Today's Reading May 31

Today we end the month of May and begin a new book in the Old Testament. Today we begin Second Chronicles, chapters 1, 2, and 3. Solomon is now king. This is a time of new beginnings. The Lord appears to Solomon and grants his wish for wisdom and understanding. Solomon commences the effort to build the temple.

The reading from the New Testament takes us to the 12th chapter of the Gospel of John, verses 1 through 19. Jesus makes His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, while the religious leaders of the day seek Hid demise, and that of Lazarus as well. Being an example of God's mercy is not always safe. It's worth the risk, but it's not always safe.

Today's Reading May 30

This morning's reading from the Old Testament finishes First Chronicles - we'll go through chapters 28 and 29. This is David's last appearance in Chronicles, and deals primarily with his exhortations to the people with respect to the LORD and to the plans and preparations made for the construction of the First Temple. David had a good way with words - see the Psalms of David for that - and this does not disappoint.

This evening's reading from the New Testament completes chapter 11 of the Gospel of John, verses 47 to 57. Seen in one light, this is the echoes from the raising of Lazarus. And that's true. But it's also the chain of events that will lead, step by step, to the Cross.

Today's Reading May 29

Old Testament reading
First Chronicles chapters 26 and 27

New Testament reading
Gospel of John, chapter 11, verses 18 through 46
this is, as happens so often in John's gospel, one of those memorable sections. This is the resurrection of the dead Lazarus. I can't pull out the best part - it's all good.

18 Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off:
19 And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.
20 Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the house.
21 Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
22 But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.
23 Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.
24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
28 And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee.
29 As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto him.
30 Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in that place where Martha met him.
31 The Jews then which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up hastily and went out, followed her, saying, She goeth unto the grave to weep there.
32 Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled.
34 And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see.
35 Jesus wept.
36 Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him!
37 And some of them said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?
38 Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.
39 Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days.
40 Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?
41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.
42 And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.
43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.
44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.
45 Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.
46 But some of them went their ways to the Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done.

No good deed goes unpunished. Someone had to ''tell on'' Jesus for this.

Today's Reading May 28

Today is Memorial Day. It is a solemn day in America. I am not happy at the way the day has been trivialized. It seems to me that it is disrespectful in the extreme to reduce it to a day of furniture sales and lawn care. The dead deserver more respect and solemnity than this.

My wife's foster brother was able to spend part of his active duty Army service as one of the sentinels at the Tomb of the Unknowns. It was his way of paying respects to those who had died in the service of this country, or who had paid a high price in other ways. Let us not forget that the freedoms we enjoy were bought at a high price.
Whether the freedom from the penalty of sin and death that was paid at the Cross. Or the freedom from tyranny that was paid at places like Omaha Beach, or the Battle of Trenton, or Khe Sanh. Or Baghdad.

Thank you.
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This morning's reading, from the Old Testament, continues in First Chronicles, chapters 23, 24, and 25. More of the organization of the kingdom with emphasis on the organization of the priestly functions and the support groups. Some 4000 men whose whole job was to praise God. Sounds like a good calling to me!

This evening's reading from the New Testament, comes from the Gospel of John, chapter 11, verses 1 through 17. This is the initial part of the story of Lazarus.

Today's Reading May 27

Good Sunday morning to all.
This morning's passage from the Old Testament continues in First Chronicles, chapters 20, 21, and 22. A bit of a transition here. The passage begins with more account of war. The 2nd chapter, chapter 21, gets into some memorable things. Satan tempts David to do something he shouldn't have, a census. Consequences follow, but along the way we see established the very location that the LORD established for the Temple. A place that, by the way, remains very contentious to this very day.

18 Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.
19 And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he spake in the name of the LORD.
20 And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.
21 And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.
22 Then David said to Ornan, Grant me the place of this threshingfloor, that I may build an altar therein unto the LORD: thou shalt grant it me for the full price: that the plague may be stayed from the people.
23 And Ornan said unto David, Take it to thee, and let my lord the king do that which is good in his eyes: lo, I give thee the oxen also for burnt offerings, and the threshing instruments for wood, and the wheat for the meat offering; I give it all.
24 And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.
25 So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.
26 And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called upon the LORD; and he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt offering.
27 And the LORD commanded the angel; and he put up his sword again into the sheath thereof.
28 At that time when David saw that the LORD had answered him in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.
29 For the tabernacle of the LORD, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of the burnt offering, were at that season in the high place at Gibeon.

And the Islamo-heathens still are motivated by their god, Satan, to deny this site to the Jews.
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This evening's reading, from the New Testament, comes from the Gospel of John, chapter 10, verses 22 through 42

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

Today's Reading May 26

This morning's reading, from the Old Testament
First Chronicles, chapters 17, 18, and 19


This evening's reading, from the New Testament.
The Gospel of John, chapter 10, verses 1 through 21
Jesus is teaching again, using the illustrations of a Shepherd and the sheep.

10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Reading for May 25

Sorry for the delay. Exigent circumstances and all that.

Morning reading from First Chronicles, chapters 14,15, and 16
Some recounts of the early reign of David, and the movement of the Ark of the Covenant. I love the account of the celebration attached to this. A great number of people are named there, people who were deeply involved in every part of this. They were there because God Himself wanted them there, none were there accidentally. And, thousands of years later, their names are remembered. God has not forgotten them, and He doesn't forget us either. Question: are we as excited, as committed, as they were?

Evening reading from the Gospel of John, chapter 9, verses 24 through 41

25 He 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.

I love that verse, and not only because of the best-loved song ''Amazing Grace'' but also because it is part of the testimony of many of us. I truly don't understand all the deep theology of Salvation. I don't, and probably in this life never will. And I don't need to - there's no test. What I do know is that He came into my life, and now things are different. And that is what is important. The rest will come in time.

Today's Reading May 24

Morning Old Testament reading
First Chronicles, chapters 11, 12 and 13.
Greater detail of the life and times of David.

Evening reading, New Testament
The Gospel of John, chapter 9, verses 1 through 23
Jesus heals a blind man, and gets everyone upset over it.

Today's Reading May 23

Today is my 200th post here. Not a record, surely, but some sort of milestone.

Morning reading, from the Old Testament, is First Chronicles, chapters 8,9, and 10
I know that the list of names, the begats, the places of dwelling, can get a bit tedious. But these were real people with real lives. And the LORD knew them all by name. He knows my name too, which is a comfort when the world threatens to overwhelm us, to stamp us down into the dust to be forgotten. God does not forget.



Evening reading, from the New Testament, is from the Gospel of John, chapter 8, verses 37 through 59.

56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.
57 Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?
58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

Get that? Recall that name for Almighty God as revealed to Moses? Right. I AM.

Today's Reading May 22

The morning reading from the Old Testament
First Chronicles, chapters 6 and 7



The evening reading from the New Testament,
The Gospel of John, chapter 8, verses 21 through 36

31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Today's Reading May 21

Morning reading, from the Old Testament First Chronicles chapters 3,4, and 5
Evening reading from the New Testament the Gospel of John, chapter 8, verses 1 through 20

Illegal Immigration, Part 1008 or more

Many of us are outraged by the latest effort by the White House, the Rockefeller wing of the Republican Party, that hate-America wing of the Democrats (most of them, in other words), LULAC, La Raza, the government of Mexico, the Wall Street Journal, and a whole mess of others to dismiss the sovereignty of the United States and to render citizenship as a worthless thing.
Part of this effort involves a whole spin effort, lies and deceit actually, by the President and his flaks. I expected better of him and am now sorry for my votes and other efforts in his behalf.
Red State has posted several good articles on the matter. I particularly commend to the attention of all the point by point refutation of the official lies on the subject. You may find it at http://www.redstate.com/stories/featured_stories/
response_to_white_house_myth_fact_on_immigration_bill

Today's Reading May 20

First Chronicles chapters 1 and 2
John 7 32 to 53

Today's Reading May 19

This morning's reading from the Old Testament is from Second Kings, chapters 23, 24, and 25, which completes the books of the Kings. It begins very well with the accession of King Josiah. The last good king for a very long time. But Josiah is killed in battle over near Megiddo (right by Armageddon, by the way) and his son takes over and things go bad right away. His son is evil, and so are all the successors until the Babylonians come in, wreck the place, and drag off most of the remainder to Babylon. (right outside modern-day Baghdad, by the way, some things never change).
I can't help but wonder why good kings, like Hezekiah, Josiah, David, etc. are so often followed by sons who are of a different sort. One would like to think that one who ably rules a kingdom could do as well in his own household. That again still is seen today.

This evening's passage from the New Testament is still in the Gospel of John, chapter 7, verses 1 through 31. Jesus has gone secretly into the Temple during the time of the Feast of Tabernacles, and teaches there. And immediately stirs up opposition. There are those who involved in various cult groups do not believe either in the divinity of Jesus, or that He claimed such, are or should be very nervous about passages such as this. Indeed, they should be nervous about the whole Gospel of John. But then, they don't seem to pay much attention to the Bible anyway.

Today's Reading May 18

This morning's reading is from Second Kings, chapters 20, 21, and 22.
The same old story - Hezekiah dies, his son takes over. And his son is wicked. So is his son. Josiah, the next king, is of a different sort. Josiah is a godly man.

The afternoon's passage is from the Gospel of John, chapter 6, verses 45 through 71.
This is enormously important, and there are several important passage. One of my very favorites is verses 67-69.

67 Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

Today's Reading May 17

Sorry for the lateness of the posting today. It does render the term ''morning reading'' inaccurate, for which I do apologize. Exigent circumstances, and all that stuff.
But at any rate:
Morning Old Testament continues in Second Kings chapters 18 and 19. Here we find, at long last, a good king. Hezekiah, a great king. One who was, wholeheartedly, a man who loved, trusted, obeyed, and followed the Lord. A rarity, in other words. And, as is to be expected, one who generated enemies. Read the story of what happened when Jerusalem was besieged. Would have been quite a sight as it says in

35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
37 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

That's 185,000 dead Assyrians, all in one night. Not bad.
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This evening's reading, from the New Testament, continues in the Gospel of John, chapter 6, verses 22 through 44. A great bit of stuff. One great verse:

37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

Today's Reading May 16

This morning's reading comes from Second Kings, chapters 15, 16, and 17.
More of the same. More of the people of Israel and Judah becoming just like that nations around them. Desperately wicked and daily more so, and coming under God's judgment as a result. Murder, assassination, human sacrifice, worship of false gods. Sounds like the world today. I know what happened in Judah and Israel. I don't think Western civilization, what we used to call ''Christendom'', will fare any better.

This evening's reading is from the Gospel of John chapter 6, verses 1 through 21.
This passage begins with Jesus feeding of the 5000 men, plus women and children. It ends with Jesus walking on the water of the Sea of Galilee in a storm. When He got in the boat, the storm was over and they were at their destination. Yes, we can trust Him to get us where we are going, even in the storms of life.
I believe that. Do you?

Today's Reading May 15

This morning's reading from the Old Testament comes from Second Kings, chapters 12, 13, and 14. This is interesting, but a bit hard going. It reminds me somewhat of the accounts back in the book of the Judges - the kings were mostly evil, the people were mostly doing wickedly, and the results were predictable: the Lord removed His protection from them and they were attacked by their enemies. Some of those enemies were internal - one king was killed by his own servants. Elisha dies during all of this time and the desire for the true God is little seen. Sounds familiar, actually.

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This evening's reading from the New Testament is from the Gospel of John, chapter 5, verses 25 through 47. Jesus continues to teach those who do not want to hear. There are some harsh words here, and they're still valid.

37 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
38 And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.
39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
41 I receive not honour from men.
42 But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you.

Tough stuff to hear. Worse to ignore.

Today's Reading May 14

Sorry for the absence of the last few days. I'm running low on close relatives to bury, so perhaps we'll settle down a bit.

This morning's reading from the Old Testament is from Second Kings, chapters 9, 10, and 11. This is not light reading. This is judgment against the house of Ahab. There is a lot of death here, a lot of the consequences of evil deeds and worse attitudes. And it's not over yet.

This evening's reading from the New Testament comes from the Gospel of John, chapter 5, verses 1 through 24. It begins with Jesus healing the infirm man at the Bethesda pool, and doing so on Sabbath. It ends with Jesus warning the religious leaders,

18 Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.
19 Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
20 For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
21 For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.
22 For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
23 That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.
24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

Do you believe that? I do. That's the Gospel.

Today May 14, 2007 brief and personal

Good morning

We are back to our modest home. We got in late last night after a thousand-mile car trip that began at dawn and went on and on and on. I have new respect for over-the-road truck drivers - I would not like to spend my life this way.

Having the funerary rites for your mother-in-law on the day before Mother's Day is not the best of all possible situations. I think that is not a controversial statement. We got to see a number of family members and old friends and acquaintances. Some made us to recall better times. Some reminded us why we had not had contact with them in more than 20 years. Some of the situations were just plain awkward. One woman showed up, most of us did not know who she was; she was one of the many children that my brother-in-law had fathered by his many wives (I think he's closing in on a dozen now, but that may be low) and numerous ''meaningful overnight relationships''. She seemed nice enough but it did make for some interesting dynamics. There were all the varieties of social dynamic that seem to accompany such things - the sides that were taken in various intra-family disputes played out as islands of people clumps were in the midst of the eddies of the marginally involved.

At any rate, we are glad to be home. I paid $3.199 / gallon for gas in NE Ohio - as we traveled south and west it fell and fell. I think I saw a sign saying $2.82 last night but by then I was bleary-eyed. Matt Drudge's site is showing $4 + in some places - I imagine it's those places ''blessed'' by the sort of superior leaders that the evening TV propaganda shows think we need to have in office. A plague be upon them.

The area we were in is bounded by Akron in the west and the Mahoning Valley in the east. It used to be a major manufacturing center. Now, the combination of offshore manufacturing, thick-headed management, absolutely venal unions, corrupt politicians, the Mafia (yes, I mean that), the illegitimati in the EPA, and a one-party region (yes, the Democrap one), have collided to yield rows of empty factories, closed stores, empty parking lots, and burned-out houses. We went by one facility Friday morning en route to the funeral home. It's 3/4 mile long complex dedicated to automotive components. It used to be called Packard Electric, Division of General Motors Corp., but it now is under the dead weight of the bankrupt Delphi Automotive Corp., and the employee lots that are not totally empty have only a few cars. I am told that, once all of the realignment and downsizing is complete, that the operation which once employed well over 10,000 will have 700 total. But they still have their idiot union which totally supports the Democrat stranglehold on the area. And I know of many similar situations - drive through Akron some time if you doubt me.

It's been a week to think about death a lot. Of individuals, obviously. But also of hopes, dreams, communities, efforts. Too much of those thoughts and a whole lot of windshield time on a 16-1/2 hour drive. Sorry to be negative today. It's been a rough spring.