Previous Post:  (Proverbs 10 and Psalm 40)                                                        
 

Good morning son,

Sorry for the delay in getting this one out. Momma P and I went out last night for our date and saw what must be one of the stupidest movies of all time. In seminary we had to take a movie and examine it for theological messages. I wish the movie we saw had been out then. “Twilight.” The theological contexts and messages were so twisted. I have sometimes wondered why we (me included at times) as people are so messed up as to these spiritual things. Last night showed me one reason.

We flirt with evil like it is good. Protect the poor vampires and werewolves. We don't want to break the truce with the humans and vampires and the werewolves. Vampires known to have to live on human blood trained to live on the blood of animals. Werewolves who “imprint” (what is that?) a female thereby allowing them to be forever protected from destruction from their own. A baby demon born of the mixture of seed from the dead and the egg from the living. We take our understanding of good and evil from Hollywood. But the place where we are supposed to get our knowledge from we do not even crack open the book. Wow! How beautiful that movie was! What great values it taught – the lead vampire would not mate with the human until after they were married in “holy matrimony.” Wow! So cool!

Really? Really!!

I am afraid to say too much more about the movie lest you decide to waste your money and go see it. I was glad it was at the dollar theater myself. So was Momma P. But I must say this, the world of evil seemed so glamorous. The wedding was exquisite. All the evil dead had mad money. The humans, not so much. And the humans walked and talked with, and accepted the vampires as one happy family. Indeed the vampires acted more like family than did the humans.

Proverbs 10:6 “Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.”

For those times that you wished that I would write less, well today you have your wish. I have very little to say. Sometimes what is before you is just so self-evident. Blessings versus violence. “Blessings crown the head” – “violence overwhelms the mouth.” I think it is rather interesting that the violence is not a choice of the wicked but it is a fact of life as it is overwhelming. They may, like our friend the vampires (sorry, still bugged by that movie), have a truce with themselves, believe that they are okay and will not drink a human's blood any more and yet the word says of the wicked (forget vampires for a moment) that violence will overwhelm them. And as for what it will overwhelm – the mouth. Ironic huh?

Throughout the bible there are verses and verses about speaking and the power of the tongue. God speaks the world into existence. God speaks from the burning bush. God speaks from heaven to the crowd when Jesus is baptized. Jesus speaks to the fig tree and it is withers away. “Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done.” Matthew 21:21

The power of what comes out of your mouth. And here the writer tells you that only violence can come out of the mouth of the wicked, for violence overwhelms their mouth.

The violence he is speaking of is the effect of their words. What may seem innocent and tranquil indeed accomplishes violence. It destroys good. It attacks the righteous. It comes against the truth. It does violence to the proper order of things. Compare this passage with the following:

Proverbs 10:21 “The lips of the righteous nourish many, but fools die for lack of judgment.”

From the mouth of the righteous, their speech brings nourishment to many. It builds up the person in the way that they are designed to be. It accomplishes good not evil. It supports the God designed order and life.

Take what Jesus said in Matthew quoted above. Is there a mountain of “crap” in your life? What do His words tell you to do. Speak with faith to it to get up and be cast into the sea. Now if you could actually do that, would your life improve or not? Improve right.

And indeed you can.

Okay, about now you may be like I was when this light burst through thinking, “so I can just name it and get rid of it.” The answer for that stupid boss. That co-worker who annoys the heck out of me. But may I stop you for a moment to note WHAT was the context of what Jesus was saying. It came after He had cursed a tree which did not bear fruit at a time that it was supposed to bear fruit. It was going against the order of its God's given design. Then he gives this teaching.

Are you beginning to catch on . . .

We have the power to speak to the mountains in our lives that are outside of God's order for us. Paul writes that it is sin within our flesh that draws us out against what we should do. This is going to sound funny but here I go . . . speak to it. Identify the sin in your life. Tell it to leave in the name of Jesus, and then follow up in action in accordance with the word. See for the word to work there is a requirement for “faith.” You must believe what you speak. But for there to be living faith there must be works done in accord with that faith. “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” James 2:17 So don't go around here saying I told my body to stop desiring cigarettes and the word didn't work. Did you follow up that command with actions. Did you trash all your cigarettes. Did you begin to transform your mind about who and whose you are:

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2

In speaking to your body, did you offer your body as a “living sacrifice?” Did you examine the patterns of when and how you would choose to disobey God? Write them down? You know – when you are maybe Hungry Angry Lonely or Tired (“HALT” – good acronym for what you should do when in those conditions). The places that you are most likely to sin. Perhaps the stresses and your responses to them that help lead to it. Having identified those areas, those patterns, have you committed to not follow it any more and WRITE OUT the different responses that you are going to do when faced with them again. Look to the Word of God for strength and guidance. Continue reading Proverbs and Psalms, and the Gospels. Learn from other saints. Renew your mind. See it is not enough to simply cast something out. It is important what you put there in place of it.

But don't miss the fact that NONE of this occurs unless the speech is correct. None of this is possible if you are listening to those whose speech is overwhelmed with violence. You need to be speaking right and listening to those, the righteous, whose speech is nourishment to you.

Looking back on the movie, there were many things that really disturbed me. I guess the most obvious is the so called good which came from the actions and words of the wicked. It was like looking at a flipped parallel universe – one which does not exist but would seem to be so desirable.
Sin does not live in a parallel condition of peace with righteousness. Evil is not good and good is not evil. Big problem there.

Isaiah 5:20-21, 24 “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. . . .THEREFORE, as tongues of fire lick up straw and as dry grass sinks down in the flames, so their roots will decay and their flowers blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.”

Got it?

Got Word? Then do it.

Love yah,

dad

Previous Study (Proverbs 5 and Psalm 36)                                                             


Good morning son,

Proverbs 5:21-23 “For a man's ways are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all his paths. The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of his sin hold him fast. He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.”

When I was practicing law and in private practice I used to have on my conference table a crystal ball. When a young man would come before me for me to represent him in a juvenile criminal matter, I would place the ball in front of him and tell him I could read his future. I would often be laughed at, and they would always have a certain amount of doubt, but invariably they would ask me to do so. I would then ask them what they were doing now in a number of areas. See, you tell me of your decisions now, you tell me of the “bent” of your heart towards or away from God, I can tell you your future.

Well, actually all I have to do is compare what you have decided to do with what God's word says. I then simply read, what will happen.

A large part of this chapter is spent by the writer telling the young man, his son, to not get with the woman who would offer it up . . . you know, let you have your way with her, indeed entice you to do so. He describes her, tells you how she speaks, and what will happen to you if you follow her into bed. “I would not obey my teachers or listen to my instructors. I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.” And then he pens these words:

“For a man's ways are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all his paths. . .”

So . . . So what. What is the big deal? He sees and examines all my ways, all my plans, all the paths I choose to take. So what? What is HE going to do! Others do the same thing and they don't believe in Him, and they seem to get on with THEIR lives. What exactly is this God who so call loves me going to do? I am grown. The preacher man is always telling me I have a choice, so . . . so . . . I have chosen. It isn't God's choice and therefore by default it is not the choice of the preacher man. But it is my choice. And what is God going to do about it?

Yeah, what IS God going to do about it? How is He going to make me pay for my choice? If it is so wrong, what is He going to do to get me to be on His side? What preacher man, what?

Ready for this . . . . . .

He is going to do NOTHING. HE IS GOING TO DO NOTHING. You are going to do it to yourself. You are going to whip yourself. You are going to design your own living hell! You are going to mess your own life up. God, well as to whipping your butt, no my child, He knows that you are going to do a pretty good job of it yourself.

“The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of his sin hold him fast. He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.”

God designed this world and He put certain physical as well as spiritual laws into place. Whether you believe in gravity or not, doesn't matter. The fact that it is does. Gravity is necessary for the world to function correctly. Fight the law of gravity . . . you will loose. Of course you may not think that you are loosing, but that depends on your perspective, where you are viewing the scene.

If you film a person free falling from a plane from the perspective of being side by side with him it would appear to be that he is flying. Indeed he may think so. All his friends falling side by side with him may have the same belief.

Until they hit the ground.

But if you film the free fall from the solid ground, you know he is not flying at all but falling. What you think is happening all depends upon your perspective. What is actually happening does not. You jump out of an airplane you are falling, whether you believe it or not. Whether you believe the law of gravity or not. You will eventually know the truth – when you are a rather large spot on the ground.

So it is with God's laws. You may think that you can ignore them and do your own thing. The truth of the matter be damned.

It is your decision to step outside of the plane. The laws as to the consequences of your decision now take over.

See it is your own evil deeds that will trip you up.

And do you see the progression of bad to worse in the verses – you move from being tripped up, to being tied up, bound by your bad decisions, to dieing due to your own lack of discipline. And WHY do you have no discipline, is that God's fault – no! You have no discipline because you are following after your own foolish desires, your own folly. It is your own folly which destroys the discipline of following and obeying God. It is your own folly that therefore leads you to death.

Does this sound like you?

“An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes. For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin. The words of his mouth are deceitful; he has ceased to be wise and to do good. Even on his bed he plots evil; he commits himself to a sinful course and does not reject what is wrong.” Psalm 36:1-4

Pulling the bold words out from above:

1. Do I have no fear of God;
2. Do I flatter myself too much -- for example do I think I can do the crime and not do the time? Do I flatter myself so much that I have come to believe my own press, i.e. I have come to believe that what is wrong is actually good – in other words I can not recognize my sin or hate it because I have “redefined” it as good not evil.
3. Do I find myself having to lie to support my position; or just not tell the whole truth, being careful not to say anything which someone might catch and point out to me is indeed lying.
4. Have I ceased to live wisely and do good – Do I skip out on my responsibilities to support and follow after my particular choice of sin.
5. Do I spend hour after hour, even lying in my bed trying to figure out how to make the evil plans (evil is any act contrary to God's word or order) work out.
6. Have I committed myself to a course of action which is against God's word; have I given my word and am willing to violate God's word – like the law of “gravity” - to do what I think is flying. Have I decided that I will do the wrong thing no matter what.

If the above is true, then you are writing your own sentence, your own judgment. God doesn't have to do anything to you. For you to experience the consequences of your actions and decisions, for you to be ensnared, to be tied and bound, to experience death for it . . . He doesn't have to do anything. Here is one occasion that you can truthfully say “I got this.” As you and I go against His way we each determine our own unique means of destruction. We create our own hell.

And does God want this for you and I. NO!! Not at all! We begin to experience pains and hurts that He never intended for us to go through. But don't ever think that is His fault. It is by yours and my own hand, not God's.

What does God want for you and I?

“O Lord, you preserve both man and beast. How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart.”

Psalm 36: 6b-10

What does God want for you and I?

1. To preserve us.
2. To love us unfailingly!
3. To provide a refuge a place of hiding and protection.
4. To prepare a feast for us out of HIS abundance, not limited by our assets or abilities!
5. To give you drink from His “river of delights!”
6. To give you abundant life!
7. To continuously love you!

Death by your own hand based upon your decision to go against Him, or life from His hand in choosing to follow and obey His word. So what should you do?

Assuming that you choose the way of life:

Go back to the beginning of Proverbs 5 for an answer: “My son, pay attention to my wisdom, listen well to my words of insight, that you may maintain discretion and your lips may preserve knowledge.”

Grab hold of the right perspective. Agree with what God says about where you are and what your decisions are. Examine your decisions in light of His word. Then make corrections as may be required to be in line with God's words.

Otherwise . . . I don't need to tell you. You can read it for yourself.

Got it? Got Word? Then do it.

Love yah,

dad

April 4, 2012  (Todays "Got Word?")                                                                                                           

Good morning my son,

Good morning my daughter,

Jeremiah 18:1-6

“This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord:

'Go down to the potter's house, and there I will give you my message.'

So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel.

But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it inot another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

Then the word of the Lord came to me:

“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?”declares the Lord. Like clay in the hand of the potter so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.

Sometimes it is very difficult to accept the truth embodied in this passage. See we, okay . . . me (you can jump in with me if it sounds like you too, LOL) like to think that we do a lot in making us who we are. But the truth of the matter is that we are being molded, by God for God's purposes.

Now, here's a true of false for you . . . True or False – to think that some other being is molding and shaping me according to their will makes me feel AWESOME! Or True or False – when I think that some other being is shaping and molding me according to their will I want to knock their hands off of the “potter's wheel” and take over myself. Which of those statements is true and which is false. Now before you reply take a moment and look at the evidence in your life that would support one or the other.

See I would like to say that I think that I welcome the potter's hand shaping and molding me. This supernatural being – God of the universe – molding me as to how He wants to. Allowing what experiences He wants into my life. It makes for a real smooth and righteous position to take. We all like to think that at least our pastor or dad stands always in that position. Especially if I am the one expounding that you should. But is that the truly the case for me. And if not, why not?

See God allows tornadoes and hurricanes as well as he allows cool summer breezes. He allows floods as well as He allows streams of cool refreshing water in my life. In some ways it is true that I do not have any control in which I will receive - the hurricane or the cool summer breeze, the flood or the cool refreshing stream. That's a problem, in that I think I could tell you which ones I would prefer. But the fact is God would be the one in control and would choose which one I would have to receive . . . Well I don't know if right off the bat I would like that. I think I would buck a little . . . especially if it is the hurricane, tornado or flood He is sending or allowing in my life.

There is the storm that comes into your life due to the simple fact that you are living. Then there is the storm that comes into your life because you are reaping the consequences of your own actions; because you and are are getting a taste of what we actually deserve for what we have done. In our passage today he is dealing with the pain which comes as a consequence of our decisions:

Jeremiah 18:7-10

If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned.

And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.

So here the Lord was saying that his desire is to reward those who do right and punish those who do not and do not repent. Although he is has made it clear He is the potter, He has also made it clear that we have a little input in how he goes about shaping us – in blessings or in pain. In every case though we see that the evil that God may be allowing into our lives has an overarching purpose . . . do you see it? The purpose: to draw us to Him.

Now for that to be a good thing we must believe that He loves us and that He desires only the best for us. We must believe that He desires to bless us, to keep us. We must believe that he desires for us to have water in a thirsty land and rivers in a desert. That He desires us to be like a tree planted by rivers of living water, whose leaf does not wither, and who bears its fruit in its season (should sound a little familiar). See the tornado and the hurricane in our lives are truly only destructive things if they do not accomplish their purpose – to draw us to Him. They are also only destructive things if we do not see God as He was described here and more importantly in His word. See if God is as He says He is, If Christ is as He says He is; if He came that “we might have life and that more abundantly,” then why would we buck and fight Him in trusting Him to do as He wishes with us.

Remember the hymn: “Have Thine Own Way Lord.” The song goes: “Have thine own way Lord, Have thine own way. You are the potter, I am the clay. Mold me and make me after your will. While I am waiting, yielded and still.”

That song embodies within it a belief in a loving God, not just a some other being. You did catch that right? I referred to God as “some other being” in the beginning today. Almost like he was on the same level as us. The description belies a lack of knowledge of the character of the being, or of his relationship to us. And yet I was speaking of God. One of whom I do know His character, and I do have knowledge, personal knowledge of his love for me. God is not just some other being He is the supreme creator of ALL beings, and He has chosen to love me as His own. “I know in whom I believe and am persuaded that He is able. To keep that which I have committed, unto Him against that day!” I know, not another hymn . . . sorry but I love those old hymns. I may be old fashion, but I think that each Christian, you and I, should have two books that are opened and read/song each day - the bible and the hymnal (book of hymns).

God is our potter and we are his clay. We do have a choice as to whether we will utilize the pain and hurts in our lives to accomplish their purpose to draw us to Him or if we will not. Unfortunately for the Israelites they apparently did not make the right choice:

Jeremiah 18:11-12

Now therefore say to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, “This is what the Lord says: Look! I am preparing a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. So turn from your evil ways, each of you, and reform your ways and your actions.” But they will reply, “Its no use. We will continue with our own plans; each of us will follow the stubbornness of his evil heart.”

Really? Its no use? God has already explained what he will do if they repent. He has told them what to do. They know what He says He will do if they do repent, turn and reform their ways and actions. He told them, remember. However, they say “its no use.” Really?

Why would they say its no use and remain hell bent? Simple answer. They did not believe God would do what God said He would. They did not believe God's word.

Is that not the same reason that you and I will not do what we know we should do? Why we may not obey His word? We really do not believe He will bless us? We do not believe that we will be so embraced by His love. Perhaps its because we do not know what He says He will do, or understand how exactly he works. See I have followed the Lord, I would say. I have done what He said. I still lost my job. I still have no work. I still am dealing with any number of things, bad relationships, crazy folk, heart aches, illness and disease. So God does not seem to be doing what He said. I am supposed to have a life full of roses with no thorns . . . Right?

Take the time and read Jeremiah chapters 17 and 18 completely. No time to do that here. But let me point out one portion:

Jeremiah 17:7-8

“. . . blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him.

He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

Did you see it? Does the man/woman of God who is following His way not go through the heat? Is there no drought, or dry spells without any rain, in their lives? NO. The man/woman of God will experience heat, and drought. You may look at your life and feel like you are in 125 degree burning sun with no shade. You may think that you have not had a cool drink of water for a long time. Yes you and I who follow the Lord will still find ourselves in those places . . . the difference is we will be watered like that tree even in the heat, from roots and a stream that no one else may see. We will have green leaves and will bear fruit, fruit that others will enjoy and that bears the seeds for more life in our lives. We will not fear or have worries. This is the difference for those who trust in Him.

So doing right, drawing near God will possibly change the way the potter molds us. We have a choice that cuts to the core . . . will we believe what God says about Him or not. Will we trust in His word or not. Will we repent and turn where we see that we are contrary to His word or not.

The Israelites were wrong. It is of use to do what God says. He is the potter and we are the clay. He loves us and wants only the best for us. Let's do our part and love and follow Him.

You and I have no reason to buck against God or to fear Him being the potter of our life. He loves you and me. He really REALLY loves us!

Love yah,

dad