Today's Readings and Stuff --- Wednesday, 17 April 2019

No "watching" the kids today.  Errands and stuff eating up the day.  And Wife is having a rough time, all day long.  We were planning to make a jaunt to have some "labs", primarily meaning 'blood work' done, but she just was not up to the trip.  Will have to be done tomorrow, as she has a big deal appointment Tuesday morning, and, probably, the labs and most non-on-call doctors will be taking Good Friday off.  So that will be an issue.


Today is the middle of Easter Week.  It has, as it should, caused my thoughts to go into that line

Beneath The Cross Of Jesus
That is where we are, and must remain.  Sing along with this one.  It will change your mood and the direction of your thoughts.
This was recorded by a college choir, this hymn has been their signature piece since 1882!!

1 Beneath the cross of Jesus
I fain would take my stand,
the shadow of a mighty Rock
within a weary land;
a home within the wilderness,
a rest upon the way,
from the burning of the noon-tide heat
and the burden of the day.

2 Upon the cross of Jesus
mine eye at times can see
the very dying form of One
who suffered there for me:
and from my stricken heart with tears
two wonders I confess,
the wonders of redeeming love
and my unworthiness.

3 I take, O cross, thy shadow
for my abiding place:
I ask no other sunshine than
the sunshine of his face;
content to let the world go by,
to know no gain nor loss;
my sinful self my only shame,
my glory all the cross.


Jesus, Keep Me Near The Cross
This is one of the many brought to us by the blind Fanny Crosby

1.Jesus, keep me near the cross;

there a precious fountain,

flows from Calvary's mountain.

free to all, a healing stream, Refrain:

till my raptured soul shall find

In the cross, in the cross, be my glory ever, rest beyond the river.

there the bright and morning star

2. Near the cross, a trembling soul, love and mercy found me;

bring its scenes before me;

sheds its beams around me. 3. Near the cross! O Lamb of God, bring its scenes before me; help me walk from day to day with its shadow o'er me. 4. Near the cross I'll watch and wait, hoping, trusting ever, till I reach the golden strand just beyond the river.


I Am Thine, Oh Lord  or here
Yes, Lord, draw me nearer.  That is what is needed, terribly needed.
Oh, and by the way, this is yet another from Fanny Crosby.

I am Thine O Lord I have heard Thy voice And it told Thy love to me But I long to rise in the arms of faith And be closer drawn to Thee Chorus: Draw me nearer nearer blessed Lord To the cross where Thou hast died Draw me nearer nearer nearer blessed Lord To Thy precious bleeding side Consecrate me now to Thy service Lord By the power of grace divine Let my soul look up with a stedfast hope And my will be lost in Thine O the pure delight of a single hour That before Thy throne I spend When I kneel in prayer and with Thee my God I commune as friend with Friend There are depths of love that I cannot know 'Till I cross the narrow sea There are heights of joy that I may not reach 'Till I rest in peace with Thee

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Now, a change.  Joshua, and the great majority of those who had ever been in Egypt before the Exodus, were gone.  The people were at least across the River into the Promised Land.  Much yet to be done, and to be done in strict adherence to the Lord's commands.  Commands that were quickly ignored, and the temptations, accented by the failure/refusal to drive out all the heathens there.  Leading to a "get along" attitude and adoption of some awful cult practices.  Leading to disaster.
Yes, that was long ago and far away.  But the pattern has been repeated in several places and times since then. And is rampant in our own land.  If disaster and judgment fell on them, dare we think our own culture and nation is exempt?

Judges 1

1Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked the Lord, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight against them?

2And the Lord said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.

3And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him.

4And Judah went up; and the Lord delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they slew of them in Bezek ten thousand men.

5And they found Adoni–bezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites.

6But Adoni–bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.

7And Adoni–bezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.

8Now the children of Judah had fought against Jerusalem, and had taken it, and smitten it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.

9And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites, that dwelt in the mountain, and in the south, and in the valley.

10And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron: (now the name of Hebron before was Kirjath–arba:) and they slew Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.

11And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjath–sepher:

12And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath–sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.

13And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.

14And it came to pass, when she came to him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wilt thou?

15And she said unto him, Give me a blessing: for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.

16And the children of the Kenite, Moses' father in law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which lieth in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt among the people.

17And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they slew the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah.

18Also Judah took Gaza with the coast thereof, and Ashkelon with the coast thereof, and Ekron with the coast thereof.

19And the Lord was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.

20And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he expelled thence the three sons of Anak.

21And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day.

22And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Beth–el: and the Lord was with them.

23And the house of Joseph sent to descry Beth–el. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.)

24And the spies saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said unto him, Shew us, we pray thee, the entrance into the city, and we will shew thee mercy.

25And when he shewed them the entrance into the city, they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let go the man and all his family.

26And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz: which is the name thereof unto this day.

27Neither did Manasseh drive out the inhabitants of Beth–shean and her towns, nor Taanach and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and her towns: but the Canaanites would dwell in that land.

28And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly drive them out.

29Neither did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.

30Neither did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became tributaries.

31Neither did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Accho, nor the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob:

32But the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: for they did not drive them out.

33Neither did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Beth–shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth–anath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth–shemesh and of Beth–anath became tributaries unto them.

34And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountain: for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley:

35But the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became tributaries.

36And the coast of the Amorites was from the going up to Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.

Judges 2

1And an angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.

2And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?

3Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you.

4And it came to pass, when the angel of the Lord spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.

5And they called the name of that place Bochim: and they sacrificed there unto the Lord.

6And when Joshua had let the people go, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land.

7And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord, that he did for Israel.

8And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being an hundred and ten years old.

9And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath–heres, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill Gaash.

10And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.

11And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim:

12And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger.

13And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtoreth.

14And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.

15Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.

16Nevertheless the Lord raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them.

17And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the Lord; but they did not so.

18And when the Lord raised them up judges, then the Lordwas with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the Lord because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them.

19And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way.

20And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel; and he said, Because that this people hath transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice;

21I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations which Joshua left when he died:

22That through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the Lord to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.

23Therefore the Lord left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

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Psalm 76

To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm or Song of Asaph.

1In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel.

2In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion.

3There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle. Selah.

4Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey.

5The stouthearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep: and none of the men of might have found their hands.

6At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, both the chariot and horse are cast into a dead sleep.

7Thou, even thou, art to be feared: and who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry?

8Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven; the earth feared, and was still,

9When God arose to judgment, to save all the meek of the earth. Selah.

10Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.

11Vow, and pay unto the Lord your God: let all that be round about him bring presents unto him that ought to be feared.

12He shall cut off the spirit of princes: he is terrible to the kings of the earth.

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This is an important passage.  (Yes, I know, all of Scripture is important.  But sometimes this is glided over.  That is a mistake.). 
The ways of the Lord are past our understanding.  Past mine, certainly.  Why was this man blind from birth?  What had he, or his parents, done to deserve such a fate?  Who of us has not seen someone in a bad way and presumed that he or she was reaping the results of sin?  The story is as old as mankind:  ask Job for example.  Perhaps this was just so the Lord's power could be seen.  Certainly, this man would have quite a testimony.  Some of the greatest testimonies come from those who the Lord has rescued from some awful situations.

John 9

1And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

2And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

3Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.

5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

6When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,

7And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

8The neighbours therefore, and they which before had seen him that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged?

9Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he.

10Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?

11He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.

12Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not.

13They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind.

14And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes.

15Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see.

16Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.

17They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet.

18But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight.

19And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? how then doth he now see?

20His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind:

21But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.

22These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.

23Therefore said his parents, He is of age; ask him.

24Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.

25He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.

26Then said they to him again, What did he to thee? how opened he thine eyes?

27He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did not hear: wherefore would ye hear it again? will ye also be his disciples?

28Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple; but we are Moses' disciples.

29We know that God spake unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence he is.

30The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes.

31Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.

32Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind.

33If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.

34They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.

35Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?

36He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?

37And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.

38And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.

39And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.

40And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?

41Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.