For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Who you associate with matters. If you spend all of your time around foolish people, you will do foolish things. When you do foolish things you will end up with trouble and problems. Even if, by a stroke of fortune, you avoid doing foolish things you will experience the trouble created by the foolish actions of those you are spending time with. If you find yourself plagued by trouble, as soon as one problem is resolved another problem crops up, it is time to examine your behavior. That is the type of circumstance fools and sinners find themselves in.
    As an alternate, spend your time with the wise and you will find yourself becoming wiser. Your companions will offer you advice on how to avoid trouble and solve problems. The wise choose the righteous path and then, instead of being pursued by trouble, unexpected blessings keep turning up in their lives.

    Despite feeling like God has turned His back on him and abandoned him the psalmist praises God and calls on others to do likewise. I praise God not just because He has done great things for me, but because He is deserving of praise.

    As I read Jesus’ comments about the widow’s mites I was reminded of an article I read recently. During the last economic downturn extending into the current economic hard times, charities have discovered that donations from big money donors have fallen off, while those from those of lesser means have not only remained steady but increased. This fact serves as a reminder of the lesson Jesus was teaching here. God is not impressed by how much of our surplus we give to His work. He is impressed by how much we are willing to sacrifice in order to help those less fortunate than ourselves. When deciding if we are giving enough to God’s work the question we need to ask ourselves is if our giving means we have to forgo buying something we want?

    Joshua presented the Israelites with a decision which each and everyone of us must make. It is a decision which must be made by every generation. Actually, it is a decision which we must make every day. We must choose who it is we are going to serve. Are we going to serve God? Or someone/something else? We have many people and things we can choose to serve. Joshua presented it here as a life decision, and it is. But it is also a decision we must make anew each day.
    When Joshua told the people of Israel to choose whom they would serve, it was not a dispassionate question. He did not say, “Well, you need to choose a set of gods to follow. I think you should follow God, but its up to you.” No, he described all the things God had done for the Israelites, both those to whom he was speaking and their ancestors. Then he told them to serve God and God alone. Then he uttered the phrase that must have stirred the blood of the people listening, “Choose today whom you will serve…But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord!” When he uttered that line, I imagine that it was met with a loud shout from the people affirming that they too would serve the Lord. We need to confront the people we meet with their need to make a choice and we need to make sure they understand the seriousness of the choice they are about to make. But that doesn’t mean that we should not make it clear to them which choice we think they should make. We should use every bit of our ability to convince them to make the right choice.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Those who refuse to acknowledge their mistakes and ignore all attempts to point them out will end in poverty and disgrace. Those who respond to criticism by changing their ways will be honored. Everybody enjoys seeing their dreams come true, but fools are unwilling to change in order to obtain them.

    The first few verses of today’s psalm are a continuation of the praise of God found in yesterday’s psalm. Then it goes on to speak of God’s promise to King David. However, there is actually a little more to it than just that. This psalm describes how any ruler can gain God’s support (or lose it). Those who obey God’s commands and keep His decrees will find their power and authority expanding. Those who do not do so will find themselves the subject of God’s judgment.

    After being asked yet another trick question by the religious leaders, Jesus asks one of His own. Reading it today, I just realized what Jesus was getting at with His question about the Messiah being the son of David. He was telling us that we can get too caught up in setting up rules and reading into what a passage means. Jesus tells us that those who study the Scripture and claim they have all the answers are hypocrites. He warns us to be wary of those who twist the words of Scripture in order to sound pious and praiseworthy, while using their position and authority to defraud those who already have little.

    The tribes who lived east of the Jordan responded to the concerns of the rest of the Israelites over the altar they had built. They acknowledged that the concern raised by the other tribes was a legitimate concern. They told the other tribes that if they had intended what the other tribes thought they intended the other tribes would be right to make war against them. Then they explained their actions. They explained that they had built the altar as a reminder to the other tribes that those east of the Jordan were their brothers in serving God. They had built the altar in order to maintain the unity of future generations of Israel.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    The proverb writer tells us that those with good sense are respected, then he tells us part of what he means by good sense: thinking before you act (I believe that he would include speaking within the meaning of “act” for this proverb). On the other hand he tells us that the treacherous, or unfaithful, are headed for destruction. The treacherous, the unfaithful, are those who not only act without thinking first, but brag about doing so.

    The King James translation of the first verse of this psalm inspired the hymn, “I Will Sing of the Mercies of the Lord”. The sentiments of this psalm and that song should be ours. I will sing of God’s great faithfulness, of the fact that His love endures forever.

    When Jesus was asked by what authority He took the actions He did, He responded by asking if John authority to baptize came from heaven or from man. Essentially, Jesus was asking them what sort of answer they would accept. This is a good example for us to follow when we are challenged on our faith and what we believe. Before we attempt to answer the question, let us make sure that there is an answer our questioners will accept. If every answer is the wrong answer, don’t bother to try.
    There is a common point between the parable of the evil farmers and the story about Jesus being questioned on taxation. In both cases, Jesus brings up the point of giving God what is God’s due. It is in Jesus’ answer on taxation that we get the clearest answer as to what is God’s due. Jesus asks whose image is on the coin used to pay the Roman tax. The answer is that Caesar’s image is on those coins. At which point Jesus says, “Give to Caesar what belongs Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” It is subtle, but this is a clear reference to Genesis 1:26. Since we are made in God’s image, it is ourselves which we are to give to God.
    I could go on for some time about this message. The government has claim to our money, since it is government laws which make that money in the first place. However, only God has claim to us, because it was God who created us and in the process put His image upon us. It is the nature of governments that they continually attempt to extend their authority over our very beings. If we fail to give our very selves to the service of God, we will gradually end up giving that service to the government, or some other authority which does not have legitimate claim to that service. This lesson is just another take on the lesson Jesus taught when He told us we must choose who we are going to serve, God Or Mammon?

    The story of the eastern tribes building an altar and the response of the rest of Israel gives us a lesson for dealing with those who we believe are behaving sinfully. Here is what happened. The people of Israel learned that the eastern tribes had done something. The only explanation they could think of for that action was something which violated God’s commands to the people of Israel. However, rather than assume that their explanation for the action of the eastern tribes was correct and passing judgment on them, they asked them why they had done what they had done. That is instead of acting on their assumptions they decided to check their facts. It is this model to which Jesus refers in Matthew 18 when He tells us how to deal with our fellow believers who sin.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    One of the things which is emphasized throughout Proverbs is the value of listening to advice and taking instruction. Time and again we are told that the wise look to learn from any source which offers itself, while those who think they know all they need to know are destined for trouble and likely destruction.

    Let us remember to follow the psalmist’s example and cry out to God when all seems lost. Even if our troubles seem to have no end, let us continue to have faith in God’s love and faithfulness. We do not serve God because of what He does for us. Rather we serve Him because it is right to do so.

    In the passage about Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jesus I, and others, have pointed out that He entered Jerusalem as a king returning victorious from battle. In addition, a lot of time has been spent speaking and writing about Jesus’ response to the Pharisees requesting Him to silence the crowds. However, I cannot recall anyone talking about what the crowd was saying that had the Pharisees upset (although I am sure that I have heard, or read, such commentary).
    So, what was it that the crowd was shouting which worried the Pharisees? And why? They were wanted Jesus to tell the crowd to stop shouting about the King coming in the name of the Lord. They did not want the crowd shouting this because they were afraid that the Romans would interpret it as the beginning of an insurrection against their rule and would respond with military force. They were afraid to stir things up and upset the authorities. They did not want to upset the status quo. They were afraid of stirring things up and disrupting their comfortable life. Jesus’ answer was that if the people did not cry out their disruptive message, the very stones along the road would do so. The Pharisees’ comfortable life was about to be disrupted whether the people cried out to praise Jesus or not. Are willing to be the voices that disturb the status quo today? Or do we wish they would keep quiet so that we can go on living our comfortable lives?

    Today’s passage continues to describe the lands given to each of the tribes. For someone with an interest in it, these descriptions could be an interesting study in what would represent stable borders for modern Israel. However, what I want to comment on is the cities of refuge. These were places where someone who accidentally caused the death of another person could flee to avoid be killed in revenge for that death. They would need to stand trial when they arrived at one of these designated cities in order to establish that they had not intentionally killed the other person. If the trial found that such was indeed the case, those seeking vengeance for the death would not be allowed to take it, as long as the person responsible for the death stayed in the city of refuge to which he had fled. If, however, he were to leave that city before the death of the current high priest, the family would be allowed to take revenge. This system applied a punishment on the one who had killed another, even though by accident, without allowing an escalation of vengeance.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    I find it interesting how the proverb writer does such a good job of showing how certain things work together. He tells us that pride leads to conflict and that the wise take advice. Looked at on the surface this does not tell us much. However, if we look at it a little closer we will see there is an important message there.
    Why does pride lead to conflict? The answer is: those who are too proud to listen to those who have a different opinion will end up fighting with those who would give them advice. On the other hand, the wise avoid conflict by taking advice. By taking advice, they demonstrate to those around them that they value their thoughts and opinions. In addition, that advice will help them avoid getting into conflict with still others.

    The psalmist starts by calling out to God for help. He explains that the only reason he can expect God to save him is because he serves God. Then having asked God for generic help the psalmist spells out specifically what he wants God to do for him. The psalmist asks God to teach him His ways. He asks God to grant him purity of heart. It is for these that I need to persistently petition God!

    In this account, the rich man approaches Jesus and seeks how he can earn eternal life. The first hint we have about what is going on here is when he calls Jesus “Good Teacher” and Jesus’ response to that. I have heard some people say that when Jesus pointed out that only God was good, He was using the man’s statement to draw attention to the fact that He Himself was God. That never seemed correct to me, but until today I did not have an understanding of what point Jesus was making. It also helps us understand how what Jesus says here applies to us.
    In response to the actual question, Jesus starts by telling the man that he must follow all of the commands. When the man replies that he has done so since he was a child, Jesus then tells him to sell all the he owns and come and follow Him. This is too much for the man and he leaves. At this point, it might seem that this is an instruction for us to follow (and there is nothing wrong with doing that if you feel God so calling you), but this is where the story circles back to no one but God being good. Jesus tells us that it is harder for a camel to enter the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. His disciples react to this by asking, then who can be saved? Jesus answers that question by telling them that no one can be good enough to be saved. It is only through the grace of God that anyone can be saved. It is impossible for us to be good enough to be saved. God’s power is the only thing which makes it possible for any person to be saved.

    I read this passage with its description of the land which was given to the tribe of Judah and I do not see a message or a thought to meditate on in it. The only place where there seems to be something is in the part where it describes Caleb claiming his land and his daughter marrying his nephew. I think there is something there to learn from, but I do not see it today. Hopefully the Holy Spirit will reveal something to you that I have missed. If so, please share it in the comments.