For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Foolish behavior appeals to those who are ignorant (lacking in knowledge). Such behavior appears to offer sweet rewards, but it disguises the dangerous consequences of following its path. Those without foresight see only the short term advantage, neglecting to take into account the long-term results of their actions.

    This psalm reminds me of a passage from a book I read (although I no longer remember what book it was), “You can tell more about a person from his enemies than from his friends.” If the various people and groups who have set themselves up in opposition to someone are consistently evil, that someone is almost certainly doing good. If we have enemies like those described by the psalmist, who are treacherous and hate us without cause, who plot against innocent people who mind their own business, we can be sure that God will come to our defense. It may seem to take Him a long time, but He will do so.

    I am struck once again by the fact that Jesus healed many sick people who were brought to Him and cast demons out of the demon-possessed. The change in those He healed was sudden and dramatic. He told us elsewhere in the Gospels that we would perform similar miracles. Yet we rarely see such dramatic healing in the Church today (at least, not in the U.S.). I do not know why we do not see miraculous healing in the Church today, but at least part of the answer is that we do not expect to see such healing.
    Another thing that struck me as I read this was Jesus casting out demons. I am convinced that those we call mentally ill today would have been called demon-possessed in Jesus’ day. Whether the fist century understanding is more accurate than ours today, or vice versa, is really irrelevant. What is relevant was that Jesus was able to address those with these sorts of problems every bit as effectively as He was able to cure the physically sick. The Church today should be casting out “demons” from those suffering from such problems just as it should be curing the sick. In both cases, when we look at what Jesus did we see two important factors. The first is the actual removal of the infliction which the people were suffering from. The second was Jesus instruction to them to go, and sin no more. And perhaps this answers the question as to why we do not see more healing in the Church today. We do not put enough emphasis on the second. The Church spends a lot of time calling people to repentance and accepting God’s forgiveness, but not much time telling them to go and sin no more.

    The passage describes in detail the nature of the offerings which the Israelites were to present to God. When we offer something up to God it is to be the best of what we have, not something we weren’t going to use any way. When we give of our time it is not to be, “Well, I did not have anything else to do then, so I may as well give my time to God.” When we give money to God it is not to be, “Well, I have this money left over after I paid my bills and did the other things I really wanted to do.” Let us give to God from the best of what we have, not from what is left over.

     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. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day, or more. in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

     Folly appeals to those with poor judgment. Those who indulge in foolishness have short-term pleasure, but the consequences of their actions are long-term suffering. The fool is unaware that he(or she) does not know enough to make a good decision and does not take the time to discover this.

     The psalmist does not answer his question directly, but he makes it clear that he knows that God will take action. God will come to his rescue, just as He will come to ours. When God has rescued us from our troubles in the past, have we praised Him before others? Have we praised Him in front of those who do not believe in Him?
     Other questions to ask ourselves, do we come to the defense of those who are attacked without cause? Do we take up the cause of the innocent who are under assault? Are we willing to stand with the righteous who are persecuted? Do we rejoice when God vindicates those who call on Him?
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     When Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law the passage tells us that she immediately got up and fixed them a meal. The point of this is not that she got up and fixed a meal. Rather the point is that she immediately returned to full strength and was able to fix them a meal. The following morning Jesus got up before dawn so that He could have some alone time in order to pray.
     Jesus went from there and preached throughout Galilee. During this trip, He was approached by a man with leprosy. The first thing that strikes me about this passage is that the leper says to Jesus, “If you are willing, you can heal me…” The NIV chooses to translate that Jesus was indignant (other translations go with the manuscripts which say He was filled with compassion). What does it say about the other healers of Jesus’ day that the leper’s concern was with whether or not Jesus was willing to heal him? Are we willing to touch those who our society says are unclean in order to bring them healing?

     Today’s passage discusses different types of sacrifices offered for differing reasons. There is a recurring theme throughout these descriptions, the offering must be “without defect”. When we make offerings to God, they are to come from the best that we have to offer, not from the cast-offs we were going to throw away anyway.