The Year’s Greatest Hope

Good Morning, 2019!—-(I forgot I said I would write a blog yesterday, so here’s the first on the second!)

1/2/2019

I’ve got a great SIMH today, not because its inspirational, funny or poignant. But because it’s Dolly —“I Wish You Love” and the theme of this year is going to be “Joy” and in this song she wishes joy along with love and kindness. I see a lot of people in the media looking for kindness on the political front—that’d be good—though it’s unlikely to come about. And just like normal, the majority of media available to us points the guilt finger in the wrong direction. (They think Trump caused it.) What causes the lack of kindness in the world is the squelching of the truth for so long that when it is heard, though a few humbly accept it, all the rest want to shout it down, “away with it!” is their cry.

But we all should step back, take a deep breath, and remember the Lamentation of Jeremiah the prophet when he wrote, “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not all consumed.” It is, you know, of His mercies. Remember the Lord’s words to Noah in Gen.6? How about His words to Moses when (paraphrased) He said, “stand back Moses, I’ll just wipe them all out and start over with you!”…. and do you know why He didn’t? Moses pled with Him concerning His great name. Do you have any idea why the Lord God would need to have His mind changed? 

So that you and I could read and understand His sovereign way of getting the creation’s attention. The next 3 1/2 books of the  bible, after this incident, has the perfect law of God (to show mankind what righteousness really is), written to show mankind they need the Lord since they cannot obey it. When they finally rejected all that the Lord had done for them, He set all of mankind under one infinite law. A law man can only adhere to by doing nothing but trust: “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.”—Rom.8:2. He sent His Son, the Son kept the law of Moses perfectly, the Son became our sacrifice for our failure to keep it (whether we knew it or not), and told the Apostle Paul, “Go tell the world it’s their only hope.” I pray you’ve trusted Christ or that you will…today.

Most often on the first of a year, I teach a bible lesson about “redeeming the time.” Perhaps the above picture of our “helpless estate,” as the song says, will suffice for this year.

I think, at this moment, I know of fewer bible conferences for this year, but I hope there is a vast increase in bible classes around the country. It’s a pleasure to get to know of them, be it through FB, or personal note or call. Some other things will fill the calendar, I’m sure, looking forward to whatever the Lord has for us. Make each day of this year to be a stronghold for the love, joy, kindness, and fill your mind with the love of God in Christ Jesus. And remember, The greatest of these attributes is charity—biblical charity.

Thanks for reading, the Elder