One day when I was pregnant with my first son, Ryan, it hit me that Jesus was a baby. Ryan was rolling around inside and I thought, Mary felt this with Jesus. I can’t even imagine the awe and wonder of carrying the Savior.

My thoughts rambled on until I reach the typical “Eastertime pictures” that we all have of Christ. And that was when it hit me, Jesus was God’s son. I thought of the time when Jesus was baptised by John and God spoke up (Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22.) God said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” He said several things in this very short statement. He recognized Jesus as His Son. He let everyone know that Jesus was His beloved son. And He was proud of Jesus. I tend to think that what the world is lacking today is more father’s willing to step up and claim their sons, let them know they are loved, and that they are proud of them. Maybe not even just fathers, but men in general, building up the younger generation of men. Ah, but I digress.

Then I drifted into the gruesome part of the “Easter” picture. It was then that a realization as a parent hit me. Even if you are not a parent, I’m sure it won’t be hard to follow me on this. Imagine, being a parent, or a responsible adult for a child. And standing by as that child is beaten, spit upon, ridiculed. Most of us wouldn’t stand by and watch that happen if we came upon the scene where the child was a stranger, let alone someone we know, or a blood relative, and especially not our own child.

We’ve all heard a pastor or two talk about how Jesus endured voluntarily. That he could have called on multitudes of angels and they would have rescued him. And I’m sure we’ve heard many talk about how hard it would have been for Mary, but you know what? Mary, really couldn’t do anything about it anyway. She wouldn’t have even made it far enough to touch Jesus without being stopped. She really was helpless in the situation. Heart wrenching as that might be, I turned my thought to God. God could have. God could have stopped it all in a heart beat. One spoken word from the creator of everything before him could have ended everything. Imagine that … no don’t just read this … imagine it! Your son/daughter/niece/nephew/neighbor is being beaten, abused, brought within an inch of their life, and you HAVE the power to stop it, yet you sit by and watch it all happen! Could you? Would you?

How about this one? You have two children and you have to make a choice of which one is going to endure all that. It’s up to you which one of them you will VOLUNTARILY allow to endure such pain and agony. Which one of your children will you choose to suffer, bleed, be bruised? All the while having the power to stop it in the blink of an eye. Could you do it? Would you?

You know, if we really think about it, God made that very choice. And you know what? He picked the other child. He spared you, He VOLUNTARILY sat by and watched one of his children suffer so that his other child, you, wouldn’t have to. Jesus, His very own son, was chosen to suffer over you, his adopted child.

I am thankful for Jesus and what he has done for me. Without what he did, I wouldn’t be able to call God, Father. Without him, I couldn’t have a relationship with God. I don’t want to diminish what Christ did for any of us. But I also don’t want to forget what God did for us. God is a father who stood up, said these are BOTH my children, and I am willing to sacrifice this one (Jesus) so that this one (me/you) won’t have to suffer. I am willing to sacrifice MY son, whom I LOVE, and am WELL PLEASED. He choose the “good” son over the “bad” child. Yes, we are the bad children, we are the ones that always get in trouble. That give God the gray hairs. The one Dad always has to bail out. He CHOSE to spare us and offered up the one that made him nothing but proud.

Do you really get that? Don’t leave this spot until you get just how much God loves you.

Now THAT, is a Father’s love.

.

Did you know …

Canada has a Thanksgiving day too? I didn’t know that. It’s celebrated on what is our Columbus Day. There are other places that have a Thanksgiving as well. Interesting.

Did you know …

The first Thanksgiving is in some debate? It was either in Florida by the Spaniards in 1565; by settlers in Berkeley Hundred, Virginia as early as 1607; in Jamestown, Virginia in 1610; or by the Pilgrims at Plymouth Plantation, Massachusetts in 1621.

Which one is our modern holiday centered on? The one in 1621 of course. O.o

Did you know …

That no matter which “first” Thanksgiving you go back to the reason is the same? Each one of them was specifically set aside for giving thanks to God. This is what Captain John Woodlief said at the first Thanksgiving held at Berkely Hundred, Virginia in 1607:

“We ordaine that the day of our ships arrival at the place assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginia shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of thanksgiving to Almighty God.”

Ok, so I’m a little confused, we have proof of a Thanksgiving held in Berkeley Hundred, Virginia and what was said at it, but our modern holiday (and school system) teaches the first Thanksgiving was held by the Pilgrims?? Things that make you go hmmmm.

Did you know …

There was a massacre in 1622 by Indians in the Virginia area and those who escaped moved to Jamestown. Interesting enough Captain John Smith wrote that the Indians:

“came unarmed into our houses with deer, turkeys, fish, fruits, and other provisions to sell us”.

Then Indians used anything in the house available to kill off the people. Wow, ok, so our modern traditions trace back to the 1621 Thanksgiving in Plymouth, MA. The massacre happened in March, 1622 in VA and Indians brought with them the very items that were at the “First Thanksgiving.” Hmmm…. I wonder if they were invited back for Thanksgiving in 1622? I guess since it happened over 618 miles apart, it wasn’t a factor. Just thought it interesting. O.o

Did you know …

There was an English speaking Indian there? I’ve heard people talk about this, how did they communicate. Well, there you have it. Squanto learned English as a slave in Europe and during travels in England. So, they had a translator.

At any rate, the Indian’s did help the colonist by donating food during the first winter when supplies brought from England were not enough. So Pilgrims set aside a day to celebrate at Plymouth after first harvest, in 1621. BUT, it was not regarded as a Thanksgiving observance; harvest festivals existed in English and Wampanoag tradition alike. Oh bother (said in Winnie-the-Pooh voice). So we skip over real Thanksgiving observances and pick the one that wasn’t as the one to base our modern holiday on? Confusaled here? ha! *shakes head*

Did you know …

That the earliest settlers were just as concerned about keeping religion out of their state affairs as people are today? NOT!!! I find it funny that some historians point out the 1623 Thanksgiving as being significant because it was the first ordered by civil authority and not the church. It was ordered by Governor Bradford and this is what he wrote:

“And afterwards the Lord sent them such seasonable showers, with interchange of fair warm weather as, through His blessing, caused a fruitful and liberal harvest, to their no small comfort and rejoicing. For which mercy, in time convenient, they also set apart a day of thanksgiving… By this time harvest was come, and instead of famine now God gave them plenty … for which they blessed God. And the effect of their particular planting was well seen, for all had … pretty well … so as any general want or famine had not been amongst them since to this day.”

I guess it was just our more modern day politicians and “founding fathers” that wanted to keep it separate huh? Like George Washington who in 1789 designated the first Thanksgiving Day by the national government of the US. Here is the beginning of what he wrote (I added the bold and italics, of course, you knew that cause they didn’t have those back then right? heheh):

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me “to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness. Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us. And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best. Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

How come that isn’t in the text books?? Hmmm I guess times changed. And it really was the later politicians that wanted the separation. Like John Adams who signed the Constitution. When he was president, he wrote the following proclamation in regards to Thanksgiving Day:

As the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and the blessing of Almighty God, and the national acknowledgment of this truth is not only an indispensable duty which the people owe to Him, …

I have therefore thought fit to recommend, and I do hereby recommend, that Wednesday, the 9th day of May next, be observed throughout the United States as a day of solemn humiliation, fasting, and prayer; that the citizens of these States, abstaining on that day from their customary worldly occupations, offer their devout addresses to the Father of Mercies agreeably to those forms or methods which they have severally adopted as the most suitable and becoming; that all religious congregations do, with the deepest humility, acknowledge before God the manifold sins and transgressions with which we are justly chargeable as individuals and as a nation, beseeching Him at the same time, of His infinite grace, through the Redeemer of the World, freely to remit all our offenses, and to incline us by His Holy Spirit to that sincere repentance and reformation which may afford us reason to hope for his inestimable favor and heavenly benediction;

Read the Rest Here

Look more of them up, most refer to the Almighty God and giving thanks to Him. Again, hmmmm.

Did you know …

Our traditional foods really aren’t that “traditional?”

Turkey – well, there was a written account of the first holiday and the word fowl was mentioned. Turkeys may or may not have been there. There is a little debate of this. Poor turkey, seems to always be in the middle of a controversy.

Stuffing – yes there was stuffing, but it was made of  herbs, onions or oats.

Cranberry Sauce – cranberries yes, as a sauce, unlikely. They were used to add tartness to a sauce, but not alone as a sauce. Curious question, why is it called Cranberry Sauce when it’s more like Cranberry Jello?? Isn’t Sauce supposed to “pour” out? haha

Mashed or Sweet Potatoes – word is they were there, but not a staple in the diet and may not have been apart of the fest.

Pumpkin Pie – yeaaahhhh…no. Pumpkins yes, pie no.

Well, I think that’s enough Thanksgiving Day History for now. One thing I know, we have traveled a long way from the original Thanksgiving day, regardless of which one you pick as the first. God sure isn’t the reason for the holiday on a National Level as He was back when. And as sad as it is, He really doesn’t seem to be the focus of most Christians on that day either.

So will God be invited into your Thanksgiving Day at the main course? Or will He just be another side dish this year?

Happy Thanksgiving and may God bless you abundantly throughout the year!

Sources:

Wikipedia

Historic American Thanksgiving dinner menus

Filed under: Between You and Me, Holidays, This and that Tagged: christian, God, Holiday, living, thanksgiving ]]> http://marcielynns.wordpress.com/2011/11/22/thanksgiving/feed/ 0 marcielynns http://marcielynns.wordpress.com/2011/11/17/meditation-and-prayer-psalm-85/ http://marcielynns.wordpress.com/2011/11/17/meditation-and-prayer-psalm-85/#comments Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:37:33 +0000 marcielynns http://marcielynns.wordpress.com/?p=1606 ]]> Other Posts [archives]

Psalm 85

Mouse over to read the text right here, click to go to the source page.

NIV Version,  Message Version, English Standard Version, King James Version

Amplified Version

Psalm 85

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

¹LORD, YOU have [at last] been favorable and have dealt graciously with Your land [of Canaan]; You have brought back [from Babylon] the captives of Jacob.

²You have forgiven and taken away the iniquity of Your people, You have covered all their sin. Selah [pause, and calmly realize what that means]!

³You have withdrawn all Your wrath and indignation, You have turned away from the blazing anger [which You had let loose].

⁴Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause Your anger toward us to cease [forever].

⁵Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger [and disfavor] and spread it out to all generations?

⁶Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?

⁷Show us Your mercy and loving-kindness, O Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

⁸I will listen [with expectancy] to what God the Lord will say, for He will speak peace to His people, to His saints (those who are in right standing with Him)–but let them not turn again to [self-confident] folly.

⁹Surely His salvation is near to those who reverently and worshipfully fear Him, [and is ready to be appropriated] that [the manifest presence of God, His] glory may tabernacle and abide in our land.

¹⁰Mercy and loving-kindness and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

¹¹Truth shall spring up from the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

¹²Yes, the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.

¹³Righteousness shall go before Him and shall make His footsteps a way in which to walk.

Related Scriptures:

There are a lot of related scriptures, take a look at some here (scroll to the bottom).

* NOTE: Other views expressed by those whose materials has been referenced here, do not necessarily reflect this author’s personal views.

Further Study

Pray the Psalms – Psalm 85

Calvary Chapel Sarasota Verse by Verse Study (50 minutes long)

Multi Media

Psalm 85 (with text) Dramatic reading

Revive Me (Jeremy Camp)

“Revive Us Again” at The Gathering Nashville

Learn how to say Psalm 85:8a in Hebrew

A 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A Responsorial (skip to about 3:20 to just hear the Psalm)

Song is a contemporary setting for the lectionary reading for Psalm 85

Psalm 85 A short motion graphic piece

Commentaries

Matthew Henry

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

Charles H. Spurgeon

My Reflections

“I will listen to what God the LORD says; he promises peace to his people, his faithful servants—  but let them not turn to folly.  (v 8)

How many times do we turn to folly? We say that we believe that God has cleansed us, yet continue to return to our foolish ways. We say  we can’t change this or can’t change that about ourselves. But the truth is we can, we just choose not to. Do we listen to God? Or do we listen to ourselves, our flesh? We speak one thing with our mouths and yet do another with our actions. We are double minded.

Will we listen to what God says? If so, right here, God “promises peace to his people, his faithful servants.” Peace. We miss so much by just reading a translation. Both the Hebrew and Greek vocabulary express so much in one simple word. Do we even know what God is promising us here?

shâlôm shâlôm = From H7999; safe, that is, (figuratively) well, happy, friendly; also (abstractly) welfare, that is, health, prosperity, peace:

Peace … why do we always return to our folly and destroy that peace that He has promised us? Why do we worry or fret? Why do we continue to walk in ways that we know are not His? Why do we live repeating generational curses? Why do we dwell on things we don’t have instead of what we do have? Peace. If we have the peace that God has promised, what else do we really need?

Shalom

Prayer

Father, I thank you for your peace. I thank you for your healing. I thank you for your saving grace. I thank you for your forgiveness. And I thank you for your love. Lord, help me to remember your ways and not walk in my own. Help me to remember your cleansing and not to turn back to my filthy ways. Help me to dwell on and trust what you say, instead of what my flesh and the world says. Father, thank you for your arms to rest in, knowing that I am safe in your arms, resting in your peace. In Jesus name, Amen!

Just wanted to share a few things that came out at one of the Journey Groups. Some will just scratch their heads, others will have an ah-ha moment.

Luke 5:15-17 (Amp)

¹⁵But so much the more the news spread abroad concerning Him, and great crowds kept coming together to hear [Him] and to be healed by Him of their infirmities.

¹⁶But He Himself withdrew [in retirement] to the wilderness (desert) and prayed.

¹⁷One of those days, as He was teaching, there were Pharisees and teachers of the Law sitting by, who had come from every village and town of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was [present] with Him to heal ^[g]them.

We found a few things interesting here.

Note that in v 15, we see people coming to hear and be healed by Jesus. So many of us want so much to hear Him and to be healed, emotional, mentally, physically, financially, and/or spiritually, yet, it seems to take forever to get those things. We wonder, “Jesus, where are you?” “Are you even there or can you hear me?”

Now take a look at v16, there is a ‘but’ there. It doesn’t say that Jesus taught and they were healed. It says, “He withdrew himself into the deserts and prayed.” WHAT?? So these people came looking for him, needing Him and He withdrew?

Then in v17 we see that “on a certain day …” It isn’t in our timing, it’s always in His timing, and when that certain day comes, He will teach and the power will be to heal.

So when we feel like He isn’t there, we have to remember that He is preparing and will return on that certain day and then He will teach and will heal us.

It’s amazing how this portrays our current situation as the Bride of Christ. He has gone away and is preparing a place, but on that certain day, He will return!

In looking at Mark 1 we read:

³⁹[So] He went throughout the whole of Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

⁴⁰And a leper came to Him, begging Him on his knees and saying to Him, If You are willing, You are able to make me clean.

⁴¹And being moved with pity and sympathy, Jesus reached out His hand and touched him, and said to him, I am willing; be made clean!

From the passage we learn many things about Jesus as savior and healer. But what popped out this time is that He “touched” him. We tend to read over that but at that time, people didn’t touch lepers. In fact, they would stay as far away from them as they could. They were outcasts from their family, their homes, their cities. They were considered as the walking dead. When they were given the diagnosis of leprosy, their life ended.

Jesus is willing to touch the most unclean people. He’s willing to dig right into the most disgusting, nasty area of our lives and touch it. Put His hands on it when no one else is willing to even go near it. He doesn’t want us to hide away, tucked under a bridge somewhere, He wants us to come to Him, filthy and dirty as we are, so that He can touch us! He reaches out to those that many consider dead, touches them and gives them life again.

Let’s now look at Isiah 53:

²For [the Servant of God] grew up before Him like a tender plant, and like a root out of dry ground; He has no form or comeliness [royal, kingly pomp], that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him.

³He was despised and rejected and forsaken by men, a Man of sorrows and pains, and acquainted with grief and sickness; and like One from Whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or have any esteem for Him.

⁴Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment], yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God [as if with leprosy].^(B)

⁵But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole.

⁶All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has made to light upon Him the guilt and iniquity of us all.^(C)

⁷He was oppressed, [yet when] He was afflicted, He was submissive and opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth.

⁸By oppression and judgment He was taken away; and as for His generation, who among them considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living [stricken to His death] for the transgression of my [Isaiah's] people, to whom the stroke was due?

⁹And they assigned Him a grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth.^(D)

In V4 it basically says that we think that He was punished by a just God. If you do some study on this verse, you can understand why the Amplified has in parenthesis, as if with leprosy.

Getting deeper …

V8 (KJV):

… for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

Even deeper …

He was clean, innocent and yet stricken for the transgressions of someone else. But get this one, if we look at the original Hebrew of the word stricken we find the part of the meaning is …

stroke, plague, disease, mark, plague spot

1. stroke, wound
2. stroke (metaphorical of disease)
3. mark (of leprosy)

Well, I’m venturing out a bit and have done some video blogs. You can watch them on my youtube channel. Enjoy!

God bless your day!

Marcie

Other Posts [archives]

I’ve been thinking as I drive to work how our Christiam walk can be a lot like how we drive on the highways. On the mornings when I am more or less alone, it is easy for me to maintain the speed limit. I set my own pace, drive my own speed. I’m not distracted by what other’s are doing and so I can pay more attention and be more deliberate about staying right at the speed limit. I don’t have cruise, so I don’t have the luxury of just setting it and relaxing.

Isn’t that how it is in our Christian walk? I mean, as long as there aren’t other’s around to distract us, we don’t find it hard to maintain our Christian values, pay attention to our words, live like Christ. It’s just not as hard to do when we don’t really have to deal with other people, now is it? But that’s not typically how it is.

On the days when there is a lot of traffic, I find myself going with the flow. I start out paying attention and not going over the speed limit, but before I know it, I’m doing what every one else does. It’s not like I hit the gas and zoom forward, it’s a gradual thing, it creeps up on me. When I catch myself, I slow back down, but it isn’t long till that speed has crept back up on me. Of course, it’s not my fault, if everyone else would slow down, I wouldn’t have a problem. That’s just obvious since I just stated that I don’t have this problem when other’s aren’t around. But who’s fault is it really?

Just like in our Christian walk, we start out with what we believe and we stand on our convictions, but before you know it, we are just going with the flow. We say, well, that isn’t so bad, this won’t hurt anyone, this is only a one time thing, etc. But you know what the problem is? Once we start to go with the flow, it never really stops. Ever notice that, a group of cars will stay together until eventually each car has exited, but the whole time, other’s are joining in. And as much as we want to blame the others for leading us astray, it’s not their fault. All we have to do is keep to our beliefs and our convictions and let the other’s go right around us. So why don’t we?

Have you ever given much thought to speeding? I have, only because of an 80 year old man who smacked me with some conviction. He said the Bible tells us to obey the laws of the land as long as they do not go against the word of God. He said that speeding was not obeying those laws and that it did not go against the word of God, so we shouldn’t speed. I’ve never studied that scripture and do not mean to imply that it really means exactly that, but I do know that even 5 miles over the speed limit is illegal and can get me fined, penalized, and arrested under the right circumstances. So there is no question that it is wrong. Have you ever considered that when you see a car driving down the road with a police car behind it with it’s lights on, you really don’t know why that person is being “chased down?” They could have robbed someone, ran a red light, been in a hit and run accident, been speeding, or many other things. Either way, the same cop will take the same actions to stop someone for any of those broken laws. How much more evidence is needed that by speeding, we are, well, *gulp* criminals? A criminal is someone who has broken the law. And anyone who breaks the laws has a consequence. Hmmm, not sure I like being called a criminal. But we think it’s not a crime because we get away with it a lot. Or we think it’s not a crime because there isn’t a cop around to stop us. But does that really make it ok?

And yet, we do the very same thing in our Christian walk, don’t we? We think, well, it’s only a little white lie. Or, I only swear/curse when I’m really upset. We think because no one sees us, it’s really not that bad of a sin. But you know what, we are just speeding Christians. Again, just like in civil law, when you break the law, you are a criminal and will be chased by police. As a Christian, a sin is a sin, sure some seem bigger than others, but they are all a sin. It’s just much easier to fall into some than others. We are breaking the law, period. And guess what, God sees it all. We not think He does because it seems as though He isn’t right there, but He is. He’s like a city with traffic camera’s everywhere, there’s no way you won’t get caught when breaking a law.

Know what makes staying within the speed limit easier? Cruise control! Yeah baby, put on the cruise and it’s all good. No need to worry about going over the speed limit. Or, if you don’t have cruise but you do have a GPS, some have a feature where they will warn you when you exceed a set speed limit. I use mine all the time. So much easier to stay within the speed limit then.

Guess what, we have cruise control or a GPS built right into us to help us stay on our Christian walk as well. HUh?? Are you looking at me saying, “Whacha talkin bout Willis?”  Seriously, Jesus installed one in us. It’s called the HGS, yep, our one and only Holy Ghost/Spirit. The thing is we have to choose to use Him. Just like we have to choose to use the cruise control. He’ll put a little pressure on our brakes when he sees we’re getting into something we shouldn’t. Or we have to use Him like the GPS and listen when he shouts, STOP!! You’re starting to go with the flow, go over the speed limit. You’re on your way to being a criminal/sinner. Problem is, all to often we are in a hurry or we don’t like being left behind as other’s speed off past us. Or we are just in too much of a hurry to get where we are going and we don’t care how many rules we have to break to get there.

Try, for one week, try to just stay at or below the speed limit, no matter what speed it is. And as you do, think about how hard it is to do. But that is what we are called to do as Christians in this world. James and Peter both made that clear. As you try not speeding on the road way, check to make sure you aren’t speeding on your Christian walk. Check to see if you are staying within the spiritual law as well. You may be surprised to find out that there are some roads in your life where you are just, going with the flow.

Think about it … Always a Journey

Quote:

What does God say about this? Is it right to have church hierarchy and order or is it right to do whatever you want? Or both?

First, it is always best to establish vocabulary to make sure we’re on the same page.

The Church (1577 eÍkklhsiða)
o a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly

* an assembly of the people convened at the public place of the council for the purpose of deliberating
* the assembly of the Israelites
* any gathering or throng of men assembled by chance, tumultuously
* in a Christian sense

• an assembly of Christians gathered for worship in a religious meeting
• a company of Christian, or of those who, hoping for eternal salvation through Jesus Christ, observe their own religious rites, hold their own religious meetings, and manage their own affairs, according to regulations prescribed for the body for order’s sake
• those who anywhere, in a city, village, constitute such a company and are united into one body
• the whole body of Christians scattered throughout the earth
• the assembly of faithful Christians already dead and received into heaven

I did some study on “the church,” as defined in the Christian sense above, in scripture and here are some things that I have found:

Matthew 18:17 shows that ‘the church’ has some involvement when a brother or sister in Christ is living in sin. It does not indicate a specific person or office within the church in which to take the matter to, it simply says, ‘the church’. Therefore, the church as a whole does have some authority,

Acts 14:23 indicates that men can appoint men within a local church. In addition, it would show that the disciples felt that there should be some kind of leadership in each church. It is also interesting that these elders were basically new converts.

Acts 16:4-5 Indicates that Paul and Timothy delivered to the churches the regulations decided upon by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem. This would seem to establish some sort of central governing body for the church in Jerusalem and that Paul felt he needed to convey regulations to all the churches in his care. Acts 15:41 indicates that Paul established or confirmed many churches, so it did not have to be the governing body at Jerusalem that established new churches.

There are several house churches mentioned. It doesn’t indicate how they got started, but I would tend to believe it couldn’t have been much different than it is today. However, the one major difference I can see between today and then is that you had to be a serious believer to start one then as you would open the doors to persecution, imprisonment, or death. It wasn’t a decision made lightly. (Romans 16:1-5; 1 Cor 16:19 at Aquila and Priscillas; Col 4:15-16 at Nymphas; Phm 1:2)

Actually, a few realizations came to me while doing this study.

Getting back to basics as Paul paralleled the marriage of a husband and wife with Christ and the church. Eph 4:23-32. Truly in a marriage, there is no set in stone hierarchy as far a society goes. It’s not like at a place of employment where there is usually a boss over a boss over a boss. It’s just a man and a woman. Yet, God established a hierarchy of the man being the head. In other words, the man really is only accountable to God. As a brother in Christ, he could be “disciplined” by the church as outlined in Matthew 18. But as the husband, he is the leader.

When we really look at the church in scripture, one thing becomes clear, Christ is the head of the church, just as the husband is to be head of the household.

Acts 2:47 shows us who really increases the church – the Lord.

Acts 20:17-28 shows who really establishes the overseers of the churches – Holy Spirit. Overseer = a superintendent, that is, Christian officer in general charge of a (or the) church (literally or figuratively): – bishop, overseer.

1 Cor 12:28 shows who sets people apart within the church – God

Eph 1:22 shows who is the real head of the church – Christ.

What I’ve gathered from this is that God is into order. There needs to be someone leading, establishing the rules, and keeping confusion down. There should be elders, decons, teachers, pastors, etc. The church can be held in any kind of location, even in a house. But ultimately, it is God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit that will establish those people, set apart those people, and add to the number in the church.

Bottom line to all of this is, regardless of the denomination or non-denomination, the different doctrines or non-doctrines, Christ builds the church, no one else does. God has brought many beautiful things, and many powerful servants out of the dirty, filthy, most corrupt places in the Bible. I have no doubt that out of the worst denomination or worst doctrine you can think of, God is calling someone right now, despite the work of man.

For those of us who are brother’s and sister’s in Christ, looking for a good church home? Just like anywhere else, you will have people who are false prophets, false teachers and some who will establish churches on their own. This is why Christ said that we needed to know people by their fruits. Too often, we tend to view the fruits of a pastor by the number of the congregation. But that is not accurate. It is by their fruits in their own personal lives that we should know them. As Paul says, 1 Tim 3:5, if a man can not know how to rule over his own house, how should he care for the church?

——-

Quote:

What does God say about this?

He [Christ] also is the Head of [His] body, the church; seeing He is the Beginning, the Firstborn from among the dead, so that He alone in everything and in every respect might occupy the chief place [stand first and be preeminent]. (Col 1:18)

And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. ~ Jesus (Matthew 16:18)

Thanks for the journey through scripture.

As far a what’s in the Bible about fruit, I think most Christians know many familiar quotes about fruit such as:

“every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” – Matthew 3:10

“You will fully recognize them by their fruits.” … “Even so, every healthy (sound) tree bears good fruit” … “Therefore, you will fully know them by their fruits.”- Matthew 7:16-20

But what I want to do is see what we can learn from the actual fruit tree about our Christian walk. So that means I had to do some research on fruit trees.

Let’s start with Wikipedia

“A fruit tree is a tree which bears fruit that is consumed or used by people — all trees that are flowering plants produce fruit, which are the ripenedovaries of flowers containing one or more seeds.”

It’s interesting that Jesus used trees and fruit several times when talking about believers. Here we can see that as a believer, we have to bear fruit that can be consumed and used by people. Get this one – if you look up the word consumed, it’s really not such a delightful thing. O.o It means, “ To take in as food; eat or drink up; To waste; squander;  To destroy totally; ravage; To absorb; engross.” Not too happy with some of those meanings. As a believer, I like the thought of people taking in and absorbing my fruits, but wasting, squandering, destroying, and ravaging it – no way! Yet, if we think about it, isn’t that exactly what happens many times. We do something nice, friendly (kindness) for someone, and they just take us for granted? We put up with something for a while (patience) and people think we are a push over? We are true (faithful) to our friends and they use us?

Here’s the thing. See the last part of that definition where it says fruit trees bear seeds? Each time someone devours our fruit, they are nourished. We may not like the feeling, but we are really nourishing those people. Who knows when the nourishment of that fruit will kick in and lead them to eternal life.  By consuming our fruit, they will eventually use it. See the definition above says, consume or use. Use means: “To put into service or apply for a purpose; To conduct oneself toward; treat or handle.” It’s important to keep the end goal in mind at all times. Next time you feel used, maybe you really are being used by God and not the other person.

One of the most important things you have to take into consideration when growing fruit trees is the climate of where you live. Of course it is important that you decide what fruits you like to eat and then see if they will grow in your area. Trying to grow something outside of its area usually means no fruit if the tree does survive and if it does survive it will be attacked by a disease or pest that it has no defense for. ~ Natural Fruit Tree Care

Well now, what kind of climate are you living in? Where do you spend most of your time?  If the fruit you want to grow won’t grow where you are, then, um, MOVE! See what it says up there? “Trying to grow something outside of it’s area usually means no fruit” … look at the next words … “if the tree does survive.” So you could be a living tree with no fruit. Just because you aren’t dead, doesn’t mean you’re producing anything. Saved? Great. The question is, are you fruitful? And the next part, “if it does survive it will be attacked by a disease or pest that it has no defense for.” Ever feel alone? Defeated? Discouraged? Look around you, what kind of environment are you planted in? The Bible is clear that those we hang out with will influence who we are.

Generally speaking try to give your fruit trees as much sunlight as possible.

Well, we know where I’m going with this one, don’t we? SONlight – that’s what a believer needs. Without sunlight – No fruit for you! (Said in the Soup Nazi voice from Seinfield.) We can’t be a loner believer. Just can’t do it. We need to spend time in the Word (God’s voice), in Prayer (Jesus’s Petition), and in Worship (Spirit’s passion). The only way the moon can be seen is by reflecting the sunlight. The only way a believer can be seen is by reflecting the Son’s light. That’s it. Otherwise, we are just vegetating in darkness.

The number of fruit trees you will be growing will greatly be effected by:
1..the size of your property
2..the size of your family (how many will eat it)
3..if you plan on selling them
4…the amount of work you are willing to do.
Another important aspect of how many fruit trees to grows is the requirements of the fruit trees themselves. Some require cross-pollination and therefore may need more then one of each variety in order to produce fruit. 

Interesting. So how many seeds do you want to plant that produce? Look around yourself. How big is your property? Not your physical property? Property: “Something tangible or intangible to which its owner has legal title;  The right of ownership.” When we become believers, we become heirs to the Kingdom of God. How much ownership do you take in that Kingdom? Do you live for the King only or do you live for yourself or the world? Did you just come in and sit at the gate and say, thanks for letting me in? Or did you push in further until you were able to sit next to the King?

What is the size of your family? Not your blood family, your spiritual family? Not what is the size of your church, the church is the body of Christ – it’s huge! But how many are you fellowshipping with? If you fellowship in front of a TV every Sunday, then the size of your family is 1. I know there are those who can’t get out, that is just a fact, and the fact is that they will not reach that many people either. But God may have called them to reach one person. If your fellowship isn’t very big, what are you doing to grow it? The reason growth in numbers is important is because with each new person (saved or unsaved) there is a potential to reach many more unsaved people. One person running around spreading seeds will take forever to plant a city. But get 10 people planting, and boom, trees are sprouting up everywhere. If you have a small fellowship, don’t move – MOVE! Don’t leave it, just start doing something to grow it.

Are you planning to sell them? Hmmm, kind of stumped with this one. Got an idea for this, write it in the comment area.

The amount of work you are willing to put into it. Yeah, another thing we don’t like. But truth is, we have to continually work on ourselves so that we can give others something good to work with. We can’t be trying to get others to grow fruit when we haven’t grown it ourselves. Work – it does a body good!

Cross pollination - we don’t have to do this alone. First, we don’t do much of anything when it comes to saving someone, only Christ can do that through the Spirit. The moment you think you did anything is the moment you’ve taken the Glory that should be given to God. All we do is put the seed in the ground and wait on God to do the rest. Second, we don’t have to plant these seeds alone. Having other believers around us helps in growing other good fruit bearing trees. It never hurts to reach out. Jesus never sent anyone out alone, why would we?

“When planting keep in mind how they will look when full grown and give them the room they need. …

A few things you should plan for:
1..Watering - How are they going to get watered? Think about installing a drip system instead of using over head watering. Uses less water, controls diseases and pests.
2..Fertilization Composting twice per year, Mulching twice per year or as needed and applications of organic fertilizers as needed. Natural sprayings should be done as needed.”

Yeah, ok, this one is a tough one. When we see someone become a believer, we want them to produce fruit over night. It just doesn’t always happen that way. We need to keep in mind where they are going, the steps that the have made, and then give them some room to grow. You didn’t become a fruit bearing tree overnight – why should they. Don’t soak them down, drip the Living Water onto them. Help them be in a place where they can receive. Don’t dump everything on them all at once, it takes time and care. If they need to be corrected, do it lovingly and sparingly as needed.  Compost is “A mixture of decaying organic matter, as from leaves and manure.” So you have to let a few things go until there’s a mixture, then apply it as needed, not just cause you have it!

In addition, if someone comes to you and if feels like they are dumping some “manure” on you … maybe you need it. <grin> Take some time to let it sit and see if it’s something you need to sink into your soil in order to help you bear better fruit.

Pruning … Cut back all broken branches to good wood and eliminate broken tips. Remove any branches that are crossing or parallel (side by side less than 6 inches apart). You want your tree to acquire a wine glass shape; upward curving leaders on the outside (four or five is ideal) with the middle open for light penetration. ~ 3 Palms Nursery

None of like this part. I love the way they describe this. First, cut back all broken branches – are you broken some place? The Master Gardner is the only one that can heal you properly. Those broken branches will continue to rob you of fruit. If you have any thing in your life that isn’t lining up with the Word of God – REMOVE IT! It’s robbing you of fruit. 

Look how they describe a healthy, fruit bearing tree: “upward curving leaders on the outside … with the middle open for light penetration.” Are you reaching up? Are you open for light? If not, it’s time for pruning – it’s not going to be pretty right now, but oh, wait until next season when you bloom and are full of good fruit!

Well, I think that’s a lot to learn from a fruit tree. Question is, now that you’ve learned it, will you use it?

Here are some fruits you should be looking at to start with. If you read through the Bible, there are many other “fruits” we should look at, but these are known as the fruit of the Spirit. In other words, if you are believer, you WILL have these. Why? Because you have the Holy Spirit. If you don’t have them, it’s because you are still in control and not the Spirit, they are there, you just aren’t letting them grow, maybe it’s time for some pruning. <holds out the clippers>

Love
Joy
Peace
Longsuffering
Kindness
Goodness
Faithfulness
Gentleness
Self-control

³⁴women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. ³⁵If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church. 1 Corinthians 14 (NIV)[i]

The Greek word translated as speak here is: laleō (lal-eh’-o) A prolonged form of an otherwise obsolete verb; to talk, that is, utter words.[ii] If we are to take this just as written literally in 1 Corinthians 14, women are not to utter a word in church. This instruction specifically says, in church. What is church? The word translated at church means: gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly. To take this verse literally, it means that women cannot talk outside their homes in an assembly of people.

In order to understand the complete idea of any verse, we need to study it in context. What is the reason for the writing of 1 Corinthians? At the very beginning of this Epistle starting in verse 10, Paul tells us why he is writing to the Corinthians:

¹⁰ But I urge and entreat you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in perfect harmony and full agreement in what you say, and that there be no dissensions or factions or divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in your common understanding and in your opinions and judgments. (AMP)[iii] … ¹²What I mean is this, that each one of you [either] says, I belong to Paul, or I belong to Apollos, or I belong to Cephas (Peter), or I belong to Christ. (AMP) … ³¹So then, as it is written, Let him who boasts and proudly rejoices and glories, boast and proudly rejoice and glory in the Lord.^{(B) (AMP)}

He is writing to clear up some confusion and fractions happening atCorinth. The next question is, What is the topic of the text surrounding the verse? This particular text is surrounded by a discussion of spiritual gifts in relation to the body, the church, and Christian ministry, specifically the use of tongues and prophesying. In regards to prophesying, there are prophetess mentioned throughout scripture such as Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron; Deborah, the wife of Lapidoth; Huldah, the wife of Shallum; Anna, at the time of Christ’s birth, and afterwards four daughters of Philip the Evangelist. So women must be allowed to prophesy.

Another thing that is import to understand is the culture of the time in which the text was written. According to Jewish rabbis, women were either incapable or inferior to the process of studying to learn. The Jewish law code known as the Mishnah remarks: “may the words of Torah be burned [first five books of what we know to be the Bible], than that they should be handed over to women” (Sota, 10a), and, “whoever teaches his daughter Torah teaches her obscenity” (Sota, 21).

As we put this all together, we have a church with disagreements and fractions, several people trying to express their gifts all at one time, and women who didn’t know what was going on asking questions. If you read through the Epistle, Paul sets everyone straight by telling them they are all under Christ, they should have an order to their service, and the women should not ask questions in church, they should ask them at home. (Picture a classroom with 10 teachers teaching at once and all the students asking questions trying to figure out what is going on – it would be mass confusion.)

In this very same letter, Paul writes (Chapter 11)

³But I want you to know and realize that Christ is the Head of every man, the head of a woman is her husband, and the Head of Christ is God. ⁴Any man who prays or prophesies (teaches, refutes, reproves, admonishes, and comforts) with his head covered dishonors his Head (Christ). ⁵And any woman who [publicly] prays or prophesies (teaches, refutes, reproves, admonishes, or comforts) when she is bareheaded dishonors her head (her husband); it is the same as [if her head were] shaved. (AMP)

Nowhere in the text surrounding this verse does he say that a woman cannot pray or prophesy in public. There is no debate as to whether gifts are bestowed on both genders, as Peter quoted Joel in Acts 2:17.

If we turn over to Romans, we see that in Chapter 16, Paul commends many women servants in the church. Let’s look at one in particular, Phoebe:

¹NOW I introduce and commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deaconess of the church at Cenchreae, (NIV)

We can see that he refers to her as a deaconess. The original Greek word translated here is also used in 1 Timothy 3 is:

⁸Deacons, likewise, are to be men worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. ⁹They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. ¹⁰They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons. (1 Timothy AMP)

The actual Greek word is diakonos (dee-ak’-on-os) Probably from διάκω diakō (obsolete, to run on errands; compare G1377); an attendant, that is, (generally) a waiter (at table or in other menial duties); specifically a Christian teacher and pastor (technically a deacon or deaconess): – deacon, minister, servant. (Strongs)

In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul refers to himself as “Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.” What makes this particular use of the word interesting is that in Chapter 15 of 1 Corinthians, we find him using the very same word of Jesus Christ again translated as servant. “⁸For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews …”

The exact same word is used to describe Phoebe in Romans, deacons in 1 Timothy, and Paul and Jesus Christ in 1 Corinthians.

Ultimately we are supposed to look at Jesus as our example of how to conduct ourselves in every day life. At the beginning of this, we looked at the literal meaning of this verse which meant that women cannot talk outside their homes in an assembly. But what did Jesus think of this? Let’s look at the woman at the well (John 4), what some consider to be the first evangelist. Did she break this rule when taken literally?

²⁸Then the woman left her water jar and went away to the town. And she began telling the people,  ²⁹Come, see a Man Who has told me everything that I ever did! Can this be [is not this] the Christ? [Must not this be the Messiah, the Anointed One?] ³⁰So the people left the town and set out to go to Him. … ³⁹Now numerous Samaritans from that town believed in and trusted in Him because of what the woman said when she declared and testified, He told me everything that I ever did.  ⁴⁰So when the Samaritans arrived, they asked Him to remain with them, and He did stay there two days. … ⁴²And they told the woman, Now we no longer believe (trust, have faith) just because of what you said; for we have heard Him ourselves [personally], and we know that He truly is the Savior of the world, the Christ. (AMP)

The woman at the well clearly spoke out in a public assembly of people. She clearly went and spread the message that Jesus had given her. Jesus did not rebuke her for this. Authority has been delegated, under Jesus, into areas of society in order to bring order out of confusion. He has established governmental authority (Romans 13), authority in the home (Ephesians 5), and the work-place (Ephesians 6). This scripture of Paul’s is also meant to bring order out of confusion. Not to keep women from preaching, teaching and speaking. Paul also wrote to be “subject to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Ephesians5:21). And in “everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way”. (1 Corinthians 14:40)

We believed strongly that God used women in many roles throughout the Bible and that he continues to use Women in Ministry today. Scripture clearly indicates that women were used as deaconesses, disciples, judges, ministers, prophets, rulers, and teachers. These roles were carried out regardless of the gender being ministered to and women were clearly considered as fellow workers in laboring for the Lord.

Roles fulfilled by women in the Bible:

Beloved, agapētos (ag-ap-ay-tos’) (Romans 16)

Brethren/brother, adelphos (ad-el-fos’) a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote  (2 Timothy)

Deaconess, Diakonos (dee-ak’-on-os) specifically a Christian teacher and pastor (technically a deacon or deaconess. (Strong’s). Pliny makes mention of them also in his letter to Trajan (A.D. 110) (http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/jod/texts/pliny.html).

Disciple, mathētria (math-ay’-tree-ah)  a female pupil

Expositor (a person who explains) ektithēmi (ek-tith’-ay-mee) to expose; figuratively to declare: expound. (Acts 18)

Fellowlabourers, sunergos (soon-er-gos’) a co-laborer (Phil 4)

Fellowsoldier, sustratiōtēs (soos-trat-ee-o’-tace) an associate in Christian toil: – (Philimon).

Judge, shâphaṭ (shaw-fat’) pronounce sentence (for or against); by extension to govern; (Judges 4)

Labour, kopiaō (kop-ee-ah’-o) by implication to work hard.  (Romans 16)

Minister, diakoneō (dee-ak-on-eh’-o) to be an attendant; technically to act as a Christian deacon: – (ad-) minister (unto), serve, use the office of a deacon. (Strong’s)

Prophesy, prophēteuō (prof-ate-yoo’-o) to foretell events, divine, speak under inspiration, exercise the prophetic office. (Acts 2)

Prophetess: prophētis (prof-ay’-tis); a female foreteller or an inspired woman: – prophetess. (Strong’s)

Queen, mâlak (maw-lak’) to reign; inceptively to ascend the throne; (Esther)

Saint, hagios (hag’-ee-os) sacred (physically pure, morally blameless or religious, ceremonially consecrated). (Romans 16)

Yokefellow, suzugos (sood’-zoo-gos) a colleague; a Christian. (Phil 4)

Take a look at the women in the bible who fulfilled these roles:

Anna, a prophetess (Luke2:36-37).

Apphia, a female Christian at Colosse (Philemon 1:2). It is thought that she was the wife of Philemon, since she is placed next to him, and before Archippus, a minister of the word; and very prudently is she wrote to, and justly commended, in order to engage her to use her interest with her husband to receive his servant again, who otherwise might have stood against it, and been a very great hindrance to a reconciliation: this clause is wanting in the Ethiopic version:[iv]

Claudia, a female Christian mentioned in 2 Tim. 4:21.

Daughters of Philip the evangelist, prophetesses (Acts 21:8, 9).

Deborah, a judge and prophetess, (Judges 4), “the children ofIsrael came up to her for judgment.”

Elect lady, the person to whom the Second Epistle of John is addressed (2 John 1:1)

Esther, the queen of Ahasuerus, (Esther), She acted on faith and a terrible catastrophe was avoided.

Eunice, the mother of Timothy, a believing Jewess, but married to a Greek (Acts 16:1). She trained her son from his childhood in the knowledge of the Scriptures (2 Tim.).

Euodias (Euodia), a female member of the church at Philippi. She worked with Paul in the gospel. He exhorts her to be of one mind with Syntyche (Phil. 4:2). The position of women in Macedonia was exceptional. Macedonian women were permitted to hold property. In the account of Paul’s labors in Macedonia there are notices of the addition of women of rank to the church in Thessalonica and Beroea.[v]

Huldah, a prophetess. She was consulted regarding the “book of the law” discovered by the high priest Hilkiah (2 Kings22:14-20; 2 Chr. 34:22-28).

Julia, a Christian woman atRome to whom Paul sent his salutations (Rom.16:15).

Lois, the maternal grandmother of Timothy, commended by Paul for her faith (2 Tim. 1).

Miriam, a prophetess (Ex.15:20).

Noadiah, a prophetess (Ne6:14)

Persis, a female Christian atRome whom Paul salutes (Rom.16:12)

Phebe, a “deaconess of the church at Cenchrea,” theport ofCorinth (Rom. 16).

Priscilla, the wife ofAquila (Acts 18:2), who is never mentioned without her

Her name sometimes takes the precedence of his (Rom. 16:3; 2 Tim.4:19). She took part withAquila(q.v.) in instructing Apollos (Acts18:26).

Susanna, with other women, ministered to Jesus (Luke 8:3)

Syntyche, a female member of the church atPhilippi, see also Euodias (Phil. 4:2,3)

Tabitha, a disciple (in Greek called Dorcas).  (Acts 9:36-43).

Tryphena and Tryphosa, two female Christians, active workers, whom Paul salutes in his epistle to the (Romans16:12).

Scripture

NIV Version,  Message Version, English Standard Version (see the list of related scriptures at the bottom of the ESV page), King James Version

Amplified Version

DO NOT boast of [yourself and] tomorrow, for you know not what a day may bring forth.^(A)

²Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.

³Stone is heavy and sand weighty, but a fool’s [unreasoning] wrath is heavier and more intolerable than both of them.

⁴Wrath is cruel and anger is an overwhelming flood, but who is able to stand before jealousy?

⁵Open rebuke is better than love that is hidden.^(B)

⁶Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are lavish and deceitful.

⁷He who is satiated [with sensual pleasures] loathes and treads underfoot a honeycomb, but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.

⁸Like a bird that wanders from her nest, so is a man who strays from his home.

⁹Oil and perfume rejoice the heart; so does the sweetness of a friend’s counsel that comes from the heart.

¹⁰Your own friend and your father’s friend, forsake them not; neither go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbor who is near [in spirit] than a brother who is far off [in heart].

¹¹My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, that I may answer him who reproaches me [as having failed in my parental duty].^(C)

¹²A prudent man sees the evil and hides himself, but the simple pass on and are punished [with suffering].

¹³[The judge tells the creditor] Take the garment of one who is security for a stranger; and hold him in pledge when he is security for foreigners.^(D)

¹⁴The flatterer who loudly praises and glorifies his neighbor, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted as cursing him [for he will be suspected of sinister purposes].

¹⁵A continual dripping on a day of violent showers and a contentious woman are alike;^(E)

¹⁶Whoever attempts to restrain [a contentious woman] might as well try to stop the wind–his right hand encounters oil [and she slips through his fingers].

¹⁷Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend [to show rage or worthy purpose].

¹⁸Whoever tends the fig tree shall eat its fruit; so he who patiently and faithfully guards and heeds his master shall be honored.^(F)

¹⁹As in water face answers to and reflects face, so the heart of man to man.

²⁰Sheol (the place of the dead) and Abaddon (the place of destruction) are never satisfied; so [the lust of] the eyes of man is never satisfied.^(G)

²¹As the refining pot for silver and the furnace for gold [bring forth all the impurities of the metal], so let a man be in his trial of praise [ridding himself of all that is base or insincere; for a man is judged by what he praises and of what he boasts].

²²Even though like grain you should pound a fool in a mortar with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him.

²³Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and look well to your herds;

²⁴For riches are not forever; does a crown endure to all generations?

²⁵When the hay is gone, the tender grass shows itself, and herbs of the mountain are gathered in,

²⁶The lambs will be for your clothing, and the goats [will furnish you] the price of a field.

²⁷And there will be goats’ milk enough for your food, for the food of your household, and for the maintenance of your maids.

Further Study

Proverb-A-Day: Chapter 27

Proverbs Spiritual Checkup

Proverbs 27:5
FRIEND OR ENEMY?

I like people and want people to like me. So to tell them that their conduct is dishonest or immoral isn’t easy for me. On several occasions, men have told me how they got out of a speeding ticket by making up a touching story, or how they got even with some rascal in a shady business deal. I’ve responded by asking, “That was clever, but was it honest?”

When I get acquainted with people and they tell me they are living immorally, I may ask, “Do you believe in God and that you must answer to Him? Or do you think we are accidents of nature with no more meaning than an insect, and that it doesn’t matter how we live?” When they express some belief in God (and almost everyone does), I’ll gently share with them what He has said about about their conduct. Many times this opens the door to present the good news of salvation.

Ahab called Elijah an enemy (1 Ki. 21:20). But he was wrong. The prophet was really his best earthly friend. If only he would have listened to God’s servant, he could have been a good king and a child of God.

Lord, help us to be loving as we confront people with their sin. And help us to see that those who point out our sins are not our enemies but our true friends. –H V Lugt  (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

True friends will say what’s kind and true,
Though it may cause us pain;
They’re thinking of what’s good for us
And all we stand to gain. –DJD

Proverbs 27:6a 

The Rebuke From A Friend

Never will I forget the rebuke I received from a friend when I was 17. He walked into the back of the butcher shop where I worked and saw me laughing at an indecent cartoon. He said he had admired my Christian character, and was surprised that I would laugh at something sinful and degrading. Instantly a wave of embarrassment swept over me. I shamefully admitted that I had sinned.

It’s not pleasant to be rebuked, nor is it easy to rebuke another person. So I can imagine that the apostle Paul didn’t like confronting Peter (Galatians 2:11). But he felt he had to, because Peter’s hypocritical behavior was hurtful and confusing to the Gentile converts at Antioch. Peter had freely eaten with them, but after some Jews from Jerusalem came to the Antioch church, he shunned the Gentiles, fearing the Jews’ disapproval. I imagine that he felt shame, but he apparently accepted the rebuke gracefully and changed his ways. He knew that Paul was a true friend who loved him. And in later years he referred to him as “our beloved brother Paul” (2 Peter 3:15).

If you must rebuke someone, do it gently. If you are rebuked, avoid an angry response. You may be getting a needed “faithful wound” from a friend.—Herbert Vander Lugt (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

A friend will gently say what’s true,
Although it may cause pain;
He’s really thinking of our good
And what we stand to gain. —D. De Haan

A true friend will put a finger on your faults without rubbing them in.

Proverbs 27:24

The “What Then?” Test

From the 16th century comes a story of a probing conversation between an ambitious young man and a devout Christian named St. Philip Neri. The youth said to him excitedly, “My parents finally agreed to my studying law! “Philip asked simply, “What then?”

He replied, “Then I shall become a lawyer! “And then?” pursued Philip.“ Then I shall earn lots of money, buy a country house, get a carriage and horses, marry a beautiful woman, and lead a delightful life! “he responded.

Again Philip asked, “And then?” Then . . .”The young man began reflecting for the first time on death and eternity. He realized that he had not acknowledged God in his plans and was building his life on temporal values.

The point of this story is not that riches are wrong. But if they become our central goal, we are ignoring eternity and trusting money, not God. Jesus said it’s impossible to love both money and God (Matthew 6:24), and He warned, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, . . . but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven”(vv.19-20).

Young and old alike must make important life-plans. But let’s keep eternity in mind by always subjecting them to the “what then?” test.—Joanie Yoder (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Shall the great Judge say, when my task is through,
That my soul had gathered some riches too?
Or shall at the last it be mine to find
That all I had worked for I had left behind? —Anon.

The true measure of our wealth is the treasure we have in heaven.

Multi Media

The Book of Proverbs as narrated by Max McLean - Proverbs 27

Commentaries

STUDIES ON PROVERBS Exposition: Proverbs

Bible commentaries: Here are a few I personally use: John Darby’s Synopsis; Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary;John Wesley’s Explanatory Notes; John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible

Bible Explained: An interactive commentary on the whole Bible.

My Reflections

Wise or Foolish? There are only two kinds of people, which one are you?

Personal pop out verses:

Proverbs 27:2

V2 - When I read this one, I thought to myself how good it can make someone feel when another person praises them. With that came two other thoughts, why would you want to praise yourself? I can understand pointing out successes, and letting someone know about an achievement you’ve reached, but to praise myself just seems so unrewarding. The second thought was, how we tend to be quick to let someone know when they are doing something wrong, but slow to praise them. Just think of how far a word of praise can go with someone. Going to have to try to do that more often.

Ah so, the hidden love is because even tho we love them, we are afraid to rebuke them. When we look at it that way, it goes with other Proverbs we’ve read about raising children.

V22 - And another one of them verses – “pound a fool in a mortar with a pestle!” lol I can tell you this much, there are plenty of times when I’ve felt like doing that, how about you?! But, we can see what happens if we do – nothing … his foolishness will not depart from him.

Prayer

Father, I praise Your name! You are such an awesome God. I thank you for every plan you have for me. Father, I ask that you help me to take any rebuke given me through a servant of Yours and allow it to make me more like You. Let it mold me so that I can carry out Your will and bring You glory. Help me to have Your eyes to see those who deserve praise so that I can encourage them. And Father, help me to recognize those things that even tho I try to restrain them, it is useless use of my energies. Let me remember that even tho I feel like “pounding a fool in a mortar with a pestle” it accomplishes nothing. I thank you for Your words of wisdom! In Jesus Name, Amen!