For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Most “friends” are unreliable and anyone who has too many of them will come to ruin. However, there are people who will be a friend who is closer than family. When you find the latter, treasure them.

    Whenever I read this psalm I am reminded of how majestic the night sky is…and whenever I look at the night sky I am reminded of this psalm. When I see the night sky I think of God’s glory and majesty. In the wonderful universe which God created, mankind is insignificant and small. Yet God gave them charge over His creation. God’s majesty fills the earth and we can witness it wherever we look.

    The ship transporting Paul was driven before the storm for two weeks to the point where those on the ship had given up hope of surviving. Paul addressed to crew and passengers telling them that he had warned them against setting sail. Then he told them that they would all survive, although the ship would be wrecked. A short time later, Paul warned the soldiers not to let the sailors abandon ship. As we read this passage, we see the hand of God in preserving the life of those on the ship. Let us remember that when things seem hopeless, God is still there for us. He will bring us through as long as we trust in Him.

    Today’s passage finishes up the genealogies by recounting some of the people who returned to the land of Israel after the Babylonian Exile. It then begins telling the story of the kingdom of Israel with the account of Saul’s death. We are reminded that for all of the great things he accomplished Saul died because he was unfaithful to God. The passage takes special note of the fact that he consulted a medium rather than seeking God’s guidance. This is a reminder that we should seek God’s guidance for the important decisions in our lives and be careful not to base those decisions on the advice of those who do not honour Him.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    I definitely prefer the NIV to the New Living Translation for today’s proverb. The results of what we say effects what we eat and whether or not that food is satisfying. The things we choose to say can result in either positive or negative outcomes. The more we talk the more important it is to choose our words with care.

    Are we worn out with praying to God for His mercy? Let us I will call out to God for forgiveness and ask that He rescue me from my sins. I am weak and it is only by the action of God’s Spirit that I will be able to escape from sin. I wish to do God’s will and serve Him, but I do not have the strength. However, the Lord will answer my prayer. His Spirit will move within me and give me the strength to His will.

    I was struck by Paul’s description of the commission which he received from Jesus on the road to Damascus. He was being sent to the Gentiles to turn them from the power of Satan to God. That commission is ours as well. We are sent into the world to open the eyes of those who do not know God. We are to show them the light of God so that they may turn from darkness to that light. Those who see the light which we reveal and turn to it will receive forgiveness and become sanctified as one of God’s people. No matter how sinful someone has been, they may turn to God and become a saint.
    The other part of this which always moves me is Paul’s response to King Agrippa. King Agrippa asked Paul if he thought he could convince Agrippa to become a Christian in such a short amount of time. Paul’s answer is what should be our prayer, goal, desire in our interactions with all who do not know the Lord. Whether quickly or slowly it is my desire that all who I speak with come to know and follow Jesus as their Lord.

    When the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh first settled in the land they trusted in God and He answered their prayers. As a result they were able to spread through the land they settled and became numerous. Unfortunately, once they had settled in the land they became unfaithful to God and began worshiping the gods of the people God had driven from the land before them. If we trust in God, He will answer our prayers. Yet, if when we are successful we turn our eyes from Him, we will suffer just as the people of these tribes did.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Those who are generous will find that sometimes that generosity opens doors to opportunities that would otherwise be closed. A freely given gift may allow someone to gain access to the movers and shakers.
    The second proverb reminds us of the importance of waiting until we hear both sides of the story before reaching a conclusion. The first person who tells us their side of the story will almost always sound right, but we often will discover that the answer is not so clear-cut when we hear how those on the other side of the dispute describe things. It is important to remember that it is possible that both sides of a dispute may have genuinely acted with the best intentions…based on information of which the other side was unaware (or because they were unaware of information available to the other side).

    Let us call upon God to answer the charges against us when we are falsely accused of wrongdoing. God will vindicate us when people make up baseless slanders against us because we serve Him. He will expose their lies for the entire world to see. In the meantime we need to control our anger rather than allowing it to control us. When we become angry we should remain silent and sleep on what caused our anger before we speak or act.
    Let us trust in God and offer sacrifices to Him in the right spirit. Always remember that doing God’s will brings greater joy than anything which can be purchased with wealth.

    When Paul was on trial before Felix, the Jewish Council made a case against him that seemed fairly damning. However, Paul was able to show that the accusations they made against him were based on hearsay and innuendo and that the only people who might be able to actually make the case were not present. This case is a perfect illustration of our proverb from today.
    Later, when Paul talked with Felix and his wife in private he discussed the connection between righteousness, self-control, and the coming day of judgement. Paul was apparently more convincing than Felix expected because he cut the discussion short. Luke’s description of what Paul said to Felix and his wife in private presents us with a different take on the Gospel message than we normally think of. The Gospel message, according to this passage, is about how righteousness and self-control are related to being prepared for God’s coming day of judgement. Are we prepared to talk to the unbelievers we know about the relationship between these three things?

    This passage is one of the reasons I am doing this blog. This genealogy list is extremely dry reading and I have trouble reading through it. Today I will be perfectly honest that I was unable to discern any meanings from it that apply to my life. However, I did find it interesting that the account contained a list of descendants of the king of Judah taken into Babylonian exile.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    People can maintain a positive spirit even in sickness, but once one’s spirit has been crushed, everything is a trial and no joy can be found in anything.
    Those who are wise will always seek new knowledge wherever they can find it. Let us never be content that we know all that we need to know.

    No matter how many enemies we have, no matter how hopeless our situation may seem,, if we cry out to God He will answer us. If we put our trust in God, we may lie down and sleep knowing that we will wake up in safety. If we serve God, it does not matter if we are surrounded by uncountable numbers of enemies He will bring us to victory. If we seek to do God’s will, we cannot fail.

    The night after Paul was taken into protective custody, God revealed to him that he would preach the Gospel in Rome. The next morning, some men who were angry with Paul and wanted to kill him made a plan to do so. Some of those in power in Jerusalem sympathized with their goal of killing Paul, but did not want to be directly implicated in his death (and did not have the power to carry it out directly). The two groups plotted together to come up with what they were sure was a full-proof plan to accomplish their goal. They failed because of circumstances outside of their control. No matter how well-connected, no matter how clever, those who seek to bring us harm are their plans will only be successful in furthering God’s agenda.
    Those who plotted against Paul, sought to stop him from preaching the Gospel message. However, rather than doing so, they actually facilitated him preaching the Gospel to those to whom he would otherwise never have had the opportunity to preach.

    As I was reading this listing of genealogy, I was struck by verse 10:

Cush was also the ancestor of Nimrod, who was the first heroic warrior on earth.

The NIV says the Nimrod “became a mighty warrior on earth.” And the New American Standard Version says that “he began to be a mighty one in the earth.” In Genesis we are told that Nimrod was the founder(or at least an early ruler of) Babylon. In addition, Genesis tells us that Nimrod founded the city of Nineveh. This reference to Nimrod is a foreshadowing of the fall of both the Northern Kingdom to Assyria and the Southern Kingdom to Babylon.