Exodus 23:27-30 Drop by drop!

27I will send My terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn and run. 28I will send the hornet before you to drive the Hivites and Canaanites and Hittites out of your way.

29I will not drive them out before you in a single year; otherwise the land would become desolate and wild animals would multiply against you. 30Little by little I will drive them out ahead of you, until you become fruitful and possess the land.

“From Joshua 24:12, we find that two kings of the Amorites were actually driven out of the land by these hornets, so that the Israelites were not obliged to use either sword or bow in the conquest.” (Clarke)

“He who is an angel to the saint is a hornet to His foes.” (Meyer)

“God crumbles his mercies to us; we have his blessings by retail. So the cloud empties not itself at a sudden burst, but dissolves upon the earth drop by drop.” (Trapp)

Notice Trapp’s commentary on His mercies, drop by drop! We are too fragile!

We wouldn’t be able to handle the change all at once. Our nature is such that we don’t like change! The new boss, new rules, new environments! 

We must receive them drop by drop!

How do you handle change?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:25-26 Promises, Promises!

25So you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will blessd your bread and your water. And I will take away sickness from among you. 26No woman in your land will miscarry or be barren; I will fulfill the number of your days.

A life guarantee! Wouldn’t you like to have these promises (guarantee) today?

The Lord gives us a life guarantee!

John 5:24 Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment. Indeed, he has crossed over from death to life.

We may not have the same promises the Israelites had while they were marching to the promised land but the Lord gives us a promise of eternal life.

Do you hold on to His promise of eternal life?

Blessings, David 

What is Christmas to you?

To some, it’s a happy time of celebration, gift giving and a family meal. To some it’s a sad and depressing time full of bad memories. To some it’s that Christian holiday that they don’t believe in. To some it’s a commercial holiday with Santa Claus and gift giving.

To me it is what is written in Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

When we celebrate “a child is born” we thank Him for His birth and His gift of salvation. We also celebrate CHRISTmas with a tree, gifts and a special meal but we keep it in perspective with Him as the center. Our gifts are minimal and usually things that we need. We reminisce the Christmas’ past, growing up as a child and celebrating Christmas with our parents and family.

If Christmas is full of bad memories, try just celebrating His birthday, bake Him your favorite cake. Enjoy the gift He gave you (salvation) on His birthday.

What is Christmas to you?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:22-24 Character of its Worship!

22But if you will listen carefully to his voice and do everything I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes. 23For My angel will go before you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, and I will annihilate them.

24You must not bow down to their gods or serve them or follow their practices. Instead, you are to demolish them and smash their sacred stones to pieces.

“Concerning the people to be driven out, it is worthy of note that this paragraph shows that ‘their gods’ were their undoing. Everything in the life of a man or a nation depends on the character of its worship.” (Morgan)

Morgan hit the nail on the head! I look at the founding of our country and wonder how George Washington was victorious when he should have failed. I believe it was his faith in Jesus Christ that carried him and our nation to victory! It was the character of his worship!

Interesting read on George Washington, his faith and battles when he would have failed and died.

https://christiscreator.com/GeorgeWashington.htm

Please pray for our country that it will return to God, that He will guide our leaders and expose those that are in it for themselves.

Merry Christmas, David

Exodus 23:20-21 Prepare a place for you!

20Behold, I am sending an angel before you to protect you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. 21Pay attention to him and listen to his voice; do not defy him, for he will not forgive rebellion, since My Name is in him.

“The Angel (v. 20) was not a created angel but a divine manifestation, the Second Person of the Trinity in angelic form.” (Thomas) 

“to bring you to the place I have prepared.”

John 14: 2In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going away to prepare a place for you? 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and welcome you into My presence, so that you also may be where I am.

“My name is in him seems to translate the ‘messenger’ into the supernatural realm, for God’s ‘name’ is the equivalent of His revealed nature.” (Cole)

“This Angel with the authority and prestige of the name of God was evidence enough that God himself was present in his Son.” (Kaiser)

“prepare a place for you”

Are you excited as I am to see this place?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:17-19 You Must Not!

17Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD.

18You must not offer the blood of My sacrifices with anything leavened, nor may the fat of My feast remain until morning.

19Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God.

You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Verse 18:

“It means that individual Israelites were not to kill the Passover lamb while leaven was still in their houses.” (Kaiser)

Verse 19:

“It was a custom of the ancient heathens, when they had gathered in all their fruits, to take a kid and boil it in the milk of its dam; and then, in a magical way, to go about and besprinkle with it all their trees and fields, gardens and orchards; thinking by these means to make them fruitful, that they might bring forth more abundantly in the following year.” (Cudworth cited in Clarke)

It’s interesting when we read through the Old Testament and wonder, why would the Lord say that? But then we see an ancient custom like the one above!

We may not fully understand His “you must not”, but He has His reasons!

How many “you must not” are mentioned in the Bible?

Are you guilty of doing a “you must not”?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:14-16 Celebrate a Feast to ME!

14Three times a year you are to celebrate a feast to Me.

15You are to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread as I commanded you: At the appointed time in the month of Abib you are to eat unleavened bread for seven days, because that was the month you came out of Egypt. No one may appear before Me empty-handed.

16You are also to keep the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the produce from what you sow in the field.

And keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather your produce from the field.

“Three times a year you are to celebrate a feast to Me.”

In a sense we as practicing Christians celebrate three feasts a year.

Easter, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving, our church calls it the Ingathering.

Christmas, the birth of Jesus.

Do you celebrate these Christian holidays (feasts) to the Lord?

Don’t let the world change the meaning of these Christian holidays to the easter bunny, gluttony dinner and Santa Claus with gift giving! 

“Celebrate a feast to Me.”!

Return to the true meaning of these Christian holidays, celebrate what the Lord has done for you!

Blessings, David

Exodus 23:13 Pay Close Attention

13Pay close attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.

Our Father, the God that created us is a jealous God. 

How would you feel if your children called someone else father or mother?

Or when they are led astray and do wrong?

Play close attention! You must not invoke the names of other gods!

The Lord gives us this warning because He knows how weak we are.

Just consider Adam and Eve, look how easily the devil led them astray.

Do you have another god in your life?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:12 Day of Rest

12For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, so that your ox and your donkey may rest and the son of your maidservant may be refreshed, as well as the foreign resident.

Sabbath, day of rest. To honor and worship the Lord, our creator.

Our world seems to grow faster day by day. Computers, smartphones, smart watches, automobiles and the list goes on.

But how do you refresh yourself?

We usually spend Sunday by going to church and in the evening attending Life Group. With church and worship we are refreshed, our spiritual tank is refilled, providing strength and stamina for the following week. At Life Group we enjoy our relationship with our friends from church, enjoy a meal or snacks, dive deeper into the morning study from church and pray for each other’s needs.

If you are working seven days a week you will eventually burn out. Family and relationships will suffer and if you have children, your relationship with them will suffer and you will be setting a bad example.

I ask again, how do you refresh yourself?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:10-11 Sabbath Rest

10For six years you are to sow your land and gather its produce, 11but in the seventh year you must let it rest and lie fallow, so that the poor among your people may eat from the field and the wild animals may consume what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and olive grove.

“The law of the Sabbatical Year. This was unique in the world, and associated only with Israel.” (Thomas)

Sabbath rest, the Lord wanted it applied to us, the land and animals. Some farmers applied it to their land by rotating their fields, i.e. crop rotation.

In my lifetime I’ve noticed during childhood businesses went from being closed on Sunday to being open 24/7. Do we blame the businesses or ourselves for shopping there?

I knew a couple that took the sabbath seriously, they closed their store, went to church and rested from the busyness of life for the day.

I believe it’s a good thing that Jesus completed the Law or we would all fall short.

Do you practice the sabbath rest?

Blessings, David

Exodus 23:9 Love your neighbor!

9Do not oppress a foreign resident, since you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners; for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

Luke 10:27...... ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’d ”

There has been a lot of talk lately about open borders, making illegal aliens legal, free healthcare for illegals, illegal alien governmental assistance and so on.

But look at this verse, “Do not oppress a foreign resident”.

Resident implies legal, to follow a nations laws regarding its borders and residency.

Oppression, prolonged cruel or unjust treatment or control.

Israelites were in bondage, slaves in Egypt. 

While our elected officials argue over illegal aliens we as Christians are to Love your neighbor as yourself. 

Do you love your neighbor?

Blessings, David 

Isaiah 35:10 More grace brings more joy!

More grace brings more joy!

Today I received my daily devotional from Truth for Life by Alistair Begg which had the above title!

We read the headline of this devotional as saw it as a sign from the Lord!

On December 5th, I sent out a devotional on our beloved dog Grace.

http://stanfordsancutaryscripturestudies.blogspot.com/2019/12/grace-like-rain.html?m=1

Last Wednesday we decided to get a puppy, an Australian Cattle dog aka Blue Heeler. I put a deposit on her and we will be picking her up in Ohio on Sunday. 

We ran through some names and decided on the name Joy! 

After all, a dog gives us joy don’t they? 

They love you unconditionally just as the Lord.

They love on you when you are sad, they welcome you home and they are devoted totally to you.

The Lord gave us Grace and now He has given us Joy!

Isaiah 35:10 Those who have been ransomed by the LORD will return. They will enter Jerusalem singing, crowned with everlasting joy. Sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will be filled with joy and gladness.

Joy will help relieve the sorrow and mourning from the loss of our Grace.

When we finally meet the Lord, I believe we become aware of all the times during our earthly life that He has blessed, protected us and given us Grace and Joy!

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for your blessings, thank you for your Grace and I thank you for giving us Grace and bringing Joy into our life. In Jesus name I pray.

Blessings David

Exodus 23:6-8 Do Not’s!

6You shall not deny justice to the poor in their lawsuits. 7Stay far away from a false accusation. Do not kill the innocent or the just, for I will not acquit the guilty.

8Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.

Truth, justice and the American way. What ever happened to this ideal? Look at our halls of Congress! Corruption, greed, power hungry politicians!

The poor have a special place in the Lords heart and He doesn’t want anyone taking advantage of them!

Do not kill the innocent! This also speaks to abortion. A human being has a soul because we are made in His likeness.

Do not accept a bribe! If the Lord doesn’t want you to accept a bribe, what do you think He would say about offering a bribe?

Dear Heavenly Father, please help us stay true to your ways and guide us so we do not deny justice, do not kill the innocent and do not accept a bribe. In Jesus name I pray.

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:4-5 Love your neighbor as yourself!

4If you encounter your enemy’s stray ox or donkey, you must return it to him.

5If you see the donkey of one who hates you fallen under its load, do not leave it there; you must help him with it.

A good synonym for theses verses would be Love, the love of Jesus or WWJD.

Galatians 5:14 The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

“Enemy in this context probably means ‘legal adversary’. Justice demands that we treat him like any other neighbor.” (Cole)

A donkey would be the equivalent of a work truck that carries a load or goods to market. A donkey was a persons livelihood, without it they would loose their source of income. 

Our natural sinful nature would love to see an enemy suffer, but we have to remind ourselves that Jesus loves him/her too. He didn’t accept the cross just for you, He accepted the cross for all mankind.

Love your neighbor as yourself! When you do, your heart will be transformed to be more like His.

Blessings, David 

Exodus 23:1-3 Walk away and turn it off!

1“You shall not spread a false report. Do not join the wicked by being a malicious witness.

2You shall not follow a crowd in wrongdoing. When you testify in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with a crowd. 3And do not show favoritism to a poor man in his lawsuit.

“The inventor and receiver of false and slanderous reports, are almost equally criminal. The word seems to refer to either, and our translators have very properly retained both senses.” (Clarke)

Deuteronomy 19:15 A lone witness is not sufficient to establish any wrongdoing or sin against a man, regardless of what offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

False reports are sinful to listen to. Ask this question to the person relaying the information. Do I have “the need to know”? And if they continue ask for proof. If they have none, tell them they are spreading a false report and gossiping! The Lord hates gossip!

But if you don’t want to confront them then just walk away!

I’ve turned off the news because of the false and slanderous reports they are spreading about our president. All of them will one day have to stand before the Lord!

God anoints kings and rulers, who are we to judge Him?

Walk away and turn it off, the Lord will bless you for not following the crowd!

Blessings, David 

Exodus 22:29-31 Holding Back!

29You must not hold back offerings from your granaries or vats. You are to give Me the firstborn of your sons. 30You shall do likewise with your cattle and your sheep. Let them stay with their mothers for seven days, but on the eighth day you are to give them to Me.

31You are to be My holy people. You must not eat the meat of a mauled animal found in the field; you are to throw it to the dogs.”

I’m guilty of holding back! Recently our church was doing its yearly fundraiser for building upgrades and the children’s ministry and I was considering donating to it, until I heard of the way another administrative staff member was told how she was being let go.

It went something like this. How do you enjoy working here? When do you plan on retiring? Well after the 1st of the year your hours are going to be reduced to zero.

This employee worked two days a week and had been a faithful employee for thirteen years. 

This also happened to my wife who worked there.

Then they publish the budget, Payroll Expenses $1,000,000.00 

We love our pastor and his teachings but the church administrator doesn’t seem to treat the staff like Jesus would. I ask WWJD?

If it weren’t for all our friends who attend there we would consider a different church.

So we are holding back and donating to other charities.

The firstborn was always considered the best.

A mauled animal would be bloody and torn apart by an unclean animal.

“In the conclusion of this chapter we see the grand reason of all the ordinances and laws which it contains. No command was issued merely from the sovereignty of God. He gave them to the people as restraints on disorderly passions, and incentives to holiness; and hence he says, Ye shall be holy men unto me.” (Clarke)

Blessings, David 

Exodus 22:28 Cursing!

28You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

Did you know dammit is not Gods last name? Places that I have worked at throughout my life, cursing was prevalent. It’s a hard habit to break. My advice is, don’t give it a foothold! 

“This is the famous verse quoted by Paul at his trial before the high priest (Acts 23:5).” (Cole)

5“Brothers,” Paul replied, “I was not aware that he was the high priest, for it is written: ‘Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.’”

Why do people curse or speak evil about our president?

As practicing Christians we are supposed to love one another and pray for those who persecute you.

Are you practicing those traits of Christianity?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 22:25-27 Lending to the poor!

25If you lend money to one of My people among you who is poor, you must not act as a creditor to him; you are not to charge him any interest.

26If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset, 27because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

Lending and borrowing, we’ve all done it but here we see several laws the Israelites and judges are to follow concerning the poor.

How would loans be with 0% interest?

“The reason for the prohibition is presumably that the poor man borrows in his need. The loan is seen as assistance to a neighbor, and to make money from his need would be immoral.” (Cole)

“Retaining one’s outer garment (used as temporary collateral) overnight was strictly forbidden, for even an interest-free loan apparently required some type of pledge or security.” (Kaiser)

Do you know a poor family that has trouble making ends meet with food and clothing?

Are you helping them? You could do it anonymously.

Blessings, David 

Grace Like Rain

Grace Like Rain

Today we had to put our beloved Australian Healer down. It was a hard decision to make but several years ago she was diagnosed with Cushings disease. Two nights ago she started vomiting and all the veterinarian’s we contacted were booked up so this morning we were able to take her in and the doctor put her out of her misery.

We buried her in our backyard.

The backstory:

Grace was a Humane Society dog. She was the puppy nobody wanted. Our ten year old adoptive son picked her out. You see, he was the boy nobody wanted. At seven years old he was dropped off at CPS and his family said, we don’t want him anymore. 

We he locked eyes with her, it was a match from heaven.

Grace was named from the song, Grace like rain by Todd Agnew. 

We will miss her. We will miss her “wiggle butt” when she woke up or welcomed us home. We will miss her tail hitting the furniture as she wiggled her butt.

We will miss her love ❤️ when we were sad.

We will miss her following us around the house.

God blessed us twice, once with Grace and His grace of Salvation.

Why does death have to be so hard?

Please keep us in your prayers.

Blessings, David & Cecilia 

Exodus 22:22-24 Widows and Orphans!

22You must not mistreat any widow or orphan. 23If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to Me in distress, I will surely hear their cry. 24My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword; then your wives will become widows and your children will be fatherless.

“It was the prophets who chided Israel for their neglect in this area of oppressing the poor and the weak.” (Kaiser)

“The society that lacks social justice will itself come under God’s judgment.” (Cole)

Psalm 68:5 A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows, is God in His holy habitation.

Widows and orphans are close to the Lords heart.

Years ago we followed the Lords will and adopted a ten year old boy. 

Are you willing to help the widows and orphans?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 22:21 Kindness and Compassion!

21You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

God commands us to treat a stranger kindly and to have a compassion for others.

But in Genesis 47:5-6 Joseph’s brothers had to ask the pharaoh for permission to settle in a foreign land (Egypt).

Nations have laws and borders but as Christians we must obey the law unless they are an affront to God or illegal or immoral.

Years ago on a Father’s Day I took our son dirt bike riding in southern Arizona and I found a dead illegal alien. I reported it to local law enforcement and his body was returned his home town, Mexico City. But why did he die? He died from thirst and because he was exploited by a smuggler “coyote” for financial gain. The smugglers lie to the people and tell them it’s only a days journey. It’s not, it’s several weeks involving some of the roughest terrain and harshest temperatures. 

Be kind and have compassion towards a stranger just as the Lord has for you.

Blessings, David