Tag: Judgment

Morning Musing: Jonah 1:1-3

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“The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: ‘Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it because their evil has come up before me.’ Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish from the Lord’s presence. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. He paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the Lord’s presence.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever not wanted to do something God asked you to do, reluctantly did it, and then got mad when God followed through on what He said? If so, Jonah is the book for you. We are now on to book number five on our journey through the Minor Prophets, and of all the books we have or will yet look at together, Jonah is the one that stands out from all the rest. Strange as it is, though, it wrestles with some really big issues. Stay tuned for the next few days as we work through this one. There will be something for just about everyone along the way.

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Morning Musing: Obadiah 15

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“For the day of the Lord is near, against all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; what you deserve will return on your own head.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

Because it occupies such a big place in the halls of pop culture, I’m going to assume you’ve heard of the principle of karma. The basic idea of this Buddhist teaching is that whatever we do in this life will eventually be visited back upon us. If we do good things, then good things will happen to us. If we do bad things, then bad things will happen to us. Somehow, the universe will balance the scales of justice. Now, as theological concept, karma is a mess that Christians cannot endorse in any way. The basic intuition behind it that has been common across all human cultures and religions that justice will eventually be done, however, is not only one we can encourage, we see it right here in the Scriptures. Let’s talk about this for just a minute.

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Digging in Deeper: Obadiah 3-4

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“Your arrogant heart has deceived you, you who live in clefts of the rock in your home on the heights, who say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ Though you seem to soar like an eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I will bring you down. This is the Lord’s declaration.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

On occasion I’ll help my boys work on something that they’ve never done before. Oftentimes it is something that I have done and know how to do. In these instances it is not uncommon for them to get a little resistant to my help. Parents, give me an, “Amen.” They protest that they don’t need me because they know how to do it. In my more gracious moments (I don’t have those all the time…) I let them go a bit and help them up when they fail. But their pride can be pretty maddening at times. Sometimes it is downright infuriating. Our heavenly Father feels the same way.

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Morning Musing: Amos 9:14-15

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“I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel. They will rebuild and occupy ruined cities, plant vineyards and drink their wine, make gardens and eat their produce. I will plant them on their land, and they will never again be uprooted from the land I have given them. The Lord your God has spoken.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

If you’ve been reading along with me for very long, you know that I’m a big nerd. This is actually a bit of a culture-wide trend. As millions of comic nerds have grown up big studios have started making movies out of their favorite stories. Marvel Studios have done this better than anyone else in my humble opinion. One of the things they’ve done that have kept audiences returning from one film to the next is that they’ve mastered the post-credit scene (scenes actually). As each movie ends, there’s a little hint that the story isn’t over. God’s story works the same way.

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Morning Musing: Amos 9:2-3

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“If they dig down to Sheol, from there my hand will take them; if they climb up to heaven, from there I will bring them down. If they hide on the top of Carmel, from there I will track them down and seize them; if they conceal themselves from my sight on the sea floor, from there I will command the sea serpent to bite them.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever tried to get along with someone who was set in his ways? In those types of situations, as long as you are willing to do things their way, you’re not going to have any problems with them. If, on the other hand, you try to introduce some variety to their routine…well…you’re probably asking for trouble. Just for fun don’t ask my wife and kids if I’m right about that. As someone who might be able to speak to this with…firsthand knowledge…I prefer to think of being set in ones ways as having a consistent character just like God does. Yeah, that’s it. I’ll go with that. And the thing about dealing with someone who has a consistent character is that it’s great if you operate consistently with it. If you don’t…things can get a bit messier.

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