Numbers 25 ~ And the Lord said to Moses

Numbers 25

While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 2 These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 3 So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 4 And the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang them in the sun before the Lord, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” 5 And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.”

6 And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. 7 When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand 8 and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped. 9 Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.


10 And the Lord said to Moses, 11 “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. 12 Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, 13 and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’”

14 The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father's house belonging to the Simeonites. 15 And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the tribal head of a father's house in Midian.

16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, 18 for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.”



No coward soul is mine,
No trembler in the world's storm-troubled sphere:
I see Heaven's glories shine,
And faith shines equal, arming me from Fear.

O God within my breast,
Almighty, ever-present Deity!
Life - that in me hast rest,
As I - Undying Life- have power in Thee!
-  Emily Bronte

Is the god of the Old Testament without mercy, mean, cruel and utterly blood thirsty? Compare and contrast with:

Deuteronomy 21:18-21
A Rebellious Son
“If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they discipline him, will not listen to them, 19 then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, 20 and they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’ 21 Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

And if you want to go further, our blog post Judges 20 ~ Tell us how this awful thing happened. lists a third horrible event that really is in Scripture.

So, Scripture for Today has decided to not be cowardly; let's look at Scripture some people, who do not like the Scriptures, love to tell you they have heard of. Okay.

God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. And His Word is living and active.

Hebrews 13:8
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

God deals with each generation with faithful love and steadfastness. We use the tools - at hand - to live our lives. You could not ask the Swiss Family Robinson to build a compass and a radio (not their era), they did not have the tools of even their own fictitious generation. God tells us deal with problems, don't sweep them into a large lump under the rug. One of the first rules of youth ministry is: discipline.

Proverbs 3:12
For the LORD reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.

If everyone is jumping on the sofa and popcorn is flying, no real time for deep growth is going to occur. If you sit down to memorize the 10 Commandments, you realized they are orderly and start with GOD. Why. This is really important. We do not serve Google. Or a flowchart. We love a GOD who is interested in creation, in emotion, in the depth of our hearts. We love a God who says, I'm important too. And that, is very admirable. And honest. And lovable.

So, we are working today our way back up to the top, reverse order. The city in the Scriptures did not believe someone who completely disrupts the world should be ignored. Like the people in the United States who have taken guns and shot multiple people to death. No one who knew these people were surprised they acted so terribly. Today we have more knowledge and pharmaceuticals, and believe stoning might mean Medication while receiving group therapy. The Scriptures tell us we should not ignore problems. Or leave people we love undisciplined.

Okay. Phineas. You can't just foggetaboutit Phineas. Because David did not sweep Phineas and these deaths under the rug.

Psalm 106:30
Then Phinehas stood up and intervened, and the plague was stayed.

What was the Baal worship so terrible that the LORD considered it to be whoring. Not "The 10 Commandments" Movie scene, they were collecting Egyptian gold and jewelry while dancing around a cow.

Baal worship is prostitution. Works for dollars. Sacrificing human babies, letting the blood run into the fields, or desert, in exchange for prosperity. This is even today, abominable. Baal worships funds.

In the middle of the Old Testament, we run into a Biblical event. We all remember Jesus with the woman caught in Adultery. And we wonder why was one woman being punished. John's Gospel tells us so many things are about Jesus, we don't know all of them. In this chapter of Numbers 25 - during the time of Moses, this prostitution was not limited to the Moabite woman - the Holy Spirit condemns the Israelite man turning her in. The chiefs of the people and hung in the sun, not like the Pharisees who made sure, instead, they wore the best robes and sat in the finest seats.

In our attempt to condemn a violent outcome, we find, we have over looked lack of hypocrisy in the government of Moses. Yesterday we saw the "staff" of Aaron's budded to be an almond branch, when in Ecclesiastes we see an almond branch means a head of white hair filled with terror of old age and not mature peace.

However, to believe this was of the LORD, you'd have to believe the LORD was speaking to Moses.

Galatians 3:6
Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."

 

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

Numbers 17 ~ and behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds

Numbers 17

[In Hebrew,] The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel, and get from them staffs, one for each fathers' house, from all their chiefs according to their fathers' houses, twelve staffs. Write each man's name on his staff, 3 and write Aaron's name on the staff of Levi. For there shall be one staff for the head of each fathers' house. 4 Then you shall deposit them in the tent of meeting before the testimony, where I meet with you. 5 And the staff of the man whom I choose shall sprout. Thus I will make to cease from me the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against you.” 6 Moses spoke to the people of Israel. And all their chiefs gave him staffs, one for each chief, according to their fathers' houses, twelve staffs. And the staff of Aaron was among their staffs. 7 And Moses deposited the staffs before the Lord in the tent of the testimony.

8 On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony, and behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds. 9 Then Moses brought out all the staffs from before the Lord to all the people of Israel. And they looked, and each man took his staff. 10 And the Lord said to Moses, “Put back the staff of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept as a sign for the rebels, that you may make an end of their grumblings against me, lest they die.” 11 Thus did Moses; as the Lord commanded him, so he did.

12 And the people of Israel said to Moses, “Behold, we perish, we are undone, we are all undone. 13 Everyone who comes near, who comes near to the tabernacle of the Lord, shall die. Are we all to perish?”

 Interesting how almonds appear to be so similar to olives.

Pretty difficult to find an Almond Walking Staff, why would that be? People do not cut down a producing fruit tree - they are slow to grow and produce a capable crop. God has chosen an Almond Staff to say this is Fruitful to HIM. And why a staff? Moses, with help from his fellow followers of God, held up Moses' hands to win the battle.

Continuing on with the analogies, the almond branch looks a lot like an olive branch. Ecclesiastes 12:5, says almond trees are symbolic of white hair in old age. While the olive branch is Noah's chance at a second life and the peace of conflict resolving.

Ecclesiastes 12:5
they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets

Genesis 8:11
When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth.

As you sow, so shall you reap. This  staff  would decide not to grab hold of the promises of HIM. Upon witnessing a wooden staff bloom, they are worried about perishing. God loves to see with with faith, hope and love how His marvelous works are perceived.

Matthew 8:10
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."


Thus did Moses; as the Lord commanded him, so he did.


Hmm, it's really not bad advice for those who seek Him.



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Psalm 103 ~ Who satisfies you with good, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Psalm 104:30
When you send your spirit, they are created, and you replenish the surface of the earth.


Psalm 103

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13 As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
14 For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.
17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children's children,
18 to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.
19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!


Renewal like the promise fulfilled of the LORD.

Ezekiel 37:9
Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.'"

Joshua 1:5-9
Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Titus 3:4-8
But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

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Psalm 128 ~ May the Lord bless you from Zion all the days of your life

Psalm 128

1 Blessed are all who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways.
2 You will eat the fruit of your labor;
blessings and prosperity will be yours.

3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
within your house;
your sons will be like olive shoots
around your table.

4 Thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.

5 May the LORD bless you from Zion
all the days of your life;
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem,

6 and may you live to see your children's children.
Peace be upon Israel.


There are wonderful parts in Scripture, no explanation is needed, just enjoyment. Thank you, Father God. And in the name of Jesus Christ the LORD. Amen.


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Psalm 71 ~ Do not cast me away when I am old; do not forsake me when my strength is gone

“…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
James 5:16

Psalm 71

1 In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge;
let me never be put to shame.

2 Rescue me and deliver me in your righteousness;
turn your ear to me and save me.

3 Be my rock of refuge,
to which I can always go;
give the command to save me,
for you are my rock and my fortress.

4 Deliver me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of evil and cruel men.

5 For you have been my hope, O Sovereign LORD,
my confidence since my youth.

6 From birth I have relied on you;
you brought me forth from my mother's womb.
I will ever praise you.

7 I have become like a portent to many,
but you are my strong refuge.

8 My mouth is filled with your praise,
declaring your splendor all day long.

9 Do not cast me away when I am old;
do not forsake me when my strength is gone.

10 For my enemies speak against me;
those who wait to kill me conspire together.

11 They say, "God has forsaken him;
pursue him and seize him,
for no one will rescue him."

12 Be not far from me, O God;
come quickly, O my God, to help me.

13 May my accusers perish in shame;
may those who want to harm me
be covered with scorn and disgrace.

14 But as for me, I will always have hope;
I will praise you more and more.

15 My mouth will tell of your righteousness,
of your salvation all day long,
though I know not its measure.

16 I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD;
I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.

17 Since my youth, O God, you have taught me,
and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

18 Even when I am old and gray,
do not forsake me, O God,
till I declare your power to the next generation,
your might to all who are to come.

19 Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God,
you who have done great things.
Who, O God, is like you?

20 Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter,
you will restore my life again;
from the depths of the earth
you will again bring me up.

21 You will increase my honor
and comfort me once again.

22 I will praise you with the harp
for your faithfulness, O my God;
I will sing praise to you with the lyre,
O Holy One of Israel.

23 My lips will shout for joy
when I sing praise to you—
I, whom you have redeemed.

24 My tongue will tell of your righteous acts
all day long,
for those who wanted to harm me
have been put to shame and confusion.

Psalms 103:5
Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Psalms 92:12
The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon

Proverbs 12:28
In the way of righteousness is life;
and in the pathway thereof there is no death.

Romans 8:37
Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

Isaiah 40:31
Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.



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Psalm 32 ~ Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to You at a time when you may be found

Psalm 32


Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

3 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

5 I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not cover my iniquity;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”
and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

6 Therefore let everyone who is godly
offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;
surely in the rush of great waters,
they shall not reach him.
7 You are a hiding place for me;
you preserve me from trouble;
you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah

8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
9 Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,
which must be curbed with bit and bridle,
or it will not stay near you.

10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.
11 Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!


David waited 22 years for the anointing of the LORD to become apparent to all of Israel.

Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to You at a time when You may be found

Immediately is used six times in the Old Testament. In Jesus Christ, immediately moves to 82 times in the New Covenant. The stirring of faith. The delight of anticipation of blessing. Jesus understood this quality and looked around Him to see faith.

The name of the pool is said to be derived from the Hebrew language and/or Aramaic language. beth hesda (בית חסד/חסדא), meaning either house of mercy or house of grace. People waited years by the pool to have their turn. Jesus did not wait around.


John 5:2
Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades.

John's 5th Chapter has a verse four saying an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and stirred the water: whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had.

Revelation 16:5
And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say, “Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was, for you brought these judgments."

Isaiah 49:8
This is what the LORD says: "In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances


Isaiah 55:6
Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near.

John 4:13-14
13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Revelation 22:1
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.

Father God, establish the righteous and strengthen them.

Matthew 6:33
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.




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Numbers 8 ~ Now the Lord spoke to Moses

Numbers 8


Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and say to him, When you set up the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand.” 3 And Aaron did so: he set up its lamps in front of the lampstand, as the Lord commanded Moses. 4 And this was the workmanship of the lampstand, hammered work of gold. From its base to its flowers, it was hammered work; according to the pattern that the Lord had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand.


5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Take the Levites from among the people of Israel and cleanse them. 7 Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: sprinkle the water of purification upon them, and let them go with a razor over all their body, and wash their clothes and cleanse themselves. 8 Then let them take a bull from the herd and its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another bull from the herd for a sin offering. 9 And you shall bring the Levites before the tent of meeting and assemble the whole congregation of the people of Israel. 10 When you bring the Levites before the Lord, the people of Israel shall lay their hands on the Levites, 11 and Aaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that they may do the service of the Lord. 12 Then the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the bulls, and you shall offer the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the Lord to make atonement for the Levites. 13 And you shall set the Levites before Aaron and his sons, and shall offer them as a wave offering to the Lord.

14 “Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the people of Israel, and the Levites shall be mine. 15 And after that the Levites shall go in to serve at the tent of meeting, when you have cleansed them and offered them as a wave offering. 16 For they are wholly given to me from among the people of Israel. Instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the people of Israel, I have taken them for myself. 17 For all the firstborn among the people of Israel are mine, both of man and of beast. On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I consecrated them for myself, 18 and I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel. 19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the people of Israel, to do the service for the people of Israel at the tent of meeting and to make atonement for the people of Israel, that there may be no plague among the people of Israel when the people of Israel come near the sanctuary.”

20 Thus did Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the people of Israel to the Levites. According to all that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, the people of Israel did to them. 21 And the Levites purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes, and Aaron offered them as a wave offering before the Lord, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them. 22 And after that the Levites went in to do their service in the tent of meeting before Aaron and his sons; as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

23 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 24 “This applies to the Levites: from twenty-five years old and upward they shall come to do duty in the service of the tent of meeting. 25 And from the age of fifty years they shall withdraw from the duty of the service and serve no more. 26 They minister to their brothers in the tent of meeting by keeping guard, but they shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites in assigning their duties.”

The Lord remembered the first born of Egypt. He did not forget them, the Levites were to HIM as the adopted sons Jesus created in the Disciple John.

The sons of God first made Light. As God did as well.

Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.


1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light

Deuteronomy 4:20
But as for you, the LORD took you and brought you out of the iron-smelting furnace, out of Egypt, to be the people of his inheritance, as you now are.

Jeremiah 29:11-13
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.




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John 4:46-54 ~ He was still on the way

Jesus made Capernaum his home.

John 4:46-54

46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

48 "Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe."

49 The royal official said, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

50 Jesus replied, "You may go. Your son will live."
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. 52 When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, "The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour."

53 Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he and all his household believed.

54 This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus performed, having come from Judea to Galilee.



This is a lovely day in the life of Jesus Christ the LORD. Jesus had another day being our hero, Jesus.


We could have many, many more days of Jesus, when you consider Jesus is The Word of God in Genesis. God said, "Let there be Light." John wrote of this in John 1. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. John wanted us to understand the deepest mystery of all, this is all true:

John 21:24
This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.

We get so used to our Gospels, they don't surprise us, yet look at John. I once had a Priest, a teacher of Israel,  said this wasn't a miracle. Don't you get this; Jesus is always amazing!

John 6:21
Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.


How did Elijah call down fire to start the altar fire after dousing that with water. How did Jesus do these things? Like Einstein said, He moved space and time, He bent the world to His Will, with His Word. The Word of God is powerful.

The five times God parted waters on earth?

Genesis 1:6-7
And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so.

Exodus 14:21-22
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.

Joshua was there when the Word was spoken to have the Ark cross on dry land.

Joshua 3:13
And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”

2 Kings 2:7-8
Fifty men of the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. Elijah took his cloak, and rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.

2 Kings 2:13-14
He picked up the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the cloak that had fallen from him and struck the water with it. "Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?" he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over.

 

John 21:25
Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

Some day, by the golden waters written of in Revelation, we will learn of many days, unrecorded that the work of Jesus Christ and HIS Father continue to this very day.

John 5:17
Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working."


Mysteries today? Really? Well, you have to be like the boy's father and believe. The signs are still there. God is at work. And today, in gratitude we shall say with grateful hearts - all is well in the world, help us to do Your will bringing Heaven to Earth. Our hero, our love, Jesus Christ. Amen.






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Exodus 34 ~ The Lord said to Moses, “Cut for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and I will write on the tablets

Exodus 34

The Lord said to Moses, “Cut for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. 2 Be ready by the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain. 3 No one shall come up with you, and let no one be seen throughout all the mountain. Let no flocks or herds graze opposite that mountain.” 4 So Moses cut two tablets of stone like the first. And he rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand two tablets of stone. 5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands,^{[to the thousandth generation]} forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.” 8 And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped. 9 And he said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, O Lord, please let the Lord go in the midst of us, for it is a stiff-necked people, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.”


10 And he said, “Behold, I am making a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels, such as have not been created in all the earth or in any nation. And all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord, for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.

11 “Observe what I command you this day. Behold, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 12 Take care, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it become a snare in your midst. 13 You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim 14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), 15 lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and when they whore after their gods and sacrifice to their gods and you are invited, you eat of his sacrifice, 16 and you take of their daughters for your sons, and their daughters whore after their gods and make your sons whore after their gods.

17 “You shall not make for yourself any gods of cast metal.

18 “You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib, for in the month Abib you came out from Egypt. 19 All that open the womb are mine, all your male livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep. 20 The firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. And none shall appear before me empty-handed.

21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. 22 You shall observe the Feast of Weeks, the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year's end. 23 Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel. 24 For I will cast out nations before you and enlarge your borders; no one shall covet your land, when you go up to appear before the Lord your God three times in the year.

25 “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, or let the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover remain until the morning. 26 The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk.”

27 And the Lord said to Moses, “Write these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.” 28 So he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights. He neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.


29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them. 32 Afterward all the people of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that the Lord had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. 33 And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face.

34 Whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out and told the people of Israel what he was commanded, 35 the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face was shining. And Moses would put the veil over his face again, until he went in to speak with him.



One of my family, one who has lived with me, decided to debate the Scripture with me as we lugged things to the moving van.The debate became today's blog post. Is God mean and vengeful or the same ol God?

"Now."

" NOW?"

" Okay, now."

"The god of the Old Testament is irritable and mean."

"Oh, you mean the GOD ,who sent His Son Jesus, to redeem us."

"What? No. He's recorded as being mean and vengeful."

"No, that's an interpretation of Him that is flawed."

"Well, He's always killing off the people in battle."

"No, He's saving them and the Hittites were not found until the 1980s, Indians Jones style, by falling into the library of clay pots that not only described all the Biblical battles, but agreed with the Lord."


Yes, the LORD is so vengeful that HE - the Creator of the Universe - is willing to re-do the .... what ... the little document the laws of our plant are based upon.

"THE TEN COMMANDMENTS".

The next time you feel you do not measure up to the greats of the Bible, or anyone else. Remember - Moses threw a hissy fit
and destroyed
- THE TEN COMMANDMENTS -
An awesome thing HE does for you.

And how did the LORD, GOD, The Almighty take that ...

He came to visit Moses. To give Moses more of His glory than all others except His Beloved Son.

Proclaiming: “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands,^{[to the thousandth generation]} forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.”


And we Are so filled with ourselves, we debate with ourselves and each other, all of us, why does HE do that - hurting the third and fourth generation? It isn't the LORD hurting the generations, it is the LORD blessing the generations and we create messes we want Him to sweep up.

I met a young 20 year old woman, today, who is sustained remembering her great-grandmother's house and how well it was pampered, loved, treasured, painted and cared for. The smell of the kitchen giving good meals. Other people own the house and had no skill, or perhaps desire, and the house has fallen into ruins. This young woman has a desire to provide her infant daughter with the things her great-grandmother taught her. And being a young woman enrolled in parenting classes, attending Church and Bible Studies - I know she will become the woman she wants to be - to teach her infant daughter.

This is the LORD, speaking to her heart. A heart of love for this new life she is responsible for. Her great-grandmother living in HIS laws knitting a new generation together in encouragement. Care and love in doing what is there to do.

What was true 4,000 years ago, is true today. Being the LORD, GOD, The Almighty, HE really does not have to put a PR spin on things.

He could have said,"Live your life by my Laws of Love, you will prosper!" Or HE could have given us a parable like this young woman. Reminding us that our lives touch others even after we are in Heaven.

Jesus decided to live our lives and gave us parables - remind me - did we do better with the continuation?

You can pick either of the ways to express this same piece of advice, but I'm pretty sure having the LORD proclaim HIS Love to thousands, or thousands of generations, is really
frankly
filled
with
astonishment
and
wonder.


There is wonder in Jesus, Himself, choosing to live our own life.

Just as the Same LORD GOD ALMIGHTY created a vision of awe for Moses, and for us, who look at that in wonder. The LORD HIMSELF telling Moses about Himself. Recreating the Covenant. He tried again in the second millennium sending pure grace upon grace. We have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. Jesus choosing to walk our path in this life.

Matthew 6:33
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Scripture saying God seeks us. Proclaiming GOD comes to us, reaches down gets HIS hands involved in life.

2 Samuel 22:17
He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.

Matthew 14:31
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"

The Word of the LORD speaks all around us,
we just have to watch less television!

Finding ways to see HIS Word fulfilled around us. We tend to circle our thinking into tight orderly circles, and ignore greater issues. Remember the greater moments in our lives, He gives us. And ignore the Lucy's who would press on our head and tell us to look down. Let the Joy of the LORD fill you and remember, always, He loves you today - just as you are.

That is the miracle of the LORD, GOD, The Almighty allowing Himself to give more chances and with faith, hope and love. 





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Psalm 32 ~ Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit

Psalm 32

A Maskil^{[Probably a musical or liturgical term]}  of David.

  Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

3 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up^{[my vitality was changed]} as by the heat of summer. Selah

5 I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not cover my iniquity;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”
and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

6 Therefore let everyone who is godly
offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;
surely in the rush of great waters,
they shall not reach him.
7 You are a hiding place for me;
you preserve me from trouble;
you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah

8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
9 Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,
which must be curbed with bit and bridle,
or it will not stay near you.

10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.
11 Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

One of the reasons we go to Church is to worship and have a chance to sit in a holy place and say "I'm very sorry." A very important component to forgiveness is the apology from the heart.

There is a huge blessing in forgiveness. Of course, there is peace in forgiveness. The blessing is also in - Believing. Believing that our lives have meaning to the LORD. We actually matter to Him.

Abraham is a believer. Not a saint without sin. Only Jesus is without sin. God was still talking about Abraham's faith three millenniums later.

Genesis 15:6
Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

Romans 4:3
What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."

James 5:16
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

I prefer the drama and richness of The King James Version of this James quote.

James 5:16 King James Bible
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Isaiah understood fellowship with the LORD.


Isaiah 6:7
And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

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