Read this proverb, then think about what you say. Is what you say helpful and wise? Or are your words perverse and destructive? The words we speak come from within our hearts. They are what determine if we are clean or unclean. Therefore choose your words carefully.
I will cry out to God for mercy, for I have sinned. But if God will purify me from my sins, then, and only then, I will be clean. There are several parts of this psalm which have been used in hymns and songs of praise. Perhaps the most insightful part of the psalm is verses 12 & 13:
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and make me willing to obey you.
Then I will teach your ways to rebels,
and they will return to you.
If we confess our sins and admit that it is only by the action of God that we obey His commands, then we can teach His ways to those who have rejected Him. That is when sinners will listen to us preach the Gospel and return to God. We do not convince others to follow God by pretending that we think we are better than they. Let us admit to them that we have sinned against God and it is only because of His unfailing love that He cleansed us.
I always struggle with identifying the lesson of the story about the woman who anointed Jesus. My struggle is not because I have a problem with the story, but because I am not quite sure what the message is. I will take a shot at expressing what my thoughts on it are today.
I think the message of this story is that it is never a bad thing to do something nice for someone. Even if the money so spent could have been used in other, “better” ways. As I think about it, I think it fits in with my thoughts about understanding what Jesus means when He tells us that the first shall be last and the last first. We need to allow others to do things for us. If someone chooses to honour us in some way, we should not refuse to accept the honour. On the other side, we should honour those who do the Lord’s work and hold them up as examples. We should do nice things for them to show our appreciation for their sacrifice.
When I first read through this I thought I was going to write about the silver trumpets, but I was unable to get those initial thoughts to come together into a comprehensible whole. However, as I read through the passage again I saw something else I have rarely thought about in the context of this passage. The Israelites began to complain about their hardships and difficulties. They forgot how much better they had it than when they were slaves in Egypt. It is one thing to crave treats and luxuries. It is another to complain because God does not provide us with such things…especially when He has saved us from a situation much worse than merely being bored by the food we have to eat. It is OK to desire small luxuries, but we should learn to be content that our needs are being met.
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.
These two proverbs are a good way to judge myself. Do I say things that are helpful to others? Do others find wisdom in my advice? Or am I speaking about perversion? They remind me to weigh my words so that others may benefit from what I say.
This wonderful psalm is the basis for many songs and hymns. There is a great hymn whose chorus is:
Whiter than snow; yes, whiter than snow;
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
This song brings back memories of great worship services from my childhood. Then there is a Keith Green song which I sometimes sing as I am driving as a prayer to rededicate myself to God. This psalm reminds me that God does not desire my sacrifice. He desires for me to acknowledge how broken I am, He wants me to recognize my need for His healing. And, importantly, He desires that I approach Him with contrition for my failure to live a righteous life. If I do these things, He will cleanse me of my sins, so that I need not experience them anymore.
This passage contains the story of the woman who anointed Jesus with expensive perfume. This passage gives me problems. Not because I disagree with the sentiment it presents, but because I am not quite sure what we are to make of it. I will tell you what I think of it, but I am not sure if this is the correct interpretation. Those present (including at least some of the disciples), scolded the woman for “wasting” the perfume when it could have been sold for a large sum of money and that money used to help the poor. Jesus rebuked them. He told them that they should not condemn the woman for doing a nice thing for Him. He told them that they would always have the poor, but they would not always have Him. So, it seems to me that while we are to do what we can to help those less fortunate than ourselves, we are also to show our appreciation of those around us when we have the chance. There are times when we are to do things to make those who are serving the Lord with us feel appreciated and special. Let us take time to make those around us know how much they mean to us.
The last instructions God gives to Moses before the Israelites set out from Mt Sinai were to make two silver trumpets. These trumpets were to be used to signal the people to break camp and begin to march. Using different signals they were to be used to gather the people to assemble. God instructed Moses that when they got to the promised land they were to use these trumpets to sound the alarm when an enemy attacked. They were also to use these trumpets at their celebrations and festivals. I was going somewhere when I started writing about these trumpets, but I’m not sure where that was now. I got distracted by thinking about trying to use our emergency notification alarms as part of our celebrations and worship of God. Can you imagine trying to use the sound that is played over the radio before an Emergency Alert System announcement, or an Amber Alert, in our worship services?
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 hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
The beginning of the passage describes how the Israelites made two silver trumpets which were blown in different patterns to signal different actions. After this the people set out from Sinai following the marching order that God had given them. As they traveled the people began to grumble about the hardship of the journey such that a fire broke out on the outskirts of the camp, killing some of the people. The people screamed for Moses and when he prayed to the Lord the fire stopped. However, even after this the people began to complain that they were tired of only having manna to eat. They grumbled that they wanted meat to eat. Moses cried out to the Lord in frustration and exhaustion over the complaints from the people. God instructed him to gather 70 leaders of the people. God was going to share some of the Spirit that was on Moses with these 70 men and they would share his burden of leadership, thus lightening the load on Moses. Then God told Moses that since the people had complained about not having meat to eat, He was going to give them meat. They were going to have meat to eat, not just for one day, or five days, or a week, but for an entire month. They were going to eat so much meat that they would come to loathe it before the supply was exhausted. Moses questioned where that much meat would come from in the wilderness and God replied that His hand was long enough to provide.
How often are we like the people of Israel? Do we complain because God has not made our lives easy? Even after He has delivered us from suffering? Do we complain that God’s provision for our needs is not good enough, that God has not given us the luxuries we desire? Is it possible to request more from God while being thankful for what He has already given us? I think that it is. But I think it is something we have to work very hard at, making sure that we are not whining about the things we do not have. I know that there are things I would like to have that I have prayed to God about, but I strive very hard to be thankful for what God has done for me.
Two days before Passover Jesus went to a feast at Simon the Leper’s House. This man’s name is interesting since lepers were social outcasts at the time. It seems likely that he was not someone who was suffering from leprosy. While Jesus was there a woman broke open a jar of expensive perfume and poured it over Jesus’ head. Some of the guests were indignant that she had done this when the perfume could have been sold and the proceeds given to the poor. They rebuked her for her wasteful action. Jesus told them to leave her alone, that she had done a beautiful thing. This passage is one that tells us that the Gospel cannot be reduced to just caring for the poor and the oppressed, as some attempt to do. There is more to following Jesus than providing assistance to the needy. We should seek ways in which we can emulate this woman. I am not even sure I know what it means to emulate this woman.
It was immediately after this incident that Judas went to the chief priests and offered to betray Jesus.
On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciple asked Jesus where He wanted them to make the preparations for Him to eat the Passover meal. He tells them to go into the city and meet a man who will show them a room prepared for them to have the Passover meal. When I was growing up I always read this as them going to meet a stranger who would spontaneously agree to let them use his room (or maybe the man he worked tor would spontaneously let them use his room). However, the last few times I have read this it has seemed more likely that Jesus had prearranged with this man to celebrate the Passover meal in his room. That evening Jesus and the Twelve arrived and ate the meal. While they were eating, Jesus told them that one of them would betray Him. They each proclaimed their loyalty to Him and asked Him to affirm that He did not mean them. He responded by telling them that one of the Twelve, one of those dining with Him that night, would betray Him (the phrasing suggests that this was one of the ultimate forms of betrayal). He told them that what was going to happen had to happen and would happen according to God’s plan. But that it would have been better for the one who was going to betray Him if they had never been born. Jesus tells us that while His betrayal was according to God’s plan, the one who did the actual betrayal was still responsible for his actions. Just because the evil we choose to do fulfills God’s plans does not excuse us from responsibility for doing evil.
This is another great psalm. There is a song by Keith Green based on this psalm that is one of my favorites. He uses the King James Version of verses 10-12:
Create in me a clean heart, O God;
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from thy presence;
and take not thy holy spirit from me.
Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation;
This is a psalm that has much for me to study, although I cannot agree with the psalmist that it is only against God that I have sinned. There are many people whom I have wronged at one point or another, although in doing so I have sinned against God as well. Nevertheless it is to God that I will turn to for cleansing, for only He can cleanse me from my sins. It is only God who can work the change in my innermost being that is necessary for me to overcome sin in my life.
The psalmist reminds us that once we have accepted God’s cleansing we are to teach other sinners God’s ways, so that they, also, may turn to Him for cleansing. I desire to be as the psalmist declares. That every time my mouth opens I bring praise to God. I will take to heart the psalmist’s proclamation that God desires that we have a broken and contrite spirit more than He desires our offerings and sacrifices. Oh Lord, grant me a humble spirit and make me willing to serve You in all ways that you desire. ,br>
Hyacinths begin to emerge
The godly speak words of wisdom that provide others with helpful advice, while the wicked speak perverted words which will lead others to seek to shut them up. I will strive to say things that will be helpful to others.
