My Daily Pause

Contrast the birds’ ability to avoid an obvious trap with someone that enters willingly into sinful adventures – The easy score … The fast buck … “One upping” someone…

Even a bird has more sense than people that follow the temptations the world offers. (Proverbs 1:17-19)

History is littered with the failure of those who thought they could avoid falling into their own trap. Every year there is some new scandal in the government. Someone thought they could get away with ignoring the rules. Sometimes it seems they do it in spite of knowing they will get caught.

The only safe way is to stay off the path of evil. (Proverbs 1:15-16) For the ultimate example of avoiding temptation, read about Jesus in the wilderness in Matthew 4:1-11.

Daily Bible Reading for June 2

Proverbs 1:8-19
Deuteronomy 3
Jonah 3
2 Timothy 2

I learned of an old technique for better living, better business and better relationships that I have been trying to develop into a habit. Begin a daily reading plan by selecting the chapter of Proverbs that corresponds to the day of the month.

For the rest of the day, reflect on one or more of the principles in that day’s chapter. You might even try to take action based on something in that reading. Just as the Proverb writer says in Proverbs 1:2-7, these ageless bits of wisdom can be used to make one a more godly person. From long thoughtful passages to short pithy zingers, even the wise have something to gain from the inspired words of Solomon.

Some things you will get from applying Proverbs to your life:

• Wisdom
• Instruction
• Prudence
• Beneficial Knowledge
• Discretion
• The ability to apply information
• Sound Counsel
• Understanding
• The fear of God

Truly the ultimate self-help book!

 Daily Bible reading for June 1

Proverbs 1:1-7
Deuteronomy 2
Jonah 2
2 Timothy 1:8-18

Jonah didn’t want to save Nineveh.

He said so. (Jonah 4:1-3)

So he tried to hide. (Jonah 1:3)

A little like Adam and Eve when they heard God coming. Like a person that is not doing what he knows God has asked of him. Jesus said that the wicked hate the light and avoid it so their sins are hidden. (John 3:20)

There is no hiding and everyone that tried found that out all through the Bible.

We see a lot of people these days trying to make some sins seem new and popular. To help their cause they deny God or laugh at the thought of a living God.

Just remember they are trying to hide.

Daily Bible reading for May 31

Psalm 150
Deuteronomy 1
Jonah 1
2 Timothy 1:1-7

Paul mentions the “good confession” twice in two verses (1 Timothy 6:12-13.) We usually refer to moment one confesses that he believes Christ is the Son of God when he is preparing for baptism as the “good confession.”

Why call it the good confession?

• Christ made it under oath to Pilate, (Mark 14:62) then he died for making it.
• God made it at Christ’s baptism (Matthew 3:17)
• God made it at the transfiguration (Matthew 17:5)
• God made it before the Greeks (John 12:28)
• Everyone will eventually make it (Philippians 2:11)
• It is vital to the plan of salvation (Romans 10:10)
• Christ will confess those that make it to God (Matthew 10:32)
• Even angels (Luke 2:11) and demons (Mark 5:7) have made it

The good confession is the sum total of the Christian doctrine. Everything in the Bible depends on Christ being the Son of God so believing and confessing his name are the first steps to salvation.

Bonus

Here are some more who made the good confession:

• Nathaniel (John 1:49)
• Peter (Matthew 16:16)
• Timothy (1 Timothy 6:12)
• Nicodemus (John 3:2)
• Thomas (John 20:28)
• Judas who betrayed him (Matthew 27:4)
• the judge who tried him (Matthew 27:24)
• Pilate’s wife (Matthew 27:19)
• The centurion in charge of his execution (Matthew 27:54)
• The greater thief on the cross Luke 23:42).

Daily Bible reading for May 30

Psalm 149
Numbers 35-36
Joel 2:28-3:21
1 Timothy 6:3-21

Le vanneur (The Winnower) – 1846-1847 – Jean-François Millet

He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.

The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. – Psalm 1:3-4

His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire. – Luke 3:17

Chaff is the husks of the wheat seed that is removed before being ground into flour. It is used throughout the Bible as a metaphor for the sin, or sinful people and the treatment they will receive at the judgment.

We know who or what chaff is, but what does it do?

For just a minute, I want to think about the military version of chaff rather than the husks and stems in wheat. Chaff is a very simple and effective defensive weapon used to fool missiles and other devices that use radar. It is comprised of flakes and strips of material that are highly reflective to the radar signals. The net result is when chaff is launched into the air, a cloud of this stuff forms around the target and is obscured in a way that causes the weapons to miss it.

Let’s look at all of the opportunities that the world offers us for diversions and time wasting

• TV
• Video games
• The Internet
• Hanging out with Friends that don’t share our godly goals

To keep our chaff metaphor going, one might say that Satan is launching chaff to counter our goal to get to heaven. Nothing is wrong with these activities in and of themselves, but how much is leeched from our visitation, our Bible study or our family time?

Now think about some of the “overlooked” sins

• Social drinking
• Clothing that isn’t as modest as it should be
• The lottery
• Dancing

Even if we are good time managers, many of today’s activities are desensitizing us to things that should be offending us. Even so called family shows and cartoons are riddled with innuendo and “mild” curse words.

In the end, an active Christian in good standing with his peers might find himself off target when it is all said and done. Just like an experienced radar operator can pick out his target in the midst of the chaff, we need to keep our sights on the target. We became Christians when salvation became our objective. When the chaff is “burned away,” will you still be on course?