Luke 21:1-9 ~ they asked him, “Teacher, when will these things be"

“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” 1 Corinthians 2:14

Luke 21:1-9

Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, 2 and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. 3 And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. 4 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”

5 And while some were speaking of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, he said, 6 “As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” 7 And they asked him, “Teacher, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” 8 And he said, “See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is at hand!’ Do not go after them. 9 And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified, for these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.”

An election year here in America.

Poverty, abundance

Two cents in

When and what change

Elections are rarely pivotal in the pendulum of life

Kings, and Governors

CHRISTIANS and Christian voters

Not voting from impulse, real meditation

Bear witness - goverment supposed to be for the people

endurance gains life

What will we look for in this election. What would Jesus say to us in this election year.  Would He say raise the minimum wage. When was the last time you lived on minimum wage? Perhaps minimum wage would work if we didn't need housing, gasoline or coffee.

However, Clark, our Priest, says we are not really supposed to be Democrat or Republican. We have a King. Jesus Christ.  We are supposed to care for our parents. Care for our spouse. Honor GOD our Father. Care for our children. Place them further down on the list below our own parents, surely a new thought today. And in general, create a world where we self-govern.  God called for government when the Children of Israel arrived in the promised land. Read the covenant with God, the commandments and honor HIM. Do what is right.

We have a choice this year. A sitting President with Hindu idols in his pocket, literally from the inaugural interviews, and photographs. A man who had his Christian Minister not preaching a ministry of reconciliation. The country of Israel not as recognized as an ally.  Or a Republican running who is a Mormon. Now is the year to decide where your values are. 

As you pull the lever, and please do, people have died for you to have that right. Pray for this Country. I know I will pray for leaders who honor Jesus.  


Exodus 20

And God spoke all these words:

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

1“You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

2“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

3 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

4 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

5 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

6 “You shall not murder.

7 “You shall not commit adultery.

8 “You shall not steal.

9 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

10 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.


Proverbs 6
There are six things that the Lord hates,
seven that are an abomination to him:
17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that make haste to run to evil,
19 a false witness who breathes out lies,
and one who sows discord among brothers.


In the Exodus, God asked the Children of Israel to have a place at the table for the poor (slaves) and for the sojourner (traveler wanting refuge, Jesus Christ bring salvation to the nations, especially religious persecution). This wasn't an easy request for people hard pressed. 

God did not ask for government to be separate from our voting. Notice no other before HIM.

Freedom of Speech.  To call upon HIM.

Not to work ourselves to death. A way for family to do what family has done since Psalm 104 was written - to rely and be sustained on one income. Rest.

Honor the elderly and their needs. Notice with me, God expects us to want to care for our children. 

Murder? What about the rights of the innocent, who will speak for them?

Adultery? This used to be illegal. Now we talk about should this be a man and a woman. Refer to the Word of God. 

Steal? Don't rob the people who died to give us the right to vote.

False testimony? Failure to think through what God told us when we do vote.

Covet?  Thinking about moving out of the country to avoid the sinking ship.  Or wanting more government when we trust government less. Try discussing Splenda and the FDA without a talk on government.

Haughty eyes? Not voting and complaining. Or maybe..... that is just a wicked plan!



America's History of a Christian Nation.



Discord.... this election the people are not excited about.  Elections are about hope.  Maybe we have forgotten what we HOPE FOR.

Galatians 5 ~ faith working through LOVE

Galatians 5



For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified [or counted righteous] by the law; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.

7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion is not from him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers, [brothers and sisters] still preach [proclaim] circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!

13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.


Circumcision actually has a definition of cutting around.  Circumcision is cutting ourselves off from faith working in love.  The Christian suck up when you are just seething. The boot strap Christianity. The gratitude of martyrdom. Watch out fake Christianity doesn't consume you, not the fake-ness of others. Our attitudes within ourselves.  And not being at least able to indicate to others their own hypocrisy. Not the joyful told you's. Not superiority. 

Rivalries, dissensions, envy, drunkenness. 

How will be obtain  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control  -  well surely if we lie really well. To ourselves, our spouses, our friends, our neighbors.  Or we can learn to relish this:

sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,  envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. 

One translation says Party Spirit. The world embraces Party Spirit. And we are all so much better off  - drug usage has created war around us.  One teenager had a breakdown, her doctor told her drugs are merely the symptom of the pain.

faith working through love 

Faith the belief in the unseen, unproven.

Love. Forgiveness. Not Cheap Grace.  

Compromise.  When love fulfills the law. 

Psalm 126

When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream.
2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us;
we are glad.

4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like streams in the Negeb!
5 Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy!
6 He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.

When we read Psalm 126, we learn what fortune we require ~

tells us something about our heart. 

Luke 16:15 

God knows your heart

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2 Kings 5:1-14 ~ And Elisha sent a messenger to him

2 Kings 5:1-14

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper. 2 Now the Syrians on one of their raids had carried off a little girl from the land of Israel, and she worked in the service of Naaman's wife. 3 She said to her mistress, “Would that my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” 4 So Naaman went in and told his lord, “Thus and so spoke the girl from the land of Israel.” 5 And the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”

So he went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. 6 And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you Naaman my servant, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” 7 And when the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Only consider, and see how he is seeking a quarrel with me.”

8 But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come now to me, that he may know that there is a prophet in Israel.” 9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha's house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 1

1 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.

13 But his servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.


So here we have Naaman. Bold. Brash. Victorious. He doesn't travel Economy and he doesn't travel lightly.  He has a wife and, heart tug, the little girl, captured in war, wants Naaman to be well. 

The analogy of Naaman anticipating, picturing, expecting & traveling to receive his miracle and being received by a messenger of the prophet has a Biblical comparison. One of my favorite parts in the Gospel. The Centurion. (One of my favorite posts was researching and chasing down the Centurion.)

Matthew 8:8 
 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.

Naaman is just.... not quite there. What do we see in common with Naaman and the Centurion.  Both are wise enough to seek God in a situation they have spent time with. 

Naaman flies into a rage and his servants, twice in this passage, seek to give him advice - they want Naaman to listen. And he does. We learn something about Naaman and his household. 

What about the Centurion?

Luke 7:3-7
 When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant. ⁴ And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, ⁵ for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”  

⁶ And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. ⁷ Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed"


Matthew 8:10- 13
” ¹⁰ When Jesus heard this, He marveled.

 And said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. ¹¹ I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, ¹² while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  

¹³ And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

What does Naaman  have in his favor?

Naaman thinks he can go to Israel and God will hear him through a prophet in Israel. 
Naaman has pictured the miracle as his own.
Naaman reacts honestly. 
Naaman is willing to rethink his actions. 

Both the Centurion and Naaman have this:

Psalm 107:20
He sent forth his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave.

1 Thessalonians 5:11
Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Matthew 15:28
Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

Romans 1:17
For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed — a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

1 Corinthians 13:13
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

1 John 4:7
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.


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Luke 16:1-16 ~ a hundred measures of oil

Luke 16:1-16

He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. 2 And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’

3 And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He said, ‘A hundred measures [About 875 gallons or 3,200 liters] of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures [about 1,200 bushels or 45,000 liters of wheat]’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’

8 The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world [age] are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, [mammon, Semitic word for possesions or mone, rendered money] so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.

10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. 15 And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

16 “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.

Of Course You've Heard This Before.

And mostly we live this:

Psalm 104:23
 Man goes out to his work
and to his labor until the evening.

How would you, or your boss, respond to 50% ROI or 80%. No bonus at least. Or...
you can no longer be manager. Not commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.

However we all took a thing called His-tory. Sort of a tale of power, politics and economics. And some of have read Mark Twain, (Samuel Langhorne Clemens, his mamma, Jane Lampton Clemens is a cousin of mine) Eudora Welty, William Faulkner (my daddy dated his stepdaughter and was a friend of the stepson, Malcolm).

And you've heard stories of men in a country store who knew who would be the next Sheriff, Mayor, Leader of the State Senate, etc. And sometimes the conversation went a little like this.... 

"Oh. You think so. Huh." 

And the conversant walks away to feel..... Crunch. Yes, the old boy had an axe handle.

"Well, son, don't think our conversation was finished."

In some places, in some towns, in some countries - shrewd and return on investment don't run in parallel circles with standard operations manuals.

However, 
make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth  
has served some very well. Columnist Jack Andersen's study on Pres. Kennedy's assassination is the result of this.

Most of us serve two masters. The important part is the first commandment. Serve no other god.

Exodus 20

And God spoke all these words:
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

1“You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.


 
So. How would God have us balance His Plan and the need for sustenance?   Psalm 104 has the answer there.  Psalm 68:19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.



Psalm 104  

Bless the Lord, O my soul!
    O Lord my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,
²     covering yourself with light as with a garment,
    stretching out the heavens like a tent.
³ He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;
he makes the clouds his chariot;
    he rides on the wings of the wind;
⁴ he makes his messengers winds,
    his ministers a flaming fire.

⁵ He set the earth on its foundations,
    so that it should never be moved.
⁶ You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
    the waters stood above the mountains.
⁷ At your rebuke they fled;
    at the sound of your thunder they took to flight.
⁸ The mountains rose, the valleys sank down
    to the place that you appointed for them.
⁹ You set a boundary that they may not pass,
    so that they might not again cover the earth.

¹⁰ You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
    they flow between the hills;
¹¹ they give drink to every beast of the field;
    the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
¹² Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell;
    they sing among the branches.
¹³ From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
    the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.

¹⁴ You cause the grass to grow for the livestock
    and plants for man to cultivate,
that he may bring forth food from the earth
¹⁵     and wine to gladden the heart of man,
oil to make his face shine
    and bread to strengthen man's heart.

¹⁶ The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly,
    the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
¹⁷ In them the birds build their nests;
    the stork has her home in the fir trees.
¹⁸ The high mountains are for the wild goats;
    the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.

¹⁹ He made the moon to mark the seasons;
    the sun knows its time for setting.
²⁰ You make darkness, and it is night,
    when all the beasts of the forest creep about.
²¹ The young lions roar for their prey,
    seeking their food from God.
²² When the sun rises, they steal away
    and lie down in their dens.

 
²³ Man goes out to his work
    and to his labor until the evening.

²⁴ O Lord, how manifold are your works!
    In wisdom have you made them all;
    the earth is full of your creatures.
²⁵ Here is the sea, great and wide,
    which teems with creatures innumerable,
    living things both small and great.
²⁶ There go the ships,
    and Leviathan, which you formed to play in it.

²⁷ These all look to you,
    to give them their food in due season.
²⁸ When you give it to them, they gather it up;
    when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
²⁹ When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
    when you take away their breath, they die
    and return to their dust.
³⁰ When you send forth your Spirit, they are created,
    and you renew the face of the ground.

³¹ May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
    may the Lord rejoice in his works,
³² who looks on the earth and it trembles,
    who touches the mountains and they smoke!
³³ I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
 

³⁴ May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the Lord.

 
³⁵ Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
    and let the wicked be no more!
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Praise the Lord!

God knows your heart  (verse 15)

Psalm 19:14
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.


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Psalm 116 ~ I said in my alarm, “All mankind are liars.”

Psalm 116

I love the Lord, because he has heard
my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed me;
the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
I suffered distress and anguish.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
“O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”

5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
our God is merciful.
6 The Lord preserves the simple;
when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Return, O my soul, to your rest;
for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

8 For you have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling;
9 I will walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.

10 I believed, even when I ^[believed] spoke :
“I am greatly afflicted”;
11 I said in my alarm,
“All mankind are liars.”

12 What shall I render to the Lord
for all his benefits to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord,
14 I will pay my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.

15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his saints.
16 O Lord, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will pay my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people,
19 in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!

Can't you just hear our Father God think this, all of mankind are liars? Sometimes we go past polite and march right into selfish. Precious are the children He calls to be His. We are to be merciful and know He loosens our bonds to be kind. Fulfill the promises we give Him and be part of His Community.  You are always in our midst, Father God, and we praise You.

Father God, send me. And sent more of Your Love. We praise You for the Love You give us just in hearing us.

In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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2 Corinthians 13 ~ all the saints greet you

2 Corinthians 13

This is the third time I am coming to you. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 2 I warned those who sinned before and all the others, and I warn them now while absent, as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come again I will not spare them— 3 since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. 4 For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.

5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 6 I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test. 7 But we pray to God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. 8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9 For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for. 10 For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.

11 Finally, brothers,^{[brothers and sisters]} rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another,^{[listen to my appeal]} agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. 13 All the saints greet you.

14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.


The Christian community comes under fire for being judgmental and not like Jesus Christ. We appear, to some, not to pass the test. Enmity has existed, for the Church as part of God's plan, yes, existed for centuries. Ignoring the people who are fed hope and peace as they worship Father God.

Our saints today may not wear robes, yet Abraham was righteous for believing.

However, the Church exists today for one reason. For 2,000 years God is pleased to help sustain the Church. In Jesus Christ we seek His forgiveness and try again, individually, and in community. We aim for restoration, comfort, agree-ability, peacefulness and to show we love a God of LOVE.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. And us as well. In the power of the Lord for building up. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.




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Ecclesiastes 7 ~ Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

Ecclesiastes 7


A good name is better than precious ointment,
and the day of death than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting,
for this is the end of all mankind,
and the living will lay it to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

5 It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise
than to hear the song of fools.
6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,
so is the laughter of the fools;
this also is vanity.
7 Surely oppression drives the wise into madness,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.

8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,
and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

9 Be not quick in your spirit to become angry,
for anger lodges in the heart of fools.
10 Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?”
For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.

11 Wisdom is good with an inheritance,
an advantage to those who see the sun.

 12 For the protection of wisdom is like the protection of money,
and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.

13 Consider the work of God:
who can make straight what he has made crooked?

14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.

15 In my vain^{[vapor or mere breath]} life I have seen everything. There is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his evildoing. 16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time? 18 It is good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God shall come out from both of them.

19 Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.

20 Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.

21 Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. 22 Your heart knows that many times you yourself have cursed others.

23 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. 24 That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out?

25 I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness. 26 And I find something more bitter than death: the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is taken by her. 27 Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things— 28 which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. One man among a thousand I found, but a woman among all these I have not found. 29 See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes.

Recently I heard two famous evangelists talking about sin. One said complaining is breaking a commandment. The other listed being judgmental, angry, and generally negative as a sin.

Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you.

Well, twice warrants some thought...

Exodus 20

 And God spoke all these words:

 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

¹“You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁵ You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

²“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

³ “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 

⁴ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. ¹¹ For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

⁵ “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

⁶ “You shall not murder.

⁷ “You shall not commit adultery.

⁸ “You shall not steal.

⁹ “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

¹⁰ “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.


Proverbs 6 
 There are six things that the Lord hates,
    seven that are an abomination to him:
¹⁷ haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
    and hands that shed innocent blood,
¹⁸ a heart that devises wicked plans,
    feet that make haste to run to evil,
¹⁹ a false witness who breathes out lies,
    and one who sows discord among brothers.
 
7 Deadly Sins have been used since early Christian times are usually given as wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony.

The Catholic Church divides sin into two categories: venial sins,  guilt is relatively minor. Mortal sins are considered deadly and might cause damnation.

Complaining can only be a sin if we put our needs as a god. Jesus came to be our sacrifice and we may come to God to give Him the desires of our heart.  Not as a way to complain endlessly. God lifts us, we are to look for His blessings each day.


Micah 6:8
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Recently a study was done on Google showing the world sees Christians as very unlike Christ.  Judgmental, irritable, rude, self-centered. 


James 4:4
You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

Life is a balance. If we are convicted of sin, we should please God with the meditations of our heart and the words of our mouth. If we are told we sin because we are judgmental, we need to be clear within ourselves to love God and look to His Holiness. If we complain a lot, to offer to God the desire to please Him.

1 John 4:7
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.


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Psalm 147 ~ The Lord builds up Jerusalem

Psalm 147


1 Praise the Lord.

How good it is to sing praises to our God,
how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the exiles of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars
and calls them each by name.
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
his understanding has no limit.
6 The Lord sustains the humble
but casts the wicked to the ground.

7 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise;
make music to our God on the harp.

8 He covers the sky with clouds;
he supplies the earth with rain
and makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He provides food for the cattle
and for the young ravens when they call.

10 His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his delight in the legs of the warrior;
11 the Lord delights in those who fear him,
who put their hope in his unfailing love.

12 Extol the Lord, Jerusalem;
praise your God, Zion.

13 He strengthens the bars of your gates
and blesses your people within you.
14 He grants peace to your borders
and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

15 He sends his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
16 He spreads the snow like wool
and scatters the frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down his hail like pebbles.
Who can withstand his icy blast?
18 He sends his word and melts them;
he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.

19 He has revealed his word to Jacob,
his laws and decrees to Israel.
20 He has done this for no other nation;
they do not know his laws.

Praise the Lord.

This week we read 1 Kings 13.  Why would God allow Jeroboam, Solomon's appointed slave foreman to split David's Kingdom by the time his grandson became King.  The Lord would use Israel and Judah to protect His people, to preserve a remnant. To enable the Temple to survive. Even Hezekiah's  father tried to teach Hezekiah to strip the gold from every surface of the Temple to allow God's country and God's people to become a client state of an Empire.

But to whom are God's promises given today?  The first chapter of Roman's says we all know God. This is different from the time of the Psalm 147. The Holy Spirit had not been given to all nations.  Who is Jerusalem? During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times. We first learn of Jerusalem as Salem, city of Melchizedek. Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High.

Hebrews 7:2
and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means “king of righteousness”; then also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace."

Jerusalem was inhabited by Jebusites the Tribe of Judah could not remove until David, removed the Jebusites. That is why Jerusalem is called the City of David.

1 Corinthians 8:1
Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.


So, the history lesson has a point. David, as King, not only embraced the men who came to David after Saul was killed and his concubine's son proclaimed King, David embraced the men who would only flock to him as a victor.  As God runs to the prodigal son, David took Judah's land, being from the tribe of Judah and perfected the dream of Joshua, 40 years in the wilderness, to give the Children of Israel a home. The City of David is his homecoming victory. 

David was not sustained by war horses and palaces built behind the city walls. David was sustained in his humility of relying upon God's mercy. Left to him from the wonders he thought of as he counted the stars above the flock.  

When we read about Jerusalem or Israel or Judah, we read of God's love for us.

Psalm 5:7
But I, by your great love, can come into your house; in reverence I bow down toward your holy temple.

Psalm 13:5
But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.

Psalm 36:5
Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.

Psalm 37:28
For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones.

Psalm 40:11
Do not withhold your mercy from me, LORD; may your love and faithfulness always protect me.


David's Palace was built using Phoenician architecture, drawing by Professor Eilat Mazar, the archeologist who found David's Palace by reading the Scriptures.


View from David's Palace - artistic rendition
Phoenician Column found in David's Palace

View looking outside from David's Palace archaeological dig



Matthew 23:37
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.


Acts 1:6-8

Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.  But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”




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