This year I got a
late start on our family Christmas card. Then, when it arrived, the last two
lines of text were cut off. Joe spent a few hours figuring out the font, downloading
it to his computer and printing the missing lines onto the back of each card! So,
a belated Merry Christmas
and Happy New Year from the Reas (Joe,
Alice, James (13), Sarah (11), Edmund and Alexis (9)).
What spiritual goals are you and
I prayerfully planning to accomplish, with the help of the Holy Spirit?
Two issues that frustrate a lot of Christians in their quest to understand Scripture are 1) apparent contradictions, and 2) first century Roman cultural mixtures. With all the English translations available, it’s not difficult to get around a lack of original language knowledge.
But what if you add in a layer of complexity where the author
seems contradictory as he tries to help the first century culture understand
the ancient culture from a thousand years before? It’s not helpful that the
current iteration of that culture, the Jews, probably were not using their writings
as they should have been. This additional confusion led many of them who
claimed Jesus as their Messiah to also misuse their “legal texts” in
their relations with Gentiles.
In the previous entry on Galatians, we saw that the law shows
what’s wrong, the problem Jesus fixes. Yes, it contains a lot of rules, but it
also contains a record of the Creator’s work with His human creatures. That
work is completed in Jesus.
Paul acknowledges the rules, but he focuses on Abraham:
Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, so then, understand that those who believe are the sons of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the gospel to Abraham ahead of time, saying, “All the nations will be blessed in you.” So then those who believe are blessed along with Abraham the believer.
Galatians 3:6-9 NET
I’m going to skip a bit here because I want to focus on the apparent
contradiction. Paul focuses on Abraham as the source of our heritage as
Christians. For Paul, though, he has to draw that line through Jesus, a direct
descendant of Abraham. And this is how he does it:
Brothers and sisters, I offer an example from everyday life: When a covenant has been ratified, even though it is only a human contract, no one can set it aside or add anything to it. Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. Scripture does not say, “and to the descendants,” referring to many, but “and to your descendant,” referring to one, who is Christ. What I am saying is this: The law that came 430 years later does not cancel a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to invalidate the promise. For if the inheritance is based on the law, it is no longer based on the promise, but God graciously gave it to Abraham through the promise.
Galatians 3:15-18 NET
Paul does several frustrating things here. First off, he
switches terminology from “covenant” to “promise,” and second, he makes much of
a mass noun in Greek, “descendant(s),” literally, “seed.” His audience would
understand “seed” as not requiring a plural form. It works similarly in English
but as a “mass noun” rather than a true irregular plural. You can use
the plural, seeds, and sometimes that appropriate. But if someone scatters seed
in a field, few people would assume the reference is to a single seed. So, you
see why what Paul is claiming was done with Abraham can be confusing. His
audience might not agree with him here, so why would he do that?
Also, keep in mind that Paul knows Hebrew, not just the
Greek, Scriptures. So, he knows this is an irregular plural in Hebrew. And
in other places in the Hebrew Scriptures where the usage is singular, Paul
would not consider this to mean a single person, but rather all
of the descendants. This becomes obvious here:
For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female —for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:27-29 NET
This translation obscures (but footnotes) that “descendants”
is the singular “seed” in Greek. Literally, Paul says, “But if you [are]
of Christ, then you are seed of Abraham…” The brackets supply a missing
verb (they do that in Greek), and I emphasized the “of” where the preposition
was missing, but the inflected part of speech makes it likely. It could be “from,”
but the possessive “of” makes more sense.
Anyway, the point here is that Paul uses the singular as it
would have been expected, and different than he claimed previously in verse 16.
Or is it?
If you read Galatians 3:6 through 4:7, you get a context
which suggests why Paul is trying to have it both ways. He wants the Galatians
(and, therefore, us) to realize that while our faith maybe analogous to
Abraham, the true source of our relationship with our Creator is through
Jesus. We may be Abraham’s seed in a spiritual sense, but actually this happens
through Jesus, the “singular seed” of Abraham.
In other words (and in line with most modern English
translations), the Galatian disciples and we are not to rely on rules for our walk
with our Creator, but our Creator Himself. We follow rules only in so far as we
understand our Savior’s perspective. It’s not the rules themselves, but our
Savior we follow. The rules help us perceive His purpose, His priorities, and
His definitions of good and evil. That is the point, the goal, and the purpose
of the law. It’s also the point, goal, and purpose of our eternal existence.
Right after the beginning, human creatures went their own way. We opted to define good and evil for ourselves rather than as our Creator defines them. It was our original sin.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened this way. While his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 1:18 NET
The way of Jesus is different. The Holy Spirit acted to
bring Yahweh into the world, again, only now through the means every other
human creature entered it. It was a difficult task. As Paul put it to the
Philippians:
You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had,
who though he existed in the form of God
did not regard equality with God
as something to be grasped,
but emptied himself
by taking on the form of a slave,
by looking like other men,
and by sharing in human nature.
Philippians 2:5-7 NET (emphasis mine)
The Greek word, keno-o (Strong’s G2758)
is both one of the strangest and most profound events of the Christmas story.
This story is full of reversals, from Mary being chosen as mother to a king, to
the animal feeding trough for a cradle. The story in Luke has many. Here’s a
set of reversals from Matthew:
Because Joseph, her husband to be, was a righteous man, and because he did not want to disgrace her, he intended to divorce her privately. When he had contemplated this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you will name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
Matthew 1:19-21 NET
Joseph is righteous, so he attempts to save Mary from an inevitable
death penalty for adultery. But before he can act on this, a messenger from
Yahweh delivers a message with the following features:
Think through that list for a moment. “Joseph, son of David”
your son will save his people from their sins, not the Romans. Yes, he
will be in the line of David and inherit his throne (Luke 1:32), but his
purpose will be to save his people from their sins.
At the time, the people of Judea and Galilee, the Jews of
the region, thought only of the Roman occupation as their greatest problem. The
religious leaders were proud and arrogant. The people were harassed and
confused. The political leaders were corrupt and thoughtless. And Rome only
wanted peace and taxes. And yet, not one of these things were their greatest
problem.
Think about your life, your day, today. Do your problems
resemble any of the above problems? Do any of them occupy your thoughts and
attention, your time and energy more than anything else? Perhaps your
occupation or your family take more of you than any of these other things.
Our sin is when we act on our own set of beliefs about good
and evil. Our failure is our refusal to rely on our Creator for those
definitions, beliefs, priorities, and purposes. How much of your life distracts
you from your Savior’s definitions?
Jesus has come to save us from that. And yet, like John puts
it:
He was in the world, and the world was created by him, but the world did not recognize him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not receive him. But to all who have received him—those who believe in his name —he has given the right to become God’s children —children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.
John 1:10-13 NET
Will we receive Him this Christmas?
And then, after, will we continue to pursue Him, all day,
every day, forever. We want the blessings, but are we willing to pursue Him to
get them, all of them?
Avoid the distractions and pursue Jesus because literally, nothing
else matters.
This week, our family devotional time concluded with joyfully singing “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing!”
I associate this carol with joy, and it fits perfectly with the focus on joy
this third week of Advent. Jesus came to offer us eternal joy, surpassing any fleeting earthly happiness. He
came to reconcile sinners, extend His righteousness and give us eternal life.
Some
of the lyrics in “Hark!
The Herald Angels Sing” seem to be inspired by the following passage:
Luke
2:9-14 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields
nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the
Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they
were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I
bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of
David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12
This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in
a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared
with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the
highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
The angels announced good news that would bring immense joy – a Savior had been born! As we navigate this Christmas season, how can we extend that joy in Christ to those around us?
The next time
we hear “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” let’s reflect on the significance of
the lyrics - the joy Jesus offers – and sincerely give Him glory as we sing!
There is a sense in which our Savior holds grudges. It’s always confused me why certain people groups hold grudges from previous generations, sometimes hundreds of years. It’s not just Asia or Eastern Europe or Ireland; it’s West Virginia for Pete’s sake. What’s wrong with us?
In Deuteronomy, we have this directive from Yahweh to the people through Moses:
No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the LORD; to the tenth generation none of their descendants shall ever do so, for they did not meet you with food and water on the way as you came from Egypt, and furthermore, they hired Balaam son of Beor of Pethor in Aram Naharaim to curse you. But the LORD your God refused to listen to Balaam and changed the curse to a blessing, for the LORD your God loves you. You must not seek peace and prosperity for them through all the ages to come.
Deuteronomy 23:3-6 NET
The story of this offense is in Numbers 22 and 25. It’s a long story, but there’s a talking donkey, so I highly recommend it, although it’s kind of confusing. Anyway, Moab=bad in Yahweh’s eyes, so don’t go there, befriend them, or help them in any way…
During the time of the judges, there was a famine in the land of Judah. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah went to live as a resident foreigner in the region of Moab, along with his wife and two sons. (Now the man’s name was Elimelech, his wife was Naomi, and his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were of the clan of Ephrath from Bethlehem in Judah.) They entered the region of Moab and settled there. Sometime later Naomi’s husband Elimelech died, so she and her two sons were left alone. Both her sons married Moabite women. (One was named Orpah and the other Ruth.) And they continued to live there about ten years. Then Naomi’s two sons, Mahlon and Kilion, also died. So the woman was left all alone—bereaved of her two children as well as her husband!
Ruth 1:1-5 NET
Well, clearly, this cannot end well. Yahweh cannot possibly accept this, in fact isn’t obvious that He’s punishing this family for going to Moab? What did they think would happen? And yet, this sets up one of the most beautiful stories in Scripture.
Our Creator makes rules. He seems so stern and harsh at times. And yet, after making such a thoroughly imprecatory rule, we have an entire book, one of the most elegant, named for a Moabite woman…MOABITE and a WOMAN! Rahab got a good story, a few chapters of Joshua, but Ruth get’s a whole book. Actually, Ruth gets much more than a whole book.
So Naomi said, “Look, your sister-in-law is returning to her people and to her god. Follow your sister-in-law back home!” But Ruth replied,
“Stop urging me to abandon you!
For wherever you go, I will go.
Wherever you live, I will live.
Your people will become my people,
and your God will become my God.
Wherever you die, I will die—and there I will be buried.
May the LORD punish me severely if I do not keep my promise!
Only death will be able to separate me from you!”
When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped trying to dissuade her.
Ruth 1:15-18 NET
This is read at weddings to describe the devotion and commitment between spouses. Yet it is actually the devotion of a woman to her mother-in-law through a deceased husband. By any law of any culture, any obligation between Ruth and Naomi is over. And yet it’s not.
Long, beautiful story, short; girl meets boy, boy falls in love with girl, family inheritance problems arise, boy overcomes them with a sandal, and marries the girl.
But here’s the kicker:
So Boaz married Ruth and slept with her. The LORD enabled her to conceive and she gave birth to a son.
Ruth 4:13 NET
Naomi took the child and placed him on her lap; she became his caregiver. The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. Now he became the father of Jesse—David’s father.
Ruth 4:16-17 NET
But wait, there’s more!
This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Matthew 1:1 NET
Salmon the father of Boaz (by Rahab), Boaz the father of Obed (by Ruth), Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.
Matthew 1:5-6 NET
So, Yahweh broke His own rules on the pathway to save His human creatures through Jesus. For Jesus, forgiveness was literally in His genes.
For some cultures, ancestry is crucial. In some it’s
important. There are probably some who don’t care, honestly, but I don’t know
of any. For the Jews, knowing which tribe you came from was important. Knowing
your Levitical lineage was important. It became more and more difficult over
time, but even in Jesus’ day, it was a major part of their lives.
Which makes Jesus’ genealogies in Matthew and Luke very
interesting. As was said before, purpose drove who was on it and where they
started. Matthew and Luke both include the same
names from Abraham to David, but it is interesting who Matthew notes in
addition.
This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, Judah the father of Perez and Zerah (by Tamar), Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz (by Rahab), Boaz the father of Obed (by Ruth), Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.
Matthew 1:1-6 NET
This translation notes the additions in parentheses.
Obviously Matthew doesn’t call out all the various mothers, only the
ones where there’s an interesting story in the Hebrew Scriptures.
Tamar was having trouble with the “levirate marriage” rule
and finally deceived the father of her former husbands into having a child with
her. Rahab was the Canaanite “prostitute” who betrayed Jericho into the hands
of Yahweh’s people. Ruth was the Moabitess who should never have been accepted
by the people of God, not for ten generations.
Tamar’s story is found in Genesis stuck in between two parts
of the story of Jospeh. It kind of…makes everyone look bad, so let’s jump to
Rahab.
Rahab has “the prostitute” as her last name throughout
English translations of Scripture. There’s a lack of clarity about her “role”
as the labels are…not precise, a common problem when the topic is indelicate,
inappropriate, or embarrassing.
First, let’s look at what she did. When the spies are sent
out by Joshua (Joshua 2:1), they enter Jericho and stay with Rahab. When the
king is informed that he has spies in the city, he immediately goes to Rahab.
Rahab tells the king that, yes, the men came, but they left immediately and he
can still catch them before they cross the Jordan. She has hidden them on her
roof.
But why? Why lie to her king? Why betray her city?
Why help the enemy of her people? But even more important, why be faithless to
her gods? Well, let’s look at what she says.
Now before the spies went to sleep, Rahab went up to the roof. She said to the men, “I know the LORD is handing this land over to you. We are absolutely terrified of you, and all who live in the land are cringing before you. For we heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you left Egypt and how you annihilated the two Amorite kings, Sihon and Og, on the other side of the Jordan. When we heard the news we lost our courage and no one could even breathe for fear of you. For the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on earth below! Joshua 2:8-11 NET
The adventures of the Israelites made it into the local
papers in Jericho. Even more, Yahweh made it into the local papers all over
Canaan. From the crossing of the Red Sea forty years ago, to the defeat
of the local kings across the Jordan just recently, word was getting out.
Look carefully at what Rahab says about Yahweh. Yahweh is
Elohim. That is the confession of faith of the Hebrew Scriptures. That
confession is an expensive confession of faith. It rejects Rahab’s culture, her
people, her city, everything she has known to this point.
She has looked at what is happening in the world around her,
just like everyone around her, and made the decision to leap into what Yahweh
is doing. The rest of her people resist what they see Yahweh doing to threaten
their culture. She repents; they do not. And that makes all the difference.
Prostitute, innkeeper, or whatever, embarrassing,
inappropriate, or shameful, it doesn’t matter. Yahweh accepts this confession
of faith from this Canaanite woman and uses her to fulfill the promises He made
to Abraham. She becomes part of His salvation of all humanity, warts and all.
Now seriously, what is holding you back? This world,
our cultures, successes, failures, families, or friends; what can hold you back
from your confession of faith in the Creator of the universe? Are you really
that successful? Have you truly made that many mistakes or are they that significant?
Why not influence your friends rather than the other way around? Why not become
the catalyst for your whole family coming to faith?
Make the leap. Take the step. Drop the luggage and jump into
His arms.
As we enter the Advent season, which literally means "coming," we're reminded that this time of year is all about preparing to celebrate Jesus's arrival on earth. Our church is focusing on passages from Isaiah that speak to both Jesus's first coming and His second coming. This week, with Hope as our theme, we reflected on the hope that Jesus's first coming brought, particularly through His death on the cross, which paid the price for our sins.
This hope not only brings forgiveness but also gives us Jesus's righteousness, allowing us to join Him in Heaven for eternity when He returns.
On Sunday evening, as we enjoyed dinner together, we
delved deeper into the concept of Jesus's Hope and lit our own Advent candle (part
of a wreath my Mom gave us years ago to help us worship). We read passages from
Matthew and Isaiah, including:
Isaiah 9:2 The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.
As we discussed ways to share the light of Jesus with others and offer them hope, Alexis suggested that we could share the gospel with those around us. In God’s perfect timing, my niece and nephew were having a similar conversation about the gospel with their mom (my sister) on the other side of town. They blurted out that they needed to pray and ask Jesus to come into their lives. So, they made the decision to receive Him as their Lord and Savior!!! We all praised God when we heard the wonderful news!
The kids’ Bible study memory verse for this week was:
I John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
My niece and nephew’s decision to confess their sins and invite Jesus into their hearts is a powerful reminder of the gift of Hope Jesus offers. They can now look forward to the day when they will be completely purified in Heaven.
Who do you know that needs the Hope of Jesus this
Advent Season? Will you pray for opportunities to share Jesus with them?
How would you define worship of Jesus and what does your worship look like?
In our family Bible study
time last night, we discussed what worship of God includes and whether all
prayers are worship or only those prayers where we are praising God for His
attributes. I said God always wants to hear from His children, but some of our
prayers are often selfish. Sarah asked if her prayers for help on her school
work were selfish. I said partially, because we often want help first for
ourselves and then for God’s glory. God wants to help us accomplish the things
He has purposed for us to do (such as school and work). So, our prayers for
help can be worshipful if we truly desire the help so we can honor God and
bring Him glory.
Later last night, Sarah stayed
up to finish some math homework, and I sat beside her, reading Kent’s
devotional from earlier in the day. I shared some of his devotional with Sarah,
as his discussion about the difference between asking God to improve our
situation versus asking God to transform our hearts tied right in with our
earlier discussion during family Bible study! How often we get distracted, though,
and aren’t living life with the purpose of worshipping God.
If we aren’t living life
worshipping God, then we are distracted by the world. However, the world can’t
eternally satisfy and will come to an end, as Revelation describes.
Revelation 18:1-8 After this I saw another angel coming down from
heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his
splendor. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted:
“‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’
She has become a dwelling for demons
and a haunt for every impure spirit,
a haunt for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal.
3 For all the nations have drunk
the maddening wine of her adulteries.
The kings of the earth committed adultery with her,
and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her
excessive luxuries.”
4 Then I
heard another voice from heaven say:
“‘Come out of her, my people,’
so that you will not share in her sins,
so that you will not receive any of her plagues;
5 for her sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her crimes.
6 Give back to her as she has given;
pay her back double for what she has done.
Pour her a double portion from her own cup.
7 Give her as much torment and grief
as the glory and luxury she gave herself.
In her heart she boasts,
‘I sit enthroned as queen.
I am not a widow;
I will never mourn.’
8 Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake
her:
death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.
The world, Babylon the Great
Prostitute (as we saw in Revelation 17), all those opposed to God and His ways
will be consumed by fire. God’s judgment will fall.
As verse 4 calls, where do
you and I need to come out of Babylon? What is distracting us from true worship
of Jesus? I pray you and I will desire to live a life that is worshipful to God
and undistracted by the shallow and temporal lures of the world. Jesus is
worthy of undistracted worship.
In a former job, I knew someone who buttered up a co-worker, manipulated them to bend over backwards for them, gave them rave reviews, promoted them, but then left them hanging out to dry. Ultimately, it led to the burnout of a great worker. On a grander scale, the beast will do the same with the woman (Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes from 17:5) and the ten horns.
Last week we saw how the
woman delighted in the destruction of God’s people while luring everyone else
astray. The beast will use the woman until he has no more use for her. Then, he
will bring her to ruin as she brought people and nations to ruin. The ten horns
(or rulers) will work for and submit to the beast, destroying people and
nations, until they themselves will be destroyed.
Revelation 17:15-18 15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where
the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. 16 The
beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will
bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her
flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For God has
put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand
over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are
fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great
city that rules over the kings of the earth.”
Evil rulers exploit, abuse and destroy those who follow them.
In stark contrast, Jesus does the opposite. He shares His victory, inheritance
and royal status with His faithful followers. As we read last week…
Revelation 17:14 They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will
triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with
him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”
Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords and extends that
privilege to His people! We don’t serve someone who will take advantage of us
and then discard us. We serve the One who doesn’t need us, but chooses to work
through us. He doesn’t use us to gain success; instead, He gives us the success
He’s already accomplished. So, why wouldn’t we want to faithfully follow the One
who has our best interests at heart? What or who can offer us a better promise
than Jesus? I pray that in our daily choices, you and I remember that no one
offers better promises than Jesus, the eternal Lord of lords.
Last week, we saw how “Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes” delighted in the destruction of God’s people and lured the rest of the world into abominable acts. She represents centuries of evil powers in the world. She and the beast will deceive many, but not those whose names have been written in the book of life – those who are faithful to Jesus, the true King of kings.
Revelation 17:6-14 6 I saw that the
woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those
who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. 7 Then
the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the
mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads
and ten horns. 8 The beast, which you saw, once
was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its
destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been
written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be
astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and
yet will come.
9 “This
calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on
which the woman sits. 10 They are also seven kings.
Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he
must remain for only a little while. 11 The beast
who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven
and is going to his destruction.
12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet
received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings
along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and
will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They
will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph
over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him
will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”
As believers, we are called to
be wise and discerning, so we won’t be deceived by the woman (Babylon the
Great) or the beast king. We gain this wisdom by daily studying and apply God’s
truths from His Word.
Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
I want to have a mind with God’s wisdom so I can faithfully
follow Jesus, the triumphant Lamb who is Lord of lords and King of kings! He
will rule for all eternity, while the woman and beast will go to eternal
destruction.
How are you preparing now to remain faithful to Jesus and not
be deceived by the things of this world?
