Today's Readings and Stuff-- Friday, 01 January 2021

😀

HAPPY NEW YEAR !

Let us begin again.

A new year.  Welcome.  We've been allowed to see it.  Let us use that opportunity to glorify the Lord.

Song of the week, perhaps.  Since Jesus Came Into My Heart.   Sing along.  Do it twice.  

And a second one, Open The Eyes Of My Heart.

I'm trying a reading plan that I used for years before trying some others.  It's available, should you wish, from my old friends in the Gideons.  It's broken down with readings in the morning and a second passage in the evening.  Nice to read the first passage while in the morning routines, the evening later on.  Although at one time I did the morning one during my lunch break at work.  Give it a try.  I can not over-emphasize the importance of regular, methodical, intentional, daily, prayerful time in the Word of God.  I have often, sadly, been shocked to encounter those in the church -- including in the pulpit I fear -- who have NEVER read the entire Bible.  That's understandable, I guess, for those who have no access or who simply can't read.  For the rest, it staggers me.    It's a disgrace.

========÷÷÷÷÷÷======

This contains in the first four words, what is one of the most crucial statements that can be made:  "In the beginning, GOD! ".  

Morning reading:

GENESIS 1

The Creation

1In the beginning  God created the heavens and the earth.  

2Now the earth was  formless and empty,  darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.  3Then God said, “Let there be light,”  and there was light. 4God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5God called the light “day,” and He called the darkness “night.” Evening came and then morning: the first day.

6Then God said, “Let there be an expanse  between the waters, separating water from water.”  7So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above the expanse.  And it was so. 8God called the expanse “sky.”  Evening came and then morning: the second day.

9Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place,  and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10God called the dry land “earth,” and He called the gathering of the water “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11Then God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.”  And it was so. 12The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13Evening came and then morning: the third day.

14Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs  for festivals  and for days and years.  15They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. 16God made the two great lights — the greater light to have dominion over the day and the lesser light to have dominion over the night — as well as the stars.  17God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, 18to dominate the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness.  And God saw that it was good. 19Evening came and then morning: the fourth day.

20Then God said, “Let the water swarm with  living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21So God created the large sea-creatures  and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water,  according to their kinds. He also created every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22So God blessed them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”  23Evening came and then morning: the fifth day.

24Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25So God made the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and creatures that crawl on the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

26Then God said, “Let Us  make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.  They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth,  and the creatures that crawl  on the earth.” 

27So God created man in His own image;

He created him in the image of God;

He created them male and female. 

28God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth,  and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls  on the earth.” 29God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This food will be for you,  30for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth — everything having the breath of life in it. I have given every green plant for food.”  And it was so. 31God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.  Evening came and then morning: the sixth day.

GENESIS 2

1So the heavens and the earth and everything in them  were completed.  2By the seventh  day God completed His work that He had done, and He rested  on the seventh day from all His work that He had done.  3God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it He rested  from His work of creation.  

Man and Woman in the Garden

4These are the records  of the heavens and the earth, concerning their creation at the time  that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. 5No shrub of the field  had yet grown on the land,  and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not made it rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground. 6But water would come out of the ground and water the entire surface of the land. 7Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground  and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils,  and the man became a living being. 

8The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east,  and there He placed the man He had formed. 9The Lord God caused to grow out of the ground every tree pleasing in appearance and good for food, including the tree of life in the middle of the garden,  as well as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 

10A river went  out from Eden to water the garden. From there it divided and became the source of four rivers.  11The name of the first is Pishon, which flows through the entire land of Havilah,   where there is gold. 12Gold from that land is pure;  bdellium  and onyx  are also there. 13The name of the second river is Gihon, which flows through the entire land of Cush. 14The name of the third river is the Tigris,  which runs east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. 

15The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it. 16And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden,  17but you must not eat  from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.”  18Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper as his complement.”  19So the Lord God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it.  And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the sky, and to every wild animal; but for the man  no helper was found as his complement. 21So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come over the man,  and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. 22Then the Lord God made the rib He had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man.  23And the man said:

This one, at last, is bone of my bone

and flesh of my flesh;

this one will be called “woman,”

for she was taken from man. 

24This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh.  25Both the man and his wife were naked, yet felt no shame.

=====================

MATTHEW 1

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

1The  historical record   of Jesus Christ, the Son of David,  the Son of Abraham: 

From Abraham to David

2Abraham fathered  Isaac,

Isaac fathered Jacob,

Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers, 

3Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar,

Perez fathered Hezron,

Hezron fathered Aram, 

4Aram fathered Amminadab,

Amminadab fathered Nahshon,

Nahshon fathered Salmon,

5Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab,

Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth,

Obed fathered Jesse, 

6and Jesse fathered King David.

From David to the Babylonian Exile

Then  David fathered Solomon by Uriah’s wife, 

7Solomon fathered Rehoboam,

Rehoboam fathered Abijah,

Abijah fathered Asa, 

8Asa  fathered Jehoshaphat,

Jehoshaphat fathered Joram, 

Joram fathered Uzziah, 

9Uzziah fathered Jotham,

Jotham fathered Ahaz,

Ahaz fathered Hezekiah,

10Hezekiah fathered Manasseh,

Manasseh fathered Amon, 

Amon fathered Josiah, 

11and Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers

at the time of the exile to Babylon. 

From the Exile to the Messiah

12Then after the exile to Babylon

Jechoniah fathered Shealtiel,

Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel,

13Zerubbabel fathered Abiud,

Abiud fathered Eliakim,

Eliakim fathered Azor, 

14Azor fathered Zadok,

Zadok fathered Achim,

Achim fathered Eliud,

15Eliud fathered Eleazar,

Eleazar fathered Matthan,

Matthan fathered Jacob,

16and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary,

who gave birth to  Jesus who is called the Messiah. 

17So all the generations from Abraham to David were 14 generations; and from David until the exile to Babylon, 14 generations; and from the exile to Babylon until the Messiah, 14 generations. 

The Nativity of the Messiah

18The birth of Jesus Christ came about this way: After His mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit.  19So her husband Joseph, being a righteous man,  and not wanting to disgrace her publicly, decided to divorce her secretly. 

20But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit.  21She will give birth to a son, and you are to name Him Jesus,   because He will save His people from their sins.” 

22Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

23See, the virgin will become pregnant

and give birth to a son,

and they will name Him Immanuel, 

which is translated “God is with us.” 

24When Joseph got up from sleeping, he did as the Lord’s angel had commanded him. He married her  25but did not know her intimately until she gave birth to a son.  And he named Him Jesus. 

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Tuesday, 08 September 2020

Yesterday went by with us looking out at hours and hours of torrential rain, here at least.  When we'd awakened, the "experts" at the local TV stations were telling us of chances of occasional light and spotty showers.  Yeah, right.  I looked at a weather radar view around noon that showed a truly large storm system that extended from central Illinois to central Pennsylvania, with an arm of it that extended to north of the PA-NY line.  And with embedded storms throughout, lots of lightning and winds.  So much for "experts".  Color me more than a bit skeptical of those who claim to be all-wise and expect the serfs and proles to bow to their wisdom.
So I'm probably going to be doing some make-up errands and tasks today to make up for it.  Next-door niece and family came back early from their camping trip.  Two adults and two kids in a small camper taking cover from the storms is probably not the experience they'd been planning.  He's got a few days off work yet, so perhaps they'll be doing some closer-to-home stuff.  Or not.
One side effect of the weather is that it's made Wife miserable.  As some people who experience various sorts of arthritis know, the bones and joints can become quite reliable barometers, and that changing weather fronts can be downright painful.  I've been spared that, so far, but she's been dealing with such for years and years, and yesterday was not a good one for her.  Perhaps today will be better

I was going to try to sneak out today or tomorrow for a bit:  our wedding anniversary is Thursday.  Didn't happen as other matters took precedence.  A trip to Vienna or England or Dollywood isn't in the budget, so the festivities will be scaled back somewhat.  Maybe a box of chocolates and a couple flowers.  But we have each other.

We had planned to make a run over to the clinic complex where our main doctor is housed, there to do some "labs" that -- particularly in her case -- are overdue, and mine are due in prep for an appointment next month.  Mine are supposed to be done "fasting" so no late nights snacks for me and wasn't expecting any breakfast either, or coffee for that matter.  But she was awake half the night and didn't wake up until after 09:00, at which time "peopling" was more than she could handle.  So, perhaps, tomorrow morning?  We'll see.

==================

ISAIAH 17

1The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.

2The cities of Aroer are forsaken: they shall be for flocks, which shall lie down, and none shall make them afraid.

3The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the Lord of hosts.

4And in that day it shall come to pass, that the glory of Jacob shall be made thin, and the fatness of his flesh shall wax lean.

5And it shall be as when the harvestman gathereth the corn, and reapeth the ears with his arm; and it shall be as he that gathereth ears in the valley of Rephaim.

6Yet gleaning grapes shall be left in it, as the shaking of an olive tree, two or three berries in the top of the uppermost bough, four or five in the outmost fruitful branches thereof, saith the Lord God of Israel.

7At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel.

8And he shall not look to the altars, the work of his hands, neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves, or the images.

9In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch, which they left because of the children of Israel: and there shall be desolation.

10Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength, therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants, and shalt set it with strange slips:

11In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.

12Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!

13The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.

14And behold at eveningtide trouble; and before the morning he is not. This is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us.

ISAIAH 18

1Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia:

2That sendeth ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of bulrushes upon the waters, saying, Go, ye swift messengers, to a nation scattered and peeled, to a people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden down, whose land the rivers have spoiled!

3All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye.

4For so the Lord said unto me, I will take my rest, and I will consider in my dwelling place like a clear heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.

5For afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and take away and cut down the branches.

6They shall be left together unto the fowls of the mountains, and to the beasts of the earth: and the fowls shall summer upon them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.

7In that time shall the present be brought unto the Lord of hosts of a people scattered and peeled, and from a people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden under foot, whose land the rivers have spoiled, to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, the mount Zion.

============

PROVERBS 9

Wisdom versus Foolishness

1Wisdom has built her house; she has carved out her seven pillars.

2She has prepared her meat;  she has mixed her wine;  she has also set her table. 

3She has sent out her female servants; she calls out from the highest points of the city: 

4“Whoever is inexperienced, enter here! ” To the one who lacks sense,  she says,

5“Come, eat my bread, and drink the wine I have mixed.

6Leave inexperience behind, and you will live; pursue the way of understanding.

7The one who corrects a mocker will bring dishonor on himself; the one who rebukes a wicked man will get hurt. 

8Don’t rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you;  rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. 

9Instruct a wise man, and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man, and he will learn more. 

10“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,  and the knowledge of the Holy One  is understanding.

11For by Wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.

12If you are wise, you are wise for your own benefit; if you mock, you alone will bear the consequences.”

13The woman Folly is rowdy; she is gullible and knows nothing. 

14She sits by the doorway of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city,

15calling to those who pass by, who go straight ahead on their paths: 

16“Whoever is inexperienced, enter here! ”  To the one who lacks sense, she says,

17“Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten secretly is tasty! ” 

18But he doesn’t know that the departed spirits are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol. 

==================

COLOSSIANS 2

1For I want you to know how great a struggle  I have for you, for those in Laodicea,  and for all who have not seen me in person. 
2I want their hearts to be encouraged  and joined together in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God’s mystery  — Christ.   
3All the treasures of wisdom  and knowledge  are hidden in Him.

Christ versus the Colossian Heresy

4I am saying this so that no one will deceive you with persuasive arguments. 5For I may be absent in body, but I am with you in spirit,  rejoicing to see how well ordered you are and the strength of your faith in Christ.

6Therefore, as you have received  Christ Jesus the Lord,  walk in Him, 
7rooted and built up in Him  and established in the faith, just as you were taught,  overflowing with gratitude.

8Be careful that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit based on human tradition,  based on the elemental forces of the world, and not based on Christ.  
9For the entire fullness  of God’s nature  dwells bodily  in Christ, 
10and you have been filled by Him, who is the head  over every ruler and authority. 
11You were also circumcised in Him with a circumcision not done with hands, by putting off the body of flesh,  in the circumcision of the Messiah.   
12Having been buried with Him  in baptism, you were also raised with Him  through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.  
13And when you were dead in trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive with Him and forgave us all our trespasses. 
14He erased the certificate of debt, with its obligations, that was against us and opposed to us, and has taken it out of the way by nailing it to the cross.  
15He disarmed the rulers and authorities and disgraced them publicly; He triumphed over them by Him.  

16Therefore, don’t let anyone judge  you in regard to food and drink  or in the matter of a festival or a new moon  or a Sabbath day.  
17These are a shadow  of what was to come;  the substance is  the Messiah.  
18Let no one disqualify you,   insisting on ascetic practices  and the worship of angels, claiming access to a visionary realm and inflated  without cause by his unspiritual  mind. 
19He doesn’t hold on to the head, from whom the whole body,  nourished and held together by its ligaments and tendons, develops with growth from God.

20If you died with the Messiah  to the elemental forces of this world, why do you live as if you still belonged to the world? Why do you submit to regulations: 
21“Don’t handle, don’t taste, don’t touch”? 
22All these regulations refer to what is destroyed by being used up; they are commands and doctrines of men. 
23Although these have a reputation of wisdom  by promoting ascetic practices, humility, and severe treatment of the body, they are not of any value in curbing self-indulgence.