~ Click on this link for today's readings ~
Jeremiah 22:1-23:20 ~ 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
Psalm 83:1-18 ~ Proverbs 25:11-14
Old Testament - Allright, this is probably an inappropriate comment - but nobody can talk smack like God can talk smack! :) Man, he is unleashing in these two chapters today in Jeremiah... there is no rebuttal to his words. Even the Hulkster has got nothing on God when it comes to smack talking! :)
Some verses that jumped out at me today included Jeremiah 22:15-16 - "But a beautiful palace does not make a great king! Why did your father, Josiah, reign so long? Because he was just and right in all his dealings. That is why God blessed him. He made sure that justice and help were given to the poor and needy, and everything went well for him. Isn't that what it means to know me?" "Isn't that what it means to know me?" Justice and help were given to the poor and needy, and everything went well for him. Is that what it means to know God?
Jeremiah 23:1-8 gives us a great Messianic foreshadowing of Jesus. Verses 5 & 6: "For the time is coming," says the Lord, "when I will place a righteous Branch on King David's throne. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land. And this is his name: `The Lord Is Our Righteousness.' In that day Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in safety." Great stuff... a righteous branch on King David's throne.... rules with wisdom... will do what is just and right throughout the land... Think this is Jesus?
The remaining verses in Jeremiah 23 go after false prophets. I know in reading Jeremiah I've been pondering how tough it would be to be Jeremiah, a prophet with some tough messages. Looks like being a false prophet is really the wrong way to live. If you're gonna be a prophet, make sure you're prophesying the truth... :) Do you think there are any false prophets in our world today? Do you avoid listening to the teachings of false prophets in our world today? (other than if you need to listen to what they say to repudiate it) Can we sometimes even be false prophets to our own selves on occasion? Who can free us from the lies of false prophets? (see the image above - not the false prophets image below)
New Testament - Today we begin Paul's second letter to the church in Thessalonica! Below is an image of Thessalonica's harbor -
~ Second Thessalonians ~
Author: Paul the apostle
Place: Corinth
Date: A.D. 51
Content: Either Paul’s first letter or a forged letter purporting to be from him had disturbed the Thessalonians concerning the second coming of Jesus. Perhaps adding to the confusion was the continued persecution that they were enduring. Paul writes to assure the believers that Jesus will certainly return to comfort the believers and to punish those who are troubling them. He also tells them that the great Day of Judgment (the Day of the Lord) will not take them by surprise but will be preceded by a series of events. In the light of Jesus’ sure return, Christians are to live above reproach.
Theme: Throughout this short letter the promise of God’s victory over evil is stressed. Believers may suffer now, but God has planned comfort and reward for them. For those who refuse to obey God, however, there will be distress and judgment. Paul also stresses the need for living in such a way that God is honored. Some people at Thessalonica may have stopped working because they believed Christ would return soon. This does not honor God and Paul says concerning it, “He who does not work shall not eat.” (Above commentary is from Tyndale Publishers “The One Year Bible Companion” pp. 28-29)
A wonderful commentary on Second Thessalonians by J. Hampton Keathley, III, titled “The Struggles and Growth of a Church” is at this link.
Paul's encouragement during times of persecution is powerful in verse 5: "But God will use this persecution to show his justice. For he will make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering." If there is persecution in your life today, I hope this verse is encouraging to you. It reminds me of the old adage - "it builds character." I know this is tough to realize in the midst of persecution - that God is working in the midst of it to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom. Your suffering is for His Kingdom. You are not suffering alone.
Psalms - Ever feel like the Psalmist in Psalm 83 verse 1 - "O God, don't sit idly by, silent and inactive!" I think the beauty of the Psalms is seeing some of our human emotions expressed so well. Considering this verse - I don't think that God is ever sitting idly by, silent or inactive. I believe God is a Living God who is always with us. But, perhaps sometimes God's perceived silence in our lives is for a purpose that we may not fully understand now, but will later. If God seems very "silent" to you now, I would encourage you to pray to God - and really listen in your prayers - don't just speak. Listen. I believe you'll soon hear Him...
Proverbs - The 4 verses in Proverbs today are all spot on. How about the last one today, "A person who doesn't give a promised gift is like clouds and wind that don't bring rain." Don't be that person! Make sure you give promised gifts. And how about giving unexpected gifts? Gifts for no particular reason? When is the last time you surprised someone with a gift out of the blue?
What verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings? Please post up in the Comments section below!
Grace,
Mike
Mike,
May I add another perspective to your comments regarding the fourteenth verse of Proverb 25? This observation which recently came to light this past year, is not to replace your statement,
“Make sure you give promised gifts. And how about giving unexpected gifts? Gifts for no particular reason? When is the last time you surprised someone with a gift out of the blue?”
If a gift, by definition and from a Biblical View is one given with grace (unmerited favor) through mercy, then giving a “gift” to curry favor, as a disguised bribe or possibly exhortation—kind of “priming-the-pump,” then you have been given the expectation of receiving refreshing rain by creating false clouds. Worse yet, when you are the one giving the invite only because you expect enough gifts to cover the expenses for the event, well this verse is speaking to you/me.
Ouch!!
Nothing worse then getting an invitation requesting your presence but really expecting your presents.
Grace & Peace,
Ramona
Posted by: Ramona | October 13, 2005 at 03:43 AM
Jeremiah 22
8
People from many nations will pass by the ruins of this city and say to one another, `Why did the LORD destroy such a great city?'
9
And the answer will be, `Because they violated their covenant with the LORD their God by worshiping other gods.' "
21
"When you were prosperous, I warned you, but you replied, `Don't bother me.' Since childhood you have been that way--you simply will not listen!
24
"And as surely as I live," says the LORD, "I will abandon you, Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah. Even if you were the signet ring on my right hand, I would pull you off.
30
This is what the LORD says: Let the record show that this man Jehoiachin was childless, for none of his children will ever sit on the throne of David to rule in Judah. His life will amount to nothing."
NOTE:
Signet Ring: or Seal
Easton's Bible Dictionary, explaining Seal:
“…commonly a ring engraved with some device. SEALING A DOCUMENT WAS EQUIVALENT TO THE SIGNATURE OF THE OWNER OF THE SEAL…Circumcision is a seal, an attestation of the covenant ( Rom 4:11). Believers are sealed with the Spirit, as God's mark put upon them ( Eph 1:13; 4:30).”
A signet ring—the means by which a king, or the Lord of Glory, showed the world that “this is mine; I own this.” By the Lord saying, “This is mine; I own this”, God is taking responsibility to care for what is His. And God, being forever faithful, never fails on His side!
Get this: Jehoiachin was to be an outward seal of God’s promise to fulfill His covenant to Abraham (and to us) that “God will provide a Seed, so that the earth will be blessed through the seed.”
Yet, because of determined hardness of heart and refusal to listen, “…Jehoiachin was childless, for none of his children will ever sit on the throne of David to rule in Judah. His life will amount to nothing."
Read this verse again:
“Even if you were the signet ring on my right hand, I would pull you off.”
Or…even if we are the evidence of God’s Word being true, we will not be blessed if we refuse to be. We will lose, and God will find someone who will “trust and obey”.
GOD GIVES, BUT WE MUST RECEIVE.
THANK GOD!…
That the loving Father Himself bases His covenant on HIS FAITHFULNESS…which is the basis for HIS GRACE.
Jeremiah 23
5
"For the time is coming," says the LORD, "when I will place a righteous Branch on King David's throne. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land.
6
And this is his name: `The LORD Is Our Righteousness.' In that day Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in safety.”
GOD GIVES, BUT WE MUST RECEIVE.
Vance
Posted by: Vance Brown | October 13, 2005 at 05:33 AM