Kindness
Today’s Passage – 2 Samuel 8 – 11 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 19 – 20; Proverbs 10; Psalm 46 – 50
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 34:6
Read a previous post from this passage – “Bad Advice“
Read the “0410 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.” – (2 Samuel 9:7)
“And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” – (Ephesians 4:32)
“But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.” – (Luke 6:35)
In 2 Samuel 9, we have the story of Mephibosheth who was the grandson of Saul and the son of Jonathon, David’s friend. David had never forgotton the kindness that Jonathon had showed to David even when Jonathon’s father Saul was trying to chase David down and have him put to death. The friendship of David and Jonathon survived some very difficult days. Long after the death of Saul and Jonathon, David wanted to see if their were any descendants left from Jonathon’s house because he wanted to show kindness to them in honor of Jonathon. David finds out about Mephibosheth, a man wha had been injured when he was just a small boy, and as a result was “lame on his feet”. Mephibosheth was living a very humble existence in a place called Lodebar. He was no longer the son of a prince or the grandson of a king. David brings him and his house out of Lodebar, and restores to him all of the land that was once owned by Saul and Jonathon; and he gives Mephibosheth a place of honor at the king’s table for the rest of his life.
David’s kindness to Mephibosheth is a wonderful picture of the kindness that God expressed to us when he pulled us up out of our lost condition, and made us joint-heirs with the Lord Jesus Christ. We were certainly not deserving of any blessing from God, yet He reached down, plucked us up out of the fire, and gave us robes of rightousness. Why? Because He loves us, and love is kind.
We need to learn how to be kind one to another. Even among Christians there is a drought of kindness. I really believe if we were to learn how to better express the kindness of God to this fallen world, we would be a lot more effective at reaching them with the gospel.
Posted in Thoughts from 2 Samuel by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl
Today’s Passage – 2 Samuel 4 – 7 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 17 – 18; Proverbs 9; Psalms 41 – 45
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 34
Read the “0409 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
The Study of Women in the Bible
This Week – The Widow Of Zarephath, Who Gave Her All.
“And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.” (1 King 17:8-15)
The great famine that Elijah prophesied would affect many lives, not just wicked King Ahab. When Elijah became hungry, and the ravens fed him no more, God provided another food source, a widow, who’s name is not mentioned. She didn’t have a storage shelter filled with food and water, she just had a great need. I always wondered what she thought when Elijah first ask her to give him some of the last of her food. She knew this was the last meal she and her son would eat before their death, and yet she gave. God kept his promise and supplied food for Elijah, the widow, and her son, and they lived. I wonder why God did not continue to supply Elijah with food through the ravens or some other way. Instead, He sent Elijah to a poor woman. It seemed that she would not be a likely candidate to provide food for anyone, but God graciously allowed this woman to become part of His plan. God caused the little that she had to accomplishing much.
WARNING!! Things are tough now, but be warned they will get tougher. The prices of everything are going up (except our paychecks). Our country, as a whole, is in a drought. With less rain there will be less food, which will drive up prices even more. There are so many people out of work, but will we give? You say ,“We have no way to pay the bills”, but the work of the Lord must go on. It takes money to keep the doors open at the church. People are dying and going to hell every minute.
“Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.” (Malachi 3:8-9)
Fret not. All is not doom and gloom with God. God promises to take care of His children when we obey Him.
“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” (Malachi 3:10)
“I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.” (Psalms 37:25-26)
God is no respecter of persons. He took care of and greatly blessed the widow and her son; He’ll take care of, and bless us as well.
Prolong your life. If your not tithing, I challenge you to start. To you who are tithing, don’t stop.
GIVE.
Thank You
1 John 5:13
Posted in Just for Ladies by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Encouragement in the Lord
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 28 – 31 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 13 – 14;Proverbs 7; Psalms 31 – 35
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 19
Read the “0407 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read “We Need More Timothys” by Pastor Paul Chappell
In our passage this morning, we see David and his men returning home to Ziklag, and discover that the city was burned to the ground and their wives and children were gone. At this point they have no idea what these Amelekites had done to their families, but I am sure that David and his men suspected that they were either being slaughtered or, at the very least, abused. The men were naturally distraught. At times like these, people want to blame somebody, and since David was their leader, he bore the brunt of their wrath. Remember, these were men that loved David, and risked much by following him. This was certainly a great test of David’s leadership. But how was David supposed to help his men, when he was also distraught due to the loss of his family. It is very hard to encourage and lead people when you yourself are discouraged; and David is perhaps at the lowest point of his life here.
The last sentence in the verse tells us what got David back up to where he could do something to help these people who were relying on him for leadership. “…David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.” It is not easy to turn to the Lord for encouragement when you are down. Honestly, I can speak from experience when I say that sometimes I want to just wallow in the mire of discouragement. Have a little pity party, so to speak. But that will not help anybody. David didn’t stay down; he got back up. He received encouragement from the only source available at the time. Remember, his loyal men wanted to stone him at this time. David went to the Lord. And the Lord gave him the answers that he needed; and in a very short time, they had recovered their families, not to mention their possessions. However, none of that would have happened if David would have just stayed down.
This passage was a great encouragement for me today. Personally, I have battled with a lot of discouragement at times in my life. I guess when discouraging situations enter into my life, like David, I need to get up, go to God, and get back in the battle. Maybe, if I can get some encouragement from the Lord, then I will be able to give some encouragement to the people around me.
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
What Is The Real Hate Crime? – The Saturday Morning Post By Pastor Ted Stahl
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 25 – 27 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 11 – 12; Proverbs 6; Psalm 26 – 30
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Joshua 1:8
Read the “0406 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Good morning. There are many preachers in jail today because of our freedom of speech is becoming a myth, and it is considered breaking the law to tell the truth. If you Google it, the one who comes up most is a street preacher in the United Kingdom. He told a passerby that he thought homosexuality was a sin. The last time I looked, it was (and still is). What would you do in the same situation? What does the Bible say?
Twice in Ezekiel, God says, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” (vs 20 & 4).
Ezekiel 33:1-8 tell us, “Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, when I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman: If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul. But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand. So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.”
If I call a politician a liar who is just trying to keep his job, and not serving those who elected him; is that a hate crime? If I tell them they are going to spend all eternity in Hell; is that a hate crime? Jesus said, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” (Rev 21:8).
When those in power started pushing evolution as a fact to be taught in schools, while God’s truth was removed; when those in power gave their blessing to abort babies; when those in power think more about being politically correct instead of correct, they stopped serving the people. So I ask you, which is the real hate crime? Telling others about sin and how Jesus died for their sins; or not saying anything, and allowing them to go to Hell? The way the world is going, if Jesus delays His return, you may have to decide.
God’s Word is clear: Jesus died for the sins of the world: He shed His precious blood: He paid sin’s wage for us. We need to share this with others no matter what the consequences. The only sin that will not be forgiven is blasphemy of the Holy Ghost. Just like you and me, others need to decide to reject or receive Jesus Christ as their Saviour.
Peace. (1Corinthians 11:24).
Posted in Guest Posts by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
A Good Friend
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 19 – 21 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 7 – 8; Proverbs 4; Psalm 16 – 20
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Micah 6:8
Read a previous post from this passage – “Envy“
Read the “0404 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“The LORD do so and much more to Jonathan: but if it please my father to do thee evil, then I will shew it thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace: and the LORD be with thee, as he hath been with my father. And thou shalt not only while yet I live shew me the kindness of the LORD, that I die not: But also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever: no, not when the LORD hath cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth. So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, Let the LORD even require it at the hand of David’s enemies. And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul. … And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of a place toward the south, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times: and they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded. And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the LORD, saying, The LORD be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever. And he arose and departed: and Jonathan went into the city.” (1 Samuel 20:13-17, 41-42)
“A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24)
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
David and Jonathan were good friends, and their friendship passed a test that proved its genuineness. Jonathan was placed in a very difficult situation. He was torn between being loyal to his father, and being faithful to his friend. Jonathan’s father, Saul, was clearly in the wrong, as Jonathan could easily see. Saul was insecure, and desparately afraid of David, though David did nothing but demonstrate loyalty and allegiance to King Saul. Jonathan had to choose between his friend David, and his father. This was cetainly not an easy choice because by choosing David, Jonathan was basically relinquishing his right to the throne. Had Jonathan allowed his father to kill David, Jonathan would have become the next king of Israel, instead of David. Jonathan chose the will of God, and his friendship, over his own selfish ambition.
David never forgot the kindness and friendship of Jonathan, even after Jonathan’s death. Years later, when David was sitting on the throne of Israel, he sought out Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth. (See 2 Samuel 9) David brought Mephibosheth from Lodebar, and and gave him a place of great prominence in his kingdom:
“And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.” (2 Samuel 9:7)
God has blessed me with a few very good friends: people who I believe would die for me. There is really no greater asset in life than having a friend that will love you, support you, counsel you, serve you, and defend you. Of course, the greatest friend to all of us is the Lord Jesus, but it is also very good to know that God gives us some people here on earth whose hearts will be knit with ours. I only hope that I can be as good a friend to them as they are to me.
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
I’ve Got My Eye On You
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 17 – 18 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 5 – 6; Proverbs 3 ; Psalm 11 – 15
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 51:11
Read a previous post from this passage – “Is There Not A Cause?“
Read the “0403 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.” – (1 Samuel 18:9)”
And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and was departed from Saul.” – (1 Samuel 18:12)
“Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him.” – (1 Samuel 18:15)
“And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul became David’s enemy continually.” – (1 Samuel 18:29)
In chapter 17 of today’s reading, we see young David taking down Goliath, the fierce giant of the Philistines. David was the only one in the camp of Israel that had enough guts to tackle the monster from Gath. All of the other men of Israel, including King Saul, feared Goliath more than they feared God; they had their eyes on their giant problem, instead of focussing on their giant problem-solving Lord. David feared the Lord, and trusted in Him, which gave him the courage to do the impossible.
In chapter 18, no longer is there an enemy to fear. Goliath is dead; the Philistines have been defeated. King Saul’s giant problem had been solved for him by David, and he should have been rejoicing in the goodness of the Lord. However, we see that a new fear has replaced Goliath in Saul’s eyes. A new giant. Now Saul is afraid of David. Again, Saul should have feared the Lord, and had his eyes on Him. Unfortunately, however, Saul’s eyes are on David. He knows that God’s hand is upon the young man, and the days of his own reign as king are coming to an end.
However, David, on the other hand, continues to fear the Lord, and serve King Saul. It seems that the more Saul tries to exterminate David, the more David does the right thing and succeeds. Notice how many times in chapter 18 the Scripture says that David behaved himself wisely. David never once attempted to react to Saul’s attacks on him. David kept trusting in God and doing what God wanted him to do. We will soon see that God will permanently remove Saul from the throne of Israel, and replace him with David.
There are three very practical truths that we can easily see in this passage:
1 Fear the Lord, not men. “If God be for us, who can be against us.” Saul was afraid of people. David feared God.
2 Keep your eyes on the Lord, not men. David continued to do what God wanted him to do and kept his eyes focused on Him, while Saul became consumed with David. Saul couldn’t function in his capacity as King, because he could not get his mind (and his eyes) off of eliminating David.
3 Know that God’s eyes are on you, too. God sees what is going on. If someone is trying to wrong you, your Heavenly Father will take care of it. You do not have to watch your back, because God is watching it for you.
Keep your eyes on the Lord. David did. Saul’s eyes were on David, but fortunately God’s eyes were on David, too.
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
JUST FOR LADIES – BY CAMILLE STAHL
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 15 – 16 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 3 – 4; Proverbs 2; Psalm 6 – 10
Scripture Memorization for March – John 1:1 – 18
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 40:31
Read the “0402 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
A Bible Study of Women In The Bible
The Daughter of Pharaoh
“And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink. And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him. And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it. And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” (Exodus 2:1-6)
Today in the worlds eyes being important, and well known, is everything. But is it really? Pharaoh’s daughter was educated, powerful, and well known in her time. She had all that anyone could ever have. Wealth, servants, beautiful clothing…. Her father was the ruler of Egypt. He just commanded, that all Hebrew boys 2 years old and younger be drowned in the Nile River. When she saw the baby, the Bible says she had compassion on him. She was brave enough to disobey her father and kept the baby. She would later raise Moses in the house of Pharaoh. The education, and training, helped Moses in many areas of his life; and God used him in a mighty way.
Even with the important role she played, and what she did, no one knows her name. The Bible doesn’t say if she came to know the God of the Hebrews, but God placed the right woman in the right place at the right time.
How many people do you know that may be unsaved that performs good deeds? a coworker, a family member, your friends. God can use the unsaved to fulfill His will in our lives. God can use different people to fulfill His goals. However, He never forces them to have faith in Him.
There are many daughters of Pharaoh living among us. They are guided by God and doing His will, but lost. We see them and think all is well. They have it all, as Pharaoh’s daughter, and yet they have nothing.
“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26)
We can never take for granted that a person knows the Lord. There will be many “nice people” in hell. They must come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. But how can they know unless we are out there telling them.
Will you reach out to someone today? Will you give them a track or invite them to church? We can all rejoice when they come to know Jesus too!
“Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9:37-38)
Thank You
1 John 5:13
Posted in Just for Ladies by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Humble Beginnings
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 8 – 11 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 16 – 19, Revelation 20 – 22;Proverbs 31
Scripture Memorization for March – 1 Corinthians 6:9 – 20
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read a great article by Pastor Paul Chappell – “Why the Gate is Sealed, Steps to the Resurrection, Part 7“
Read the “0331 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted, and said, God save the king.” – (1 Samuel 10:24)
The life of Saul has always fascinated me. Saul started out so well. If I were reading the Bible for the very first time, and just read up to chapter 11, I would see no indication at all that Saul would eventually turn bad. So far all that we have read about Saul is good. In chapter 8, we see him serving his father by searching the countryside for some lost asses. In chapter 9, he is met by Samuel the prophet and is told that “all the desire of Israel” was on him. Upon hearing this statement, Saul humbly states that he and is family were from the least of the tribes of Israel, basically stating that he was not even worthy of consideration. When it comes time for Samuel to announce to the people That Saul would be king, Saul is hiding. I don’t see even a hint of pride in this young man so far. Even when he is opposed by some ungodly men, he holds his peace, and then later when he was annointed king, some of his supporters remembered the opposition and tried to have them executed, but Saul refuses. He seems to be making all of the right moves thus far. He is humble, yet he demonstrates strong leadership when his people were threatened by the Ammonites in chapter 11. He rallies all of the people of Israel to come to the battle, and they destroy the invading army from Ammon. Saul starts out great.
I almost want to stop reading here while everything is “still good in the hood”. What happens to Saul? Does he stay on the right path or does go off course somewhere? Well, we will read all about it in the next few days, but let me give you a little hint here. As we have already seen, Saul starts out very humble, but he will eventually become full of pride; and pride will bring about his destruction. Pride is a huge problem for most of us. Consider the following verses:
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” – (Proverbs 16:18)
“Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.” – (Proverbs 13:10)
“These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,” – (Proverbs 6:16-17)
“A man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” – (Proverbs 29:23)
The Bible has a lot to say about pride. As we read these next few chapters, watch out for pride developing in the heart of Saul; but more importantly watch out for the development of pride in your own life.
“Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.” – (1 Peter 5:5)
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The Sun’s Coming Up In The Morning – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 4 – 7 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 13 – 15; Proverbs 30; Psalms 146 – 150
Scripture Memorization for March – 1 Corinthians 6:9 – 20
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 121
Read previous posts from this passage – “A Good Luck Charm”; and “Get It Out“
Read a great article by Pastor Paul Chappell – “When You Can Borrow A Tomb, Steps to the Resurrection, Part 6“
Read the “0330 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Good morning! One of my favorite hymns is ‘The Sun’s Coming Up’ by Dee Gaskin. Every time I read Revelation chapter 21 and 22, I think about this hymn and what Heaven is like.
“And the sun’s coming up in the morning. Every tear will be gone from my eye…”
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:1-5)
One day God will make all things new. We will get to talk with Him face to face. All the pain, the suffering, the wrongs done to us will pass away with all the other former things. No more death. No more sorrow. No more pain. And no more crying: God will wipe away all the tears from our eyes.
“And the sun’s coming up in the morning. Every tear will be gone from my eye; This old clay’s gonna give way to glory, And like an eagle, I’ll take to the sky.”
One day we will all be changed in the twinkling of an eye, as this old clay gives way to glory. Paul explains in 1Corinthians 15…
“Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” (1Corinthians 15:50-58)
But what I love the most about this passage in Revelation is the end of verse 5, where God tells John, “Write: for these words are true and faithful.”
“And the sun’s coming up in the morning. Every tear will be gone from my eye; This old clay’s gonna give way to glory, And like an eagle, I’ll take to the sky.”
Peace. (Revelation 22:20)
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Things Are Looking Up
Today’s Passage – Ruth 1 – 4 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 7 – 9; Proverbs 28; Psalms 136 – 140
Scripture Memorization for March – 1 Corinthians 6:9 – 20
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1
Read a great article by Pastor Paul Chappell – “Through His Eyes, Pictorial Steps to the Resurrection, Part 4“
Read the “0328 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?” – (Ruth 1:20-21)
“And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him.” – (Ruth 4:14 & 15)
Did you ever have a day like the man in the picture is having. Nothing seems to go as you wanted it to. Sometimes life is that way, and often it may be more than just a day that goes poorly; it may be many days, even years. But hang in there. Stay faithful. Don’t lose hope. God may just turn things around.
I have read this story of Ruth and Naomi many times, but every time I have written or preached on the subject my focus would either be on Ruth or Boaz, the kinsman redeemer. However, this morning I got to thinking about Naomi. Naomi was a great lady, who in many ways was a victim of circumstance. Things just didn’t work out for her in life as she had probably hoped and dreamed they would. I can relate to that. Sometimes I reflect on my own life and wish that I could re-do some things; perhaps make some better choices. Hindsight always reveals the wisdom of our choices. Anyway, Naomi left the land of Canaan with her husband and two sons many years prior to the time of our text. They intended only to sojourn in the land of Moab for a short time, until the famine was over in their homeland. I appears that they stayed a lot longer than they intended. While living in Moab, her two sons marry women from Moab, which was also not according to God’s perfect plan because these women were not worshippers of the God of Israel. To make matters worse, her husband, and both of her sons die while she is there. Now she is left in a strange land with two daughters-in-law that were in many ways still strangers to her.
Naomi is faced with a decision. Life is not working out for her in Moab, and she realizes she needs to get back to her people; to the worship of her God. Good decision. But what was she to do with her daughters-in-law? She understands that feel obligated to her, and in a very real way, both of them had become very attached to her. She must have demonstrated much love toward them, because both of them loved her; and one of them (Ruth) was willing to forsake her own happiness in order to go with Naomi. In facy, Ruth was willing to become a worshipper of Naomi’s God. It appears that Naomi represented her God very well.
The point of all of this is that though Naomi didn’t make all of the right decisions through the years, and although things did not work out for her as she would have hoped, God was still very gracious to her, and was willing to use her. She left Canaan full: full of dreams and full of hope. She left Moab empty: empty of a husband, empty of her sons, and empty of material possessions; but she did have Ruth. God had graciously given her a wonderful daughter-in-law in, Ruth, who proved to be more of a blessing to her than her sons ever were. I bet if there were another chapter to the Book of Ruth we would heae Naomi say, “change my name back to Naomi, I was ‘Mara’ for a while, but things are looking up.
Can you notice a pattern here that you and I can relate to? Life sometimes starts with hopes, dreams, and ambitions. They rarely work out the way we want them to. We make many mistakes along the way that further complicate things. But, God just may turn our lives around before it’s all over. We may find that delight (Naomi means delight) after all; and it may just come through an unexpected source. Don’t lose hope. Keep following God. Better days are coming.
Posted in Thoughts from Ruth by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.