For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    The godly think carefully before they respond to what they have been told. The wicked do not care about the consequences of their words and say what comes to mind when it comes to mind. I will think carefully about the impact my words may have on others before I speak.

    When God opens the gate through which the righteous will pass, I will go in. I will enter His presence and thank Him for all He has done. He has answered my prayers and given me victory over my troubles.

This is the day the Lord has made.
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

I love this psalm and all that it says. I will bless those who come in the name of the Lord, not those who just say that they do, but those who genuinely come in His name.

You are my God, and I will praise you!
You are my God, and I will exalt you!

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.

Yes, He is my God and I will give thanks to Him. I have experienced His faithful love and know that it will endure for all time and beyond.

    It is only when we are willing to sacrifice our lives to serve God that we truly find life. When Jesus faced the facts of His coming crucifixion, His prayed that the Father bring glory to the Father’s name. He did not turn from the path that led to His crucifixion. Let us walk in the light which Jesus provides so that we may see where we are going. But let us also let Jesus’ light shine through us so that others may see where they are going. I will always remember that those who are walking in darkness cannot see where their path is taking them. It is my job to let Jesus’ light shine upon them so that they can see their destination and perhaps choose another one.
    I will follow and trust Jesus so that His light will shine on me and through me. I will not judge others because Jesus came to save them. I too wish for them to be saved. However, I know that those who reject Jesus’ message will be judged by the truth of that message. There is such a thing as objective truth and I will strive to live according to that truth.

    The messenger who brought word to David that Saul and Jonathan were dead claimed to have killed Saul at Saul’s request. Yet, 1 Samuel tells us that Saul killed himself to avoid capture by the Philistines. The messenger appears to have believed that David would honour him for having done this and for bringing Saul’s tokens of kingship. David killed the messenger for the crime of killing Saul based on the messenger’s own confession. This is not the only time when David punished those who attempted to curry favor by taking credit for doing something that was wrong. If we are in a position of power, we need to follow David’s example and punish those who have done wrong to curry our favor, rather than rewarding them.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    God will work against the proud to destroy what they try to build for themselves. Yet, He will protect the property of the powerless. Those who seek God’s favor will avoid wicked thoughts and plans, which God detests. They will keep their words pure and truthful. By doing the latter rather than the former we gain favor with God.

    We may be surrounded by thousands who are hostile to us, yet if we trust in God He will rescue us. God’s love endures forever. Let us put our trust in Him. If we are with God, what can mere mortals do to us? I will put my trust in God and thus I will not fear. I may be forced to retreat and be on the brink of death, but as long as I rely on the Lord, He will be my strength and song. He will give me victory!

    John tells here the story of Mary anointing Jesus feet with expensive perfume. John points out that Judas Iscariot’s complaint was not because he cared about the poor. Rather, Judas complained because if the perfume had been sold, he would have been able to skim some of the money off for himself. This is a reminder to us that all too often those who are making the greatest demands that we help the poor are more interested in controlling our money than they are in the poor. This story points out that there are other ways we can spend our money to serve God than giving to the poor. Let us avoid being fooled by hypocrites into giving our money to them in the name of the poor.

    David had gone over into Philistine territory to get out of Saul’s reach. While based there he had conducted raids on various non-Israelite villages, but reported to the Philistine king in whose territory he was sheltering that he had attacked Israelite villages. The Philistine king was convinced that David had made himself hated by the Israelites and invited him to join his entourage as the Philistines went to war against Saul. David agreed to join his forces. However, the other Philistine kings did not trust David and his men. They demanded that he and his men not be part of their order of battle. God’s hand was in this in two ways. First, God thus kept David from going to war against his own people. Second, when David and his men returned to their village, they discovered that it had been raided and their families taken captive. If David and his men had stayed with the Philistine army, their families and goods would have been long gone by the time they returned. Instead, they were able to overtake the raiders and rescue their families and goods. They also gathered the plunder the raiders had taken from other villages.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    If you make plans without seeking, and listening to, advice, those plans will likely fail. The more people you get advice from, the more likely you are to cover all of your bases when you make plans. No one person is going to see all of the ways in which a plan may go wrong, so make sure you have gotten advice from enough different people to cover all of the likely problems you may face.

    I pray that everyone, from every nation, will praise the Lord. God loves us with a love which is beyond compare. If only people would come to understand and accept God it would make this world a much better place.

    There are many lessons for us in the story of raising Lazarus from the dead. There is Thomas telling the other disciples that they should go and die with Jesus. There is Martha’s statement of faith and Jesus pushing her to have even more faith. There is Mary’s anger at Jesus for not being there in time and Jesus not judging her for that natural reaction. But the thing I want to look at is the reaction of the Jewish high council. They had rejected Jesus’ teaching and were unwilling to accept that He was the Messiah. They had asked Jesus for proof. They had asked Him for signs and wonders. Now, when He had raised someone from the dead, they did not say, “Finally, proof. He is indeed the Messiah.” Rather they said, “What are we going to do?” They decided that they had to arrange for Jesus to die. It was the only way they could think of to protect their position. We need to remember that there are people who will never accept Christ, no matter what proofs they are offered.
    When faced with God’s signs and wonders we need to decide what we are going to do. Are we going to react like Martha (“I have always believed that you are the Messiah.”)? Or are we going to react like the Pharisees and chief priests (“If we allow him to go on like this, soon everyone will believe in him.”)? What am I going to do?

    Despite having repented of pursuing David after David had spared his life, Saul once more had his army out trying to track down and kill David. Once more David has the opportunity to kill Saul and declines to take that opportunity. David will not kill Saul because Saul was anointed by God as king over Israel. David feels that it is up to God to bring about Saul’s death. Shortly after this, David left the lands controlled by Saul and went to live among the Philistines, beyond Saul’s reach.
    The Philistines mustered for war against Saul and the Israelites. Saul was fearful and did not know what to do. My reading of these passages tells me that Saul was a great warrior and a good general. But he was unwilling to share the glory with anyone else. As a result, he had few subordinates who could command units of his army well enough to be given independent command. He could only muster an army which he could command himself. He could not raise and command an army as large as that of the Philistines, who had five or more independent commanders. Saul’s unwillingness to delegate left him in a bad way. Saul continued to compound the mistakes which he had made in not following God’s commands.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    People who lack judgement get a thrill out of doing foolish things, but those who understand the connections between actions and consequences choose a path of wisdom and follow it through.

    God will bend down to hear our prayer. I have heard people say that sometimes it seems like their prayers are bouncing off of the ceiling. That is OK, God will stoop down in order to hear even those prayers which do not make it out of the room. It may seem that our cries for His help cannot even get out of our own heads, let alone up to heaven. Yet, even so, when we cry to the Lord for help, He will answer. I cannot pay the Lord back for all that He has done for me. Everything that I possess is already His. So, I will praise His name and serve Him in whatever ways that I can.

    The crowd asked Jesus to tell them plainly if He was the Messiah. Jesus answered them by telling them that He had already told them, but they did not believe Him. The proof was in what He did. In the same way today, the proof of the Gospel we preach is in the works we do. If we listen to Jesus’ voice, speak what He has told us to say, and do what He has told us to do, we will provide proof of God’s existence and greatness. Jesus and the Father are one. Saying so, made the crowd want to kill Jesus. In the same way, we will face opposition when we show that we have become one with Jesus. When we preach the Gospel, let our message be the same as Jesus’ here, “Don’t believe me unless I carry out my Father’s work.” As we preach the Gospel we must also do God’s work in helping those in need.

    Continuing in the theme of Saul’s insecurity vs David’s faithfulness we have today’s story. Saul gathered a strong force of elite fighting men significantly larger than the group following David and went hunting for David in order to kill him. At one point Saul goes into a cave by himself to relieve himself. David and his men were hiding deep in this cave when Saul went into it. Despite having been told by Samuel that he had been chosen by God as the next king of Israel David refused to kill Saul when the opportunity presented itself. David demonstrates once more his confidence in God’s plan for himself. He was confident that God would protect him from Saul and would, in His own time, clear the path to fulfill His promise to David. Do we have a similar trust in God’s provision for our lives?

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    If you lose your temper easily, you will start many fights you did not need to have. If you can keep your temper, even when provoked, you will bring calm and end fights, even some you were not involved in. Those who are lazy see insurmountable obstacles to every endeavor. Those who truly wish to do what is right see a clear path to that goal. Where other people might see obstacles to doing right, the righteous either see a path around or consider the “obstacle” an acceptable consequence of doing the right thing.

    I will seek to live according to what the psalmist writes. I will not seek glory for myself, but I will act so that God may be glorified. If and when I have success I want it to cause people to glorify and praise God. God is my helper and my shield. Any thing I have done that is praiseworthy is because of God, not because of some credit that I am due. God has blessed me and I will praise Him.

    Jesus tells us that He is the good shepherd. His sheep know His voice and follow Him. They will not follow the voice of a stranger because they do not know it. Rather they will run from the voice of a stranger. This reminds me of those churches which constantly tell us that we need to change the message of Christ to be relevant. As a general rule, those churches seem to always get smaller. I will not say that we should measure the success or failure of a congregation by how big or small it is. However, I will also say that we should not measure our message by how “relevant” society finds them. We should measure our message by whether or not we are speaking with the voice of Jesus.

    Saul once again demonstrated the insecurity which eventually brought him down. When he discovered that Ahimelech, the priest, had aided David, he had him, his family, and the entire town where he had lived killed. Saul did this despite the fact that when Ahimelech aided David most of the people of Israel knew David as Saul’s faithful, and most successful, servant. Saul’s actions are contrasted with David’s. Saul ordered an entire town of Israelites killed and plundered. David, on the other hand, went to rescue a town in Judah from the depredations by Philistine raiders. Doing so put David at some risk because it allowed Saul the chance to attempt trap him there. Are we willing to put ourselves at some risk to aid others? Or do we hold a grudge against those who we perceive as having wronged us?

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Those who allow depression to rule their lives will see trouble in everything that comes their way. Those who choose to be cheerful will see every day as a holiday. Those who fear the Lord, and have the peace which accompanies that, are better off with just a little than those who have great wealth, but are troubled by what tomorrow may bring. I would not trade a simple meal with my loved ones for daily feasts with those I do not like.

    I will praise the name of the Lord because He is greater and more glorious than anything else in this universe. It is He who will elevate the poor and needy to great heights. He will bring happiness and fulfillment to those who serve Him, no matter how low and hopeless they may seem. Look at what He did for the people of Israel as He brought them out of Egypt, through the wilderness, and into the Promised Land. He can and will do such wonders today.

    Years ago my father pointed out that the man born blind made one of the great statements of faith. When the Jewish religious leaders pushed him to repudiate Jesus the man gave them a great reply. He did not address their argument. He told them he would not judge on such things. He chose to judge on what he knew. He knew that he had been blind and now he could see. Let us follow his example. Let us stick to what we know. What I know, before I met Jesus, I was spiritually blind, now I can see. Jesus came to give sight to the blind, those who think they can see without Him will remain blind.

    Jonathan considered David his best friend and refused to believe that his own father would be out to kill him. David convinced Jonathan to put his belief to the test. Jonathan willing to put his friendship to David above his loyalty to his father because his father was in the wrong. Jonathan and David are a great example of loyal friends. They were both willing to subordinate their ambitions to their friendship. We have two men who were mighty warriors, yet they never became jealous of the admiration which the other received.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Those who mock others avoid interaction with those who are wise enough to get their facts straight because they do not want to be corrected when they are wrong. This demonstrates their foolishness because the wise are always seeking knowledge, even when it proves that their past judgements were wrong.

    Those who fear the Lord and take delight in doing as He instructs will be blessed. Those who fear the Lord and do as he commands need fear nothing. They can confidently trust God to care for them and provide for their needs. Their success will infuriate the wicked, who will be able to do nothing to thwart them.

    There are two complimentary points in this passage. The first is that if we are faithful to Jesus’ teachings we will know the truth and the truth will free us. Of course, it is not just knowing the truth which frees us, but telling and living it as well. As we allow the truth to take over and fill our lives we are freed from the need to remember the lies we have told and fit everything into those lies to avoid being caught out. When we tell and live the truth we are making ourselves children of God and building up our strength to live free and righteous lives.
    On the other hand, every time we tell a lie, we make ourselves children of the devil and tie ourselves into slavery to him. Those who lie frequently come to hate the truth because it reveals who they are. Lying is a sort of gateway sin which leads to all others. When we lie we begin to believe that we can reshape the world into what we want it to be. As time goes by and the world fails to conform to our lies, we commit ever greater sins until we find even murder acceptable to support the lies which we have told. Once we have begun down that path the only way to be freed is to dedicate ourselves to the truth. Let us dedicate ourselves to the faithfully following Jesus’ teachings so that we may learn, speak, and live the truth. When we do that the truth will free us from slavery to sin.

    Saul set David to many tasks and sent him on various missions. David was successful at all of them and became a hero in the eyes of the people. Once more Saul’s insecurity was revealed. Rather than rejoice in David’s successes and see them as reflecting well on him as David’s mentor, Saul became jealous of David. He feared that the people would make David king in his place. Saul’s insecurity made him a king of uncertain temper. One day, in his anger Saul attempted to kill David. David avoided the attempt and when Saul’s temper faded he sent David out as a commander of troops. David gained even more fame as his troops successfully won battles. Saul allowed his insecurity to overcome him. Rather than see David as an asset to his rule, he saw him as a threat to be eliminated. Let us not follow Saul’s path of insecurity. Rather let us follow the path laid out in today’s psalm. Let us fear the Lord and live with the confidence and trust in Him that comes from obeying His commands.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    We cannot buy God off. We will not deflect His judgement by making offerings and giving our money to help the poor. If we became wealthy by oppressing the poor, giving from that wealth by assisting the poor will not count in our favor. If we choose to follow the wrong path in life, God will send things to direct us back to His path for us. If we refuse to allow God’s discipline to guide us back to Him, we will die.

    This psalm was interpreted as referring to Jesus by several New Testament writers. It declares that Jesus will rule over all of the earth and those who choose to be His enemies will be forced to submit. Those who follow Jesus will willingly go into battle for Him, but God will be all of the army which He needs.

    The earliest manuscript copies that we have of the Gospel of John do not contain the story of the woman caught in adultery, but this story contains many lessons for us. We have the fact that the accusers say that they caught the woman in the act of adultery. Adultery involves two people. Where is the other one? Jesus could have gone there, but He did not. When the accusers demanded an answer from Jesus, He did not respond immediately. When they insisted the He give them a judgement against the woman, He accepted that they had interpreted the Law correctly. Then He told them that the one among them who was not equally guilty of breaking the Law should start the punishment. This is perhaps the second most important lesson of this story: when we look at the sins of others we should first consider the ways in which we have sinned. We are no less guilty of breaking God’s law than anyone else.
However, the most important lesson of this story is Jesus’ final statement to the woman, “Go, and sin no more.” Jesus does not condemn us for our sins, but He tells us to go and sin no more. Let us follow this command from Him. Let us also follow His example. When we are asked to condemn sinners, let us not condemn them. But that does not mean that we should encourage them to continue in their sin either.

    In yesterday’s passage, Saul became impatient and offered sacrifices to God for his success rather than wait for Samuel to arrive as he had been instructed. Now today, Saul was told to destroy the Amalekites completely, both the people and all of their goods. He gathered his army and attacked them completely destroying the people, except for their king. Saul took the king captive and allowed his men to gather the best of the plunder from the wealth of the Amalekites. When confronted about his failure to do as God had commanded, Saul claimed that they had only kept the plunder in order to offer it as a sacrifice to God. How often are we like Saul? When we are caught doing wrong, we claim that we had the best of intentions. Rather than acknowledge his failure to obey, Saul made excuses.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    It is foolish to despise discipline. A wise person welcomes being corrected, that is how they become more wise. The godly will have treasure no matter how poor, but the wicked will earn trouble no matter how wealthy. Turn to the wise for good advice, the fool has nothing to offer. When I read the last proverb, I was reminded of the several men I have encountered who had been married multiple times who wanted to give me advice about marriage. My recommendation is to take advice from people who have succeeded, not from people who have demonstrated that they are unable to learn from their mistakes.

    Let us follow the example of the psalmist. He loved his enemies, even though they fought against him for no reason. He prayed for them, despite the fact that they were trying to destroy him. If we do these things, God will cause the trouble our enemies try to make for us to fall upon them. The very fate they wish for us will be theirs. I will not hate those who attempt to destroy me, rather I will pity them and pray that they repent before it is too late. I know what fate awaits them if I have lived a life which makes their attacks unjustified.

    When the religious and political leadership found that many of the people were saying that Jesus must be the Messiah they sent the Temple guards to arrest Him. Jesus told those around Him, including the guards and the leadership that He would only be there for a short time, then He would go away. When Jesus calls to us, we have a limited amount of time to answer His call. If we refuse to follow Him when He calls us and later we search for Him, we will not be able to find Him. If you are feeling God’s call today, do not delay, tomorrow may be too late.

    Saul was camped with his army not far from where the Philistine army was camped. Jonathan decided to scout out the Philistine encampment. As he was scouting with just his armor bearer he came upon an outpost of the Philistine encampment that was atop a steep hill. Jonathan trusted God to guide him and give him victory. When the Philistines saw Jonathan and his armor bearer, rather than kill them as they approached their camp the Philistines challenged them to come up and fight them. Jonathan did so and killed those who stood before him, while his armor bearer guarded his back, killing those who attempted to outflank Jonathan. Jonathan’s attack threw the Philistine army into disarray allowing Saul to win a great victory that day.
    Jonathan faced an enemy entrenched in a position that he could not hope to assail successfully. He trusted in God and waited for a sign from God to act. God made Jonathan’s enemies cocky and they gave away their advantage of position. God gave Jonathan the victory that day and He will do the same for us, even when our opposition seems to have all of the advantages.