Thoughts on “What Would We Trade?”

“ Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:

 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” Matthew 13:45-46

“They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;

 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:” Psalm 46:6-7

If given the choice there are some who wouldn’t trade their loved  one  for anything.

“Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.” Matthew 4:8-9

There are many things to think about when Jesus was tempted. But one thing I was thinking about is the love Jesus had and has for His Father. Jesus had His Father, His approval, and walked with Him. What could the Devil possibly offer to compare to this?

I was just thinking, “What about Jesus?”  What would we trade Him for? I’m not talking about blessings. I’m not talking about rewards. I’m talking about Jesus.

 The world may have more material things sometimes. But we have Jesus. What would we trade Jesus’ approval for? What would we trade His ways for? What would we trade walking with Him for? What would we trade the peace from being in His presence for?

It isn’t an either or situation. He is our shepherd (Ps. 23). He made it His job to take care of us, and worry about things. 

Romans 8:32 says, “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” 

I think if we keep these things in our mind the devil will have a harder time discouraging us, using us, and keeping us from what we should be doing.  

God bless.

A Scripture for Today, June 21st, 2023

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7

A Scripture for June 12th, 2023

“Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.  For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.” Proverbs 8:10-11 “Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. . . . Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her. The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens.” Proverbs 3:13-19

A Scripture for Today, March 17th, 2023

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6

A Scripture for Today, February 11th, 2022

“Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.

Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

 For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for?” Deuteronomy 4:5-7

A Scripture for Today, December 21st, 2021

Proverbs 2:1-6.

Read it. It’s worth it!

A Scripture for Today, November 18th, 2021

“And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein. For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat:” Exodus 30:17-19

The Lord instructed Moses to make a laver of brass to wash in. Also this week I just happened to be reading how that brass and copper alloys are natural disinfectants. They are actually antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal! I just thought this was some interesting information.

Here is some more information:

According to the Wikipedia article, “Coppertouch Australia commissioned the Doherty Institute at the Melbourne University Australia to test its Antimicrobial Copper adhesive film. Lab tests proved a 96% kill rate of Influenza A virus with the film as compared to non treated surfaces. The surfaces of copper and its alloys, such as brass and bronze, are antimicrobial. They have an inherent ability to kill a wide range of harmful microbes relatively rapidly – often within two hours or less – and with a high degree of efficiency. These antimicrobial properties have been demonstrated by an extensive body of research. The research also suggests that if touch surfaces are made with copper alloys, the reduced transmission of disease-causing organisms can reduce patient infections in hospital intensive care units (ICU) by as much as 58%.[2][3] Several companies have developed methods for utilizing the antimicrobial functionality of copper on existing high-touch surfaces. LuminOre and Aereus Technologies both utilize cold-spray antimicrobial copper coating technology to apply antimicrobial coatings to surfaces.”(Antimicrobial copper-alloy touch surfaces).

Another article states, ” . . Ancient civilizations exploited the antimicrobial properties of copper long before the concept of microbes became understood in the nineteenth century.[1][2][3] In addition to several copper medicinal preparations, it was also observed centuries ago that water contained in copper vessels or transported in copper conveyance systems was of better quality (i.e., no or little visible slime or biofouling formation) than water contained or transported in other materials.[4] (Antimicrobial properties of copper, Wikipedia)

A Scripture for Today, Occtober 20th, 2021

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

The Word of God and The Tree of Life

Besides all the trees God had created, in Genesis, in the Garden of Eden there were two special trees mentioned. These are ”The Tree of Life”, and “The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil”. And I’ve said it many times, do notice that Adam and Eve didn’t learn anything good the day they ate of the tree. They only experienced what sin, death, and evil was like for the first time. 

In Genesis Satan distracted Adam and Eve from everything good God created, and emphasized  the thing that God said was poison. I believe he does this to each and every one of us today. He will try anything to keep us from the Word of life, and replace it with something else. 

The Word of God is as a tree of life.

The Word of God tells us that wisdom “. . . is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her” (Pr. 3.18).

Through God’s commandments we get wisdom (Psalm 119:98). And the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111.10).

Through keeping God’s commandments we get “length of days, and long life, and peace”.

“My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.” Proverbs 3:1-2

“But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” Psalms 1:2-3

Jesus said, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matt.4.4)

“Psalms 19:10-11 reads, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.” 

“This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me.” Psalms 119:50

“ The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” Psalms 19:7-8

“Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.” Psalms 17:4

The Word of God will give us length of days, long life, peace, joy, wisdom guidance comfort . . .. 

It will give us the strength to be the people we ought to be. “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16

“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Psalms 119:11

We ought to spend a lot of time with the Word of God. The Lord wanted it to be on Joshua’s mind day and night. 

“ This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” Joshua 1:8

There are other things that the Devil would want us to fill our minds and hearts with rather than the Word of God.  Secular works and false religion are a couple. The traditions of men  are another. The Pharisees cared more about the “traditions of the elders” than the word of God. They knew what their spiritual leaders said, but they didn’t know what the Word of God said.

“Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Mark 7:7

“But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.” Matthew 12:7

 We need to be careful not to put the words of a man on equal footing with the Bible. I remember hearing a pastor I respect, Bro. Donald Brown preach recently. He preached  something along the lines of,  “If you ask me, and I can’t show you where it is taught in the Bible, then I have no business preaching it”.  God’s Words give us life. We don’t need “C.S. Lewis says”, but what God says.

Bro. Grover Laird, one of the wisest and godliest men I have ever known, once wrote,  “Many . . . are confused, because they lack guidance and direction. Many are hurting, as they long for comfort and peace. Many are dismayed as they serve without power and strength. Yet, these things which men need so desperately are found in the Bible which they are neglecting.” (Do Not Neglect The Bible).

It is my prayer that every person who sees this, and every person I send this to will choose to dedicate more time to reading the Bible and spending time with the Author.

Jesus said, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John 6:63

Why is Wisdom a Woman?

Why is Wisdom a Woman?

Proverbs 1:20 reads, “Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets . . .”

I always wondered why wisdom is personified as a woman. I had some thoughts on this.

What is wisdom?

Psalm 111:10 reads, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.”

Wisdom says,

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.

Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.

By me kings reign, and princes decree justice.

By me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth.” Proverbs 8:13-16

Psalm 119:100 tells us, “I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts.”

Psalm 25:14  says,“The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.”

Why is wisdom personified as a woman? Well,  I do know that wisdom can only be gotten by being humble, obedient and by submitting to God, which is what a godly woman does. It can be gotten no other way.