I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I am back to a routine. It is not the same as my old routine, but I think it will work out well. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
Ezekiel follows up his prophecy against Tyre with a prophecy against Egypt. He prophesies that Nebuchadnezzar will destroy Egypt’s armies and those of its allies. Nebuchadnezzar will plunder the land of Egypt and leave the land desolate. This prophecy aligns with a similar one from Jeremiah. Ezekiel tells Egypt that this destruction will happen partly because of Egypt’s pride, the belief of the Egyptians that they had manufactured the wealth they obtained from the Nile River. Ezekiel also says that the destruction of Egypt would happen because they promised support to Jerusalem that they did not deliver. For these two sins, God was bringing destruction on Egypt. Is this prophecy something the United States should take a warning from? Do we believe that we are the source of our wealth? Do we believe that our government is the source of our wealth? Or, do we recognize that God is the source of our wealth?
The writer continues his litany of Old Testament saints who lived by faith, recounting how they performed many powerful deeds through the power of the Spirit and by holding fast to faith in the promises of God. Yet, he also recounts how some suffered for their faith, unwilling to turn from serving God even though their fellow-man tortured and killed them. He concludes that since we are surrounded by such a cloud of witnesses to our actions, we should exercise a similar faith. We should seek to serve God in the same manner that a marathon runner runs a race, casting aside anything that might slow us down or impede our service to God. We must continue in our faith, remembering that there will come a time in our life when we will hit something similar to what many marathon runners call “the wall,” a place where everything seems to conspire against us, where we want to just give up. Marathoners have all sorts of methods to overcome “the wall,” but the writer tells us the sure way to overcome the spiritual “wall”, keep our eyes focused on Christ. He is our champion and demonstrates the joy and rewards for persevering in our faith. He also shows us the challenges and obstacles that will be in front of us as we run this race. No matter how difficult we see our lives of faith, we must remember that He suffered even more.
Further the writer tells us that we will experience God’s discipline as He strives to teach us to live more faithful lives. We should expect discipline from God, because every loving father disciplines his children. If we did not receive discipline from God it would indicate that we were illegitimate children rather than true members of His family. We respect earthly fathers who discipline their children, so we should even more submit to the discipline of our heavenly Father, who disciplines us in order that we might live forever. We must remember that discipline is never pleasant while we are experiencing it, but after the lesson of the discipline has been learned the one who was disciplined will experience greater peace and joy. In light of all of this, we should take a new grip on our faith with our tired hands and strive to make a straight path for our feet, not only for ourselves but for those whose faith is weak and lame so that they may be strengthened.
Let us praise the Lord. Those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying His commands do not fear bad news because they know that the Lord will care for them. Their light will shine in the darkness and they will not be overcome with evil. They are confident and fearless. They face their foes in confidence of victory. They share freely and give generously to those in need. The confidence and generosity with which the righteous lead their lives causes the plans of the wicked to be thwarted and infuriates the wicked. In these troubled economic times we must remember that good comes to those who conduct their business fairly and lend money generously.
Today’s proverb reminds us that a true friend helps one to improve oneself, even though that sometimes requires a bit of abrasion. Let us sharpen our brothers and sisters in the Lord as they sharpen us in our service to the Lord.