For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have been away on business the last few days. I hope that my writing has not suffered from this. I am writing today’s before I catch my flight home. Thank you for all of your prayers during this time.

    Just as one iron tool can be used to sharpen another one, so too can our friends help us become better at serving God. We are God’s tools to accomplish His purposes. Let us spend out time with others who are also serving God so that we can make each other better tools for God’s use.

    Yesterday, the psalmist told us that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Today, he tells us that it is a source of joy. It seems counter intuitive to us to think that fear can be a source of joy. Most of the time, fear is the opposite of joy. However, fear of the Lord will inspire us to obey God’s commands and following God’s commands will bring us joy. If we fear the Lord we need fear nothing else. Not only need we fear nothing else, if our fear of the Lord is as great as it ought to be, we will fear nothing else.
    As our fear of the Lord leads us to obey Him, good things will come to us and evil will find no foothold to bring us down. Let us infuriate the wicked by doing what is right, no matter what they may do to discourage us.

    The writer goes on to point out that many people did great things as a result of their faith, but not all of those whom we should admire for their faith did things which the people of this world would desire to emulate. Some people suffered mocking, torture, and some even painful death. They were destitute, mistreated, and persecuted because of their faith. Yet despite this they maintained their faith in Christ.
    Here the writer puts in something which has always touched me deeply, the KJV translates it as “Of whom the world was not worthy.” I can barely begin to communicate what that phrase means to me. Growing up there was a book in our house called the “Martyrs Mirror” which contained accounts of those who suffered death for their faith in Christ. It contained stories of how the authorities committed ever greater atrocities against such people because they would not stop joyously praising God in the face of horrible suffering. The world was not worthy to have such people in it. Yet they counted it as joy to suffer for the name of Christ. My greatest fear is that I would not be able to emulate those people if faced with even a fraction of what they suffered.

    Ezekiel prophesied against Egypt.Egypt’s fall came about for two reasons. The first was that the Pharaoh and the people of Egypt believed that the blessings they gained from the Nile were the result of their own actions. The second was that they had made promises to the nation of Judah to defend it against Babylon, but when the time came to do so, Egypt offered no support at all.
    Let us never forget to give thanks to God for the blessings He has given us. And let us remember the dangers of making promises that we will be unable, or unwilling, to fulfill, even if we think we will never be called upon to do so.

     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 in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

     Ezekiel prophesies that Egypt will fall. He gives two reasons for its fall. The first reason is Egypt offered itself as a supporter of Israel, but when Israel needed Egypt’s help, Egypt failed her. The second reason is that the rulers of Egypt became proud and believed that they were responsible for their own greatness. Both of these warnings strike me as applicable to political leaders today. There are many political leaders today who are showing signs of reneging on promises to stand at Israel’s back should they be attacked and there are many political leaders today who believe that their success and power are because of their own personal greatness. The hubris, and the danger it entails, of the latter applies to those who are not political leaders as well.

     The writer continues speaking about those who went before us and the faith which many of them displayed. Some of them are people we take note of because of the great and wonderful things which they accomplished through their faith. Others are noteworthy because of their refusal to give up their faith in the face of great suffering. The writer tells us that the world was not worthy of such people.
     Since we have such a group of examples on living out the faith who are witnessing our acts today, the writer tells us that we should be encouraged to resist temptation and demonstrate faith just as they did. There is a path laid out for us to follow, it is not easy and will require that we show endurance. However, as long as we keep our focus on Jesus, He will provide us with the strength to continue. If at any point we begin to feel that we have already endured more than should be expected of us for our faith, let us remember that there are many, including Jesus Himself, who gave their very lives. As we become weary of the battle to serve God, let us remember those who have gone before us and redouble our effort, strengthen our grip, and map out a path forward which avoids obstacles.

     Yes, I will praise the Lord. The writer of Hebrews tells us to mark out a path around the obstacles so that those whose legs are tired and those who are lame may make their way to our mutual goal without stumbling. This psalm tells us that we will be able to do this because light shines into the darkness for those who are righteous. If we are generous and compassionate we will see the obstacles that may cause us to stumble in plenty of time to plot a course around them. We will not need to fear bad news because God will care for us. I will serve the Lord and not fear what is coming because I know that He will care for me.

     Just as we use iron to sharpen our iron knives, so our friends can can help us serve God better. Owning a knife sharpener will not keep your knives sharp unless you make use of it. In the same way, having godly friends will not help you be a better Christian if you do not spend time with them.