Thoughts Wrapping Up Ecclesiastes Chapter 11 began with a message that would not come from an old, jaded, cynical Scrooge-type man. He started with the advice that you should be generous with those in need, because your giving is like a farmer sowing grain. It will yield a return. And if you have the ability…
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Thoughts Because of their turning from God and worshipping false gods, God has brought judgement on those who lived in Jerusalem and the surrounding areas. Babylon has come in and utterly destroyed Jerusalem, killed many men, women and children, and taken captive those who were not murdered. This psalm is a lament. We do not…
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Thoughts Introduction What matters to God should matter to us. Wouldn’t you agree? When the book of Nehemiah was written, about a thousand years had passed since God had used Moses to lead the people out of their Egyptian captivity. Much had happened in the passing years. There had been the time of the judges,…
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Thoughts Have you ever heard the phrase, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread”? I don’t think I’m a fool, but if I am, so be it. What I am about to talk about needs to be addressed, especially in our current culture. So God created humans in his image. In the image of…
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Thoughts Who Wrote This Book? This book is one of three epistles, or letters that are attributed to John the apostle, who wrote the Gospel of John. He is the disciple that is often called “John the Beloved” because it is thought that he is the one referred to six different times in the Gospel…
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Thoughts Something that struck me in today’s reading was in verse 5 and 6. Paul had told the Jews that Jesus was the Christ, and they opposed and slandered him. His response was interesting. What do many of us tend to do today when people don’t accept our message? We try to change our approach….
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Thoughts Redemption In the Old Testament? One of the common ideas of the New Testament is redemption. But in chapter 10, verse 8 we read about redemption, too. Here it is again, starting at verse 6: “I will strengthen Judah and save the tribes of Joseph. I will restore them because I have compassion on…
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Thoughts At the end of our last reading in Ecclesiastes, the end of chapter 8, Solomon had said that after setting his mind on understanding wisdom, after watching what happens here on earth, he concluded that it is impossible for man to understand it all. And this is coming from the wisest man that ever…
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Thoughts I love the fact that God knows me intimately. To understand that He knows my desire to know and serve Him makes me feel good, as when a little boy is happy when his daddy is pleased with him. But to also understand that God knows my ugly, dark, sinful parts causes me to…
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Thoughts Confession In chapter 10, we find Ezra kneeling in front of the temple, tearfully confessing the sins of the people of Israel. And he is joined by a large crowd of men, women and children who also begin weeping bitterly. Why are they crying? Because they have disobeyed God by marrying foreign, or as…
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