Daily Archives: August 30, 2016

Daily Bible Study

August 31, 2016 Bible Study — Everything We Have Is a Gift From God

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

DSCN0890

Today, I am reading and commenting on Ezekiel 16.

    Today’s passage is about the Jewish people, God’s special care for them, and their unfaithfulness. However, much of the message can be applied to other nations and peoples, to a limited degree, even to individuals. The opening point is that everything we have in life was given to us by God. If we had parents who cared for us, it is because God planned for them to be there to do so. Every good thing which I have obtained in this life came to me as a gift from God. They are not mine to use as I choose. They are mine to use in service to God.

DSCN0893

    It is bad enough when we use the material possessions which God has given us to honor other gods, when we take the wonderful gifts which God has given us out of His love for us and use them to express love for that which defies Him. But when we go further and sacrifice our own children to the gods of convenience and self we go too far. This is true whether we do it on a personal level or on a societal level. I have often heard it said that slavery was the “original sin” of the United States. Perhaps it was, but as horrendous as slavery was, abortion dwarfs it in the evil it visits on our society.

Bible Study

The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats

Every week I receive the bulletin for the upcoming Sunday worship service in my email. It contains the announcements and the Scripture reading which our pastor is going to base his sermon on. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to read the scripture passage and write a blog entry containing my thoughts on the passage as a way to prepare for Sunday morning worship. I do not know how long I will continue doing this, but it seems to be an exercise that has some value.

DSCN0146

    This week’s passage is Matthew 25:31-46, the parable of the sheep and the goats. This is perhaps my favorite parable and I am looking forward to hearing what Mark (the pastor at Butter Valley Community Church) has to say about it. Keith Green did a song about it, titled “The Sheep and The Goats”. At the end of the song, Keith pointed out that the only difference in the parable between the sheep and the goats was what they did and what they did not do.
    After reading this passage we need to ask ourselves these questions: the last time we saw someone who was hungry, did we feed them? How about the person who was thirsty? Do we invite strangers in? Do we clothe the naked? Do we care for the sick? Do we visit those in prison? I think the point I want to make is that this parable is not about how our tax dollars are spent. It is not even about the money we give to charity. No, this is about how we treat people. Do we take the time and effort to identify and meet the needs of those we see in our daily lives?