Tuesday, Ordinary 24/Proper 19-- Sept 16

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Meditation
Tuesday, Ordinary 24, Proper 19 the lessons addressed the way that believers must put themselves in relationship to God and others. Nehemiah was leading the Hebrews back to God. They had fallen away from their belief and he had confessed their sins to God. But a prayer to God always worked best when it was in the context of remembering the history of the Jews.
Nehemiah 9 acknowledged God’s working in the lives of the Patriarchs and the Children of Israel. They had cried to God for help and God responded. Moses went before Pharaoh and God showed signs and wonders to convince them. Then God intervened, leading the Hebrews across the Red Sea in a miraculous way, bringing them to Sinai and receiving the law, and receiving water from the rock. God used miracle after miracle to assure the people of Israel that they would be cared for.
God expected them to be faithful and obedient. The Apostle Paul expected the Roman church to be faithful and obedient, too. Arguments had broken out in the church as people tried to established their rules and force them on others. The pagan marketplace had many vendors, who sold meats that had been sacrificed to idols. Some in the church argued that it was wrong to eat such meat. Paul established that there was nothing wrong with eating that meat, because it being sacrificed to idols had no significance to him, so he didn’t have to worry about offending God, but he did emphasize something else.
Others. Other believers who were not strong in faith or in knowledge; people who could misinterpret things because they wouldn’t be able to discern what the situation was. In truth, there was great freedom in Christ. But many people could only see eating food sacrificed to idols as being pro-idols.
Paul saw these people as weaker Christians. They got hung up in the dos and don’ts rather than the essence of faith. But instead of telling the weaker believers that they were full of it and wrong, Paul told the stronger Christians to be loving and kind. Yes.
Once again, the New Testament lesson insisted that people NOT judge others. Period. Paul wanted believers to focus on things that would build people’s faith. If eating food-sacrificed-to-idols caused someone to falter in their faith then Paul said to change one’s eating habits for their sake.
“Don’t Judge. Love others.” The two things that Paul tried to teach over and over. Believers were not to judge others but instead do things that were about helping weaker Christians grow stronger.
“We should do whatever helps everyone grow stronger in faith.” ERV
So Paul told the early church to stop judging and arguing about things that didn’t help people to grow stronger. Loving was a better option to teach others about God. We should work on the same goal. Love others and don’t judge them, so they can discover God for themselves and not get sidetracked on irrelevant issues.
Thanks be to God.
All Scriptures printed below are in King James Version for copyright purposes. However, clicking on the verse locations will take you to Biblegateway.com where the text is linked to more contemporary versions.



Prayer: Almighty God, Open my eyes that I might see. Open my mind that I might understand. Open my heart that I might make your words a part of me. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight. Amen






Ordinary 24, Proper 19
Bible Readings
http://legacy.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm 77;Nehemiah 9:9-15;Romans 14:13—15:2&version=KJV;ERV;GNT;NCV;NIV (multiple versions)




Tuesday,, Ordinary 24, Proper 19

Psalm 77
Nehemiah 9:9-15
Romans 14:13-15:2


Daily Bible Verses to Memorize for Meditating

Psalm 121 King James Version (KJV)
1I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
2 My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.
3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6 The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
7 The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
8 The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.




Single Bible Study chapter to study




Nehemiah 9:9-15
King James Version (KJV)
9 And didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red sea;
10 And shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them. So didst thou get thee a name, as it is this day.
11 And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters.
12 Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.
13 Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments:
14 And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant:
15 And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.

OBSERVE:

Take a moment and write three observations of the verses. What strikes you? An observation is an observable fact from the Word.
1.

2.

3.

INTERPRETATION:

What do you interpret these verses to mean for you today?




APPLY:

Today, I learned _____________________________________and apply it to my life.


Prayer of Encouragement

Almighty God, thank you for the marvelous stories of faith that teach us the way that we should go. Help us to not judge others and instead show love and kindness in all we do. In Jesus name, Amen



Conclusion
Tuesday, Ordinary 24, Proper 19 reiterated the greatness of God and showed us the way that believers should behave. For the Old Testament lesson, there was the reminder of the many miracles that God had done for the Hebrew people. The list of miracles was to instill faith and obedience.
The New Testament lesson in Romans was an indictment of arrogance of believers that insisted that they knew better than Paul what was right or wrong. Instead of lording it over the new believers, Paul simply told them, “Don’t judge.” And then he went on to explain that though there was nothing wrong with eating anything—sacrificed to idols or other reasons—Paul chose to change his behavior in order to not mislead someone else. If they got sidetracked from following and obeying God by misinterpreting Paul’s actions, then Paul believed he wasn’t helping them grow. He saw himself as creating a stumbling block for the weaker believer, if he didn’t alter his behavior. I belong to a church that does not see consumption of alcoholic beverages as wrong, but it does see alcoholism as a problem for many people, so they have established that there will be no consumption of alcohol at any church events, for the sake of those, who suffer addiction.
Church should always be safe. It should be a sanctuary. Stronger believers must find ways to help the weaker ones grow…by being loving, kind and obedient.
Go out and be ready for God to do mighty things in your life—for the glory of God.*
Thank you for visiting ChapLynne’s Daily Encouragement and Bible Study. God bless you.
*If you do not know the Lord as your personal Savior and you are seeking, please contact me. A genuine and simple prayer, asking God into your heart for the forgiveness of your sins will also do.
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