Tag Archives: Daily Devotional

August 14, 2012 Bible Study

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Nehemiah 7:73-9:21

     Once the people got settled again after completing the walls around Jerusalem, they gathered on the first day of the seventh month (which by our calendar would have been early October) to listen to Ezra read the Law of Moses. The passage tells us that Ezra read the Law from early morning until noon to everyone who could understand and all of the people listened closely. While Ezra was reading from the Law there stood to either side of him thirteen Levites. I am not certain of this, but the passage reads to me as if these additional men were also reading the Law, with them spaced out so that everyone could hear what was being read (after all, this was in the days before amplifiers). As they read, they explained to the people what each passage meant, helping the people to understand what was being read. As they listened to the Law being read, the Spirit of God touched the people and they began to weep. We are not told why the people were weeping, but from the context I would guess it was as a result of their recognition that they had failed to live up to God’s commands. Nehemiah and the other leaders calmed the people and told them not to weep because this day was a day of sacred celebration and feasting. The leaders told them to go and celebrate with a feast and to share their feast with those who did not have.
     The following day, the leaders of the people met with Ezra to go over the Law in greater detail. As they studied they discovered that the Law had instructed the people to celebrate this festival by gathering branches and building temporary shelters in which to live during this festival. So, they instructed the people to do this and the returned exiles built such shelters and lived in them for the duration of the festival (which was seven days, with a solemn assembly on the eighth day).
     On the 24th day of the seventh month, they gathered again. This time they gathered for a time of penitence and mourning for their sins. The passage tells us that this time, they stood for three hours listening to the Law being read. Then, for another three hours they confessed their sins and worshiped God. And today we sometimes complain when our Sunday morning service goes over an hour and a half, most of which we spend seated on comfortable seats.

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1 Corinthians 9:1-18

     Today’s passage is an interesting one. It appears that Paul is responding to rumors that question his authority and motives. He starts out by saying that while some might not view him as an apostle, certainly the Corinthian Church should. This makes sense here since the Greek word that is translated “apostle” (and which is the root for the word apostle itself) means delegated messenger. Paul was certainly God’s delegated messenger to deliver the Gospel to the Corinthians. Paul then goes on to give several examples which demonstrate that those who preach the Gospel are entitled to receive support from those they preach to. Paul points out that he was entitled to their support, but that he did not avail himself of it. He emphasizes that he does not wish to start doing so now.
     There are two things I take away from this passage. The first is that God calls on the Church to provide financial support to its preachers, teachers and missionaries. The second is one that people tend to overlook. Some people who are called into ministry are called by God to support themselves. The Church should call people into ministry and be prepared to provide support to those they so call. However, some fraction of those called are called by God Himself to support themselves, leaving those Church resources for use in other ministries. I do not know what percentage that should be, but it is a small number. I am sure the number would vary depending on the financial circumstances of those who make up the Church body which does the calling. I doubt it is ever much higher than 10% of those called to ministry and probably usually much lower.

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Psalm 33:12-22

     The psalmist tells us that military prowess is not sufficient to maintain a nation that does not have God’s favor. However, he also tells us that if we put our hope in God, He will protect us, no matter what other forces are arrayed against us. No matter what forces and troubles we face, we can have confidence that God is more than equal to shielding us from them.

© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.

Proverbs 21:11-12

     The simple-minded need to witness punishment before they will learn wisdom, while the wise simply need to be instructed in order to become wiser. The righteous know what the wicked do and recognize that such behaviors lead to destruction.


© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.

     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.

August 13, 2012 Bible Study

© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.


Nehemiah 5:14-7:73

     Following on his discussion of the problems that resulted from the wealthy Jews taking advantage of the misfortune of the poor Jews, Nehemiah writes that, unlike previous governors, during his twelve years as governor he never drew the governor’s food allowance. Nehemiah accuses his predecessors of putting a heavy burden on the people with even their assistants taking advantage of the people. Nehemiah says that he acted this way because he feared God. Nehemiah dedicated himself to working on rebuilding the wall, requiring his servants to spend time working on the wall as well. Nehemiah spent from his own resources to fulfill his duty as governor to host officials and visiting dignitaries. He did this because he felt that the burden on the people to rebuild the wall was all that they could bear and the added burden of supporting him and his officials would have been too much for the people.
     When the enemies of the Jews among the surrounding peoples found out that Nehemiah had completed the walls around Jerusalem, they attempted to lure him to a meeting where they could ambush him. Nehemiah refused to accede to a meeting with them offering as an excuse that he was busy with his work and saw no benefit in such a meeting. They sent him four such invitations. When they realized that he would not meet with them voluntarily, they attempted to blackmail him. They claimed that they had evidence that he was planning to set himself up as king in Jerusalem and that if he did not meet with them they would send this evidence to the king of Persia. When this did not work, they hired an invalid that Nehemiah visited to try to convince Nehemiah to shut himself up in the Temple over night to avoid an attack. Nehemiah recognized that shutting himself up in the Temple to avoid an attack while leaving the rest of the population vulnerable would destroy his credibility. He chose instead to trust in the defenses of the city.
     It took the people 52 days to rebuild the walls under Nehemiah’s leadership. During the time spent rebuilding the laws, many of the leaders among the Jews were telling Nehemiah what a wonderful man Tobiah (one of the leaders of the surrounding peoples who opposed rebuilding the walls) was. At the same time, they were reporting to Tobiah everything they knew about Nehemiah’s plans. Meanwhile Tobiah kept sending Nehemiah threatening letters to try to intimidate him. It is never spelled out in this account, but the reason that these attempts to thwart Nehemiah failed was because Nehemiah had a personal relationship with Artaxerxes who was then the king of Persia. Which shows how God’s hand was at work here. If someone without Nehemiah’s connections in the court of Persia had attempted this, they would have been thwarted. But God chose Nehemiah for this task and Nehemiah had both the connections and the dedication to God to complete it. When the walls were finished, Nehemiah turned over responsibility for governing Jerusalem to his brother, Hanani, along with specific instructions on maintaining the defenses of the city.
     Nehemiah noted that the population of the city was small and the houses within the city had not yet been rebuilt. This led him to decide to call together the leaders and the common people to register who was living in the city. He had found a record of the people who had first returned to Jerusalem from Exile and records that information here.

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1 Corinthians 8:1-13

     Paul now addresses the question they had sent him about food offered to idols. It appears that the question had been couched in a manner so as to elicit the answer they wanted from Paul by starting out with something along the lines of, “We all know…” Paul replies to this by saying that, “Yes, we all know some things.” And that knowledge makes us feel important. However, love is what builds the Church. The person who is convinced that knowing the answers is what is important does not yet understand what matters. What matters is loving God. Being right is less important than showing our love of God and our fellow believers.
     Having said that, Paul begins to address their question. He starts out by saying that idols are not really gods. There is only one God. He points out that nevertheless some people worship a multitude of gods and lords. Paul tells us that we as Christians know that there is only one God, who created everything, and we live for Him.
     However, Paul points out that not all believers have come to this understanding yet. Some believers still believe in the power and existence of the gods that they worshiped before they came to the Lord. If they eat of food offered to idols, it is an act of worship to those idols. Paul points out that we gain nothing spiritually from not eating food offered to idols, but we, also, gain nothing spiritually from eating it. Therefore since some other believers might consider eating meat offered to idols to be idol worship and if they see a believer they look up eating such meat they might be led to do the same, we should not eat such food. If we, who know that idols are nothing and can eat meat offered to idols without worshiping the idols, are seen eating meat offered to idols, a believer who still struggles with believing in the power of idols might be led to return to worshiping idols. This argument applies in other areas besides meat offered to idols, which we have little exposure to in the U.S.. We need to be sensitive to the weaknesses of faith that other believers around us suffer from. Whether that is taking care about drinking alcohol around those who struggle with alcoholism, or in exercising some other freedom we have in Christ in front of a believer who struggles with temptation in that area. We must be careful not to lead a fellow believer to stumble and fall.


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Psalm 33:1-11

     The psalmist tells us that those who love the Lord should be joyful and sing praises to God. We should use whatever instruments come to hand to produce music to praise God and not be afraid to write new songs that reflect out experience of Him. He tells us that creating the world was effortless for God, as easy for Him as breathing is for us. God’s plans will come to fruition, no matter who or what stands in their path.


© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.


Proverbs 21:8-10

     The first proverb today tells us that the guilty are devious, but the innocent are straightforward. This is a warning. If you are dealing with someone with whom everything seems to corkscrew through all kinds of hard to follow permutations, be suspicious of their intentions. On the other hand, someone who is straightforward and forthright can be trusted.
     The second one tells us that it is better to live in poverty with little, than to be wealthy and live with a wife who quarrels all the time. I thank God every day that the latter is not my lot in life.
     The third one tells us that if you know someone who is constantly plotting to cause unpleasantness for others, stay away from them because they will soon target you.

© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.

     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.

August 12, 2012 Bible Study

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Nehemiah 3:15-5:13
     Today’s passage begins with a continuation of the detailed list of who worked on rebuilding the various sections of the wall. The importance of this is that it shows that the people pitched in and worked on the project. Rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem was not a project that was done by leadership taxing the people and hiring builders. The people themselves took responsibility for different parts of it. Some people took responsibility for just the little bits “immediately across from his own house.” Other people took responsibility for larger sections. All are given credit here with no sense that some were better than others because they did more. Not only does this account not read as giving some more credit than others, it reads, to me, as those who did more doing so happily and not considering themselves more important than those who only did the section across from their own house.

     When the leaders of the neighboring peoples learned of the progress being made by the concerted effort to rebuild Jerusalem’s walls, they were furious. They insulted the quality of the work being done in what appears to have been an effort to discourage the workers. Nevertheless work continued. The neighboring peoples made plans to attack Jerusalem. However, Jews who lived near to them heard of their plans and warned Nehemiah. Nehemiah responded by posting guards and mobilizing the people. When their enemies discovered their preparations they abandoned their plans to attack. From that point on, Nehemiah kept his guard up and made sure that the people were prepared to stop working and defend the city at a moment’s notice.

     At this point some of the Jews came to Nehemiah to complain that the wealthy and powerful among the Jews were taking advantage of them and causing them to have to sell their children into slavery. Nehemiah was angry when he learned what was going on, so he called a public meeting to address the issue. Nehemiah makes the point that they as a collective group were working to redeem Jews who had had to sell themselves into slavery, yet, here some of the same people were causing some of the Jews to sell themselves back into slavery. Nehemiah says that they must stop doing this. He admits that he, his family and retainers had been profiting from lending to the poor. He says that they must all stop charging interest for their loans to their fellow Jews and that they must restore what they had taken to cover the debt. The leaders agreed to return the property they had taken as interest and not charge interest going forward. Nehemiah does not say, “You are doing this and you must stop.” He says, “We are doing this and we must stop.” A reading of the passage suggests that Nehemiah and those around him were not guilty of the abuses that led to the problem coming to a head. But Nehemiah recognized that there was a fine line between what he was doing and what was causing the problem and that his actions might inevitably lead to the problem. Even though his own actions might have been “OK”, he chose to stop them because they could too easily slip over into the “Not OK”.

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1 Corinthians 7:25-40
     Apparently the Corinthians had also asked whether it was OK for those who were not yet married to get married (or perhaps whether they should get married). I suspect that Paul was not quite sure of what exactly they were asking, so he phrases his answer several different ways to make sure that it was clearly understood. The first thing he says is something that he emphasizes is just advice, not a command. He says that he thinks that if you are not married, it would be better not to get married. However, he emphasizes that it is not a sin to get married. He points out that a single person can focus solely on doing God’s will. Whereas someone who is married needs to think about how to care for their family. He repeats that he is not placing restrictions on them. He tells them that he wants them to do what will help them serve the Lord with the fewest distractions. If sexual desires and temptations are distracting someone from serving the Lord, they should get married. If, on the other hand, they can restrain themselves, they should remain single. Paul expresses his belief that it is better to stay single, but that everyone must make that judgment for themselves. I think that this is something that the Church today fails to focus on. The Church (in the U.S. at least) seems to almost take the approach of teaching that getting married is God’s calling for people. Yet Paul here seems to be saying that we should look at it in the reverse. That staying single is the calling and getting married only for those who do not have that gift.

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Psalm 32:1-11
     The psalmist tells us that we must confess our sins in order to be forgiven. That when we refuse to admit and confess our sins, they will eat away at us. When we stop trying to hide our sins and pretend that we have it all together God will forgive us and bring us healing. When we admit that we are not perfect, we will experience joy. If we pretend to have it all together, it will all fall apart. It is only when we admit our sin and brokenness that we can experience God’s healing and redemption.

© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.


Proverbs 21:5-7
     Today we have three proverbs that I see as linked. The first tells us that careful planning and hard work leads to prosperity, but that attempting to take shortcuts leads to poverty. The second two expand on this theme because they represent two “shortcuts” to wealth. One tells us that if you gather wealth on the basis of lies, at some point that wealth will vanish and you will be trapped by the lies, finding it hard to acquire wealth by legitimate means once you have started down the path of deception. The other tells us that using violence to acquire wealth will sooner or later cause that violence to rebound onto the perpetrator.

© Image Copyright 2012, D.J. Hacker. All rights reserved.
   
  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.

August 11, 2012 Bible Study

     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.

Nehemiah 1-3:14

     Today is the start of the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah’s account begins in the 20th year of Artaxerxes reign. Ezra had led his expedition to Jerusalem in the seventh year of Artaxerxes reign. The story begins when Nehemiah’s brother and some other men who had recently visited Judah came to visit him. Nehemiah inquired about how things were going in Jerusalem. The men told him that things were not going well. The walls of the city had been torn down and the gates destroyed by fire. Nehemiah was heartbroken by this news. Nehemiah mourned at this news, but he did not just mourn. He fasted and prayed to God. When he had formulated a plan, he prayed for God to give him success in getting the approval of the king for his plan.
     Nehemiah was the cup-bearer for King Artaxerxes at this time. At some point after receiving the news about Jerusalem, Nehemiah is in the presence of the king. The king noticed that he looked sad and asked him about it. Nehemiah told the king that he was sad for the state of Jerusalem. The king asked Nehemiah how he could help. Nehemiah prayed silently as he asked the king to send him to rebuild Jerusalem. The king granted Nehemiah’s request. In addition, Nehemiah asked for letters instructing the governors of the areas around Jerusalem to allow him to travel to Jerusalem and to the manager of the king’s forest instructing him to give Nehemiah timber. The king granted this request as well. In addition, the king gave Nehemiah and armed escort.
     Nehemiah delivered the king’s letters to the governors of province. Several of the governors were unhappy with Nehemiah’s appointment. When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he did not apprise anyone of his arrival until he had an opportunity to inspect the city walls, which he did at night. Once Nehemiah had inspected the walls, he introduced himself to the leaders of Jerusalem. He proposed that they begin rebuilding the city walls. The city leaders received this suggestion enthusiastically. Work began on rebuilding the walls at once. The officials of the neighboring regions are unhappy with the walls of Jerusalem being rebuilt. Nehemiah tells them that they have no claim to authority over Jerusalem, legal or otherwise. Nehemiah delegates the rebuilding of various sections of the wall to different leaders of the city or surrounding settlements.
     An important takeaway from this passage is that Nehemiah prayed for God’s support and help at every stage of his plan. In addition, he made clear to everyone that he was relying on God for his plan to succeed. I have felt called by the Lord to fast as I read this passage and several others over the last few days.

1 Corinthians 7:1-24

     Paul now begins addressing questions that the Corinthians had asked him in a letter. The first of these is regarding sexual relations and marriage. Paul starts his answer by saying that it is good to remain celibate, but that since sexual immorality is so prevalent in the surrounding society most people should be married. Paul further instructs that married couples should not abstain from sex with each other, except for limited times when they have agreed to do so as part of a prayer and fasting time. Paul again reiterates that he wishes everyone would remain single but that he knows that not everyone has that gift. Paul emphasizes that what he is saying is advice, not a command.
     Next Paul says something that he emphasizes is a command. He says that those who are married should remain married. A wife should not leave her husband. If she does, she should remain single or be reconciled to him. Interestingly, he makes no such provision for husbands. He tells husbands that they must not leave their wives. Paul then returns to giving his opinion as advice. He says that a believer who is married to an unbeliever should remain with them, but if the unbeliever leaves, the believer is no longer bound by the marriage vows. Paul says that the believer should stay with the unbeliever for the sake of the children (but if the unbeliever insists on leaving, let them go). In addition, he says that perhaps the unbeliever may come to know the Lord through their believing spouse.
     Finally Paul closes out this section by telling us that we should stay in the state we were in when God called us. If we were circumcised, we should not attempt to undo it. If we were uncircumcised, we should not become circumcised. If someone was a slave, they should not let it concern them (although if they get the opportunity to gain their freedom, they should take it).

Psalm 31:19-24

     The psalmist tells us that God has great goodness stored up for those who love Him. He tells us that even when we feel cut off from God, if we cry out to Him, He will answer our call for help. If we put our hopes in God, we should stand strong and courageous because God will come to our defense.

Proverbs 21:4

     This proverb tells us that pride and an arrogant attitude are as much a sin as evil actions. Having evil thoughts and attitudes is just as much a sin as taking evil actions.

August 10, 2012 Bible Study

     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.

Ezra 10:1-44

     The story switches back to the third person again at this point. While Ezra was praying in front of the Temple a crowd of people gathered. They joined him in weeping over the sin of marrying women who do not share the faith. One of the leaders came to Ezra and proposed that the Jews who had returned from Exile make a new covenant with God and divorce their pagan wives and send them, and their children, away. Ezra demanded that the priests, Levites and all the people present swear that they would follow this suggestion. Then a proclamation was sent out that all of the returned Exiles gather in Jerusalem or, if the leaders and elders so decided, forfeit their property and be expelled from the assembly of the exiles. When the people had gathered, they agreed to follow the proposed plan. However, they said that it would take some time and they could not remain out in the open for long because it was the rainy season.
     The plan that was agreed to involved each of the men who had married a pagan wife coming before the leaders in Jerusalem with the leaders and elders from his city. This suggests that there was more to it than just every man who had married a non-Jew divorcing her and sending her away with her children. Is the reason for the meeting with the elders to determine if the non-Jewish wife has embraced Judaism and therefore does not need to be divorced? The passage does not tell us. I find it interesting to contrast this with Paul’s advice to the Corinthians. Paul advises those believers who are married to non-Christians to stay with their spouse unless the spouse chooses to leave them. On the other hand, there is some common ground as well. Paul commands that those who marry after they become believers should only marry someone who is also a believer.

1 Corinthians 6:1-20

     Paul condemns the believers in Corinth for taking their disputes before secular judges. He tells them that it is better to be wronged than to do that. It is a tragedy today that there are cases where congregations go to court to resolve matters of congregational governance, or other matters of dispute. Paul tells us that if believers have a dispute, they should take it before someone from the Church who is judged wise on the issues in question. If the other party will not accept such a judgement, we should let the matter drop, even if it means accepting injustice. Paul suggests that instead of accepting being the victims of being cheated, some of the believers in Corinth were cheating others, including their brothers in Christ. Elsewhere, when Paul confronts the Corinthians about something, he says he is not trying to shame them. In this passage he says that he is trying to shame them. He tells them that they should be ashamed of going to court against fellow believers.
     Paul moves on to addressing sexual sin. Some of the believers in Corinth had been taking the freedom in Christ too far. They justified their sins by saying, “I am allowed to do anything.” Paul counters this by saying that some things are not good for you. He tells them that they must not become slaves to sin. He then counters an argument that has been revived today, comparing sexual desires to hunger for food. People often say that we have a need for sexual behavior just as we have a need for food. Paul flat out rejects this argument and denies that it has any merit. Paul tells us that our bodies are part of Christ. He, also, tells us that our bodies become part of whomever we have sex with. We should not join our bodies, which are part of Christ, with prostitutes (or others who are promiscuous). He concludes this line of argument by saying that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and we should honor God with our bodies.

Psalm 31:9-18

     The psalmist cries out that he is suffering terribly, that he is despised by all. Even his friends are afraid to approach him. But he trusts God even in this terrible state. He believes that God will save him. Can we manage the same faith when we endure suffering? Will we continue to believe that all works together for good for those who love the Lord when we face tragedy and misfortune?

Proverbs 21:3

     It is more important to God that we do what is right and just than that we follow the correct rituals, whether they be sacrifices and offerings or something else.

August 8, 2012 Bible Study

     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.

Ezra 7-8:20

     At this point, we are introduced to Ezra. Ezra traced his ancestry to Aaron, which made him a priest. During the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia, Ezra decided to lead a group of priests and Levites to Jerusalem. Ezra took this action because he was determined to teach the decrees and regulations of the Law of the Lord to the people of Israel. Ezra had some sort of connections in the court of King Artaxerxes, since he was able to obtain financial support from the King as well as an appointment as governor of the land of Israel. When Ezra assembled his expedition, he discovered that no Levites had chosen to join them. He sent to a community of Levites requesting that they send a delegation to take part in his expedition and they granted his request. Since Ezra lived in a land that promoted religious freedom and tolerance, he worked within the laws of the land to do God’s work.

1 Corinthians 4:1-21

     Paul tells us that he does not care much for human judgement of his teaching, not even his own. While he believes that what he is teaching is the will of God, he accepts that he may be mistaken on some points. He tells us this to show us that we should not be boastful and hold ourselves up as better Christians than others because we follow the teachings of a particular leader. Everything we have, including the teachings we follow, are gifts from God, so we should not hold one leader up in order to put another down.
     Paul writes to the Corinthian Church about how sure they are that they have it all together. They believe that their worldly success and comfort are indicators of how well they are following God. Paul compares this belief to the hardship he experiences. He says that this is not to tell them that the life they are living is an indication that they are doing wrong, but to warn them of what may be to come.
     Paul concludes this section by telling them that he is sending Timothy to them to guide them. He warns them that some of them have become cocky and taken an attitude of, “Well, Paul isn’t here, so we don’t care what he thinks.” Paul tells them that, Lord willing, he will be visiting them soon. Then they will discover if these cocky men have the blessing of God in their teaching.

Psalm 30:1-12

     The psalmist tells us that when the Lord favors us, all goes right for us. When things are going well, we have a tendency to forget the Lord and become boastful and take credit for the good God has done for us. If that happens God will turn from us, but if we turn back to Him, He will turn our mourning into joy. We should give thanks to God for all the good things He has done for us and never cease to give Him both credit and praise.

Proverbs 20:28-30

     A ruler who loves the people he rules over and faithfully serves them will rule securely. When one is young, dealing with adversity through physical prowess is a source of pride, but as one gets older one should take pride in finding other ways to deal with adversity. Ultimately, some lessons will only be learned through physical punishment.

August 7, 2012 Bible Study

     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.

Ezra 4:24-6:22

     As a result of the actions of the surrounding peoples, construction on the Temple was halted. However, when Darius became king of Persia two prophets rose up and encouraged the leaders of the Jews in Jerusalem and Judah to resume rebuilding the Temple. Officials from the provincial government established by the Persians soon arrive and demand who authorized the Temple work. The Jews claimed authorization by Cyrus.
     The Persian officials were skeptical, but the Jews provided enough evidence that they sent to the Persian capital for confirmation. When the officials’ letter arrived in the Persian capital, Darius ordered a search of the archives to see if Cyrus had indeed ordered the rebuilding of the Temple. When the record of Cyrus’ order was found, Darius ordered the provincial officials to not only allow the Jews to build in peace, but to provide financial assistance out of the taxes they were collecting for the Persian Empire. As a result, Temple reconstruction continued and it was rebuilt.
     When the Jews completed work on the Temple, they held a celebration to dedicate it once again. The following month they had a Passover celebration in the new Temple. The priests and Levites had purified themselves. They slaughtered the Passover lambs for all of the people who took part in this Passover celebration, which included some of the local people who had given up pagan practices. It is interesting to note that although the Jews had rejected the help of leaders of the surrounding people in rebuilding the Temple when they started, they accepted the local people into the Temple worship if those people chose to follow the Law.

1 Corinthians 3:5-23

     Paul continues his discussion of the foolishness of dividing along lines according to which teacher of the Gospel one followed. Paul tells them that it makes no difference which teacher they learn from as long as that teacher bases his teaching on Jesus. Paul compares our lives of faith to a building, as long as the building is built on a solid foundation, it will survive. If the materials used to build are perishable the building may be destroyed but if the builder built on the foundation of Jesus, they will survive.
     Paul wraps up this section of his writing by telling us that the body of believers as a whole is a temple to God. Anyone who destroys this temple of believers by disrupting its unity will be destroyed by God. Paul tells us not to boast in following a human leader. That we should take anything that will build our faith from any teacher who bases their teachings on Jesus.

Psalm 29:1-11

     God’s voice is loud and powerful. When He wishes He will be heard now matter how loud the other noises that attempt to drown Him out. When God shouts, the earth trembles and mighty trees split asunder. Let us praise Him that He uses this strength for the good of those who love Him.

Proverbs 20:26-27

     The first proverb tells us that a wise ruler drives the wicked from his land. The wicked will destroy the land and bring destruction upon the rulers who shelter them. The second proverb tells us that God looks into our inmost being. It is not dark to the Lord.

August 6, 2012 Bible Study

     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.

Ezra 3-4:23

     The first thing the returned Jews did after getting settled was to rebuild the altar They did this before they began rebuilding the Temple itself. As soon as they had rebuilt the altar they began offering the sacrifices prescribed by the Law. Even though they were afraid of the people who were living around them, they rebuilt the altar on its old site. We are not told why they were afraid of the people living around them.
     Once they had the sacrifices established, they began rebuilding the Temple. When the people living around them heard that they were rebuilding the Temple, they approached the leaders of the returned Exiles and asked to work with them to rebuild the Temple. The passage tells us that these people living around the returned Exiles were the “enemies of Judah and Benjamin.” Once again, we are not told what made these people the enemies of the returned Exiles. However, the leaders of the returned Exiles reject their assistance. From this point on the people living around the Jews began working to interfere with the Jews efforts to rebuild Jerusalem. Certainly these actions make the people performing them the enemies of the Jews. However, the hostile acts we are told about come after the Jews have rejected including them in their rebuilding effort, so cannot be a justification for that rejection.
     The surrounding peoples continued to make efforts to stop the rebuilding of Jerusalem, including writing letters to the kings of Persia. This culminates in a letter to Artaxerxes when he takes the throne of Persia. This letter claims that if the Jews successfully rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, they will stop paying tribute to Persia and that Jerusalem has a history of being rebellious against whatever empire currently controls the region. Artaxerxes wrote a return letter ordering that Jerusalem only be rebuilt if he sent an order specifically to that effect. Based on the power of that letter from Artaxerxes, the Jews opponents in the area mustered their forces and forcibly stopped the Jews from continuing to rebuild Jerusalem.

1 Corinthians 2:6-3:4

     After telling us in yesterday’s passage that Christianity’s teachings are foolishness in the eyes of unbelievers, Paul now tells us that there is Christian wisdom. That wisdom is God’s plan to redeem the world through those who accept Jesus. The rulers of this world have not understood God’s plan, because if they had they would not have crucified Christ. This passage confuses me because I am not sure where Paul is going with this line of thought. He never really tells us what this wisdom is, at least not here. However, he tells us that this wisdom was revealed by the Holy Spirit. Just as only a person’s spirit can know that person’s thoughts, so only God’s Spirit (the Holy Spirit) can know God’s thoughts. Those of us who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior have received the Holy Spirit (God’s Spirit). The Holy Spirit will reveal God’s thoughts to us.
     Paul writes to the Corinthians that when he was with them, he had to talk to them as spiritual infants, feeding them spiritual milk, not solid food. They were not ready for anything stronger than spiritual milk. He is not condemning them for that. However, he says that they are still not ready for anything stronger, because they are acting like little children, quarreling amongst themselves over who is better.

Psalm 28:1-9

     The psalmist tells us that we should not be like the wicked who care nothing for what God has done or for what God has made. If we cry out to God and trust in Him, he will hear us. We should live our lives so that we desire to receive a taste of what we have done to others, rather than fear that such might happen.

Proverbs 20:24-25

     God directs our paths, even when we do the wrong thing. I look back over my life and there are many times where I can see that I made the wrong decision. Yet, in some of those cases, if I had made the right decision I would never have ended up in circumstances where I received great blessings. I do not understand how that works, but I neither regret that I have ended up where God has placed me, nor do I believe that all of my decisions are the one’s that God desired me to make.
     It is foolish to commit to something without first considering whether it is worth the price it will cost you. We often discover that the cost of something we desired with all of our hearts was worth more to us than what we got. We gain nothing if we give up our hearts in order to obtain our heart’s desire.

August 5, 2012 Bible Study

     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.

Ezra 1-2:70

     Today I begin reading the book of Ezra. The passage starts by recounting that at the beginning of his reign, Cyrus sent out a decree encouraging the Jews to return to Jerusalem and other traditional lands to live and rebuild the Temple. He instructed their neighbors to voluntarily assist them with the expense of returning and rebuilding the Temple. We are told that about 50,000 people took advantage of this decree and returned to the land of Judah. In addition, Cyrus sent back the Temple furnishings that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the Temple. The people who returned fell into two groups. The first were those who had a record of their ancestry going back to before the Exile. The second group were those whose family tradition said they were descended from Israel, but they did not have a record of their ancestry.
     We see here that a large group of people decided to return to the land of Judah and rebuild the Temple. We do not know what their individual motives were, but we are told that God stirred their hearts to make this move. In addition, their neighbors contributed to assist in the rebuilding of the Temple. They contributed not only to the cost of rebuilding the Temple, but to the costs of relocating to the land of Judah. Perhaps these neighbors were fellow Jews who did not wish to disrupt the lives they had built for themselves by returning, or perhaps they were just neighbors who wanted to help their fellow-man live out their dream. Even if they were Jews who did not wish to return, we should not condemn them. The costs of the return and rebuilding were such that some needed to contribute so that others could do the work. Just as today, not everyone can go into the mission fields. Some must work mundane jobs to support the expenses of those who go into missions.

1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5

     Paul tells us that the message of the cross looks foolish to those who do not accept it. This is something very basic that Christians must come to accept. We can make no argument that will make us look wise in the eyes of those who do not believe. Paul sums up the world’s reaction to Christianity this way, “So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.”
     But Paul has more to say on the subject of the wisdom of Christianity. Paul tells us that God chose to use those the world considers foolish to shame those it thinks wise. We need to take the attitude of the man born blind that we are told of in John 9. When the wise men told him that they knew Jesus was a sinner, he responded, “Well, I don;t know about that. I don’t have your education and knowledge. What I do know is this. I was blind and now I can see.” We as Christians should not try to convince the world that we are wise. We must fully rely on God to convince them. We can merely tell them what we have experienced. I know what I know. I was blind and now I see. Many people will look at us and think us fools, but the Spirit of God will work in the hearts of some and they will come to know the Lord.

Psalm 27:7-14

     As is often the case, this psalm makes its point in words that it is hard to find a better way to say. How often has God said to me, “Come and talk with me,” and I have replied, “Not now, I’m busy?” I want to never do that again. I want to try to make my answer that of the psalmist, “Lord, I am coming.” God will not abandon us, even if all else have. I strive to constantly follow the model of this psalmist and ask the Lord to teach me how to live. I desire to patiently wait for God to act. When He calls, I will answer.

Proverbs 20:22-23

     The first proverb tells us not to seek revenge, we should wait for God to handle the matter. How often have we seen someone do even more harm to themselves in the effort to make someone else pay for a perceived wrong? Which brings up another reason to leave payback to God. It may be that the person that we perceive as having done us wrong did not do anything that deserves payback. Perhaps, we are wrong in attributing the harm we suffered to that person.
     The second proverb, on the surface, is unrelated to the first. Yet, sometimes the reason we think someone deserves payback is because we are judging them by a standard that we ourselves do not live up to.