Monday, April 12, 2021
Monday, April 5, 2021
The Sanctity of Marriage redux (Heb 13:4)
Dr. Paul Manuel—2020
Heb 13:4 Marriage should be honored by
all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all
the sexually immoral.
Outline:
I. Marriage
is an honorable state.
Application: God
intends marriage to be a permanent endeavor between a man and a maid
lasting as long as both shall live. (Matt 19:6)
II. Marriage
is a pure state.
Application:
All people are responsible to
keep God’s commands about sexual morality. (1 Cor 6:18)
III. Marriage
is an accountable state.
Application:
People often behave as if their conduct has no consequences. But
actions do have consequences, both good and bad. (Matt 16:27)
Introduction: Much has transpired since
man’s first contact with woman in the Garden. Man may even have gotten smarter,
some men at least:
Jim said to his
co-worker Jack, “I have not spoken to my wife in several months…because I don’t
like to interrupt her.”
Some men may
even have gotten smarter, although silence does not guarantee marital harmony.
Background:
Marriage is not for everyone, but it is for most people, if for no other reason
than to provide a proper setting for physical intimacy:
Since there is so much immorality, each man should have
his own wife, and each woman her own husband. The husband should fulfill his
marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband… To the
unmarried…I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I am. But if they
cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to
burn with passion. (1 Cor 7:2-3, 8-9)
Many people, however, engage in the latter (i.e., physical
intimacy) without adopting the former (i.e.,
marriage), thereby engaging in
immorality and setting themselves outside God’s will, which is not a good place
to be. On the contrary, the best place to be is at the center of God’s will,
and marriage helps most people with that positioning, especially if they
maintain “The Sanctity of Marriage.”
Paul argues against
asceticism (Hughes 1977:563), considering marriage
an acceptable state, even a preferable state, although he himself is unmarried
(“as I am” v. 8), and he counsels his readers accordingly. Why Paul is unmarried may have to do with
his itinerant lifestyle. In any case, he does not consider his occupation to be
a disqualifying factor:
Don’t
we have the right to take a believing wife along with
us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas? (1 Cor 9:5)
Still, he recognizes a husband’s obligation to his wife:
A
married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his
wife. (1 Cor 7:33)
Perhaps Paul does not want his
attention divided between the needs of those under his care and the needs of a
wife. It is a strict way of applying Jesus’ warning against serving “two
masters:”[1]
Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be
devoted to the one and despise the other. (Matt
6:24)
Nevertheless, Paul realizes that marriage
deserves the believer’s respect, and “that….
I. Marriage
is an honorable state.
As an honorable
state marriage is also a desirous state, something sought because it is
advantageous in many ways:
• Having a mate can enable a person to “enjoy
life” (Eccl 9:9).
• Having a mate can bring a person “good”
always (Prov
31:12).
• Having a
mate can be profitable because “two have a good return for their
work” (Eccl 4:9).
And
most importantly…
• Having a mate can bring “favor from the Lord” (Prov 18:22).
Moreover, marriage is
to be a permanent state (“as long as you both shall live”). Divorce, however,
is permissible, although it evinces man’s weakness, his rebellious nature (Manuel
2015):[2]
“I
hate divorce,” says the Lord God
of Israel. (Mal 2:16)
Moses permitted you to divorce your
wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the
beginning. [This suggests that divorce was not an option for Adam and Eve.] Anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital
unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery. (Matt 19:8-9)
The vague
grounds for divorce that many people claim today (e.g., irreconcilable
differences) are simply unacceptable to God, who expects people to resolve
their disagreements not retreat from them. Such resolution is especially
necessary when children are involved, both for their ultimate good and for the
example it sets. The only grounds that accords with God’s will is marital unfaithfulness (again,
disobedience), because that truly breaks the marriage bond. Anything less may
strain the union, and often does, but does not rupture it irreparably in God’s
eyes (although even when it does, reconciliation, however unlikely following
divorce, is still possible).
When a marriage fails, it often
demonstrates unrealistic expectations about what such a union entails or, more
importantly, an unwillingness to yield one’s personal ambitions to the
ambitions of another. Successful marriage always entails some sacrifice (and
compromise), but successful marriage always brings great reward, exceeding whatever
sacrifice it requires. Marriage is an honorable state.
Application: Many
people do not view marriage the same way they regard a career or education, as
a goal one achieves only with great effort. Yet there are many similarities,
especially in the commitment marriage requires. It is a long-term endeavor, not “to be entered into unadvisedly or
lightly.” Marriage is not an experimental lifestyle one establishes on a whim
and then discards if it does not go well. There is no such thing as a starter
marriage, a brief first union that ends in divorce with no kids, no property,
and no regrets. God intends marriage to be a permanent endeavor between
a man and a maid lasting as long as both shall live:
What God has joined together, let man not separate. (Matt 19:6)
Marriage is
not a temporary arrangement. It is a permanent commitment between two people from
the start. As such, marriage is an honorable state.
II. Marriage
is a pure state.
When the biblical author says “the marriage
bed [is to be] kept pure,” he means that God has imbued the physical act of
intercourse with the ability to sanctify the union in His eyes.[3]
By the same token, intercourse outside of marriage, lacks
the divine imprimatur and is, thereby, impure. That is why God prohibits immorality,
because, whether by any sexual license, adultery or fornication, immorality
sullies what God has sanctified.[4]
The term the biblical author uses here,
“pure” (NAS “undefiled”) evokes the sacrificial system, and the need for all offerings
to meet God’s exacting standards. He expects His people to uphold the same high
standard in their personal relations, including the relation of marriage:
Do not have
sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and defile yourself with her. (Lev
18:20)
Do not
defile yourselves…because this is how the nations
that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. (Lev 18:24)
Do
not follow any of the detestable customs that were practiced before you came
and do not defile yourselves with them. I am the LORD your God. (Lev 18:30)
God has always wanted His people to
remain pure, and for married people this is especially so.
Nevertheless, purity is not for the married
alone; it is for “all,” including the unmarried. They are to maintain their
purity as long as they are unmarried. Beyond (or after) that, they are free,
even expected to engage in marital intercourse:
Do
not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote
yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you
because of your lack of self-control. (1 Cor
7:5)
All
people, married and as well as unmarried, must “flee from sexual immorality” (1 Cor 6:18). No sexual immorality, not adultery
or fornication,
may have a part in the life of God’s child.
There is something about marriage that
makes it unlike any other relationship, about the intimacy it establishes, an
intimacy that Adam understood:[5]
The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be
called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” For this reason a man will leave his father and mother
and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. (Gen 2:23-24)
Intimacy does
not automatically follow a single act of intercourse (or a formal ceremony). It
depends on maintaining a most important attribute in the relationship, the one
feature that promotes careful attention to details, details the song “Do You
Love Me?” from Fiddler on the Roof that Golde sings to her husband Tevye
when he questions her devotion:
Do I love you?
[she asks]
For twenty-five
years I've washed your clothes
Cooked your
meals, cleaned your house
Given you
children, milked the cow [= an interesting juxtaposition]
After twenty-five years, why talk
about love?
It should be
obvious. Golde’s attention to the details of their marriage is proof of her
love for Tevye. Such attention to detail combats the forces that would chip
away at marriage.
Application: Marriage
is not like a series of outer garments a person collects in a clothing store before
entering the changing room to see which one fits then deciding what to buy. It
is much more like a package of underwear that, once opened, cannot be resealed
and returned for a refund.
Some of God’s commands He directs narrowly,
to His people Israel. Other commands He directs broadly, to all people,
including gentiles. Prohibitions against various kinds of sexual immorality are of the
second type. As such, all people are responsible to keep God’s
commands about sexual
morality. So the apostle Paul says more than once:
Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are
outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. (1 Cor
6:18)
Among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or
of any kind of impurity…because these are improper for God’s holy people. (Eph
5:3)
Put to death…whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual
immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires…. (Col 3:5)
It is God’s
will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality. (1
Thess 4:3)
No one is exempt from
maintaining moral purity. Marriage is a
pure state.
III. Marriage
is an accountable state.
A vow people take before God—and all vows
are before God—they are responsible to keep, lest they suffer His
displeasure, as several passages warn:
When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes
an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not
break his word but must do everything he said. (Num 30:2)
If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the LORD your God will
certainly demand it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. (Deut 23:21)
LORD, who may dwell in your
sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? ….He who keeps his oath even when it
hurts. (Ps 15:1, 4)
People
must recognize that they are responsible to God for the words they speak (Manuel
2002b).
Application: You may think that much of what you say is
inconsequential, and it may be. Much of what you say in the course of a day
does not matter, but you say it any way. A promise, however, is not
inconsequential.
A vow or promise may be to another
person, but it is essentially before the Lord. Indeed, every vow is
before the Lord, whether or not a person intends it to be:
Whatever
your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the
LORD your God with your own mouth. (Deut 23:23)
Consequently,
a vow is a serious commitment one must not make lightly, lest he incur God’s
displeasure. God does not take lightly, frivolous vows. For some people a vow or
promise comes easily, too easily. The words, “I promise” are often quick to
pass one’s lips, especially in casual conversation. They should not. People must
reserve such language for solemn occasions (e.g., wedding, court), not make it
a flippant addendum for emphasis:
When you
make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools;
fulfill your vow. It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill
it. (Eccl 5:4-5)
Many parents
use the phrase “I promise” with their children, which can raise unrealistic
expectations for the them or damage the parents’ credibility, especially if
they do not follow through with their commitments. Ultimately, a vow or promise
is to the Lord, which makes both it and the person who utters it accountable before God.
People often behave as if their conduct
has no consequences. But actions do have consequences, both good and bad:
The
Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he
will reward each person according to what he has done. (Matt 16:27)
What consequences will your actions
today have? Marriage is an accountable state.
Conclusion: Silence does not guarantee
marital harmony, but fidelity does promote it, in great part because it accords
with God’s will. Whether or not you are married, you can understand “The
Sanctity of Marriage.” Does your life accord with God’s will?
The Ministry of Prayer - 2019
Dr. Paul Manuel—2019
Because
MS confines me to bed, many of my previous pastoral duties—like preaching,
teaching, and visiting—are no longer possible for me. Thankfully, God has
preserved my mind, enabling me to continue writing and to participate in one
other aspect of ministry unhindered—praying. No longer must I divide my time
among several competing and equally demanding responsibilities. Now there are
fewer things I must do and a few things I may do as much as I want.
I
am very glad that I was able to devote considerable time studying the spiritual
discipline of prayer earlier (see Bibliography) so that I could expend my
efforts efficiently later. My understanding of its limitations manages my
expectations of its results and helps to avoid disappointment when some petition
remains unfulfilled. More importantly, my appreciation of its great potential
encourages me that my ministry can still have a positive affect despite
physical constraints.
There
is a temptation to assume the end of one’s ministry signals the end of one’s
productivity. That need not be so. As long as God gives me the mental acumen, I
can pray, and if I can pray, He allows me the privilege of being productive in
the advance of His kingdom, a most worthy endeavor. I can still help people,
perhaps more than before. There is, of course, a need for patience, because the
outcome of this effort may not be—and probably will not be—evident to me in this life. That is, I may not know if
my petition for this person or my plea for that problem has any positive affect.
I can only trust that God is somehow able to transform my utterings into action
as He sees fit. That is another consolation in this venture, that God is not
only attentive to me (an amazing concept) but that He translates my frequently
incoherent rantings into beneficial results. This too amazes me:
The Spirit
helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the
Spirit
himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. (Rom 8:26)
I
am very grateful that my malady is not painful, that, unlike my wife, a typical
day is not an uninterrupted torrent of discomfort only medication can mitigate.
Consequently, I am able to concentrate for long periods, a necessary
prerequisite for productive writing and a helpful one for extended sessions of
prayer. One of the difficulties many people experience when they pray is to
stay on task, to keep their mind from wandering. Thankfully, that is not a
common problem when I pray. I am usually able to stay on topic. That is not to
say my mind never veers off course. It does but not too far or for too long
that I cannot bring it back again. In any case, the key to prayer of any
duration is persistence.
The Ministry of Prayer
Prayer
allows me to continue in ministry even though many aspects of my previous
involvement are no longer possible. It means I can still have a positive
influence on people, helping them move ever closer to the goal God has set
before them. Most importantly, this spiritual discipline is available to anyone
who has a relationship with God. Prayer is an open invitation to come before
the Lord of the universe.
Bibliography
Manuel, Paul http://paulwmanuel.blogspot.com
2001 “Praying in Private” (Luke 5:16)
[Devotional]
2003 “The Value of Prayer” (Dan 10:1-14).
[Sermon]
2004a “Jesus’ Last Prayer Meeting” (Matt
26:31-46), a sermon in the series Messages
from Matthew on the Ministry of Jesus.
2004b “Prayer: A Demanding Discipline” (Matt
26:36-46), a sermon in the series Messages
from Matthew on the Ministry of Jesus.
2005 Praying
through Tough Problems: Biblical Models for Arguing with God.
2007 “Praying for Those in Harm’s Way” (1 Sam
12:23). [Sermon]
2008 Praying
through the Bible: A Reporter’s Investigation.
2008 “Acts of Righteousness—Praying” (Matt
6:5-15), a sermon in the series Messages
from Matthew on the Ministry of Jesus.
2008 “Should you adopt the prayer of Jabez?” an
excerpt from Judges: The Struggle for Autonomy.
2012a “The Foremost Communication” (Eph 6:18), a
sermon in the series What Is Foremost?
2012b “What Are You Praying for the Church?” (Col
1:3-14). [Sermon]
2018a “Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer” (John
17:1–26). [Sermon]
2018b “Only by Prayer” (Mark 9:14-29). [Sermon]
2019 “What to Pray” (2 Chr 20:1-13).
[Sermon]
Monday, March 29, 2021
The Tranquility in God’s Presence (Isa 26:3)
Dr. Paul Manuel—2020
Isa 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is
steadfast, because he trusts in You.
Outline:
I. You
are secure in His presence: “You will keep.”
Application: You cannot go wrong following
the path God lays out for you, the path that accords with His provision
for His people’s pardon (Prov 3:6).
II. You
are calm in His presence: “perfect pace.”
Application: God’s peace will protect you
from anything and anyone threatening to undo it (Phil 4:7).
Application: When you think no one is watching,
perhaps especially when you think no one is watching, it is important to emulate
God’s patience (2 Pet 3:9).
IV. You
are confident in His presence: “He trusts in You.”
Application: We no longer have a physical
sign of His presence, so we must rely on an intangible sign, one evident
only by faith (Heb 11:1).
I. You
are secure in His presence: “You will keep.”
II. You
are calm in His presence: “in perfect peace.”
Repetition is a technique Hebrew uses to
mark emphasis, as when the seraphim extol the absolute purity of God’s character
with a three-fold cry in chapter six:
Or in
this passage where shalom shalom is translated most often “perfect peace,” which is what God will give
those who keep their attention on Him.
Application: God does not employ half
measures. For example, eternal life is not just a few more years than you have
now. Count as high as you can; then keep counting, and it still will not be
enough. Similarly, the peace God offers is beyond any you can imagine (Manuel 2001).
As Paul also says:[3]
III. You
are resolute in His presence: “[His] mind is steadfast.”
Application: There is a measure of comfort in
knowing God is with you, but how great a measure depends on how well you know
Him. If you have only a passing acquaintance with Him that is confined to your
time in church, then you will probably not know Him well beyond that
environment. If He is a regular part of your daily life, someone with whom you
have regular even constant contact—and you need not worry about becoming a
pest. God is surprisingly patient.[4]
As Peter writes…
IV. You
are confident in His presence: “[H]e trusts in You.”
Application: God’s presence abiding with His
people has been His intention since Israel’s trek through the wilderness,
accompanied by the ark, which signifies His presence. We no longer have a physical
sign of His presence, so we must rely on an intangible sign, one evident
only by faith:
Introduction: We generally appreciate
the presence of help for certain chores, but not always.
Co-workers
sympathized as Edith complained that her back was sore from moving furniture. “Why
don’t you wait till your husband gets home?” someone asked. “I could,” Edith
told the group, “but the couch is easier to move if he’s not on it.”
We generally
appreciate the presence of help for certain chores, but not always. As the
Israelites learn, God is present whenever they need help, but His help
also includes His peace during a potentially disruptive time.
Background:
Isaiah discusses four themes that he cycles and recycles throughout his book—rebellion,
retribution, repentance, and restoration (Lancaster and Manuel 2001). It is a
tumultuous period. The northern kingdom of Israel has already fallen to the
superpower, Assyria, with the next superpower, Babylon, already rising in the
East and threatening to over-run the southern kingdom of Judah. It does not
bode well for God’s people. Yet in this political uncertainty God brings hope. In chapter
twenty-six the prophet treats the unlikely topic of restoration, reminding Isaiah’s
audience that even in the midst of tumult God’s people can find peace from Him.
Isa 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is
steadfast, because he trusts in You.
I
will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all
peoples on earth will be blessed through you. (Gen 12:3)
Those who
oppose Israel are actually opposing God and, thereby inviting His wrath.[1]
It is an unenviable position, one Israel’s enemies may not realize until it is
too late. That is God’s promise through Joshua:[2]
The LORD has driven out before you great and powerful nations;
to this day no one has been able to withstand you. One of you routs a thousand,
because the LORD your God fights for you, just as He promised. So be very
careful to love the LORD your God. (Josh 23:9-11)
God makes protecting Israel His
responsibility, and He does not look kindly on any who undermine that task.
While “it’s not nice to fool mother nature,” it’s worse to mess with God’s
priorities.
The Psalmist attests to God’s continuous
care for His people: “He
who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” (Ps 121:4). He has a
singular devotion. No other people has His uninterrupted care. Since God made
His covenant with Abraham, He has loved this people above all others:
If
you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all nations you will be My
treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine, you will be for Me a
kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words you are to speak to
the Israelites. (Exod 19:5-6)
He does not require costly animal sacrifices
from His people, but He does require their obedient devotion, because in the end “it is
impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Heb 10:4).
Application: Caring for God’s people,
including you, occupies His full attention. Thankfully, God does not get
distracted, and He warns His people similarly. They—you—must remain focused on
what is truly important:
In
all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. (Prov 3:6)
Let
your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. (Prov 4:25)
You cannot go
wrong following the path God lays out for you, the path that accords
with His provision for His people’s pardon.
They
were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty.” (Isa 6:3)
The peace of God, which
transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in
Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:7)
God’s peace
is beyond human comprehension and appreciation. Moreover, God’s peace will
protect you from anything and anyone threatening to undo it. The
danger of a particular situation may remain, but the mental and emotional
anguish it causes need not trouble you.
The reason you can be assured of God’s
peace is that He has a unique perspective on life:
I
make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to
come. (Isa 46:10)
God
is not simply a glorified fortune teller. He does not only foresee the
future; He forms the future, causing events to happen or preventing them
from happening. No fortune teller, regardless of how accurate the claims, can
do that.
In the face of such power, you can be
confident that because He has the best interests of His people at heart, your
interests occupy His close attention. Therefore, your situation and your needs
will not escape His notice. Even as Jesus promises to be with his disciples “always, to the very end of
the age” (Matt
28:20), so God the Father makes a similar promise to Israel facing the
uncertainty of life in a new land:
The LORD Himself…will be with you; He
will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be
afraid; do not be discouraged. (Deut 31:8)
Both
Jews and Christians have the same promise of His presence.
Isaiah
presents a contrast between an unstable mind “blown here and there by every wind of teaching” (Eph 4:14) about the cause of and the
solution to Israel’s dilemma. James warns against a similar attitude:
He who doubts is like
a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he
will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all
he does. (1:6-8)
Rather,
“the mind fixed upon the promises of God” (Young 2:207) is confident He is present
even in the midst of trouble. “To trust one’s ability partly and God partly is
the surest prescription for insecurity and anxiety” (Oswalt 1986:472). God
expects all a person’s eggs in one basket: His.
He is patient with you, not wanting
anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (2 Pet 3:9)
This virtue
contrasts sharply with what is true for most people, particularly when stuck in
traffic. Even at such times as those, or when you think no one is watching—hopefully
no one who also notices your religious bumper sticker—perhaps especially when
no one is watching, it is important to emulate God’s patience.
Man’s confidence that God will be with him
begins with trust in His promise to forgive him. That is saving faith, but it grows
with experience into a living faith, and into a confidence that God is with him
always, which is what Isaiah advocates here. Moses expresses a similar
confidence in God’s abiding presence as he addresses the Israelites about to enter
the Promised Land:
Be
strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified…for the LORD your God goes
with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you…. The LORD himself goes before you and will be with
you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.
(Deut 31:6, 8)
God gives a similar assurance
to Joshua, who must conquer the Promised
Land:
As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will
never leave you nor forsake you.
(Josh 1:5)
It is Solomon’s prayer at his
crowning as king over God’s people:
May
the LORD our God be with us as He was with our fathers; may He never leave us
nor forsake us.
(1 Kgs 8:57)
It is part of David’s caution
to Solomon at the new king’s coronation:
If
you forsake Him,
He will reject you forever. (1 Chr 28:9)
It
is a common warning in Jeremiah, and the people’s failure to heed this warning is
a cause of disappointment to God:[5]
You forsake the LORD your God and have no awe of Me. (Jer 2:19)
Given
what God has promised and demonstrated over the centuries, His people should
have confidence in His presence with them.
Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do
not see. (Heb 11:1)
Nevertheless,
faith in God can be demanding, even costly, especially as it does not generally
evince instant gratification. Consequently, prayer and patience go hand-in-hand.
Conclusion: Even in the most unlikely
set of circumstances, when events seem totally out of control, God is able to
bring order out of chaos and impose peace on a volatile situation. “The Tranquility
in God’s Presence” that He offers the people of 8th century Judah is
available to people of the 21st century, to you.
Bibliography
Lancaster,
Steve and Paul Manuel http://paulwmanuel.blogspot.com
2001 “Issues
in Isaiah: Vindicating
the Holy One of Israel.” An
unpublished Bible study.
Manuel, Paul http://paulwmanuel.blogspot.com
2001 “What
Does the Bible Mean by the Word ‘Peace’?”
Oswalt, John
N.
1986 The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 1-39. NICOT.
Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Young,
Edward J.
1965 The Book of Isaiah. 3 vols. NICOT. Grand
Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[1]Israel holds a most-favored-nation status with
God:
Zech 2:8 Whoever
touches you touches the apple of His eye.
[2]Panic is also
what some of Israel’s enemies experience:
Exod 12:33 The Egyptians urged the people to hurry and leave the country.
“For otherwise,” they said, “we will all die!”
1
Sam 14:15
Panic struck the whole army—those in the camp and
field, and those in the outposts and raiding parties—and the ground shook. It
was a panic sent by God.
2 Kgs 19:35 The angel of
the LORD went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in
the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the
dead bodies!
[3]Other Pauline references to
peace:
John 14:27 Peace
I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Phil 4:9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen
in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Col 3:15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members
of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
[4]There is a little ditty my grandmother used to
recite, the truth of which personal experience probably bolstered:
Patience
is a virtue; possess it if you can.
It’s
seldom found in women…and never found in men.
[5]It is a common warning in
Jeremiah, and the people’s failure is a cause of disappointment to God:
Jer 5:7 Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by gods that are not gods.
Jer 5:19 You have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your own land.
Jer 9:13 They have forsaken My law, which I set before them.
Jer 12:7 I will forsake My house, abandon My inheritance.
Jer 14:9 We bear Your name; do not forsake us!
Jer 17:13 All who forsake You will be put to
shame.
Jer 19:4 They have forsaken Me and made this a place of foreign gods.
Jer 22:9 They have forsaken the covenant of the
LORD their God.
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