the way of the wicked

Good morning friends,

Monday we read the beginning of Psalm 73, where the author talks about how it often seems like the wicked do better in life than the righteous. As we continue we'll see that line of thought continue. We'll also see how the psalmist started to see things in a different way.

God bless,

Sam

Psalm 73:10-28

¹⁰Therefore the people turn and praise them, and find no fault in them.¹¹And they say, “How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?”¹²Such are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches.

¹³All in vain I have kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence.¹⁴For all day long I have been plagued, and am punished every morning.

¹⁵If I had said, “I will talk on in this way,” I would have been untrue to the circle of your children. ¹⁶But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, ¹⁷until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end. ¹⁸Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall to ruin. ¹⁹How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! ²⁰They are like a dream when one awakes; on awaking you despise their phantoms.

²¹When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, ²²I was stupid and ignorant; I was like a brute beast toward you. ²³Nevertheless I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. ²⁴You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me with honor. ²⁵Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire other than you. ²⁶My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. ²⁷Indeed, those who are far from you will perish; you put an end to those who are false to you. ²⁸But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, to tell of all your works.

hardship in ministry

Good morning friends,

In today's reading Paul reflects on the hardships and persecutions that go along with his ministry. It's humbling to see his courage and dedication. It's also worth holding on to that Paul wants to boast, not in his achievements but in his weakness. It's in our weakness that God's loving power comes through most clearly.

God bless,
Sam

2 Corinthians 11:24-30

²⁴Five times I have received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. ²⁵Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea; ²⁶on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers and sisters; ²⁷in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, hungry and thirsty, often without food, cold and naked.

²⁸And, besides other things, I am under daily pressure because of my anxiety for all the churches. ²⁹Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I am not indignant? 30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.

pain to joy

Good evening friends,
In today's passage Jesus lets his disciples know that he is going to God and that he will return to them. His point is that there is a hard time ahead for the disciples because they will face persecution for following him. In the end, though, Jesus will be victorious over the evil powers in the world. After their hardship will come joy, and that joy will last forever. I take comfort in knowing that. Even though the end hasn't come as soon as Jesus and the disciples expected, one day God's love and justice will make everything right. There are plenty of problems now, but God's story has a happy ending.

God bless,
Sam

John 16:16-33

¹⁶”A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.” ¹⁷Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” ¹⁹Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’? ²⁰Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. ²¹When a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. ²²So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

²³On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. ²⁴Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete. ²⁵“I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. ²⁶On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; ²⁷for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.

²⁸I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.” ²⁹His disciples said, “Yes, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech! ³⁰Now we know that you know all things, and do not need to have anyone question you; by this we believe that you came from God.” ³¹Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? ³²The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. ³³I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!”

Thanksgiving in Corinth

Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving!
I'm grateful for the privilege of ministering with you at Laurelton. This is a special community and I treasure your gifts and our time together. Paul reminds the Corinthian church that God gives them possessions not for themselves but so they can share them with others. He encourages them to give thanks for what they have by giving generously. He also encourages them to give thanks for God's grace by sharing the gospel with others. Even the hardships the community faces provide an opportunity to glorify God through obedience and persistence.
May we use our gifts well to serve others and build up God's kingdom,
Sam

2 Corinthians 9:6-15

⁶The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. ⁷Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. ⁹As it is written,
     “He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;
          his righteousness endures forever.”

¹⁰He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us; ¹²for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God. ¹³Through the testing of this ministry you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others, ¹⁴while they long for you and pray for you because of the surpassing grace of God that he has given you. ¹⁵Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

God is with us

Good morning friends,
When God led Israel out of slavery it was a hasty exit, but also clearly thought out. God worried about how the people might react to different dangers and guarded them along the way. God's presence isn't usually as obvious as a pillar of fire, especially when we're going through hard times. But even in the darkness God is always with us. Often we see God most clearly in our friends and family; other times in the kindness of strangers or a subtle feeling of calm in our soul. God is here.

Blessings,
Sam

Exodus 13:17-22

17When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was nearer; for God thought, “If the people face war, they may change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18So God led the people by the roundabout way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of the land of Egypt prepared for battle. 19And Moses took with him the bones of Joseph who had required a solemn oath of the Israelites, saying, “God will surely take notice of you, and then you must carry my bones with you from here.” 20They set out from Succoth, and camped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night. 22Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

preaching to philosophers

Good morning brothers and sisters,
Today we see Paul preaching at a meeting place for people interested in philosophy. Since he's not talking to people who know or care about Jewish tradition or scripture, he doesn't spend time quoting scripture. Instead, he works with their understanding of God, which is the temples in the city. He connects their worship with the true God, but then tells them they can come to know God better than they do now.

The Psalm for this morning is a real statement of trust in the midst of trouble. The psalmist sees God's hand even in the hardship s/he has faced. When s/he looks back, the psalmist can see that God has been there all along. We may see the same thing if we look at our lives in the light of prayer.

God bless,
Sam

Acts 17:22-31

22Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, “Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 23For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, 25nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things.


26From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 27so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him — though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 28For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said,
‘For we too are his offspring.’

29Since we are God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. 30While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”



*Sunday

Psalm 66:8-20

8 Bless our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard,
9 who has kept us among the living, and has not let our feet slip.
10 For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried.
11 You brought us into the net; you laid burdens on our backs;
12 you let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water;

yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.

13 I will come into your house with burnt offerings; I will pay you my vows,
14 those that my lips uttered and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.
15 I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatlings,
with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;
I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah

16 Come and hear, all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for me.
17 I cried aloud to him, and he was extolled with my tongue.
18 If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
19 But truly God has listened; he has given heed to the words of my prayer.

20 Blessed be God,
because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me.

humility and courage

Good morning friends,
Here we get a healthy dose of Paul's sarcasm. The sarcasm functions to reinforce for the Corinthians that true leadership is humble, not boastful. It seems like the Corinthian church sometimes had trouble with their pride and thinking too much of themselves. Beneath and through his sarcasm, Paul makes two very important points. The first is that God is the only one with the right to judge. That means we don't have to worry about what anyone else thinks about us; our goal is to seek God's will. It also means we should hold back from the temptation to judge others; only God knows the whole story. The second point is that everything we have, even our lives, is a gift from God. If things are going well for us, we should rejoice and give thanks, but we shouldn't get cocky about it since we didn't do it ourselves. If things are not going well for us, we can share our grief with God and others because we are always in God's hand. When we don't worry about recognition or blame we're free to follow God's calling with love and joy.

Blessings as you follow today,

Sam

1 Corinthians 4:1-13

Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries. 2Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy. 3But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. I do not even judge myself. 4I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. 5Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive commendation from God. 6I have applied all this to Apollos and myself for your benefit, brothers and sisters, so that you may learn through us the meaning of the saying, “Nothing beyond what is written,” so that none of you will be puffed up in favor of one against another.



7For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as if it were not a gift? 8Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Quite apart from us you have become kings! Indeed, I wish that you had become kings, so that we might be kings with you! 9For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, as though sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to mortals. 10We are fools for the sake of Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. 11To the present hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed and beaten and homeless, 12and we grow weary from the work of our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; 13when slandered, we speak kindly. We have become like the rubbish of the world, the dregs of all things, to this very day.

hearing in humility

Good morning friends,
First, thanks to everyone who made it out to the Boulevard last night for the opening session of our Back to Basics series. The idea is to have a discussion about faith and scripture that makes no assumptions about what people think or know. The goal is a safe place to engage questions honestly. It's certainly a learning experience for me, but I had a lot of fun. We'll be at the Boulevard (412 Empire Blvd 14609) every Wednesday from 8-10 from now until November 17th. Hope to see you there.

Today's reading brings us back to Psalm 119, a Psalm that explores different sides of thinking about God's word. This passage picks up on humility, partly because it's hard to hear God's word to us if we believe we have all the answers. Humility is the opposite of arrogance and in this passage it comes or is reinforced by a particular experience. The Psalmist talks about being humbled: we don't know what happened, maybe a failure or an economic hardship or a grief? Reflecting back on that experience the Psalmist notices that that experience brought him/her closer to God. Sometimes it is trouble or hardship that reminds us we can't do it all and we need God. That doesn't mean God sends those things on us to do that, but it does mean God can speak to us through trouble if we're willing to listen. I pray we would be open to God's word today.

God bless,
Sam

Psalm 119:65-72

65You have dealt well with your servant, O Lord, according to your word.
66Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments.
67Before I was humbled I went astray, but now I keep your word.
68You are good and do good; teach me your statutes.
69The arrogant smear me with lies, but with my whole heart I keep your precepts.
70Their hearts are fat and gross, but I delight in your law.
71It is good for me that I was humbled, so that I might learn your statutes.
72The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

strength in hardship

Good morning friends,
Our author has just reminded the readers of Jesus' steadfastness in the face of opposition. Today he moves on to address their situation. It seems the Christians to whom Hebrews was written were discouraged and faced some kind of persecution. Elsewhere in the letter it mentions loss of property and here it says, "You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." The goal is to encourage them in their difficulties now so that even if the time comes later for them to shed blood for their faith they will be ready.

The author also compares the hardship these Christians are facing to a parent's discipline. It's sort of surprising to think of persecution under the heading of God's discipline, since persecution comes usually when we are doing right for God rather than doing something for which we need correction. Maybe the bigger point is that the suffering comes in the process of growing in faith and helps us in that growth process. The author's hope is that with proper encouragement and teaching these difficulties will build up the church rather than discourage them. I pray God would also turn our hardships into learning to deepen and strengthen our faith.

God bless,
Sam


Hebrews 12:4-17
4In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children— “My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, or lose heart when you are punished by him; 6for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts.” 7Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? 8If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children.

9Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share his holiness. 11Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

12Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. 14Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 15See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and through it many become defiled. 16See to it that no one becomes like Esau, an immoral and godless person, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17You know that later, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, even though he sought the blessing with tears.