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Showing posts from October, 2014

Lutheran Service Book Three Year Lectionary

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014 | FEAST REFORMATION DAY YEARS ABC              First Reading       Revelation 14:6–7               Psalm       Psalm 46              Epistle       Romans 3:19–28              Gospel       John 8:31–36 or Matthew 11:12–19 Lutheran Service Book Three Year Lectionary . Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009. Print.

Connect the Testaments: A Daily Devotional

October 31: Speaking the Truth Daniel 11:1–12:12 ; 2 Thessalonians 3:1–18 ; Job 42:10–17 “And now I will reveal the truth to you” ( Dan 11:2 ). How much better would our world be if more of us were willing to take this kind of stand—to make these kinds of statements? The truth Daniel refers to are the prophecies foretelling what will happen in the Persian Empire. Great power and wealth are coming, and with them comes the fear of how that power and wealth may be used. If we read between the lines of the prophet’s statements in Dan 11 , we can feel the trepidation. He is concerned that wickedness will once again sweep over the land. Such was the case for Paul: “Pray for us, that the word of the Lord may progress and be honored … and that we may be delivered from evil and wicked people, for not all have the faith” ( 2 Thess 3:1–2 ). Paul was aware that unbelievers would seek his life. He wasn’t sure what the future would look like. We can imagine the fear that he must have fe

Connect the Testaments: A Daily Devotional

October 30: An Obstructed View Daniel 9:1–10:21 ; 2 Thessalonians 2:1–17 ; Job 42:1–9 We need to see ourselves as we truly are, but we can’t do that on our own. Our communities can help us glimpse a more accurate reflection, but we truly know ourselves only when we know God. His light brings us understanding. After suffering incredible loss, Job tries to understand his pain. He speaks some truth, but he often misunderstands God’s motives and minimizes His love . As his friends try to help him grapple with his grief, they sometimes point out truth, but more often they cause even more pain and confusion. It’s only when God arrives to enlighten Job’s understanding that everything changes. First God questions Job’s knowledge ( Job 38:19–21 ), power ( Job 38:25–38 ), and ideas about justice ( Job 40:10–12 ). Then He shows Job that He is all of these things . The realization exposes Job’s heart. “Then Job answered Yahweh and said, ‘I know that you can do all things, and an

Mundy's Quote for the Day

Mundy's Quote for the Day Following one will place you in Hades for eternity, the  Other  will place you in heaven for eternity.       And if it seem evil unto you to serve  Jehovah , choose you this day whom ye will serve;  Joshua 24:15 Reverend Lynwood F. Mundy

Logos Verse for the Day

Logos Verse for the Day

Bible Gateway Verse for the Day

Romans 12:1 King James Version I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God , that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God , which is your reasonable service. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  Romans 12 Public Domain New King James Version [  Living Sacrifices to God   ] I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God , that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God , which is  your reasonable service. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  Romans 12 Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. English Standard Version [  A Living Sacrifice  ] I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God , to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God , which is your spiritual worship. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  Romans 12 The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.

Connect the Testaments: A Daily Devotional

October 29: Apocalyptic at Its Best Daniel 7:1–8:27; 2 Thessalonians 1:1–12 ; Job 41:21–34 Daniel is full of spooky scenes. If Daniel doesn’t scare you a bit, you’ve probably watched too many horror movies. Apocalyptic literature in the Bible has a way of playing tricks on us. It’s full of vivid imagery that can be haunting—and that’s intentional. The pictures it paints are meant to stay with us. We’re meant to remember what these passages are teaching. Of course, the same can be said of the entire Bible , but apocalyptic literature is especially vivid because its message requires us to choose: to follow or to turn away from God at the most important time—the end. The dreams Daniel has, including those recorded in Dan 7:3–14 , are images of what is and is to come. The beasts in Daniel were evocative symbols for his audience. When they heard of the lion with eagles, they envisioned Babylon ( Dan 7:4 ). When the bear appeared, they thought of Media ( Dan 7:5 ). Likewise, th

Mundy's Quote for the Day

Mundy's Quote for the Day I see myriad atrocities of rich politicians against the poor, and those of wealth, and those that are middle class against the poor, lest I forget, the Christian populace as well as preachers of various titles. I just want to give you the major  OT  quotations  alluding  to  NT  quotations. Here they are as follows:  Jb 1:21 ;  Ps. 49:17 ;  Eccl. 5:15 ,  7:9 ,  12:14 ;  John 3:8 ,  James 1:19 ;  1 Tim. 6:7 . Hopefully, you will read prayerfully, and know that what is in the  OT , is in the,  NT . Showing that false preacher's preach that the  OT  is not good or allude to the  NT . As you can see, the  Bible  is ONE BIG STORY. Hallelujah ! Amen. Reverend Lynwood F. Mundy

Logos Verse of the Day

Logos Verse of the Day

Bible Gateway Verse of the Day

1 Peter 1:24-25 King James Version For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  1 Peter 1 Public Domain New King James Version because “All flesh  is  as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, But the word of the  Lord   endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  1 Peter 1 Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. English Standard Version for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you. Read at Bibl

Connect the Testaments: A Daily Devotional

October 28: Respect Daniel 5:1–6:28 ; 1 Thessalonians 5:12–28 ; Job 41:10–20 Instead of easing the burdens of our church leaders, we often add to them. The sometimes thankless job of ministry is weighed down with our taking and not giving, our complaining, and our squirming under authority. We can see from Paul’s letters that church communities haven’t changed much since the first century. In his letter to the believers in Thessalonica, Paul requests: “Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and rule over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them beyond all measure in love, because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves” ( 1 Thess 5:12 ). A passage like this might convict us for our bad attitude or lack of service. We might make a greater effort to love and respect those who are in positions of authority. Or we might try to ease the load of our leaders by serving in our communities. But unless we address the disorder within our hearts

Bread and Our Physical Needs

Bread and Our Physical Needs Excerpt ‎When all our needs are met and all is well in our lives, we tend to take the credit for what we have, to feel that we carry our own load. We work hard to earn the money we need to buy food and clothes, pay our rent or mortgage. But even the hardest-working individual owes all he earns to God’s provision . Moses reminded Israel that God “is giving you power to make wealth” ( Deut. 8:18 ). ‎Our life, breath, health, possessions, talents, and opportunities all originate from resources God has created and made available to man. Everything we have is from God : It is He who brings the rain to make things grow, causes the seasons to change, produces the minerals that make the soil fertile, provides the natural resources we use to propel ourselves around, and provides the animals and plants from which we make our clothing and food. Our daily bread—the necessities of physical life—are all from God . … MacArthur, John F., Jr. Alone with God.

THE PRAYER OF JESUS

 THE PRAYER OF JESUS John 17:1-26 This prayer is not free-standing; it is intimately connected by themes and link-words with the discourse that precedes it ( chs. John 14–16 ), as even the first words of John 17:1 ( ‘After Jesus said this …’ ) intimate. Indeed, there is ample evidence that prayers of one sort or another were frequently connected with ‘farewell discourses’ in the ancient world, both in Jewish   p 551  and in Hellenistic literature ( e.g. Gn. 49 ; Dt. 32–33 ; Jubilees 22:7–23 ).1 What is unique about this prayer rests neither on form nor on literary associations but on him who offers it, and when. He is the incarnate Son of God , and he is returning to his Father by the route of a desperately shameful and painful death. He prays that the course on which he is embarked will bring glory to his Father , and that his followers , in consequence of his own death and exaltation , will be preserved from evil and for the priceless privilege of seeing Jesus’ glor

Signs

Signs Excerpt ‎Although John also recognizes the problems inherent in signs and in the demand for signs ( John 2:18 , John 2:23 ; John 4:48 ; John 6:2 , John 6:14 , John 6:30 ), he nonetheless calls miracles σημεῖα because through them Jesus manifests his glory and reveals his mission as the Son of God ( John 2:11 ; John 20:30f .). Whereas the Baptist performs no signs ( John 10:41 ), many great signs characterize Jesus’ activity ( John 3:2 ; John 7:31 ; John 9:16 ; John 11:47 ; John 12:37 ); the appearances of the resurrected Jesus are to be understood similarly ( John 20:30 ). The Johannine miracles point beyond themselves to the eschatological Savior ( John 6:14 ; John 7:31 ; John 12:18 ) and provoke faith in him ( John 2:11 , John 2:23 ; John 4:53 ; John 9:35 ; John 11:47f .; John 20:30f .). But this faith can remain superficial and egocentric ( John 4:48 ; John 6:14 , John 6:30 ) or can be rejected ( John 12:37 , John 12:39 ); and signs cannot always defeat

Judas Iscariot

Judas Iscariot John 17:19 Excerpt ‎It is clear that John regarded Judas as thoroughly villainous, and as an evangelist John took pains to point out his wicked character. Even though Judas’s name is not always used, his evil nature lurks in the background of the Gospel . So as early as John 6:70 John already called him a devil; then at John 12:6 Judas is regarded as a thief; at John 13:27 he is an instrument of Satan, and here John sees Jesus dismissing him as the perishing one, the bad egg, or the weak link in the chain of the disciples. ‎Not only was Judas the weak link, but he was an evil instrument in his fulfillment of Scripture . Although at this point it would be difficult to tell which Scripture was in the evangelist’s mind, other New Testament texts related to Judas’s actions seem to suggest more specific references such as Matt 27:3–10 , which probably refers to Zech 11:12–13 and Acts 1:16–20, which contains a free rendering of Ps 69:25 . Borchert, Gerald

The Temple of Artemis

‎This temple, called Artemision, was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Construction began in the mid-sixth century BC; more than a century later, it was the largest building in Rome, Greece, or Asia. Roughly four times the size of the Parthenon in Athens, it featured 127 columns, each measuring 60 ft. in height. It made Ephesus the center of Artemis worship.

To Make Holy

To Make Holy John 17:19 Excerpt ‎The vb. ἁγιάζω [ 'to make holy' ] is used 17 times pass. and 11 times act. The following are made holy or are holy (pass.): the name of God ( Matt 6:9 par . Luke 11:2 ); those who believe ( John 17:19b ; Acts 20:32 ; 26:18 ; 1 Cor 1:2 ; 1 Cor. 6:11 ; 1 Cor. 7:14 [twice]; 2 Tim 2:21 ), who are all consecrated through the one Son ( Heb 2:11b ; cf . Heb. 10:10 , Heb. 10:14 ); everything which God has created ( 1 Tim 4:5 ); and, finally, Christ himself , who is consecrated through the blood of the covenant ( Heb 10:29 [ referring to Exod 24:8 ]). In pass. constructions God is very frequently to be understood as the subject of the consecration (divine passive). Balz, Horst Robert, and Gerhard Schneider. Exegetical dictionary of the New Testament 1990– : 17. Print.

A Prayer for Protection

A Prayer for Protection   Excerpt ‎The prayer of Jesus was not for God to send something like “rescue planes” to evacuate the disciples from their hostile setting in the world. Such a plan would destroy God’s mission through them. Nor was it to wrap them in some plastic, danger-free safety casing where they would never encounter evil. But the prayer of Jesus was to protect them from succumbing to the onslaught of evil or the evil one.+ Borchert, Gerald L. John 12–21 . Vol. 25B . Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2002. Print. The New A meri can Commentary .

Logos Verse of the Day

Logos Verse of the Day

Bible Gateway Verse for the Day

Hebrews  4:12 King James Version For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  Hebrews 4 Public Domain New King James Version For the word of God  is  living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  Hebrews 4 Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. English Standard Version For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Read at Bible Gateway Read all of  Hebrews 4 The Holy Bible, English

Mundy's Quote for the Day

Mundy's Quote for the Day Stop using the excuse:  "I can sin all that I want too, because  The Lord  will forgive me"!  And also, stop saying,  "for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of  God ";  Romans 3:23 . Stop using  God  as an excuse to sin, because,  He  is a righteous  God  and abhors sin. Live your best by obeying  God's commands and precepts ,   and see how  He will  richly best you. Reverend Lynwood F. Mundy

Connect the Testaments: A Daily Devotional

October 27: Dreams of Redemption Daniel 4:1–37; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–5:11 ; Job 41:1–9 I’ve known people who seemed beyond saving—who seemed to have gone too far down the wrong path to ever turn to the right one. But in the Bible we see that this is not the case. God is capable of turning anyone’s heart. One of the most shocking examples is Nebuchadnezzar. In a decree to all the nations he rules (and perhaps other nations as well), Nebuchadnezzar remarks: “It is pleasing to me to recount the signs and wonders that the Most High God worked for me. How great are his signs and wonders , how strong is his kingdom , an everlasting kingdom ; and his sovereignty is from generation to generation ” ( Dan 4:2–3 ). He then goes on to recount a dream that Yahweh planted in his mind . Before Nebuchadnezzar experiences redemption, he tastes humiliation and endures great trials ( Dan 4:28–33 ). But Yahweh does not intend to merely humble the king — He intends to make

Sunday School Lesson, Outline

October 26 Lesson 8 THINGS TOO WONDERFUL FOR ME DEVOTIONAL READING: Galatians 1:11–19 BACKGROUND SCRIPTURE : Job 42 ; Psalm 86 JOB 42:1–10 1 Then Job answered the LORD , and said, 2 I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee . 3 Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not. Photo: Medioimages/Photodisc/Thinkstock 4 Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me. 5 I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee . 6 Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. 7 And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath. 8 Therefore take unto y

International Sunday School Lesson

Lesson for October 26, 2014 Things Too Wonderful for Me  Job 42 ; Psalm 86 This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD. It is published in the October 19 issue of  The Lookout  magazine, and is also available online at  www.lookoutmag.com . ______ By Sam E. Stone  Today we consider the closing section of the book of Job. Last week we studied Job 24 . In the chapters in between, Job’s friends continued to pass judgment on the suffering patriarch. Job continued to defend his actions. After the many words of Job’s friends and the lengthy responses by Job, the Lord spoke for the first time with two messages ( 38:1–40:2 and 40:6–41:34 ). God’s awesome power was evident as he spoke “out of the storm” ( 38:1 ). God turned the tables on Job. This time  he  would ask the questions. He did not answer all that Job had asked. Instead he showed Job just how little Job really knew. “Where were you whe

Christian Worship One Year Lectionary

SUNDAY , OCTOBER 26, 2014 | PENTECOST TWENTIETH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST               Old Testament       Exodus 15:22–26              Psalm       Psalm 139               New Testament       Ephesians 4:22–28               Gospel       Matthew 9:1–8 Christian Worship One Year Lectionary . Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009. Print.