Today’s Scrip-Bit   28 October 2021 Proverbs 27:1.

28 Oct 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 27:1.     Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of the work week, and some of us are getting excited as the work week winds down, eagerly looking forward to the weekend and all the frivolity it plans to bring. Yes sir, from the beginning of the week, all some of us look forward to is the weekend and what goodies it has in store for us. But I want to pull us up short with some wise advice from Cousin Sol on the matter of thinking too far ahead, without the Lord’s will reckoned in. He says: ‘Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.’ (Prov. 27:1) 

And that’s wise advice we all should heed my brethren, for none of us knows what lies ahead in each day for us, but we still make golden plans for them. Just check the obits to see how many of us who went to bed last night, presumable hale and hearty, but did not arise this morning. Or how many of us leave to go to work on a morning and don’t ever arrive back home in the evenings. Life is unpredictable and we should not be overly presumptuous and make sumptuous plans for our days. (smile) Now that doesn’t mean we can’t make plans, but plans that consider the will of God in them. 

Here’s how James, Jesus’ brother puts it, referring to it as unchristian conduct. ‘Go to now (come now), ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain (make a profit): whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice (boast) in your boasting (arrogance): all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.’ (James 4:13-17) 

Yes friends, there’s a lot we can learn from those scriptures; like when we are being foolish and plan as though we control our destiny, or presume we have the resources to control it, when we don’t. Remember all the earth and what’s therein, including us, belongs to the Lord, and He doles it out to whom He wishes in what amount He desires. So, in making plans we must consider Him, at least consult Him and see what He has to say. 

For, as we’ve been told throughout the Good Book and have seen for ourselves, our lives are like a vapour, a column of steam or smoke that appears on earth for a short while, then quickly vanishes without a trace. And since we don’t know when our column of vapour will disappear, we have to take the Creator’s will into our planning as best we can. And the scholars offer these interesting explanations on those verses. ‘4:15. This, or that: This verse teaches that God does have something for Christians to do and that they should plan accordingly. James condemns only elaborate planning that omits God (cf. Prov. 16:9).’ 

And I’ll be charitable here and quote that verse for us. (smile) Cousin Sol says there: ‘A man’s heart deviseth (plans) his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.’ (Prov. 16:9) That’s because the Lord is sovereign over everything a man does, including his ungodly scheming and planning. As the ole people would say; man plans, but God laughs. And that’s the awesome truth as so many of us have found out to our detriment, when we don’t include God in our earthly plans. 

But let’s get back to the scholars and the last verse of James that we read. ‘4:17. To do good here requires including God in one’s plans. Omitting God is not merely bad planning; it is a sin.’  Now that’s a tough row to hoe, but it does make sense. If you are a Christian, a believer in God, and you know how to do good, but don’t do it, then that should automatically put a black mark against your name. And unfortunately, that happens a lot in our Christian circles today. Too many of us know the good we ought to do, but blatantly and stubbornly refuse to do it. No wonder our world is in such a mess and the unbelievers don’t take us seriously. 

And just in case you don’t believe what James says above there, then listen to this parable about the rich fool from his brother, Jesus. Having said to His listeners: ‘Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.’ (Luke 12:15) He then proceeded to tell them about the rich man whose land brought forth a plentiful crop, and he had nowhere to store it, so he decided to pull down all the old barns and build a bigger one so he could store all his harvest. 

‘And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease; eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided (stored up)? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.’ (Luke 12:19-21) Oh my people, it’s only common sense to be rich to our Creator, who owns everything and gives us everything, including the breath of life that keeps us going. 

And I like the explanation the scholars offer as per ‘12:21. Here Jesus brings out the meaning of verses 16-20. Notice that what Jesus calls for follows quite logically out of His own example (2. Cor. 8:9), as well as out of God’s graciousness toward all who seek Him (Rom. 10:12). Jesus is thus not speaking of a pay-as-you-go faith, but of participating in a relationship in which God already provides what he wishes His people to give back to Him.’ 

And I would not be a good teacher if I did not quote those verses the scholars referenced above there. (smile) It’s going to make the Bit longer, but all of us wiser. So here goes. 2 Cor. 8:9 says: ‘For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.’  In other words, Jesus was, is, and always will be the supreme example of sacrificial LOVE! Meanwhile, Rom. 10:12 tells us: ‘For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.’ 

Yes my people, whomsoever shall call upon the Lord shall be saved, regardless of race, creed, colour or class! So, having read, understood and digested all that scripture, (smile) let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!!!) our Thursday Blessings; blessings that the Lord has so benevolently bestowed on us to do His earthly work. Altogether now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! 

I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’ 

It’s now our duty to go out and share those blessings with others just as generously as the Lord shared them with us. Much LOVE!

…true wisdom entails…including God in EVERYTHING we do…                                                                                                                

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 26 August 2020 Ecclesiastes 12:13.

27 Aug 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ecclesiastes 12:13.     ​Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

Ah mih people, the summer is quickly coming to an end… and many of us didn’t even have the time to notice it was summer and do all the things we enjoy doing in this wonderful season…and we all know why. (smile) And it wasn’t bad summer weather at all, hot – like you know where – with some rain and thunderstorms, what we would have termed a good summer if we were able to engage in all the usual summer activities. But now it’s time to buckle down for fall and the cold winter days ahead. 

Who knows what life will be like then eh? Will there be school, will there be some ease in the pandemic and strife, or will we see another round of the scourge and more strife? Questions, questions! That’s all we have, and only time will reveal the answers! Oh what a wonderful philosophical statement! (smile) Lighten up mih friends, our wonderful God is still on the throne, still controlling things, and that’s all we need to know! 

He’s the same yesterday, today and forever, which means we know exactly what to expect from Him, so there’s no need for us to hold our heads and bawl, He will make it right in His own time, when we are sufficiently repentant and have turned back to Him, sincerely welcoming Him back with open arms. Back to our homes, our schools, our society, when life once again focuses and throbs around His everlasting sovereignty! 

The longer our serious, mind boggling problems persist, the stronger I feel that only repentance and a return to God will save us. The only problem is how long can we afford to pussyfoot around when more people are dying everyday through sickness and strife? Yes, the Lord will save a remnant, like He did with Israel every time He punished them for disobedience, but I believe the size of that remnant will depend on how soon we move to bring Him back to our society. 

So in effect, the ball is in our court, we are the deciders of our faith – turn back to God and prosper, or continue down the destructive, hell-bent trail we’re now on and suffer divine intervention. Wow! Is the ole fella waxing philosophical this morning or what! (smile) But here are some interesting words from one who was ever so much wiser than me. 

We talking about Cousin Sol, and writing as the preacher in Ecclesiastes, he says: ‘I returned and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. For man also knoweth not his time as the fishes that are taken in an evil (cruel) net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them.’ (Eccl. 9:11-12) 

And has an evil time ever fallen suddenly upon us my brethren! Oh some may say that it has not fallen suddenly because our evil deeds have been on a path of accumulation all along, and this is just the culmination. But however we parse it, these are indeed evil and unfortunate times. And I like the scholars’ brief explanations of those two verses above. ‘9:11-12. Five statements of unexpected results are followed by an explanation. Man’s ability cannot guarantee the results (vs.11) because of the equalizing effects of time and chance.’ 

Yes friends, our wealth, strength, wisdom, understanding and skill does not keep us from ‘sufferation,’ for we are all liable to the equalizing effects of time and chance, which happen unexpectedly to us all. Thus, the only thing we can be sure of in this life is the sovereignty of Jehovah God, who created us in His own spiritual image and still controls the reins of our lives, regardless of what the wise or evil man might think. And furthermore, as Cousin Sol says earlier in his famous treatise of a time for every purpose under heaven: ‘A time to LOVE and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.’ (Eccl. 3:8) 

Oh precious people, these crucial and most critical times are ones for LOVE and peace, not hate and war! The latter two will only drive more nails into our already prepared coffin. Only the godly traits of LOVE, peace, mercy, grace, forgiveness, kindness, friendship and the like, can save us in these turbulent and unrelenting times. And yes my fellow saints in Christ, Cousin Sol has some really good words of wisdom and advice in Ecclesiastes. Hear these, as he enjoins us to charity, which is so badly needed in this time of lack and hardship. 

‘Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days. Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth… As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit (wind), nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper (which will succeed), either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.’ (Eccl. 11:1-2,5-6) 

Now hear the scholars on those verses. ‘11:1-6. These verses contain a series of sayings about the uncertainty of human industry, and are held together by the fourfold occurrence of the expression thou knowest not. Although man cannot comprehend God’s work, nor predict success, he needs to be involved in life’s activities and trust God for the results.’ And that is exactly what I’m trying to get through to us my people! The only sure thing in this world is God, regardless of what we think or believe! And the only sure way to live this life with positive purpose is to interact sincerely with Him. 

And Cousin Sol wraps it up thus: ‘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.’ (Eccl. 12:13-14) That’s it in a nutshell friends! To live successfully, we need to reverence God and be obedient to His will, nothing else will suffice! 

And now that we’ve been reassured and re-indoctrinated (smile) to our earthly purpose, let’s go home declaring (awright!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our most wonderful position in Christ Jesus. All together now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And will it ever be glorious, if we endure to the end! Much LOVE!

…wisdom dictates…that bowing to Almighty God…is the true answer to life… 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 18 February 2020 Proverbs 27:1.

18 Feb 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 27:1.    ​Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring.

 

And yuh see how life could turn back and bite yuh! Yes, for all of you in the G.T.A, who were crowing yesterday morning because you didn’t have to go to work, yuh see the dangerous and messy conditions you have to go out in today…the white enemy all over, after a heavy snowfall last night! Serve yuh right for lording it over those who had to go and labour yesterday! (smile) 

Ah friends, it’s just another winter’s day in the northern climes, and as you valiantly forge through it, you must have a good attitude, laugh and chuckle, hope for and think of the sunshine and good weather that soon come, otherwise it’s just going to drive you crazy, as you slip and slide through it. You might not like the snow, but the wise thing to do is to mentally embrace it, with Jesus’ help of course, so you’re not always flustered and bothered when you encounter it. 

Yes, that can be easier said than done, but like everything else in this world, we have been endowed with the parts to live a pleasant and abundant life, we just have to put our best foot forward in Jesus’ name. And all of that brings us to this ever so important principle of scripture and life in general. Hear these immortal, truthful and wise words of Cousin Sol. ‘Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring.’ 

And Jesus described it ever so well in the parable of the rich fool, who had so much wealth and not enough space to store it, that he decided to tear down all and build bigger and better… ‘and there will I bestow (store) all my fruits (crops) and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.’ (Luke 12:18-19) Yes my brethren, that’s how too many of us behave, believers included. We live too much for the world’s wealth and pretty but worthless possessions. 

And Jesus continued His parable with these words of everlasting wisdom. ‘But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?’ Yeh friends, for the lawyers and other professionals involved in the tremendous and foolish litigation that will follow his death! We see that played out everyday in the lives of the rich and famous: somebody is never satisfied with their portion of the estate, or unhappy that they didn’t get any. 

And the warning is also in the Old Testament. In 1 Kings 20, when Ben-hadad, king of Syria, threatened Ahab, king of Israel to destroy Samaria unless he gave up his wealth and power voluntarily, Ahab answered: ‘Tell him, let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.’ (1 Kin. 20:11) Yes my people, we never know what’s going to happen in between time. And Ben-hadad in his righteous anger was defeated by Israel, obviously with God’s help, when he finally came against them. 

But getting back to Jesus’ parable of the rich fool. Here is how He ended it. ‘So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.’ (Luke 12:21) And the scholars explain: ‘12:21. Here Jesus brings out the meaning of verses 16-20. Notice that what Jesus calls for follows quite logically out of His own example (2 Cor.8:9), as well as out of God’s graciousness toward all who seek Him (Rom.10:12). Jesus is thus not speaking of a pay-as-you-go faith, but of participation in a relationship in which God already provides what He wishes His people to give back to Him.’ 

Oh my people, remember all that we have belongs to God, and we’re just stewards of His belongings, so it’s rather boldfaced of us to think that we’re giving Him our things. (smile) Anyway, we have space to highlight those two scriptures the scholars quote above. ‘For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.’ (2 Cor. 8:9) Yes, when coming to sacrificial LOVE, Jesus is the poster child for that, the mightiest example to be ever found! 

And the next verse declares (yeah!): ‘For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.’ (Rom.10:11-12) I put in verse 11 so that the context could be better understood, that our God is rich in mercy, grace, forgiveness, what ever have you, towards all and any that call on Him, in sincerity of heart, be they Jew or Gentile! So it doesn’t make sense for us to become so attached to the things of the world, as so many of us are. 

Now hear James theorize on the subject: ‘Go to (come) now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain (make a profit): Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this or that. But now ye rejoice (boast) in your boastings (arrogance): all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.’ (James 4:13-17) 

And the scholars offer a couple of explanations. ‘4:15. This, or that: This verse teaches that God does have something for Christians to do and that they should plan accordingly. James condemns only elaborate planning that omits God (cf. Prov. 16:9).’ ‘4:17. To do good here requires including God in one’s plans. Omitting God is not merely bad planning; it is sin.’ Now if all of that doesn’t grab our attention and teach us not leave God out of any of our business, then I don’t know what will. (smile) 

Now let’s go home declaring (yeah!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are! In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world.  Amen!’ 

And the end goal is to now go out and share that wonderful friendship and amazing LOVE with those who don’t know Him! Much LOVE!

…a man’s heart deviseth (plans) his way…but the Lord directeth his steps… (Prov.16:9)