Monthly Archives: July 2020

Daily Bible Study

July 13, 2020 Bible Study Choose Your Words With Care

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 14-17.

Today’s passage contains a collection of pithy sayings which sum up wisdom.  Of course, that makes it hard to write a blog entry on it.  However, there are a couple of things which the sayings repeat in different ways.  One of those is the importance and value of choosing your words carefully.  Wisely spoken words can accomplish much to make your life better, but foolish statements will come back to haunt you.  The wise use few words, meaning that even a fool can appear wise if they limit what they say.  In fact, if a fool keeps quiet perhaps it is because they are learning wisdom.  The wise speak sparingly because in their humility they realize that they have nothing useful to say.  Closely related to that, the wise choose both their words and actions with care.  They do not rush in before they understand the situation.  Which leads us to the advice on controlling your temper.  Allowing anger to control your words and/or your actions will cause you to say or do foolish things.

Another set of thoughts contained within today’s passage to which, while related to the previous paragraph, I cannot easily transition follows.  If you look for trouble, or reasons to be unhappy, you will find them, but if you seek good and happiness you will find that instead.  Related to that, those who seek understanding and self-control will be better off and happier than those who seek wealth and power.  Which leads that trading time with those you love, and who love you, for wealth and power obtained by spending time with those you despise and who despise you is a loser’s game.  The advantages of wealth and power gained dishonestly are not worth the loss in self-respect and integrity.

Daily Bible Study

July 11, 2020 Bible Study Immorality Reflects a Failure to Value Self-discipline

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 5-8.

Today’s proverbs start out with a warning against adultery, but the entire passage contains warnings against all forms of immorality and sexual promiscuity.  Part of its warning against adultery is based on fear of a jealous husband, but there is a lot more to it than that.  Truly infidelity, adultery, immorality result from a lack of self-control and discipline.  Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that they result from the failure to value self-control and discipline.

A few days ago I was at an activity where many of those there were into polyamory.  One of the people there was discussing how they wanted a relationship, but had been unable to find someone to have it with.  One of the others said that their problem was that most of the people they associated with were into polyamory.  The person said they were unsure they could handle that sort of relationship.  The others then encouraged them to give it a try and if they could not handle it give it up.  Others spoke of the relative merits of polyamory.  I regret that I could think of no way to encourage her to be patient and wait for the right person.  Today’s proverbs remind me that I failed to share God’s wisdom in that situation and I deeply regret that.

Daily Bible Study

July 10, 2020 Bible Study Finding Wisdom The Easy Way

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 1-4.

There is a meme which says, “Wisdom comes from experience, and experience comes from making mistakes.”  There is a lot of truth to that.  However, the Book of Proverbs tells us that there is another, less painful, way to acquire wisdom.  In fact, the Book of Proverbs was written to help us acquire wisdom without making many of the mistakes we might otherwise require to do so.  The book starts by telling us the essence of wisdom and where it comes from.  True wisdom comes from fear of God.  Its essence is twofold.  First, wisdom is disciplined.  Second, wisdom is avoiding evil, in particular avoiding those who do evil.

Further, the Book of Proverbs tells us that wisdom is freely available to all who seek it.  The writer not only says that wisdom is freely available to those who seek it, it calls out to everyone who passes by.  Truly, we have no excuse for doing foolish things, wisdom was right there warning us against them if only we had listened.  Once again there is a twofold method to find wisdom.  Seek knowledge of God and His commands, and choose to do what is right, just, and fair.  Knowledge of God and His commands will show us what actions are right, just, and fair.  And doing what is right, just, and fair is never foolish.

Daily Bible Study

July 9, 2020 Bible Study Let Everything Which Lives Praise the Lord

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 143-150.

May everyone and everything which lives praise the Lord, because He has given them life and His love will care for them.  As I am writing this the sun is shining on flowering plants.  God has been good to me and praising Him each day brings me joy.  The psalmist warns us against putting our hope in powerful people because when they die all of their plans die with them.  The opposite is also true, do not fear them for the same reason.  Instead put your hope in God.  He has made everything that is and His love is eternal.  His power is absolute.  I could write more, but the psalmist says it so much better.  Read these psalms and praise the Lord.

Daily Bible Study

July 8, 2020 Bible Study His Faithful Love Endures Forever

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 136-142.

Every time I read Psalms 136 I imagine it being done as a congregational responsive reading.  Today, I actually pictured a large outdoor gathering, perhaps in a stadium.  I am imagining the leader being amplified by a microphone and thousands of people responding “His faithful love endures forever” with the final line being both the amplified leader and the crowd shouting that line.  I hope you can form that image in your head and feel how powerful it would be.

God has plans for our lives and He will work them out.  Psalms 139 describes how God knows everything we do and everywhere we go.  He uses that knowledge to shape our lives according to His plan for us.  He began that shaping before we were born, while we were still in our mother’s womb.  If we choose to do God’s will, that knowledge brings us joy and comfort, because we know that even the things that happen that we don’t like serve God’s purpose and make us better able to serve Him and share His love.  On the other hand, if we are tempted to rebel against God, the psalmist reminds us that there is no place we can go to do anything of which God will be unaware.    If we rebel, God will still use our actions to accomplish His purpose.  We can choose to serve God’s purpose and experience the joy of seeing His plans come to fruition.  Or, we can rebel against God and experience the suffering of seeing His plans come to fruition.

Daily Bible Study

July 7, 2020 Bible Study Rescue Us From Liars and Deceitful People

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 120-135.

Today’s first psalm is so appropriate for today.  The psalmist cries out to God to be rescued from liars and deceitful people.  Certainly today many of our social problems are the result of people telling lies to advance their agenda, and when they do not lie they deceptively tell the truth by leaving out the parts which do not support the ideas they want you to believe.  In these times, who can we trust?  We can trust God.  He will watch over us and keep us from stumbling.  He neither slumbers nor sleeps.  God will watch over us as we come and as we go.   So, let us determine to go into His presence and keep our eyes upon Him.  No matter what goes on around us, let us keep our eyes focused on God for Him to signal to us what we should do.

The psalmist reminds us why we must do the above.  Because no matter how good our intentions, nothing we do will succeed unless God takes part in making it happen.  Unless God is on our side all of our efforts will be wasted.  This should also give us hope as we witness people advancing their plans with lies and deceit: God does not support the plans of those who lie and deceive.

Daily Bible Study

July 6, 2020 Bible Study Joy Comes From Doing God’s Will

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 119.

In the Hebrew language this psalm is an acrostic where each letter of the Hebrew alphabet is used, in order, to start a stanza.  Which makes it very appropriate that the psalm is about the importance and value of following God’s instructions.  Following God’s commands will make us people of integrity and give us joy.  If we do not compromise with evil, God will teach us His decrees and guide our paths.  We should not let the scorn and ridicule of the wicked dissuade us from seeking to faithfully follow God’s instructions.  The wicked reject God’s wisdom and will seek to convince us to do likewise.  They will use persuasion, ridicule, and persecution to that end, do not let succeed.  Remember that God’s love is faithful and everlasting.

Daily Bible Study

July 5, 2020 Bible Study His Faithful Love Endures Forever

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 117-118.

God’s love is powerful, unfailing, and faithful.  Therefore, every person, and every group of people, should praise the Lord.  Those who fear the Lord should remember that God’s love is enduring and thus they need not fear anything else.  If God is for us, what can people do to us?  I want to circle back around to the power of God’s love.  We tend to think of power in terms of violence and destruction, but the power of God’s love is the power of building and uplifting.

In that light, I want us to look at what is going on around us and think about it differently.  There is the pandemic going on  There are the riots and looting accompanying protests  Protests which result from the abuse of power by the police.  I could go on.  Yet, the psalmist tells us that this is the day that the Lord has made.  We should rejoice and be glad in it.  Instead of viewing what is going on as a trial and a difficulty, let us view it as an opportunity to display God’s love.  Remember, today is the day that the Lord has made in love and His love is faithful.

Daily Bible Study

July 4, 2020 Bible Study Having Childlike Faith In God

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 108-116.

The psalmist starts the first psalm for today by proclaiming that his heart has confidence in God.  Then in the last of today’s psalms he tells us that God protects those with a childlike faith.  This context gives a great insight into what Jesus meant when He said we needed to be like a child to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  When a child prays for something, they do not put a lot of qualifiers on it.  They believe that God will answer their prayer out of love.  Further, once they have asked for something, they will tell people that God is going to do it.  They are not afraid that perhaps He will not do so.  We should have similar confidence.  Of course, part of that confidence in God comes from striving to live within His will so that we ask for that which serves Him.

Daily Bible Study

July 3, 2020 Bible Study Let The Redeemed By The Lord Say So

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 105-107.

All three of today’s psalms focus on reminding us to give thanks to God for what He has done.  The first two emphasize how, as a group, the people of Israel had time and again rebelled against God, only to turn to Him once more when they faced the consequences of their rebellion.  The two things he speaks of which hit home to me are when he speaks of their sin in worshiping Baal of Peor and then adopting the evil customs of the people in the land they were promised.  The first strikes me because I know from elsewhere that the appeal of worshiping Baal of Peor was the sexual sins which were practiced as part of that worship.  The second because the psalmist calls out that one of the evil practices was killing their own children as sacrifices.  I see both the sexual sins and the killing our children in our society today.  Our society condemns as “intolerant” and “hateful” those who call us to follow God’s plans for our sexuality and those who defend the children in the womb.

The third psalm calls on us to tell our stories of redemption.  Here the psalmist focuses on how we as individuals have sinned and been brought back to God.  Whether we were lost and homeless, or suffering incarceration because of our crimes, or suffering depression (perhaps because of our sins), or facing danger from forces of nature, let us share our stories of how God redeemed us when we cried out to Him for help.

I will share one of those times when God redeemed me.  I was managing a convenience store.  It filled my time, leaving me no social life.  I could not even reliably set aside time to go to worship services.  It did not even allow me time for a job search.  The job had become a dead end and drained me of all of my joy.  I prayed earnestly to God for relief and He brought a job opening to me which gave me fresh interest in life and a regular schedule.