Oaks of Righteousness Isaiah 61 Gottfried Thomasius Commentary

Thomasius: Old Testament
Selections with Interpretation
and Homiletical Adaptation
Dr. Johann Michael Reu

Greetings in the Name of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

When preparing listings for our online sales through Quality Music and Books and other venues, I always check condition by going through every page of every book.  This selection caught my attention. The intended audience for Reu's book is preachers, yet Steuer's translation offers inspirational reading and commentary that the average reader will understand.  Some passages from the book in quotes are here placed in italics.  Longer paragraphs have been broken into smaller sections for ease of reading.  

...Mary Katherine May

Thomasius Old Testament Selections with Interpretation and Homiletical Adaptation

Dr. Johann Michael Reu (1869-1943)

Translated from the German by Max L. Steuer, D.D. Dr. Reu's exegetical treatment of Thomasius Old Testament Selections appeared originally in German in two volumes (Die alttestamentlichen Perikopen nach der Auswahl von Professor Dr. Thomasius), the first in 1901 and the second in 1903. 

Columbus OH: The Wartburg Press, 1959

x, 704 pages

Isaiah 61: 1-7 New Living Translation (NLT) (source: BibleGateway.com)

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has annointed me to bring good news to the poor.  He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed.  He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord's favor has come, and with it, the day of God's anger against their enemies.  

To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair.  In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory.  They will rebuild the ancient ruins, repairing the cities destroyed long ago.  They will revive them, though they have been deserted for many generations.  

Foreigners will be your servants.  They will feed your flocks and plow your fields and tend your vineyards.  You will be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God. You will feed on the treasures of the nations and boast in their riches.  Instead of shame and dishonor, you will enjoy a double portion of prosperity in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.

From The First Sunday in Advent, Isaiah 61: 1-7  (pp. 10-11)

Also in adapting the second part of the text for our preaching it will be necessary to sketch briefly what the Lord wanted to accomplish with Israel and thereupon make the application to our own times.  The two points which should be noted are the meaning of the expressions oaks of righteousness (v.3) and priests of the Lord (v.6). This we are to be and become in our own day through the work of the exalted Christ.

Tamme-Lauri Oak at Urvaste,
oldest oak tree in Estonia.

Oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord: Paradise has been lost, but God desires to create a new one for us.  In the new Paradise Christians as individuals are to stand like trees planted by streams of water, like mighty oaks, able to resist the violence of the storm.  

Christ first sees man only as an uprooted plant, lying wilted on the ground, ready for the fire.  He then plants us again through baptism into a heavenly soil and nurtures us with His Word so that being ever more firmly rooted in the same, we may grow up into mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; into sanctified persons, able to withstand the storms of temptation, resolutely taking our stand for Christ and ever verdant abounding in good works. (So Paul speaks, but without imagery, in Titus 2:14 and also in Romans 8:34.)  

A treeless region looks barren and empty.  Only trees can give land life and beauty.  So we Christians are to give to the earth a beauty that will delight the eye of our God and cause Him to rejoice.  Luther says, 

This is a beautiful picture, containing the excellent comfort that Christians, whom the world despises and considers worthless and weak, are in God’s eyes as a paradise and as the loveliest of trees, flourishing evermore and bringing forth fruit.  The world also has gardens, in which, however, only trees of unrighteousness grow.  These are not to be compared with the Christians.  Again this imagery shows that a Christian is not made but born, not fashioned by human power but planted by the hand of God.  For Christ is the gardener, and the Christians are the work of His pure grace, being uprooted from the garden of the world and transplanted into a different life from that of the world.  

Christians are to exist for the glory of God so that everyone must confess, What a gardener he must be who has such trees in his garden! (See 1Peter 2:9, and Matthew 5:16).

Priests of the Lord, ministers of our God: Through the operation of His Word in our hearts Christ desires to make priests of us.  The same gracious purpose, according to which God chose His ancient people, is to be realized in us (1Peter 2:9). As priests offer sacrifices, so Christians are to offer the sacrifices of thanksgiving, presenting their bodies a living sacrifice to the Lord (Romans 12:1).  Priests draw near to God, and we, too, are permitted to draw near to God with the prayer, Abba, Father!  

But above all, priests are to bear witness before the world of God’s grace and omnipotence.  So also the Christian is to be a herald of his Savior, overcoming the world by his testimony (John 15:47).  And by all that a Christian is and does he is to bear witness, by his words and deeds as well as by his sufferings.  

Ministers, servants of God!--is there a higher, a kinder, and a richer Lord whom one might serve?  To be servants of God should be our one desire.  And there is great reward, for God promises us a double portion for all that we might have to suffer (v.7).  All things shall be added unto us already in this life, and in the world above, Christ, as the true Joshua, will bestow upon us our true inheritance.

From the Preface of the first edition by M. Reu, Rock Falls, Illinois, September 1, 1899:  This book grew out of a pastor's studies in preparation of his sermons.  A number of years ago when I began to preach on these Bavarian Old Testament selections I could find no helps as Somer and Nebe have provided for the New Testament selections for the church year, so I had to dig for myself.  The results of these studies are now offered to my brethren in the ministry.

Luther regarded the Old Testament very highly and recognized its great value for the congregation.  In his work on the order of divine worship he gave instruction for its use on weekdays and in vespers.

Other friends and pupils of Luther did a great deal of preaching on Old Testament texts, among them Joh. Mathesius, Nic. Selneccer, Ag. Hunnius, Ph. Nicolai, Spener, and others.

Among the Reformed theologians and preachers Calvin and others made abundant use of the Old Testament books in their preaching, sometimes giving them even an unwarranted preference.

Even a brief study of preaching will show that at one time, especially in the sixteenth century, homiletical treatment of the Old Testament was quite general.  Toward the end of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth centuries, however, preaching on the Old Testament began to decline.  this can be traced in part to the influence of such men as Schleiermacher, but most directly to the rise of rationalism.

Every pastor should deem it his duty to preach on the Old Testament.  Not to do so deprives the congregation of the opportunity to understand the New Testament.  To understand the plan of salvation one must give attention to its development from Adam to Christ.  The more one studies and meditates upon this, the greater Christ becomes, and the grander one's conception of God's holiness and righteousness and of His love and grace will be. How God has "in these last days spoken unto us by His Son" will be much better understood when we also listen to Him "who at sundry times an din divers manner spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets."  Christ literally "lived" in the Word of the Old Testament, especially in the prophets and the Psalms and presented nothing new that was not organically connected with the Old Testament.

To be sure, our preaching on the Old Testament will not be in the same manner as was that of the fathers of the seventeenth century, who, so to speak, simply carried the New Testament into the Old.  Considerable progress in exegesis has been made since then.  Our interpretation must, first of all, introduce our hearers to the history and the conditions of the times concerning which the man of God is writing so that the applications will proceed naturally from the Word itself.

Such a treatment of any Old Testament text, of course, presupposes a fairly thorough exegesis.  For this part of the treatment of these texts this book hopes to provide some help.  In the second part, the homiletical adaptation, hints for the body and the structure of sermons on these texts are given.  The moral and the prophetic significance of the text is set forth showing not only how it applies to our own times but also, especially in the prophetic texts, how the message is often directed to us as well as to the prophet's contemporaries.  This is vital since fulfillment was not exhausted in their day, nor is it in ours.  The sermon outlines offered at the end of each text are, of course, intended merely as suggestions.

From Wikipedia: 

Gottfried Thomasius (1802-1875) was a German Lutheran theologian, an important representative of the Erlangen School within the German Neo-Lutheranism movement. He is credited for introducing the concept of Kenotic Christology into German theology, of which, his aim was to provide an understanding of the limited consciousness of Jesus Christ, without denying the unity of deity and humanity in Christ. 

Phillips Brooks Quote Struggling with Sin

Quotation from Phillips Brooks, The Christian Business Man
Image adapted for women below.

Phillips Brooks
Author of O Little Town of Bethlehem.

Phillips Brooks Quote
blog post by Mary Katherine May

      Great is the power, great is the courage of the sinner, when through the thickness of the walls he feels that beating life of God, when he knows that he is not working alone, when he is sure that God is wanting him just as truly, far more truly, than he wants God.  

       He bears himself to a nobler struggle with his enemy and a more determined effort to break down the resistance that stands between him and the higher life.

Addresses by Phillips Brooks

Quote from The Christian Business Man (p.69)
Addresses by The Right Reverend Phillips Brooks, Bishop of Massachusetts
Philadelphia: Henry Altemus, 1895

Quote images are free to download for nonprofit use.

Quotation from the address, The Christian Business Man by Rev. Phillips Brooks.

Doing Great Things for GOD But How Important Do You Have to Be Matthew 25

Blog post by Mary Katherine May

source: BibleGateway.org

As committed Christians devoted to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, it is not unusual to want to marvelous, wonderful, immensely great, fantastic thing out of love for all He did for us.  

You might want to write a book that will inspire, sing music you wrote that will bring people to their knees with hands raised toward Heaven, be a great missionary who brings to the Lord an unknown group of people living in the most remote place on earth, or witness and testify to those living in darkness, drawing multitudes into the Body of Christ.  After all, we are here to serve, and serve we must to our fullest ability.

So, my Brothers in Sisters in Christ, 

exactly how great do you want to be?  

Is it for your glory or for God's glory?  Honestly, I have wrestled with this desire to be Godly and famous at the same time for what seems like forever.  Certainly, when I am given praise for my small contributions that the Lord has honored tasking to me, I will often have a hard enough time remembering to whom the glory and praise goes. 

Is it wrong to feel good about we do in Christ's name?

Certainly not--but the good feeling should be in the fact that we have been blessed with a task of service, not for what WE have accomplished!  And what if the fame and popularity do come?  If it is difficult to be humble in the small things, how hard will it be when tasked with the big things?  Is it the limelight and glory for our selves that we really want? GOD knows us better than we know ourselves, so it just may be that he is saving us from sinning more with even greater misplaced pride.

It is something to think about.

The Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 25 tells us something very important about how important what each of us does for GOD.  Jesus says, I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it for me. (New English Translation, NET).

What we do for God out of an abundance of love, however small or great, we have done for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  The important point is that we DO--not how many people know about it.  

As in the Parable of the Talents, just like the coins we are not to squander our good deeds, but generously give as we can which we lead to more and more good deeds.  Doing unto Jesus Christ, my dear Brothers and Sisters, is a marvelous, wonderful, immensely great, fantastic thing!  

Joshua 24:15. Choose this day who you will serve. Is it GOD whom you want to glorify or is it you?  You are a Very Important Person when you serve the LORD and the benefits are far greater than any worldly fame or fortune.

Praying for Others Using the Prayer from Paul in Colossians 1

source: Wikipedia.org

In his epistle to the Colossians 1:9-14 the Apostle Paul offers a beautiful, expressive prayer that with just a bit of adaption will be a prayer that may be used in both private and public prayer.  I do not wish to offend anyone by my slight alterations to Paul's words, only to put his words into a context that may be prayed for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Colossians 1:9-14 NIV-UK (United Kingdom): BibleGateway LINK

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. for he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

For One Person 

Lord, hear my prayer,

I pray that you will fill __________ with knowledge of your will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that he/she may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way. I pray that ____________ will bear fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that he/she may have great endurance and patience, giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified him/her to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light, for he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in who we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. One God. 

Amen.

For our Brothers and Sisters in Christ in the World or for a Group

Lord, hear my prayer,

I pray that you will fill your children (these brothers and sisters in Christ) with knowledge of your will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that we (they) may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way. I pray that we (your children) will bear fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might and may have great endurance and patience, giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified his saints (these saints) to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light, for he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in who we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. One God. 

Amen.

This blog post by Mary Katherine May.

On Character The Royal Path of Life 1877

On the Roayl Path of Life or,
Aims and Aids to Success and Happiiness
1877

On Character

from

On The Royal Path of Life or, 

Aims and Aids to Success and Happiness

Thomas Louis Haines, A.M., Levi W. Yaggy, M.S., authors

Sold by Subscription Only

Chicago: Western Publishing House

Dickerson Bros., Detroit, Mich.

T.K. Mills & Co., Cedar Rapids, Iowa

1877

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1876, by L.W. Yaggy and T.L. Haines, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D.C.

Italic notations have been added by Mary Katherine May preceding the paragraph where explanation may be necessary or enhance the authors' text.

Book Preface

The subject matter of this book, Success and Happiness, has been the consideration of every eminent pen, from the days of Solomon to the present.  To say anything strictly new would be impossible; nor would we presume that our knowledge and experience would be as valuable as the maxims of the wise and sublime truths which have become a part of the standard literature.  The best, therefore, that anyone can expect to do is to recombine the experience of the past, and compile such thoughts and extracts as have chimed in with the testimony of earnest and aspiring minds, and offer them in a novel and fascinating form.  In the words of the poet:

“We have gathered posies from other men’s flowers,

Nothing but the thread that binds them is ours.”

In life there is a Royal Path.  Alas! that so many not being urged to seek life’s prizes, fail to find them.  It is hoped that this book shall be a counselor to those who have become indifferent to life’s purposes; a comfort to those who have long traveled on this Royal Path; and if it shall serve to awaken the slumbering genius within the youth, stimulate and impel them to noble thoughts and actions, and lead them on to honor, success and happiness, the authors will consider themselves amply repaid for their labor.

Chicago, May 1, 1876.

 On Character

There is a structure which everybody is building, young and old, each one for himself.  It is called character, and every act of life is a stone.  If day by day we be careful to build our lives with pure, noble, upright deed, at the end will stand a fair temple, honored by God and man.  But, as one leak will sink a ship, and one flaw break a chain, so one mean, dishonorable, untruthful act or word will forever leave its impress and work its influence on our characters.  Then, let the several deeds unite to form a day, and one by one the days grow into noble years, and the years, as they slowly pass, will raise at last a beautiful edifice, enduring forever to our praise.

There are as many master workmen in you as there are separate faculties; and there are as many blows struck as there are separate acts of emotion of volition.  Every single day these myriad forces are building, building, building.  Here is a great structure going up, point by point, story by story, although you are not conscious of it.  It is a building of character.  It is a building that must stand, and the word of inspiration warns you to take heed how you build it; to see to it that you have a foundation that shall endure; to make sure that you are building on it, not for the hour in which you live, but for that hour of revelation, when you shall be seen just as you are.

licentiousness: lacking moral restraint, ignoring accepted rules or standards

aggregate: the whole amount, constituting or amounting to a whole

Proverbs 8:11 KJV: For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.

Our minds are given us, but our characters we make.  Our mental powers must be cultivated.  The full measure of all the powers necessary to make a man are no more a character than a handful of seeds is an orchard of fruits.  Plant the seeds and tend them well, and they will make an orchard.  Cultivate the powers and harmonize them well, and they will make a noble character.  The germ is not the tree, the acorn is not the oak, neither is the mind a character.  God gives the mind; man makes the character.  The mind is the garden, the character is the fruit; the mind is the white page; the character is the writing we put on it.  The mind is the metallic plate; the character is our engraving thereon.  The mind is the shop, the counting room; the character is our profits on the trade.  Large profits are made from quick sales and small percentage.  So great characters are made by many little acts and efforts.  A dollar is composed of a thousand mills; so is a character of a thousand thoughts and acts.  The secret thoughts never expressed, the inward indulgences in an imaginary wrong, the lie never told for want of courage, the licentiousness never indulged in from fear of public rebuke, the irreverence of the heart, are just as effectual in staining the character as though the world knew all about them.  A subtle thing is a character; and a constant work is its formation.   Whether it be good or bad, it has been long in its growth, and is the aggregate of millions of little mental acts.  A good character is a precious thing, above rubies, gold crowns, or kingdoms, and the work of making it is the noblest labor on earth.

Character is formed by a course of actions, and not actions by character.  A person can have no character before he has had actions.  Though an action be ever so glorious in itself, it ought not to pass for great, if it be not the effect of wisdom and good design.  Great actions carry their glory with them as the ruby wears its colors.  Whatever be your condition or calling in life, keep in view the whole of your existence.  Act not for the little span of time allotted you in the world, but act for eternity.

aught: anything at all

Characters formed by circumstances are much like machine poetry.  They will do for the sport of mirth, and the torment of the senses of the beautiful.  But they are horrible things.  It makes angels weep to look at them.  They are the picture of old chaos, a mass of confusion.  A thousand winds have blown together the materials of which they are made.  They usually lack order, harmony, consistency, and beauty, the very elements and essentials of a good character.  They are those aimless nuisances that live for nothing, and mold, and become putrid, about the sewers of the world.  If aught on earth is despicable, it is these porous masses of conglomerated filth and scum that float on the surface of society, driven or attracted by every speck of circumstance about them.  One stout soul, with a resolute determination to make its own character, after the pattern of its own high wrought ideal, that, Jackson-like, takes the responsibility of being what suits its well -formed judgment, is of more real significance than an army of them.  It will stand against them, and defy their power.

High Standard of Life, High Standard of Living: refers to the moral standard to which a person sets his or her bar for living and does not refer to wealth.

Every man is bound to aim at the possession of a good character, as one of the highest objects of his life.  The very effort to secure it by worthy means will furnish him with a motive for exertion; and his idea of manhood, in proportion as it is elevated, will steady and animate his motive.  It is well to have a high standard of life, even though we may not be able altogether to realize it.  “The youth,” says Disraeli, “who does not soar is destined, perhaps, to grovel.”  He who has a high standard of living and thinking will certainly do better than he who has none at all.  We would have young men, as they start in life, regard character as a capital, much surer to yield full returns than any other capital, unaffected by panics and failures, fruitful when all other investments lie dormant, having as certain promise in the present life as in that which is to come.  Character is like stock in trade; the more of it a man possesses, the greater his facilities for adding to it.  Character is power, is influence: it make friends, creates funds, draws patronage and support, and opens a sure and easy way to wealth, honor and happiness.

Trifles:  little attentions, mere nothings

Trifles discover a character more than actions of importance.  In regard to the former, a person is off his guard, and thinks it not material to use disguise.  It is no imperfect hint toward the discovery of a man’s character to say he looks as though you might be certain of finding a pin upon his sleeve.  Truthfulness is a cornerstone in character, and if it is not firmly laid in youth, there will be ever after a weak spot in the foundation.

desideratum: something wanted or needed

Sum it up then as we will, character is the great desideratum of human life.  This truth, sublime in its simplicity and powerful in its beauty, is the highest lesson of religion, the first that youth should learn, the last that age should forget.

sensualism: dedicated to sensual appetites, i.e. material and physical desires

The value of character is the standard of human progress.  The individual, the community, the nation tells its standing, its advancement, its worth, its true wealth and glory in the eye of God by its estimation of character.  That man or nation who or which lightly esteems character, is low, groveling, and barbarous.  Wherever character is made a secondary object, sensualism and crime prevail.  He who would prostitute character to reputation is base.  He who lives for anything less than character is mean.  He who enters upon any study, pursuit, amusement, pleasure, habit or course of life, without considering its effect upon his character, is not a trusty or an honest man.  He whose modes of thought, states of feeling, everyday acts, common language, and whole outward life, are not directed by a wise reference to their influence upon his character, is a man always to be watched.  Just as a man prizes his character, so is he. This is the true standard of a man.

This blog post offering by Mary Katherine May of QualityMusicandBooks.com.

Fr Patrick Reardon Orthodox Priest on Biblical View of Marriage

The Sacrament of Marriage versus Civil Marriage
blog post by Mary Katherine May

Here is a thoughtful view on marriage, standing on biblical teaching, by Fr. Patrick Reardon, an Orthodox Priest, which he ties to idolatry.  My husband and I have discussed this, too.  In light of the pending U.S. Supreme Court decision I am of the opinion that a legal civil marriage should be separated from the marriage sacrament in the Christian Church.  Not all churches regard marriage as a sacrament that binds it to Scripture.

Link to Ancient Faith Radio Interview
Father Patrick Reardon on Marriage

Forgive or Be Forgiven Satan Forgiveness and Repentance

Forgive or Be Forgiven Satan Forgiveness and Repentance

blog post by Mary Katherine May

Psalm 103:1

One of the most cruel punishments a person can impose upon their own self is unresolved conflict.  Sickness both mental and physical is wrought in the body.  Relationships with others are affected, even ended over something that includes involvement with another person, and that person is not them.

Bible teaching for Christians is clear that the issue must be brought to a close.  Do not go to sleep angry but repent and forgive those with whom you have disagreement.  Go to the person and deal with the problem.  If that doesn’t work, go to the church, etc.  Be loving because love overlooks a multitude of sins.

Here is the problem: Human resolution on worldly terms involves all parties involved.  What then is to be done if only one person seeks to end the conflict?  What is to be done if the conflict involves someone who is dead or whose whereabouts are unknown?  What then?

Caution on dealing with conflict is necessary because so often Christians believe they are acting in a Godly way when instead they are using  human, or worldly principles.

Please recall that the soul filled with the peace of God is not the ultimate goal, but the normal way in which Christians are to conduct their lives.  Without a doubt, handling unresolved conflict for which one-sided resolution is possible is really tough—extremely tough.  Yet as Scripture says, with God all things are possible, even this.

Conflict Resolution for Christians is mandatory.

When conflict resolution is only humanly possible on one side 

the other side of the resolution is occupied by God.

Ephesians 6: 12. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

 The first step, then, is to acknowledge exactly who is at the core of the conflict and that Who is Satan working concurrently with our free will.  Conflict like this is not the same as going through a time of testing which Scripture tells us is to be endured, the ultimate goal being strengthened faith. 

Pray as Christ taught in Matthew 6: …but deliver us from evil.  

Give marching orders to Satan by declaring by the power inherent in the name of Jesus Christ, our risen Savior, that he and all of his demons are banished from your space right now and for all time.

Whether or not the other person is involved, you have the power through Jesus Christ to forgive.  Recall that at the time of the most terrible sin, that of murdering the Messiah on the cross at Golgotha, our Lord pray, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  That forgiving power, at a time when forgiving seems impossible, comes from the Lord.  It is yours to claim. 

When forgiveness seems impossible then allow obedience carry you through to being able to truly forgive.  Jesus Christ told us that we must forgive and so we have to do it.  If for no other reason than this, out of obedience declare in faith, I forgive you.”  Each time the pain of the hurt comes to mind repeat, “I forgive you.  Through the power of the Name of Jesus Christ, I forgive you.”   From personal experience I know that this brings real forgiveness, and with forgiveness comes closure of painful past experiences.  This allows us to gain positively from a negative event.  

Q: Was I  too trusting because I didn’t base my trust on the fruits produced by this person?  

A: From this time on I will therefore be loving and compassionate while being cautious in trusting until there is merit to do so.  

Q: Did I place myself in a position where I was vulnerable? 

A: From this time on I will base what I do and where I go on biblical principles.  I will not go alone where I may be in harms way.  

Q: Did I say words that should not have been spoken which were responded to in like manner?  

A: In the future I will speak as Scripture teaches me to speak.  

Q: Why should I suffer when I did nothing to cause this problem? 

A: I will now live on the basis that when I have no responsibility for the harm caused I will not blame myself for the hurt, but instead recognize that people who offensively harm others reap eternal consequences on only themselves.  Justice will always be served even though not now.  I have the power to forgive even under these circumstances because without forgiving I am hurting myself. The peace of my soul in Christ will not be sacrificed for the sin of someone else.

The other side of forgiveness is the equally import act of repentance.  There are times when so much time has past that the person to whom we should go to repent cannot be reached, or as with forgiveness the person is dead.  In this case we must go before God with grief for our sin to confess and repent, knowing that within our human capability we have done all we can to remedy what happened.  It also happens that we may go sincerely asking to be forgiven and our request will be denied, and then we must believe that we have done what Scripture has commanded, entrusting final resolution to God.

Not that long ago I was in a situation where terrible things were said to me and it was made clear that I was not welcome at a certain church.  Later that same day I contacted the persons involved with the message that I had forgiven them to which I received no response. On my part, however, I had done what Christ told me I should do. My forgiving was sincere.  The hurt continued for some time, though. Each time the memory came into my mind I repeated, I forgive you. Though difficult, I continued to pray for them until I was able to pray with no malice in my heart.  Today I continue to pray for their ministry and my desire is for their ministry to prosper.  I can do it and have done it, and my experience tells me that with God's grace others can do it, too.

In the act of not forgiving and repenting Satan resides.  By not forgiving Satan’s residence in the heart grows from a tiny closet to a gigantic sports stadium the same as the Colosseum in Rome where Christians were sacrificed to wild animals. You are the Christian and Satan is the wild animal eagerly devouring your soul.  Like Daniel, however, you have the power to keep the lions away.

Amen.

Simple Thought on Prayer Everyday with Mary May

When the heart is at peace we can hear the voice of God.  

Shoreline of Crystal Lake at Hollingsworth Park
in Robbinsdale, Minnesota.

blog post by Mary Katherine May
quote by God

A lovely spring day today in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul in Minnesota.  Hollingsworth Park on Crystal Lake is located in Robbsinsdale is a first tier north suburb of Minneapolis on the west side of the Mississippi River.  

As I sat on a bench close to the lake I thought about problems and stresses that seemed overwhelming, wondering on how God could help me handle them.  I soon realized that the problem was not in how to handle my issues but instead all about where my focus was.

God deals with our problems. This is a promise. Dwelling, mulling and chewing over a situation is a sad, useless effort when even before solved we have assurance that a solution is forthcoming. There is no space for the working out, however, when where we are looking is at ourselves when our eyes should be looking up and out. Instead of thinking about ME and what I am going to do, change to looking up at God in praise and thanksgiving and out through eyes filled from a Spirit-filled soul.

How can I hear God when my heart and my are filled with the sound of my own voice saying, "Me Me Me Me ME!!!"?  We have a promise.  God loves us and takes care of us.  Be still and know....  So, shhhhhhhhhhhhh..... Listen!

When the heart is at peace 

we can hear the voice of God.  

Easter Pascha Greeting Orthodox Christians

Christ is risen from the dead trampling down death by death,
and to those in the tombs bestowing life.

To my brothers and sisters in Christ, 

to whom I extend a greeting of joy in this holy time. I pray that you will keep your peace. Surround and fill yourself with the Spirit of Love from God who is love. 

Remember that words and actions meant to hurt you truly only hurt and have consequences on those those doing the hurting. Hate and anger consume and destroy the soul. When we hate we become our own enemy. Pascha (Easter) comes only after the ultimate act of love. 

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is risen!

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is risen!

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is risen!

Let us honor our Savior by cleansing ourselves of hate and anger and begin anew with reverence by giving God glory and thanks, being consumed with God who is love.

blog post by Mary Katherine May

Hope On There Is an Ultimate Good that Will Triumph Because God Is Love

1 John 4:16. God is love, and he who abides
 in love abides in God, and God in him.

Hope on! There Is an Ultimate Good that Will Triumph! 

blog post by Mary Katherine May

Bible quote source: BibleGateway.org

God Is Love clipart quote created by Mary Katherine May is free to download only for nonprofit use.

What is is the redeeming element when bad and evil events are happening around us every day?  Where are we to go when so many people spew out cruel, hateful words because they have forgotten what it means to treat others as they want to be treated.  So many are concerned about being disrespected while carrying out disrespectful behavior themselves.  

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels or principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8: 38, 39.

Yet there is one hope to which i cling, and that is God, for God is love. (1 John 4:8).  God is love, love is God, and that will never change.  Despite all that may go on around us and however many times we might be attacked we can be confident that love will prevail in the end.  

Does it seem that God has deserted  you because of your circumstances?  That is impossible because God is here, there, and everywhere.  God is always in and of the world that He created.  When God seems so distant it is because we have been so caught up in what is happening that we ourselves feel unconnected.  

Loved with everlasting love, led by grace that love to know;

Gracious Spirit from above, You have taught me it is so!

Oh, this full and perfect peace!  Oh, this transport* all divine!

In a love which cannot cease, I am His, and He is mine.  

Wade Robinson

*transport: an overwhelmingly strong emotion

Jesus said, "...I am with you always, even to the end of the world." (Matthew 28:20b).  Is it so difficult to believe that God is present thought we cannot feel his presence?  We trust that the sun will rise and set, and we trust that the sun is there warming the earth even when blocked by clouds--when we cannot feel or see its rays or light.  It is not different with God.

God is love and that will not change.  Love will prevail and triumph, and  God will bring those who love him into eternity that is only love and where no evil can enter.  And that is truly a wonderful hope to hold in our hearts and minds.

John Greenleaf Whitter, age 29
source: Wikipedia

Yet, in the maddening maze of things,       

  And tossed by storm and flood,     

To one fixed trust my spirit clings;  

  I know that God is good!

No offering of my own I have,

  Nor works my faith to prove;

I can but give the gifts He gave,       

  And plead His love for love.

I know not where His islands lift     

  Their fronded palms in air;   

I only know I cannot drift      

  Beyond His love and care. 

from The Eternal Goodness by John Greenleaf Whittier.

Pharisee Gamaliel Acts 5 Proof Jesus IS the Son of God

Illustration fromBrockhaus and Efrom
Jewish Enclyclopedia (1906-1913)
source: Wikimedia

Who do you say that I am?  Eyewitness Accounts and More

"If it is of GOD you cannot overthrow it..."

Thoughts on the eyewitness accounts and testimonies bearing witness to the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ.  Son of God. Messiah.  This is not an exhaustive documentation but a brief exploration of the Scripture verses that come immediately to my mind when I think about it.

Blog post article by Mary Katherine May

The Apostle Peter voiced the truthful testimony to the question that every committed Christian must answer.  Who do you say that I am?  A statement so beautiful, so rich in truth, so profound.

Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God. 

Yet, even the demons know of the Savior.  When Satan has a hold of people, an admission of Christ's divinity rips at their hearts, a nearly unbearable torment, and each time it happens an instant decision must be made on which way to turn--toward the Light or deeper into darkness.  The most sad of all is when there are no more decisions or torment because it means that the soul is so far from God that all hope is lost, and most likely lost forever. This place of infinite darkness is, however, left not for us to decide but remains in the hands of God. (Matthew 7:1)

Those who wish to deny the divinity of Jesus Christ will often say that they have read the Bible and the proof is not there.  It is a clear teaching, though, that nothing will be revealed to the hardened heart.  When you go to Scripture and read with the mindset of proving it untrue that is nearly always what you will find.  When you go to Scripture with an open mind or a seeking heart, you will discover where God is, and that is RIGHT HERE all along and that truth is a delight beyond compare of anything else delightful.

Jesus of Nazareth, Son of God, lived, died, and lived again through the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit.  Of those who witnessed the events then and following there are eyewitness accounts.

 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life, the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us, that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full. (1 John 1: 1-4 NKJV)

But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree.  Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.  And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.” (Acts of the Apostles 5: 29-32 NKJV)

The last Scripture is also from Acts 5, and that spoken by the Pharisee Gamaliel.  How this applies to today came to mind just today as I was reading the 1 John verses in this article.

Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while.  And he said to them: “Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men.  For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing.  After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed.  And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.” (Acts 5: 34-39 NKJV)

"If it is of God, you cannot overthrow it..."

Here we are, dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, nearly 2,000 years have past since those prophetic words were spoken by the Pharisee Gamaliel.  We have not been overthrown even though despised, tortured, defamed and denied.  The Holy Spirit still burns bright in the souls of the people of The Way who are called Christians.  Thanks be to God! Who giveth us the victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ!

Amen.

Jesus Golgotha Valley of the Shadow of Death Psalm 23

Psalm 23

Jesus, Golgotha, Valley of the Shadow of Death Psalm 23

blog post article by Mary Katherine May

Comments welcomed and read.

For some time now I have been inspired by the relation of Jesus Christ to Psalm 23.  Who is the Shepherd in this beautiful Psalm? Is it in some way a hymn of the love of God and his saving act through the Messiah? What, or where is the Valley of the Shadow of Death?  Here are a my thoughts.

On the cross Jesus the Messiah hung, suffering cruelly the unjust punishment meted upon him.  Did God use people to accomplish his purpose of reconciliation and thus deny them an eternal reward?  I think not, for it was only through their own real nature of evil that what happened came about.

Darkness Over the Whole Land

Mark 15.33, 37. And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?  And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. 

In the fourth hour on the cross Christ’s body, in the process of dying, was passing from life—through the valley of the shadow of death.  The Hebrew word for the shadow of death, or death shadow is tsalmaveth.

Shadow of Death (צלמות tsalmavet, Strong's Concordance #6757): The Hebrew language rarely includes compound words (two words put together to form one word). One of those few compound words in Hebrew is tsalmavet which is the word tsal [str:6738] meaning "shadow" and mavet [str:4194] meaning "death." The "shadow of death" is despair, danger or tragedy which is understood as a deep impenetrable darkness. (source link)

God asks in Job 38:17: Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death?

Bible Commentary by Adam Clarke, 1831: Shadow of death - Σκια θανατου, used only here and in Luke 1:79, but often in the Old Covenant, where the Hebrew is צל מות tsal maveth, It is not easy to enter fully into the ideal meaning of this term. As in the former clause, death is personified, so here. A shadow is that darkness cast upon a place by a body raised between it and the light or sun. Death is here represented as standing between the land above mentioned, and the light of life, or Sun of righteousness; in consequence of which, all the inhabitants were, involved in a continual cloud of intellectual darkness, misery, and sin. The heavenly sun was continually eclipsed to them, till this glorious time, when Jesus Christ, the true light, shone forth in the beauty of holiness and truth. Christ began his ministry in Galilee, and frequented this uncultivated place more than he did Jerusalem and other parts of Judea: here his preaching was peculiarly needful; and by this was the prophecy fulfilled. (source link)

Jesus Christ Lived the Life We Live

Jesus lived the earthly Christian life and even through the valley of the shadow of death and is leading the way.  The Valley of the Shadow of Death may be the time of passing from earthly life, an emotional feeling of despair or hopelessness, a time of fierce struggle and hardship, or a demonic battle for a soul. In a larger spiritual sense, this valley is separation from God.  These are the times when we feel that not a single person is near enough to help that the Savior consoles the soul.

As long as the heart beats, every human being has the possibility of eternity in Heaven, how every slim the opportunity may be.  Life in Christ is light, and life outside of Christ is impenetrable darkness. We have relationship with God only through Jesus Christ. We live now with Jesus Christ in us through the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Flock without a Shepherd: Confusion and Chaos

Matthew 9: 36. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

Jesus Christ, The Good Shepherd

John 10: 11. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.

John 10: 14. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

Psalm 23: The Shepherd Who Provides All We Need

Psalm 23

The well-loved hymn, Psalm 23, is an exquisitely beautiful expression of the confidence and strength by which believers are able to walk through any darkness they encounter.  New Testament Scripture expands and enhances the Psalm’s meaning, offering in a sense an interpretive commentary.

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

Matthew 5: 6. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

John 6: 35. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that comes to me shall never hunger; and he that believes me shall never thirst.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters. 

John 10: 9. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

Luke 8: 24, 25. And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commands even the winds and water, and they obey him.

3 He restores my soul: he leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

Matthew 11: 29, 30. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for you art with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me.

Luke 1: 79. To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: you annoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.

John 16: 23. These things I have spoken unto you, that in me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

John 14:26, 27. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world gives, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Matthew 28:20b. and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. 

AMEN.