrew is the letter “Hey” which looks like this: ה. That letter has an “H” sound. When you make the “H” sound breath comes out of you. In Hebrew, letters also have meanings. The letter “Hey” represents breath, spirit, wind. This one letter is powerful.
Whereas Naomi removed this letter from her name, God added that letter to two names, Abram and Sarai.
Genesis 17:5
No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.
The difference between “Abram” and “Abraham” in the Hebrew is the addition of just one letter; it is the letter “Hey”. We see the same letter addition in the renaming of his wife.
Genesis 17:15
God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.
These name changes occurred one year before their son, Isaac, was born. Abram and Sarai had been promised by God that they would have a child. This promise had been given to them over two decades earlier. After the Sprit of God, breathed into their lives, and breathed into their names, as signified by the letter “Hey”; they were then able to conceive and bring forth the promised child.
In contrast, Naomi changed her name to Mara, bitter. Her personal name change removed the letter “hey”, the letter that signifies the Spirit or breath of God. Interestingly, the last letter changes from “Hey” to “Aleph” which looks like this: ℵ. The letter “Aleph” is a silent letter. However, this one letter is a picture in Hebrew of the oneness of God. Could it be that part of Mara’s pain was that the bitterness of her situation (loss of family) was magnified but what seemed like the silence of God in her difficulties? I know personally sometimes the wait in the pain, the not understanding of what God is doing, the unanswered prayers feel even more painful in the situation, because I believed that the Lord was able to do a mighty miracle and yet withheld His hand. The question “Why, God” can lead to bitterness in the soul, even against the Lord Himself. Could the name change have signified a bitter, broken heart, grieving the God who seemed so silent in her pain?
Naomi changed her name to Mara because of her pain. Any name that we put on ourselves is a label that is absent of the Spirit of God. What names have you called yourself? Dumb, ugly, failure, shamed, worthless, hopeless, addict, tainted, unloved, unwanted, burdened, forgotten, abandoned… What is the name you have taken? What is your Mara?
Dear Friend, the Lord wants to give you a new name. He wants to breathe the Spirit, the letter Hey, into your life. He wants to infuse you with His promises, His gifts, His love, His joy, His peace, His delight. Do you know that He sings songs over you?
Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.
The Lord has a love song with your name as the chorus. God delights over you. The King of the Universe adores you. The name He has for you is the name that describes how He sees you. It is time to remove the names and labels you have put on yourself. Those names do not have life in them. Let the Spirit breathe His new name over you.
Today, you are no longer called Mara. You have a new name. The letter “Hey” has been added to you, the Spirit of God, the mercy of God, the grace of God is yours. Receive the name. Imagine Mara receiving her name.
“Do not call me, Mara, bitter. Call me Naomi, pleasant. For the Lord has been so good to me.”
Loved, Accepted, Chosen, Gifted, Forgiven, Redeemed, Holy, Mighty, Conqueror, Beautiful, Handsome, Marvelous, Child of God. That is who you are. We need to live out the new names the Lord has given to us. Let your name be changed by God today.
by Shannon Tillman | Aug 21, 2025 | Bible Study, Theology, Thoughts
Prisoner’s Paradise
I am afraid to write this chapter. I do not want to miss a single word in describing this powerful scene of condemnation and of salvation. This is an account of three men as well as all of mankind. Who am I to write a chapter on the death of our Lord? Yet, write it I must for He compels me. Please, look past my humble attempts of explaining this passage. Instead, let the Holy Spirit fully bring an impact on the death of the Lamb.
I have never been able to handle blood and gore. I refuse to watch action films because I cannot bear the violence. But the scene I do anything to avoid is seeing the crucifixion scene of Christ. I will close eyes, often even cover my ears. It is just too much for me to handle. I cry at the thought of it, seeing the death scene had made me weep to the point of shaking and feeling physically sick. I have almost fainted. That was just the few minute depictions of this historical event, held near the end of movies documenting the life of Jesus. But when I heard the movie The Passion had been released, I did everything I could to avoid seeing commercials of the film. Yet, I knew God was calling me to view this motion picture. I admit to you, I resisted. Almost everyone I knew had already seen it. A group of friends finally convinced me to go, even though most of them had already viewed the movie. I watched a majority of it. When I did close my eyes, I did not close my ears. But my heart hurt the whole time. The one thought that continued through my mind was, “Jesus, You love me this much?” It was a question, for I still struggle with believing the love God has for one such as me.
Do some of you question His love? His mercy? His grace? Do you feel like you need to do more for His acceptance, to earn His favor? Do you question your salvation? Would God even save me? Then, come with me to a place where death reigned, where questions went unanswered, where confusion was rampant, where hope was lost. That is until Jesus spoke.
Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with Him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified Him along with the criminals –one on His right, the other on His left…One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at Him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise.” (Luke 23:32-33, 39-43)
What do you want to be remembered for? What will be your legacy? These nameless men, only known for crimes, were only mentioned for Who they died with.
Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with Him to be executed.
Three men are forced to go up the hill. Three men knew what awaited them. Three men carrying their crosses. Three men facing capital punishment. Three men scorned by Roman soldiers and despised by Jewish countrymen. Three men finally came to the place of death.
When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified Him along with the criminals –one on His right, the other on His left…
Three men were put on the crosses that day. This form of torture perfected by the Romans is the most painful form of slow death that has ever existed. Crucifixions took place on major roads leading into cities. This was a gruesome reminder of what would happen to anyone who disobeyed the reigning tyrants. Jesus was in the center. The two nameless convicts were at His sides. Crowds stood at their feet. Some were screaming up at Jesus, mocking Him.
The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at Him. They said, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” (Luke 23:35)
The Jews were not the only group having fun at the expense of the dying Jesus. The Romans, also, joined the cruel act.
The soldiers also came up and mocked Him. They offered Him wine and vinegar and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” (Luke 23:36-37)
Then the strangest mockery of all occurred. A fellow convict, one of the three men dying, someone suffering the same fate of Jesus, joined the scorning session.
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at Him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
Facing death, suffering excruciating pain, hardly able to gasp in air, why would you waste breath on insulting someone suffering your same fate? On deathbeds, you hear of speaking words of love to family and friends, sometimes of confessions of wrongdoings committed during the lifetime, of a desire to pray. But making fun of another person? It seems outlandish.
In truth, this convict represents many people. All of us are under the sentence of death. We may not know when, where, or how our capital punishment will take place, but we all know it is coming. No one will escape it. We all will face it. Yet, there are some who choose to shake their fist at God during their entire lifetime, even to the point of death. Their insults take different forms: He does not exist; He is just a Good Force; He is part of many ways; He is removed and unconcerned; He is just a dream. Mockery, scorning, refusing to accept the Truth. Determined to live out our opinions and often joining in on the crowd’s viewpoints, no matter how wrong they may be.
But not everyone joins the crowd. Some see their death sentence and realize they deserve it. They do not insult God for they know He did not put them there. No, it was their own choices. But now they realize they are wrong. And the Lord alone is right. When you realize this, you cannot be silent.
But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Two men, both criminals, under the same sentence draw such drastically different conclusions. One views the crowd and joins them. The other views the Christ and joins Him. I believe this convict watched how Jesus reacted. He heard His words of love earlier when
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34a)
This criminal looked at the facts of his life and summed it up with
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve.
He studied Jesus and realized
But this man has done nothing wrong.
I do not know how much this convict knew about Christ. Had he heard about Him before he was in prison? Had he observed the Lord before being nailed to a cross beside Him? We do not know. All we do know is that He knew the Name above every name and called out to Him.
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
This criminal was saying, “I know You are the Messiah. You have a kingdom in heaven and You reign over it. I realize I am a sinner. I do not belong there. Look at me. You know what I am. But please just remember me. That is more mercy than I even deserve.
A hardened convict, humbled. His heart was finally broken not when he received his punishment for the crime, but when he saw an innocent man face death with Life. It was more than he could hope for when that Life was extended to him.
Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise.”
Life for the dying. Hope for the hopeless. Future for the end. Today will not be ended with excruciating pain. Even though you are suffering now, this day will end with you in paradise. You are with Me now in death but you will be with Me again in life. This is the truth I am telling to you and to anyone else who will listen. Paradise is waiting for those who will receive it!
For you. For me. The choice is ours. Two men were equidistant from the cross of Christ. Both deserved to be there. They were guilty. But one decided in his last moments on earth to reach out for eternity. Another held on to the temporal even in his dying moments. Jesus listened to them both. One hurled insults. The Lord never responded. He knew the convict would be judged. The other one cried out for mercy. Jesus immediately answered with the promise of paradise. Neither deserved grace. But the one who asked for it received it.
The same is true today. We just receive paradise by believing in the One who rules over it. We realize that we do not deserve it, far from it. We have seen the consequences of our poor choices. We feel the weight of our death penalty. But we can choose to ask for mercy. Jesus will give it. You do not have to earn it. Realize the convict was never able to do anything good for God. He was on a cross when He confessed Jesus as Lord. The criminal died not too long after that. He never preached a sermon, helped the homeless, gave money to the church, said a kind word to family or friends. Yet, he would be in paradise. Do you regret your life? Do you look at your past and realize that there is nothing good? Do you think that you do not deserve to go to heaven? You are right. If it was based on our own merits, none of us have a chance. But it has nothing to do with you.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
No one can boast. Not a pastor. Not a missionary. Not a giver. Not a criminal hanging on a cross. Each of us is saved by grace, not merit. It is a gift, not a wage. Nothing we deserve, yet everything God wants to lavish on us. Stop striving. Accept his gift. Jesus loves to pardon the prisoners and release them into paradise. That is the wonderful truth!
One by One
One by one these one on one encounters mean nothing if one more change does not transpire. Are you different? Do you love the Lord all the more because of what you have learned from the letter of Luke? Have you drawn closer to Him? Are you in awe of His grace? Has His mercy floored you? If not, than this is just been a book you can check off your list. Please feel free to throw away for my words are worthless. Who cares what this crazy person thinks? But I hope that the verses from Luke have inspired you to discover more of the Word yourself. Let the Spirit guide you into gleaning new insights from the passages.
Some of you have heard the same Bible stories over and over again. You try not to yawn when the minister is preaching. You go ahead and prepare your own three-point sermon: lunch, nap, and then golf. But you are missing out. Read the words for yourself. Hear what God is speaking to you. He may take you in a wholly (or should I say holy) different direction than the minister is preaching and teach you something new, amazing, refreshing. Take time to listen.
There are others of you who have never known that you could read the Bible daily for yourself. It was not until I was in college that I understood what a Bible study was. I believed only preachers were called to read the Word of God on a daily basis. I thought the rest of us only had to take it in on Sundays when a preacher would spoon-feed us. Not true! The enemy loves this lie. He knows that the most powerful force at your fingertips is the Word of God. For the Word keeps us on the path of God, the one thing the enemy hates. Through the Word we can discern the will of God, which is the last thing the enemy wants us to know. Speaking the Word can defeat the enemy; he hates to lose a battle since he has already lost the war. (You can shout Amen to that!)
Begin today. Open the Bible. Pray. Ask God to teach you something. Read a chapter. Listen to the Spirit speak. Write down what He tells you. Ask for help to be more like Christ. Obey whatever He shares with you. The Bible was given just for you. This present has eternal power! But you must open this letter in order to receive it. You can learn your own life lessons from the Word.
Time with God needs to interrupt your day every day. Just like the encounters we studied in Luke, you have the opportunity to approach Jesus with your cares, concerns, needs, joys, sins, and triumphs. Speak to Him and allow the Lord to speak to you. You are not going to inconvenience Him. He is waiting for you.
From the stories in Luke, we have witnessed how each person was eternally changed by meeting with the Savior. Maybe a new chapter will be written in heaven. It is about another one-on-one encounter. But this time, it is about Jesus meeting with you. What an exciting story that will be! Give Him glory. Go ahead, right now, shout “Glory. Praise the Lord. Halleluiah…..” You keep going. He deserves it. This is the beginning of your one-on-one. Enjoy His Presence!
