Thought for the Day

The festive occasion known as Halloween is now taken for granted. It is a time of curious, rather morbid activities for children and adults alike when some of the darkest themes of a sin-burdened creation are exhumed from history's graveyard for public display and for the profit of carnal merchants who promote the entire affair. Yet how many people (especially Bible-believers) have given honest, serious consideration to the nature of this seasonal celebration? Following is a summary of the reasons why ou...

Matthew 25:1-13 (1) Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. (2) And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. (3) They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: (4) But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. (5) While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. (6) And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. (7) T...

John 19:23-24 (23) Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. (24) They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did. Here is set f...

Genesis 22:10-11 (10) And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. (11) And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. In a previous meditation (10-7-15, Double-Calling), the significance of God's repetition in calling men to service and blessing was explored. Today's text was intentionally withheld from that previous meditation because it deserved special att...

(Exodus 3:4) And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. God's doublings imply something weighty, as when God doubled a dream to Pharaoh (GEN 41:32) or when Jesus said, “Verily, verily...” (JOH 5:24-25, et. al.). There were various occasions in Scripture when God issued a double call and the response it generated was noteworthy. One such occurrence was in EXO 3:4 when God wanted Moses' attention fo...

(Numbers 2:17) Then the tabernacle of the congregation shall set forward with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camp: as they encamp, so shall they set forward, every man in his place by their standards. The second chapter of Numbers details God's prescribed layout of Israel's tribes as they wandered in the wilderness. Twelve tribes were assigned specific geographic locations around the tabernacle so that the overall picture was like an analog clock with the tabernacle as the hub. The tabern...

2 Timothy 2:10-13 (10) Therefore I endure all things for the elect's sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. (11) It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: (12) If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: (13) If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself. The faithfulness of God relative to His elect in Christ is here considered. The “faithful sa...

(Psalms 110:1-4) (1) A Psalm of David. The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. (2) The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. (3) Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. (4) The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. Our text ...

Matthew 28:1-7 (1) In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. (2) And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. (3) His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: (4) And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. (5) And the angel answered and said ...

2 Peter 1:16-18 (16) For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. (17) For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (18) And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. Peter here revisits the experience of James, John an...

Matthew 27:39-43 (39) And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, (40) And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. (41) Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, (42) He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. (43) He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if...

(Song of Solomon 6:3) I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies. We had in a previous meditation (5-29-15, Little Foxes) noted that the intimate dialogue between Solomon and his bride have some parallels with the relationship between Jesus Christ, the “...greater than Solomon...” (MAT 12:42) and His bride, the church. Our featured text is another example of this. We first note that the bride had already made thi...

Daniel 3:4-6 (4) Then an herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, (5) That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: (6) And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. The Holy Spirit here takes us to the scene of a gala worship event celebra...

2 Peter 2:6-9 (6) And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; (7) And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (8) (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) (9) The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of ju...

(Hebrews 11:12) Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. The Apostle Paul suffered much at the hands of his own countrymen because he consistently stood boldly for the true “hope of Israel,” the resurrection of the dead (ACT 23:6; ACT 24:14-15; ACT 24:21; ACT 26:6-8; ACT 28:20). Israel had over the years generally lost sight of their true hope although the essence of “life from the d...

(Psalm 68:11) The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it. Israel's sweet psalmist, David (2SAM 23:1), in this psalm glorifies God for His great doings for His people, with His people and against the enemies of His people while dipping his pen also in the inkwell of Messiah's kingdom which should come: the Spirit-filled N.T. gospel church (Paul cites PSA 68:18 when he writes about the gifts of teaching ministries in the church, EPH 4:8-12). This psalm opens with t...

(Proverbs 16:31) The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness. Our text sets forth the potential for our royal acclaim, and a wise culture will render due respect unto such an aged king. Moses' Law commanded, “Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD” (LEV 19:32). Solomon later observed, “...the beauty of old men is the gray head” (PRO 20:29). It is a general promise of Scripture that “...the fe...

Genesis 42:25-28 (25) Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them. (26) And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence. (27) And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack's mouth. (28) And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart ...

(Genesis 40:1) And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord the king of Egypt. (Genesis 40:2) And Pharaoh was wroth against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakers. (Genesis 40:3) And he put them in ward in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound. The Apostle Peter once described the revelation given by Jesus Christ unto His apostle...

(Song of Solomon 2:15) Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. In the engaging romantic dialogue between Solomon and his beloved spouse many commentators have seen a tender, passionate exchange between Christ and His beloved bride, His church. I suspect that one reason they have done so is that there are some “delicate” expressions in this book that they have deemed necessary to allegorize for modesty's sake. But allegorizing everything in this book...

(Romans 8:28) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. If your Christian experience in any way mirrors mine, you may have been taught that no matter what happens in your life, God makes it work for good (and ROM 8:28 is used to support this). There is indeed a limited sense in which that is true, as evidenced by such examples as when Joseph's brethren sold him into captivity but God blessed him so that he could later say ...

(John 2:11) This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him. Shortly after His baptism, the Lord Jesus Christ attended a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee where He turned water into wine. This marked the first public display of His divine power and glory. As a result, “...his disciples believed on him.” From that time on, His earthly ministry was characterized by incredible miracles which left hard-hearted rebels without any ex...

(Colossians 2:8) Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Saints must be ever wary (“Beware...”) of potential dangers which could handicap or overthrow their faith. We are to beware of false prophets (MAT 7:15), of men (MAT 10:17), of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees (MAT 16:6), of self-promoting scribes (MAR 12:38), of covetousness (LUK 12:1...

1 Samuel 30:1-6 (1) And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire; (2) And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way. (3) So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. (4...

(Esther 4:11) All the king's servants, and the people of the king's provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days. King Ahasuerus of the Medes and Persians ruled his domain as a virtual potentate (one endowed with independen...