For today, One Year Bible Online links here.
Not even Bill Gates will be able to buy his way out of judgment day. Only those who have allowed the Holy Spirit to guide them in right living will escape death on that day. It is not my own actions that will save me, rather it is the transformation which the Holy Spirit makes in my life.
Those who say that there is no God are fools. They take such a position because they know that their actions are evil. The fact of the matter is that those who acknowledge God are no better. When God looks down on the earth, He sees that all have turned away and no one does good. It is only by the actions of the one who came from Zion that we can be drawn back to God and saved. I am not better than the fool who says there is no God. However, I will pray to God and ask that His Spirit enter into me and transform me.
Elsewhere Jesus says He will deny before the Father those who deny Him here an earth. Here Peter denies Jesus three times. Yet later Jesus forgives him. The fact that Peter could be forgiven for his denial of Christ tells us that we too can be forgiven for our failure to stand firm in the face of opposition. Of course, Peter responded to that forgiveness by becoming an outspoken proponent of faith in Christ. We should respond similarly to God’s forgiveness.
When the Israelites heard the consensus of the spies they rebelled against Moses’ leadership. When Caleb and Joshua argued against that consensus the people began to talk about stoning them. This passage is a warning that following the expert consensus is not always the wise course. In this case, following the expert consensus led the people to rebel against God. We must be careful not to make the same mistake.