Daily Reading: Isaiah 43

Isaiah 43

 Now this is what the Lord says—
the one who created you, Jacob,
and the one who formed you, Israel—
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name; you are mine.
² When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you,
and the rivers will not overwhelm you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be scorched,
and the flame will not burn you.
³ For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, and your Savior.
I have given Egypt as a ransom for you,
Cush and Seba in your place.
⁴ Because you are precious in my sight
and honored, and I love you,
I will give people in exchange for you
and nations instead of your life.
⁵ Do not fear, for I am with you;
I will bring your descendants from the east,
and gather you from the west.
⁶ I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back!’
Bring my sons from far away,
and my daughters from the ends of the earth—
⁷ everyone who bears my name
and is created for my glory.
I have formed them; indeed, I have made them.”

⁸ Bring out a people who are blind, yet have eyes,
and are deaf, yet have ears.
⁹ All the nations are gathered together,
and the peoples are assembled.
Who among them can declare this,
and tell us the former things?
Let them present their witnesses
to vindicate themselves,
so that people may hear and say, “It is true.”
¹⁰ “You are my witnesses”—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
“and my servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
No god was formed before me,
and there will be none after me.
¹¹ I—I am the Lord.
Besides me, there is no Savior.
¹² I alone declared, saved, and proclaimed—
and not some foreign god among you.
So you are my witnesses”—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
“and I am God.
¹³ Also, from today on I am he alone,
and none can rescue from my power.
I act, and who can reverse it?”

¹⁴ This is what the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says:

Because of you, I will send an army to Babylon
and bring all of them as fugitives,
even the Chaldeans in the ships in which they rejoice.
¹⁵ I am the Lord, your Holy One,
the Creator of Israel, your King.

¹⁶ This is what the Lord says—
who makes a way in the sea,
and a path through raging water,
¹⁷ who brings out the chariot and horse,
the army and the mighty one together
(they lie down, they do not rise again;
they are extinguished, put out like a wick)—
¹⁸ “Do not remember the past events;
pay no attention to things of old.
¹⁹ Look, I am about to do something new;
even now it is coming. Do you not see it?
Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness,
rivers^[f] in the desert.
²⁰ Wild animals—
jackals and ostriches—will honor me,
because I provide water in the wilderness,
and rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people.
²¹ The people I formed for myself
will declare my praise.

²² “But, Jacob, you have not called on me,
because, Israel, you have become weary of me.
²³ You have not brought me your sheep for burnt offerings
or honored me with your sacrifices.
I have not burdened you with offerings
or wearied you with incense.
²⁴ You have not bought me aromatic cane with silver,
or satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices.
But you have burdened me with your sins;
you have wearied me with your iniquities.

²⁵ “I am the one,I sweep away your transgressions
for my own sake
and remember your sins no more.
²⁶ Remind me. Let’s argue the case together.
Recount the facts, so that you may be vindicated.
²⁷ Your first father sinned,
and your mediators have rebelled against me.
²⁸ So I defiled the officers of the sanctuary,
and set Jacob apart for destruction
and Israel for scorn.

Daily Reading: Isaiah 42. "He will not break a bruised reed."

Isaiah 42  

“This is my servant; I strengthen him,
this is my chosen one; I delight in him.
I have put my Spirit on him;
he will bring justice to the nations.
² He will not cry out or shout
or make his voice heard in the streets.
³ He will not break a bruised reed,
and he will not put out a smoldering wick;
he will faithfully bring justice.
⁴ He will not grow weak or be discouraged
until he has established justice on earth.
The coasts and islands will wait for his instruction.”

⁵ This is what God, the Lord, says—
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people on it
and spirit to those who walk on it—
⁶ “I am the Lord. I have called you
for a righteous purpose,
and I will hold you by your hand.
I will watch over you, and I will appoint you
to be a covenant for the people
and a light to the nations,
⁷ in order to open blind eyes,
to bring out prisoners from the dungeon,
and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.
⁸ I am the Lord. That is my name,
and I will not give my glory to another
or my praise to idols.
⁹ The past events have indeed happened.
Now I declare new events;
I announce them to you before they occur.”

A Song of Praise

¹⁰ Sing a new song to the Lord;
sing his praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea with all that fills it,
you coasts and islands with your inhabitants.
¹¹ Let the desert and its cities shout,
the settlements where Kedar dwells cry aloud.
Let the inhabitants of Sela sing for joy;
let them cry out from the mountaintops.
¹² Let them give glory to the Lord
and declare his praise in the coasts and islands.
¹³ The Lord advances like a warrior;
he stirs up his zeal like a soldier.
He shouts, he roars aloud,
he prevails over his enemies.

¹⁴ “I have kept silent from ages past;
I have been quiet and restrained myself.
But now, I will groan like a woman in labor,
gasping breathlessly.
¹⁵ I will lay waste mountains and hills
and dry up all their vegetation.
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up marshes.
¹⁶ I will lead the blind by a way they did not know;
I will guide them on paths they have not known.
I will turn darkness to light in front of them
and rough places into level ground.
This is what I will do for them,
and I will not abandon them.
¹⁷ They will be turned back and utterly ashamed—
those who trust in an idol
and say to a cast image,
‘You are our gods!’

Israel’s Blindness and Deafness

¹⁸ “Listen, you deaf!
Look, you blind, so that you may see.
¹⁹ Who is blind but my servant,
or deaf like my messenger I am sending?
Who is blind like my dedicated one,
or blind like the servant of the Lord?
²⁰ Though seeing many things, you pay no attention.
Though his ears are open, he does not listen.”

²¹ Because of his righteousness, the Lord was pleased
to magnify his instruction and make it glorious.
²² But this is a people plundered and looted,
all of them trapped in holes
or imprisoned in dungeons.
They have become plunder
with no one to rescue them
and loot, with no one saying, “Give it back!”
²³ Who among you will hear this?
Let him listen and obey in the future.
²⁴ Who gave Jacob to the robber,
and Israel to the plunderers?
Was it not the Lord?
Have we not sinned against him?
They were not willing to walk in his ways,
and they would not listen to his instruction.
²⁵ So he poured out his furious anger
and the power of war on Jacob.
It surrounded him with fire, but he did not know it;
it burned him, but he didn’t take it to heart.

 

about Apologetics, and the so-called concept of the Church Of Past Mistakes.

Well.  I believe in YHWH, the almighty monotheistic deity, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.

But they tell me, maybe, to prove it, and don't we always get caught in some labyrinth trying to pull signs and wonders and so forth from news reports and what not.

What if I asked, instead of openly trying to change the mind of the non-believer, what if I asked them to disprove God?

What would follow, I would have a chance to address their proofs, through sound doctrine, as to what points to God.  I mean, really, as a believer, it seems to me all the time that pretty much everything points to the existence of God.

Even discussing the matter, taking the time itself to contemplate the existence of God is a form of due diligence, kind of like, me washing God's car for him, or something: just another opportunity to give more praise to my maker.

But however, there are these scholarly debates, people jumping over themselves.  It bothers, or seems to bother, some non-believers, to see people attending church.

What about practicing love and tolerance?

Aside from laws, what do they have?  Political talking points?  A few words from a parent from their youth?

Indeed, the believer has a root system holding him or her firmly in place.

We hear fools arguing the past evils of the Catholic church, various episodes of intolerance, but we have seen it also from other institutions in the past, as well, just like the statues that get torn down, dismantled, of past heroes, that are branded things these days.

We here embraced a hopeful future, rather than look back disheartened and the past mistakes of others: we're taught to discard that, that God's grace covers a multitude of sins, and hope, salvation, is available to many. 

Indeed, just as we "come forward boldly to throne of grace", we step with a sense of hope, peace and joy towards the future.

om sanctification: "growing in the spirit".

Observe nature; oftentimes nature can yield peculiar insights into the spiritual condition.

Plants reach, higher and higher as they grow, usually.

Paul says the believers at first need spiritual milk, then after maturity, spiritual meat.  So we grow too, spiritual, becoming more and more sanctified, more and more "formed by God".

We grow spiritually.

from the daily reading. 1 thessalonians.

Paul was writing a very cheerful, thankful letter to the Thessalonians.  In yhe first three chapters, its all love and light.

He wanted them to know, as he said iy more than once, that he was thankful for the presence of the Thessalonica believers.

Meanwhile, he had his own monumental task at Athens, where the philosophers were interested i hearing him just for the sake of an academic entertainment.  As Paul says, the stoics and epicureans delight in the hearing of any new thing.

And yet some of those academics would not only hear, but then too believe.

"I am thankful for you all."

These chapters are in the Blue Letter Bible reading plan, amd also John Macarthur's Grace To You one year reading plan.

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Let the believers praise God in the midst of all this.

While the world tears itself apart, let us all--the believers--praise God, who has something more for us after this.

I was thinking hard earlier in the week, doing my regular stuff, but all the while, praying to God and contemplating His will for me.

I took two or three days in mostly silence.

Even in the midst of a slight adversity here at the office, I was mindful on God, and I knew it was only His will that would ultimately prevail.

As one of my cousins said, "God is watching over me", through it all, never wavering in faith, crediting God for every ounce of the good in her life.

Why do the heathen rage? On the fatalism of the non-believer.

Imagine how it could be without faith in God, or love the brethren.  No wonder some of the unbelievers are so angry and "fatalistic".

Thankfully, we have the promise, and we know every good thing comes from God.

I cannot know Jesus through another person's acquaintance with him. No, I must know him myself; I must know him on my own account. It will be an intelligent knowledge--I must know him, not as the visionary dreams of him, but as the Word reveals him.

 

-Charles Haddon #spurgeon

 

Pray for our brethren, of course, but also include those out of belief, that they may come to faith and know the mercy of our Lord.

Are you the Head or the Tail? Regaining control with the help of God.

Are you really, the head or tail? 

Are you in control?

Nowadays.... yes, nowadays, we have, most of us, so many options, and we can feel like we're in control of some things, and yet, these options are just parameters, such as on the smartphone, a set of parameters that alter how others control what's inputted into you, before you're eyes and ears, into your mind.

So many choices, and yet, it seems the most important things are dictates, are sort of preset, be it by law or social/peer pressure.  Pressure to conform to a group, to do what is expected.

So maybe we have control minute-by-minute, but overall?

Have we went to God about this?

Do we dare put this in God's hands?  Do we ask His will?  Do we petition him, do we pray to Him for success in the things we need or want?

Meanwhile, the illusion is sustained online, of free choice, when so much data is collected across platforms, just to tailor advertising to our preferences.  We could go to a particular website, then go to social media, and that first website is advertised in our social media.

We can talk to our leaders, our parents, our pastors, our teachers and others.  And it seems like they always expect something, want something, that there's always some standard to live up to.

Always some kind of pressure to do something or be something.

But not with God, not pressure to conform from God, because God loves us as we are.

We look to the addict, we look to those imprisoned, and so many others; it seems they are being lead around by the whims of something else, some other influence.  But this is vapid; the truth is more simple.

We are in control of ourselves.

We have unrestrained free choice, be it for good or ill.

God or Satan?  Joy or worry?  Peace or usury?

The addict could have moments, wasted-away time in which he or she wishes she could change, and the thought is depressing as the go again to their addiction.  But comes that flat joy, one day, when they're ready, in every part, to end the addiction, to end the bad habit, and free themselves.

When they're ready.

The Alcoholics Anonymous program recommends believing in God as part of its famous steps to sobriety.  There's something in it, trusting in something more, something beyond the day-to-day, that help men and women to do the toughest things.

We can trust in God to oversee, as we do these things, no matter how tough a task, now matter how big a mountain before us.

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Psalm 116 and other from the daily readings, and the weather spoke up to me...

I love the LORD because he has heard

my appeal for mercy.

Because he has turned his ear to me,

I will call out to him as long as I live.

-Psalm 116:1-2 

 

A sure sign from the Lord, a brief sprinkle on the local plant life, as I prayed over a personal situation here at the hill.  The sprinkle came and went, then did it all over again, giving the plants a brief feeding of nourishing rain water.

Meanwhile, on the northern horizon I saw blue sky, even in the midst of overhead rain clouds.  Truly, forces larger than I were at work, and having their way.

I continued to pray, and included some friends, various types, in various states of worry and even joy.  Some addicted, some downhearted, others doing perfectly okay.

Sure, I am, that everything will come together as God wills it, and sure am I also that he will not ignore the petitions of those who believe on Him.

 

I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.

Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this also to you.

In any case, we should live up to whatever truth we have attained.

-from Philippians 3

The book of Philippians stands as a book where Paul defends himself, and speaks up for the case of suffering.  He states that he has a cause and hope, and in life, when we have love and hope, often not much else matters.  Paul defies circumstances and stands content in the Good News.  His faith in God and Jesus sustain a kind of level of joy in him, despite physical illness, or other circumstances.

In my own walk, my faith has done the same for me: it's pulled my spirit away from the present conditions, and made me think of only God.  Then I am stronger, happier, and all-around more of a good believer, who is useful and happy.

October 8 is Pastor Appreciation Day in the states.

I certainly hope the weekend is going well for everyone, despite concerns all over the globe in various circumstances.

In the EE UU this Sunday is Pastor Appreciation Day, in which various things are done by congregations to show their love for their leader.

Often times, the believer is exhorted to behave as a gentle lamb, but its the leaders, often times that are bid to be put in the middle of varying kinds of situations.  The leader is often the focus of hostile efforts, of course, and the leader takes the "point" or the lead sometimes in other dangerous matters.

Let's pray for them, and lift them up!

Of course, in the field, often the faith-worker is the spiritual leader of a group, rather than an ordained minister or preacher or pastor.  These faith-workers then suffice as de facto pastors.

Pray for them, my friends and partners, and lift them up, that they may be equal to whatever challenges they face; just as believers themselves, may their joy be full.

one spurgeon and one tozer meme.

 

faith/fear, and faith/love dichotomies.

Some of the American tele-pastors equate faith with courage, such that fear is the opposite condition.  One particularly famous one mentioned having faith, yet being afraid, which contradict those others, such that when afraid and needing to act, don't pray away the fear, but simply perform the task while still being afraid......

Love is the impetus, perhaps, that which makes people display superhuman strength and courage at times, perfect love, and in the Bible, it is of course love that casts out fear.

faith <----> fear (????)

love <-----> fear  (right)

Nevertheless, doesn't it seem like unbelief is less heinous than simple fear, which is an everyday emotion for some, depending on circumstances.  We could be stricken to a standstill by fear, but let us hear a family member shouting---we run towards it to help.

"Perfect love casteth out fear."  (from the King James Version of the Holy Bible)

from Ecclesiastes, on the common evil for working people....

May the Lord's blessing be upon you.

 

Today I look at Ecclesiastes, a statement that sounds dejected, sad, brow-beaten: "I have seen an evil that is too common..."

He says he's seen the worker work hard, but not enjoy the fruit of his labor.

Why is that?

Consider, the words of the king, who receives tribute/tax from his subjects.  He takes a part, a legally-authorized amount.

The priesthood would take a tenth(1/10) of the total, the "gross".  This was to help sustain the priesthood, maintain the temple, and so forth.

Consider also, in sacrificial love, the worker wants others to benefit from his/her work, so often, and seemingly, at times, "works for nothing" or "works for free".

We don't mind helping others, of course, but where is our own stuff?  What happens when we get nothing for our labors?  That's sacrificial love.

When we love others, we often gift them our time, and sometimes our treasure, and yet time is the ultimate of our treasures, and our toil is not without value.  But for a loved one, the ones we choose to care about, we want to sacrifice for their needs and happiness......

In your heart, and in your prayers, you know who you choose to help, and why.  

God will show you what to do.

editorial update and Psalm 118

So I started listening to podcasts early in the morning, sometimes before sunrise.  This is part of getting my mind in the proper setting to approach the day.  I have various subjects on my podcasting app, but the best, the ones that really do the most, are devotionals.  There's the Morning Mindset, a Christian app that recites some scripture and tries to be practical and positive about it, and there's the various TV people who post audio of their television programs as podcasts.

These have done wonders getting me centered and all "hyped-up", bolstering my enthusiasm for spreading the Gospel throughout the day.  I've even started re-organizing my day for the purpose of supporting the page, and bringing new avenues of content.

All for the glory of our mighty God.

Also, the classic hymn line that many of us sing joyfully at Vacation Bible School in our youth:

"This is the day that the Lord hath made; I will rejoice and be glad in it."

This line is taken from an even older hymn from some 2500-3000 years ago, Psalm 118, as translated thereafter from ancient Hebrew into the English language.

As Pastor Butch Bruton says, "God is good, all the time."  (roughly, en Espanol: "El Dio es bueno, todos los tiempos.")

And having spoken and quoted of "patience" earlier, I note that this podcasting/devotional binge first thing in the morning really goes against patience most of the time, making the Gospel seem more urgent than when I didn't have the morning devotional time.

But it certainly gives the Gospel a bigger, more important presence in my day, and I'm grateful for that.  It came from a productivity thing, talking about successful people reading and doing audiobooks early in the morning, and this came from a Christian evangelist, this mention.  But I steered the advice toward the Gospel, getting me hearing the good messages early, the Good News, such that I get to the proper mindset early in the day, and it tends to stay with me all through the day.

Somewhat later on in the day, I do my Bible readings from various sources, Spurgeon readings, and few other.  I recommend that too, a bit of the Bible everyday, even if its only a piece of a scripture: something to feed the spirit.

Blessings, God's own time, and "the domino effect".

For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.  -Hebrews 10:36(KJV)

No desechéis, pues, vuestra confianza, la cual tiene una gran recompensa.  Porque os es necesaria la perseverancia para que, habiendo hecho la voluntad de Dios, obtengáis lo prometido...  -Hebreos 10 

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Bienaventurados sois cuando os vituperan y os persiguen, y dicen toda clase de mal contra vosotros por mi causa, mintiendo.

-Matthew 5(KJV and Espanol Moderno)

When you pray, wait on God, listen, be patient.  Trust in God's plan, trust in God's timing.  When the time is right, God is there.  God's time is always the right time, and when you are ready, his blessings will be there.  Your end is joy and peace.

In my own walk, it's taken sometimes years, and sometimes hours, and yet other times, instantly, healing, peace, hope, and prosperity.

God might change one little thing, and you maybe you notice, maybe not, but soon enough, the "domino effect", a cascade of consequences that brings about peace and happiness.  One seemingly insignificant little change can often bring about that bigger, larger, more important goal.

We have only to abide, and wait, for God's own time to coincide with whatever we petition for.

Memes: Psalm 118 and Ephesians 4

"....walk worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace."  -Ephesians 4