For today, One Year Bible Online links here.
Pride and arrogance will lead to failure. A person needs more than just a realistic understanding of their own abilities. They need to recognize that they need the help of others and God in order to succeed.
God never slumbers nor sleeps. He will care for those who love Him. Night and day God will guard you. If you fear anything read this and let it sink in. Nothing is able to harm those over whom God stands watch. A human may get tired or distracted, but not our God.
When Peter called on the assembled followers of Jesus to select a replacement for Judas, he said that it should be someone who was with them from the time John baptized Jesus until that very moment. I don’t think I have ever thought about the implication in the way Luke phrases that they nominated two men who filled that requirement. I have always thought about it only being the Twelve who were with Jesus for His entire ministry. This passage reads as if there was a large number of men to choose from. They nominated two and chose between them by lot. What is the significance of this? There were more than twelve men, and a handful of women, who witnessed all of Jesus’ miracles and listened to Him teach. Christianity was not the creation of a small clique of men who made up a story.
When Joab pursued Sheba, who led a rebellion against David immediately after David defeated Absalom, to the town of Abel I am sure that he intended to destroy the town as a lesson to the rest of the towns in Israel. Yet when a woman of the town parlayed with him, Joab expressed his willingness to leave the town alone if they would turn Sheba over to him. The lesson here is that when you find yourself in a conflict with someone, it is valuable to determine their side of the story. You may discover that their interests do not run counter to your own despite initial appearances.