Today's Readings and Stuff -- Thursday, 05 April, 2018

And another day has dawned.  For that, we are thankful.

Snow on the ground when we woke, from last night's "event".  More snow on and off during the morning.  More than a week into Spring, well into the month of April.  Yet,  just this week, I've received several wild-eyed missives from people I have long known, raving about out of control global warming and the warmest year every and predictions of catastrophe Real Soon Now.  One grows weary of this nonsense, and nonsense is the most polite term that I can employ:  the terminology degenerates quickly from that point on.

Wife is doing a little bit better.  Sitting in a hot shower this morning, with all the steam, seemed to be of some help.  So we shall see.  The Plan is that, in a few hours, we shall trudge through the White Stuff across the back yard, and take up the duty of "watching" the great-niece and great-nephew briefly while niece is  off to work.  Be there around 4:30.  Wife's nephew's wife supposedly showing up about half an hour later, she to take her daughter -- one of the two great-nieces -- along with the great-niece we're "watching" to some gymnastics class.  Which will leave the two of us with a 9-month-old great-nephew, until his dad gets home, and he's usually off by 6 p.m. so it shouldn't be long.  Outside of doctor visit, this is about the first that Wife has been out of the house for several weeks and the kids are suffering withdrawals, as is she.    I'm going along for Just In Case.

With any luck, I'll catch up on some reading, especially if the Little Guy decides to sleep through it all, which at that age is a distinct possibility.  Quite an exciting life we lead these days.

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Our reading today is chapters 3 and 4 in the book of Joshua.  Now they cross Jordan, a milestone in the Exodus from Egypt.  I like the references to making a monument to it, a physical focus of remembrance of what the Lord had done for them.   And I like the visual of the Jordan River in full flow until the feet of the Levites bearing the Ark were in the water.  It was at that point, and not before, that the river's flow was stopped.  How would you like  to have been one of those in the lead?  Walk out into that??!!?  Sometimes the Lord's specific commands don't seem to make sense.  At least to us.  But, sometimes, it's a test of  our obedience.  After all, He could have picked them up in Egypt, immediately transported them to the land, at it already cleared of enemies, with houses and food and such all ready.  He certainly could have done so.  But He didn't.  There was a point to that journey.  There's a point to our journeys as well.  And to what we go through, our struggles and trials. 

Joshua 3

1  And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over.

2  And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the host;

3  And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it.

4  Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.

5  And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for to morrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

6  And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

7  And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.

8  And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.

9  And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the Lord your God.

10  And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.

11  Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan.

12  Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man.

13  And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.

14  And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, to pass over Jordan, and the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people;

15  And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,)

16  That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zarethan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho.

17  And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.

Joshua 4

1  And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,

2  Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,

3  And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night.

4  Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man:

5  And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take ye up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel:

6  That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones?

7  Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.

8 And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there.

9  And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day.

10  For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until every thing was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over.

11  And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the Lord passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people.

12  And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spake unto them:

13  About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the Lord unto battle, to the plains of Jericho.

14  On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life.

15  And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,

16  Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan.

17  Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, Come ye up out of Jordan.

18  And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.

19  And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.

20  And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.

21  And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones?

22  Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.

23  For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:

24  That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.

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Today, Psalm 70.  Quite a few of these psalms, particularly the psalms ascribed to David, came about while he was in dire straits, sometimes running for his life from powerful enemies.  
 

Psalm 70

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, to bring to remembrance.

 

1  Make haste, O God, to deliver me; make haste to help me, O Lord.

2  Let them be ashamed and confounded that seek after my soul: let them be turned backward, and put to confusion, that desire my hurt.

3  Let them be turned back for a reward of their shame that say, Aha, aha.

4  Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: and let such as love thy salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.

5  But I am poor and needy: make haste unto me, O God: thou art my help and my deliverer; O Lord, make no tarrying.

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Today, we begin a trip through the Gospel of John.  
John is sometimes referred to as "the apostle that Jesus loved", which isn't a bad thing to be known by.  Now, I believe in miracles, one of them being that He loves even me.  THAT is a miracle, believe me:  I'm not terribly lovable, at least by human standards, and I believe that the Lord has higher standards than that.  So He loves me in spite of myself, and totally because of what Jesus did and is still doing.  And because that is His character:  God is love.
When I was a youth, we were "encouraged" to memorize Scripture.  Now, I'm glad we did:  some of those passages have been an enormous help to me in the midst of some very dark days and hours.  Planting those seeds was a Godsend.    One of those passages is here, verses 1 - 14 of chapter 1, with particular emphasis on the first 5 verses.  There are some foundational things there.

 

John 1

1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2  The same was in the beginning with God.

3  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

4  In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

5  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

6  There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

7  The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.

8  He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

9  That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

10  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

11  He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.

16  And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

17  For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

18  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

19  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?

20  And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.

21  And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.

22  Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?

23  He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.

24  And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.

25  And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?

26  John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;

27  He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose.

28  These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

29  The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

30  This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.

31  And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.

32  And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.

33  And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.

34  And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.

35  Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;

36  And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!

37And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

38Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?

39  He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.

40  One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.

41  He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.

42  And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.

43  The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me.

44  Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.

45  Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.

46  And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.

47  Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!

48  Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.

49  Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.

50  Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.

51And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.