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.
People react the same way to sly attempts to subtly defame others in much the same way they react to an unexpected cold rain.
When I read this psalm, it immediately called to mind the song “I Will Sing of the Mercies of the Lord”. Of course that is because the opening of this psalm is the basis for that song. I want to make that first verse my life’s purpose.
- I will sing of God’s great love.
- With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.
This is a promise I have made to God in the past and I will keep that promise as long as He gives me the strength to continue.
Paul warns us against false teachers, people who teach against marriage and who teach special diets. It is OK to eat any food that we receive. When I read this, I think of the controversy over foods which were secretly prepared by Muslim rituals so that it would be “halal”. As a Christian, I do not care that food has been offered to the Muslim god (Muslims claim that they worship the Judeo-Christian God, but then, so did the worshipers of Baal). If someone points out that certain food has been prepared to be halal, I will not eat it, but only because of the person who pointed it out. All food has been made acceptable by the word of God. I will receive it and give thanks to God for it.
Let us avoid myths and old wives tales. Instead of spending time debating and studying such things we should train ourselves to be godly. Just as professional athlete trains themselves physically, we should train ourselves to be godly. There are two aspects to any training. The first is learning the correct way to do what it is you are training to do. You can do this by reading the word of God and listening to instruction from godly people. The second step is practicing what it is you are training to do. Take the time to act in a godly manner around your fellow believers. Invite them to critique your “technique”. Remember to weight the advice you get according to how successful the person giving it is (but don’t ignore advice from people who themselves do not live godly lives, just remember the source).
The passage begins with a continuation of Jeremiah’s prophecy that, even though God was bringing death and destruction upon the people of Israel, one day He would restore them to the land and make them even more prosperous than they had ever been in the past. He would restore them to their land, make them more numerous than ever, and give them peace from all of their enemies. This promise extends to all of God’s people. The day is coming when the people of God, both those biologically descended from Abraham and those adopted by God through Christ, will live at peace in this world.
The passage ends with Jeremiah condemning the people of Jerusalem. When the city was threatened by the Babylonian armies, the people, led by their king, freed those slaves they had who were Israelites (in a belated acknowledgement of a provision of the law of Moses). However, as soon as the Babylonian armies withdrew, they re-enslaved those they had freed. All too often we behave in a similar manner. When danger threatens, we call out to God and turn from our sins. We stop doing that which is wrong to those around us. Unfortunately, all too often as soon as the crisis is past, we return to our sins and treat those around us even worse than before. God’s punishment will be severe for such acts.