Randy Green's Blog, page 447
March 30, 2013
Tweedledum and Tweedledee – Part 1
Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law strive with them [Proverbs 28:4].
I am writing this in the spring of 2012. This is an election year. Who will be President of the United States is at stake. Also at stake is who will control Congress. Of course there are also state and local elections, which will affect us considerably as well.
Who should I vote for? It is rather difficult to keep abreast of all the candidates running for office. Basing my decisions on party labels doesn’t exactly instill me with confidence in the results either! After years and decades of voting for the “lesser evil”, I am about petered out with choosing between Tweedledee and Tweedledum.
Thankfully, the Word of God affords us insight into this apparent Catch-22. The writer of Proverbs 28 leaves no wiggle room, when it comes to the eligibility of potential elected officials. He presents his analysis in the traditional manner of the Biblical Hebrew poetry. He employs parallelism, in this case antonymous parallelism.
Today we rhyme words at the end of lines as our expression of poetry. The Hebrews rhymed ideas between lines. They restated in line 2 the same concept(s) of line 1, only using different words to do so. This is known as synonymous parallelism. If the two lines present opposite concepts, it is antonymous parallelism.
Let’s diagram Proverbs 28:4 for purposes of illustrating this:
A. those who forsake the law
B. praise the wicked
A. those who keep the law
B. strive with them (i.e., with the wicked)
The two parallel lines each consist of “A” and “B”. They express opposite concepts, so the two “A’s” are opposites as also are the two “B’s”. The “A” lines identify two opposite sorts of fellows, while the two “B” lines expose their pattern of behavior. In this light let’s vet the two classifications of people in the text.
One category consists of people who reject the Bible. They want nothing to do with the Lord being their God. They can run their lives just fine without You, God, thank you very much. Of course when it comes to elections, they don’t want this stated in black and white like that. Egads! It would expose them for what they are and the godly folks wouldn’t vote for them!
The other category of people is comprised of those who embrace the Bible. They want the Lord to rule in their lives and in everyone else’s life too. The Lord’s rule over anyone’s life must be willingly given, so they don’t want to force anyone to be religious or to verbally praise the Lord. They realize this must come from the heart first and foremost, not from the mouth alone.
When it comes to elections, suchlike folks are desirous of seeing their country operate on godly principles. Extravagant spending beyond our means with increasing debt and interest payments beyond our ability to repay—this is one example of a principle denounced by the Lord in Scripture. Ergo, the righteous candidates will stick with the Bible and insist on balancing the budget…sooner rather than later!
Biblical morality must needs be promoted, so they desire a social climate in which fidelity in marriage is promulgated, abortion is eradicated, and homosexuality is no longer viewed as an acceptable alternate lifestyle. No persecution will be tolerated, but false teaching about these moral issues won’t be winked at either.
Here’s the thing. On the one hand there are those who want to determine right and wrong based on their own reasoning. Of course man’s reasoning is in a constant state of flux, so right and wrong today is not the same right and wrong of tomorrow or yesterday! Folks who view reality in such a fashion “praise the wicked”.
Oh, dear. We are out of time again. We must stop now to be alone with the Lord a space, before our eyes become too heavy and sleep overtakes us. We will continue this topic tomorrow.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
I am writing this in the spring of 2012. This is an election year. Who will be President of the United States is at stake. Also at stake is who will control Congress. Of course there are also state and local elections, which will affect us considerably as well.
Who should I vote for? It is rather difficult to keep abreast of all the candidates running for office. Basing my decisions on party labels doesn’t exactly instill me with confidence in the results either! After years and decades of voting for the “lesser evil”, I am about petered out with choosing between Tweedledee and Tweedledum.
Thankfully, the Word of God affords us insight into this apparent Catch-22. The writer of Proverbs 28 leaves no wiggle room, when it comes to the eligibility of potential elected officials. He presents his analysis in the traditional manner of the Biblical Hebrew poetry. He employs parallelism, in this case antonymous parallelism.
Today we rhyme words at the end of lines as our expression of poetry. The Hebrews rhymed ideas between lines. They restated in line 2 the same concept(s) of line 1, only using different words to do so. This is known as synonymous parallelism. If the two lines present opposite concepts, it is antonymous parallelism.
Let’s diagram Proverbs 28:4 for purposes of illustrating this:
A. those who forsake the law
B. praise the wicked
A. those who keep the law
B. strive with them (i.e., with the wicked)
The two parallel lines each consist of “A” and “B”. They express opposite concepts, so the two “A’s” are opposites as also are the two “B’s”. The “A” lines identify two opposite sorts of fellows, while the two “B” lines expose their pattern of behavior. In this light let’s vet the two classifications of people in the text.
One category consists of people who reject the Bible. They want nothing to do with the Lord being their God. They can run their lives just fine without You, God, thank you very much. Of course when it comes to elections, they don’t want this stated in black and white like that. Egads! It would expose them for what they are and the godly folks wouldn’t vote for them!
The other category of people is comprised of those who embrace the Bible. They want the Lord to rule in their lives and in everyone else’s life too. The Lord’s rule over anyone’s life must be willingly given, so they don’t want to force anyone to be religious or to verbally praise the Lord. They realize this must come from the heart first and foremost, not from the mouth alone.
When it comes to elections, suchlike folks are desirous of seeing their country operate on godly principles. Extravagant spending beyond our means with increasing debt and interest payments beyond our ability to repay—this is one example of a principle denounced by the Lord in Scripture. Ergo, the righteous candidates will stick with the Bible and insist on balancing the budget…sooner rather than later!
Biblical morality must needs be promoted, so they desire a social climate in which fidelity in marriage is promulgated, abortion is eradicated, and homosexuality is no longer viewed as an acceptable alternate lifestyle. No persecution will be tolerated, but false teaching about these moral issues won’t be winked at either.
Here’s the thing. On the one hand there are those who want to determine right and wrong based on their own reasoning. Of course man’s reasoning is in a constant state of flux, so right and wrong today is not the same right and wrong of tomorrow or yesterday! Folks who view reality in such a fashion “praise the wicked”.
Oh, dear. We are out of time again. We must stop now to be alone with the Lord a space, before our eyes become too heavy and sleep overtakes us. We will continue this topic tomorrow.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 29, 2013
Rude Awakenings – Part 2
A sated man loathes honey, but to a famished man any bitter thing is sweet [Proverbs 27:7].
He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be reckoned a curse to him [Proverbs 27:14].
Yesterday we descanted on Proverbs 27:7 and arrived at a good many conclusions. The analysis which preceded applies equally to v.14 of Proverbs 27. Imagine being in a sound sleep, dreaming about the greatest time of your life and living it all over again. Add to this the typical embellishments contained in sweet dreams, and you find yourself in third heaven!
Suddenly the time of your life comes to an end, as you hear someone’s voice blurting out like clanging cymbals and blaring trumpets. You jump to attention, none too happy for the rude awakening. You come to an abrupt realization, “Well I’ll be… It’s Damsel Daisy, my best girl! But what is she doing on my front porch at 4:30 AM, strumming her guitar and singing me love songs?”
So you ask her as much, but in a not so kind voice. Her response, “Oh, honey, I just finished writing this song for you, and I couldn’t wait for you to hear it. Do you like it?”
What do you think your retort would be? Could you honestly give it a rave review? Methinks not! You’d bellow, “It sucks, girl! Get back home with yourself and leave me be! If you want my opinion about a song ever again, make an appointment first!” And then you’d slam the door and return to bed, yearning for a repeat of your fantastic dream.
You see, even when your most favorite person comes to your home, even when your sweetie comes to sing your praises, it’s not automatically a good thing. It depends on the context. Every situation—and every book and every Bible verse—occurs within a context, not in a vacuum. Should we leave out the context we might arrive at the wrong destination. We may very well draw the wrong conclusion.
Such is the message of Proverbs 27:14. Let’s diagram it.
A. a person who blesses
B. a loud voice early in the morning
A. a friend who is blessed
B. a curse to him it is reckoned
The parallel ideas are “A” with “A” and “B” with “B”. There is a person who blesses and his friend whom he is blessing. The two occur parallel to each other. Even though a blessing is pronounced, the twofold context makes the blessing not so much a blessing.
1. a loud voice
2. early in the morning
Hence the blessing so-called was instead “reckoned a curse”. The style is antonymous parallelism. Without a context, all actions and words are incapable of being understood aright. Apart from their context we can only offer guesses in our interpretation of them.
Let’s learn the lesson from verses 7 and 14 of Proverbs 27. Let’s not accept Bible teaching which leaves out the context. Otherwise we are swallowing man’s guesses hook, line, and sinker. And that just will not do, will it?
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Numbers: Volume 4 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be reckoned a curse to him [Proverbs 27:14].
Yesterday we descanted on Proverbs 27:7 and arrived at a good many conclusions. The analysis which preceded applies equally to v.14 of Proverbs 27. Imagine being in a sound sleep, dreaming about the greatest time of your life and living it all over again. Add to this the typical embellishments contained in sweet dreams, and you find yourself in third heaven!
Suddenly the time of your life comes to an end, as you hear someone’s voice blurting out like clanging cymbals and blaring trumpets. You jump to attention, none too happy for the rude awakening. You come to an abrupt realization, “Well I’ll be… It’s Damsel Daisy, my best girl! But what is she doing on my front porch at 4:30 AM, strumming her guitar and singing me love songs?”
So you ask her as much, but in a not so kind voice. Her response, “Oh, honey, I just finished writing this song for you, and I couldn’t wait for you to hear it. Do you like it?”
What do you think your retort would be? Could you honestly give it a rave review? Methinks not! You’d bellow, “It sucks, girl! Get back home with yourself and leave me be! If you want my opinion about a song ever again, make an appointment first!” And then you’d slam the door and return to bed, yearning for a repeat of your fantastic dream.
You see, even when your most favorite person comes to your home, even when your sweetie comes to sing your praises, it’s not automatically a good thing. It depends on the context. Every situation—and every book and every Bible verse—occurs within a context, not in a vacuum. Should we leave out the context we might arrive at the wrong destination. We may very well draw the wrong conclusion.
Such is the message of Proverbs 27:14. Let’s diagram it.
A. a person who blesses
B. a loud voice early in the morning
A. a friend who is blessed
B. a curse to him it is reckoned
The parallel ideas are “A” with “A” and “B” with “B”. There is a person who blesses and his friend whom he is blessing. The two occur parallel to each other. Even though a blessing is pronounced, the twofold context makes the blessing not so much a blessing.
1. a loud voice
2. early in the morning
Hence the blessing so-called was instead “reckoned a curse”. The style is antonymous parallelism. Without a context, all actions and words are incapable of being understood aright. Apart from their context we can only offer guesses in our interpretation of them.
Let’s learn the lesson from verses 7 and 14 of Proverbs 27. Let’s not accept Bible teaching which leaves out the context. Otherwise we are swallowing man’s guesses hook, line, and sinker. And that just will not do, will it?
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Numbers: Volume 4 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 28, 2013
Rude Awakenings – Part 1
A sated man loathes honey, but to a famished man any bitter thing is sweet [Proverbs 27:7].
He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be reckoned a curse to him [Proverbs 27:14].
Do you like candy? No, I don’t mean just kiddie candy. I mean do you like candy of any kind? I bet you do! Many a poor slob is addicted to chocolate, for instance. It is such a common thing nowadays that a new word was coined to depict it, viz., chocaholic.
Have you ever known anyone whose favorite pastime was to spend his time resisting the urge to eat his favorite candy? Didn’t think so. Such a critter doesn’t exist! The savor of chocolate (or whatever the favorite candy might be) is desirable, not repulsive.
But you know what? Even to a chocaholic the mere sight of chocolate can at times be repulsive. I mean, give him an inexhaustible supply of the stuff and permit him to stuff his face until he pukes it all up! Think he finds it “desirable” then? If so, then think again.
This is the point made by the writer of Proverbs 27, dear friends. When a man is “sated”, i.e., when he is overly full of food of any kind, then even “honey” (or chocolate) is loathsome to him. He is so full that his stomach cannot handle anything more, even things he normally cannot resist.
The other side of the coin is that, when a person is starving, he will eat anything, even things he cannot normally stomach (i.e., “bitter” things). His body is in dire need of nutritional succor. His sense of taste under those conditions is a simple luxury which he cannot afford to appease. His life is at stake!
Did you catch the antonymous parallelism which occurs in verse 7? This refers to a style which exists with Biblical Hebrew poetry. Instead of rhyming words at the end of lines, the Hebrews rhymed ideas between the lines. When the ideas were comparable, the style wore the identifier synonymous parallelism. When they presented contrasts, the jargon antonymous parallelism applied. Here’s a diagram of verse 7.
A. a sated man
B. loathes honey
A. a famished man
B. considers something bitter to be sweet
A “sated man” is the opposite of a “famished man”. To loathe something sweet is the opposite of to relish even things that are bitter. Voilà! antonymous parallelism.
But there is something more to be gleaned from this verse, dear friends, something we have repeatedly taught over the years. Rule #1 for Bible study states, a text without a context is a pretext. This truth reverberates into a crescendo in the two Bible verses with which we began this study.
A chocaholic craves his chocolate. He demands more and he demands it more frequently! Notwithstanding this addiction, when he is sated, when he is surfeited, suddenly he cannot stomach chocolate. Is he no longer a chocaholic then? Absolutely not true! The context explains why temporarily he can no longer brook chocolate.
See! A text (or any situation) has to be understood in its context, or fatal misunderstanding can follow. If not understood in context, when we observe a chocaholic vomiting at the sight of chocolate, we might be tempted to pat ourselves on the back for curing him. Yikes! We are beside ourselves a short while later, should we observe him chasing his favorite chocolate bar around the room!
Alas, but we’ve come to the end of the road for today. Not to worry though. By tomorrow road construction will be completed and we will be able to continue down this avenue. Let’s spend time awhile with Jesus, while we await the morrow.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Numbers: Volume 4 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be reckoned a curse to him [Proverbs 27:14].
Do you like candy? No, I don’t mean just kiddie candy. I mean do you like candy of any kind? I bet you do! Many a poor slob is addicted to chocolate, for instance. It is such a common thing nowadays that a new word was coined to depict it, viz., chocaholic.
Have you ever known anyone whose favorite pastime was to spend his time resisting the urge to eat his favorite candy? Didn’t think so. Such a critter doesn’t exist! The savor of chocolate (or whatever the favorite candy might be) is desirable, not repulsive.
But you know what? Even to a chocaholic the mere sight of chocolate can at times be repulsive. I mean, give him an inexhaustible supply of the stuff and permit him to stuff his face until he pukes it all up! Think he finds it “desirable” then? If so, then think again.
This is the point made by the writer of Proverbs 27, dear friends. When a man is “sated”, i.e., when he is overly full of food of any kind, then even “honey” (or chocolate) is loathsome to him. He is so full that his stomach cannot handle anything more, even things he normally cannot resist.
The other side of the coin is that, when a person is starving, he will eat anything, even things he cannot normally stomach (i.e., “bitter” things). His body is in dire need of nutritional succor. His sense of taste under those conditions is a simple luxury which he cannot afford to appease. His life is at stake!
Did you catch the antonymous parallelism which occurs in verse 7? This refers to a style which exists with Biblical Hebrew poetry. Instead of rhyming words at the end of lines, the Hebrews rhymed ideas between the lines. When the ideas were comparable, the style wore the identifier synonymous parallelism. When they presented contrasts, the jargon antonymous parallelism applied. Here’s a diagram of verse 7.
A. a sated man
B. loathes honey
A. a famished man
B. considers something bitter to be sweet
A “sated man” is the opposite of a “famished man”. To loathe something sweet is the opposite of to relish even things that are bitter. Voilà! antonymous parallelism.
But there is something more to be gleaned from this verse, dear friends, something we have repeatedly taught over the years. Rule #1 for Bible study states, a text without a context is a pretext. This truth reverberates into a crescendo in the two Bible verses with which we began this study.
A chocaholic craves his chocolate. He demands more and he demands it more frequently! Notwithstanding this addiction, when he is sated, when he is surfeited, suddenly he cannot stomach chocolate. Is he no longer a chocaholic then? Absolutely not true! The context explains why temporarily he can no longer brook chocolate.
See! A text (or any situation) has to be understood in its context, or fatal misunderstanding can follow. If not understood in context, when we observe a chocaholic vomiting at the sight of chocolate, we might be tempted to pat ourselves on the back for curing him. Yikes! We are beside ourselves a short while later, should we observe him chasing his favorite chocolate bar around the room!
Alas, but we’ve come to the end of the road for today. Not to worry though. By tomorrow road construction will be completed and we will be able to continue down this avenue. Let’s spend time awhile with Jesus, while we await the morrow.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Numbers: Volume 4 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 27, 2013
Silver Jewelry and Missing Noses – Part 2
Take away the dross from the silver, and there comes out a vessel for the smith. Take away the wicked before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness [Proverbs 25:4-5].
We paused in our last lesson by noting that v.4 and v.5 of Proverbs 25 were written in the form of synonymous parallelism. Let’s continue in that vein now.
The two verses of Proverbs with which we have to do in this study present comparable things, so they are in the form of synonymous parallelism. Let’s diagram the two verses for clarity’s sake.
A. take away the dross from the silver
B. and there comes out a vessel for the smith
A. take away the wicked before the king
B. and his throne will be established in righteousness
Notice the letters “A” and “B” which precede each line. The first “A” and “B” diagram verse 4, while the second “A” and “B” do the same for verse 5. The phrases which are preceded by “A” are parallel, and that by way of comparability (i.e., synonymously). The phrases preceded by “B” are also comparable. Let’s vet this issue now.
The “dross” of v.4 is comparable to the “wicked” of verse 5, while the “silver” of v.4 is comparable to the “king” of verse 5. By the same manner silver is purified and made fit to serve its purpose (i.e., for jewelry products, etc.), in this way is a king made fit to serve his purpose of ruling his subjects righteously.
Silver is purified by removing the dross, and a king’s rule is purified (i.e., made righteous) by removing the wicked (i.e., the unrighteous) from his presence. When the wicked are dispatched out of the king’s presence, they cannot influence him to rule in an unrighteous manner.
This teaching is a reaffirmation of the Biblical doctrine of separation. You’ve heard the expression, “What we eat is what we are.” It is equally true that those with whom we choose to associate establishes who we are. Bad company corrupts good morals (cf., 1 Corinthians 15:33).
In order not to be duped into living for self and the world and the devil, the Word of God calls for us to come out from their presence and live apart from them (i.e., separation). I direct you to read 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 for a straightforward presentation of this spiritual truth.
This leaves us standing at a crossroads, dear friends. Now that we’ve been confronted with the Word of God about separation from the world and its ways, what response will we make to what He just taught us? Will we say “Amen, Lord!” and make necessary changes in our lifestyle? Or will we leave it in the church building or the prayer closet and continue on as before?
What say ye? Shall it be living for self or shall we live for the Lord in accordance with the Bible? Only one way is right, as Proverbs 25:4-5 taught us today. I trust you will make the right choice.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
We paused in our last lesson by noting that v.4 and v.5 of Proverbs 25 were written in the form of synonymous parallelism. Let’s continue in that vein now.
The two verses of Proverbs with which we have to do in this study present comparable things, so they are in the form of synonymous parallelism. Let’s diagram the two verses for clarity’s sake.
A. take away the dross from the silver
B. and there comes out a vessel for the smith
A. take away the wicked before the king
B. and his throne will be established in righteousness
Notice the letters “A” and “B” which precede each line. The first “A” and “B” diagram verse 4, while the second “A” and “B” do the same for verse 5. The phrases which are preceded by “A” are parallel, and that by way of comparability (i.e., synonymously). The phrases preceded by “B” are also comparable. Let’s vet this issue now.
The “dross” of v.4 is comparable to the “wicked” of verse 5, while the “silver” of v.4 is comparable to the “king” of verse 5. By the same manner silver is purified and made fit to serve its purpose (i.e., for jewelry products, etc.), in this way is a king made fit to serve his purpose of ruling his subjects righteously.
Silver is purified by removing the dross, and a king’s rule is purified (i.e., made righteous) by removing the wicked (i.e., the unrighteous) from his presence. When the wicked are dispatched out of the king’s presence, they cannot influence him to rule in an unrighteous manner.
This teaching is a reaffirmation of the Biblical doctrine of separation. You’ve heard the expression, “What we eat is what we are.” It is equally true that those with whom we choose to associate establishes who we are. Bad company corrupts good morals (cf., 1 Corinthians 15:33).
In order not to be duped into living for self and the world and the devil, the Word of God calls for us to come out from their presence and live apart from them (i.e., separation). I direct you to read 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 for a straightforward presentation of this spiritual truth.
This leaves us standing at a crossroads, dear friends. Now that we’ve been confronted with the Word of God about separation from the world and its ways, what response will we make to what He just taught us? Will we say “Amen, Lord!” and make necessary changes in our lifestyle? Or will we leave it in the church building or the prayer closet and continue on as before?
What say ye? Shall it be living for self or shall we live for the Lord in accordance with the Bible? Only one way is right, as Proverbs 25:4-5 taught us today. I trust you will make the right choice.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
Silver Jewelry and Missing Noses – Part 1
Take away the dross from the silver, and there comes out a vessel for the smith. Take away the wicked before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness [Proverbs 25:4-5].
There is an old expression, an aphorism if you would, which states, “That’s like cutting off your nose to spite your face!” Indeed. Sometimes when things we don’t like are so irksome, we go to extremes to be rid of them…even to our own detriment.
Such is not the case with the spiritual truth taught us in the Bible verses quoted at the start of this study. In fact the exact opposite is the case. It isn’t our nose we should cut off and remove from our presence, in order to be rid of troubling circumstances. It’s the troublemakers and instigators who need to be sent packing. And that’s a good thing.
The first verse quoted makes reference to metallurgy. The silversmith takes the precious silver ore and melts it in his furnace. The molten metal collects at the bottom of the furnace in a crucible. Floating on top the molten metal is the impure residue that is lighter than the pure metal, which is why it floats on top. This residue is known as “dross”.
In order to work with a purer form of silver, the silversmith must scrape off this top layer of dross. This leaves the pure silver for making jewelry and other assorted silver items. Without the dross the silver is much more valuable, and accordingly so are the silver items made from the pure silver.
Such items even have a noticeably more appealing appearance. No one would buy “silver” jewelry made from silver with the dross not removed, if it was placed side-by-side with silver jewelry made from pure silver. Ugh! The dross is disgusting!
This was the point the writer wanted to make, when he penned Proverbs 25. Verses 4 and 5 employ the Biblical Hebrew poetic form of synonymous parallelism. Let me define this technical term for you.
Today we tend to rhyme words at the end of two lines and identify the result as “poetry”. The Hebrews of the Bible didn’t rhyme words at the end of lines for their poetry. They rhymed ideas between lines to create poetry.
When the ideas were of things which were comparable, then the parallel ideas received the jargon synonymous parallelism. When the ideas presented a contrast between things, the parallel ideas were labeled antonymous parallelism.
The hour is late and the shadows are fast overtaking us. We will pause and refresh ourselves in the presence of the Lord at this time, and take up this topic tomorrow.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
There is an old expression, an aphorism if you would, which states, “That’s like cutting off your nose to spite your face!” Indeed. Sometimes when things we don’t like are so irksome, we go to extremes to be rid of them…even to our own detriment.
Such is not the case with the spiritual truth taught us in the Bible verses quoted at the start of this study. In fact the exact opposite is the case. It isn’t our nose we should cut off and remove from our presence, in order to be rid of troubling circumstances. It’s the troublemakers and instigators who need to be sent packing. And that’s a good thing.
The first verse quoted makes reference to metallurgy. The silversmith takes the precious silver ore and melts it in his furnace. The molten metal collects at the bottom of the furnace in a crucible. Floating on top the molten metal is the impure residue that is lighter than the pure metal, which is why it floats on top. This residue is known as “dross”.
In order to work with a purer form of silver, the silversmith must scrape off this top layer of dross. This leaves the pure silver for making jewelry and other assorted silver items. Without the dross the silver is much more valuable, and accordingly so are the silver items made from the pure silver.
Such items even have a noticeably more appealing appearance. No one would buy “silver” jewelry made from silver with the dross not removed, if it was placed side-by-side with silver jewelry made from pure silver. Ugh! The dross is disgusting!
This was the point the writer wanted to make, when he penned Proverbs 25. Verses 4 and 5 employ the Biblical Hebrew poetic form of synonymous parallelism. Let me define this technical term for you.
Today we tend to rhyme words at the end of two lines and identify the result as “poetry”. The Hebrews of the Bible didn’t rhyme words at the end of lines for their poetry. They rhymed ideas between lines to create poetry.
When the ideas were of things which were comparable, then the parallel ideas received the jargon synonymous parallelism. When the ideas presented a contrast between things, the parallel ideas were labeled antonymous parallelism.
The hour is late and the shadows are fast overtaking us. We will pause and refresh ourselves in the presence of the Lord at this time, and take up this topic tomorrow.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 25, 2013
Who Turned Out the Lights?
The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all the innermost parts of his being [Proverbs 20:27].
Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, is sin [Proverbs 21:4].
I like the Sherlock Holmes books, and so I also like the movies. The newest effort starring Robert Downey Jr. has more suspenseful thrills and nail-biting excitement than what went before. Nonetheless the prior movies, as well as the books, are capable of leaving us spellbound too.
The scene of the Sherlock Holmes tales is 18th Century London. The cobblestone streets, the dimly lit sidewalks, the dingy atmosphere of brothels and floozies, all contribute to the tale. I particularly recall for purposes of this study the people and the cabbies with their lanterns in hand or hanging from the horse-drawn cabs.
Without those lanterns, you see, all would be too dark to function. Driving the cab down the street would imperil pedestrians. Walking down the sidewalks would be hazardous to one’s health, considering all the unseemly sorts of scoundrels lurking in the dark crevices. Indeed, light was essential to survive and function in sleepy London Town back then. Without the portable lamps, all the streetlights would have proved insufficient for the task at hand.
We hear a good deal about light and lamps in the Bible too. Spiritual reality is that the world is in the throes of Satan. Sin rules man and sin breeds darkness. Man is unable to recognize truth and reality because sin blinds him to suchlike things.
Instead of truth and reality, sin breeds in man haughty eyes and a proud heart, as noted in the verses which introduced this study. Those two evils may be displayed in a list for easy recognition:
• haughty eyes
• a proud heart
The verse defines these two evils as the lamp of the wicked, noting they are sin. Let’s assay the two.
In Scripture the heart is used to identify the center of one’s life, what he loves and so what motivates him. It is the internal man, the real person, the root and vine from which his life grows. The eyes are used to identify man’s outward focus, what he sees and so lusts after. The heart fertilizes the soil and plants the seeds, while the eyes produce the fruit.
When a person lives in sin rather than recognizes it and repents, his heart is darkness. Accordingly the fruit of his life is the fruit of darkness. His heart by nature seeks to accomplish his pleasure, and so his eyes wander about looking for ways to fulfill his lusts. The heart and the eyes work in conjunction to lead him into sin upon sin. The two serve to provide him light along the paths of sin and wickedness.
In utter contrast to this scenario is the lamp of the Lord (cf., the verses quoted to start this study). Scripture identifies what the lamp of the Lord is, so we don’t have to guess.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path [Psalm 119:105].
The Word of God is the lamp of the Lord, and it affords the believer light along the path of life. This light keeps the believer from stumbling onto the path of sin and wickedness. That is what the verses quoted at the start of this study teach.
A believer trusts in the Word of God (i.e., the life tree), rather than in his own understanding (i.e., the kogae tree) as the wicked do. Ergo, he allows the Word of God to search all the innermost parts of his being. In doing this the Word of God rules over the spirit of man. The Bible functions as the reins in the mouth of the horse (i.e., the spirit of man), effectively being the driving force of the spirit of man.
So we are left with a choice between two lamps, and the choice we make affects our eternal condition and location.
1. the lamp of the wicked
2. the lamp of the Lord
The ball is in your court, sir and madam. Which lamp do you choose? One of them feeds pride and affluent living, the other love for the Lord and the overwhelming desire to live like Him. Choose you this day whom you will serve. But as for me and my house, we will choose the Lord. I trust you will make the same choice.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, is sin [Proverbs 21:4].
I like the Sherlock Holmes books, and so I also like the movies. The newest effort starring Robert Downey Jr. has more suspenseful thrills and nail-biting excitement than what went before. Nonetheless the prior movies, as well as the books, are capable of leaving us spellbound too.
The scene of the Sherlock Holmes tales is 18th Century London. The cobblestone streets, the dimly lit sidewalks, the dingy atmosphere of brothels and floozies, all contribute to the tale. I particularly recall for purposes of this study the people and the cabbies with their lanterns in hand or hanging from the horse-drawn cabs.
Without those lanterns, you see, all would be too dark to function. Driving the cab down the street would imperil pedestrians. Walking down the sidewalks would be hazardous to one’s health, considering all the unseemly sorts of scoundrels lurking in the dark crevices. Indeed, light was essential to survive and function in sleepy London Town back then. Without the portable lamps, all the streetlights would have proved insufficient for the task at hand.
We hear a good deal about light and lamps in the Bible too. Spiritual reality is that the world is in the throes of Satan. Sin rules man and sin breeds darkness. Man is unable to recognize truth and reality because sin blinds him to suchlike things.
Instead of truth and reality, sin breeds in man haughty eyes and a proud heart, as noted in the verses which introduced this study. Those two evils may be displayed in a list for easy recognition:
• haughty eyes
• a proud heart
The verse defines these two evils as the lamp of the wicked, noting they are sin. Let’s assay the two.
In Scripture the heart is used to identify the center of one’s life, what he loves and so what motivates him. It is the internal man, the real person, the root and vine from which his life grows. The eyes are used to identify man’s outward focus, what he sees and so lusts after. The heart fertilizes the soil and plants the seeds, while the eyes produce the fruit.
When a person lives in sin rather than recognizes it and repents, his heart is darkness. Accordingly the fruit of his life is the fruit of darkness. His heart by nature seeks to accomplish his pleasure, and so his eyes wander about looking for ways to fulfill his lusts. The heart and the eyes work in conjunction to lead him into sin upon sin. The two serve to provide him light along the paths of sin and wickedness.
In utter contrast to this scenario is the lamp of the Lord (cf., the verses quoted to start this study). Scripture identifies what the lamp of the Lord is, so we don’t have to guess.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path [Psalm 119:105].
The Word of God is the lamp of the Lord, and it affords the believer light along the path of life. This light keeps the believer from stumbling onto the path of sin and wickedness. That is what the verses quoted at the start of this study teach.
A believer trusts in the Word of God (i.e., the life tree), rather than in his own understanding (i.e., the kogae tree) as the wicked do. Ergo, he allows the Word of God to search all the innermost parts of his being. In doing this the Word of God rules over the spirit of man. The Bible functions as the reins in the mouth of the horse (i.e., the spirit of man), effectively being the driving force of the spirit of man.
So we are left with a choice between two lamps, and the choice we make affects our eternal condition and location.
1. the lamp of the wicked
2. the lamp of the Lord
The ball is in your court, sir and madam. Which lamp do you choose? One of them feeds pride and affluent living, the other love for the Lord and the overwhelming desire to live like Him. Choose you this day whom you will serve. But as for me and my house, we will choose the Lord. I trust you will make the same choice.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
Tripping Over My Own Feet
Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil [Proverbs 3:7].
We have a stunning contrast in the opening Bible text of this study. Let’s view it as a bulleted list:
• wise in your own eyes
• fear the Lord
These form a parallel of sorts, what is known as parallelism in Biblical Hebrew poetry. Most often the parallel is synonymous, meaning the two concepts are in agreement. In this case the parallel is antonymous because the two concepts are in sharp contrast and opposition to each other. This makes the text to be in the form of antonymous parallelism.
But not to be distraught over the abstract terminology, dear friends. Let me demonstrate using the particulars, and then it will become crystal clear.
Man is a sinner. His every instinct is to do the opposite of what the Lord tells him to do. He often isn’t even conscious of this motivation because it is ingrained into his very nature, a sin nature. He disobeys automatically without even thinking about it.
The Lord created man and established him as the custodian over His garden. In the cool of the day the Lord came and visited with the man and enjoyed a time of fellowship with him. Picture a country house with a screened front porch. After the outdoor work was done in the evening, folks sit for a spell inside the screened-off area and chitchat for a while.
Anyway, the Lord gave man his food, which consisted of all the fruit in the entire humongous garden—all, that is, except for the fruit of one tree. In the midst of the garden the Lord planted two trees, their location highlighting their prominence. One tree was the life tree, the other the kogae tree.
Here’s the prominence held by the two trees. The Lord instructed man that, if he ate of the life tree, he would live. In contrast if the man ate of the kogae tree, he would die. Not complicated instructions, was it? The life tree had no medicinal properties, and the kogae tree wasn’t poisonous. Obedience or disobedience to the Word of God determined what resulted from eating the fruit of either tree.
When the woman ate from the kogae tree, two concepts were behind her action. Would it surprise you to know the two concepts are the same two which occur in our opening Scripture verse? The woman did not fear the Lord, or else she would have eaten from the life tree in obedience to his warning. Rather, she was wise in her own eyes, which led her to eat the forbidden fruit of the kogae tree.
Therein lies the real reason for the state of the world today, dear friends. Mankind is composed entirely of sinners, and sinners by nature want to disobey the Word of God. Sinners by nature have no fear of God. Sinners by nature are wise in their own eyes. Listen to another Scripture text which portrays this situation:
But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines brighter and brighter until the full day. The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know over what they stumble [Proverbs 4:18-19].
Again we have two contrasting concepts, the same two:
• the path of the righteous
• the way of the wicked
The path of the righteous is paved with obedience to the Word of God. Accordingly it is like the light of dawn: it shines increasingly brighter as the day wears on. The way of the wicked, in stark contrast, is like darkness. Accordingly their wont is to stumble incessantly, and they cannot even see over what they stumble! What a frustrating way to live.
None of us would consciously choose to trip over our own feet…would we? I surely hope not! Let’s go by “Thus saith the Lord” and not by “I think”, okay? Light is always preferable to darkness. Speaking of light…time spent alone with Jesus is the brightest and best light available. Let’s recharge ourselves now.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
We have a stunning contrast in the opening Bible text of this study. Let’s view it as a bulleted list:
• wise in your own eyes
• fear the Lord
These form a parallel of sorts, what is known as parallelism in Biblical Hebrew poetry. Most often the parallel is synonymous, meaning the two concepts are in agreement. In this case the parallel is antonymous because the two concepts are in sharp contrast and opposition to each other. This makes the text to be in the form of antonymous parallelism.
But not to be distraught over the abstract terminology, dear friends. Let me demonstrate using the particulars, and then it will become crystal clear.
Man is a sinner. His every instinct is to do the opposite of what the Lord tells him to do. He often isn’t even conscious of this motivation because it is ingrained into his very nature, a sin nature. He disobeys automatically without even thinking about it.
The Lord created man and established him as the custodian over His garden. In the cool of the day the Lord came and visited with the man and enjoyed a time of fellowship with him. Picture a country house with a screened front porch. After the outdoor work was done in the evening, folks sit for a spell inside the screened-off area and chitchat for a while.
Anyway, the Lord gave man his food, which consisted of all the fruit in the entire humongous garden—all, that is, except for the fruit of one tree. In the midst of the garden the Lord planted two trees, their location highlighting their prominence. One tree was the life tree, the other the kogae tree.
Here’s the prominence held by the two trees. The Lord instructed man that, if he ate of the life tree, he would live. In contrast if the man ate of the kogae tree, he would die. Not complicated instructions, was it? The life tree had no medicinal properties, and the kogae tree wasn’t poisonous. Obedience or disobedience to the Word of God determined what resulted from eating the fruit of either tree.
When the woman ate from the kogae tree, two concepts were behind her action. Would it surprise you to know the two concepts are the same two which occur in our opening Scripture verse? The woman did not fear the Lord, or else she would have eaten from the life tree in obedience to his warning. Rather, she was wise in her own eyes, which led her to eat the forbidden fruit of the kogae tree.
Therein lies the real reason for the state of the world today, dear friends. Mankind is composed entirely of sinners, and sinners by nature want to disobey the Word of God. Sinners by nature have no fear of God. Sinners by nature are wise in their own eyes. Listen to another Scripture text which portrays this situation:
But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines brighter and brighter until the full day. The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know over what they stumble [Proverbs 4:18-19].
Again we have two contrasting concepts, the same two:
• the path of the righteous
• the way of the wicked
The path of the righteous is paved with obedience to the Word of God. Accordingly it is like the light of dawn: it shines increasingly brighter as the day wears on. The way of the wicked, in stark contrast, is like darkness. Accordingly their wont is to stumble incessantly, and they cannot even see over what they stumble! What a frustrating way to live.
None of us would consciously choose to trip over our own feet…would we? I surely hope not! Let’s go by “Thus saith the Lord” and not by “I think”, okay? Light is always preferable to darkness. Speaking of light…time spent alone with Jesus is the brightest and best light available. Let’s recharge ourselves now.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 24, 2013
The RMS Titanic
For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died [2 Corinthians 5:14].
The date was April 10, 1912. The location was Southampton, England. The RMS Titanic took off on her maiden voyage across the north Atlantic to New York City.
On board were some of the richest, most influential personages of the times. Also on board were some of the salt of the earth, poor slobs who wanted to seek out a new life in America. Between crew and passengers, there were a grand total of 2,227 people aboard the Titanic.
The designer of the Titanic planned for it to hold 50 lifeboats. When all was said and done it was built to hold 42 of those rascals. Notwithstanding this fact, the Titanic set sail with only 20 lifeboats. Space was at a premium and mighty money ruled!
Several ships passed the Titanic on her maiden voyage. Each of them warned the captain of the danger of icebergs all along the way. Still, the Titanic kept traveling at nearly top speed, about 20.5 knots. The captain was a skeptic of even the possibility that an iceberg could sink the magnificent ship of which he was in control.
On April 14 while all the passengers were indulging in the fun and festivities, the Titanic made the acquaintance of one of those icebergs. In a mere 2½ hours the Titanic had sunk to the bottom of the sea. The “unsinkable” had sunk. Man’s pride met its match…again.
But at how great a cost in human life? Of the 2,227 humans on board, 1,523 drowned or froze to death in the north Atlantic. A scant 705 escaped with their lives and not much more than that. Truly the pride of man is its own downfall.
In the verse quoted at the start of this study, the Apostle Paul taught that one Person died for all persons. Paul concluded that, as a consequence, all died. This information was so astounding and so foundational to the Christian faith, that Paul declared how the love of Christ constrained him to preach the Gospel.
How so? Well, God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son to die for all mankind. God’s love is at the core of the Gospel. Jesus Christ is equally God with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Ergo, God’s love is also Christ’s love, or the love of Christ. Paul was seized by the love of the Gospel, driving him to share it with the world, Jews and Gentiles alike.
The world may be likened unto the Titanic. The world is in a state of catastrophic upheaval. It will soon graze the iceberg of worldwide sin and sink precipitously, never to rise again from its sinful state. It might well be that the majority of the earth’s denizens will drown or freeze to death in the icy waters into which they will be plunged. Perhaps only a remnant will survive. Truly the pride of man is its own downfall.
May the love of God seize us and impel us to share the Gospel with others, even as it did the Apostle Paul. Unlike the Titanic where the lifeboats were much too few, the love of God is boundless. Everyone who will believe the Gospel and receive the Lord Jesus as his Savior will find room aboard for his salvation. Also unlike the Titanic only one Person needed to die for everyone else, viz., Jesus Christ.
Let’s go to our knees alone with the Lord Jesus, beseeching Him to stir our hearts and constrain us to proclaim the Good News. Today is the day of salvation, but today won’t last for eternity.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Leviticus: Volume 3 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
The date was April 10, 1912. The location was Southampton, England. The RMS Titanic took off on her maiden voyage across the north Atlantic to New York City.
On board were some of the richest, most influential personages of the times. Also on board were some of the salt of the earth, poor slobs who wanted to seek out a new life in America. Between crew and passengers, there were a grand total of 2,227 people aboard the Titanic.
The designer of the Titanic planned for it to hold 50 lifeboats. When all was said and done it was built to hold 42 of those rascals. Notwithstanding this fact, the Titanic set sail with only 20 lifeboats. Space was at a premium and mighty money ruled!
Several ships passed the Titanic on her maiden voyage. Each of them warned the captain of the danger of icebergs all along the way. Still, the Titanic kept traveling at nearly top speed, about 20.5 knots. The captain was a skeptic of even the possibility that an iceberg could sink the magnificent ship of which he was in control.
On April 14 while all the passengers were indulging in the fun and festivities, the Titanic made the acquaintance of one of those icebergs. In a mere 2½ hours the Titanic had sunk to the bottom of the sea. The “unsinkable” had sunk. Man’s pride met its match…again.
But at how great a cost in human life? Of the 2,227 humans on board, 1,523 drowned or froze to death in the north Atlantic. A scant 705 escaped with their lives and not much more than that. Truly the pride of man is its own downfall.
In the verse quoted at the start of this study, the Apostle Paul taught that one Person died for all persons. Paul concluded that, as a consequence, all died. This information was so astounding and so foundational to the Christian faith, that Paul declared how the love of Christ constrained him to preach the Gospel.
How so? Well, God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son to die for all mankind. God’s love is at the core of the Gospel. Jesus Christ is equally God with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Ergo, God’s love is also Christ’s love, or the love of Christ. Paul was seized by the love of the Gospel, driving him to share it with the world, Jews and Gentiles alike.
The world may be likened unto the Titanic. The world is in a state of catastrophic upheaval. It will soon graze the iceberg of worldwide sin and sink precipitously, never to rise again from its sinful state. It might well be that the majority of the earth’s denizens will drown or freeze to death in the icy waters into which they will be plunged. Perhaps only a remnant will survive. Truly the pride of man is its own downfall.
May the love of God seize us and impel us to share the Gospel with others, even as it did the Apostle Paul. Unlike the Titanic where the lifeboats were much too few, the love of God is boundless. Everyone who will believe the Gospel and receive the Lord Jesus as his Savior will find room aboard for his salvation. Also unlike the Titanic only one Person needed to die for everyone else, viz., Jesus Christ.
Let’s go to our knees alone with the Lord Jesus, beseeching Him to stir our hearts and constrain us to proclaim the Good News. Today is the day of salvation, but today won’t last for eternity.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Leviticus: Volume 3 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 22, 2013
Bargain Basement Talk – Part 2
The Lord said to me, “I have heard…the words of this people... They have done well in all that they have spoken. Oh that they had such a heart in them, that they would fear Me and keep all My commandments always.” [Deuteronomy 5:28-29]
Yesterday we left off with the Israelites speaking smooth words to Moses about obeying the Word of God. Let’s take a gander at the other side of the coin now. It’s what else the Lord addressed that should have us concerned, dear friends. He put His finger on the real issue by saying, “Would that their hearts were just as sold out to Me!” Yikes! That is not our first choice for what we would prefer to hear from the Lord!
Essentially the Lord said that the Israelites’ words came from the bargain basement section of the store. Their words were cheap, not valuable. This didn’t mean the Israelites were insincere and phony, or that their intentions were underhanded and manipulative. No! They were most sincere and had the best of intentions.
Trouble is, they were sincerely wrong. And they were ignorant of spiritual reality, so their intentions never rose to the occasion. They failed to realize that sinful man CANNOT do everything the Lord says, not even some of the time, much less most of the time, and certainly not always.
Yet the Law—and the Law is exactly what they had committed to do perfectly at all times—but the Law doesn’t allow for violations of any kind ever. For example, if the speed limit is 30 and I’m going 50 and get a ticket, when I go to court the judge cannot declare, “It doesn’t matter. Just go home and have a good life!”
Nix, nix, dear friends. The Law doesn’t work that way. Either the judge decides the evidence doesn’t convict me, in which case he issues a ruling of not guilty, or else he finds me guilty and sentences me. He may be lenient with the sentencing or he may lay down the hammer! But what he cannot do is overlook the law and sweep the crime under the rug.
The Law condemns the guilty. All mankind is guilty of sin. Ergo all mankind is condemned to death. The only way of escape is to flee outside the law, to flee to grace for deliverance. The Law was given through Moses. We must flee from its wrath.
On the other hand, grace and truth were given through Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins. If we go to Him in faith, go to Him as God’s Word states it, and ask Him to forgive us of our sins, He already paid the penalty and can therefore righteously remove our sins. He is both just and at the same time the justifier of all those who have faith in Christ Jesus. He can be both because he doesn’t overlook our sins: He paid their penalty for us.
This is a fine time to look in the mirror and do a little introspection, a little soul-searching, a little diagnosing of the heart. Does our religion, our faith, consist of bargain basement words? I hope not! Let’s stay on our knees before Jesus until we know for certain. Sincerity and good intentions pave the road to hell. Let’s not be on it.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Exodus: Volume 2 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
Yesterday we left off with the Israelites speaking smooth words to Moses about obeying the Word of God. Let’s take a gander at the other side of the coin now. It’s what else the Lord addressed that should have us concerned, dear friends. He put His finger on the real issue by saying, “Would that their hearts were just as sold out to Me!” Yikes! That is not our first choice for what we would prefer to hear from the Lord!
Essentially the Lord said that the Israelites’ words came from the bargain basement section of the store. Their words were cheap, not valuable. This didn’t mean the Israelites were insincere and phony, or that their intentions were underhanded and manipulative. No! They were most sincere and had the best of intentions.
Trouble is, they were sincerely wrong. And they were ignorant of spiritual reality, so their intentions never rose to the occasion. They failed to realize that sinful man CANNOT do everything the Lord says, not even some of the time, much less most of the time, and certainly not always.
Yet the Law—and the Law is exactly what they had committed to do perfectly at all times—but the Law doesn’t allow for violations of any kind ever. For example, if the speed limit is 30 and I’m going 50 and get a ticket, when I go to court the judge cannot declare, “It doesn’t matter. Just go home and have a good life!”
Nix, nix, dear friends. The Law doesn’t work that way. Either the judge decides the evidence doesn’t convict me, in which case he issues a ruling of not guilty, or else he finds me guilty and sentences me. He may be lenient with the sentencing or he may lay down the hammer! But what he cannot do is overlook the law and sweep the crime under the rug.
The Law condemns the guilty. All mankind is guilty of sin. Ergo all mankind is condemned to death. The only way of escape is to flee outside the law, to flee to grace for deliverance. The Law was given through Moses. We must flee from its wrath.
On the other hand, grace and truth were given through Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins. If we go to Him in faith, go to Him as God’s Word states it, and ask Him to forgive us of our sins, He already paid the penalty and can therefore righteously remove our sins. He is both just and at the same time the justifier of all those who have faith in Christ Jesus. He can be both because he doesn’t overlook our sins: He paid their penalty for us.
This is a fine time to look in the mirror and do a little introspection, a little soul-searching, a little diagnosing of the heart. Does our religion, our faith, consist of bargain basement words? I hope not! Let’s stay on our knees before Jesus until we know for certain. Sincerity and good intentions pave the road to hell. Let’s not be on it.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Exodus: Volume 2 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
March 21, 2013
Bargain Basement Talk – Part 1
The Lord said to me, “I have heard…the words of this people... They have done well in all that they have spoken. Oh that they had such a heart in them, that they would fear Me and keep all My commandments always.” [Deuteronomy 5:28-29]
I can recollect days of old (or not so very old), when my kids were in middle school and high school. Every year just before school started up again, I would take them on an excursion through the mall, where they would pick out some clothes to wear that school year.
Here’s the thing. Back in the day I was going through some tough times financially. We were living from hand to mouth. But it didn’t faze the kids. They would always pick out the most expensive clothes anyway! After all, the kids they hung with all wore suchlike duds, so my kids figured they had the right to wear them too.
They were never much impressed when I explained the facts of life to them. It went like this. When you have a hundred dollars, you can spend a hundred dollars. When you have ten dollars, you cannot spend a hundred dollars!
Not to worry. In our house we followed the golden rule: he who has the gold makes the rule! I had the gold, so we spent ten dollars and left the hundred dollars to those parents who had it. This led us to the bargain basement section of the stores—you know, the place where sales items and clothes without the interior design label and stitching were kept.
Not that my kids ever went to school looking like tramps, mind you. They blended in quite well and are well adjusted to this day. It was just that outrageously priced clothing didn’t grace their closets. What they wore was neat and clean and stylish, just not extravagant and gaudy.
At Mount Sinai the Lord spoke the Ten Commandments to the Israelites. As He spoke the ground shook violently like a canoe on white water rapids, the mountain smoked and burned like a humongous furnace, and lightning flashed in all directions like some sci-fi movie where electrical flashes open up a time warp.
When it was all over, the Israelites made a mad dash to Moses and vented their outrage at him. They said, “Listen up, Moshe! Everything the Lord said we will do. No problemento, señor. Only one itsy bitsy favor we request of you. Don’t let the Lord speak to us again or we’ll die! From now on you go hear what He has to say, and then you can tell us and we’ll do everything…everything, we tell you!”
It was at that point of the conversation that the Lord spoke to Moses the words quoted to commence this study. Look at the words once more. Read them to yourself very slowly. Stop and ponder them a bit. Allow them to roll over your tongue, as you sample the taste of each word. Okay, what did you learn?
Did you catch how the Lord contrasted their words with their hearts? Hmm. What does that mean? Well, He liked their words just fine. Every last one was all pretty and cuddly and quaint. No one would have any objection to marrying them and taking them home. They were pleasant to the ear and likeable to the sight.
Oh, but we are out of time today. We’ll take up the issue again tomorrow. In the interim be sure to enjoy your time alone with Jesus. He misses you.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Exodus: Volume 2 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
I can recollect days of old (or not so very old), when my kids were in middle school and high school. Every year just before school started up again, I would take them on an excursion through the mall, where they would pick out some clothes to wear that school year.
Here’s the thing. Back in the day I was going through some tough times financially. We were living from hand to mouth. But it didn’t faze the kids. They would always pick out the most expensive clothes anyway! After all, the kids they hung with all wore suchlike duds, so my kids figured they had the right to wear them too.
They were never much impressed when I explained the facts of life to them. It went like this. When you have a hundred dollars, you can spend a hundred dollars. When you have ten dollars, you cannot spend a hundred dollars!
Not to worry. In our house we followed the golden rule: he who has the gold makes the rule! I had the gold, so we spent ten dollars and left the hundred dollars to those parents who had it. This led us to the bargain basement section of the stores—you know, the place where sales items and clothes without the interior design label and stitching were kept.
Not that my kids ever went to school looking like tramps, mind you. They blended in quite well and are well adjusted to this day. It was just that outrageously priced clothing didn’t grace their closets. What they wore was neat and clean and stylish, just not extravagant and gaudy.
At Mount Sinai the Lord spoke the Ten Commandments to the Israelites. As He spoke the ground shook violently like a canoe on white water rapids, the mountain smoked and burned like a humongous furnace, and lightning flashed in all directions like some sci-fi movie where electrical flashes open up a time warp.
When it was all over, the Israelites made a mad dash to Moses and vented their outrage at him. They said, “Listen up, Moshe! Everything the Lord said we will do. No problemento, señor. Only one itsy bitsy favor we request of you. Don’t let the Lord speak to us again or we’ll die! From now on you go hear what He has to say, and then you can tell us and we’ll do everything…everything, we tell you!”
It was at that point of the conversation that the Lord spoke to Moses the words quoted to commence this study. Look at the words once more. Read them to yourself very slowly. Stop and ponder them a bit. Allow them to roll over your tongue, as you sample the taste of each word. Okay, what did you learn?
Did you catch how the Lord contrasted their words with their hearts? Hmm. What does that mean? Well, He liked their words just fine. Every last one was all pretty and cuddly and quaint. No one would have any objection to marrying them and taking them home. They were pleasant to the ear and likeable to the sight.
Oh, but we are out of time today. We’ll take up the issue again tomorrow. In the interim be sure to enjoy your time alone with Jesus. He misses you.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Exodus: Volume 2 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
