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 am back to a routine. It is not the same as my old routine, but I think it will work out well. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.

     Ezekiel prophesied that in the future God would speak His message to the dried and scattered bones that were the people of Israel. By the power of His word, He would put flesh and skin on those bones. Then He would breathe life into them again. When He had done this He would gather His children together and give them the land of Israel once more. When this happened all would know that He is Lord.
     Ezekiel then had a different but related prophecy. He prophesied that the divided people would be united once more into one people. Ezekiel prophesied that God would gather the Northern Tribes and the Tribes that composed the Kingdom of Judah into one nation once more. People speak of the “Ten Lost Tribes of Israel”, but there are no lost tribes. When the Kingdom of Judah went into exile, they joined their relatives already in exile from the Kingdom of Israel. The important point of this prophecy is that God was going to bring the people of Israel back as a united people and give them the land of Israel once more. When God does this, He will give them the land until the end of time.
     Ezekiel concludes today’s section with a prophecy against Gog of the land of Magog, who rules over Meshech and Tubal. Ezekiel tells us that this leader will gather his armies and that other peoples will ally with him. He will attack Israel in an attempt to plunder the land. Ezekiel prophesied that despite gathering a mighty army from many nations, they would suffer a defeat that was disastrous for their armies. This certainly sounds like the various Arab wars against the modern state of Israel. It could also indicate an even more encompassing war yet to come. The important point about this prophecy is that it tells us that Israel will survive these assaults, not because the people of Israel are deserving, but because God has chosen to honor His name by defending them.

     James starts this section by giving us sage advice. We are to be quick to listen and slow to speak. I struggle with this, I want to give people my opinion on issues. In addition to being slow to speak, we are to be slow to anger because human anger does not produce the righteousness (or justice) that God desires. We must get rid of the filth and evil in our lives, a task easier said than done. Above all we must accept the word that God has put within us with humility. It is not, however, enough to listen, we must act on what we hear. We must take the actions that God instructs us to. One of those actions is to control our tongues. That goes in part with the being slow to speak from above, but it is more than that. We must strive to control what sorts of things we say so that all of our words may honor God. James tells us what true religion is. It is caring for widows and orphans, the truly powerless. There is one more bit to it. We are to keep the world from corrupting us.
     James further tells us that we should not favor some people over others. In particular, we should not favor the rich over the poor. This is a challenge that every church body will struggle with. You need money to operate. Money to pay the bills. Money to pay for maintenance on the buildings where you meet. So, it is tempting to favor those who have money to give to help cover those bills, but it is wrong. We are to have faith in God that He will provide the funds necessary to pay those bills. If we are serving God’s will, He will provide the resources to continue.
     Today’s passage concludes with the key element of the book of James. Faith that does not result in action is no faith at all. If we truly believe something, we will act accordingly. If we claim to care for the poor, but do nothing for them it is clear that we do not really care. My father told a story that illustrated this. I am sure he got the story from someone else, but I do not know where it came from.

A tightrope walker set up a rope across Niagara Falls. As a crowd gathered he walked across the Falls to the crowds amazement. Next, he walked across the rope blindfolded. Then he crossed the Falls pushing a wheelbarrow. Finally, he turned to the crowd and said, “Now I am going to push the wheelbarrow across the Falls with someone in it. Do you believe that I can do it?”
Many in the crowd replied, “Yes, we believe that you can do it.”
The tightrope walker pointed to one of those who said “Yes” and told him, “OK, then hop in.”

My father concluded this story by saying, “Faith is getting into the wheelbarrow.” Are we willing to get into that wheelbarrow? Do we really believe that God can get us safely to the other side?

     Praise the Lord for His unfailing love endures forever.

     The wicked are easily frightened because they know what they would do if they had the upper hand. The godly on the other hand do not fear, for the same reason.