The True God or a god of Your Own Creation?
Today’s Passage – Isaiah 44 – 47 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – John 11 – 12; Psalms 41 – 45; Proverbs 9)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 55:17
Read the “0809 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read previous posts from this reading passage – “Custom Design“ and “He’s the One and Only”
I noticed two recurring themes in the reading today. God states several times through the prophet Isaiah, that He is the only God, there is none beside Him. In fact, I thought it funny when He said “I know not any” (Isaiah 44:8). Consider again these verses from today’s reading:
“Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. … Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.” (Isaiah 44:6, 8)
“I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. … For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else. … Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the LORD? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” (Isaiah 45:5-6, 18, 21-22)
“Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,” (Isaiah 46:9)
The other thought that is repeated throughout the passage today is that men are determined to keep making idols, little statues of metal and wood, and they pray to them and worship them, but these hunks of junk can’t do anything for them. Again, let’s look at the verses from today’s passage that demonstrate this:
“They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed. Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing?” (Isaiah 44:9-10 – also vs. 12 – 20)
In Isaiah 44:12 – 20, God speaks about the folly of a man who plants a tree, then cuts it down to warm his home and bake his bread, and then takes the residue of it to fashion it into a god, an idol.
“Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, ye that are escaped of the nations: they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save.” (Isaiah 45:20)
“They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god: they fall down, yea, they worship. They bear him upon the shoulder, they carry him, and set him in his place, and he standeth; from his place shall he not remove: yea, one shall cry unto him, yet can he not answer, nor save him out of his trouble.” (Isaiah 46:6-7)
Israel had the real God, the only God, yet they continuously chose to forsake Him and create gods of their own, little hunks of wood and metal. Now to be sure, there was real spiritual power behind all of these idols. Satan and his devils were the powers behind these false gods. However, when a man was bowing down and worshipping an idol, the devil was not physically present receiving the worship. He is not omnipresent as our God is. We sometimes make the mistake of assigning Satan and his demons the same attributes that rightly belong to God. Satan is powerful, certainly more powerful than a man, but he is minuscule compared to an omnipotent God. Most of the time, these idol worshippers of old were just speaking into the air, and the only One that really heard them as they were praising and praying to their idols was the true God whom they had forsaken, and He was not at all pleased that they had rejected Him and replaced Him with a hunk of wood.
Israel kept forsaking the Great God, the all powerful God, and replacing Him with these idols. Crazy! But don’t we do the same thing today? Oh, to be sure there are probably not many of us that have little statues around our homes that we bow before and worship, but we sure have a lot of idols. We replace God with all kinds of things that we worship: our money, toys, hobbies, careers, and even sometimes, our families – these are all good things given by God sometimes but they can eventually become more important to us than the God who gave them. We also sometimes dabble in sinful pleasures like immoral sexual activity, alcohol, drugs, etc. Like the idols of old, we thought we could manipulate and control them for our pleasure but eventually they enslave us and ruin our lives. When are we going to learn?
Let’s keep God – the Lord Jesus Christ – at the very center of our worship; not just on Sundays, but every day and in every aspect of our lives. Worshipping Him means that our lives are centered in Him. He is in control of everything we do. Let’s stop chasing the vanity of the idols of this world and pursue after God.
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Do You Need an “I” Exam?
Today’s Passage – Isaiah 14 – 18 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Luke 21 – 22; Psalms 6 – 10; Proverbs 2)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 19
Read the “0802 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I willascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” – (Isaiah 14:12-14)
Five times in this passage, we see Lucifer (Satan) using the phrase “I will”. Did you ever notice how much we use the word “I”. We, like Satan, are full of ourselves. Satan fell because of his pride, and most of us have the same problem. We would never admit it, but we are really the “god” of our own lives. We worship ourselves, and though we won’t admit it, we are really not much different than Satan when it comes to pride. It is natural to exalt ourselves, and it is very diffficult to be humble; but humility is required for us to surrender to Christ. In order to be saved, we need to humble ourselves, and in order to live the spirit-filled life, we must continually abase ourselves and lift up Christ. Easier said than done.
Lately, we have been bombarded with news of great men who have fallen into sin. It both grieves me, and scares me because I know that it could be me. I am sure, however, that pride is a root factor in all of these moral failures that we are hearing about. I think if we were to be able to examine each individual case carefully in retrospect, we would be able to recognize a pattern of pride. A Biblical example of someone falling due to pride is what happened to King Saul. He was at one time “little in his own eyes”, but God elevated him in the eyes of men. He enjoyed the praise and respect of men, and began to believe all of the nice things that people were saying about him, and all of the attention that he was getting. Somewhere along the line, he probably started to think that he somehow deserved the credit that he was getting. He gradually began to steal a little of the glory that rightly belonged only to God. He then started to operate independently of God, doing his own thing instead of obeying what God commanded. He also became threatened and insecure when anybody else received any praise. Eventually, he fell.
David fell also. He became too important to fight with the rest of his army, so he stayed home. He saw a woman that belonged to another man, but because he was the king, he felt that he was entitled to take her. He then tried to cover up his sin with the murder of her husband, and he was sure that he would get away with it. After all, he was a big and powerful man. Who would dare question King David? He though that he could do whatever he wanted. He wasn’t under any authority, not even God. What a shame.
Unfortunately, we see this all too often in the ministry, as well. As God begins to allow us to see some success in our ministries, we must remember that it is He that worked through us. We have no right to think that we are deserving of praise. To God be all the glory. Watch out for pride. Stay “little” in your own eyes, and don’t allow people to exalt you. Deflect all praise to the Lord for He alone is worthy.
“O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.” – (Psalm 34:3)
“For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” – (Luke 14:11)
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” – (Proverbs 16:18)
Posted in Thoughts from Isaiah by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Promises, Promises
Today’s Passage – Ecclesiastes 5 – 8 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Luke 7 – 8; Psalms 120 – 125; Proverbs 26)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Ephesians 4:32
Read the “0726 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from this passage – “We Talk Too Much“
“When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?” – (Ecclesiastes 5:4-6)
Back when my grandfather was a young man, a man could get a loan simply by promising with a handshake that he would pay it back. People in those days kept their word. They followed through on what they said they would do. Today it is much different. Many people today are not at all trustworthy. They are quick to promise, but often slow to keep their word. God says here in our passage this morning that we should be slow to make promises, but once a promise is made, we should do everything we can to keep it.
I want to encourage all of you that are reading this thought this morning to think (and pray) very carefully before you commit yourself to something. Don’t let pressure or emotion cause you to agree to do something that you may not be able to fulfill. I remember years ago I gave a pledge in January that I would give a certain amount of money per week toward that year’s faith promise missions offering. I was making good money at the time, and I did not think that there would be any problems. However, later that year, my family and I packed up to move to Texas to go to Bible College. I was no longer in a financial position to keep that committment, but I had made a promise, and I knew our church’s missions program was depending on that offering. Cindy and I agreed that we should sacrifice some things in order to fulfill our pledge. I haven’t always kept my promises in life, but I am very glad I kept that one.
Today we live in a world that is lacking basic trust, and the reason we don’t trust one another is that we do not keep our word. We say one thing and do another. We make promises to people and to God that may be well meaning, but ultimately we fail to follow through. Let’s stop making promises that we can’t keep. And when we do give our word, let’s keep it.
Posted in Thoughts from Ecclesiastes by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Clean the Crib But Keep The Oxen!
Today’s Passage – Proverbs 13 – 15 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Mark 9 – 10; Psalms 91 – 95; Proverbs 19)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read the “0719 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previos post from today’s passage in Proverbs – “O Be Careful, Little Mouth, What You Say“
“Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.” – (Proverbs 14:4)
Every Sunday afternoon, immediately following the morning service, we clean the auditorium and bathrooms of our church to make it ready for the evening service. I am often amazed at how dirty our building can get, especially considering that it was only in use for a few hours. There are bulletins lying all over and the hymnbooks are everywhere except where they should be. We find candy wrappers and water bottles in various places. Sometimes, I even find chewed gum stuck to a chair or on the floor. Yuk! The place is a mess. But I thank God for the mess, because the mess indicates that people were using the building. There are times when I get a little tired of cleaning it, but if I didn’t have to clean it, it could only be because nobody was coming to our services. As I am writing this blog post our church is in the middle of Vacation Bible School, a four night program of fun, fellowship, food, and instruction from the Bible for the kids. Every night, there are nearly two hundred kids all over our church property, inside and outside, and they can be very messy. Like us adults, there lives can get pretty messy as well. Our job is to help God clean them up.
I have determined that I will never get the mindset that the building that God has given us is to be some sort of museum for the Saints of God to observe and admire. I want our building to be functional and practical; and I want it to be used by our people as much as possible, and as often as possible. And if it is being used, it is going to get dirty, and at times things are going to need to be repaired. I have been spending a great deal of time this summer painting and upgrading parts of our building. The rooms that were finished last month already have some marks on the walls. Praise God! That means that people: men, women, children; souls are coming to the House of God, and are getting the help that they need. I will keep cleaning the crib, but I think I am going to keep the oxen as well.
Brother Hyles tells a story about a man in his church that was complaining about the oily messes made in the parking lot by all the busses that were used to bring boys and girls to church. Bro. Hyles reminded the man that D.L. Moody brought in a lot of children, too, in his day, and the horses used to pull the wagons were a whole lot messier.
Posted in Thoughts from Proverbs by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
The Good Ole Days
Today’s Reading – Psalms 133 – 139 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 23 – 24; Psalms 56 – 60; Proverbs 12)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 55:17
Read the “0712 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from today’s reading – “Unity“.
“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the LORD’S song in a strange land?” (Psalms 137:1-4)
Psalm 137 is a very sad psalm written after the Israelites had lost their land, and had been taken into captivity by the Babylonians. In this psalm they are remembering the good ole days, when they were safe and secure inside of their borders, and when they had the freedom and privelege to worship and serve God freely. But, that was all gone. As a nation, they had forsaken God’s word, neglected His worship, and had allowed all of the wicked practices of the heathen to enter in. Though God had warned them of the consequences many times through His prophets, the people just would not listen, so God had to judge them. In this psalm, they are looking back, and wishing that they could go back and do things differently.
I see a prophetic parallel to America in this psalm. I believe if we continue down the path that we are travelling as a nation, we too will lose everything, and will one day be looking back in regret, wishing we could go back and re-do things. We have not lost everything yet, but we can see the hand of God’s judgment beginning to fall upon this once great nation. It doesn’t have to happen though. We could repent, and go back to what we were when we were founded. Of course, we had some problems back then as well, and I do not advocate that we do everything exactly as we did then, but I do believe we need to put God back on the throne in this land. Our nation has become a godless, corrupt, and extremely immoral place. We have come to accept and even promote many things which God has declared to be evil. We are forsaking the houses of God’s worship, and instead are consumed with chasing possessions and pleasure. If we keep going, someday soon it will all be gone. But then, we will remember. I guess it won’t be all bad, though, because while we are remembering what we lost, we also will remember God. Just a thought.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Sing
Today’s Reading – Psalms 96 – 102 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 9 – 10; Psalms 21 – 25; Proverbs 5)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 19
Read the “0705 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read previous posts from this passage – “Enduring to All Generations“, and “Before His Presence“
“O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.” (Psalm 96:1-2)
“O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. … Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. Sing unto the LORD with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.” (Psalm 98:1, 4-5)
“Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.” (Psalm 100:2)
“I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing.” (Psalm 101:1)
You couldn’t help but notice all of the references to singing in today’s reading in the Psalms. singing is a beautiful expression of the joy that is in our hearts because of all of the blessings that the Lord has given us as His children. Reflecting on the goodness of God should be enough to put anyone in a singing mood. Notice in Psalm 96:2 (above) that a singing Christian shows his salvation to the world around him. People can know we are christians by our words, action, and love; but here we see they can hear our salvation through our joyful spirit expressed in our singing. Why is it then that so many church services are dead when it comes to the congregational singing?
It is a shame that many congregations today are limiting the amount of congregational singing in their worship services. Some churches are replacing the singing from the people in the pews with professional performances from the platform. What a shame. While I thoroughly enjoy hearing Holy Spirit-filled and gifted musicians and singers perform, there is still nothing like an uninhibited congregation singing their hearts out in worship to the Lord.
One more thought regarding singing. Sometimes we don’t feel like singing, perhaps due to negative or painful circumstances going on in and around our lives. We should sing anyway because singing has a way of cheering us up and reminding us that we serve an awesome God. Christian, God wants to hear you sing, and so do I. It matters not if you can hold a note. All you have to do is make that joyful noise, and the Spirit of God will do the rest.
“Every good gift that we have had from the cradle up has come from God. If a man just stops to think what he has to praise God for, he will find there is enough to keep him singing praises for a week.” D. L. Moody
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 6 comments.
Make His Praise Glorious
Today’s Reading – Psalms 65 – 68 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 10 – 12; Psalms 136 – 140; Proverbs 28)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – James 4:10
Read the “0628 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read an earlier post from this passage – “What Are You Thinking About?”
“Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious.” – (Psalm 66:1-2)
Our God is an awesome, and wonderful, and great, and powerful God. The English language really does not contain enough adjectives to describe how glorious our God is. Yet, we who have been saved through faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ are encouraged to learn about the greatness of God from His Word, and then communicate our appreciation and admiration to Him first, and then to the people around us. In order to do this, we must first study God. One of the reasons why many Christians hava a tough time praising Him is because they don’t know Him; and there are others who are praising Him, but not according to knowledge. We are commanded to study God through the Scriptures. If the God you serve seems vague or small to you, it is because you do not know Him very well. Open the Bible and read about His awesome power, as well as His infinite wisdom, and loving compassion. He is wonderful. Get to know Him.
Once we know some things about God, we are to sing about Him. These Psalms were all originally songs, and many of them are songs of praise. I sometimes get a kick out of watching the song service at our church. I often see people going through the motions, thoughtlessly and half-heartedly mouthing the words of the hymns. Every once in a while I have to shake myself, and remember what I am singing, and to whom I am doing it. Singing is a form of praise and worship. When we sing the songs of God, we are worshipping Him, and praising Him. If there is one part of our church service that I have really been trying to work on, it is the song service.
Notice also Psalm 66:3:
“Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.”
Finally, we are to speak our praise to God, and for God continuously. The Scripture says that the redeemed of the Lord are supposed to “say so” (Psam 107:2). We have an awful lot to be thankful for; and an awful lot to praise Him for. My preacher in Texas used to say, “if you’re not going to Hell, you ain’t got no problems; and you ought to be shouting.” He is right. I once heard Pastor Charlie Clark say, “Open your big, fat mouth, and praise God.” Perhaps if we started praising the Lord as we ought to, more people would be attracted to our God. Just a thought.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
I Have and I Will
Today’s Reading – Psalm 26 – 31 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Peter 1 – 5; Psalms 101 – 105; Proverbs 21)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 51:11
Read the “0621 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from this passage – “Joy Cometh in the Morning.”
“1 Judge me, O LORD; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the LORD; [therefore] I shall not slide. 2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart. 3 For thy lovingkindness [is] before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth. 4 I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers. 5 I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked. 6 I will wash mine hands in innocency: so will I compass thine altar, O LORD: 7 That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works. 8 LORD, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth. 9 Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men: 10 In whose hands [is] mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes. 11 But as for me, I will walk in mine integrity: redeem me, and be merciful unto me. 12 My foot standeth in an even place: in the congregations will I bless the LORD. (Psalm 26:1-12)
This Psalm is another one of the Psalms of David. Possibly, it was written during the times that King Saul was pursuing David, or possibly it was at the time that his son Absalom was in rebellion.
This Psalm has an interesting structure. You will notice often the phrases, “I have” and “I will” repeated over and over again throughout the Psalm.
I have walked in integrity (v. 1); I have walked in truth; I will walk in integrity (v. 11)
I have trusted (v. 1); I shall not slide (v. 2)
I have not sat (v. 4); I will not go (v. 4)
I have hated (v. 5); I will not sit (v. 5)
I will wash (v. 6); I will compass (v. 6)
I have loved (v. 8); I will bless (v. 12)
I David Asks the Lord to Examine, Prove, and Try Him. (v 2)
“Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalms 139:23-24)
The word “examine” means to scrutinize, or to look closely at something.
“The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.” (Psalms 11:4 )
The word, “prove,” means to examine, tempt, or to put to the test:
“And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.” (Psalms 78:18)
“Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.”(Daniel 1:12)
The word “try” is the word that is used to refine metal.
“And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:”(Isaiah 1:25)
“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” (1 Peter 1:7)
Notice that he asks God to do this to both his reins and his heart.
The word translated “reins” is sometimes used for the word “kidney”, the physical organ. It is used here and in many other places to refer to the seat of emotion and affection.
“Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins.” (Psalms 7:9)
The word heart can be used to refer to almost the same thing, but it can also refer to the soul and mind.
So what is David asking here?
He is asking God to take a close look at his mind (his thinking), and his emotions (his attitude, his will). He wants God to test them, and to try them. When a person has heart problems today, the doctor will look him over carefully, and then he will send him for a battery of tests, and then he may “try” him by putting him through a stress test. Here in our text, David was asking for a thorough examination. The Word of God and the Spirit of God examine us as well:
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” (Hebrews 4:12-13)
II David Acknowledges His Love for the House of God (vs. 8, 12)
The House of the Lord in the Old Testament was the temple. Notice v. 12 speaks of congregations (plural). David loved the Lord’s house – the temple; but he also loved to be with God’s people and he testified (blessed the Lord) wherever God’s people were gathered.
“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:23-25)
Notice in v. 12, the reference to the “even place,” meaning level terrain. This means that David was standing on ground and following a path that would keep him from falling into sin. He kept away from places that were spiritually dangerous for him. The House of God, which was the Tabernacle in David’s day, was a safe place for Him. The church house with God’s people gathered together and the Word of God being proclaimed is a safe, “even” place for us today. The Bible also refers to “sliding” (v. 1), and “slippery” places (Psalm 73:18; Jeremiah 23:12), which are places that people sometimes go that will be spiritually dangerous and conducive to falling.
III David Asserts His Disdain for the Works of the Wicked (vs. 4 – 5; 9 – 10)
“1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (Psalm 1:1-2)
“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.” (Psalms 101:3)
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Multiplying Words
Today’s Reading – Job 33 – 35 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – 1 Timothy 4 – 6; Psalms 66 – 70; Proverbs 14)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1 – 4
Read the “0614 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read a previous post from this passage – “That Which I See Not“
“Therefore doth Job open his mouth in vain; he multiplieth words without knowledge.” – (Job 35:16)
“Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.” – (Proverbs 26:4)
“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:” – (James 1:19)
“Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.” – (Proverbs 17:28 )
There is entirely too much talking going on in this entire Book of Job. Job’s so-called friends should be listening to Job rather than rebuking him. He certainly has suffered enough. Even Job is talking too much by arguing with these idiots. They are all “experts” on God; yet there is much that they do not, and cannot understand.
We do the same thing, don’t we? We talk about things, and try to sound like we have complete knowledge on a subject; but half the time we really do not know what we are talking about, especially when it comes to talking about God. The best thing that we can do is quote Scripture if we have to talk at all. The older I get, the more I realize that I really do not know much. I should keep my mouth open proportionately to the amount of knowledge that I have, which means it should not be open much.
Posted in Thoughts from Job by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
The Daysman
Today’s Reading – Job 8 – 11 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – Ephesians 1 – 3; Psalms 31 – 35; Proverbs 7)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 47:1
Read the “0607 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment. Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.” – (Job 9:32-33)
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;” – (1 Timothy 2:5)
The word “daysman” in verse 33 of chapter 9 literally means a mediator. Job is lamenting because there is no one to bridge the gap between the righteous and holy God, and a sinner like himself. He already stated in verse 20 that he could not justify himself. God became man in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, and as the God-man he came to justify sinners like Job, and you and me also. He was the go-between, the mediator, the one who came between God and men, so that men could come into the presence of an holy God.
Consider some of these verses regarding what Christ accomplished for us when He came to earth as a man and died for our sins:
“Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;” – (Matthew 27:50-51)
The veil in the temple separated men from God, but through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus, the veil was removed. Notice that the veil was torn from the top to the bottom signifying that it was God that removed the veil that once kept man from Him.
“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” – (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Jesus was, and is, fully God, yet also fully man. He understands what it is like to be tempted, because he experienced it; yet without sin. He, as our great high priest, went before us and opened a door for us to now boldly enter the presence of God. We can now enter God’s presence through “the Door”; through “the Way”; through Christ.
There has always been a “daysman”, even in Job’s time; but Job may not have understood it at the time. Praise God, however, we definitely have one that we can know today!
Posted in Thoughts from Job by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.