For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    We are warned against partying with those who drink and/or eat to excess. If we spend too much time with such people, we will do the same. The result of partying to excess is to end up much poorer than you started.

    The psalmist calls on us to wait quietly before God. It is easy to read that as “wait quietly FOR God,” but that is not what he is saying. The psalmist is telling us to go “before God” and wait quietly, my interpretation is that this is a form of prayer and meditation. At another point in the psalm, he tells us to pour our hearts out to God and trust Him. So, at all times we are to pour our hearts out to God, tell Him our deepest desires and fears, than to quietly wait in meditation for His answer or action. I really need to work on the meditation portion, on waiting quietly for God to speak to me.

    This passage has a lot of lessons for us, but I struggled to find the context which would allow me to tie them all together. Then it struck me that most of this letter to the Galatians is Paul’s response to some teachers whom the Galatian believers were starting to follow. These teachers were teaching them that some people were better than others because they followed certain rules (from the context I would guess that these rules were derived from Jewish law). Paul points out that while the law served its purpose, that purpose is now passed.
    These teachers whom Paul was responding were determined to win the Galatian believers away from Paul’s teaching, away from the Gospel. When Paul was in Galatia, these teachers were zealous to do good things for the Galatian believers, but once he left, their zealotry was for commanding the Galatian believers. They presented the idea to the Galatian believers that the other believers should follow their instructions because they were better than those others. Paul responded to this by pointing out to the Galatians that we are all one in Christ. The Jew is not better than the Gentile, men are not better than women, slaves are not less than those who are free. Christ died for each and every one of us. All who were baptized in Christ have been clothed with Christ. If we belong to Christ we are heirs to Abraham, and the promises he received.

    The rulers, the elite, those who are in positions of power are all convinced that they have struck a bargain with death. They believe that they will be able to dodge the troubles and hardships which their actions have set in motion. With lies and deception they have fortified their positions, they are convinced that those fortifications can never be swept away. However, God has placed a foundation stone from which He will test all fortifications against the measuring line of justice and all walls against the plum-line of righteousness. Those whose fortification is made from lies will be swept away. They will discover that the bargain they struck with death is null and void. However, those who build on God’s foundation will have a fortress which will never be shaken. Those who establish their position on justice and righteousness will be secure. Look at our current crop of politicians, they are all convinced that the only way to rise to power is lies and deception, and the voters believe they are right. This path leads to destruction.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    It is a mistake to envy sinners. If you continue to fear the Lord, you will be rewarded by God’s good will. It is important to remember that those who fear the Lord often find reward in things that others do not view as a reward.

    When my heart is overwhelmed I will cry to the Lord. As I read this today, my heart is overwhelmed in a different way than the psalmist is referring, but still I call out to the Lord and trust that He will answer. The psalmist was overwhelmed by his own problems. I am fortunate that I do currently have problems which overwhelm me. However, I read the stories about the refugee/migrant crisis in the Middle East and Europe and I feel overwhelmed. What am I to do? The answer is, as always, cry out to the Lord and beg the Holy Spirit for guidance (not that we need to beg for guidance in such situations). God will answer our cries and show is how to deal with this tragedy.

    Paul points out that if we seek to be justified before God on the basis of our good works, we must never have done anything wrong. Unless you are capable of getting it right every time, you cannot measure up on the basis of your own actions. It is only by accepting God’s grace, His forgiveness, that we can be made right with God. We need to acknowledge that we have sinned and are guilty before God. It is only then that His Spirit can transform us into someone deserving of being in God’s presence.

    There is a lot on this passage about God drawing all peoples to Himself. However, the part I want to focus on is where Isaiah addresses those who say that God’s message is just a bunch of rules:

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    When children exhibit wisdom in their words and their action it gives their parents joy (at least, it does so if their parents are not complete fools). The best way to honor your parents is by acting wisely.

    The psalmist reminds us that whenever times get difficult God raises a banner to which those who fear Him may rally. When we face attack for our beliefs, God will raise a banner to rally His supporters. If we gather at that point, we will find others willing to battle at our sides and God will be there as well, fighting for us against our foes. Are we willing to gather at God’s banner? Even though it means declaring ourselves to His enemies? I pray that your are, and that God will give me the strength to do so as well.

    We cannot make ourselves right with God by following the rules. This does not mean that the rules are meaningless. It instead means that we should live by God’s grace, or as Paul states it, “It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me.” We live by trusting Christ, and living as the Scripture and the Holy Spirit indicate to us that He would live. The biggest problem with living according to a set of rules is that we can always find loopholes in the rules. There are no loopholes to be found in living according to what the Holy Spirit tells us is right. Perhaps the most important thing for us to recognize is that we cannot win our salvation by our own effort. No matter how good we are, we have still done some things wrong. Let us not live our lives so that people will see us as good, let us live our lives so that people will see Christ as good.

    The people of Jerusalem took all of the basic precautions. They stockpiled weapons, they inspected and repaired the city walls, they made sure they had stores of water and food. However, they did not do the most important thing. They did not call on God and listen to His instructions. He told them to repent in sorrow for their sins. Instead, they continued to celebrate and party. Let us turn to God in mourning for what we have done wrong.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Parents, discipline your children. Corporal punishment will not kill them, and it may teach them a lesson which will save their life.

    Yes, each morning I will sing God’s praises. I will sing with joy about God’s unfailing love.

    Paul continues the argument he started in yesterday’s passage by pointing out that when his teachings were challenged by others, the Apostles sided with Paul. The point here being that Paul, having learned the Gospel primarily through studying Scripture and the leading of the Holy Spirit, had a better understanding of that Gospel than some people who had learned it by listening to the other Apostles teaching it. The lesson here is that listening to the Holy Spirit is more important than credentials. We in the Church have gotten too caught up with the idea that our pastors should have the correct credentials. Paul points out that even Peter, who was the first to recognize that the Gospel was meant for the Gentiles as well as the Jews, got caught up in the error being promulgated by the “credentialed” teachers.

    Isaiah predicted in this passage that there would come a day when Egypt and Assyria would ally with Israel and worship the Lord. I believe that this prophecy will still come to pass.