One God

"If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,

And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, "Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;

Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him." 

                                                                                  (Deut 13:1-4 KJV)

In the 1980's Shoko Asahara founder of “Supreme Truth” released the nerve gas sarin on five crowded subway trains during morning rush hour in Tokyo. Jim Jones founder of "People's Temple" ordered hundreds of his followers to kill themselves. Most of the followers, if not all, of the "Order of the Solar Temple," another doomsday cult, were either killed or committed suicide in the 1990's. Marshall Applewhite the leader of "Heaven's Gate" masterminded a mass suicide in 1997. They believed that a spaceship following the Hale-Bopp comet would pick them up and take them to a higher plane of existence after they died.

These were only a few of the false and dangerous prophets from the last few decades. There have been false prophets since the beginning of history. They and their followers lived without faith in the one true God. They believed a lie and died at their own and their leaders hands.

There are many false prophets. There are many false gods. But, there is only one God who is the Creator and Redeemer of all things. Only Him shall we worship.

"There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 

One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 

One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." 

                                                                                      (Eph 4:4-6)

Worship Him alone!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

A Fool's Lips

Proverbs 26:5 -6; 11-19 NIV

Answer a fool according to his folly,
    or he will be wise in his own eyes.
Sending a message by the hands of a fool
    is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking poison.
 As a dog returns to its vomit,
    so fools repeat their folly.
Do you see a person wise in their own eyes?
    There is more hope for a fool than for them.

A sluggard says, “There’s a lion in the road,
    a fierce lion roaming the streets!”
As a door turns on its hinges,
    so a sluggard turns on his bed.
A sluggard buries his hand in the dish;
    he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.
A sluggard is wiser in his own eyes
    than seven people who answer discreetly.

Like one who grabs a stray dog by the ears
    is someone who rushes into a quarrel not their own.

Like a maniac shooting
    flaming arrows of death
is one who deceives their neighbor
    and says, “I was only joking!”

Just totally disturbing to read the nasty comments about the victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. It is unbelievable to me that anyone could have such a lack of empathy! Yet, those comments are out there. Thankfully there are not too many of them; but, enough to realize how foolishly hateful some people are in this world.

Proverbs 26 warns us of the downfalls of being a fool, not just a fool, but a lazy fool with deceitful lips. It also warns us to be careful when it comes to trusting a person who is foolhardy. He or she should not be honored for their ways. They should not be lifted up. It would be foolish for us to enable them to continue in their ways.

What then should we do with the one who acts foolishly? "Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes." (Prov 26:5 NIV) Speak the truth, not rashly or harshly. But, with love; correct them, guide them, teach them the way in which they should go. Teach them to honor and respect others so that others may live pleasant and peaceful lives and not on edge when they are around. Teach them that it is better for everyone to live in peace than to be constantly starting quarrels. It is better to live in peace than to continue instigating division.

There are very few things that bother me more than to hear someone lying to or insulting another person and then when the person responds in a hurt manner, the first person will say "JK," just kidding.  Jokes that hurt other people are not funny. They are not jokes! "Like a maniac shooting flaming arrows of death is one who deceives their neighbor and says, “I was only joking!”  (Prov 26:18-19)

The wise person will respect others for who they are. They will be kind, not acting out of anger or revenge. But, they will also speak the truth to the one who is acting in a foolish, hurtful manner. They are unable to empathize with anyone other than those who agree with their foolhardiness. Freedom does not give us the right to hurt others. Freedom is given so that we can all live in peace, reconciled to one another. The foolish one does not comprehend this living in peace. They much prefer to cause divisiveness by feeding their foolish egos.

May God be with all the victims and families of the horrible massacre in Las Vegas. May God help us all to learn to empathize with and love one another.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Persevere

"So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." Hebrews 10:35-36

Believe me, there are days when I'd like nothing better than to just throw in the towel. But, I don't. I wake up the next morning and ask God, once again, to carry me through the day and to be with, guiding and protecting, those whom I love. Life can be rough for all of us. Intentional sin can make it rough not just for ourselves; but, for everyone who loves us, for everyone around us. There are consequences to sin. There are consequences to breaking the law and they are usually not nice consequences. But; even then, if we turn back to God, He will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Reluctantly, I read the news online this morning. Again, mass murders! What in the world is wrong with humanity? I guess, I may have just answered my own question. We have a tendency to follow in the ways of the world, turning away from God.

Without the gift of being able to be in God's presence, trusting in Him, I would have no hope for the world. But, He gives me the confidence to keep on praying for the people I love, for people that I don't know, even for the whole world trusting that He has a good plan and knowing that in the end His will will be done.

Help us, Lord, to keep from throwing in the towel and to trust that your good will will be done for all whom we love.

God's Peace - Pr. J