For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I am away from home on a business trip for a few days. I am pretty sure that I will still be able to complete these as my daily devotions, but I may be later than normal in getting them published. I would appreciate your prayers for me and my wife while I am travelling.

Proverbs 27:13

    If someone offers their word as bond for a loan to someone they do not know make sure they offer to secure the debt.

Psalm 109:1-31

    I strive to live as the psalmist describes. I will rely on God to defend me from the wicked. I will love them and pray for them, even if they slander me. I will not hold enmity against them, even when they seek to destroy me. If I do so I will not need to fear their curses because God’s blessings will overcome any curse they may cast.

Hebrews 10:18-39

    The writer continues his theme that we do not need to have a guilty conscience for the sins we have committed. Christ’s sacrifice covers over our sins, allowing us to approach God directly. We no longer need any priest other than Jesus to intercede between us and God. Since Jesus is God, this means that we can approach God directly.
    As a result of this we should seek to motivate each other to acts of love and to good works of all kinds. In order to do this we need to meet together with our fellow believers. There are those who believe that because they have a personal relationship with God and with Jesus they do not need to regularly join with their fellow believers. They are mistaken. We need the relationship with our fellow believers, both to encourage them and to be encouraged. If we do not spend time with fellow believers being influenced by them to more closely follow God, we will be influenced by the non-believers around us to drift away from God.

Ezekiel 23:1-49

    The people of Samaria and Jerusalem were not satisfied with being God’s people. They were not satisfied with the power and wealth that came from doing God’s will. Rather than follow God’s will, they sought to become client states of those two powers. Rather than trust in God for their security, they sought the protection of Assyria and then of Babylon. Do we make the same mistake? Do we seek the protection of earthly powers, rather than trusting in God for our security>

For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I am going to be out of town on business for the next few days. I should still be able to get these devotions finished each day, but I may be a little late in getting them posted (or even like this one, a little early).

Proverbs 27:12

    It is prudent to make plans for potential danger. Only a simpleton ignores possible dangers and moves forward without taking them into account. This does not mean that you should allow those potential dangers to stop you from doing something, merely that you should plan what to do if they actually come to pass.

Psalm 108:1-13

    I am confident in God and my faith will not be shaken. I will sing His praises (I am warning you that you probably want to sing loud enough to drown me out). I will not refrain from doing so, no matter whose presence I am in. I will trust in the Lord to give me triumph over my enemies. God will help me to do mighty things.

Hebrews 10:1-17

    If my reading of yesterday’s passage is correct, then the writer is continuing by emphasizing that God does not want us to spend our time seeking to “make right” our past sins. He wants us to spend our time seeking to do His will. As I say this, I realize that I could be interpreted as saying that all that is needed is that we move on from our sins and seek to do God’s will. However, we need to realize that our sins need to be paid for, and that Jesus offered the sacrifice which pays for them. We need to recognize that our sins are greater than anything we could do to offset them. It is only because God offered His own Son as a sacrifice that we are able to now approach Him to discover what His will for us is now.
    I will sum up the message I am seeing in this passage today. We must acknowledge that we have sinned and cannot do anything to make right the sins we have committed. We should feel remorse for our sins and a desire to follow a different path going forward, avoiding the mistakes (the sins) of our past. We follow this by accepting the gift of Christ’s sacrifice for our sins (and it is important that we recognize the magnitude of His suffering, endured on our behalf). Once we have done these things we should seek to identify and accomplish what God’s will is for us going forward. What we are not to do is spend time thinking about our past sins and striving to make them right. We cannot do so. The sins of our past can only be made right through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Let us put those sins behind us and seek to “Go, and sin no more.”

Ezekiel 21-22:31

    God’s sword is being sharpened to strike out against those who sin against Him. Ezekiel prophesied that the omens had been cast and God had directed where the sword of God’s judgement would fall next. However, he issued a warning to those it passed over on this occasion that the sword would be sharpened for them. I have not received a vision from the Lord, nor a message as to where His judgement will fall next. However, I can read the words of Ezekiel where he describes the sins that led to the fall of Jerusalem.
    Ezekiel describes the sins of the leaders of Jerusalem, I will let you decide:

1. fathers and mothers are despised
2. foreigners are forced to pay for protection
3. orphans and widows are mistreated
4. people despise holy things
5. people accuse others falsely
6. idol worshipers
7. those who do obscene things

The list goes on, and as I look at that list, I see so many of them (and items from the rest of the list) going on in the society around us. Time is running out for our society. God will not forestall His judgement much longer. Even the common people are oppressing the poor and robbing the needy. God is looking for someone, anyone, willing to rebuild the walls of righteouesness in the land. Will we stand in the gaps in the wall? Will we work to rebuild righteousness in this land?
    I want to state here that this is not about changing the laws. This is about what people actually do, whether it is legal or not. We cannot bring righteousness back to this country, or any other, by passing laws. We must reach people and convince them to allow the Holy Spirit to transform their hearts. Let us kneel down and pray. Let us beg God to send His Holy Spirit to transform the people around us. Let us demonstrate righteousness to them so that they will desire to live likewise. Oh God, use me to bring glory to Your name, inspire my words and my acts to cause others to come to You.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have been convicted to seek to develop a disciplined prayer life. It is still a work in progress. Please pray for me, that the Holy Spirit may show me how to pray in a disciplined manner.

Proverbs 27:11

    If you act with wisdom you will bring joy to your parent’s hearts, and those who criticize them will be in the wrong. The signs that someone was a good parent is that their children act wisely.

Psalm 107:1-43

    This psalm makes a good point; let those whom the Lord has saved tell others their story. Perhaps by telling your story you will give someone the hope to turn to God for redemption. This psalm does a great job of listing the various ways in which people find God’s redemption.
    Some are wanderers, seeking for something, they know not what. They are lost and alone, hungry, thirsty, and homeless. For some this was physical, for others this was spiritual. In either case, if they cry out to God, He will offer them a home, a family, food, and drink. There is nothing like coming home to the family of God.
    Others were imprisoned by misery (or miserable because they were imprisoned). Their imprisonment (whether literal or figurative) was the result of their refusal to listen to God. However, when they were willing to call on Him, He was ready, and able, to free them from their misery. No matter how imprisoned they were, God was able to give them freedom.
    Still others were fools and rebelled against God, reaching the point where nothing brought them satisfaction or pleasure. They were ready to die. Yet when they called out to God, He answered them and redeemed them. He showed them how to find joy once more.
    And still others went about their lives believing that they did not need God. When the troubles of life overwhelmed them, they too cried out to God and He saved them. No matter what our story is, whatever circumstance God saved us out of, let us praise His name. Let us tell our story so that others will see that God can save them from the trouble they face. I will not keep silent about what God has done for me!

Hebrews 9:11-28

    Under the old covenant, sacrifices had to be made again and again for sins. However, Jesus offered Himself up on the cross once and for all. I have often struggled with what this passage means for us. I get the fact that Jesus died for our sins once and that is all that is needed. However, the writer hear spends a lot of time talking about that. So, it seems like there must be more to it than that. And I think that the “more” struck me today.
    I am aware of a lot of people who spend time feeling guilty for what they have done, struggling with seeking forgiveness for their past mistakes. I think the point the writer is making here is that we need to admit our mistakes and move on. When we commit a sin we need to recognize that we have done wrong. Then we need to put it behind us and strive to do what God wishes us to do. When we spend time worrying about, and feeling guilty for, the sins we have committed we do not have time to seek and do what God wants us to do now. Instead of spending time seeking to “make right” and gain forgiveness for the sins we have committed, let us accept the forgiveness God offers us through Christ and move on to the next thing He wants us to do. The only reason we should spend any time thinking about the sins we have committed in the past is to seek to avoid them in the future. Let us ask God’s Spirit to show us the sins we are unaware of which have led us to commit the sins we are aware of.

Ezekiel 20:1-49

    The leaders of the people of Israel came to Ezekiel requesting a message for God. God answered them through Ezekiel, telling them that He would not give them the answer they were looking for. God told them how their ancestors time and again rebelled against Him, choosing to worship idols rather than dedicating themselves to God alone. They wished to be like the people around them so they worshiped idols and sacrificed their children. I was going somewhere else with this, but as I wrote that last sentence I realized that is the message for us today. Do we wish to be like the people around us?
    Well, God has an answer for that. The people of God will never be like the people around them. They may try, they may even go so far as to worship idols like those around them, perhaps they will even offer their children as sacrifices to those idols. However, God will purge His people of those who do such things. He will use His strong arm to cause us to abandon such idolatry. Those who seek to be like the people around us will be purged from God’s people. We are God’s people and He calls us to be different from those around us. Let us live lives so that those who do not follow God will see that we are different. That God has transformed us. If we are not different than the people around us, why should they wish to join with us?

For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have been convicted to seek to develop a disciplined prayer life. It is still a work in progress. Please pray for me, that the Holy Spirit may show me how to pray in a disciplined manner.

Proverbs 27:10

    Never abandon a friend, either your own or of your father. Maintain the friendships which you have inherited and those which you have made. You may need those friends one day when you are far from your family. When trouble strikes it is better to have a friend close by than a brother far away.

Psalm 106:32-48

    Time and again the people of Israel sinned against God, going so far as to sacrifice their children to idols. As a result of their sins they suffered tragedy followed by disaster. Yet God is a loving God and when they cried out to Him, He came to their rescue. Even today, despite all of our society’s sins, if people will turn to God, He will gather them to Him. Let us praise His holy name and rejoice in the wonders of His love.
    I remember that when I was young I was horrified at the thought that parents could kill their children as sacrifices to pagan gods. I could not imagine how any parent could do such a thing. I learned about abortion. At first I did not make the connection, but as I read the Bible time and again, I cannot help but see the parallels between the horrific acts of those who would kill their own children as sacrifices to appease an angry god and those who would kill their children just so that they would not be inconvenienced by them.

Hebrews 9:1-10

    Under the covenant which God established through Moses, only the high priest could enter into the presence of God, into the Most Holy Place. And he could do that only once a year after offering blood sacrifice for his own sins and those of the people. All of this shows the limitations of the old covenant. Under the old covenant, we were still separated from God and only an intermediary could enter into His presence, and then, only after offering a sacrifice before each occasion. The sacrifices given were imperfect and thus did not have lasting effect. This system was established to show us the need for a better way.

Ezekiel 18-19:14

    Ezekiel tells us that God does not hold the children accountable for the sins of their parents, nor will He give the children credit for the righteous behavior of their parents. The righteous will be rewarded for their own righteous behavior and the wicked will be punished for their own wicked behavior. God does not wish to see the wicked die. He wishes to see them turn from their sins and live.
    This passage is perhaps the clearest statement in the Bible that wicked behavior leads to death because that is the consequence of wicked behavior, not because God wishes to punish people for doing other than what He commands. God gets angry when we are wicked because He loves us. He knows that our wickedness will have consequences which harm us and does not wish to see us suffer those consequences.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have been convicted to seek to develop a disciplined prayer life. It is still a work in progress. Please pray for me, that the Holy Spirit may show me how to pray in a disciplined manner.

Proverbs 27:3

    It is harder to bear up under the resentment triggered by the foolish things people say and do than under a weight of stone or sand. Give careful thought to what you say or do so that you do not foolishly provoke others to resentment and anger.
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Psalm 105:37-45

    God shows His power in wonderful and marvelous ways so that we will honour Him and follow His commands. God does not do these things because we follow His commands. He does them so that we will follow His commands. Christ did not die for our sins because we were righteous. He died for our sins in order to make us righteous. Thus it is with all of God’s great deeds.

Hebrews 7:1-17

    Jesus is a priest in the order of Melchizedek. As the author here points out, Melchizedek means “king of justice”. In addition, Melchizedek was king of Salem, and Salem means “peace”. This connection reinforces what we read in other places where we are told that Jesus is the King of Justice and King of Peace. One thing the author does not point out is that Salem was the city we now know as Jerusalem, so Jesus was also King of Jerusalem (which also follows from His being the descendant of David).
    The take away from all of this is that the priesthood of Aaron has been superseded. The priesthood of Aaron interacted with God on behalf of the people. Under that structure, the high priest approached God and made offerings on behalf of himself and the people. But even after the high priest had made his offerings, the people still needed to go through the priests in order to approach God. However, under the new priesthood, our High Priest has made offering on our behalf once and we can now approach God with only Jesus as our intermediary.

Ezekiel 12-14:11

    Ezekiel speaks out against prophets and religious leaders who, rather than call on people to give up their sins and turn to God, tell the people that all will be well. He warns against encouraging people to make cosmetic changes to their lives when what they need is fundamental transformation. It is not enough for us to show the appearance of righteousness, we must live righteous lives, doing what we can to help the impoverished and oppressed. Going to Church on Sunday is just not going to cut it. God is calling us to do more than that. We need to live our lives each day to bring healing to those around us who are suffering.
    Further, Ezekiel speaks out against those prophets who offer We must also call others to make genuine changes in their lives. It is not enough to offer them “charms” and rituals for them to follow. We must call people to turn from the sin which is causing their suffering. God is bringing judgement against those who do not turn from their sin. He is also going to bring judgement against us if we tell the sinners that they can avoid the judgement by making cosmetic changes when what they need is the fundamental transformation of accepting Jesus and the Holy Spirit into their lives.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have been convicted to seek to develop a disciplined prayer life. It is still a work in progress. Please pray for me, that the Holy Spirit may show me how to pray in a disciplined manner.

Proverbs 26:28

    Lying will hurt others, and no matter what else you say, you will never convince them that you do not hate them. Flattering someone may cause them to try things they do not have what it takes to accomplish, leading them into all sorts of trouble.

Psalm 105:1-15

    Give thanks to the Lord, let the whole world know what He has done. Search for the Lord, continually seek Him (not just some times, all the time). I love this psalm. It gives me joy to read. But it is also a challenge. Do I let everyone I meet know what God has done for me? Do I tell them about the things I have seen Him do in the world around me? The answer, unfortunately, is that I do not tell everyone I meet those things. And part of the reason I do not do so is because I do not continually seek Him. Oh, I seek the Lord, but then I get distracted and forget about Him while I pursue other things. Oh God, give me the discipline to seek You and Your will all of the time!

Hebrews 5:1-14

    This passage talks about how no one becomes high priest simply by choosing it themselves. In order to become high priest one must be chosen by God. Jesus did not choose to become our high priest, a priest in the order of Melchizedek. I think there is a lesson here for how we choose all types of Church leadership. We should not choose our Church leaders from those who have chosen to be Church leaders. Those among us who have been chosen by God and the Church for leadership positions should choose to accept such a calling.
    The writer talks about how his readers are not ready for solid food spiritual teaching. He says that they are like infants who still need milk, they are not yet ready to move beyond the most basic of spiritual teaching. There comes a time when we need to move on from the basic spiritual teaching that we give those who are new to Christian faith. In order to do so we must train ourselves to recognize the difference between right and wrong. I will use another metaphor here to explain what I think the author is saying. Just as an infant needs to train its muscles by pushing itself up to all fours, then by crawling, and then by standing helped by an adult, or by holding onto a solid object, so to must we train ourselves in spiritual knowledge by using what we have learned. Until we develop our ability to use what we have already learned, we cannot learn more. And why do infants struggle to master the abilities in order to learn to walk? They do so because they are encouraged both by seeing adults and older children doing so, and by the positive reinforcement those adults and older children give them as they master the steps in learning to do so. Our congregations should be structured in the same way, with believers at different levels of spiritual maturity encouraging those less mature in the faith to develop.

Ezekiel 7-9:11

    God gave Ezekiel a message for those remaining in Judah and Jerusalem telling them that the end was approaching, that the coming disaster was no longer avoidable. Their wickedness and pride and born its full flower and the time had come when judgement would fall. It was too late to avoid judgement. There comes a time for each and everyone of us, and for each and every society, when it is too late to repent of our sins and turn from our sins. If we have not turned from our sins before that time arrives, it will be too late to avoid the judgement and disaster that are coming.
    Then God took Ezekiel to show him why the judgement that was coming on Jerusalem was no longer avoidable (the language suggests to me that Ezekiel was reluctant to witness these things, but was given no choice in the matter). He was shown how the people were worshiping an idol where they should be worshiping God. Then he was shown how the leaders (I get the impression that this group was composed of both religious and secular leaders) were worshiping idols so despicable that they could not do so openly, even among a people who would openly worship other idols. Then Ezekiel is shown women partaking in a pagan worship ritual in the Temple gates. Finally he was shown men in front of the altar to God with their backs to the altar worshiping the sun. All of these incidents indicate people not just worshiping idols but doing so as part of what they would portray as worship of God. In what ways are we, or the society around us, worshiping idols in the name of worshiping God?

For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have been convicted over the last few weeks to seek to develop a disciplined prayer life. It is still a work in progress. Please pray for me, that the Holy Spirit may show me how to pray in a disciplined manner.

Proverbs 26:27

    Those who attempt to set things up so that others come to harm without anyone knowing they were involved end up getting caught in the trouble they aimed at someone else.

Psalm 104:24-35

    This psalm reminds me of why I feel close to God when I look out over the ocean, or from a look out point high on a mountain. From that perspective you can see the many wonderful things which God has made. Then there is verse 33, which I echo every day:

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live.
I will praise my God to my last breath!
May all my thoughts be pleasing to him
I had not intended to include the beginning of verse 34, but it is appropriate that I did. That is my prayer, and I know that I fail to fulfill it. But I pray that God have His Holy Spirit transform me so that such may be the case going forward.

Hebrews 4:1-16

    God has established a place of rest for us. A place where we will be able to enter and be free of all of the temptations and troubles of sin. However, in order to enter into that rest, we must remain His faithful servants. Let us not follow the example of disobedience set by the people of Israel in the Sinai after they left Egypt. Let us not think that our disobedience can be hidden from God, for nothing can be hidden from Him.
    The word of God is both alive and active. It is not a dead letter which will no longer apply because times have changed. If we study His word it will expose our inmost thoughts and desires. More importantly, if we allow it, God’s word will separate us from those thoughts and desires which keep us from faithfully obeying Him. No matter how closely those thoughts and desires are to who we understand ourselves to be, God’s word is sharp enough to cut them loose without damaging our true selves. Everything we think, do, and are will be exposed before God. Yet we have an intercessor, Jesus Christ, who fully understands our weaknesses, so we can approach God boldly knowing that He is merciful. Let us cast ourselves before Him and beg His mercy, for if we do so, He will grant us that mercy and forgive our sins.

Ezekiel 3:16-6:14

    We are God’s watchmen. When God gives us a message to warn people about the dangers coming, it is our job to warn them. This is an important job. However, we are not responsible if they do not heed our message. We are only responsible for delivering God’s warning. Just as a sentry is not responsible for mustering the troops to prepare for an attack, so are we not responsible for what people do once we have delivered the warning. It is up to those who hear God’s warning to decide if they will respond to the message.
    If we fail to deliver God’s warning to people, He will hold us responsible for their death. If we deliver His warning and they do not listen, they will still die, but He will not hold us accountable. We have a responsibility to warn those who are pursuing sin to destruction about what is coming. It is worth noting that we are only responsible for warning those for whom God has given us a message. I struggle with knowing when God has given me a message for people. Does this cover everyone I see where I know their actions are sinful and will lead to their ultimate death? Does this cover all of those who are in that situation that I count as friend? I think the answer to both of those questions is: Not necessarily. It is an ongoing prayer of mine that the Holy Spirit guide me to know to whom God is sending me with a warning. There are some that I know and have delivered that warning, but I know that there are others where I failed to deliver God’s warning…and just as bad, there are some where I have given warning for whom God had not given me a message. That last is important because when we give warning where God has not given us a message, we take the risk of causing the person not to listen when God does send them a message.