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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. Wednesday, August 3, 2022
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :The Story of Abraham [19] Bible Verse:Genesis 17:22-27 (ESV) "When he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham. Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. And all the men of his house, those born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him." Message:
It must have been an eventful day in the house of Abraham. Imagine the uproar when hundreds of grown men were told they must cut off part of their penises! But Abraham does not flinch; as soon as God departs, he puts the knife to himself; and then, he successfully convinces every man to do the same, and every mother to stand by while her it is done to her sons.
The promises God has made are enormous; He will give a great land to Abraham and his house forever, and He will be their God. But God wants more than words and burned sheep in return. The one thing we truly own in life is ourselves; and God demands, as part of the contract, some token of faith that cannot be faked and cannot be retracted. He requires commitment.
And what of women? Do they get off the hook while the men suffer? Hardly; for women by their very nature sacrifice their flesh when they bear and deliver children. They will give more to the Hebrew nation than a bit of skin, and it is enough already.
This sacrifice of one’s own flesh will find its ultimate expression in Christ and in the martyrs to follow. To give one’s body is the ultimate expression of faith; and that is, symbolically, why the rather gross act of circumcision is so important to Judaism and to the theology of early Christianity.
The sacrifice is not required simply of Abraham, or his progeny, but of every male in his household, because it is important to God that the community itself make the sacrifice. The Hebrews will form the most powerful and persistent community in the history of the world and the only one that still exists from before 1000 B.C. A Jew today can speak the same language as the Jews of 3000 years ago. He follows the same basic law, worships the same God — and will still circumcise his male children when they are eight days old.
Meditation : Prayer : Lord, pour your love into my heart, that I may love you above all things, and my neighbors as myself. Through Christ our Lord........Amen |
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