"Who hath ears to hear, let him hear."

Category: Christianity

Morning Bible Reading June 2nd

2 Chronicles 7:1-9:31 KJV
(1)  Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the house.
(2)  And the priests could not enter into the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD had filled the LORD’S house.
(3)  And when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD upon the house, they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.
(4)  Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices before the LORD.
(5)  And king Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty and two thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep: so the king and all the people dedicated the house of God.
(6)  And the priests waited on their offices: the Levites also with instruments of musick of the LORD, which David the king had made to praise the LORD, because his mercy endureth for ever, when David praised by their ministry; and the priests sounded trumpets before them, and all Israel stood.
(7)  Moreover Solomon hallowed the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD: for there he offered burnt offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, because the brasen altar which Solomon had made was not able to receive the burnt offerings, and the meat offerings, and the fat.
(8)  Also at the same time Solomon kept the feast seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt.
(9)  And in the eighth day they made a solemn assembly: for they kept the dedication of the altar seven days, and the feast seven days.
(10)  And on the three and twentieth day of the seventh month he sent the people away into their tents, glad and merry in heart for the goodness that the LORD had shewed unto David, and to Solomon, and to Israel his people.
(11)  Thus Solomon finished the house of the LORD, and the king’s house: and all that came into Solomon’s heart to make in the house of the LORD, and in his own house, he prosperously effected.
(12)  And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice.
(13)  If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
(14)  If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
(15)  Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.
(16)  For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there for ever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
(17)  And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded thee, and shalt observe my statutes and my judgments;
(18)  Then will I stablish the throne of thy kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man to be ruler in Israel.
(19)  But if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
(20)  Then will I pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and will make it to be a proverb and a byword among all nations.
(21)  And this house, which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passeth by it; so that he shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and unto this house?
(22)  And it shall be answered, Because they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath he brought all this evil upon them.
(1)  And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, wherein Solomon had built the house of the LORD, and his own house,
(2)  That the cities which Huram had restored to Solomon, Solomon built them, and caused the children of Israel to dwell there.
(3)  And Solomon went to Hamathzobah, and prevailed against it.
(4)  And he built Tadmor in the wilderness, and all the store cities, which he built in Hamath.
(5)  Also he built Bethhoron the upper, and Bethhoron the nether, fenced cities, with walls, gates, and bars;
(6)  And Baalath, and all the store cities that Solomon had, and all the chariot cities, and the cities of the horsemen, and all that Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and throughout all the land of his dominion.
(7)  As for all the people that were left of the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which were not of Israel,
(8)  But of their children, who were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel consumed not, them did Solomon make to pay tribute until this day.
(9)  But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no servants for his work; but they were men of war, and chief of his captains, and captains of his chariots and horsemen.
(10)  And these were the chief of king Solomon’s officers, even two hundred and fifty, that bare rule over the people.
(11)  And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharaoh out of the city of David unto the house that he had built for her: for he said, My wife shall not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, because the places are holy, whereunto the ark of the LORD hath come.
(12)  Then Solomon offered burnt offerings unto the LORD on the altar of the LORD, which he had built before the porch,
(13)  Even after a certain rate every day, offering according to the commandment of Moses, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts, three times in the year, even in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles.
(14)  And he appointed, according to the order of David his father, the courses of the priests to their service, and the Levites to their charges, to praise and minister before the priests, as the duty of every day required: the porters also by their courses at every gate: for so had David the man of God commanded.
(15)  And they departed not from the commandment of the king unto the priests and Levites concerning any matter, or concerning the treasures.
(16)  Now all the work of Solomon was prepared unto the day of the foundation of the house of the LORD, and until it was finished. So the house of the LORD was perfected.
(17)  Then went Solomon to Eziongeber, and to Eloth, at the sea side in the land of Edom.
(18)  And Huram sent him by the hands of his servants ships, and servants that had knowledge of the sea; and they went with the servants of Solomon to Ophir, and took thence four hundred and fifty talents of gold, and brought them to king Solomon.
(1)  And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to prove Solomon with hard questions at Jerusalem, with a very great company, and camels that bare spices, and gold in abundance, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
(2)  And Solomon told her all her questions: and there was nothing hid from Solomon which he told her not.
(3)  And when the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built,
(4)  And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.
(5)  And she said to the king, It was a true report which I heard in mine own land of thine acts, and of thy wisdom:
(6)  Howbeit I believed not their words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the one half of the greatness of thy wisdom was not told me: for thou exceedest the fame that I heard.
(7)  Happy are thy men, and happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and hear thy wisdom.
(8)  Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee to set thee on his throne, to be king for the LORD thy God: because thy God loved Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore made he thee king over them, to do judgment and justice.
(9)  And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices great abundance, and precious stones: neither was there any such spice as the queen of Sheba gave king Solomon.
(10)  And the servants also of Huram, and the servants of Solomon, which brought gold from Ophir, brought algum trees and precious stones.
(11)  And the king made of the algum trees terraces to the house of the LORD, and to the king’s palace, and harps and psalteries for singers: and there were none such seen before in the land of Judah.
(12)  And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants.
(13)  Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and threescore and six talents of gold;
(14)  Beside that which chapmen and merchants brought. And all the kings of Arabia and governors of the country brought gold and silver to Solomon.
(15)  And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of beaten gold went to one target.
(16)  And three hundred shields made he of beaten gold: three hundred shekels of gold went to one shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
(17)  Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold.
(18)  And there were six steps to the throne, with a footstool of gold, which were fastened to the throne, and stays on each side of the sitting place, and two lions standing by the stays:
(19)  And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps. There was not the like made in any kingdom.
(20)  And all the drinking vessels of king Solomon were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold: none were of silver; it was not any thing accounted of in the days of Solomon.
(21)  For the king’s ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram: every three years once came the ships of Tarshish bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
(22)  And king Solomon passed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
(23)  And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, that God had put in his heart.
(24)  And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, harness, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
(25)  And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; whom he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.
(26)  And he reigned over all the kings from the river even unto the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt.
(27)  And the king made silver in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that are in the low plains in abundance.
(28)  And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt, and out of all lands.
(29)  Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of Nebat?
(30)  And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.
(31)  And Solomon slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

Photo by Rachel Strong on Unsplash
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Evening Reading – May 30, 2023

John 11:47-57 KJV
(47)  Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles.
(48)  If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.
(49)  And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all,
(50)  Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.
(51)  And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;
(52)  And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.
(53)  Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death.
(54)  Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples.
(55)  And the Jews’ passover was nigh at hand: and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the passover, to purify themselves.
(56)  Then sought they for Jesus, and spake among themselves, as they stood in the temple, What think ye, that he will not come to the feast?
(57)  Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that, if any man knew where he were, he should shew it, that they might take him.

Photo by Rachel Strong on Unsplash
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Rock Solid Faith

And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. (Luke 22:60)

For centuries we have enjoyed practicing our religion in safety here in America. Faith was so important to the founders of this nation that its protection is clearly stated in the first sentence of the first amendment to our Constitution. First, in a series of ten amendments which are known as the Bill of Rights. Sadly, there is an increasing number of people who are adamantly opposed to allowing Christians to have that basic freedom. Too often we read in the news of attempts to silence the preaching of God’s word. Here in America, the land of freedom, Christians have been arrested for refusing to deny their faith.

I would like to believe I am grounded enough in my faith that I would boldly proclaim the name of Christ no matter the circumstances. But in our verse today we find Peter denying he knew Christ the third time. Peter was afraid.

Peter was the third disciple to follow Christ. When Jesus met Peter, He renamed him Cephas, which interpreted means a stone, signifying the rock-solid faith that Peter would have. Peter stepped out on the waters of the Sea of Galilee when Jesus said “Come”.

All the disciples hid in fear as Jesus alone faced those next few hours of torment leading up to His crucifixion. But the Bible only gives us the account of Peter, the one whom Christ granted the rock-solid faith.

Even the strongest Christian has a breaking point. Rock-solid faith planted in the heart of this carnal flesh will eventually show its weakness. But in our weakness, God shows His unfailing strength. Jesus tells us that the tiniest amount of faith in Him is enough to move mountains. When our faith falters, (that’s when, not if) we are still secure in His hand.

Brethren we need to encourage one another, pray for each other, that in this time we have, we may continue to stand boldly for Christ.

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The Obvious Question

And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? (John 5:5-6)

“Wilt thou be made whole?” Why would Jesus ask such a question? Of course, this man wanted healing! He had an infirmity for 38 years. Now we don’t know how old this man was, or how long he had laid by this pool, watching for a ripple of water. But we know his attention was on the water. Jesus’ question was intended to draw this man’s eyes off the superstitious water and put them on Himself. This impotent man needed to turn his eyes to the omnipotent God.

I read somewhere while studying for this post, that Jesus asked a question 307 times in the New Testament, but only gave an answer to His questions three times. God’s word should cause us to question ourselves, so that we can see our weaknesses, our lack of wisdom, our inability to measure up to God’s standard. This impotent man would never see his true condition by staring at a pool. There are many people in the same condition today, waiting, watching, yearning for some feeling, some emotion, something physical that will change their life. People are hungry for something to make their life different, perhaps not knowing what change they want, just something different; hanging their hopes on “good vibes” or maybe karma will look kindly on them. We need to follow Christ’s example here. We need to ask the lost and dying people the obvious questions to take their eyes off the false hopes the world has to offer. Wilt thou be made whole? There is no healing in the pool, but there is eternal life in Jesus Christ.

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A Determined Choice

“Woe is me!” The prophet Micah laments his circumstances in the seventh chapter of his discourse to the leaders of Israel, speaking of the wickedness surrounding him. We can sympathize with Micah’s plight today. Our leaders seem to have no regard for the people. In chapter 2, Micah describes those in power as devising evil at night to practice when the morning light comes. Their greed drove them to oppress the common people without any sign of remorse. Judges required bribes for their verdicts. The rich and powerful would entangle their mischief in the courts allowing them to continue their evil ways. Sound familiar?

Micah was given the unpopular task of proclaiming God’s impending judgement on Israel. His bold witness for God was believed by a few and rejected by many. In chapter 7 Micah speaks of discord within close family members. The controversies caused by his witness surely affected his mental state. We can easily be discouraged at the mockery of God we see around us.

But Micah made a determined choice to trust God. In verses 7-8 we read; “Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.” (Micah 7:7-8)

We can easily get distressed if we watch all the evil going on around us. It may seem like the whole world is against us. But like Micah, we must determine to look unto the LORD, trust Him, and allow Him to be our light in this dark world. God gives rest to the weary, strength to the down-trodden, and comfort to the brokenhearted.

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Be Ready

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
(1 Peter 3:15)

Whether you admit it or not, we all crave attention. We want people to hear what we have to say. Our society has driven many of us to sharing frivolous nonsense on social media, then agonizing over how many likes and follows we get. Going “viral” is now the ultimate excitement.

Truth is that people are watching us wherever we go. If we claim to be a follower of Christ, we are watched even closer. God calls us to be a peculiar people. Why would He do that you ask? So that people might take notice of our gratitude and praise toward God. (ref. 1 Peter 2:9).

When we attract attention for God’s glory, it awakens a curiosity in those around us. As Peter tells us in our focus verse, we must be ready to answer questions about our faith. When talking about our faith, we need to be honest. We should not try to hide our flaws or pretend that we are perfect. We need to be open about our own journey and allow others to see that we are real people who have struggles just like them.

How can we prepare ourselves for the questions? Spending time each day reading God’s word and in prayer is vital to our readiness. The most effective message you can give someone is to tell them how you came to trust in Christ. That is your witness that no one can dispute. But as the apostle Paul warns young Timothy, (ref. 2 Tim. 2:23) we must avoid getting side-tracked into foolish questions which will certainly lead to arguments and do nothing to further God’s kingdom. Always allow the Holy Spirit to guide your answers and conversations.

Allowing God to continuously transform your life through the reading of His word and in prayer will prepare you to not only be ready, but confidently await any questions about the hope within you.

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Brain Fog

I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.
(Psalms 4:8)

The last few weeks have been challenging. Commitments and obligations fill our days pretty quickly during the season from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day. Adding to that is the serious health issues of some dear friends and family members, including my wife’s knee surgery and other things she’s going through. I’ve noticed the stress and resulting brain fog has affected my memory lately. Words and names that should come to mind quickly simply escape me at times. All these circumstances has given me plenty of excuses to keep me from writing.

I am grateful though, that when my life gets stressful, and my mind overwhelmed with circumstances, I can still trust that God is in complete control of my life. Nothing takes Him by surprise; nothing overwhelms His mind. He watches each step, arranges my circumstances, even uses my mistakes for my good.

Throughout the recent trying situations God has continued to bless us tremendously. Seems like 2022 went by in a blink but within its days and weeks there were several notable, (another word for stressful) events. I changed jobs in late 2021 and it has allowed me to work full-time from home in 2022. We watched as my grandparents old house which had stood empty for many years was sold and consequently replaced with a fast food restaurant. That stirred up sweet memories of gathering around the Formica topped dining table to enjoy Granny’s stewed beef, green beans, potatoes, and of course those wonderful homemade biscuits. My wife and I decided it was time to buy a more comfortable home as our retirement age is approaching fast. In the midst of the crazy housing market we found a house we both love so then came the stress that goes with purchasing and moving. God gave me the opportunity to teach a Bible study class again, (though I still feel so inadequate).

With all these changes it’s no wonder my head is in a fog sometimes. I always find comfort though in God’s promises. Like David, I lay down each night in peace and sleep, trusting my Savior in all things. Those days I’m at my wit’s end, those days I fall to worldly temptations, those days my faith wavers, He still holds me secure in His hand.

Now the new year is here with its new challenges. I anxiously await to see what God has in store for me next. Plans are already in the works for publishing my new book, Pondering God’s Word, sometime in 2023. If you’d like to receive updates be sure to sign up for my weekly newsletter using the form on the home page.

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