Reading from Friday, October 8

What what in the butt.

Reading for October 8
Jeremiah 10:1-11:23

 ¹ This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD : ² "Listen to the terms of this covenant and tell them to the people of Judah and to those who live in Jerusalem. ³ Tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'Cursed is the man who does not obey the terms of this covenant- ⁴ the terms I commanded your forefathers when I brought them out of Egypt, out of the iron-smelting furnace.' I said, 'Obey me and do everything I command you, and you will be my people, and I will be your God. ⁵ Then I will fulfill the oath I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey'-the land you possess today."

When it comes to the Bible, I am usually a big defender of the people and an opponent of God - in the Old Testament anyway. "Why would God kill this guy?" "Why is God being such a selfish jerk?" These are the kinds of questions I ask myself, but here, I think God is totally right. He laid out the contract between the early Israelites and himself. The deal was, follow the rules and enjoy God's grace and mercy. Break the rules and pay the price. And they didn't follow the rules. Breach of contract. No longer eligible for God's mercy. And yet he continued to give it again and again. He gave it for the last time the day Christ died.

Colossians 3:18-4:18
Now, I'm not endorsing slavery here, but think of this as just you at your job.

²²Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. ²³Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, ²⁴since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Wherever you are, be all there. 

Also, that's the end of Colossians. I love these short NT books!

Psalm 78:56-72
Exactly my point.

 ⁵⁶ But they put God to the test
       and rebelled against the Most High;
       they did not keep his statutes.
 ⁵⁷ Like their fathers they were disloyal and faithless,
       as unreliable as a faulty bow.
 ⁵⁸ They angered him with their high places;
       they aroused his jealousy with their idols.

  
Proverbs 24:28-29
 ²⁸ Do not testify against your neighbor without cause,
       or use your lips to deceive.
 ²⁹ Do not say, "I'll do to him as he has done to me;
       I'll pay that man back for what he did."

Verse 29. Interesting. That sounds like someone 'avenging' themselves. Didn't God do that a time or two?

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