Let's do the dishes!

Thursday, December 12, 2013
Devotions: Ps 37; Amos 9:1-10; Rev 2:8-17; Mt 23:13-26

Don't fret because of the wicked; don't envy wrongdoers—for they soon will fade like grass; they'll wither like a dead weed. Trust in YHWH and do your best; then you'll live securely. Delight in Him and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to YHWH, and He will vindicate you; He will uphold you so all can see. Be still before YHWH; wait patiently for Him. Refrain from wrath and forsake anger—leave the wicked to God. The meek will inherit the earth, as both David and Jesus have declared. God laughs at the plots and posturing of the wicked. Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked; God upholds the righteous, but crushes the self-righteous. Our mortal paths come from God; He establishes those He loves. And though we may stumble, God will keep us from the headlong plunge. I have never seen the righteous forsaken, or their children begging for bread. Our just God will not abandon His saints. Just hold fast to the Lord and move along His path, by His grace.

Amos saw YHWH standing beside the altar.  God said:  bring down this house upon the unfaithful. Nothing can hide the unfaithful from My vengeance. I set Myself against them for evil, not for good. YHWH is God's name; those who call Him their God and disobey Him will know His judgment and enmity. He will judge the unfaithful among His chosen people; but in the decisive Day, God will raise up the booth, the tabernacle of David that has fallen; and God will repair its breaches and restore its ruins. God will rebuild, and days of joy and plenty await the faithful of the Lord. He will plant us, and nothing will uproot us.

John recorded Jesus' message to the church at Smyrna: 'These are the words of the First and Last, Who died and came again to life. I know your tribulation and poverty—yet, in truth you are rich! I know the slander of those who falsely say they are Jews, who are in fact the synagogue of Satan. Don't fear the suffering just ahead for you. Look: the devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and for ten days, you will have tribulation. Be faithful, even to death, and I will give you the crown of real life. Whoever has an ear, hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. Those who conquer will not be hurt by the second death.' And to the church at Pergamum: 'The words of Him Who has the sharp two-edged sword: I know that you live where Satan has his earthly throne. Yet you hold fast to My name and keep My faith, even in the days of My faithful witness Antipas who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against you, too: some among you hold to the blasphemous teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to lead the sons of Israel to eat food sacrificed to idols and to practice immorality. And some hold to the ungodly teaching of the Nicolaitans. Repent! Otherwise, I will come to you soon and war against you with the sword of My mouth. Let those who can, hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To those who conquer, I will give some of the hidden manna and a white stone with a new name known to no one except to the one who receives it.' Amen.

Jesus confronted His opponents in Jerusalem: 'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You seek to deny the kingdom of heaven to others, while you never enter yourselves and let no one else in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You cross sea and land to make one proselyte, then make the new convert twice the child of Gehenna as yourselves. Woe to you, blind guides! You say that if one swears by the temple, the oath has no binding force, but an oath on the gold of the temple is binding. You are blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple which makes the gold sacred? Likewise, you say that an oath upon the altar has no force, but an oath make on a gift placed upon the altar is binding. Blind men, which is greater: the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? One who swears by the altar also swears by everything on the altar; one who swears by the temple swears by everything sacred within the temple, and by Him Who dwells in the temple; and one who swears by heaven also swears by the throne of God and by Him Who sits upon it. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisee, hypocrite! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, but you ignore and neglect the weightier matters of the law, justice, mercy and faith. You should do both, ignoring or slighting none. You are blind guides, straining out gnats while swallowing camels! Woe to you, scrigbes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You carefully clean the outside of cup and plate, but inside they are full of extortion and rapacity. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the vessel and plate, and then the outside will also be clean.