John 19 – 21

Verse 19:6 shows the ultimate pressure:

Chief Priests and Officers (shouting): ⁶ Crucify, crucify!

Pilate: You take Him and crucify Him; I have declared Him not guilty of any punishable crime!

Here Pilate is trying not to kill Jesus yet all around him the Jewish leaders are trying to force him. It’s actually a sick and twisted that these people would force another to do their bidding. Where his blood is on Pilate’s hands, it is also on the leaders of the Jews trying to have him sentenced to death.

Verse 19:24 reveals some very disturbing prophecies of Jesus:

So they said, Soldier (to other soldiers): Don’t tear it. Let’s cast lots, and the winner will take the whole thing.

This happened in keeping with the Hebrew Scriptures, which said, “They divided My outer garments and cast lots for My clothes.” These soldiers did exactly what was foretold in the Hebrew Scriptures. 

When you go back to Psalm 22:19 you see this prophecy, but you look at the whole Psalm and see much of Jesus’ story written well before He walked this earth. Each section reveals Jesus’ death on the cross with verse 16 showing his pierced hands and feet. Things like this show that God inspired the scripture and had known what was going to have to be done in order to save the world.

Verse 20:7 is an interesting illustration that is missed today:

 the cloth that covered His face appeared to have been folded carefully and placed, not with the linen cloths, but to the side. 

Jesus was a carpenter in His early life. That trade was displayed on His death in this image. When a carpenter was finished with his work, he would neatly fold his cloth and lay it over the piece. In this image the burial cloth was neatly folded indicating that Jesus’ work was finished. Today we miss that since the tradition has long been lost in history and unfortunately it’s overlooked today.

Verse 21:25 is the final verse in John and makes one wonder:

There are so many other things that Jesus said and did; and if these accounts were also written down, the books could not be contained in the entire cosmos.

What other accounts were there? Are there other gospels not included in the “canonization” of the Christian Bible that give us a deeper understanding? Are there lost works that were burned in the fire a Alexandria that are lost to history? Or is this really all we need? Based on how much I personally pick up each read, I can’t imagine having even more stuff explaining God’s love for us. Rather I believe it would only be redundant and while something new may be found, it will not change that Jesus was real, He died on the cross for our sins, believing in HIM is the path to salvation with God and just accepting this with confession of one’s sins is all it takes for that E-Ticket.

Amos 5 – 9

Verse 5:4 shows God’s mercy:

⁴ So says the Eternal to Israel:

Eternal One: Turn back to Me and you will live. There is still time.

 

God is not some maniacal old guy waiting for the first flub up to torture us. No God shows and has shown His grace time and time again. All they had to do was turn back to God and all would be forgiven. It’s really that simple …

Verse 5:15 struck a chord with me:

Hate what is evil, and love all that is good;
    apply His laws justly in the courts at the city gates,
And it may be that the Eternal God, the Commander of heavenly armies,
    will have mercy on those descendants of Joseph who survived.

We just need to know what is evil! Today there are so many mixed messages that we get confused on what is right and what is wrong. Society has gone into more of a relativistic view of morality versus a set standard for all. Verse 5:18 is a warning to those who think they are on the right track:

How horrible for you who look forward to the day of the Eternal One!
    Why do you want it to come?
For you, its arrival will mean darkness, not light.

There will be a time everyone will be judged. I know today that many churches are being led astray by leaders who do not interpret scripture as they are written. Many even make stuff up to forward their message of prosperity. I pray that only those leaders are punished and the followers are spared. At the same time we do have the guide book AKA the Bible, which all the false doctrines are rooted.

As with most prophecies against Israel, the next few chapters go into detail on how they will be punished. But verse 9:14 once again gives the people hope that Israel will survive:

I will restore the captives of My people, Israel.
        They will rebuild their ruined cities and return to them.
    They will plant new vineyards and drink wine from them,
        and they will plant new gardens and eat the food they grow.

I don’t see God destroying mankind but finishing evil. With that said I often wonder how man can ever be free. Sure we can have paradise, but see how we messed that up before. Israel was given a land flowing with milk and honey, yet they again blew it. Have we already gone through the prophecies given in Revelations and paradise was lost once again? With free will I can never see this cycle ending. What I can say is stay rooted in Jesus and focus your attentions on doing His will … not yours … and all will be will with the world.

Proverbs 25

Verse 25:5 is the second part of a clear image:

Take away the wicked from among the king’s advisors,
    and his reign will be established with integrity.

The first part is about refining the impurities from silver and how that applies to a government. Not only can this be applied to kings, prime ministers and presidents, but also to moms, dads and individuals. We need to refine the impurities from our system such that nothing corrupts our life. The biggest key is picking your “inner circle” or friends. One friend who wants to try something that is questionable may sway others to follow and start a downward spiral.

Verses 25:11 & 12 uses the precious metal analogy:

¹¹ A well-spoken word at just the right moment
    is like golden apples in settings of silver.
¹² To an attentive ear, constructive criticism from a truly wise person
    is like an earring or jewelry made of fine gold.

Often our words are like jewelry. James talks about the damage words can do and this proverb shows how they can build up and inspire. We need to understand that words are the most powerful thing on the earth. If you think about it words caused all the wars ever and have destroyed relationship daily. When speaking, build up lovingly and try never to tear down a person.

Verse 25:20 reminds me of the use of clichés when people are down:

Like a man who undresses in winter
    or a woman who pours vinegar on a wound,
So is anyone who tries to sing happy songs
    to a sorrowful heart.

Every cloud has a silver lining. Time heals all wounds. God will never give you more than you can handle. Really?? When one is down that’s the last thing they need to hear, it only makes us feel better since we really can’t help other than just being there.

Verses 25:21 & 22 actually takes the last proverb to an extreme:

²¹ If your enemy is hungry, give him something to eat;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink,
²² For your kind treatment will be like heaping hot coals on his head,
    it may cause a change in heart,
    and the Eternal will repay you.

This is a classic analogy, where someone may not want to hear what you have to say you actions are what irritate. Instead of fighting, try to win you enemy over.

Psalms 111 – 113

Verse 111:10 talks about our relationship with God:

Reverence for the Eternal is the first step toward wisdom.
    All those who worship Him have a good understanding.
    His praise will echo through eternity!

This is not a causal relationship where God is our “mate” as Crocodile Dundee said once in a bar. No we need to really respect God and stop making Him an object of our needs. He may be “like” a close friend, but He also knows what you need verses what you desire. Unlike a friend, God will step in when He can to stop you from fulfilling your destructive desires.

The key is God is above all and we really need to respect that.

Verse 112:9 talks about our charity:

They give freely to the poor;
    their righteousness endures for all time;
    their strength and power is established in honor.

We really need to stop holding on with a death grip to our cash. Honestly, if we actually did what God was asking our “tithe” would be for helping the church and we would be giving over and above to the poor. Just because we “tithe” does not mean we stop our generosity. No, on the contrary because the “tithe” was intended to support the church, not support the poor. Your generosity is used for that, while only 10% of the church’s operational budget technically should be allocated for that … of course unless there are excess funds donated.

Verse 113:7 is very critical for all to obey:

He gathers up the poor from their dirt floors,
    pulls the needy from the trash heaps,

How does God do this? Does He reach down from heaven and scoop up the poor? Nope, He sends the Holy Spirit to tell US to do it. It’s really that simple, when we get that “feeling” we need to help someone and then justify not by saying they will just get booze or crack that is SATAN intercepting God’s work through US!! 

2 Chronicles 1 – 5

Verse 1:10 is very key in Solomon’s life:

Now that I am their ruler, give me wisdom and knowledge to lead this great people. Without such wisdom, who can govern such a great people?

He did not go after the world view and this is great. It shows Solomon wanted to become a great leader and not just a powerful one. He did not want to rule with an iron fist, but rather rule fairly. This was wonderful and God honored the request.

Verse 1:12 shows God’s joy:

Because you thought of the welfare of My people, I have granted you this exceptional wisdom and knowledge. In addition, I will give you riches and wealth and honor greater than any king ever has possessed or ever will possess.

Having been blessed by God I often wonder if this ended up being a curse. Solomon drifted from God’s plan wildly as he got older. So I wonder if being blessed distracted Solomon from God. Or was he a product of dysfunction of his family? Did David’s unfaithfulness with Solomon’s mother cause a riff that was never repaired through blessings in Solomon’s life?

I look at how many family problems start and everyone thinks money will solve everything and even after the money comes the problems only deepen. The key is not “blessings” but rather a tight connection with God. When blessings do come, thankfully enjoy them but do not get distracted with the toys. KNOW THE SOURCE and give back in abundance.

The rest of the reading is the details Solomon put into building a permanent temple of God. I look at how ornate this was and wonder if they were focusing too much ornate grandeur on the building removing focus from God. Like with Solomon’s riches, this structure became a system in its own maintaining the glory of the building and missing God. 

Verse 5;2 had me notice “the City of David”:

Just as his father had done when he moved the covenant chest to Jerusalem, Solomon assembled all of Israel (the generals, the judges, and every tribal leader) to move the covenant chest of the Eternal from the city of David (also called Zion) into the new temple 

The temple was in Jerusalem which has been called the city of David, yet here scripture differentiates between the two. Why is that? Also, I notice it’s called “Zion” which opens up a ton of other questions about Zionists verses Jews. Is there a difference? Are they a “denomination” within the Jews like Methodists are to the Christian Church? 

Numbers 16 – 18

Verse 16:3 shows that people questioned Moses’ authority within those who witnessed the miracles:

You’ve taken this leadership way too far. We are all holy; indeed each individual is holy to our God. The Eternal One is present among the entire congregation. How can you presume to be better than any of us, the Eternal’s chosen community?

Everyone seems to think Moses came down from the mountain with God’s word and things were fine. Sure they rebelled a few times, but nothing major. Well this story shows it happened more than a few times and God dealt with the people aggressively. 

Verse 16:35 shows God’s “wrath”:

A fire shot out from the Eternal One and incinerated the 250 men who were offering the incense on Korah’s behalf.

One of the doctrines in many churches is God is the same as He always has been. I tend to disagree since often times we see in the Torah, God fuming and ready to destroy all of Israel, yet Moses stands in to calm Him down. If God was the same then why are we not feeling the wrath like Sodom and Gomorrah? I tend to think God has mellowed … where early it was like a new father who cannot figure out this new child and sometimes loses it. Then later in life that same child now has their own and the father (now a grandfather) is mellow. Israel has grown up and the Christian church is the grandkids of that great nation. I would love clarity on this, since it’s something I don’t seem to have the answer to at this time.

Verse 17:10 shows God’s frustration:

Eternal One (to Moses): ¹⁰ Return Aaron’s staff to the tent and place it in front of the covenant, to serve as a reminder of whom I’ve chosen to lead this people. Let it be a warning to any who would question or undermine your leadership. I have made My choice clear and will kill anyone who persists in challenging it.

See I can’t understand why God doesn’t kill most of us today. Heck I can’t think of how many times I have crossed the line and should have been stuck down. These people are just questioning God on who He has given authority. Have you been angry at God for what has happened? Should any of us die when we question that decision? See why I believe God has changed and “mellowed.”

Titus 1 – 3

Paul’s concern was false teachings and it really showed in this letter to Titus. Verse 1:11 talks about how these teachings must be stopped:

Their talk must be quashed—their mouths sealed up because impure teaching is flying out of their lips and overturning entire families for the sake of their own squalid gain.

The problem with false teachings are they lead people away from Jesus and the true Way. We HAVE a guide book and should be in it daily. Honestly, if we are not we could easily fall prey to these false teachings. I hate to pick on Joel Osteen, but every time I watch his sermons I see things that appear to be wrong, yet he has a huge church. He says what people want to hear and picks verses that work while leaving out chapters that don’t. See yesterday’s reading where suffering is possible, yet getting a goodie bag is also.

The only way we can protect ourselves is to double check and read IN CONTEXT what is being preached. I find PK has been scripturally sound for the 8 or more years I have listened to his sermons, yet I still consider each sermon in context. We must be ever vigilant in our quest to serve Jesus.

Verses 2:11 & 12 gives us simple instructions on what to do with our salvation:

¹¹ We have cause to celebrate because the grace of God has appeared, offering the gift of salvation to all people. ¹² Grace arrives with its own instruction: run away from anything that leads us away from God; abandon the lusts and passions of this world; live life now in this age with awareness and self-control, doing the right thing and keeping yourselves holy.

Jesus died on the cross for OUR salvation. Yes, he thought of YOU hanging on that cross, knowing the hope and salvation needed. That salvations is transformational and has us run away from our past sins. Sure it’s not easy and sin may pop into our saved lives,  but grace gives us an out to confess and run away again. NOTE this is not a E-Ticket to go back to sinning, but rather an E-Ticket to flee from the sins of this world.

Verse 3:5 is the KEY to Jesus and the salvation offered:

He came to save us. It’s not that we earned it by doing good works or righteous deeds; He came because He is merciful. He brought us out of our old ways of living to a new beginning through the washing of regeneration; and He made us completely new through the Holy Spirit, 

This is the key over other religions, that salvation is not earned but given. I am picking on specifics today and will poke at Scientology since it’s the newest of the large “religions”. There salvation comes from enlightenment which is learned in classes that cost a boat load of cash. Ignoring the fact it was first described in a forward of a Sci-Fi novel, we see a group of men tapping into the energy of God without acknowledging God and charging money to do so. Sure the doctrine is very twisted to appear logical but misses the mark when it comes to service to others. My test is if it cost money to become “saved” there is a problem, it should be a free gift to the least and not a pleasure of the well off.

Salvation through Jesus is simple and free to join. Although it’s sometimes difficult to follow, it’s something that does not require money or works to gain, just faith. The “works” come from the salvation, not for the salvation!!

John 16 – 18

Verse 16:2 is really difficult when you think about it:

The time will come when they will kick you out of the synagogue because some believe God desires them to execute you as an act of faithful service.

Honestly who would want to be part of something people will desire to execute you? Did we sign up to be true followers of Jesus or just get the goodies He has to offer? Think about all the sermons that talk about the good you can get from Jesus without mentioning that all but one of Jesus’ followers died holding on to His message. We need to cling onto the message Jesus has. I think the rift between Judaism and Christianity has stabilized out so the Church is safe but the rift between Islam and everyone else seems to be growing.

Today Christians who do spread the Gospel in the Muslim world face possible death, it actually still is happening. Now am I saying go spread the Gospel in Saudi Arabia? No, but with that said those who do need people at home not “chickening out” in safe environments.

Verse 16:11 caught my eye:

The Spirit will also carry My judgment because the one who rules in this world has already been defeated.

Satan “has already been defeated” according to Jesus yet he still runs amok in this world. I read this and wondered what it meant since today we see more evil than good in many places. One only needs to look at the world of porn to see how demented it has become. It’s no longer pictures of naked women, but rather horrific acts of violence and perversion for sexual release. Is this Satan’s Last Stand or are these words based on the future?

Verse 16:23 is what most pull from this chapter:

When all this transpires, you will finally have the answers you have been seeking. I tell you the truth, anything you ask of the Father in My name, He will give to you.

I am sure the disciples all prayed in Jesus’ name to save them from their fate, yet the all still died. I think this is one of the most misused verses in the Bible since we really need to tie this to the Garden and Jesus’ prayers to release Him from the fate He faced. He prefaced it with “Your will be done”. We tend to forget this and wonder why OUR dreams and desires are not fulfilled! Am I saying if you pray for a Mercedes in Jesus’ name it will never happen? No, quite the contrary God wants us happy and joyous. The key is in HIS time not OURS, often it may take decades for the car before we are in a spot where we are ready.

Verse 17:16 has some interesting wording:

Like Me, they are not products of the corrupt world order.

I read this and the words “world order” which are used quite often in this chapter, stand out. I immediately think of the “new world order” which conspiracy people have been watching out for in government. Is this wording just using the popular vernacular since it was written recently or is there something underlying? Since I understand the NWO is a Luciferian concept and predicted in Revelations my radar pops up seeing this. Are we being “set up” for a new system considering how corrupt the current one is? Is the NWO really Satanic or is it what God has in store for us? If so what becomes of those of us (me included) that are warning against this NWO? 

Note – Most other translations say “world” and not “world order” so the wording concerns me.

“What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world, remains and is immortal.” – Albert Pike (or Pine depending on which site … I believe it’s Pike though)

Amos 1 – 4

Verse 1:1 got my attention because of the last bit:

These are the words of Amos, one of the shepherds in Tekoa, a city in the highlands of Judah. God gave him these visions regarding Israel in the time of Uzziah (who ruled Judah) and Jeroboam (the son of Joash, who ruled Israel) two years before the great earthquake.

The idea there was a “great earthquake” caught my attention, so off to Google. While many people, even Christians, view the Bible as more of a story book with social significance most don’t view it as historically accurate. Heck Genesis 1 is so “discredited” by science that most assume the rest is not accurate, never mind the idea Genesis 1 matches the fossil record and radio metric dating is based on an “old earth” assumption and CONSTANTS are used to adjust a “linear” scale with exponential functions … but that’s another book.

In researching this book there is plenty of historical evidence uncovered around 1955 that shows a significant earthquake happened around the time of Amos. So once again a “story” starts to have historical significance. We need to start looking at things like parting of the Red Sea as something that may have actually happened and not a “story”. I will be laughing when they find a platoon of Egyptian chariots in the middle of the Red Sea!!!

Verse 1:13 has a few things that stand out to me:

 Here is what the Eternal says about Ammon, just northeast of the Jordan:

Eternal One: For three crimes of the Ammonites,
        no for four, I have laid down My sentence and will not revoke it
    Because they ripped open the bellies of pregnant women in Gilead
        as they made war to expand their territory.

First the “no for four” reminded me of a Monty Python skit of the Spanish Inquisition where the cardinals kept adding a forth charge. I wonder if they were mocking Amos in a way or if they were not aware of these passages? Notice that all the judgment is against the cities have this written.

The other stand out was “they ripped open the bellies of pregnant women.” Is this a documented stance against abortion? I believe so since they were forcibly aborting children so they could gain control of the land they would inherit. When you think about it this could be a Babushka Doll Principle warning us today on what we are doing. Our nation has come to accept abortion, heck I even think it should remain legal just not moral. Believe me this is a long description on why I believe this, but I do admit I may be wrong in this stance. Maybe we need to heed the warnings of Amos?

Proverbs 23 – 24

Verse 23:1 is something most don’t need to think about, except for one situation:

When sitting down to eat with a ruler,
    take a moment to think about who you are with and what you are doing.

When you think about it, most of us will never sit with a president, a prime minister or king, so we don’t need to be too concerned about our table manners. On the other hand we sit down daily with our God and commune with Him, formal or not. We need to consider what we are doing and not just start with the whine!!! Give this relationship the respect it deserves.

Verses 23:4 & 5 can be applied to society today:

⁴ Do not overwork yourself just to become wealthy;
    have enough sense to know when to quit.
⁵ As soon as you become fixed on riches, they vanish.
    For suddenly they sprout wings
    and become like a soaring eagle flying high in the sky.

Work-a-holics are nothing new but society today is driving everyone that direction. The move to empower and masculine women has made their drive for the might dollar just as aggressive as men, so no longer are children being tended to by family but rather by a for profit center designed to keep them safe and nothing more. I think we have lost it and need to turn off the tube and disconnect from the marketing hype. Realize your job is not you and ten years later it will be the same, but your family will be ravaged. Money is temporary, God is eternal!!

Verse 23:13 is key to raising children:

Do not withhold discipline from children,
    since corporal punishment will not kill them.

There is a fine line here. We are not to beat our children to an inch of their lives, but not coddle them and say it’s ok. Discipline must be administered, but in a loving and kind way. Yes spanking is required and has been the only known corrective action to children’s misbehavior for millennium.

Verse 24:10 reminded me of the poem “If”:

If you fall apart during a crisis,
    then you weren’t very strong to begin with.

The poem “If” by Rudyard Kipling stated it this way: “If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you.” The key to life is realizing crises will happen and the only way to get through them is to be calm. In extreme instances freezing or falling apart will kill you. We must understand that we are here not only to show faith in God but our trust in Him. It’s easy to show this when things are good, it’s critical when things are bad.

Verse 24:17 & 18 is something our society tends to ignore these days:

¹⁷ Do not celebrate when your enemies fall,
    and do not rejoice when they trip up;
¹⁸ Or else the Eternal will know and be upset with you,
    and He will release them from His anger.

A Mad About Sports comic from decades ago summed it up and although I can’t quote it exactly I will lay it out. It had two frames with reporters asking the winning pitcher about the game, the “old” frame had a humble pitcher thanking his team and giving them credit, the “new” frame had him taking all the credit. We do the same thing in conflicts, we gloat over the loser instead of honoring their accomplishments as well.  Be aware of the second verse. I think Malcom Smith from On Any Sunday epitomized this when interviewed, he talked about how fun it was and told stories about everyone’s experience.

Psalms 108 – 110

Verse 108:3 reminds us to give thanks:

I will stand and offer You my thanks, Eternal One, in the presence of others;
    I will sing of Your greatness among the nations no matter where I am.

What do you think when you hear David giving thanks? Here was a shepherd who was the lowest in his family who became king of Israel. He won battles, lead a nation, was rich beyond most dreams and he was the head of the savior of the world. Sure it’s easy to be thankful when that is going on in one’s life! But how about us today? We are mired in debt, struggling through day to day fights without sign of success and we are asked to be thankful. YES!! I believe David was a man after God’s heart, he was not always number 1, remember David was a bathroom stop for King Saul who was trying to kill him.

We must be thankful in the good times as well as the bad. God will reveal why the bad times were required.

Verse 109:5 talks about how a David’s actions were repaid:

Though I treat them well, they answer me with evil;
    though I give them love, they reply with a gesture of hatred.

Imagine helping someone and they turn on you? Has that happened to you ever? I know often times we will help someone thinking it’s what they need and when things break down we wonder if that was the right thing to do. One thing we need to realize that it’s our witness when things are going wrong that is more valuable than when things are good. Would your response be attack or bless them more? That is the difference between a hypocrite and a follower of Jesus!!

Verse 110:1 starts a Psalm that has been quoted often:

The Eternal said to my lord,
    “Sit here at My right hand,
    in the place of honor and power,
And I will gather your enemies together,
    lead them in on hands and knees;
    you will rest your feet on their backs.”

This was apparently the most quoted Psalm by writers of the New Testament as well as people connecting David’s lineage to Jesus who is seated at the right hand of God today. This is what is affectionately called the Babushka Principle. A Babushka doll is a doll within a doll and the Babushka Principle is a meaning with a hidden meaning. This psalm directly talks about David’s reign and indirectly talks about his family remaining in that position to finally Jesus who is seated at the right hand of God in heaven.

1 Chronicles 25 – 29

David’s reign ends and we get a Reader’s Digest version of what happened. There are many details that are left out of this account and a few added. With that there are many details missed by other stories. Verse 25:1 interested me by its wording:

David and the heads of the Levites, also known as the commanders of the army, selected for the service some of the sons of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun. These men were expected to serve in the temple by prophesying with lyres, harps, and cymbals. These are the singers who performed these duties in order of their descent. 

The word “prophesying” with musical instruments interested me in the meaning. What exactly does it mean? I always considered “prophesying” telling people what was going to happen and not entertaining them. I checked other versions of the Bible and the wording is consistent telling me this is accurate. I can understand how one could handle “prophesying” in music with lyrics, but they don’t say that. I assume they are doing this via song for the impact and remembering. I suspect many are Psalms we read today.

As we go to David’s final days in verse 28:1 he address Israel:

At the end of his life, David assembled in Jerusalem all the officials of Israel to instruct them in how to run both the state and the religion after his death. These officials included the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of the divisions that served the king, the commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, the managers of all the royal property and livestock, the officials, the warriors, and all the valiant men.

This is a man who was after God’s heart from day one, sure he messed up along the way but haven’t we all (NOTE – This is NOT justification for adultery). I believe you look at all the stories in the Bible we see God working through the unexpected and the flawed. Even King Saul had his flaws of not wanting his anointment. David had a lot to teach the nation without much time. So he came before them and laid it on the line. As complex as we try to make it, follow God with all your hearts is the message.

Verse 28:20 has his charge to Solomon:

Be strong, courageous, and effective. Do not fear or be dismayed. I know thatthe Eternal God, who is my God, is with you. He will not abandon you or forsake you until you have finished all the work for the temple of the Eternal.

1’st Chronicles ends with Solomon being set as king by David. This was unprecedented in “tradition” but as with David the youngest became the king. This book does not talk about the struggles Solomon had with his brothers who felt they had the birth right to the throne. We must learn from this that we need to listen to God and not man’s rules.

Numbers 13 – 15

Verse 13:18 has God sending the people to scout the Promised Land:

I want you to tell us about the land and especially about its people—are they strong or weak? Are there a lot of them or only a few?

This is actually the start of a very big problem, but God wanted the people to understand what they were going into. He wanted them to understand the beauty and the problems.

Verse 13:33 has the report:

We saw the massive Anakites who descended from the ancient Nephilim! We look like grasshoppers compared to them, and they know it.

They had seen the 10 plagues, parting of the Red Sea, water from a rock and Manna from heaven yet they did not have faith God would conquer the “giants”.  I can never understand how they could do that yet at the same time I do it daily. We have what seems to be a God prompt to move to the West. I had the heart problem, my father got cancer and the children all moved to the west. We had no reason to stay other than the anchor called the farm.

A developer came by and made an offer the day after we decided to move!! This seemed to be God!! Anyway we found a “perfect” home which we wanted to make an offer, but the developer pushed back closing for 6 months. During that time we determined it wasn’t “perfect” and finally found the spot. Well during this time the “giants” or neighbors fought the zoning and appear to have won. Was this a mistake or should we have faith the God will conquer our “giants”? I started to look for other avenues to get the money and finally realized I am doing EXACTLY what the Israelites did.

I am back to settling into waiting on God, I just hope and pray my brief panic did not cause us to be stuck in the “wilderness” for 40 more years!!  I must realize it’s not me but rather GOD who is in control … I am just in charge of making sure we are operating in FAITH!!

Verse 14:11 has God ranting:

 How many times will this ungrateful people turn their backs to Me? How long will they persist in their faithlessness, refusing to recognize all the wondrous signs I performed in their midst? 

He was going to kill ‘em all, but Moses convinced Him not to do that. The punishment was wander the desert for 40 years until that generation died off. Harsh but in reality fair punishment for a lack of faith that God will provide.

2 Timothy 3 – 4

Verses 3:2-5 hit me huge today:

² You see, the world will be filled with narcissistic, money-grubbing, pretentious, arrogant, and abusive people. They will rebel against their parents and will be ungrateful, unholy, ³ uncaring, coldhearted, accusing, without restraint, savage, and haters of anything good. ⁴ Expect them to be treacherous, reckless, swollen with self-importance, and given to loving pleasure more than they love God. ⁵ Even though they may look or act like godly people, they’re not. They deny His power. I tell you: Stay away from the likes of these. 

I started with just one verse and kept seeing more critical stuff. The first part that stuck me was the word “narcissistic”. We have become a country full of people who will post intimate feelings and details of life on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook for all to read. We vacation it makes our “timeline”. We eat something special and it makes our “timeline”. Heck, some even post when they have bodily functions happen. I am just as guilty as the next guy. Unfortunately today we have the “narcissist and chief” running our country who feels it necessary to take “selfies” at important state events.

I could pick each one and show everyone how even people thinking they are following the Way are drifting. “Money-grubbing” is another one that has overtaken everyone since this has become less a world of the rising tide lifting all boats, to a jump in my rocket and thrive. People tend to be more “arrogant” because they now have access to volumes of data, so in hours one can become an “expert” on any subject and command conversations. As you can see this whole section speaks to so many of us, on many levels.

They key is to know it’s happening within ourselves and correct it ASAP!! Don’t say “that’s me and grace will cover my sin” but rather change. I think we will all be shocked when we stand before God and find that knowingly sinning is an awful offense against HIM.

Verses 4:2 & 3 are more encouragement and warnings to us today:

² go out and preach the word! Go whether it’s an opportune time or not! Reprove, warn, and encourage; but do so with all the patience and instruction needed to fulfill your calling³ because a time will come when some will no longer tolerate sound teaching. Instead, they will live by their own desires; they’ll scratch their itching ears by surrounding themselves with teachers who approve of their lifestyles and tell them what they want to hear. 

We need to stop planning and go forth to tell all about Jesus. Tomorrow cannot wait, it’s not our choice. We need to also watch since many are preaching false doctrines that may lead people away from God. The “COEXIST” movement is one of the most dangerous. The main intent is not to have religions argue and kill each other, but rather love and live harmoniously. The underlying intent is to dilute the core message that Jesus is Lord and the WAY to salvation. It’s not something earned or obtained, but rather something given freely by God to all who believe.

Verse 4:7 is Paul’s farewell to his brothers in Christ:

I have fought the good fight, I have stayed on course and finished the race, and through it all, I have kept believing.

Think about this Paul has finished his ministry on earth and is preparing to “be with God.” Later it talks about “crowns” and the like which kind of bother me since it implies heaven will be a class society also. We need to realize that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, all will bask in God’s glory equally! The death row repentance to the lifelong worker in Jesus will all share equally in God’s kingdom. Does that mean stop? NO WAY!! We need to keep fighting to death for Jesus.

John 13 – 15

Verse 13:34 has Jesus giving his disciples new marching orders:

 So I give you a new command: Love each other deeply and fully. Remember the ways that I have loved you, and demonstrate your love for others in those same ways. 

Jesus’ teachings were actually quite simple, love God and love one and other. All His stories stemmed from this concept. Unlike the Jewish Pharisees of His time, we have overly complicated a very simple message. Just love each other as Jesus loves us, how simple can it be and how messed up we have made it. I think of wars in the name of God and how absurd that actually is when applied to Jesus’ teachings.

Verses 14:6 & 7 are some of the most critical verses in Christianity:

Jesus: ⁶ I am the path, the truth, and the energy of life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. ⁷ If you know Me, you know the Father. Rest assured now; you know Him and have seen Him.

How much more can be said? The path to God is not righteous acts or attaining some enlightened state, but rather just believing in Jesus. It’s that simple! New Age religions and cults tends to twist past this and believe God is everything and somehow we are a god because of this with the same power and will. This is so far from the truth. I love the way The Voice adds “energy of” to the first verse since it’s a critical concept to understand and would take some time to explain.

Verse 14:12 is one of those verses I ponder quite often:

I tell you the truth: whoever believes in Me will be able to do what I have done, but they will do even greater things, because I will return to be with the Father. 

How many of us believe and wonder why we do not have the power to heal or raise the dead? Heck Jesus’ own words here and He specifically says we “will do even greater things!” So when? Over 2000 years do we have another person who has raised the dead? Was I raised from the dead by prayer? What is “greater things” anyway? Jesus healed the lame, made the blind see and raised the dead, so what have (and I will make this personal since I can’t answer it either) you done “greater” than Jesus?

We need to know it’s not us but God doing these “greater” things!!

Verse 15:5 is one that we need to understand:

I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear great fruit. Without Me, you will accomplish nothing.

Jesus spends time with the vine and branch analogy to ensure we understand that we need to get off our butts and GO DO! But do so in Him and not to gain status with Him. See Jesus will provide all we need if we remain in Him. We will get pruned if we do not remain in Him, so keep it simple and follow His lead and not YOURS!

Joel 1 – 3

Verse 1:17 talks about a devastating famine to spread over the land:

The seeds the farmers planted have shriveled beneath the ground;
    all the storehouses are empty; their supplies are gone.
The barns are breaking down
    because there is no more grain to fill them.

Joel is prophesizing a very grim time due to Israel’s drifting from God’s way. Unfortunately these writings are general enough they could be applies to many times over Israel’s history. Unfortunately it’s unclear if these may be events yet to happen or if they were events averted from Israel repenting much as Nineveh did during Jonah’s prophetic visions.

Verse 2:8 is another rewrite the Voice did I wish to explore:

Organized—no soldier crowds another.
    Independent—each man marches straight ahead.
Together—they are unstoppable as they break through the defenses
    and do not break off the attack.

Again this is a poetic license the Voice uses to expand a verse so we can gain understanding of the scripture. Fortunately unlike other versions that do this the Voice has appeared very true to the original meaning or intent. I cannot say this for 100% sure, but when compared to other versions, I gain clarity when reading the Voice.

Verse 3:10 makes me wonder about the former USSR and their hammer and sickle:

Hammer your sickles into swords.
    Forge your pruning shears into spears.
For this final battle, even the weakling must say, ‘I am a warrior!’

The famous symbol for communism does not have Biblical roots, but it sparked a synapse to explore this possibility. In the USSR the hammer represented the industrial working class while the sickle represented the peasant farming class. They may have tried to tie it to religious imagery via this verse, but I could not find any reference. Also, if the Soviets were trying to discredit religious beliefs, they would not have chosen such an obscure reference. In this case the hammers are used to transform the sickles into weapons.

Verse 3:17 makes me wonder if this has happened:

Eternal One: Then you will know that I am the Eternal, your God,
        and I live in Zion, My sacred mountain.
    Jerusalem will be My holy city;
        never again will foreign invaders infiltrate it.

As we know through history, Israel has been in turmoil since this was written. Only recently has the area seemed stable and I say that through the aspect of Israel being a nation again. In no way have they been secure and based on the number of non Jews in the country it appears to have been “infiltrated”. So I ask again, has this happened yet since this does not appear to have come to be true.

Proverbs 22

Verse 22:2 talks about wealth:

Rich and poor have something in common:
    both are created by the Eternal.

This is something that gets us into a spin since you can say if God created rich and poor then He created good and evil. Think about this a bit before reacting. God created everything and therefore must have created Satan and evil. How can this be or did evil just happen out of creation? See the rabbit trail one can go down and spin into some very complex theological problems and see where New Age religion spawned from.

One could argue that God is everything and creation was polluted by evil. Evil made rich and poor to ensure there was envy. Therefore Solomon missed the point and society was originally meant to be truly blind and naked.

Verse 22:7 shows many of Jesus’ teaching come from scripture:

The rich lord it over the poor,
    and the borrower is the slave to the lender.

I think of Polonius’ words “neither a borrower or a lender be” when reading this proverb. Although Jesus did not restate this proverb, his teachings show that one should not live beyond one’s means. I think the most critical passage on lending was in Luke 7 where two men were forgiven their loans, but this was not used to show the “evils” of borrowing rather the grace God gives to all.

Verse 22:13 is one I want to look at in detail:

A lazy person says, “A lion! Right outside!
    I will surely die in the streets!
    Yet another good reason to stay in today.”

Interestingly most versions do not have the last line and the Voice has italicized it meaning it is not translated from the scripture. But the addition gives us a better understanding to what it means. You would have to read in the meaning otherwise. A slothful person could read other versions and say yes I would not want to die either. The point is not that one may die, but rather it becomes another excuse for being lazy.

Verse 22:22 is another one to ponder if wealthy:

Do not cheat poor people just because they are vulnerable
    or use shady tactics in court to crush those already suffering;

We have actually been accused of this on projects. We get a “hard” quote and once the project starts the person feels they need more which justifies stealing from us. I hope we were not trying to cheat the person, but rather give them some work during slow times. But it’s interesting to see how people view “cheating” where often a wage that was agreed upon suddenly becomes a cheat when it’s much less than the owner. A poor person may view something a cheat which a rich would not, so this is a difficult proverb to follow. The key is the way you handle your business, if you know you are taking advantage of a person that IS cheating.

Psalms 105 – 107

Before I start, forgive me since my mind is not in this today. We had a very contentious zoning meeting last night were things were misrepresented and did not go our way. So emotionally I am a bit of a wreck since this was something that God’s hand seemed to be on. I can’t tell if this was God saying slow down for me or if it was him teaching me to control my emotions or if it was not a God thing to begin with. Fortunately the Psalms were really only a history lesson and were not deep theologically.

Verse 105:40 caught my attention since we just read the story:

They asked, and He sent them coveys of quail,
    satisfying their hunger with the food of heaven.

Since we just read this in Numbers I love that the word “covey” is used. Covey is defined as a “small party or flock of birds” which is laughable in this instance. Go back to the story in Numbers and see the difference. Psalms makes it sound all nice and rosy, where the actually story had so many birds the people had them “coming out their noses”. This is far from a “covey” and more like an infestation.

The reason I pick on this is we see this so often throughout history. The truth is embellished. Here the Psalmist made it seem like God blessed them with quail for a plea. In reality this was far from the original story where the people complained over what God provided to the point where God gave them excess to prove a point.

Verse 106:23 sometime makes me wonder if God is “unchanging”:

Therefore, He declared in His anger that He would wipe them away.
    If Moses, His chosen one,
Had not pleaded for the people,
    His anger would have destroyed them.

Think about what the people did then and what they are doing today. Many of the churches have built a golden calf in a prosperity gospel. We tend to focus on glitz and not God. Our belief structure is being manipulated away from God today I wonder when the proverbial hammer will fall. Granted the people just witnessed God demolish the Egyptian gods with the 10 plagues and part the Red Sea, I don’t see it as much different today.

The key is Moses was the “stopgap” to God destroying his people. This happened more than once trough the wilderness to the point Moses could not handle it and asked to die. Think about the immense responsibility one must have to protect 600,000+ people. This with being the only conduit to God, Moses must have been beside himself.

1 Chronicles 20 – 24

Verse 20:1 shows David’s changing leadership:

In the spring (the time when kings wage wars because the spring harvest was over, farm work eased, and soldiers could live off the land), Joab led the army to ravage the land of the Ammonites and overthrow their capital city, Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem during Joab’s campaign.

David stayed home while his army fought. One thing I have noticed missing from Chronicles so far has been the story of Bathsheba, although I believed mentioned as Bath-shua in this book the affair was not mentioned. This was the time David broke from God more than just taking a census, but alienated himself by adultery and murder during this campaign. I wonder why the story made the book of Samuel and not Chronicles.

Verse 20:6 caught my interest because of the “giants” described:

War also broke out at Gath, where there lived a tall man who had 24 fingers and toes—6 fingers on each hand and 6 toes on each foot—who was descended from the giants. 

One of the biggest debates between science and the Bible is the validity of “creation”. Science has dismissed it since their story could not occur in 10,000 years but rather billions. Here we have a story of a battle with giants that seem more like a “cave man” than a human. Why would the Bible have a story like this if the story of the earth is billions of years and not recent? If it was recent then “cave men” could be fighting man and not man evolving from “cave men.” See verses like this open the possibility to the timeline being way different than what science purposed.

Verse 21:17 is one I like:

David (calling out to God): ¹⁷ Wasn’t I the one who commanded the census? I, the shepherd, certainly have sinned and done evil; but what have the rest of the nation,Your sheep, done? Eternal One, my True God, please punish only me and my father’s household, not all of Your people.

David is talking responsibility for his actions and puts himself before his people. This form of leadership that seems to be lost in today’s corporate world. The “king” or CEO will lay his workers down for his bad decisions and live comfortably under a “golden parachute”. David may not be a great example of ensuring his kingdom is treated fairly since his palace seemed ornate. But I have a problem with a CEO that makes over 300x his AVERAGE worker, which seems embedded in greed and not helping their employees.

Don’t get me wrong I am a “capitalist” and believe in the free market. I do thing the “kings” should live much better than their employees, but because they are taking the risk of losing it all if they blow it. Not because they have earned a kingdom by knowing the right people or making tons of money for investors while they strip a company of worth to the employees. Throw the dog a bone and hope he doesn’t bite while keeping all the valuable meat in your freezer to gorge on later.

Adam Smith talked about the “Invisible Hand” of the market and how that drives things more than anything. What has been lost in his writing are those of morals and compassion. He never talked about shifting your manufacturing overseas to labor practices long outlawed in our country to create a product that no one needs but wants because of good marketing. But rather learn your market and ensure you can maintain your workers livelihood. 

Numbers 10 – 12

Verse 10:3 has some monumental logistics behind that one verse:

When you blow both trumpets, everyone should gather with you in front of the congregation tent; 

How many people is “everyone”? When you think about it this is no big deal if you are talking a few thousand, but if you go to 11:21 we see the number is 600,000. Imagine that number of people and trying to communicate with them using no amplification. Either you valley needs perfect acoustics or everyone needs to be perfectly silent for Moses to be heard. Also, if you have ever been to an event that huge, you know moving around is not easy and slow. So to get 600,000 people to a place where they can hear what is said is a difficult task.

Verse 10:36 had me confused looking at the last line:

And when the chest settled down again, Moses would say,

Moses: O Eternal One, turn back ten thousand to Israel’s numbers.

 

What did this mean? The footnote to Moses’ words says “Meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.” NIV says “Return, Lord, to the countless thousands of Israel.” KJV says “Return, O Lord, unto the many thousands of Israel.” CJB is “Return, Adonai of the many, many thousands of Isra’el!” ESV says “Return, O Lord, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.” This again is one of those places I don’t think we are ever going to understand what was actually said. I believe the Voice was a literal, but none really make sense. The nerd in me had to explore and notice this is one of those places where we get in needless arguments.

Verse 11:15 shows Moses’ frustration with the people:

 If You plan to treat me like this, then just kill me now. If You care about me at all, just put me out of my misery so I do not have to live out this distress.

Then verse 11:20 shows God’s frustration:

but every single day for an entire month. Meat, meat, and more meat. You’ll eat meat until it comes out of your noses and you can’t stand it anymore. For you’ve rejected Me, who is with you, by asking why you left Egypt.”

Imagine having 600,000 people “sharing” their problems with you. I often wonder why or pastor at 12 Stone, PK, is so difficult to access. I have “important” things I need to say to him. I am sure of the 25,000+ congregation he has more than one or two like me. He has to buffer people like God eventually did for Moses. Just look at the frustration Moses had, he would prefer death over the pressure!! God either was dealing with those same pressures, or helped Moses by giving them what they wanted in EXCESS!!

I read this and think of the story, Brewster’s Millions. In the movie this down and out orphan was to inherit millions from his new found father, but before he did so he had to learn the value of money. So Brewster was given 30 million to spend in a month with nothing to show as an asset. At the end he was so burnt out that he almost gave up the inheritance. This is the same thing God did with the people of Israel, gave them what they wanted in excess. Wonder if the makers of the movie paid royalties to God?

2 Timothy 1 – 2

Verse 1:8 is a difficult sell:

So don’t be embarrassed to testify about our Lord or for me, His prisoner. Join us in suffering for the good news by the strength and power of God.

Think about this verse and if it was sold today. Sure the preachers focus on this based on our individual suffering and equate it to what Paul is talking about. In reality he is talking about persecution for our beliefs. You think being ridiculed by an atheist is difficult, imagine being jailed and beaten. In the United States we don’t understand the suffering Paul was talking about and probably would not sign on to being a Christian if we did.

We have become a self-centered nation with little regard to the bigger picture. Christianity today has been repackaged by many into what I fear is a false doctrine. When Jesus says “I never knew you” to those who think they are faithful, this is disconcerting. When following Jesus is marketed as a path to wealth or success we have missed the mark. When reading and listening to others outside the Bible, research what they are saying in FULL context. You will learn something and grow deeper, but also protect yourself from false doctrines that could jeopardize your salvation.

Verse 2:5 talks about our path with Jesus:

 Look at it another way: if someone competes as an athlete, he won’t win the race and be crowned with the wreath if he breaks the rules.

Paul is warning Timothy in this letter about people falling away from the true Gospel and making up their own ones. As stated before this is a huge reason for reading your Bibles daily. You understand the faith and teachings from the word and not someone’s misunderstandings of scripture. Often people are more sinister and are preaching a false Gospel on purpose to lose souls for Jesus. Be vigilant to death on this quest.

Verses 2:17 & 18 has Paul dealing with the fall out of a drifting faction:

¹⁷ Once these empty voices start to speak, Timothy, they infect and spread; and soon the body is consumed with its cancer Hymenaeus and Philetus fell victim to it, ¹⁸ and they walked away from the truth by claiming that the day of resurrection has already arrived. They are clearly disrupting the faith of some who are not well grounded. 

Just like the body being infected by a microscopic germ, the body of Christ can be infected by a few false teachings. Again don’t be caught saying “Lord, Lord” and having Jesus reply “I never knew you”. If you read my blog this is a huge concern since often very logical arguments are presented against scripture, and one can either agree or dig deeper for the truth. After 40 years of bouncing all over the place, I have come to a stronger understanding of what the message truly is. It’s actually quite simple and bound in love! Just DO IT!!

John 10 – 12

Verse 10:11 foreshadows what Jesus’ purpose is:

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep in His care.

He did just that and laid down His life so all humanity could live through Him! He was using the analogy of the time to ensure the impact was understood. For those who have lost a pet, we understand how diligently we hunt for them. Now would we die for Fido? If we had to think about it, no, but in the moment I don’t think we would consider our safety to protect our pets.

Now apply this to our children and you get the picture. If you stood before a killer holding your child, I can guarantee the last thing on anyone’s mind is saving their skin over their child’s. Even if little Joey does not think this, it’s embedded in our “parental” DNA and will never change. Once we understand God’s love is like that we can snuggle into His arms today!

Verse 11:48 looks very familiar:

If we don’t stop this now, every man, woman, and child will believe in Him. You know what will happen next? The Romans will think He’s mounting a revolution and will destroy our temple. It will be the end of our nation.

This is a bit of a stretch, but follow me and you will understand, I hope. This was the same mentality of the Jews before entering in the Promised Land. They did not think they could conquer the inhabitants in the land and did not have faith in God. This may actually be the same thing with Jesus. God may have intended to have Him deliver them from the control of Rome, but because they could not believe this they killed Jesus.

That lack of faith in God delivered all of mankind from the grip of sin. Think about it, Jesus may have been the mighty warrior they were getting to conquer Rome, but was not expected like David going against Goliath. The difference was David proved himself, Jesus was killed before He could. God made lemonade from those lemons. I know this is in NO WAY scripturally correct through the prophecies, but is used to illustrate a possibility. What if the Pharisees accepted Jesus and not killed Him?

Verse 12:24 gives another foreshadowing:

I tell you the truth: unless a grain of wheat is planted in the ground and dies, it remains a solitary seed. But when it is planted, it produces in death a great harvest.

Jesus is the grain whose death produced a great harvest of believers in God. Through this one obscure person from a remote place salvation has been won for billions! The key is not to rest on what satisfies us, but ensure all mankind has heard the Gospel of Jesus.

Hosea 8 – 14

Verse 8:2 explains on why Israel is facing judgment:

Still Israel calls out to Me, “Our God, we know you!”
        But even with your words of worship, you abandon our agreement.

This becomes a problem with all of history, we tend to drift from God. Why? Satan! It’s really that simple, everything used to wedge between us and God is on purpose. Today the biggest wedge is not other gods but rather no God. Think about science and how it’s used to explain away God. Our psyche is being hammered away from any God. Heck since creation has an explanation that can be demonstrated on a lower level, how can there be a God.

As I sit this morning I wonder if we are on the verge of having another punishment. Hosea prophesied against Israel’s drift, why not now? Revelations seems to be lining up in short order.

Verse 9:1 talks about the perceived joy before the fall:

Don’t rejoice, Israel! Don’t shriek in ecstatic joy like the other nations!
    You’ve prostituted yourself and been unfaithful to your God.
You eagerly expect that you’ll get your prostitute’s pay at the threshing floors with a rich harvest.

The image of the prostitute is used often when looking at how we all tend to drift away from God. We sell our souls for the next new trinket. We have dismissed family to strive for work. I moved away from my family only to have them follow and just move away again. It’s normal in today’s world. I am not saying moving is prostituting ourselves to Satan, but it has become an “accepted” wedge driven into that unit.

George Bailey could wait to leave Bedford Falls, only to find it was the most important community in his world.

Verses 11:8 & 9 (actually end of 8) shows God’s grace:

My heart is changed within Me,
        and all at once My compassion is stirred up.
⁹     I will not carry out My burning anger;
        I will not destroy Ephraim completely.
    For I am God, not a human being; I am the Holy One in your midst;
        I won’t unleash My anger for an attack.

God has done this throughout history. Heck Jesus is the ultimate gift to mankind knowing He would most likely be rejected. The amazing grace God has is beyond comprehension.

Proverbs 20 – 21

Verse 20:1 will start another rapid fire review of some valuable lessons:

Too much wine begins to mock you,
    too much strong drink leads to noisy fights,
    and whoever is misled by either is not wise.

Never does the Bible say don’t drink, but rather don’t drink in excess. This is why, they tend to deceive you into thinking you’re actually able to do things. “I’m invincible” is a common mindset of the inebriated with a “watch this” as ones final words.

Verse 20:4 points out the importance of putting work first:

A slacker procrastinates when it is time to plow;
    so when it’s time for harvest, there are no crops in the field.

Today our work ethic does not directly affect our crop yield, but it does our ability to purchase food. Food stamps help feeding those in need, but helps promote slackers at the same time. Verse 20:13 reemphasizes the importance of a good work ethic:

Do not fall in love with sleep, or you will awake a poor person.
    Stay awake, get to work, and you will have more than enough food.

Got to point out verse 20:29 as we all age:

The best asset of youth is the strength of the body,
    but the beauty of age is gray hair.

Although since my “incident” I have been eating better and getting in shape. Maybe I can regain my “best asset” while keeping my “beauty of age”? This is the age ole “fountain of youth” quest, clinging to something once lost.

Verse 21:2 is actually a critical one to ponder:

Everyone may think his own way of living is right,
    but the Eternal examines our hearts.

This is the source of most conflicts since ones opinions feed their pride and often lead to destruction. We have to have two critical attitudes; one is listening to others and have a fluid mindset. There are some things it’s important not to drift from but how often are arguments started because one believes the other is thinking something that is far from their minds? Read Crucial Conversations for a good understanding of how we view the world.

Verse 21:5 talks about planning:

A well-thought-out plan will work to your advantage,
    but hasty actions will cost you dearly.

This is important for one to consider. How many times have we started out doing something in a rush only to have to do it over and over again?

Verse 21:17 talks about going overboard:

Those who live to party, who pursue pleasure, will end up penniless;
    those who enjoy lots of wine and rich food will never have money.

Unfortunately the culture in today’s society is party first and have fun today. We have lost the idea that our hard work upfront in the spring leads to food for the winter since we can just scrape by on the dollar menu at Wendy’s year round.

Verse 21:23 is emphasized by James in the NT:

Guard your words, mind what you say,
    and you will keep yourself out of trouble.

Lord knows this was a problem of mine in the past since I would often speak my mind without thinking of the consequences. We need to think before speaking and throttle our words since often we speak without true understanding of the situation. These may be extreme in some cases where you can crush someone’s feelings without knowing their story. Again read Crucial Conversations to gain some awesome tools.

1 Chronicles 15 – 19

Verse 15:1 talks about King David’s passion:

David founded the city of David as his capital and built his palaces there. But in his zeal to rebuild Jerusalem and build his palaces, He prepared a place for the covenant chest of God in a tent adjacent to the palace.

Again we see a differentiation between the city of David and Jerusalem, again I am not sure why but here it is again.

Notice he rebuilds the city and his palace before building a place for God. For someone whose focus early on seems to be “upwards” this always seemed odd. But as we see he eventually gets around to it only to have God hold him off to a later generation. One of the reasons that has been given other places is the blood on David’s hands from war. If you think about it since the Messiah was tied to David and not his father Jesse or son Solomon we can understand why the Jewish people expected a great warrior and not a humble servant in Jesus.

Verse 16:3 has an interpretation question I wanted to look at:

 He gave a loaf of bread, a date roll,^* and a raisin cake to every man and woman in Israel.

Usually these notes are highlighted by a hyperlink from the source I copy from and looks very ugly, but I wanted to note the “*” and the word “date roll” and how it was interpreted. The Voice says the “meaning is unclear” and we look at other interpretations to wonder what’s going on. The Hebrew word they are attempting to interpret is “’eshpār” which is only seen one other place.

We get into a place where non-believers and KJV only says how can you trust anything you read in the Bible. First this is a fallacy since we are talking some kind of food and not some significant theological point, so with most versions of the Bible I believe we are safe. With that said I will point out some “new age” crap is creeping into these newer versions of the Bible, I will pick on The Message this time and The Lord’s Prayer.

Verse 6:10 is normally interpreted as “Bring about Your kingdom.  Manifest Your will here on earth,  as it is manifest in heaven.” The KJV is the traditional “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” But The Message reads “Reveal who you are. Set the world right; Do what’s best— as above, so below.” Not much different between the Voice and the KJV, but you see the subtitle difference between The Message’s interpretation?

“As above, so below” is the wording that is so wrong. It’s really being highlighted in today’s pop culture with a move bearing the same words as its name. It initially became famous in from the demonic Baphomet pointing to heaven and hell. This is when those who question interpretations really get credence. Research this and I believe you will see Luciferian “new age” beliefs and sayings creeping into scriptures. While I am very hesitant on questioning an interpretation since they are rigorously checked by people much smarter than me, but this one seems odd.

Sorry for the tangent and not focusing on the reading but that one verse reminded me of this discrepancy in The Message and I wanted to bring that forward. Does that mean you can’t have faith in the Bible? Does it mean all of Christianity is a false religion? No way on either! What this does show is how we need to be vigilant in our study, not accepting anything as Gospel unless we are sure. I will say the video I watched made sure the preacher reading The Message’s version of the Lord’s Prayer was slowed down to make him sound evil when reading those words, so there is a bunch on manipulation of the details everywhere, my warning is be cautious and diligent in your studies, especially of newer interpretations of the Bible.

Numbers 7 – 9

Verse 7:30 is an example of most of chapter 7:

On the fourth day, Elizur (son of Shedeur), head of the Reubenite tribe, presented the offering.

Each tribe over and over repeats the same offering. So this paragraph is repeated 12 times with only the first line changed. I believe this is the root of why God had to send Jesus because the people became more about the rituals than the meaning behind them. It was a checklist of being holy and not a relationship. As I read this I often wonder how much is God inspired and how much was more man? God set all these rules, regulations and rituals to follow, almost like a checklist so it’s understandable how many of the Jewish people reduced the Law into a checklist that could not be met.

Christians tend to overlook most of the OT because it’s difficult to follow in the context of Jesus. Ironically the only thing the churches then to focus on is tithing and homosexuality outside the Ten Commandments. We must understand that we are no longer bound by any of the Law. Jesus talks about using our money for God’s will and not mans, so that ends tithing. Tells us to judge not, so that ends the homosexual debate. The food Laws and Peter’s vision explain how all the Old Testament Laws need to be handled, on a personal basis.

I tend to follow the food laws, more because I believe it’s God’s intended diet for mankind. I still eat pork and shrimp from time to time and do not believe it’s a sin. It’s just not optimum food for my body, but still food. We need to listen and believe the voice of God and don’t get caught up in legalism.

Verse 9:10 is God’s response to a problem with following the letter of the law:

Tell the Israelites, if any one of you or your descendants becomes ritually impure due to the necessity of handling a dead body, he can nevertheless still celebrate My Passover a month after everyone else does. Likewise, those who are on the road, a long way from My tent, can celebrate Passover to the Eternal then too.

This is the problem with the legalistic aspects of the Law, you must celebrate Passover but if you cannot then what does one do. The law today is so complex just because of this, the spirit of the law cannot be followed. Think about zero tolerance and not bringing guns on school grounds. Kids have been arrested and suspended for pointing a finger and going bang or nibbling a piece of bread to look like a gun. Instead of embracing that firing a gun is fun and often necessary for food or protection, we make children think they are mentally ill for playing.

This is what the scene was when Jesus came, a bunch of difficult laws were only made more and more difficult to understand or follow. Common sense was lost then and appears to be lost today. It only seems like we are setting up for a return of Jesus. Of course I am sure they said the same thing when Rome was crumbling, when the Crusades were happening and when Hitler ruled, things will suck always we need to have joy in the misery knowing the peace eternity with Jesus has to offer.

1 Timothy 4 – 6

Verse 4:1 opens with a warning we all need to heed:

But even so, the Spirit very clearly tells us that in the last times some will abandon the true faith because of their devotion to spirits sent to deceive and sabotage, and mistakenly they will end up following the doctrine of demons.

For some reason we think Satan will present evil to us and it will be obvious. Think about it Hitler was able to get a nation to do some of the most heinous acts in the name of Jesus. It will be difficult for those who are weak in faith to distinguish between what is from Satan and not God. That is the key to studying and reading scriptures, we need to know when we are presented a false Jesus.

Think about how you’d answer for doing this. Would you say “I was deceived; you can’t hold that against me”? Then God would reply “I gave you a study guide to me, yet you obviously did not read it or you would have known.” Yes we are accountable for deception as much as knowingly disregarding scripture, the question is would deception cost us salvation?

Verse 5:1 is starting to mean something to me:

Respect an elderly man. Don’t speak to him sharply; appeal to him as you would a father. Treat younger men as brothers, 

As I get older I often wonder why I would deserve respect of anyone. I often get called out by my children for hypocrisy and wonder why I do things yet say others. I can think of many younger who I agree with totally and many older I think of as fools. I think Paul is saying respect your elders, not necessarily follow them. Honestly, I think this gets abused so often that means we must accept what is said without question.

This got abused in the 60’s with the “don’t trust anyone over 30” mantra.

Verse 6:5 warns us about works:

and these people constantly bicker because they are depraved in their minds and bereft of the truth. They think somehow that godliness is the way to get ahead.

We cannot move ahead because of what we do, but at the same time I often wonder if we fall behind because of what we don’t do. Think about this a little, is it a greater sin to do evil not knowing or to know and still do it? Some would say a sin is a sin of equal proportion, but some scripture imply that sinning with knowledge is worse. In this instance is NOT actually doing what is required worse that doing it for status? Both are wrong and both I believe have consequences, just have no idea what they are.  Go DO … 

John 7 – 9

John 7:4 gets you thinking about why Jesus hit the scene then:

No one who seeks the public eye is content to work in secret. If You want to perform these signs, then step forward on the world’s stage; don’t hide up here in the hills, Jesus.

I think of a line in the song Superstar in Jesus Christ Superstar when I read this verse. “Why’d you choose such a backward time and such a strange land? If you’d come today you would have reached a whole nation Israel in 4 BC had no mass communication.” Think about it, a man in the back waters of Israel has become the most known historical figure of all time. There is no one more written about or studied than ever and He started in an animal stall with no agent to promote Him.

Verse 7:41 solidifies the unassuming nature God took in Jesus:

This is God’s Anointed, the Liberating King!

Still Others: Is it possible for the Anointed to come from Galilee?

Again why not NYC today? You’d reach the world within seconds with just one miracle in Times Square. Instead God choose a backwards place and a backwards time to reveal himself in Jesus to save the world. Again why? I think that is an easy question to answer! If God came as expected into this world, the people could say this figure was a great man, where someone with no status or power could only become this way by being real. We see this over and over again from Moses who was not an eloquent speaker all the way to Paul who was persecuting the faith before becoming the most influential writer of the NT. God wants to make sure we all understand His glory and not get lost in the “cult of personality”.

Verse 8:41 is interesting:

but you are doing what you have learned from your father.

Jews: We were not born from adulterous parents; we have one Father: God.

Think about it, they knew his “parents” were not married before conception of Jesus and they are rubbing it in. They assume Joseph was Jesus’ father and not God, therefore he was from an “adulterous” union. I just find it interesting how things have not changed and the tabloids today dig for dirt and use it for their advantage.

Vere 9:4 highlights a potential problem today:

While it is daytime, we must do the works of the One who sent Me. But when the sun sets and night falls, this work is impossible.

Where Jesus is talking about darkness and evil many could interpret this differently. See there has always been a movement of sun worship and how people like Peter Joseph try to tie the Jesus story to astrological events and attempt to distance it from reality. They will distort verses like this and say, see the SUN and the SON are one in the same. In context and reality this is nothing further from the truth, but could be twisted.

This is why I tend to stress we ALL need to read the scriptures and understand them ourselves. See if we take what others say blindly we can be led astray. Also, I am not saying read it once, but always. It’s a huge book with a ton of truth and something you cannot possibly get in one read. Also, things tend to make more sense after reading them over remembering other parts that had not been read prior. I take my evolution of the “trinity” from not possible to being true as an example of how you can keep learning each time you read. Let the Holy Spirit guide you and not men!!

 

Hosea 1 – 7

Hosea is one of those odd stories where he is instructed to marry as an illustration of Israel. Verse 1:2 is God’s instruction to do just that:

This is the word the Eternal spoke through Hosea first.

Eternal One (to Hosea): Go and marry a woman who is a prostitute and have children who come from this unfaithfulness. This will represent how the land of Israel has abandoned Me and become a prostitute to other masters!

Hosea married Gomer and had three children who represent Israel and their unfaithfulness to God. The story is one of those odd ones that actually illustrates God’s love for his people. Gomer represents the people of Israel and how they abandon God’s directives and love while Hosea represents God. In the story Gomer leaves Hosea and goes back to a life of prostitution.

While this may be a great illustration to the people of Israel, it was difficult on Hosea all the same. But God shows through his children that things may change by changing his son’s name from Not My People to My People and his daughter’s name from Shown No Mercy to Shown Mercy. Just as things can change for Israel if they decide to follow God, things can change for all of us in obedience to God.

Verse 4:12 talks about what the people are doing:

They expect to hear oracles from a wooden idol,
        to get guidance from a diviner’s wand!
    For a spirit of prostitution is leading them astray—
        that’s why they’re so unfaithful to their God and are becoming prostitutes.

Spirit’s that try to lead us from God are real and we need to be aware of them. Satan has learned if he cannot get man to worship him, he will get their worship away from God. So as people get sucked away from God, wooden idols and mystics become the source of guidance and not God’s word. This is very dangerous and can be seen today in New Age thinking like saying God is everything and is all of us. Be vigilant and alert to stuff like this.

Verse 6:2 sounds like another story elsewhere in the Bible:

He’ll bring us back to life after two days;
    He’ll raise us up on the third day, and we’ll live with Him.

This actually sounds more like the story of Jesus in the Bible that what we are told. Think about it, Jesus died on a Friday, was buried, then less than 48 hours the stone is rolled away and he is alive. Last time I checked, 48 hours is 2 days. I know this is a technicality, but it’s always bugged me. Now many historians say the events on Easter Sunday actually took place on a Monday, but this verse implies the standard narrative is correct. It’s just cool to be able to read this 2800 or so years later and put the puzzle together.

Proverbs 19

Verse 19:1 talks about being poor:

Better to be poor and live with integrity
    than a fool with a foul mouth.

I believe God and Jesus’ focus on wealth is not to have us become prayers for wealth, but rather using those blessings to serve God. See once you let money rule your life, God becomes second. That is the problem with wealth and power; suddenly it controls your life and not allowing God to work. God wants us to enjoy life and prosper, but He wants us to do so with integrity and obedience.

Verse 19:6 is sad but true:

Many try to win the favor of a generous person,
    and everyone is a friend to someone who gives gifts.

It’s amazing how many friends you get when they expect something. As nice as friends are, close friends are more valuable than the ability to be generous. At the same time this does not mean be stingy and not give, just realize many of these friends may be shallow.

Verse 19:8 shouts for us to gain wisdom:

Whoever gains a wise heart loves his own soul,
    and whoever preserves understanding experiences true goodness.

We tend to stop trying to learn as we grow older, but this impedes our growth. Sometimes we just become a “wise guy” as we age and not gain wisdom. Look for that before you consider resting on your “laurels.”

Verse 19:18 talks about discipline:

Discipline your children while there is still hope of influencing their future,
    so as not to play a part in their destruction.

I fear this is being disposed of in today’s world. The parents now live in fear of DFCS knocking down the door because of childhood bumps and bruises. I have lived this with Devon and worse recently with Miracle. Because she rides horses she always looked beat up, and it took three or four interviews with DFCS to clear the matter up. I’m not saying beat your children, but a loving corrective spank is critical for their development, otherwise we as parents serve our children poorly.

Verse 19:21 talks about impulses and why we need to control them:

The impulses of the human heart may run wild,
    but the Eternal’s plan will prevail.

We tend to follow our impulses more than God’s word. Heck “if it feels good, do it” has been rammed down our throats and has taken a hold in society. Many today strive for pleasure than pleasing. This mindset has developed into major problems like debt and infidelity where delayed gratification is not an option. We want it now and it is killing our relationship with God, unless He is dishing out blessings.

Psalms 99 – 101

Verse 99:8 talks about God answering the people in the wilderness:

You answered them, Eternal our God;
    You were, to them, a God who forgives,
    yet You did not ignore what they did wrong
    and punished them fairly as well.

As we go through life we find this to be true. God forgives but there are still consequences for a sin. I see this with a friend whose son was murdered; he has forgiven the person but still expects him to serve his jail time. I think we tend to feel forgiveness is getting away with murder but rather it’s more freedom from the angst of the people affected by the sin.

Think about it this way, using my friend’s example, you have one of two choices. You can live in anger and stress about the loss while suffering the negative health effects from these emotions. The other option is to forgive and let go the stress. Either way the loss will never change, you are not going to get freedom from the loss but you will have freedom from the burden of resentment. As for the perpetrator , your forgiveness is not releasing them of the punishment just the peace they are forgiven.

Verse 100:3 is from “one of the best known and most loved psalms”:

Know this: the Eternal One Himself is the True God.
    He is the One who made us;
    we have not made ourselves;
    we are His people, like sheep grazing in His fields.

They compared it to Psalm 23 which I believe most can quote even if they can remember the number, but I read this anew and fresh. That was after reading it at least 3 times prior! I don’t remember this Psalm being quoted or mentioned in sermons yet the Voice considers it with Psalm 23. This is actually one that should be talked about since it deals with gratitude and thanksgiving. That is something that is often missing from prayers and discussions. We always tend to focus on the negatives during “prayer requests” with rare praises. When praises are given resentment and jealousy often happens with others.

Honestly we are going to have problems, that is a given in life. Just because you become a Christian does not mean everything is suddenly going to be sunshine and blue skies. The glory of a life in Jesus is not the good times, but rather the supernatural peace during the bad times. That is something we should live in gratitude for no matter what!!

Verse 101:1 has David singing thanks:

I will sing of God’s unsparing love and justice;
    to You, O Eternal One, I will sing praises.

God is love and love is justice who needs to be praised. Again we tend to get into the rut of prayers based on “life’s little problems” and not the glory of God. I am coming up on a year of being unemployed and am not having too many problems. I could wallow in the misery that I am uninsured, have no income, eating through reserves I may have had and worrying about providing for my family each month. At the same time things couldn’t look brighter with a possible new job as a perfect fit for my experience. Our farm may be selling and our family could be reunited because of this. And if none of this happens? Who cares I just keep plugging away at every opportunity given to us.

1 Chronicles 10 – 14

Verses 10:13 & 14 describe Saul’s demise:

^13-14 Because Saul disobeyed the Eternal One and trusted in the counsel of a medium instead, he died at the Eternal’s hand; and the Eternal gave the kingdom to the great king David, son of Jesse.

This starts to get a little confusing since Saul was introduced as king when he was being killed by the Philistines. Then 11 -14 talks about David and tend to jump back to before Saul’s death, so there is not a consistent timeline. Saul was Israel’s first king and was not of God’s will. The people chose Saul because of his looks and ignored the fact he hid from what they wanted. So I guess that’s why not much time was spent talking about Saul.

Verse 11:7 talks about the “City of David”:

After the conquest David lived in Zion, so it became known as the “city of David.” 

I always considered Jerusalem as the “City of David” and not Zion. In doing a study many say all three names are synonymous and therefore the same place, but they differentiate later in this chapter by not calling Zion but rather Jerusalem. I cannot say I understand what is actually the truth, just what scripture says. I guess they have not found relics of Zion and just assumed it to be Jerusalem.

One last note is David’s men are selected based on their abilities in battle. We see this in chapter 11.

Verse 14:16 talks about David’s obedience:

David obeyed God’s command, and he defeated the army of the Philistines from Gibeon to Gezer.

This is key to David’s life and should be a model for ours. When David ignored God’s commands and went on his own will, things fell apart. How many times have you had problems and when looking back we see failures in our obedience to God. Sure we can get back on track, yet often the scars from our drift remain for decades to come as with David. God forgives and helps restore things to normal, people on the other hand remember and hold bitterness for life sometimes.

Numbers 4 – 6

Verses 4:5 & 6 talks about the care given to temple objects:

 ⁵ When it’s time to break camp, follow these instructions: Aaron and his sons shall take down the screen curtain and cover the covenant chest. ⁶ Over that, they shall lay a sea-cow skin, and over that, a pure blue cloth. They shall then slide in the chest’s poles.

This chapter goes through the care of the temple objects. I find it interesting the procedures put in place to move the temple gear when on the move. I also question why it’s so critical that only a select few handle the objects or face death. Is it God raining death onto mankind or mankind killing those who touch the sacred items? I know there have been instances where God did destroy those who touch sacred things, but why was this the case?

As I read this yesterday’s reading is sitting in me and makes me wonder if reading the OT is folly since it points to Jesus, but has a bunch of stuff like this that does not make sense unless you really dig in and study to understand. Even when it makes sense it’s difficult to explain to someone with a basic foundation in the Bible. As I finish the last few months of this version I am faced with a decision on which way to go, find another version or focus on Jesus’ message and maybe tie in OT topics. I am sure God will prompt me when the time comes.

One other thing about the “sea-cow skin”, since the manatee is the sea-cow and as far as I know is not on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. As you look at other versions we see that is one of those words that never really came over from the early scriptures since it is a large aquatic mammal. Just one of those things that makes one wonder what it actually was. Maybe a “water buffalo”?

Chapter 5 shifts to a list of sins and the punishment that accompanies these sins. Verse 5:6 is one of those examples:

Tell the Israelites that sinning against each other is just like abandoning Me. All incur guilt, men and women alike.

This applies today; the only difference is the grace of Jesus. One thing we tend to get lost in is the idea Jesus’ grace covers all sins and therefore we are permitted to sin. This is far from the case and sin separates us greater knowing we are doing what is wrong than unintentional sins. I think both OT and NT explain the penalty of sin, but we tend to believe grace will cover all. This is true to a point, but if we know it’s wrong and still proceed I wonder what our cost really is?

Verse 6:2 starts a chapter on the Nazirite vow:

 Tell the Israelites that when anyone of them, man or woman, takes the special Nazirite vow, which distinguishes this Israelite as set apart for Me, 

I am interested in the significance of this vow and what it meant then. The vow described here is a period of one’s life where they honor this vow. Interestingly there have been those that appear to have a permanent vow, like Samson, but this has no real foundation in scripture unless someone deemed the “period” to be a lifelong pursuit. Anyway an interesting vow and curious about the eternal purpose.

1 Timothy 1 – 3

Verse 1:4 really caught my eye for an interesting reason:

Tell them to turn away from fables and endless genealogies. These activities just cause more arguments and confusion. Instead, they should concern themselves with welcoming in and bringing about the reign of God, which is all about faith. 

I immediately focused on this because of the word “fables”. When you read this with “endless genealogies” I immediately think to the stories of in Genesis, Numbers and Chronicles where there are some very huge God stories that are difficult to believe and a ton of genealogies. Doing a quick version check the KJV uses “fables”  and the NIV uses “myths” . The point is for new believers who have not experienced God, think about how much easier it is to believe in miracles when you experience them.

To expose God to a new believer with stories of Moses and the Red Sea will cause more “arguments” than connection. Also, after 40 years the “endless genealogies” still cause confusion for me. So focus on Jesus and what He has done for YOU!! Verse 1:7 talks about how many believers drift into legalism of the law and forget the grace and forgiveness of Jesus. Key is don’t lose sight of grace and the salvation God offered through the blood of Jesus.

Verse 1:15 says it all:

Here’s a statement worthy of trust: Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, came into the world to save sinners, and I am the worst of them all.

That is what this book can be boiled down to, simple!!

Verses 3:2 & 3 starts the qualifications and disqualifications for those who lead the church:

² Here are the qualifications to look for in an overseer: a spotless reputation, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, sensible, respectable, welcoming to strangers (allowing them into his home), and gifted to teach. ³ Disqualify any drunk or violent man. Look for a gentle man; no belligerent fellow can follow this calling. And he should be free from money lust.

Key point here is finding the right leaders. This may seem meaningless to most, but is very critical in order to ensure a unified message and ability to stay on mission. You get someone who compromises their character, suddenly that may creep into the church and cause many to fail. This is why it’s critical for the overall mission to maintain integrity so it does not fail. I have seen churches fall and the damage done to its members is devastating on an eternal level!! 

John 5 – 6

Verse 5:9 is the result of a man who Jesus commanded to walk:

 At the moment Jesus uttered these words, a healing energy coursed through the man and returned life to his limbs—he stood and walked for the first time in 38 years. But this was the Sabbath Day; and any work, including carrying a mat, was prohibited on this day.

Here a man walks after being lame for 38 years and the Pharisees focus on him carrying a mat. I mean really, that someone can take their “theology” to that extreme. Think about it, God gave Israel a standard through the Law. But the leaders added to it and kept making up things to their beliefs. Do they really think God is upset at this lame man carrying a mat or is joyous that people see His power through this man?

I think this is a perfect example of why nations collapse and why ours is on the verge of having some major problems. Everyone takes the law and tries to improve it since many try to game the system. Instead of enforcing the laws with logic, they need to make things like zero tolerance where a first grader gets suspended and interrogated by police for pointing his finger and going bang. Logic and common sense are lost today as it was then.

Verse 5:39 speaks to me often:

 Here you are scouring through the Scriptures, hoping that you will find eternal life among a pile of scrolls. What you don’t seem to understand is that the Scriptures point to Me.

There are two things here that are critical to understand. First is we tend to get so wrapped up in our studies we miss God. There is a fine line between learning about God and following Him. Often we go to sermons, small groups, church functions, volunteer at the church and maybe lead a team only to ignore God. There is a funny story from our men’s group where a guy kept getting a “God prompt” to stand on his head in a QT by the drink section. He finally submitted and went to do it, before doing so he explained what he was about to do to the attendant. To which his reply was “I was just praying if you are real God have someone stand on their head now.”

While study sharpens our understanding of God, don’t let it overtake your life so you don’t submit to God. Second revelation is from study and that is the scriptures point to Jesus. When you dig into the Bible with the Jesus “goggles” on you see everything in the OT points to HIM. From righteous man and God in paradise to redeemed man and God in paradise, it all points to Jesus. I can pull references out the “wazoo” but best thing I can say is read it, but don’t think that is the only thing you need to do.

Verse 6:13 is the clean-up from feeding the 5000 with 5 loaves and a few fish:

They filled 12 baskets with fragments of the five barley loaves.

Just a quick comment from Robert Morris that God gave each of the disciples a “doggie bag” for their service. How cool and funny is that!!

Verse 6:53 freaked a few people out:

I tell you the truth; unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you will not know life.

Many of his disciples left him, outside the 12, based on this comment. When you think about it, without explanation this is gross. This often makes me wonder about the importance of rituals like baptism and communion since they both seem important in Jesus’ words. I know it’s not required, but to me it should be honored.

Daniel 7 – 12

Most of Daniels prophecies are cryptic and difficult to understand. Many may point to times already past but I want land on the forth beast in chapter 7 and discuss it a bit further. Verse 7:8 talks about what happens with the beasts horns:

As I stared at the creature and wondered about the ten horns, suddenly another horn grew out of its head, smaller than the rest. Three of the first horns were pushed up from their roots to make room for the little horn. It appeared to have eyes like a human and a mouth that boasted and bragged of its great exploits.

The reason I am focusing on this is it’s described as “end times” prophecies and not something that has already passed. We also see this ten horned beast pop up in Revelations chapter 17. The interesting thing is what this may mean today.  I am going to drift a bit into modern conspiracy theory.

Today we have many government officials talking about a “New World Order” or NWO without too much questioning. The NWO by most is linking the world’s economies so there are less problems in trading. If you research this more it’s a Luciferian belief of uniting the nations (UN) into a one world government.

Now before you leave this blog forever understand this is only a though of what this all may mean and not considered fact. If you look how the OT constructs from God and righteous man in paradise to Jesus and the NT destructs Jesus to God and redeemed man in paradise we see in both there is talk of a one world language and government. In the OT Nimrod and the Tower of Babel was the fate of this system. In the NT Revelations 13 you see the one world government created before it all falls apart.

So there is Biblical basis for what people are concerned with in government today and the NWO is considered a one world order of government. Now back to the 10 horned beast and what it represents. Since a one world government would be almost impossible to implement the idea is the beast is the one world government and the 10 horns are 10 district leaders who control their localities.

The horn that rises up and pushes three horns is considered the NT anti-Christ who will most likely rise up from the Middle East and start the end times clock discussed in later chapters of Daniel. So as we read these prophecies we need to not just read them as old writings of the past, but as documents that could apply today. Many that seemed fulfilled often are hidden as a meaning inside a meaning or known as the Babushka’s Doll Principle. Is this interpretation true? Have no idea, but it makes sense when looking at our world today verse other interpretation of these visions.

Proverbs 17 – 18

Verse 17:6 talks about generations:

Grandchildren are the crowning glory and ultimate delight of old age,
    and parents are the pride of their children.

This of course assumes the child is not drifting into a life of crime and sin. Even still children light up our lives with joy and pride. Family is more of a bond than anyone can imagine until they have children of their own. We bond to our parents and grandparents, but it’s very different the other way and I can’t explain it well. But I did not understand what God’s love really was until I held my first child. It didn’t matter what that blob of flesh we called Veronica did, I loved her unconditionally to the point it hurt. Even “falling in love” does not equal the love for a child!!

Verse 17:7 talks about words from fools:

Elegant speech sounds odd when it comes from a fool,
    and a lie on the lips of a leader is even more out of place!

If you took a script and gave it to a fool and a respected member of the community to read on the street corner, you would be amazed at the different response. People tend to look at the source before deciding if they will listen to the content. Unfortunately this is true and could have us miss important information. I like to use the person with a placard that says “The End is Near” as an example. To Christians we know this to be true, but to those that need salvation he’s a fool. So we need to learn how not to be perceived as a fool.

I get this all the time when discussing evolution with scientists. As soon as they understand I am a creationist, the discussion gets ugly since they consider me a fool. Everything I say afterwards is dismissed and often never heard. Some will entertain me to the point of at least understanding it took years of study in the Bible and science to develop my belief. So often you can be deemed a fool without any knowledge of you.

Verse 18:11 talks about wealth and security:

The rich think their wealth is their sturdy fortress;
    they imagine it to be an invincible wall of security.

Think about how we have been programmed to believe this in the world. For some reason we think wealth can buy us security, happiness, joy and almost any other please desired. Unfortunately this is so false it is dangerous. The quest for happiness is one of the most dangerous quests in the land. We all think we must be happy all the time in order to be satisfied when in reality we need to be at peace when all around us is falling apart.

God never said we would be born again into wealth an prosperity but into a new relationship with Him. The world is not going to suddenly change into sunshine and rainbows; it will still have its troubles. We need to learn to lean on Jesus for the peace through trials and tribulations in this world. That is the key to “happiness”, not thinking it’s tied to never ending fun.

Psalms 96 – 98

Verse 96:4 demanded comment:

For the Eternal is great indeed and praiseworthy;
    feared and reverenced above all gods, the True God shall be.

Can you guess why? The statement “above all gods” is critical even today. There is a “doctrine” that there is only one God, all others are figments of man’s imagination. We have seen God go against the Egyptian gods with the 10 plagues, and with them these gods could respond to the first 4 and then they were impotent. Why is this critical to understand? God is difficult to understand and it’s very difficult to have the idea of 1 God that we cannot see over multiple unseen ones.

Follow me here; the big danger in this world today is Luciferian doctrine. See they accept and honor all gods; yet look at the God of Israel as a lesser god. Follow me here since this may explain much of the unexplained. The belief is God created earth to confine our souls in a dark and difficult place. Their “end times” has God being removed as controller of the earth and Lucifer takes His place to free mankind from death that God forced on Adam. Sorry to drift here, but it is something we need to understand since there is an underlying movement today that believes this to be “gospel”.

Verse 97:7 talks about idols:

Those who worship idols,
    who boast in the impotent creations of human hands, will be shamed.
    Worship Him, all you gods.

Again we are looking at lesser gods, but also idols. An idol is a created thing people start to worship like God. They may be anything from a golden calf, to a statue of a popular figure, to a fancy sports car. The key to idols is our focus leaves God and gets attached to a fancy trinket that will rot with time. The lesser gods love this since it takes the attention of God if they cannot capture it. We need to be on guard that we do not get sucked into this no matter how prosperous we may get in our lives.

Verse 98:9 actually ties back into verse 96:13 since the subject is similar:

In the presence of the Eternal because He is coming
    to judge the earth.
He is coming,
    and His judgment will be what is right for the world
    and just to all people.

God is coming to judge the world eventually. This has been talked about since the beginning when He judged and destroyed the earth with water. Now we are waiting for this to happen again, but this time with fire. We often look at how long those “The End Is Near” placards have been around. Heck Jonah was wearing one for Nineveh and was disappointed when they repented. Nineveh eventually reverts back, but the generation that repented saved their hides. I often wonder if we reach the brink, only to be saved by a repentant nation. Either way it is ‘a coming’!

1 Chronicles 5 – 9

Verses 5:1 & 2 describe why Ruben did not get the birthright:

Because Reuben slept with his father’s concubine, he forfeited his rights as the firstborn of Israel, his monetary inheritance and his political position as the leader of the nation of Israel. Although Reuben’s inheritance and birthright were given to Joseph, Judah’s descendants became the rulers of Israel.

And even though Joseph got the right, Judah and the house of David ended up ruling Israel. As dry as this reading may be it is fascinating how you see many great characters show up. Although this does not help with our heritage it does help understanding the importance of those in the nation of Israel.

Verse 6:31 talks about the covenant chest:

After the chest of the covenant came to rest in the tent of the congregation, King David appointed the following Levites to be the musicians in the temple. 

The covenant chest is an important object to the Israelites since it’s a direct connection to God. The only part of the Bible that God physically wrote are contained in this chest, that is awesome when you think about it. Also, we need to remember the power of the chest when they carried it in faith to battle, they won.

Verse 9:23 shows the roles given to a few in these chapters:

They and their sons guarded the gates of the temple and the congregation tent.

The gatekeepers control the flow and the safety of the temple. This role was given to a few families in the Levite tribe and their sole role was gatekeepers. How many would be born into a job and be happy with it? Today it seems like “the family business” is a thing of the past and the spirit of George Bailey is in us all. Sure George eventually kept and loved the ole’ savings and loan, but his desire was to travel the world and escape Bedford Falls (for those who have never seen “It’s a Wonderful Life” you won’t get the reference, sorry but watch it;) 

Numbers 1 – 3

Verse 1:2 opens with why this is named “Numbers”:

Add up exactly how many Israelites there are, but don’t merely count them. Identify all the people by their clans and families, right down to the individual name of every male.

As with many chapters in other books, these first few verses are full of lineage and sizes of the tribes. It’s quite mundane for the most part. I am sure people of the nation of Israel can dig through their lineage and find their families, but most Christians do not have a tight coupling to the tribes of Israel and therefore it is difficult for us to dig in an enjoy these chapters.

Verse 1:19 shows the difficulties Moses had completing God’s orders:

This Moses did in the wild desert area of Sinai, just as the Eternal One had directed him to do.

Imagine being in a hostile environment moving a truckload of pennies and then suddenly the person who you were moving the pennies for asked you to count them. It’s very similar what God was asking Moses to do, but there was a reason, so they would know the manpower they had when taking the Promised Lands. Of course God did not reveal that reason to them and eventually this was the reason they spent 40 years wandering the wilderness.

Verse 3:12-13 are difficult to get when you take it into perspective:

^12-13 As you know, all firstborn children of each woman belong to Me. I made that clear when I killed all the Egyptian firstborn but spared Israel and its animals, setting them apart just for Me. But rather than giving all Israel’s firstborn to Me, I accept the Levites as a substitute. They will be Mine. I am the Eternal One.

Most people, including me, don’t really understand this. They immediately apply this to animals and sacrificing the first born from each in the flock. We get into the meaning and see that the Levites are the substitute sacrifice for the human children just as Jesus is the substitute Lamb for a sin sacrifice. See how it all ties together when you look at the OT with a “Jesus filter” on.

2 Thessalonians 1 – 3

Verse 1:5 is conflicting to much of the Gospel:

Your sufferings prove that God’s judgment is right! The result: your sufferings have made you worthy—worthy of the kingdom of God, which is the very reason why you are suffering in the first place! 

Think about how often we are talked to about how peaceful our lives will be trusting in Jesus. Yes it’s peaceful, but we interpret that as “easy”. God never said “easy” but peace can be obtained through any suffering. I don’t think we need to seek suffering, but life provides plenty of opportunities without us seeking it.

Verse 1:9 talks about not happens if we reject the gift of salvation:

And what’s to become of them? They’ll pay for what they’ve done; their punishment will be eternal destruction. And what’s worse? They’ll be banished from the Lord’s presence and glorious power.

We always think of the evil ones in the world will like in torment, suffering in hell. Often I wonder if the lake of fire is hell, but often I wonder if it’s a place where our souls end. “Eternal destruction” may be final and not eternal torment. Think about it this way, we have a choice to live eternally with God through the blood of Jesus or never exist again. Conservation of energy takes us from spirit to heat and poof we are gone, eternally.

Verse 2:9 is very critical to remember:

Still the rebellious one arrives with all sorts of power, performing signs and fake miracles sanctioned by Satan;

Satan will not reveal himself as Baphomet, the ugly goat man considered his image, but rather “like” Jesus in semi glory fooling many. He will have power, he will perform signs and wonders since that will be the easiest way to seduce mankind. Be ever vigilant and test any potential “savior”. We are told many will come in the name of Jesus to fool us.

I had to touch on verse 3:11 since often I feel like this:

 You see, we are hearing that some folks in the community are out of step with our teaching; they are idle, not working, but really busy doing nothing—and yet still expect to be fed!

We live in a society where comics will write books on how to look busy doing nothing. Often times I get sucked into too much stuff that seems important and needing action but is really just wasting time. I use to be hooked on YouTube videos on the Illuminati and conspiracies. Sure it’s important to be aware, but often we desire so much knowledge we end up doing nothing with that knowledge because we are too busy collecting knowledge. Make sense?

I think of philosophers as the epitome of this idea. They spend time talking about and studying the ills of society doing nothing to correct it. Sure they may create a YouTube video explaining what is wrong and how bad we are for doing it, but actually getting into the trenches and doing the work is not part of their game. No their work is study and being busy while doing nothing.

John 3 – 4

Verse 3:5 talks about the meaning of “born again”:

I tell you the truth, if someone does not experience water and Spirit birth, there’s no chance he will make it into God’s kingdom.

Life comes from inside the womb for life here on earth, outside the world we know is a different kind of birth. The connection with God is not physical, but rather through the spirit, hence why we need to be reborn in a new spirit to gain this connection. I often read this and believe that the baptism is necessary to gain life with God. Many believe it’s an option, but this implies it may not be.

Now we can’t ignore verse 3:16 since that is a foundational verse in Christianity:

For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life.

The Voice once again words this slightly different, but with the same meaning and impact. God, a higher power, above all, gave his “first born”, his “first fruit” to admonish the sins of all mankind. Think of how powerful that statement alone is! God not only asks us to give our firsts to Him, but He did that also. This is the one verse salvation story, just believe and you are in.

Verse 4:14 has Jesus talking with a Samaritan woman offering her eternal life:

I offer water that will become a wellspring within you that gives life throughout eternity. You will never be thirsty again.

First this conversation was a big deal then, the Jews did not associate with the Samaritans in any way. Jesus talking to her startled her and dropped her guard. She was offering water to quench ones immediate need, where Jesus was offering her eternal life. Big difference.

Verses 4:22 – 24 talks about the changes that are happening to everyones relationship with God:

^21-24 Woman, I tell you that neither is so. Believe this: a new day is coming—in fact, it’s already here—when the importance will not be placed on the time and place of worship but on the truthful hearts of worshipers. You worship what you don’t know while we worship what we do know, for God’s salvation is coming through the Jews. The Father is spirit, and He is seeking followers whose worship is sourced in truth and deeply spiritual as well. Regardless of whether you are in Jerusalem or on this mountain, if you do not seek the Father, then you do not worship.

The question was, where does God want us to worship. Jesus points out worship is in the heart and not in a place. Worship constantly!!

Daniel 1 – 6

As we open in Daniel we see a bunch of famous stories that will be difficult to comment on each one. You have the Daniel fast, many dream interpretations, his three friends being tossed into a fire and the den of lions. All these stories show to the glory of God over man’s ideas and of lesser gods. Most of this story takes place in Babylon and if you remember a study of that civilization from Nimrod on up, it’s a place of great evil. All the cults and evil stems from Nimrod and Semiramis, so we now understand the evil that Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah faced.

Verse 1:12 has Daniel entering into the “fast” which only included veggies and water:

Please, do us a favor. Put us, your servants, to the test for the next 10 days. Give us a vegetarian diet and water.

Daniel is doing without the food from the kings table which is not part of the Hebraic Law as it was not prepared or violates foods allowed. The four focus on eating veggies only and nothing more. Honestly that diet would serve us all well and I call it that over a “fast” since I tend to think of “fasts” as more doing without food altogether. The point here is after the 10 days they were healthier, I think all of us will find that to be true today with all the processed foods we eat.

Verse 2:28 says it all:

But there is a God in heaven who can reveal such mysteries. The dream you dreamed and the visions you saw, King Nebuchadnezzar, unveil the future and disclose what will happen at the end of the age. Now I will tell you what you dreamed and the visions you saw as you slept in your bed.

He was pointing out that no man could reveal mysteries, but God could. I think one of the danger points in this world today is missing this point. Mystics can see what happened through the demons, but they can only observe the world. Only God knows what is going on in our heads. No man or entity can do this. (Sorry about little explanation on the demon thing, but research modern fortune tellers … they can tell your past from demons and make you think they somehow know truth because of this).

Verse 3:25 is a critical verse in the Old Testament:

Then why do I see four men, completely unbound, walking around in the middle of the fire? They don’t appear to be hurt at all. And the fourth  . . . he appears to be like a son of the gods.

Many say the “son of the gods” was actually the son of God, Jesus in the fires with these three men. This is exciting when you look at it this way since it’s a record of the son of God on earth well before he was born to Mary. How cool is that when you find little nuggets like this in scripture.

Proverbs 16

Verse 16:2 has always been a tough one for me:

Even when you think you have good intentions,
    He knows your real motives.

What drives us deep down? Is it really to honor God or get something in the end? I know often my inner drive is more based on “what’s in it for me” more than honoring God. It drives me up the wall since God does know my inner thoughts. I started the blog assuming God would bless it with some agent reading it and signing a book deal. Over a thousand posts later and we may get 1 or 2 visitors a week, but now doing it to expand my knowledge and pray it helps another find Jesus.

Verse 16:8 shows us the power of want:

Better to have little and stand for what is right
    than to become rich by doing what is wrong.

Jesus was not anti-wealth, but rather anti-separation from God. Money tends to get us busy and redirected to places away from God. This is saying avoid the distractions and be happy in what you have.

Verse 16:18 has been paraphrased into almost a cliché:

Pride precedes destruction;
    an arrogant spirit gives way to a nasty fall.

“Pride comes before a fall” is this verse boiled down. I personally have experienced pride in racing before I literally fell. I was “hot poo-poo” then I crashed and suffered injuries, everything from concussions to ruptured disc in the back. All were preceded by me thinking I was some great rider.

Verse 16:32 addresses our drive:

It is better to be a patient man than a mighty warrior,
    better to be someone who controls his temper than someone who conquers a city.

Asking someone to be patient today is a whole new ball game. No longer do we have to prepare food, but rather drive through gives it to us now. No longer do we need to go to the library to research a project, but we can answer deep questions at the kid’s ball game with our iPhone. No longer do we need to go to a “special store” to purchase porn, now we can watch it at our kid’s ball game.  Patience is a lost virtue.

I think the second line is more important since most impatient people tend to have an inability to control their temper. That causes more damage than anything!! A short outburst can destroy years of trust or respect. This cuts deep with me since my closest friends have been decimated by my sharp temper, Mike Lanning was the first. I blew up just playing around and stuck him with a heavy gage wire “whip” leaving a long lasting welt and a permanently damaged relationship. This is really the key to patience, not doing something stupid.

Psalms 93 – 95

Verse 93:1 opens with the majesty of God:

The Eternal reigns, clothed in majesty;
    He is dressed in power;
    He has surrounded Himself with strength.

We like to think of God in the positive but when contrasted with verse 94:1 we see the difference:

O Eternal God of vengeance,
    O God who sets things right, shine upon us.

Again when you read this as the ones being protected it has a different meaning than the ones that are being scolded. Israel has been in both positions during their history. As for God’s vengeance I am not real concerned with it since I pray I do not see it and if I do it’s deserved. I also do not wish His vengeance upon others who have wronged me. I would rather their hearts change to love God and repent than to be crushed.

Verse 94:8 talks about the mindless in this world:

Think, brainless people;
    stupid people, when will you get it?

I think back to the last few election cycles and no I am not saying the brainless people voted for Obama, but rather all voters appeared brainless. We were not voting for the best candidate but rather the lesser of two evils. You had the two extremes of corporate greed and personal entitlement who were basically the same. Neither talked about freedom and people refused to find a positive in their man but rather negatives in the other. I feel the electorate no longer studies or pays attention but rather follows the whims of their desires.

I have been off cable for 5+ years now and have been happy. On a recent road trip I, the hotel had cable and I watched. Boy was I shocked how the news was focused on the latest fad of nude vacations and Hollywood gossip. Nothing was done on the turmoil in the Middle East, the economy or corporate mischief, NOTHING. We have fell into a world where propaganda on any side, including the “conspiracy theorists”.

As “believers” we are no different going into our “sanctuary” each weekend, assuming nothing interrupts this, and are fed what a person feels is truth. I am not saying we cannot trust our pastors, but they really need to be preaching to “smart” pews. I am not saying we need seminary school to attend church, but how about read from the book being preached from! If we don’t we can be manipulated into believing false doctrine. Also, we need to study to grow anyway since most preachers assume there are “new believers” in the pews and they need to teach to them, since it can’t hurt for seasoned Christians to hear the Gospel again.

The problem with this preaching is no one ever grows outside the basic Gospel. The Bible says we can do more than Jesus!! How many have raised the dead, healed an ill person or proclaimed the Gospel in defense of ardent atheists? If someone asked you if the Bible was true, what would your response be? Then if they asked how could the universe have been created in 6 days when science has proven it was 13.7 billion years, how would you respond? What if they questioned if Jesus was real, how would you respond? This is the problem with church today, no one gets out of first grade unless they go to seminary. READ YOUR BIBLES DAILY!!!

1 Chronicles 1 – 4

The first part of Chronicles is a genealogy from Adam, obviously not complete but through the great names of the Bible. You see many names and the history of many of the world’s nations. Often people “poo-poo” the Bible as a bunch of sand script yet they cannot refute the accuracy, from Genesis 1 and on. This gives a logical explanation of how the other nations stem from Adam. Interestingly “science” is now finding the “first” man appears to be from the region in the Middle East. So this may not just be a boring piece of analogy but rather a critical piece of history for the people of the world.

Verse 3:5 has part of David’s lineage that Solomon was born:

There, Bath-shua (the daughter of Ammiel) gave him 4 sons: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon;

Bathsheba bore Solomon, David’s successor. As we know she was the adulterous affair that had David commit murder to cover it up. Kings shows us the turmoil and problems that arose from this affair with succession to the throne. The power struggle would eventually split the nation of Israel and lead them into exile. When reading these verses you don’t get any story and just lineage, you have to remember the history behind each name to see how the nation grew.

Verses 4:9 & 10 contain the only story embedded in these initial chapters:

⁹ Jabez, whose name commemorates his mother’s labor pains, was more honorable than his brothers. ¹⁰ He asked the God of Israel, “Please bless me and extend my territory. Let Your hand be with me and guard me from harm so I will not experience pain as my mother did.” And God did just that.

The “Prayer of Jabez” has become one of the most talked about verses in the Old Testament because of a book with that title by Bruce Wilkinson. If you get the chance read it, the book expands on this prayer in detail. It’s a short read but very interesting. In a nutshell the nagging question is why Jabez? Why through verse after verse of names does Jabez stand out?

There is nothing more mentioned on Jabez for the rest of the Bible other than these two verses. The prayer is amazingly simple and powerful. First it asks for blessing and then protection. In other translations it says “keep me from evil” unlike the Lord’s Prayer that says “deliver me from evil”, Jabez is asking to be protected and shielded from evil.  I like that better than delivery from evil. I know we are never going to be completely isolated from evil and sin, but asking for protection from it is important.

Often our naiveté is our protection. I had an instance early in our marriage where  I got a note from a co-worker. It was unsigned and confusing so I asked Katy if she knew what it meant. The song it referred to was one of “hooking up” while in relationships and the “XOXOXO” at the end was “hugs and kisses”. I am glad I had no clue since that’s an evil I don’t want to be delivered from!!

Leviticus 25 – 27

Verse 25:3 & 4 shows the land also needs a time for rest:

³ Plant your fields, take care of your vineyards, and harvest your crops for six years; ⁴ but when the seventh year arrives, I want the entire land to have a Sabbath rest to Me. Do not plant your fields or prune your vineyards during this seventh year. 

God taught the people of Israel how to farm and knew the land needed to take a break. I am not sure I follow farming today real closely but assume with modern day chemicals they do not tend to let the land rest. This is part of the reason I believe Israel has been despised; they made a dry and arid land fruitful. God also blessed them for doing this.

See not only do people need a break, so does all of nature. Nothing can work all the time without failing in one way or another. Part of the negative for not letting the land rest is the farmer only returns to the soil what makes the plant look nice and not what makes it healthy for us. Everyone looks at God’s Laws from the aspect of us living to His standard, when much of them are helping man live a full and rich life. Is it a sin to not let the land rest? No, but it will ensure a healthy and abundant crop.

Verse 25:36 says we need to help the poor and not take advantage of them:

 Let him borrow, but charge no interest and do not look for ways to profit from his need. Instead, fear God, and allow your fellow citizen to live alongside you. 

I often think of banking today which is supposedly run by elite Jewish bankers. I often wonder how they justify having savings earn almost nothing, but a poor person has to pay exorbitant interest on their borrowing. The world has been turned upside down and no one is honoring what God intended. The poor do not need the government to help them, they need the community to do that. Today we just step aside those in need without thought.

Verse 26:6 is the promise:

 I will see to it that you have peace in your land. You will be able to go to bed at night without a worry on your mind. I will take away the dangerous animals that roam your land, and no armies will invade your land. 

This alone is immediately questioned since God quickly let his land get invaded. You must read on from verse 26:15 to verse 33 to see the conditions that must be met to remain in the blessing of God. This in a way is the first programming language ever! There are a bunch of “if – then” statements that will lead to Israel being removed from their blessing. As we see reading along, this happens often and sometimes very dramatically.

1 Thessalonians 4 – 5

Verses 4:3 & 4 are important in living a life God has set for us:

³ Now this is God’s will for you: set yourselves apart and live holy lives; avoid polluting yourselves with sexual defilement. ⁴ Learn how to take charge over your own body, maintaining purity and honor.

Two of the biggest weaknesses in man are their sex drive and desire for wealth. For the majority, sex tends to be a driving factor, especially as we develop into men. The drive to reproduce is natural and the fact that it’s pleasurable only compounds the problem. Paul specifically tackles this desire with the men of Thessalonica.

Greed will block God and following His ways and can control your attention; sex overpowers the will to remain pure. Follow me here, ignoring God is one thing money does, but you get into sexual sins and that drive will lead down a path of destruction. Sex destroys our relationships on earth since it becomes more about using people than helping them. Sure in extreme cases greed does this but the majority of people remain ethical, just not connected.

With sex, one loses their connection with God because they override the voice telling them what is moral. In addition it violates God’s plan and laws. “Sexual defilement” is not avoiding sex, but rather what is considered loose living. I know more people whose marriages have crumbled, whose bodies now have incurable diseases and often are driven to suicide that I care to. I pray that every man thinks before getting sucked into sexual immorality including porn. All this will lead to problems in the future if not addresses leaving you with a hollow life. God is not making rules to ruin our lives but rather to make the “full” and fun.

Verses 5:14 – 21 are important for living a whole life:

¹⁴ Brothers and sisters, we strongly advise you to scold the rebels who devote their lives to wreaking havoc, to encourage the downcast, to help the sick and weak, and to be patient with all of them. ¹⁵ Make sure no one returns evil for evil, but always pursue what is good as it affects one another in the church but also all people. ¹⁶ Celebrate always, ¹⁷ pray constantly, and ¹⁸ give thanks to God no matter what circumstances you find yourself in. (This is God’s will for all of you in Jesus the Anointed.) ¹⁹ Don’t suppress the Spirit. ²⁰ Don’t downplay prophecies. ²¹ Take a close look at everything, test it, then cling to what is good. ²² Put away every form of evil.

This is so full of truth it is mind blowing. Help those in need! Protect and uplift your community! Celebrate! Pray! Keep away from evil! And in this all make sure you test everything to ensure it is true to God’s word. Don’t just take the word of the preacher, but rather understand fully what he is saying by diving into the Bible!

John 1 – 2

Verses 1:8 & 9 talks about John the Baptist and Jesus in a different perspective:

⁸ but John was not the Light. He merely pointed to the Light. ⁹ The true Light, who shines upon the heart of everyone, was coming into the cosmos.

Jesus is he light and is God. We see this by the phrase “coming into the cosmos” since God’s realm is different from ours. The idea of a first, second and third heaven are alluded to here. In a nutshell God resides in the third heaven, we live in the first and the second is the spirit world. God came to dwell in our world as a light to all. John the Baptist pointed to that person.

Verse 1:29 shows Jesus entering the scene as an unlikely man:

The morning after this conversation, John sees Jesus coming toward him. In eager astonishment, he shouts out:

John the Baptist: Look! This man is more than He seems! He is the Lamb sent from God, the sacrifice to erase the sins of the world! 

 

John the Baptist reveals Jesus to the world. He came as the underdog, born in the wrong city, in the wrong time and doing the wrong thing … at least as the people believed the prophecies to say. He was born poor and meek, yet he continues to turn the world on its head. How is it the name of Jesus freaks people out more than any other prophet before or since? Because He is real!! This day John points to an unlikely face in the crowd and alludes to his true mission on this earth, to die for our sins as the final sacrifice.

Verse 1:46 highlights His unlikely character:

Nathanael: ⁴⁶ How can anything good come from a place like Nazareth?

Philip: Come with me, and see for yourself.

Think about this statement, Jesus was unexpected as the savior. Again the people were expecting a mighty warrior to restore Israel to its glory and free them from Rome. Instead they had this poor carpenter from Nazareth, you can see why God received resistance.

Verse 2:9 talks of Jesus’ first miracle:

After tasting the water that had become wine, the headwaiter couldn’t figure out where such wine came from (even though the servants knew), and he called over the bridegroom in amazement.

The next verse shows even more how God loves this world by the statement “You have held back the best for last.” Think about it, the tradition was to serve the good stuff first and once the party goers get a little tipsy the cheap stuff is brought out. But God is saving the best for last! This is to show the people God’s love for us is so great that He will not only “save our bacon” but also give us the best doing so. If you think about it, that is what God is doing with Jesus. He saved His best to save the world, not a valued heard animal but His one and only son.