Today’s Scrip-Bit 12 June 2008 Judges 13:24‏

12 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

.Judges 13:24    And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him.
 
Yes Friends, another bit of drama beautifully scripted by the Lord, to prove that whatever He brings us to, He will also bring us through. Israel had been disobedient again, ‘and the Lord delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.’  (Jdg13:1) But people, at the same time He also prepared their deliverance, sending His angel to a barren woman. Hn! One of them always seems to play a pivotal role in the lives of His leading men; like the mothers of Samuel and John. The angel told Manoah’s wife, ‘For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son, and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.’ (Jdg.13:5) Nazarites consecrated themselves to God, not eating unclean food, nor imbibing strong drink, or cutting their hair. The angel told her that she shouldn’t touch strong drink or unclean food during her pregnancy either. ‘And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him. But, like Adam, women were Samson’s downfall. His first wife was a Philistine. He married her against his Jewish parents wishes, not telling them that it was the Lord’s way of getting back at their enemies. He killed a lion barehanded on his way to arrange the marriage, ‘and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him,’ (Jdg.14:6) then later on found a hive of bees living in the carcass, from which he got honey for himself and his parents. Then he played ‘Riddle I this,’ with the Philistine men at his prenuptial feast, promising thirty sheets and thirty changes of clothes to anyone who could solve it by the seventh day. Since he had kept the whole lion escapade a secret, they could not solve the riddle and threatened the wife to burn her and her family if she didn’t coerce Samson into telling her. Poor woman, afraid for her welfare, cried her eyes out to Samson, who eventually told her. So the men boasted at sundown on the seventh day: ‘What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a lion?’ (Jdg.14:18) But Sammy was cool, just said they found out because they messed with his wife. Then he went out and killed thirty of them to pay the debt, and angrily went back to his parents house. ‘But Samson’s wife was given to his companion, whom he used as a friend.’ (Jdg.14:20) With friends like that, who needs enemies eh? And when Samson found out. Wow! He rounded up three hundred foxes, tied two tails together, set them ablaze and loosed them in the Philistines cornfields. They retaliated by burning Samson’s in-laws. Then Sammy ‘smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.’ (Jdg.15:8) That only caused the Philistines to turn up the heat on the Israelites, until a group went to Sammy and pleaded with him to give himself up. They bound him with two new ropes and took him back to the Philistines, who harangued him. But Friends, like Bruh David and Goliath, Sammy was fighting the Lord’s battle, and when the Spirit came mightily upon him again, he easily broke the ropes, ‘as flax burnt with fire,’ picked up the new jawbone of an ass that was nearby and waded into them with it, then boasted, ‘with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.’ (Jdg.15:16) But the Lord wasn’t finished with Sammy, for when he threw away the jawbone, he discovered he was thirsty and cried out to God, ‘Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst…’ So the Lord took the same jawbone, found a hollow spot and presto! There was water. Sammy drank, and his spirit was revived. The moral of the story; Friends, don’t mess with the Lord! (smile) To be continued. Much LOVE!..He always provides the tools…to do His work…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 11 June 2008 1 Peter 2: 19-21‏

11 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

1 Peter 2:19-21    For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongly. For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it: ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow in his steps.
 
Yes my Friends, the Christian walk sure isn’t easy. To walk totally in our Saviour’s footsteps is impossible for mortal beings, since we don’t have His Godly parts, but we’re still expected to bear suffering bravely. Jesus said that if we’re slapped on one cheek, we should offer the other one too. Even forgiving seventy times seven is not enough. We ought to forgive all the time. If somebody steals our stuff, offer them more. Love your enemies, treat them well. Oh People, these are difficult things, foreign to human nature, but Jesus did them willingly for our sake, and if we’re to be His followers, we must give it our best effort. We’re to obey those in authority, even the harsh, unfair ones. ‘For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God, endure grief, suffering wrongly.’ It’s tough, but Jesus expects it. All of the Apostles and early Christians suffered some kind of injustice because of their faith. In fact, from the birth of Christianity, till today, believers have been persecuted for simply being Christians. Many have gone the full mile, giving their very lives. It’s their sacrifices that enabled the Church to grow and the Word to spread and stay alive until our time. It’s now our duty to ensure that the Church keeps on growing and the Word spreading to all ends of the earth, as Jesus asked. It’s comparatively easy to pay the price when you’ve done wrong. As Peter asks, ‘For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently?’ None really. We should all be able to stand our own bounce. But People, it sure is tough, unfair and unjust, when you’ve got to pay for things you didn’t do. But look at it from Jesus’ point of view nuh Friends. He died that tragic death on the cross to wash away our sins. He, ‘who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth.’ (1 Pet.22:22) To make matters worse, He wasn’t really given a choice. His Father said go and do it, and He did. Do you think He even wanted to die, much less so violently? Certainly not! Even the night before, in the Garden of Gethsemane, when the emotional pain and anguish assaulted Him, He pleaded for mercy, but the Father denied His request. ‘Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief.’ (Is.53:10) Yes Friends, and in possibly the greatest moment of obedience in mankind’s existence, He accepted His tragic fate, the role He was born to play, and penitently said, ‘Not my will, but thine.’ That’s how we are to be also people; obedient and accepting of our fate under the Lord’s guidance. He won’t lead us astray or cause us to come to unnecessary harm, but He certainly expects us to take the buffets and blows the cruel world meets out, with more equanimity than the ordinary unbeliever. Rest assured that there’s always a good reason  for the things He allows in our lives, both good and bad. That’s why we’ve been given the Holy Spirit; to provide us with some belly and backbone, so we don’t whimper, cry and complain over every little injustice or setback we suffer. The world’s not fair. Jesus learned that the hard way; so must we. Life won’t always be rough, but as Job famously noted to his dissident wife, we can’t expect only good from God and no bad; there must be some balance. It’s just that when we do experience the hard times, the unfair breaks, the obvious injustice, we learn to stand strong; fight them as best we can, but if they do overwhelm us, then we surrender, and say to Him with humble grace, ‘Not my will Lord, but thine.’ Much LOVE!…it’s not for us to reason why…just to bear up valiantly…under the vicissitudes of life…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 June 2008 Hosea 14:9‏

10 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Hosea 14:9    Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them? for the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein.
 
Yes Friends, we all claim to know that ‘the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them,’ but why are so many of us not walking the walk eh? Is it that we are not just? Failure to walk the walk doesn’t say much about us or help the cause of Christ, but hinders it, brings it into disrepute. Yesterday we talked about returning to the Lord from our worshipping of fleshly lusts, which put us into His bad books. (Hos.14:1-2) Today we’ll look at some of the reasons why Hosea advocated change, (Hos;14:3-8) There’s one statement that amazes me: ‘neither will we say anymore to the work of our hands, Ye are our God’s.’  (Vs.3) Hn! How can we make something then worship it eh? It doesn’t make sense. Where does it get it’s power from? Had to be from us, since we made it. But something can only be considered ‘worshipful’ if it’s outside of your control, like the Lord God Jehovah, over whom we have absolutely no power. And the benefits of serving the Lord and plentiful and wonderful, as Hosea pointed out to Israel. So let’s consider a few. Hosea says, ‘for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy.’ (Vs.3) That’s so true Friends. Throughout the Bible the Lord’s positioned Himself as a champion of widows, orphans and strangers. And believe me, there are a lot of those unfortunates in our society. Remember too people, that mercy is not earnable, but derives from the generosity of our God, His wanting to give us good things we don’t really deserve. ‘I will heal their backsliding…will love them freely; for my anger is turned away…’ (Vs.4) Wow! What a magnanimous deity! He’ll help us curb our worldly lusts and LOVE us freely, cause His anger dissipates once, like lost sheep, we return to the fold. Friends, can you imagine the magnitude of that forgiveness and the depth of LOVE He has for us? It just boggles the imagination! It’s Jesus’ parable about the prodigal son; the penniless, profligate offspring that recognizes the error of his ways and returns home to a hero’s welcome, rather than a sharp dressing down. What more can we ask of Him eh? Not much. But He’s so happy to see us back in the fold that He promises to be like blessed dew to us, and we ‘shall grow as the lily..’ graceful and beautiful, ‘and cast forth roots as Lebanon.’ deep and strong. (Vs.5) Our ‘branches shall spread,’ wide and leafy, like boughs in the fullness of spring. Our beauty ‘shall be as the olive tree,’ considered very comely. (Vs.6) As Bruh David says: ‘But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God.’ (Ps.52:3) Beautiful and upright! ‘They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as the corn; and grow as the vine: the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.’ (Vs.7) Yes people, we shall be fruitful and multiply under the Lord’s tender nurturing. Brings to mind the vision that Daniel saw of a strong tree that grew up to heaven and across the earth, with beautiful leaves and plentiful fruit, ‘and in it was meat for all.’ (Dan.4:11-12) Yes Friends, that one tree fed everybody; fowl, beast and man. Such is the power and glory of our God. Then, I love the way Hosea writes, ‘Ephraim shall say, What have I to do anymore with idols? I have heard him, and observed him: I am like a green fir tree. From me is thy fruit found.’ (Vs.8) Yes Friends, in the Lord is our fruit found, and Jesus reiterated it in John 15:4-5, when He says He’s the vine and we the branches, and if we abide in Him, then we’ll bear fruit, but if we don’t, we’ll be barren, for without Him we can do nothing. That’s the gospel truth people, ‘And who is wise..shall understand these things? prudent…shall know them? for the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein.’ Oh Friends, let’s try to be wise, prudent and just, for the other option is unthinkable. Much LOVE!..let’s all shout..we’ll choose the Lord…Amen!
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 June 2008 Hosea 14:1-2‏

09 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Hosea 14:1-2    O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine equity. Take with you words, and turn to the Lord: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously: so will we render the calves of our lips.
 
Yes Friends, it’s time for us to return to the Lord, our God. There’s certainly too much works of the flesh manifested in our world today. We’re being overwhelmed by the stuff Bruh Paul cited in Galatians 5:19-21: ‘Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, idolatry, lasciviousness, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings and such like.’ The list of negative behaviour is long and costly, with only one end, if we continue down this road; eventual destruction. None of the above things uplift the human spirit; they all demean and denigrate God’s handiwork. Now that certainly isn’t His desire or purpose for us. How did we reach such a low state of grace eh? Believe me people, it’s only by God’s mercy that we’re still existing, for, left completely to our own devices, we’d keep going full tilt down that road of fleshly desires we seem to cherish so much, until we annihilate ourselves. Friends, the basic reason we’ve almost hit rock bottom is very simple; we’ve turned away from the Lord, disobeying His Word. Like Hosea said of the despicable, debauched, idolatrous Israel of his time; ‘for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.’ The same applies to us today. And though some of us are seriously trying to improve it, the evil majority still rules, and sadly, appears to be getting stronger. So how do we extricate ourselves from this sad situation? Again, it’s simple, though not easy: Turn back to following the one and only true God, Jehovah. As Hosea says; ‘Take with you words, and turn to the Lord: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously: so we will render the calves of our lips.’ (praising God, not the idols) Joel recommends fasting, weeping and mourning. ‘Rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.’ (Joel 2:13) Oh people, what else must be said for us to understand and obey? There’s no other deity worshipped by humans that has Jehovah’s capacity for LOVE, forgiveness and mercy. So what’s the problem eh? Historically, numerous societies have perished on embracing that negative lifestyle, why do we think we’ll escape the same fate? Friends, only the Most High can save us from our foolishness, but time’s running out, which means, to leave our children’s children a decent legacy, we’ve got to start rejecting the false pleasures of the world right now. Let’s take Bruh Paul’s advice in Hebrew’s 13:15: ‘By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.’ Much LOVE!…on the rough, rugged road that’s life…God’s our best bet…the only sure thing…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 8 June 2008 Psalm 117‏

08 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Psalm 117    O Praise the Lord all ye nations: praise him all ye people. For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the Lord endureth for ever. Praise ye the Lord.
 
Ah Friends, another week has gone by and another day devoted to thanks and praise has arrived. As I keep saying, when in doubt, thanks and praise is the best answer. Well today my spirit was in a bit of a funk. The arthritic body was tired, suffering from a lack salt water and sunshine: Oh for a dip in the therapeutic ocean! (smile) Sleep was also hard to come by, partly due to the unseasonal thirty something Celsius degree weather we’ve been experiencing this weekend. To make matters worse, I could not figure out why my A/C wasn’t working. I’d put it on before going out to do some repairs on my car, which meant being out in the hot sun in a friend’s driveway. That was frustrating enough since we had to redo certain things, while the sun’s intensity increased, then to get home and no A/C. Hn! I was ready to blow my cool. I checked everything I could, even went outside and tapped the unit a few times. Note, I said tapped, not slapped, (smile) though I was sorely tempted, and amazingly, my language wasn’t very flowery. That’s the truth children. I resisted the temptation; did not let my bosom become foolish. Aren’t you all proud of me? (smile) Even when I realized, that my turning off the main switch for the furnace a few days ago was the problem, I didn’t get too upset with myself. In all this, I did no serious sin. Wow! ‘Praise the Lord…For his merciful kindness is great toward us.’ Now does that mean I’m getting better? I surely hope so. And the point of it all? If I can improve my patience level, then there’s hope for us all. But Friends, it takes a conscious effort, that’s very worthwhile, for there are many tangible benefits. Your spirit doesn’t get thrown out of sync; what anger and impatience does. You think and react more positively in terms of solutions to the problem. You don’t take out your frustrations by destroying stuff, or abusing anybody, including yourself, which saves you money, physical, emotional and spiritual energy, as well as pride. But the biggest benefit of offering thanks and praise when you’ve encountered an intractable problem, is that it takes your mind off yourself and the problem and places it on God; where it should have been in the first place. Oh people, how often do we hear that the first place to run in times of difficulty is to the Most High, but yet we still turn to Him last, only after all our man made solutions have failed. That’s where we flounder most of the time; trying to rely on our own limited resources. That’s also a form of sinful, selfish pride, since from day one, the Lord said to seek Him first when things go wrong, not last. But enough preaching…Steups! I dislike that word, cause it conveys a..a sense of force..of brow beating, which I detest. So let’s just say enough discourse for today. That’s not what some of you are thinking though. (smile) But seriously Friends, let’s start putting this aspect of going to the Lord first into practice nuh. It will certainly benefit us as individuals, societies and nations. Let’s do as Bruh David advised: ‘O Praise the Lord, all ye nations: praise him all ye people. For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the Lord endureth for ever. Praise ye the Lord.’ Much LOVE!…always remember…our God…He is the key…the answer…to every, everything…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 June 2008 1 Samuel 3:7‏

07 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

1 Samuel 3:7    Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him.
 
 Friends, no two people ever seem to come to God the same way. Samuel was born to a barren first wife, Hannah, after she beseeched God for offspring, promising to lend him to God, if He granted her wish. Thus Samuel was apprenticed to the High Priest Eli at a tender age. At that time, Israel was going through one of it’s godless periods, consequently, there was a dearth of prophets in the land, none to reveal the vision of God to the people, corroborating the saying, that where there’s no prophet and no vision, the people suffer. Even the High Priest’s sons were corrupt, so the Lord chastened Eli for not having rule over his sons, and promised to give the High Priest’s role to another line. ‘And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.’  (1 Sam.2:35) Samuel would be the one to begin the revival of God’s word in Israel. But he was unaware of his great calling until that fateful evening, lying in bed, he heard someone call his name. Thinking it was Eli, he got up and ran to him. But Eli hadn’t called, and sent Samuel back to bed. Shortly thereafter, he again heard his name, got up once more and ran to Eli’s side, to find that Eli had not called. That’s where Today’s Bit comes in. Samuel helped Eli with the ministry, but he was still unfamiliar with God’s machinations and with his own role. So total confusion must have reigned in his young mind when he heard his name a third time, went to Eli, and again found it to be a false alarm. But Eli realized what was happening. ‘Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak Lord, for thy servant heareth.’ (1 Sam.3:9) So Samuel went back to bed. And the Lord called yet again. ‘Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.’ (1 Sam.3:10) The Lord then revealed His plans for Israel and in particular the sons of Eli. Finally, Samuel was made aware of his destiny. But since it included the destruction of Eli’s line, he was afraid to tell Eli the Lord’s tidings. Eli had been warned though, and when he got Samuel to tell him everything, his response was admirable. ‘It is the Lord: let him do what seemeth good… And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did not let none of his words fall to the ground.’ (1Sam.3:18-19) Ah Friends, this story tells us so much about the God we worship: His faithfulness; to Hannah, to Samuel, who’s  righteousness He upheld. His fondness for drama. (smile) He likes to interweave His actions, like a good script writer, and also use the most unlikely people to play the leading roles. He could have surely raised up a mighty prophet in a straightforward manner. But that’s not His style. It’s just like He made Jesus poor, lowly and humble. He will also allow us to be disobedient for long periods, but certainly not forever. See how He finally brought Eli’s house to heel. When we get to prolong disobedient acts without any retribution, it just means He’s giving us more rope to hang ourselves, or a chance to get out on our own. The same goes for disobedient societies, and ours is a prime candidate right now. The only safe way Friends, is to acknowledge His supremacy, feed on His word, and stay obedient as best we can. Otherwise, we’re headed for destruction. Much LOVE!…trust and obey…it ‘s the only sensible way…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 6 June 2008 Galatians 6:8.‏

06 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Galatians 6:8    For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
 
Why then Friends, do so many of us knowingly sow to the flesh? Why do so many believers, who should know better, still let the evil desires of our sinful nature run our lives eh? We will never be totally oblivious of the tantalizing effects that the lusts of the flesh provide, but as followers of Christ, we’re expected to keep them to the bare minimum. The actual flesh of our body dies, rots and disintegrates, returns to the dust from whence it came. Likewise all things associated with or glorified by the flesh; they die and rot too, thus are useless in the next life. And if perchance, we don’t know what the desires of the flesh are (smile) Bruh Paul saw it fit to list them in Gal.5:19-21. Acts like gross immorality, murder, idolatry, hatred, witchcraft, etc. ‘..as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.’ (5:21) How much plainer can he be eh people? The Galatians were apparently backsliding. Having received Christ through faith in the Spirit, they were turning back to the desires of the flesh, which currently dominates our world, causing many of us to do the same thing. Oh Friends, we consist of two parts; a fleshly body that’s inured in sin, and dies after a short sojourn on earth, and a spiritual soul that lives on forever. Now which is more important eh; the one that dies and ceases to exist, or that which lives forever? Of course it’s a no brainer! The spiritual soul is way more important, so we need to carefully cultivate and nurture it, since that’s the vehicle we’ll be inhabiting for all eternity. The fleshly things seem glamorous and glitzy, but Friends the spiritual things ARE bright and attractive. Wherever true LOVE abounds, it must be spectacular! And while, like brass plated gold, the flesh loses it’s sheen, like true gold, the spiritual doesn’t; it retains its lustre forever. That’s why Jesus said we should lay up treasure in heaven, the spiritual realm, and not on earth, because those can rot or be stolen, but in heaven, there’s no rust or thieves. (Mat.6:19-20) And there’s only one way to avoid the disastrous pitfalls of the flesh. ‘This I say then, Walk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh: and these are contrary one to the other.’ (Gal.5:16-17) Exactly; the two lifestyles are contentious and adversarial. It’s either or. Jesus said that you can’t serve God and Mammon at the same time; you can’t bless and curse out of the same mouth; a vessel can best be used for a single purpose. It therefore behoves us Friends, as followers of Christ, to seriously consider what we’re sowing; be it fleshly or spiritual. ‘Be not deceived: God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.’ (Gal.5:7) From the day God made man, He implemented that principle. People, we can’t outwit God; disobey Him, then expect to escape divine retribution. So if we wish to reap life everlasting, then Friends, starting right now, we’ve got to be industriously sowing seeds of the Spirit, so later on, we can enjoy that fruitful harvest with Jesus. Much LOVE!…watch and pray…the spirit indeed is willing…but the flesh is weak…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 June 2008 Isaiah 53:3-5‏

05 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Isaiah 53:3-5    He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him: he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: Yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
 
Ah Friends, how sad that one without sin, had to pay our sin debt. But Isaiah’s prophecy was made long before Jesus was born. God foreshadowed it; planted the idea centuries before it happened. That’s why Israel kept looking for the Messiah to come and deliver them from their oppression. But they had it all wrong. They expected a mighty warrior King, decked out in full regalia. Instead, they got a lowly, humble carpenter’s son, facing life as an itinerant preacher. Possibly that’s why many never believed when He did show up; their expectations were off course. They expected physical relief, when God intended spiritual rebirth. How could the great Messiah be a simple joe-blow with a bunch of ne’er do wells hanging on to his frock tails eh? Consequently, as Isaiah prophesied, ‘He is despised and rejected of men;’ scorned and abandoned. ‘A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.’ Oh Friends, that was so true of Jesus’ earthly life. He bore much pain and suffering, both physically and emotionally. As Bruh Paul says,’…but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.’ (Heb.4:15) ‘And we hid, as it were, our faces from him: he was despised and we esteemed him not.’ What a crying shame people! Isaiah must have had a real good chat with God on this, because so far, he’s perfect in foretelling the dire circumstances that our Saviour would suffer. Like many of us do, people must have turned their heads, or passed by on the other side of the road when they saw Him coming. So just imagine the hurt Jesus must have felt nuh people. You know how we feel about ingrates. The same ones He came to save, vilifying and literally abusing Him. ‘Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows.’ Yes Friends, He did bear our spiritual wickedness. ‘Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree.’ (1 Pet.2:24) ‘Yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.’ We were so stupid and arrogant, we figured He’d been judged, struck down by God for His own wrongdoing. Ah Friends, what a mistake, what a lie! ‘But he was wounded for our transgressions,’ nailed and speared for our sins. ‘He was bruised for our iniquities.’ Yes, it’s for our immoral and evil ways that He suffered such utter humiliation, not His own, for He was God’s Son, perfect in every way. ‘The chastisement of our peace was upon him.’ For sure people! Our peace with God was procured by Jesus undergoing disciplinary action for us. ‘And with his stripes we are healed.’ Oh Friends, those are possibly the saddest, but also the most joyous words ever spoken: It’s surely sad that Christ had to pay for our sins, but it’s certainly wonderful that He did. And it’s only because He was willing to be our scapegoat, by the shedding of His Holy blood, ‘who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification,’ (Rom.4:25) that we can talk about things like salvation and eternal life. So please, please Friends, let’s not forget all that Jesus has done for us. Let’s show some gratitude nuh; shower Him with thanks and praise, and walk humbly in His footsteps. That’s all he asks of us. Much LOVE!…compared to what He’s done for us…Jesus asks very little in return…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 June 2008 Ecclesiastes 12:13-14‏

04 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14    Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
 
So what did Sol deduce from his extensive search for the purpose and meaning of this earthly life? No one was better suited to conduct this survey than him. He had the available time, wisdom, money, help; everything needed to do it properly. In the end he acknowledges that a man should work faithfully and enjoy the fruits of his labour; that’s his reward. However, setting the acquisition of wisdom, knowledge, artistic goods, material riches, prominent positions and such worldly things as our goal is all vanity, because we die and leave them all behind for others to fight over and/or enjoy. So what’s our purpose down here then? The ultimate purpose he concludes, is to ‘Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.’ What a pronouncement Friends! That’s what the wisest man deduced from his extensive survey. As he keeps saying, all else is vanity. But this shouldn’t have been such a momentous revelation, for way back when the Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt, Moses said to them: ‘And now Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him; and to serve the Lord with all thy heart and with all thy soul.’ (Deut.10:12) And Friends, it hasn’t changed one iota since then. Sol searched diligently and got the same result. Later on, the Prophet Micah said likewise: ‘He hath showed thee O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?’ (Mic.6:8) This means people, that the guiding light, in whatever we say or do, must be the reverence of God and the keeping of His dictates. ‘For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.’ Yes Friends, all our acts and words, good or bad, shall be judged on that fateful day the Lord appoints. Sol himself warns: ‘Rejoice, O young man in thy youth…but know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into judgement.’ (Eccle.11:9) Jesus reinforced this. ‘But I say unto you. That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement.’ (Mat.12:36) Bruh Paul also referred to it several times in his letters to the churches. ‘Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness..’ (Acts 17:31) So there it is in a nutshell Friends. Sol worked his way through all the pleasures of the world, only to find them lacking, to discover that our main purpose on this earth is to LOVE and serve God faithfully. All else is vanity; useless, with a hefty price to pay later on. ‘For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body…whether it be good or bad.’ (2 Cor.5:10) If that doesn’t spur us on to do good things with a right heart, then Friends, I don’t know what else will. Much LOVE!…him that don’t hear…shall surely feel…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 June 2008 Ecclesiastes 7:8-9‏

03 Jun 2008 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living

Ecclesiastes 7:8-9    Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
 
Our God is really something else yes Friends! Although I know His modus operandi ranges from the simple and direct to the eccentric and oblique, His unique manner of showing us the error of our ways still amazes me every time I encounter it, like just now. The Lord pulled a fast one on me, that’s why I was laughing. As usual, I asked for guidance in finding a Bit, but at that particular time, there was anger in my spirit from an earlier petty argument. I subsequently rejected two passages I had previously considered cause they needed some research and I was in no mood for that, and kept on looking for something simpler. I’m currently reading Ecclesiastes for my sight deficient mother, with a bookmark where I’ve reached, so at one point it naturally opened there, and I kept searching. Actually, today I read her the first half of Chapter seven, but obviously paid no real heed to those verses. This time though, through the Spirit’s unfathomable workings, my eyes were irresistibly drawn to them and I couldn’t help but burst out laughing at their timely relevance. Hn,hn! Talk about our God’s wily ways. He probably mused, ‘ So yuh want something easy eh mih son? Well here. No need for research on this, cause you’re a living example.’ And you know what people? As soon as I began laughing, like mist on a sudden breath of wind, my anger just disappeared and my spirit regained its equilibrium. Wow! ‘For laughter is a tranquilizer with no side effects.’ (Arnold Glasow) Also, ‘unlike medicine, laughter costs us nothing, and can be partaken of as often as we see fit…A good hearty laugh is therapy for our minds and bodies.’ That’s so true Friends. It’s from a Devotional called ‘One More Day; Daily Meditations for People with Chronic Illness. From that viewpoint, I can surely agree with Solomon that ‘Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof.’ The end of my angry mood was certainly better than the start, for while the anger had my spirit in grasp, everything was out of sync; I couldn’t think straight, writing the Bit seemed an onerous chore; the enemy’s negativity controlled my entire being. And Friends, though we know that ‘the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit,’ it’s not an easy thing to do, especially when the evil forces seem to be bombarding you from all sides. Even Solomon, reputed to be the richest, wisest man ever, who supposedly penned these words of wisdom, he made an absolute mess of his life at the end by turning away from the God who had brought him to such prominence. It means that oftimes we’re not too bright, allowing the evil flesh to rule us, instead of the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Lord knows that the walk of faith is not easy Friends, that’s why He gave us the Holy Spirit as a guide and helpmate. When the flesh acts up, we’ve got to immediately turn to the voice of truth that resides in our soul. There’s so much irritating nonsense in our world, that it will drive us crazy if we allow it to. I guess that’s why the Most High drew my attention today to that most appropriate verse; ‘Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.’ Please Friends, let’s try and reduce the occasions when our bosoms are foolish. Pray for the ole fella.(smile) Much LOVE!…slow to wrath equals understanding…hasty of spirit equals foolish…
 

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