Great Plains Daily Devotional ~ Thursday, 20 February 2014

Great Plains Daily Devotional ~ Thursday, 20 February 2014

Today please be in prayer for

1. Steven Langhofer

Leawood: Church of the Resurrection UMC

Kansas City District

2. Jessie Zimmerman

Protection

Dodge City District

3. Lee Wigert

Juniata UMC

Prairie Rivers District

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This Week's Lectionary

6th  Sunday after the Epiphany - Green

Deuteronomy 30:15 “See, I have set before you this day life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God[a] which I command you this day, by loving theLord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you this day, that you shall perish; you shall not live long in the land which you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live, 20 loving theLord your God, obeying his voice, and cleaving to him; for that means life to you and length of days, that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”

Footnotes:

a. Deuteronomy 30:16 Gk: Heb lacks If you obey the commandments of the Lordyour God

Sirach 15:15 If you will, you can keep the commandments,
    and to act faithfully is a matter of your own choice.

16 He has placed before you fire and water:
    stretch out your hand for whichever you wish.

17 Before a man[a] are life and death,
    and whichever he chooses will be given to him.

18 For great is the wisdom of the Lord;
    he is mighty in power and sees everything;

19 his eyes are on those who fear him,
    and he knows every deed of man.

20 He has not commanded any one to be ungodly,
    and he has not given any one permission to sin.

Footnotes:

a. Sirach 15:17 Gk men

Psalm 119:1 The Glories of God’s Law

1 [a]Blessed are those whose way is blameless,
    who walk in the law of the Lord!

2 Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
    who seek him with their whole heart,

3 who also do no wrong,
    but walk in his ways!

4 Thou hast commanded thy precepts
    to be kept diligently.

5 O that my ways may be steadfast
    in keeping thy statutes!

6 Then I shall not be put to shame,
    having my eyes fixed on all thy commandments.

7 I will praise thee with an upright heart,
    when I learn thy righteous ordinances.

8 I will observe thy statutes;
    O forsake me not utterly!

Footnotes:

a. 119 This great hymn of praise for the Torah, the law of God, is typical of the best Jewish piety after the Exile.

1 Corinthians 3:1 But I, brethren, could not address you as spiritual men, but as men of the flesh, as babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you were not ready for it; and even yet you are not ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving like ordinary men? 4 For when one says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apol′los,” are you not merely men?

5 What then is Apol′los? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apol′los watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are equal, and each shall receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers;[a] you are God’s field, God’s building.

Footnotes:

a. 1 Corinthians 3:9 Or fellow workers for God

Matthew 5:21 “You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother[a] shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults[b] his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be liable to the hell[c] of fire. 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Make friends quickly with your accuser, while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison; 26 truly, I say to you, you will never get out till you have paid the last penny.

Concerning Adultery

27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.[d][e] 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.[f]

Concerning Divorce

31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you that every one who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity,[g] makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Concerning Oaths

33 “Again you have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.[h]

Footnotes:

a. Matthew 5:22 Other ancient authorities insert without cause

b. Matthew 5:22 Greek says Raca to (an obscure term of abuse)

c. Matthew 5:22 Greek Gehenna

d. Matthew 5:29 Greek Gehenna

e. 5.29 An exaggeration to emphasize the need to avoid occasions of sin.

f. Matthew 5:30 Greek Gehenna

g. 5.32 unchastity: The Greek word used here appears to refer to marriages that were not legally marriages because they were either within the forbidden degrees of consanguinity (Lev 18.6-16) or contracted with a Gentile. The phrase except on the ground of unchastity does not occur in the parallel passage in Lk 16.18. See also Mt 19.9 (Mk 10.11-12), and especially 1 Cor 7.10-11 which shows that the prohibition is unconditional.

1. Matthew 5:37 Or the evil one

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1 Corinthians 3:10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another builds on it. But let each man be careful how he builds on it. 11 For no one can lay any other foundation than that which has been laid, which is Jesus Christ.16 Don’t you know that you are a temple of God, and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy, which you are.

18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks that he is wise among you in this world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He has taken the wise in their craftiness.”[a] 20 And again, “The Lord knows the reasoning of the wise, that it is worthless.”[b] 21 Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, 22 whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come. All are yours, 23 and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.

Footnotes:

a. 1 Corinthians 3:19 Job 5:13

b. 1 Corinthians 3:20 Psalm 94:11

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John Wesley’s Notes/Commentary

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Verse 19. Chuse life - They shall have life that chuse it: they that chuse the favour of God, and communion with him, shall have what they chuse. They that come short of life and happiness, must thank themselves only. They had had them, if they had chosen them, when they were put to their choice: but they die, because they will die.

Verse 20. That thou mayest love the Lord thy God - Here he shews them in short, what their duty is; To love God as the Lord, a being most amiable, and as their God, a God in covenant with them: as an evidence of their love, to obey his voice in every thing, and by constancy in this love and obedience, to cleave to him all their days. And what encouragement had they to do this? For he is thy life and the length of thy days - He gives life, preserves life, restores life, and prolongs it, by his power, tho' it be a frail life, and by his presence, tho' it be a forfeited life. He sweetens life by his comforts, and compleats all in life everlasting.

Psalm 119:1-8

PS 119 Because this psalm was very large, and the matter of it of the greatest importance, the psalmist thought fit to divide it into two and twenty several parts, according to the number of the Hebrew letters, that he might both prevent tediousness, and fix it in the memory. Each part consists of eight verses. All the verses of the first part beginning with Aleph, all the verses of the second with Beth, and so on. It is observable, that the word of God is here called by the names of law, statutes, precepts or commandments, judgments, ordinances, righteousness, testimonies, way and word. By which variety, he designed to express the nature and perfection of God's word. It is called his word, as revealed by him to us; his way, as prescribed by him for us to walk in; his law, as binding us to obedience; his statutes, as declaring his authority of giving us laws; his precepts as directing our duty; his ordinances, as ordained by him; his righteousness, as exactly agreeable to God's righteous nature and will; his judgments, as proceeding from the great judge of the world, and being his judicial sentence to which all men must submit; and his testimonies, as it contains the witness of God's will, and of man's duty. And there is but one of these one hundred and seventy six verses, in which one or other of these titles is not found. The general scope and designof this psalm is, to magnify the law and make it honourable: to shew the excellency and usefulness of divine Revelation, and recommend it to us, by the psalmist's own example, who speaks by experience of the benefits of it, for which he praises God, and earnestly prays for the continuance of God's grace, to direct and quicken him in his way.

Verse 6. Respect - A due respect, which implies hearty affection, diligent study, and constant practice. To all - So as not to allow myself in any known sin, or in the neglect of any known duty.

Verse 7. When - When by thy good spirit I shall he more fitly instructed in the meaning of thy word.

Verse 8. Forsake me not - For then I shall fall into the foulest sins.

1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Verse 1. And I, brethren - He spoke before, ver. 1, of his entrance, now of his progress, among them. Could not speak to you as unto spiritual - Adult, experienced Christians. But as unto men who were still in great measure carnal, as unto babes in Christ - Still weak in grace, though eminent in gifts, chap. i, 5.

Verse 2. I fed you, as babes, with milk - The first and plainest truths of the gospel. So should every preacher suit his doctrine to his hearers.

Verse 3. For while there is among you emulation in your hearts, strife in your words, and actual divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk according to men - As mere men; not as Christians, according to God.

Verse 4. I am of Apollos - St. Paul named himself and Apollos, to show that he would condemn any division among them, even though it were in favour of himself, or the dearest friend he had in the world. Are ye not carnal - For the Spirit of God allows no party zeal.

Verse 5. Ministers - Or servants. By whom ye believed, as the Lord, the Master of those servants, gave to every man.

Verse 7. God that giveth the increase - Is all in all: without him neither planting nor watering avails.

Verse 8. But he that planteth and he that watereth are one - Which is another argument against division. Though their labours are different. they are all employed in one general work, - the saving souls. Hence he takes occasion to speak of the reward of them that labour faithfully, and the awful account to be given by all. Every man shall receive his own peculiar reward according to his own peculiar labour - Not according to his success; but he who labours much, though with small success, shall have a great reward. Has not all this reasoning the same force still? The ministers are still surely instruments in God's hand, and depend as entirely as ever on his blessing, to give the increase to their labours. Without this, they are nothing: with it, their part is so small, that they hardly deserve to be mentioned. May their hearts and hands be more united; and, retaining a due sense of the honour God doeth them in employing them, may they faithfully labour, not as for themselves, but for the great Proprietor of all, till the day come when he will reward them in full proportion to their fidelity and diligence!

Verse 9. For we are all fellowlabourers - God's labourers, and fellowlabourers with each other. Ye are God's husbandry - This is the sum of what went before: it is a comprehensive word, taking in both a field, a garden, and a vineyard. Ye are God's building - This is the sum of what follows.

Matthew 5:21-37

Verse 21. Ye have heard - From the scribes reciting the law; Thou shalt do no murder - And they interpreted this, as all the othercommandments, barely of the outward act. The judgement - The Jews had in every city a court of twenty-three men, who could sentence a criminal to be strangled. But the sanhedrim only (the great council which sat at Jerusalem, consisting of seventy-two men, ) could sentence to the more terrible death of stoning. That was called the judgment, this the council. Exod. xx, 13.

Verse 22. But I say unto you - Which of the prophets ever spake thus? Their language is, Thus saith the Lord. Who hath authority to use this language, but the one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Whosoever is angry with his brother - Some copies add, without a cause - But this is utterly foreign to the whole scope and tenor of our Lord's discourse. If he had only forbidden the being angry without a cause, there was no manner of need of that solemn declaration, I say unto you; for the scribes and Pharisees themselves said as much as this. Even they taught, men ought not to be angry without a cause. So that this righteousness does not exceed theirs. But Christ teaches, that we ought not, for any cause, to be so angry as to call any man Raca, or fool. We ought not, for any cause, to be angry at the person of the sinner, but at his sins only. Happy world, were this plain and necessary distinction thoroughly understood, remembered, practiced! Raca means, a silly man, a trifler. Whosoever shall say, Thou fool - Shall revile, or seriously reproach any man. Our Lord specified three degrees of murder, each liable to a sorer punishment than the other: not indeed from men, but from God. Hell fire- In the valley of Hinnom (whence the word in the original is taken) the children were used to be burnt alive to Moloch. It was afterward made a receptacle for the filth of the city, where continual fires were kept to consume it. And it is probable, if any criminals were burnt alive, it was in this accursed and horrible place. Therefore both as to its former and latter state, it was a fit emblem of hell. It must here signify a degree of future punishment, as much more dreadful than those incurred in the two former cases, as burning alive is more dreadful than either strangling or stoning.

Verse 23. Thy brother hath aught against thee - On any of the preceding accounts: for any unkind thought or word: any that did notspring from love.

Verse 24. Leaving thy gift, go - For neither thy gift nor thy prayer will atone for thy want of love: but this will make them both an abomination before God.

Verse 25. Agree with thine adversary - With any against whom thou hast thus offended: while thou art in the way - Instantly, on thespot; before you part. Lest the adversary deliver thee to the judge - Lest he commit his cause to God. Luke xii, 58.

Verse 26. Till thou hast paid the last farthing - That is, for ever, since thou canst never do this. What has been hitherto said refers to meekness: what follows, to purity of heart.

Verse 27. Thou shalt not commit adultery - And this, as well as the sixth commandment, the scribes and Pharisees interpreted barely of the outward act. Exod. xx, 14.

29, 30. If a person as dear as a right eye, or as useful as a right hand, cause thee thus to offend, though but in heart. Perhaps here may be an instance of a kind of transposition which is frequently found in the sacred writings: so that the 29th verse may refer to 27, 28; and the 30th to ver. 21, 22. As if he had said, Part with any thing, however dear to you, or otherwise useful, if you cannot avoid sin while you keep it. Even cut off your right hand, if you are of so passionate a temper, that you cannot otherwise be restrained from hurting your brother.Pull out your eyes, if you can no otherwise be restrained from lusting after women. Chap. xviii, 8; Mark ix, 43.

Verse 31. Let him give her a writing of divorce - Which the scribes and Pharisees allowed men to do on any trifling occasion. Deut. xxiv, 1; Matt. xix, 7; Mark x, 2; Luke xvi, 18.

Verse 32. Causeth her to commit adultery - If she marry again.

Verse 33. Our Lord here refers to the promise made to the pure in heart of seeing God in all things, and points out a false doctrine of the scribes, which arose from their not thus seeing God. What he forbids is, the swearing at all, 1, by any creature, 2, in our ordinary conversation: both of which the scribes and Pharisees taught to be perfectly innocent. Exod. xx, 7.

Verse 36. For thou canst not make one hair white or black - Whereby it appears, that this also is not thine but God's.

Verse 37. Let your conversation be yea, yea; nay, nay - That is, in your common discourse, barely affirm or deny.

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Mark 4:26 He said, “God’s Kingdom is as if a man should cast seed on the earth, 27 and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring up and grow, he doesn’t know how. 28 For the earth bears fruit: first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 But when the fruit is ripe, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

30 He said, “How will we liken God’s Kingdom? Or with what parable will we illustrate it? 31 It’s like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, though it is less than all the seeds that are on the earth, 32 yet when it is sown, grows up, and becomes greater than all the herbs, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of the sky can lodge under its shadow.”

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Great Churches. Great Leaders. Great Disciples. Transformed World.

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Contact Information

Great Plains Episcopal Office

9440 E Boston, Suite 160

Wichita KS 67207 United States

316-686-0600

800-745-2350

info@greatplainsumc.org

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