"All Flash, No Substance" by Curtiss A. Hartley for Saturday, 24 June 2017 - Isaiah 58:1 Shout out loud! Don’t hold back!
Raise your voice like a shofar!
Proclaim to my people what rebels they are,
to the house of Ya‘akov their sins.
2 “Oh yes, they seek me day after day
and [claim to] delight in knowing my ways.
As if they were an upright nation
that had not abandoned the rulings of their God,
they ask me for just rulings
and [claim] to take pleasure in closeness to God,
3 [asking,] ‘Why should we fast, if you don’t see?
Why mortify ourselves, if you don’t notice?’
“Here is my answer: when you fast,
you go about doing whatever you like,
while keeping your laborers hard at work.
4 Your fasts lead to quarreling and fighting,
to lashing out with violent blows.
On a day like today, fasting like yours
will not make your voice heard on high.
5 “Is this the sort of fast I want,
a day when a person mortifies himself?
Is the object to hang your head like a reed
and spread sackcloth and ashes under yourself?
Is this what you call a fast,
a day that pleases Adonai?
6 “Here is the sort of fast I want —
releasing those unjustly bound,
untying the thongs of the yoke,
letting the oppressed go free,
breaking every yoke,
7 sharing your food with the hungry,
taking the homeless poor into your house,
clothing the naked when you see them,
fulfilling your duty to your kinsmen!”
8 Then your light will burst forth like the morning,
your new skin will quickly grow over your wound;
your righteousness will precede you,
and Adonai’s glory will follow you.
9 Then you will call, and Adonai will answer;
you will cry, and he will say, “Here I am.”
If you will remove the yoke from among you,
stop false accusation and slander,
10 generously offer food to the hungry
and meet the needs of the person in trouble;
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your gloom become like noon.
11 Adonai will always guide you;
he will satisfy your needs in the desert,
he will renew the strength in your limbs;
so that you will be like a watered garden,
like a spring whose water never fails.
-------
The crust was golden brown and it smelled scrumptious. Steam rose from the chicken pot pie. Thick gravy oozed around the edges. It looked for all the world like a delicious dinner. Yet, once my fork was plunged into the flaky crust and the pie opened, there were only a few pieces of carrot, a couple of peas and a few scattered shreds of chicken floating in the gravy.
What a disappointment to find that what looked so good on the outside turned out to have very little substance! In Isaiah 58 the prophet records the disheartening condition of the Hebrews who put on a good show, appearing for all the world to be doing and saying the right things, yet God saw their true condition: they had hardened hearts that mistreated others. They exploited the weak, quarreled, and fought. God said, “Is this what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?” (Isaiah 58:5b) Happily, promise and hope are declared in the next two verses as God says that mercy and justice are what He desires. God says it is not enough to look good on the outside if there is no substance on the inside. "Dear Lord and Father of Mankind" by John Greenleaf Whittier 1. Dear Lord and Father of mankind, forgive our foolish ways; reclothe us in our rightful mind, in purer lives thy service find, in deeper reverence, praise. 2. In simple trust like theirs who heard beside the Syrian sea the gracious calling of the Lord, let us, like them, without a word rise up and follow thee. 3. O Sabbath rest by Galilee, O calm of hills above, where Jesus knelt to share with thee the silence of eternity, interpreted by love! 4. Drop thy still dews of quietness, till all our strivings cease; take from our souls the strain and stress, and let our ordered lives confess the beauty of thy peace. 5. Breathe through the heats of our desire thy coolness and thy balm; let sense be dumb, let flesh retire; speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire, O still, small voice of calm! May mercy, love and shalom be yours in full measure.[Jude 1:2] Please pray: For the development of Christian leaders in Gabon. |
"Wise Words or Worldly Wisdom?" by Curtiss A. Hartley for Friday, 23 June 2017 - Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction,
and arrogance before failure.
19 Better to be humble among the poor
than share the spoil with the proud.
20 He who has skill in a matter will succeed;
he who trusts in Adonai will be happy.
21 A wise-hearted person is said to have discernment,
and sweetness of speech adds to learning.
22 Common sense is a fountain of life to one who has it,
whereas fools are punished by their own folly.
23 The wise man’s heart teaches his mouth,
and to his lips it adds learning.
24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
sweet to the taste and healing for the body.
25 There can be a way which seems right to a person,
but at its end are the ways of death.
26 A working man’s appetite acts on his behalf,
because his hunger presses him on.
27 A worthless person digs up evil [gossip] —
it is like scorching fire on his lips.
-------
Wise King Solomon was an early creator of the memes: those short sayings that we find everywhere on social networking sites. The book of Proverbs is his collection of pithy and insightful comments on how to live a life pleasing to God. Since there was no internet in his day, perhaps Solomon was writing bumper stickers for the chariots and carts cruising the cobbled streets near his palace!
If Proverbs 16:18 were made into a bumper sticker or a meme, it would no doubt receive mixed reviews. Some might claim it’s too harsh to say “Pride goes before destruction.” We are raised to believe in ourselves and to take pride in our skills and accomplishments. Others may cheer that those who think too highly of themselves would be knocked off their pedestal. God inspired Solomon to write those words, and the following verses continue the theme. Using phrases like “a lowly spirit,” “heeding instruction,” and “using gracious words,” we learn a strong point: though the world may waver on what is right and wrong, God’s Word is the authority on living a life pleasing to Him. "Cleanse Me" by J. Edwin Orr 1. Search me, O God, and know my heart today, Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray; See if there be some wicked way in me; Cleanse me from every sin, and set me free. 2. I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin; Fulfill Thy word and make me pure within; Fill me with fire, where once I burned with shame; Grant my desire to magnify Thy name. 3. Lord, take my life, and make it wholly Thine; Fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine; Take all my will, my passion, self and pride; I now surrender, Lord, in me abide. 4. O Holy Ghost, revival comes from Thee; Send a revival, start the work in me; Thy Word declares Thou wilt supply our need; For blessings now, O Lord, I humbly plead. Thought for Today: The proud will be humbled, but the humble will be honored.[Proverbs 29:23]. Please pray: That many people in Gabon will come to know Yeshua the Messiah and receive the fullness of the Ruach HaKodesh. |
No comments:
Post a Comment