DEFENSE OR DESTRUCTION

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.

Ecclesiastes 9:18

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

I served for 28 and a half years in the United States Navy aboard some of the most sophisticated warships known. Onboard the warships were weaponry that would ensure the ship could defend itself and others in case of attack. There were missile systems and gun systems, loads of firepower. It would be hard to find anything more mighty or better in battle.

But leave it to the scriptures to bring us words that completely change our thoughts and concepts in amazingly unexpected ways.  

For one look at our verse from Ecclesiastes and we find that there is something better than weapons of war, something more powerful, something far more valuable.

That something is wisdom.

Wisdom is better than weapons of war.

Wisdom is better and more powerful because it is not produced by man but rather solely by God. He and He alone imparts wisdom on us and leads us to His righteousness through it. Many battles in history have been lost by people with superior firepower because their opponent was far wiser. In other words, wisdom trumped weaponry.

Seeking wisdom vice man-made devices, leads us to the One who is our best defense, the Lord who never tires while protecting us. We need not worry about guns or knives or any other weapon we might carry for self defense. Trust in the Lord and lean on His wisdom and you will find yourself defended, safer than any worldly weapon could make you.

The point is that we have a choice. We can choose defense by turning to wisdom or we can opt for destruction by turning to the ways of the world, ways that bring us to the things the world offers, ways that lead us to sin and wickedness instead of righteousness and holiness.

Note how critical this decision is for we can never underestimate the danger found in just one sinner, one who decides to go the way of the world and not the way of the Lord.

One sinner destroys much good.

It’s rather simple. Sin brings us to destruction, especially in the way of destroying the good that God wants us to do in, through, and around us. When we opt for sin, we opt to go it without God and when we opt to go it without God, then we are opting instead to go it with Satan who is ready to destroy every good and perfect thing God does.

So what will it be today? How are you choosing to defend yourself in the world? Have you chosen to defend yourself by weapons made by man, or have you chosen to make the Lord your Commander-in-Chief, your great Defender, the One who will defend you and keep you safe?

Choose carefully because your very well being, now and eternally, hinges on the decision.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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FORGOTTEN

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me: There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it. Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded. The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools.

Ecclesiastes 9:13-17

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

I want you to think about all the great things you have done in life. Take your time doing it because depending on how long you have lived, the list may be very long. You even may have to start writing things down because if you’ve done a lot, your mind can only retain so much.

OK, have you finished? How does your list look? Is it full of a lot of achievement and accomplishment, maybe with things you may have done for others sprinkled in?

Good. Now, I have one more question for you:

How many people remember what you have done outside of yourself?

Maybe some but the unfortunate reality of life is that things we do, no matter how great they may be, more often than not become forgotten. Most of history becomes lost to the past as life goes on.

We see an example of this truth in today’s scripture passage from some of the final verses of Ecclesiastes, Chapter 9. Look again at these words of God:

I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me: There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it. Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded. The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools. (vv 13-17)

It’s a sad story really but one that carries with it a sad statement about where we are today in our world. In it, we find a poor but wise man, the last person you may expect to save an entire city and its people under siege, doing just that. The city may have been small as was its population but the danger it was under was large.

Scripture tells us a powerful king came against the small town and built siege works, essentially a military blockade, against it. How could such a small town live to tell about this attack? The odds against it were seemingly insurmountable.

But the city was saved, not by some heroic, brave warrior that happened to live in the town and emerged to drive back the king and his army single-handedly, but rather by a poor man who used his wisdom to rescue the town and its people from harm. It had to be an amazing turn of events, one that people would never forget, one that people would honor year after year after year with remembrance celebrations.

That’s what you think may have happened but it didn’t.

For sadly, this poor wise man, who showed an entire town that through God-given wisdom the improbable can become probable, was not remembered. The memory of his life sustaining actions faded and disappeared.

So how does this tie to today, some 2,000 years later?

Think about it. How many people have forgotten Jesus today and what He did to save all of mankind?

It’s a true and very sad analogy which frames the dire state humanity is in.

Despite the full accounts in four books of the Bible about how Jesus freely gave Himself up as a living sacrifice, allowing Himself to be crucified in his early thirties to pay the penalty for the sins of mankind so that everyone might not perish but have the chance to live forever, people today largely live as if He never existed. Like the poor wise man, Jesus has been forgotten and even despised.

This is what is going to make His return amazing and sad, both at the same time. For Jesus came first as a loving Savior but when He comes again, it will be as a Judge of the world although a majority of the people will have no idea what is transpiring. Even when the King of kings and Lord of lords commands everyone to bow down before Him, most will not know who He is but after He is finished they will wish they did as they are sorted, the wicked from the righteous as goats from sheep (Matthew 25:31-46), before being cast into the sea of fire along with Satan (Revelation 20:7-15).

For some it will the best day ever but for most, it will simply be the end. Please don’t be counted among the most.

Today, you have a chance to come to know Jesus if you don’t already, a chance to seal your place with Him and God the Father forever. Won’t you make Jesus the Savior of your life and ensure that you will never be forgotten, especially at the Day of Judgment?

Given we don’t know the time of His return, don’t delay your decision. Seal your salvation and you’re your piece of heaven’s inheritance through Jesus right now.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com

ENTRAPPED

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Like fish taken in a cruel net, and like birds caught in a snare, so mortals are snared at a time of calamity, when it suddenly falls upon them.

Ecclesiastes 9:12b (NRSV)

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Have you ever felt entrapped by life’s circumstances, feeling like there is no escape no matter what you do?

I know I have and after reading today’s verse, it has been going on for people over least 2,000 years now. Look at these words from the 9th chapter of Ecclesiastes:

Like fish taken in a cruel net, and like birds caught in a snare, so mortals are snared at a time of calamity, when it suddenly falls upon them. (v 12b)

Imagine for a moment you are a fish. Things are well as you swim freely through the water and enjoy life. One day, as you were swimming with others, something unexpected happened for all of a sudden, you found yourself in a net that was quickly moving up toward the water’s surface. Wedged against other fish as the net closed around you, there was no room to move, no room to swim. And before you knew it, you were pulled from the water into brilliant sunlight that was always masked by the depths you existed in. You were trapped, helpless, and unable to get away and return to your normal life in the water.

Now picture yourself as a bird who is always free to fly through the skies, gliding with ease through the air while looking down on humans and animals who were not created with the gift of flight. You love the freedom and liberation that comes with being able to soar above the masses.

One day, you land on the ground to look for a few things to eat. Your senses tell you that something tasty is just ahead but as you move to the food, you find out that it is really a trap and become ensnared, unable to move, grounded and unable to fly away to freedom.

In both cases, whether we’re talking about the fish or the bird, life was good until calamity suddenly came and entrapped them in their perilous circumstances. The net-held fish, removed from life sustaining water, would surely die soon. The bird grounded and unable to fly or run would be easy pickings for a predator and there is no shortage of those for birds.

We can find ourselves feeling like the fish or bird sometimes. Maybe you are relating to them in the midst of your current situation, a mortal snared at a time of calamity that has suddenly fallen upon you.

So what are we to make of this? What is God trying to tell us here?

Is it solely about stating the obvious, that bad things happen to people in life? Is it all about entrapment by life’s circumstances?

The answer is no. For if we simply focus solely on the matter of being entrapped, then we are missing the main point the Lord is trying to make here. And that point is that we need Him to make it through life. We can’t make it on our own.

Think about it. The fish in the net has no chance unless someone grabs them and throws them back into the water. Their fate is in the hands of someone outside of themselves. Ditto for the bird who will remain in that snare until someone releases them from their bondage.

So too is it for us when we are going though trouble in life that has us bound up and captured. We can’t break away from our difficulties on our own without some form of help and intervention.

Enter the Lord, the One who is with us and for us, the One who never leaves us nor forsakes us, the One who is ever liberating us and setting us free.

If you are entrapped, you can struggle and struggle and struggle to free yourself but those efforts will be useless and fruitless. You’ll only find yourself further damaged or exhausted by your efforts to escape.

Trust the Lord and lean not on yourself. Allow Him to set you free from whatever perils you’re going through and lead you back into a place where you can live fully for Him in joy and peace and service and love. He’s always standing by to lend a hand.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com

REJOICE AND BE GLAD

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.

Ecclesiastes 9:7-10

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

I really love my life. I really do. It hasn’t been perfect by any stretch of the imagination but I love it, especially the last 21 years of it when I came to really find Jesus and the following scripture verse came alive inside me:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17

Yes, everything truly sprung up new after I recommitted my life to Christ and never looked back. It changed my whole perspective because I began to live for Him and not myself. And when I started to live for Him, then something awesome happened.

I began to live like Him.

That’s the essence of being a Christian. It’s being Christ-like. And when I started living like I was Christ-like, then I began to love life and everything in it, even those who did me wrong, because at the heart of Jesus is love and when we love as unconditionally as Jesus loved, we find our lives changed forever. We become a new creation.

This newness leads us to rejoice and be glad in each day we’re granted, each day that we have the chance to live and love as Jesus did, each day that we have to get to know Him better as we receive His Spirit and study His life in the Bible. And when we adopt a life loving attitude through Christ, then I believe we will easily adopt the tenets that we find in the following passage from Ecclesiastes, Chapter 9:

Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. (vv 7-10)

So what does a life looks like that is always rejoicing and glad in the Lord? According to this word of God, it would have the following components:

1. Delight over the Lord’s sustenance, especially when we eat and drink. We should always be giving thanks to the Lord for all He does for us and remember how much we are richly blessed.

Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart.

2. Peace and assurance in how we live for we are living under the Lord’s will and not our own. When we live in accordance with the Lord’s will, we will always be living in a way that He approves.

For God has already approved what you do.

3. Clothe yourself with an air of happiness and celebration for the life the Lord has given you. In Old Testament days, a festival would find people dressing in white robes and anointing their heads with aromatic oil, both symbols of joyous celebration. Contrast this with someone in mourning who would wear sackcloth and lay on the ground, throwing ashes on their body. We are to live like we are glad about the lives we have been given. Let others see your gladness and show them to the kind of life the Lord wants them to live, a life that is in Christ Jesus, a life that will always lead a person to celebrate.

Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil.

4. If God has blessed you with a spouse, enjoy your life with him or her. My wife’s name is Grace and I always tell people that it’s her middle name because her first name is “Amazing”. People always take that as if I am joking but if they really knew the full story, they would know that I mean what I say with all my heart. This is because the Lord brought her into my life for more than just to have someone to share time with. Instead, He brought her into my life to draw me back to Him. In other words, the Lord used Grace as an instrument of His will to bring me back to His service after I had strayed. And for that, I am forever grateful, grateful to Him for loving me so much that He would pursue me and want me back, grateful to Grace for allowing herself to be a part of God’s greater plan. Had it not been for that, I probably would not be writing this to you today and I definitely would not have been able to have 21 years of marriage which gave given me the opportunity to share love with Grace, our love for each other and our deep love for the Lord.

Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days.

5. Do your best at work, whatever it is you do, using the abilities that the Lord has given you.

Let’s just be honest. There are days when we don’t exactly love our work but the ability to work, the opportunity to labor and earn what we need to get along, is a gift from the Lord and we should rejoice and be glad in it. We may not enjoy it sometimes but at least we have work to do and that is a blessing we should be thankful for.  

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.

God’s message for us in our scripture passage is clear: Rejoice and be glad. For this is what the Lord desires for us as we revel in the life He has provided.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com