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.
The day will come when God will judge us. On that day, our material possessions will be of no value to us. On that day, the only thing that will matter will be whether or not we have turned to God and accepted Jesus as our Savior.
This psalm starts with a statement that, for me, is the starting point for faith and for logic. Those who say that there is no God are foolish. My experience is that if you look at the lives of the “great” philosophers who believed that there was no God, you discover that the psalmist is correct. They are/were corrupt and their actions are/were evil. The philosophers who argue that there is no God do so because they wish to justify the evil in their own lives. However, before I become to complacent and proud of myself the psalmist says one more thing for me to note. The psalmist tells us that when God looked at the earth to find those who were truly wise, He discovered that all had turned from Him. All have turned away from God and become corrupt. I will acknowledge that I have done this and I will pray to God for His forgiveness and ask Him to remind me that I too was one with those fools who say there is no God. It is only through God’s wondrous grace that I came to accept the truth that yes, He does exist. I thank Him and praise Him for bringing me to this knowledge.
When the Jewish Council brought Jesus to trial they brought before them various witnesses. Yet these witnesses could not get their stories straight, so the Council could not convict Jesus. Finally, the high priest asked Jesus if He was the Messiah. When Jesus replied that He was indeed the Messiah, the high priest declared that He had spoken blasphemy and they needed no further witnesses. I do not know if anyone else has pointed out the logical flaw here. While I am willing to accept that if someone who was not the Messiah answered the way Jesus did, it would indeed be blasphemy (and not just because He was claiming to be the Messiah, but also because of the phrase He chose to make that claim). However, it seems to me that calling Jesus’ answer blasphemy rests on that assumption that He was NOT the Messiah. If He was indeed the Messiah, than I do not see how His answer was blasphemous.
Mark recounted how Peter denied Christ just as Jesus had predicted. Every time I read the ending of this story, “And he broke down and wept.” I cannot help but think of
Don Francisco’s great song, “He’s Alive”. Every time I hear the line in that song, “When at last it came to choices, I denied I knew His name” I cannot help but think of the times in my life when I have denied my faith in Him. As I read this passage I am reminded that I too have denied Jesus as Peter did. I thank God that I have the example of Peter to know that I too can be forgiven. “He’s alive and I’m forgiven.” What a statement of great joy!
When the people of Israel heard the scouts’ report they were frightened and plotted to choose a new leader to take them back to Egypt. However, Caleb and Joshua, two of the twelve scouts, tore their clothes and begged the people to not turn aside from God’s plan. They told the people that since God was with them they could take the land, that they had no reason to fear the people of that land. Rather than listen to them, the people began to talk about stoning Joshua and Caleb. It was only because of Divine intervention that they did not follow this plan. At that point God declared that He would not allow them to enter the Promised Land, it would be the next generation who would experience His promise. When they heard this, the people decided to enter the land anyway. This passage is a reminder that when God gives us a mission, there is a time period in which it occurs. If we do not follow God’s instructions when He gives them, it may be too late to do so later. NOW is the time to do as the Lord commands.