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For I know the plans I have for you,declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jer 29:11 |
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| Archived Manna: | |
Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Tuesday, July 7, 2020
Today's Passage : Today's Passage:Authority of Scripture Bible Verse:1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 (DP) "7-8 God has called us, not to impurity, but to holiness. Anyone who rejects these teachings does not break rules made by men, but the Word of God Himself. Literal 7 For not has called us god for impurity but in holiness. 8 Consequently the rejecting not man rejects but god the giving the holy spirit of him to you. DP Parallel Bible (3-Column) - 1 Thess. 3 " Message:
In the preceding verses, Paul instructed the Thessalonians not to engage in sexual immorality, but to maintain “control of their vessel”, and especially not to take sexual advantage of another person. The first verse today is a transitional sentence. One might call it the rationale for sexual self-control, or the general principle upon which sexual morality is founded.
Paul doesn’t really give a reason for sexual conduct being a concern of God, however; he is assuming the continuing vitality of the law of Moses, and he is on firm ground in doing so. While Christ did not teach much about sexual morals, one cannot read Matthew 5 without understanding Christ’s assumption that, as regards sexual conduct, the law of Moses survived His coming intact. In fact, where Christ has taught on the subject — lust and divorce — His teaching was significantly stricter than that of the law.
But Jesus really just announced new and more stringent principles, especially following the spirit of God’s law as well as the letter. This underlay his harsh criticism of the Pharisees, of both their outright hypocrisy and their inner hypocrisy. And although he gave several specific examples, He really left it to His apostles to do the detail work.
Jesus teaching in the synagogue
Paul now puts some sharp teeth into his teaching; and this applies not only to the preceding instructions on sexual conduct, but to all of the Bible itself, for it forms the cornerstone of the Doctrine of Scripture. Briefly, there are four primary legs of the Doctrine of Scripture, often represented by the mnemonic acronym “SCAN”: Sufficiency, Clarity, Authority, and Necessity. Paul here gives the fundamental statement of Authority of Scripture, the most basic and important of the four. His words (and by extension, the words recorded in the Bible) are the Word of God, not the teachings of men.
Some Christians, and most atheists, do not appreciate the fundamental dissimilarity of secular ethics and Christian morality. Paul does not say, avoid fornication because you will have stronger family lives, you will be physically and/or mentally healthier, it will avoid strife, or we have taken a vote and agreed that it is best. Not even “because you think it is the right thing to do.” He says, rather, that his gospel was given to him directly by Christ; and to engage in sexual immorality is therefore to repudiate God, who gives the Holy Spirit to us.
Meditation : Prayer : Now to him who by his power within us is able to do far more than we ever dare to ask or imagine — to him be glory in the Church through Jesus Christ for ever and ever,.....Amen |
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