The Holy Spirit: Oil

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings.” Isaiah 61:1 KJV

We can, if we put our mind to it, think of a great number of uses for oil. Our cars wouldn’t work without it. Cakes would be flat without it. Fragrant oils fill our houses with pleasant aromas. Each of those things uses a different kind of oil. In the Old Testament God gave directions for a special kind of oil to be formulated and to be used in His holy tabernacle. Prophets, priests and kings were all anointed by oil in the Old Testament to do their work.

When Jesus stood up to give His first sermon He read from Isaiah and declared that He was the one who was anointed by God for ministry. He would fulfill the office of prophet, priest and king. Jesus was the Messiah, literally the Anointed One, for whom all Israel was supposed to have been waiting and who would become a light to the gentiles as well.

When we believed in Christ we were anointed with the oil of the Holy Spirit. Paul says that we were baptized with the Holy Spirit. We have been commissioned to do service for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As Christ was anointed with the Holy Spirit so are we. He, the Holy Spirit, will keep our motors running smoothly, keep us from being flat in our faith walk, and will fill us with a fragrant aroma that will draw others to the true Anointed One.

Dear Father, Thank You for giving me the Holy Spirit and let me not stifle Him in my life. Amen.

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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The Holy Spirit: The Dove

 “And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove.” Mark 1:10 NKJV

After the great flood Noah sent out a dove to see if the world was safe again for habitation. On the second flight of the dove God sent back to Noah the sign that the water was gone and vegetation had again grown. If the dove could have spoken it would have given words of peace and safety. In the psalms David wished that he had the wings of a dove that he might fly away to a place of safety. Solomon uses a dove to depict the safety and hope of a loving relationship. The children of Israel had a clear picture of the value of the dove from their sacred writings.

When Jesus was baptized the Holy Spirit descended like a dove and rested upon Him. Here was the One, anointed by the dove, who would end the destruction wrought by sin and bring new life to God’s people. Here was the One, covered by the dove, who would bring peace and refuge to the soul. Here was the One, marked by the Dove, who would bring the joy and peace and hope of a loving relationship with God once again. The Holy Spirit rested on Jesus and proclaimed to the world, “This is the One you have waited for.”

Dear Father, Let the Holy Spirit shine through me the testimony of who Christ is and what He offers to our lost and hurting world. Amen.

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The Holy Spirit: Fire

“They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.” Acts 2:3 NIV

I am not a pyromaniac. I am not fascinated with fire. My job as an early teen was to reduce the week’s garbage from a large pile of waste to a small pile of ash in the old burn barrel. While it was a warming activity on a cold winter day, it was still not a chore I relished. Whether I liked it or not, however, the fire did its job. Fire can do a fine job or it can do great destruction. The intent and care with which it is used will determine the outcome.

Fire is used to remove the dross from the gold. It makes something of great value from something of little value. God’s refining fire of the Holy Spirit is designed to remove the dross from our lives. He purifies us for Himself that we might shine with the brilliance of fine gold in the bright light of His countenance. Refined and readied by the Holy Spirit we become the fine ornament of His grace that will attract the world to the God of salvation.

Dear Father, Thank You for the refiner’s fire. Let me gladly shed the dross and shine for You. Amen. 

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The Holy Spirit: Wind

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8 NKJV

I think that watching the wind is beautiful. But we can’t see the wind would be a common reply. No, but I can see the leaves blowing down the street. I can see the branches wave their greetings and watch the tall grass sway in rhythm to its beat. The flag salutes its Maker and the hawk soars on its mighty power. So, while I can’t really see the wind, I really can.

Wind moves things. The Holy Spirit moves God’s children. We can see the changed life of those born again by the Spirit of God. We can see hope come to the hopeless, peace come to the sorrowful, power come to the reticent and good works flowing from lives formerly negligent of their neighbors. At Pentecost the Holy Spirit came as a rushing mighty wind and moved the followers of Christ from a fearful band into a powerful voice for God. He still moves God’s children today and it is beautiful to see the Wind blow.

Dear Father, Let the wind of Your Spirit waft through my life today for the sake of Your glory. Amen. 

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The Tabernacle: The Mercy Seat

“Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful.” Ps. 116:5 KJV

Inside the Ark of the Covenant were the tablets of the Law and a jar of manna. The Law declared the holiness of God and the righteousness of God in judging sin. The jar of manna was proof of the loving care of God for His people. Sitting on top of this Ark was a solid gold Mercy Seat. Here the blood was applied once each year. It declared that God’s righteous judgment against sin had been covered for another year. Christ is our Mercy Seat and His blood has satisfied God’s righteous judgment against sin for all time.

The Law of God still exists. The loving provision of God also still exists. Forgiveness for our daily violations of the first and access to the daily provision of the second is made through our Lord Jesus Christ. The Mercy Seat is directly connected to the bronze altar that was the first item in the tabernacle court. That pictured the sacrifice of Christ for our sins. The Mercy Seat declares God’s acceptance of that sacrifice. It covers the Law for us and Christ becomes the Living Bread that is not hidden but open for all to see and to receive.

Dear Father, Thank You for Your great mercy and the provision of Your Son for all our needs. Amen. 

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The Tabernacle: Ark of the Covenant

“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16 NKJV

Sometimes married couples find that there are barriers between them that obstruct the closeness of their relationship. When those walls come down there is great relief and the family feels they are whole again. The same truth applies to almost all human relationships. It is also true with our relationship to God. Barriers keep us from the close relationship He wants to have with us. Those barriers come from our sinful behavior that is unrepented. But for many centuries there was a barrier that God Himself had erected.

In the tabernacle there was a veil that hung between the holy of holies and holy place. Once a year the high priest could pass under that veil with a basin of blood and come into the presence of the shekinah glory of God. Sinful man was separated from the holy God. But when Christ died on the cross God ripped the veil in the temple from top to bottom. The old barrier was gone. Through Christ God had offered open reconciliation to mankind. Through the blood of Christ we can come openly, often and without fear into the presence of God. He invites us in.

Dear Father, Thank You that You have made Your throne room open to us. Amen.  

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen 

 

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The Tabernacle: Altar of Incense

“And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God.” Revelation 8:4 KJV

Have you ever smelled something really nasty and wanted to get that smell out of your nose as quickly as possible? I spend a lot of time in rural Iowa and am very familiar with the sweet aroma of hog manure. In Iowa we say, “That’s the smell of money.” But I don’t like the fragrance sticking to my clothes so that I always smell that way. Walking into the kitchen and smelling a fresh baked pie is a pleasant change.

The priests who came into the tabernacle had just been in the outer court where animals were constantly being slaughtered. The smell of death is unpleasant. In the tabernacle there was an altar of incense that refreshed the senses of the priests. But that wasn’t the real purpose for the altar. It was placed right in front of the second area of the tabernacle, the holy of holies. This veiled off area was where the shekinah glory of God dwelt. The incense altar in front of the veil pictures a place to offer up praise and prayer to God. 

Our prayers are still a fragrant aroma to God. They are the incense offering that we make to Him. As the incense was to be constantly refreshed we are to constantly be in communication with God. It is pleasing to Him to hear the prayers and praise of His children.

Dear Father, Thank You for hearing us when we pray and for loving to hear us pray. Amen.

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The Tabernacle: Table of Showbread

“And Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life’.” John 6:35 NKJV

Bread, good whole grain bread, is a staple food of life. Whole grains provide multiple vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates and other essential nutrients for life. When Jesus said that He was the bread of life He meant that we are sustained by Him. The bread of heaven, manna, fed the millions of Israelites in the wilderness for forty years. Elijah was sustained by the bread brought to him by ravens. Bread was in the tabernacle.

Across the room from the lampstand was a golden table containing twelve loaves of bread. Again we find Christ in the tabernacle caring for His people. Not only is Christ the living bread that we need to live spiritually, His word is viewed as bread that we need to feast on to live spiritually as well. The great hymn, “Break, Thou, the Bread of Life” was meant to be sung with Bible study and was not written for communion. In the light and the bread we find Christ reflected in means that we can use for our daily lives. Every day we need to eat and every day we need to feed on the bread of God.

Dear Father, Thank You for giving us true bread in Christ and His word. Amen. 

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The Tabernacle: Golden Lampstand

“For the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light.” Rev. 21:23-24 NLT

From Genesis to Revelation light is an important teaching in Scripture. Since mankind can’t do without it there is every reason to expect it to be the focus of many important passages. Light is symbolic of power, glory, heaven, truth, the scriptures, God the Father, Christ and the law to name a short list. In the tabernacle that God gave the directions on how to build and what to install in it, light plays an important role.

The tent of meeting was enclosed in multiple layers of embroidered fabrics and skins. The entrance was heavily veiled. Stepping into it from the bright desert sun the priest would have stumbled on nearly total darkness if not for the light of the lampstand. Seven little bowls of light fueled by special oil reflected off solid golden walls. The priest could easily see to do his work.

Christ is our tabernacle. He is also our light and the word He has given us is called the light. Christ is the golden walls that reflect the light so that we can see. All that the priest, the believer, needs to have or know to do God’s work is found in that light. Daily the light was to be trimmed and kept fresh. Daily we are to come to God’s word and get our oil renewed and be given light for the new day. This is how we can be prepared to serve our Lord with fresh light and fresh oil every day.

Dear Father, Thank You for giving us the light to guide our way. Amen.  

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The Tabernacle: The Tent of Meeting (Interlude)

“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength.” Isaiah 40:31 KJV

Have you ever been really hot and looked forward to going into some place cool and be revived and refreshed? In the desert where the Israelites wandered for 40 years it was hot. It was dirty. The wind blew the sand into eyes and mouths and tents. In the tabernacle area it was dirty with the offal of the sacrifices and the smell of death was all around. But there was a refreshing place where the priest had to go every day. It was into the tabernacle tent proper. Here layers of coverings kept out the hot sun and the noise and smells. Here it was cool and the light was soft. Behind one more veil was where God dwelt.

The New Testament tells all believers that they are priests. It calls for all of us to go into the tabernacle tent and come before God. There is no longer a veil of separation. That was ripped apart by God when Christ died for us. Now we can meet directly with Him. We can come into His presence and be refreshed. The heat of this world’s woes can be left outside. The smell of this world’s sins can be left outside. Inside we find the pure bread of life, the true light of life, the blessed access of prayer and the mercy seat open to us.

To get here we had to come through the blood of the sacrifice. We had to come through the laver of cleansing of confession. Now we can come to feed on the bread, the word of God. We can come to see the light of our way, the Christ of God. We can come to offer up our prayers as fragrant incense to the Father who is right there before us welcoming us to His throne.  This is our place of private worship with Him. O the refreshment and renewal we find here every day.

Dear Father, Thank You for inviting us into Your presence to meet with you each day. Amen. 

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Tabernacle: Laver of Washing

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9-10 NKJV

If a guest comes to our kitchen they will first see the oak table. The next place their eyes are apt to go is to the window at the end of the room. Under that window is the sink. My beloved Bride keeps the sink area very clean. If the eye is naturally drawn to it, it shouldn’t look dirty. In God’s tabernacle the same would be true.

Just beyond the bronze altar was the laver of washing. It gleamed in the sun. It had been made from the mirrors of the Israelite women. The eye would naturally go to it. It was a needed item and not merely for decoration. Beyond the laver was a tent where God dwelt. Before the priest who had gotten dirty in his labors could enter that tent, he had to wash. It isn’t that he hadn’t washed yesterday, but he was dirty again.

So it is with us. Each day we sin. Each day we need to confess our sin. God’s word is the mirror that lets us see what we have done. Then in confession we make known to God our repentant heart and receive from Him the cleansing that lets us go into His tent to receive all the blessings He has for us there.

Dear Father, Thank You for the opportunity to confess our sins and the certainty of Your forgiveness and cleansing. Amen. 

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen 

 

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Tabernacle: Bronze Altar

“And without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” Hebrews 9:22 NIV

What do you notice first when entering someone’s home? At our house we live “country style”. That means everyone uses the backdoor and enters the kitchen first. You can’t miss the big oak table in the middle of the room. Its “much used” appearance speaks of family, a lot of family, over a long time. It sends a message about our home, not just our house.

In the Old Testament God told Moses to build a tabernacle where God would dwell among His people. There were seven items of furniture in this tabernacle. Only two of the items could be seen by all the people, three by the priestly family and two by the high priest alone. The first item was the bronze altar. That was where the sacrifices were made.

This is singularly important. When we come to God we must come through His Son who is the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Jesus said, “I Am the Way . . . no one comes to the Father but by Me.”  Our entrance to God is only one way, through the blood of His Son Jesus Christ. God placed for everyone to see what was of singular importance to His home – the sacrifice of His Son. Without the blood of Christ there is no admission to the home of God.

Dear Father, Thank You for providing the only way for me to come to You. Amen. 

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Creation: Day of Rest: Day Seven

“The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 NKJV

If you are a parent then you have heard this over and over again, “But I don’t want to go to bed; I’m not tired.” We know that our children need proper rest to be healthy and so we make sure they do go to bed. But then we turn right around and ignore the same rule for ourselves. Our mantra is, “I’ve just got too many things to do so I can’t rest.” We have a loving heavenly Father who knows best, however. He said, “Six days you shall labor and on the seventh day you shall rest.”

Why do we make our two year olds take a nap? Why do we make our ten year olds go to bed at a decent hour? We do it for them because we love them. The bed isn’t their master; it’s there to serve their need. The Sabbath isn’t our master. God didn’t intend us to be slaves to a day and suffer from it. God made the command to take a day off from the hecticness of life so that we could be re-energized and have special time of fellowship with Him. Let’s look at our children’s tired eyes and then at our busy schedules and remember that God knows best – we need rest.

Dear Father, Thank you for creating a day of rest for me. Amen. 

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Creation: Day Six: Man

“For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter” Eccl. 8:6 NIV

When someone is putting on a big show they don’t put the best act on first. There is a lead in to prepare for the starring act. Creation up to and including the animals is the lead in God prepared for the starring act – man. Man isn’t an accident that creation would be better off without. Creation was made for man. God put everything in order and then gave man dominion over it. The world today wishes to worship the creation more than the Creator, but that is contrary to the plan and will of God.

Cows and birds and trees are all nice aspects of God’s creation, but man is special. Man was created with an eternal soul. God breathed the very breath of life into man unlike any other created thing. Man has corrupted that gift of God and pays the price of death, but God had a plan of restoration from the beginning. God sent His Son to reconcile mankind to fellowship with Him. Through the blood of Jesus Christ we can again have the blessed status that first man enjoyed of being a friend of God. 

Dear Father, Thank You for making me and then sending Your Son to remake me as a born again child of God. Amen. 

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Creation: Day Five: Birds and Sea Creatures

“Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God” Luke 12:6 NKJV

In the winter we like to feed the birds. As the months pass (yes, we have six months of winter) we keep track of all the different kinds of birds that have visited our yard. One year we had fifteen different birds and maybe more if we divided the sparrows into their sub-groups. We feed a lot of sparrows. On the big wooden fence near the feeder we have seen another less welcome bird frequently stopping by. It is a hawk and it is also looking for its dinner. Occasionally we find the remains of one of its meals.

It is amazing to think that each sparrow, such a common bird and so prolific, is watched over by God. We sometimes think that maybe God is too busy to be bothered by us, that our needs are not so great as to trouble Him. Then we need to feed the sparrows. God cares for them in their multitudes and in their commonness. Day five of creation speaks to us of God’s limitless creative skills and His abundant grace toward all of His creation.

Dear Father, Help me never forget how much you care for me. Amen.

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Creation: Fourth Day: Sun, Moon and Stars

“When the morning stars sang together” Job 38:7 KJV

Here’s that raucous creation out singing praises to God again. And why would they be doing that? They could be doing it because He is worthy of praise at all times. They could be doing it because He created them with something to do and they are glad to be about the Father’s business. Note that when God made the sun, moon and stars, He gave them jobs to do. They were to give light, be signs for seasonal changes and make us aware of days and years. The stars were also made to give directions as every sailor knows. 

God didn’t just make nature for a purpose; He made us for a purpose as well. Our chief purpose is to give praise to His glory as Paul told the Ephesians three times. Paul said in First Corinthians that the Holy Spirit gave every believer at least one spiritual gift to profit the entire church. Jesus said that we have the job of being salt and light in this world. If we ever feel that we are not important God wants to assure us that we have lots to do. We can praise Him for giving us purpose every day.

Dear Father, Thank You for giving me a purpose in life. Amen. 

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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Creation: Third Day: Land and Seas, Flowers and Trees

 “For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah 55:12 KJV

The Bible repeatedly describes a very exuberant creation. I love to hike, but I think I would really be freaked out if the ground I was walking on suddenly began to sing. What if the trees in the forest burst out in the “Hallelujah Chorus”? How about all those beautiful prairie flowers belting out an anthem of praise for their one solitary day of beauty? Jesus said the most regal king has never looked as good as the lowly flower of the field.

God was really putting things together for man. He made light, air, land, sea, grass and flowers and fruit trees. He took a lot of care in preparing a world that would be just right for us. He thought of every need we would have and made sure we would lack nothing before he put us here. That same God is still caring for us today. He wants us to respond back to Him as does the rest of His creation. He desires our praise. Maybe we can’t hear the praise songs that nature sings, but we should certainly make sure that God hears the songs of praise we sing.

Dear Father, All of Your creation sings Your praise; let me not be silent. Amen. 

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Creation: Second Day: Atmosphere

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handiwork.”      Psalm 19:1 KJV

When you list all the things that you thank God for, do you ever include air? Air is just so plain that we ignore it or simply take it for granted. We can’t see it and unless the wind is blowing we can’t feel it. It has no taste or smell or sound of its own. For all that it doesn’t have to appeal to our senses; it does have the characteristic of utter necessity. We simply cannot live without it.

Sometimes we are tempted to treat some people like air. To us they are invisible. We look through them or past them to what we want to see. These people sit in our churches and share the sacraments with us, but we don’t see them. Like air, God made them, too. Like air they have great value to us as part of Christ’s body. Jesus described them as the “least of these my brethren”.  If they are His brethren, then they are ours also. Let us find the value in the invisible and give thanks for their participation in our lives. 

Dear Father, Help me to see those who are “invisible” and love them as You do. Amen. 

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Creation’s First Day: Light

“God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” 1 John 1:5 NKJV

If you ever watch your children or grandchildren draw a picture they normally put in the house and grass and trees and people and then the sun. Well, God didn’t start with the sun either, but He did make light on the first day. Perhaps He just let His nature be revealed and it lit up the entire universe. We know that in heaven there is no need of sun because the glory of God is all the light that is needed. Not only do we find that God is light, but the Scriptures also teach us that Jesus is light of the world.

The light of God is just as needed in our world today as it was at the beginning of creation. Today the world is wrapped in spiritual darkness, sin and despair. Jesus calls us to be the light of the world today. Paul calls upon us to be lights in a crooked and perverse generation. With Christ in us we have become partakers of the Divine Nature and can offer to the world that light which will brighten their day and their eternal destiny. 

Dear Father, Thank You for being light and shining it into our lives that we might be light as well. Amen. 

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Devotions in Sevens

“There are six things the LORD hates--no, seven things he detests” Prov. 6:16 NLT

There are many people who believe in “lucky” numbers. The Scriptures give us no basis to do so. In fact the Scriptures teach compellingly against the belief in “luck”. While there are no such things as “lucky” numbers, there are several numbers that appear frequently in Scripture. One of them is seven. That doesn’t mean that seven is spiritually special, but it does mean that there are enough sevens in Scripture to use a few for our devotions for the next 49 days. There is no attempt to create meaning about the number seven in doing so. Simply we want to explore some wonderful things in Scripture that happen to come in sevens.

Our text today speaks of something that comes in sevens that is not so wonderful. God hates sin and he lists seven of them that are an abomination to Him in Proverbs. They aren’t the ones we usually associate with His wrath. They are: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, a false witness who pours out lies, and a person who sows discord among brothers. Gossip, pride and deceit are on God’s list of the real “baddies”. Yes, God cares about the supposedly small things in our life as well as the big. He also is gracious to forgive us when we come to Him in repentance and confession from the small as well as the big. Let us praise God for His watch care in all things and enjoy a devotional look at seven special things that God has numbered by sevens.

Dear Father, We confess that we fail in the seemingly small areas of our life. Forgive us and bless us as we study Your word. Amen.  

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You Shall Not Covet

“Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have.”  Hebrews 13:5 NKJV

Is there a difference between wanting something and coveting? Yes. Coveting is having an inordinate affection for what we don’t have but someone else does. This affection leads us to jealousy, theft, adultery, bearing false witness and even murder. Greed is one of the seven deadly sins and is warned against in both the Old and New Testaments.

Have you ever watched toddlers play? One is happily playing with what he wants until he sees another child with something. Then the excitement begins. The first child abandons his toy and wrestles the toy from the second child. If the first child gets his way he will not stop with just one toy. He will acquire all the toys and then not share them with any other child. That his covetousness. Covetousness wants it all.

God calls us to live in contentment. God has promised His love and care for us. Faith calls upon us to accept God’s blessings and means of provision for our real needs. The believer indeed has it all already. He has the promises of God for now and eternity. With that we can be content. 

Our Lord and God, Thank You for Your provision and care for me each day. Amen. 

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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You Shall Not Bear False Witness

“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head.” Eph. 4:15 NIV

Solomon said that a good name was better than great wealth. An old adage is “Poor and honest is better than rich and deceitful”.  There is nothing wrong in having a sense of pride in one’s integrity. With it comes the wealth of self respect. That doesn’t mean arrogance or hypocritical pride; it simply means that we are glad that others know they can count on our ethical values.

Bearing false witness is slandering the good name of others. Why would someone do such a thing? They may be trying to deflect the blame that rightly belongs on them. They may be trying to get ahead by putting someone else behind. They may just be malicious gossips. Whatever the reason, we must always make sure we are not the ones doing it.  God has not called us to climb the ladder of success on the back of others. He has not called us to be idle gossips that pass along the dirt on others. He has called us to love our neighbor. While we want our integrity to be valued we must always remember to not mar the integrity of others.

Our Lord and God, We thank you for giving us clean consciences; help us keep the names of others clean as well. Amen. 

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