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.

Proverbs 25:25-27

    When we receive good news from far away, it provides relief greater than similar news from nearby. This is largely due to the fact that good news does not travel as far, let alone as fast, as bad news.
    When the godly stop standing up to the wicked and telling them that they are wicked, all of society becomes polluted. At that point there ceases to be a place where people can learn what is true and right. This is just as destructive to the health of a society as when there are no sources of clean water to drink.
    When you obtain honours which you sought out for yourself it leaves you feeling uncomfortable and bloated, similar to the way you feel when you eat too much sweets. If you persist in seeking honours for yourself, it will sicken your soul in the same way in which too much sugar will sicken your body.

Psalm 89:14-37

    The psalmist tells us that righteousness and justice are the foundation of God’s throne. The truth of the matter is that these are the only stable foundation for any government. Just as God promised to punish the descendants of David who failed to keep His commandments, so too will He overthrow governments which fail to deliver righteousness and justice.

1 Timothy 5:1-25

    This passage gives clear instructions for dealing with our fellow believers, in particular those who need to be called to task for their actions. We are to treat them all with respect. If the person is older than us, we should approach them as we would our own parents if they had done something wrong/foolish (remember the command to honour our father and mother). Those who are our age or younger we should approach as if they were our sibling, that is with love and concern for their well-being (not with the anger that so many of us have towards our siblings because of slights from childhood, perceived and real).
    Further, we as members of the Church should care for those widows who are unable to care for themselves. However, we should first take care of those in our own family…and we should push those who have widows in their family to take care of those women. Those women who are still able to care for themselves should be encouraged to seek work to do so. In many ways this passage gives a clear lesson on how the Church should deal with all who have needs. First, it should encourage, to the point of demanding, that their families provide for them to the best of their ability. Second, it should encourage, to the point of demanding, that those in need find ways in which they can provide for themselves to the greatest extent they are able. This may involve finding them jobs, or tasks they can be paid to do. Most importantly, those the Church supports need to be encouraged, to the point of demanding, to fill their time with constructive activity, rather than with sticking their noses into other people’s business.

Jeremiah 35-36:32

    As I read today’s passage a realization struck me that has been growing on me as I have read through the Book of Jeremiah this year. When Jeremiah was prophesying there were two groups in the government of Judah. One group was composed of men who feared God to some degree and listened to Jeremiah’s prophesies. The other group was generally stronger and had the ear of the royal family (usually the king, but there are places where the king appeared prepared to act against them). The second group appears to have considered religion a tool for governing the people but nothing more. So, basically the government of Judah was split between men who honoured God to one degree or another and men who did not actually believe in God at all. The men who were in the primary positions of power appear to have been mostly from the second group with the first group composed mostly of those in secondary and support roles.

     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 in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

Jeremiah 35-36:32

     Jeremiah honored a family clan which had stayed true to traditions laid down by their ancestor. At God’s behest, he held them up as an example to the rest of Israel. They had remained faithful to instructions handed down by their ancestor, yet the majority of the Israelites had failed to remain faithful to the instructions handed down by God.
     God instructed Jeremiah to write down on a scroll all of the prophecies which He had given him. The hope was that if the people of Israel heard all of the terrible things in store for them if they continued in their evil ways, they might repent. Jeremiah summoned Baruch and dictated the prophecies to him and Baruch wrote them down on a scroll. Baruch then took the scroll to the Temple on one of the holy days where he read it to the people. When some low-level functionaries heard what he was reading they asked him to come to them and read the scroll for them. They were horrified by all of the terrible prophecies which they heard and sent word to the king.
     The king instructed them to bring the scroll and read it to him in front of his court. As the scroll was read, the king cut off the portions that had been read and threw them in the fire until the entire scroll had been read and burned. The king and his companions showed no remorse or repentance when they heard the words on the scroll and had no fear of the terrible things predicted. When Jeremiah received word that the king had burned the scroll, he dictated a second copy to Baruch which included even more dire prophecies.

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     Whenever I read, or hear this passage, I think of a picture from a Sunday School class when I was very young which depicted the king sitting on a comfortable chair cutting pieces off of the scroll as it was read to him. This story has always stuck with me as an example that we cannot escape news we do not like by destroying the medium on which it is delivered to us. Today, I was struck by something else as well. As I have been reading the book of Jeremiah, I have felt like his prophecies of doom were speaking to our country now. In this passage I was struck by how even at this late date there is still opportunity to repent and turn back to God. The doom is not inevitable, if we turn to God and change our ways, He will forgive us our sins and bring us blessings.

1 Timothy 5:1-25

     Paul gives a series of miscellaneous advice to Timothy in today’s passage. Paul tells Timothy to treat those older than himself with respect, even when they need to be called to account. Those the same age or younger should be treated as siblings, gently and with love. As believers it is our responsibility to look after our family members who cannot support themselves, we should not expect the Church to care for them. On the other hand, the Church should provide for those in need who have no family to help them. Those who are in need of assistance should pray to God for His help and strive to do all they can to care for themselves.

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     I get a sense from Paul’s writings (here and elsewhere) that Christians should strive to help those in need, but we should never expect others to help us. This does not mean that we are not to accept help when it is offered and we are in need, just that it is not our right to be helped. I should always strive to work so as to have the resources to provide for my own needs and to have some left over the help others, even when that seems to be impossible.

Psalm 89:14-37

     Just as God made David king over Israel because he honored God with his life, so too will God lift us up if we dedicate our lives to honoring God. Let us call out to God, “You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.”

Proverbs 25:25-27

     Compromise between the righteous and the wicked is not a virtue. It is not honorable to seek an honor for oneself.