Mouth – Praying Pint

42.f. “Let My People Go” – 10.c. Remembrance

Exodus 13:1 The LORD said to Moses, “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.” Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD. Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the LORD may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the LORD has brought you out of Egypt. You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year. “When the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, you shall set apart to the LORD all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the LORD’s. Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery.For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”

“Israel had been saved through the destruction of Egypt’s first-born, and now they were required to dedicate their own first-born as a constant memorial of their deliverance.” (Thomas)

In remembrance of the destruction of the first-born of Egypt, both of man and of beast, and the deliverance of the Israelites out of bondage, the first-born males of the Israelites were set apart to the Lord. By this was set before them, that their lives were preserved through the ransom of the atonement, which in due time was to be made for sin. They were also to consider their lives, thus ransomed from death, as now to be consecrated to the service of God. (Henry)

In connection with the deliverance from death of the Israelite first-born by the blood of the lamb, and still further to fix the remembrance of the historical facts in the mind of the nation, Moses was commissioned to declare all the firstborn of Israel for all future time, and all the firstborn of their domesticated animals “holy to the Lord.” There was, perhaps, already in the minds of men a feeling that peculiar dignity attached to the first-born in each family; and this feeling was now strengthened by the assignment to them of a sacred character. God claimed them, and also the first-born of beasts, as His own. The clean beasts became his by sacrifice; but the unclean ones could not he similarly treated, and therefore had to be “redeemed” (verse 13) by the sacrifice of clean animals in their place. The first-born of men became at the first institution of the new ordinance God’s ministers; but as this system was not intended to continue, it was announced that they too would have to be “redeemed” (verses 13, 15). The exact mode of redeeming them was left to be settled afterwards, and will be found in Numbers 3:40-51; Numbers 18:16 (Unknown)

Remembrance of what God has done is good for the soul. It is good for the mind of man to remember what God has done by His own mighty hand. It is good to remember God’s mercy, grace, and love. A heart and mind that is ever remembering God’s strength, power, love, mercy, refuge, wisdom, holiness, and promises, will act differently than the world, will see things of God, will be continually thanking God, will serve God, will honor and glorify God, and will display humbleness, gentleness, kindness, peace, hope, faith, and love. It is when we are consumed with things of this world and the busyness of life that we allow ourselves to be neglectful and complacent in remembering, following, repenting, obeying, and relying on God. Remembering God’s love, grace, and mercy is not a burden and yet should not be taken lightly. It is not an obligation, and yet, it pours out of the redeemed soul like a floodgate opened and never-ending. Without it the heart and mind will wander away from God on paths that neither honor nor glorify Him.

33.k. “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Matthew 15:10 And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

Isaiah 55:3    Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live;

Titus 1:15    To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled.

Isaiah 60:21   Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified.

Isaiah 56:10   His watchmen are blind; they are all without knowledge; they are all silent dogs; they cannot bark, dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber.

Isaiah 28:9-10   “To whom will he teach knowledge, and to whom will he explain the message? Those who are weaned from the milk, those taken from the breast?  For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”

Proverbs 10:32   The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse

Jeremiah 17:9   The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Revelation 21:27   But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

In the heart and mind of every person resides the root of their intents. Lust, anger, hate, envy, lies, gossiping, selfishness, self-worthiness, and self-reliance seeds are planted, rooted, watered, cultivated, and harvested within the heart and mind and manifest in thoughts, words, and actions that reveal a person’s path in this life. When the gospel of Jesus Christ is rejected the fertile ground within our hearts and minds will raise and harvest crops that do not honor and glorify Jesus Christ. When the Word of God is rejected and neglected the harvest is surely not God-honoring or glorifying.

We don’t have to be around people very long to see what is planted and being harvested within their hearts and mind. Their words and actions reveal their intended harvest. How is a person to know what it is that is planted, growing, and being harvested from within their hearts and minds? The Word of God will lay wide open a person’s heart and mind, exposing the thoughts, intents, and actions stemming from within. Without the Word of God it is clear – “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” Human discernment apart from God’s Word will never understand the thoughts and intents of the heart. Their understanding is blind and deaf because there is nothing planted from which good crops can be harvested in either thoughts, words, or actions. Oh, they can do good things according to cultural and social norms, but the intent is self-serving, not God-honoring and glorifying. People will blindly accept their life without God in it and give no thought to their eternal destination. As they age and approach the time in their life where death is closer than their birth, they may give some thought to death and eternity. They may ask themselves; where is my eternal destination? Are heaven and hell real? Have I been good enough to be allowed into heaven? These questions all reveal a heart and mind that has never humbly repented, surrendered, believed in, and trust Jesus Christ for their forgiveness, redemption, and salvation. The good news is that it is never too late, nor is a person too old, nor is a person too unforgivable. Jesus Christ came into the world to save the sinners. He died on the cross, bearing all their sins so that they might have eternal life if they would just humbly repent, surrender, believe, trust, and rely on His sacrifice alone and apart from any good works they may have done. It is in this humble repentance, surrender, belief, trust, and reliance in Jesus Christ that a person is born again and eternal life promised. These lost souls will find rest for their souls and peace of mind for their hearts.

I have seen the intents of the hearts and minds of “Christians” revealed in their words and actions. We are not immune to the seeds of destruction being planted, rooted, and harvested in our lives. These seed thoughts are being planted all the time by what we read, what we watch, what we are exposed to, and what we allow to reside in our hearts and minds. Paul addressed this very clearly when he said; “take every thought captive”. We are to be able to discern what is right, holy, good, pure, and acceptable. How can this be if we neglect and become complacent with the Word of God? God’s Word is the seed, fertilizer, and water for all that is right, true, holy, good, and acceptable. Discernment is a result of desiring and seeking God’s Word with the intentional choice to know what is right, true, good, pure, holy, and acceptable for the single purpose of being able to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all we say, think, and do.

Do you want to discern what is in your heart, continually expose it to God’s Word with an expectant mind that God will reveal it. David had such a heart – “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

31.h. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

Matthew 6:7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Ecclesiastes 5:2-3     Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.

1 Kings 8: 37-39 “If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence or blight or mildew or locust or caterpillar, if their enemy besieges them in the land at their gates, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is,  whatever prayer, whatever plea is made by any man or by all your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart and stretching out his hands toward this house,  then hear in heaven your dwelling place and forgive and act and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways (for you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind)

Daniel 9:18-19   O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy.  O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”

Philippians 4:6  do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

The right kind of prayer does not use vain repetitions, which is any and all prayer which is mostly words and no meaning; all lips and no mind or heart.

One can pray long – but to the wrong god. In 1 Kings 18:26 the prophets of Baal cried out, “O Baal answer us” for half the day. In Acts 19:34 a mob in Ephesus shouted, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians” for two hours. The true God isn’t impressed by the length or eloquence of our prayers, but the heart. “Prayer requires more of the heart than of the tongue. The eloquence of prayer consists in the fervency of desire, and the simplicity of faith.” (Clarke)

“Christians’ prayers are measured by weight, and not by length. Many of the most prevailing prayers have been as short as they were strong.” (Spurgeon)

We don’t pray to tell God things that He didn’t know before we told Him. We pray to commune with and appeal to a loving God who wants us to bring every need and worry before His throne.

“Prayer is not designed to inform God, but to give man a sight of his misery; to humble his heart, to excite his desire, to inflame his faith, to animate his hope, to raise his soul from earth to heaven, and to put him in mind that THERE is his Father, his country, and inheritance.” (Clarke)

Sometimes we pray as though we are informing God and think by giving Him this information will help Him make the right decision in favor of what we are praying about. God is never shocked by what is happening. He already knows. He also knows our hearts and thoughts. Nothing in the future is hidden from His sight today. He is God of all there is, all there will ever be, and He is full of grace, mercy, and love towards mankind.

Some may think wrongly about prayer and say why should I pray if God is in control and His will will be done. I should just accept my lot for the day and move on. The fact is prayer will take us before God. It will allow us to keep a firm hold of who God is. Our prayer is in communion with Him and holds together the foundations of our faith, reliance, trust, and hope that is in and through Jesus Christ. Our prayerful concerns communicated with steadfast faith in God are uplifting and strengthening to our souls. Our hope, trust, faith, and reliance are flames that burn away the doubts, worry, and confusion our human nature conjures up.

Prayer is not to inform God, but rather, to communicate with Him. It is in prayer where we find strength, courage, and hope as we trust, wait, and rely on God.

26.d. “For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own”

Galatians 1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

Mark 6:6     And he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went about among the villages teaching.

Psalms 106:13    But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel.

Isaiah 29:13     And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,

Jeremiah 2:12-13     Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD,  for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

Romans 10:3   For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.

1 Peter 1:15     but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,

2 Peter 1:3    His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

Someone brought this false gospel to the Galatians. False gospels don’t just happen. People bring them, and the people who bring them may be sincere and have a lot of charisma. It is not as though these deceivers make are proclaiming a new or different Savior. They twist the Gospel and its pure message into something different and that seems true.

The gospel offends our sinful nature of self-pride. It tells us we need a savior, and that we cannot save ourselves. It gives no credit to us at all for our salvation. The gospel offends our sinful nature of self-wisdom. It saves us by something many consider foolish. Third, the gospel offends our sinful self-knowledge. It tells us to believe something which goes against scientific knowledge and personal experience.

There is so much more to being a Christian than knowing about God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Knowing about something does not mean you believe in it, you just know about it. There is a big difference. When the gospel of Jesus Christ is watered down and diluted to the point where you can think that by doing something other than believing in, trusting on, clinging to, and relying on Jesus Christ alone, you are ignorant of the righteousness of God, and will seek to establish their own, not submitting to God’s righteousness.

20.k. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans 10:8 “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Mark 16:15-16    And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.  Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Acts 10:43   To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Galatians 3:5    Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith

Acts 13:38-39    Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you,  and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.

I must admit I am intrigued by the difference between believing and believing in and on Jesus Christ. I imagine there are those who believe Jesus Christ. They believe He is the Son of God. They believe He was sent by God. They believe He died and rose again. They believe He is coming again. The believe there is a heaven and a hell. They believe the bible is God’s Word. They believe doing good is right. They believe in some form of justice for the guilty and innocent. And yet, for all of this belief, they fall short of what it means to believe on/in Jesus Christ. The difference is they believe about Him but not in/on Him. One is an intellectual understanding, belief, and knowledge of the subject – Jesus Christ. To believe in/on Jesus Christ is completely different. It is life -changing, life-altering, life-leading, and true peace and joy giving faith. The bible says this is being born again, made new, and being a new creation. This newness of life comes from believing in, trusting in, clinging to, relying on, surrendering and yielding to, and obeying Jesus Christ. A persons life is changed.

I fear many believe that the work of Jesus Christ was a blanket forgiveness over all of mankind’s sins and that all who do good things in this life will go to heaven. They live good lives and can be kind and loving but they never really see a personal need for personal forgiveness of their personal sin. Their belief in the blanket covering has blinded their personal need for forgiveness.

Ask God to reveal to your heart if you are believing in/on Jesus Christ or believing about Him. Only a heart seeking for God to open their hearts, minds, and souls to the wisdom and understanding for the need for forgiveness will see Jesus Christ as redeemer and savior. It is in this understanding that belief about changes to believing in/on Jesus Christ through faith and trust. The difference is that this God-given wisdom and understanding will lead to a person calling out to Jesus Christ to save them. There should be no doubt in your heart, soul, and mind about this.

19.g. “O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;”

John 21:25 Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

John 20:30-31    Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;  but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Psalms 71:15   My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is past my knowledge.

Job 26:14   Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?”

Psalms 40:5    You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.

Ephesians 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us

If it were possible to write volumes of books that contained the works of Jesus, the world could not contain them. The righteous acts of God and His deeds of salvation exceed our knowledge. Though we have been given God’s Word, it appears to be a vast writing with unlimited knowledge of God. We could spend a lifetime reading it and our understanding of God would still be but a whisper of who and what God is, let alone His power, might, strength, grace, mercy, wisdom, knowledge, ……….. Understanding of God can not be something that is read and understood, it must be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. “To whom will he teach knowledge,

and to whom will he explain the message? For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”

God has given deep in our hearts a beginning knowledge of Himself. He has revealed Himself to us through creation. He has revealed Himself through His Word. He has revealed Himself through Jesus Christ. He has revealed Himself through mighty and wondrous works of His power. He has revealed His grace, mercy, and love through Jesus. When we think of the limitlessness of God, then His Word and what we can see of His Creation speak but a whisper to our minds. What He has revealed should not be considered a whisper though. It should be considered a SHOUT, a thunderous SHOUT to each and every soul. It is a SHOUT of love and of warning. It is a SHOUT of eternal life and eternal torment and hell. It is a Shout of the Heavenly and worldly. It is a SHOUT of righteousness and wickedness, good and bad, faithful and unfaithful, truth and lies. It is a SHOUT of hope, refuge, power, strength, and courage, and of fear, anger, hate, and confusion. It is a SHOUT of redemption, salvation, and forgiveness, and of judgment, condemnation, and rejection.

It is a loud thunderous SHOUT to every soul. On judgment day no one will be able to say I didn’t know or I never heard for it will be clear to them than just how many times in their lives they rejected and denied the thunderous SHOUTS of God’s warnings and love.

15.s. “But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?””

ohn 5:45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

Romans 2:17-29 But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law; and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness0 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

Romans 3:19-20 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

Jesus did not call these religious leaders to a new or a different faith. He called them to believe what Moses, what the Scriptures, what His works, what John the Baptist each testified about Jesus: that He is the Messiah, the Son of God and God the Son. If they refused to believe this overwhelming testimony, it was unlikely they would believe Jesus’ own words. It is hard in this flesh to rely on faith. We always seem to want to add something to it to make ourselves more right with God. The fact remains though, that faith alone in Jesus is what makes us right before God. In and through faith in Him we have been cleansed from our sin. We have been born again. We are a child of God. There is nothing we could have done to earn this adoption into His family. It is only through faith in Jesus Christ that we have been brought from death to life. In this new life, our works should bring honor, glory, and praise to Jesus Christ. In this new life, our actions and words should be directing people to give glory, honor, and praise to Jesus. In this new life, we find purpose and satisfaction in humbly serving and honoring Jesus Christ. In this new life, obedience is not an obligation but rather a desire. In this new life, we seek to know and do His perfect will. In this new life, our trust and reliance never stop growing, “UNLESS” neglect and complacency have found root in our hearts and minds.

12.o. “Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; as destruction from the Almighty it will come!”

Zephaniah 1:7 Be silent before the Sovereign Lord, for the day of the Lord is near. The Lord has prepared a sacrifice; he has consecrated those he has invited.

Romans 3:19    Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.

Psalms 46:10     “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

Isaiah 2:12     For the LORD of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low;

Ezekiel 7:7    Your doom has come to you, O inhabitant of the land. The time has come; the day is near, a day of tumult, and not of joyful shouting on the mountains.

2 Peter 3:10-12    But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.  Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness,  waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn!

Isaiah 13:6    Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; as destruction from the Almighty it will come!

“Stop your mouth at the presence of the Lord God,…. When he comes, and appears in the way of his judgments, do not dispute the point with him, or pretend to offer reasons against his sovereign purpose or in order to argue the justice of them; stand in awe and reverence of him, who is the Lord God omniscient and omnipotent, holy, just, and true; humble yourselves under his mighty hand; be still, and know that he is God, and let not one resentful word come out of your mouth. “for the day of the Lord is at hand; the time of his vengeance on the Jewish nation for their sins, which he had fixed in his mind, and had given notice of by his prophets: for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice: his people the Jews, who were to fall a victim to his vengeance, and a sacrifice to his justice, to atone in some measure for the injury done to it by their sins.” (Gill’s Exposition of the entire bible)

I have to admit I have thoughts of what God ought to do to people who are lying, violent, looting, and propagating hate. These thoughts are rooted in sin and have no place in my heart. I am not God, nor do I have a drop of water in the ocean of His vast all-knowing understanding, knowledge, wisdom, and power. Yet I still think in judgmental ways. It is as if I am saying; (”If I was God, I would….”) This is where I need to hear and apply “Be Silent” Be silent, stop the judgmental thoughts, and rejoice in whatever the Lord our God is doing. I can wait and rest in knowing and believing His ways are just, His plans are true, His steadfast love never changes, and whatever He does is right and holy.

12.c. “It will surely come; it will not delay.”

Habakkuk 2:2 “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

Daniel 8:19 He said, “Behold, I will make known to you what shall be at the latter end of the indignation, for it refers to the appointed time of the end.

Acts 1:7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.

2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

Daniel 11:27 And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for the end is yet to be at the time appointed.

Psalms 27:14 Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!

Isaiah 30:18 Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.

Micah 7:7 But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.

James 5:7-8 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

2 Peter 2:3 Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

The news these days seems to relish in digging up as much mud as they can. They throw it on the clear water of life and then continue to stir it up, mix it up, and cloud it up to the point where it is impossible to see worth in anything at all. The muddy waters are a mixture of half-truths and sometimes lies. It is hard to tell their intent or to what purpose they are focused on. Much of the mud they cloud the waters of life with, most hearers would never have heard of unless these pessimistic and “the sky is falling” proclaimers had told them. We do well to keep the likes of them out of our heads.

Habakkuk is told to make the vision plain and understandable. Make it so plain that the people who read it will run away/turn away from that which is causing what is proclaimed to be coming. Even so, there are many who read and hear it and give it no continued thought. It is as though they don’t believe it at all or say it will never happen in my lifetime so why think about it. Or, they may think that they have time for doing something about it later. All of these lead to a life that forfeits the grace, mercy, and love of God. It allows a person to think there is no danger in waiting and there is no consequence for waiting, and no worry in waiting. All of which is false. The time of salvation is NOW. The time of God’s grace, mercy, and love are NOW. Jesus Christ is coming again, soon. No one knows when death will knock on their door. No one knows when their end will come. It could be today, tomorrow, or years from now. Trust me, many people have waited for another time to trust in Jesus Christ and have died before they thought they would. The day of salvation is NOW. Right NOW. Just because you see no imminent danger does not mean it is not there. Don’t allow the things and news of this world to muddy up your vision of the need for Jesus Christ. Do not allow this muddiness to rob you of purpose in this life and eternal life in heaven.

11.j. “People are like fuel for the fire”

Nahum 1:1 An oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh.

Zechariah 9:1 For the LORD has an eye on mankind and on all the tribes of Israel,

Isaiah 9:16 for those who guide this people have been leading them astray, and those who are guided by them are swallowed up. Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over their young men, and has no compassion on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is godless and an evildoer, and every mouth speaks folly. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still. For wickedness burns like a fire; it consumes briers and thorns; it kindles the thickets of the forest, and they roll upward in a column of smoke. Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts the land is scorched, and the people are like fuel for the fire; no one spares another.

When Jonah preached repentance on the streets of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, the people responded and were spared. A century later, sometime between 663 and 612 b.c., Nahum preached in a time when Nineveh would not repent. Nineveh, which had destroyed Israel’s northern kingdom in 722, itself fell to Babylon in 612—just a few years after Nahum’s warning. The Assyrians were notorious for the brutality of their treatment of other nations. Nahum declared, however, that God is sovereign: he punishes whom he will, and they are powerless to stop him. Much of Nahum’s prophecy was directed to the people of Judah, who could rejoice at the good news (1:15) of Nineveh’s impending fall.