trapperhoney

I was working on my Bible study lesson, and saw a lot in it today. I first go through the passage, this week it is Psalm 119:105-112 with the heading NUN, and define words, then I read the corresponding chapter from Spurgeon's The Golden Alphabet. After that I work through the workbook lesson. All three usually bring things to mind that I can interconnect.
 
In relation to verse 105, which states, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." Spurgeon explains, "Having no fixed lamps in eastern towns, in old time each passenger carried a lantern with him, that he might not fall into the open sewer, or stumble over the heaps of ordure which defiled the road." I found it interesting, and more relatable, knowing that individuals had to possess their own light sources in order to get around. This is exactly where we are at. Each person on earth needs their own light source to survive and make their way in the world. Some choose inferior sources (nature, humanist philosophy, etc.) which leaves them stumbling and lost. The Christian has the Word of God. But how well it lights our way and keeps us from stumbling is directly related to how much of it we hide in our heart and turn to for guidance. Just having it is enough to light the way to keep from stumbling, the more we know, though, the brighter the path gets and the more detail we can see.  This also reminded me of the parable of the Ten Virgins and their lamps in Matthew 25. Five had tended their lamps and kept them ready, five had not. The wise virgins had light to draw upon when they needed it, and the other five were left in the dark. Staying in the Word keeps the oil level in our heart where it needs to be, so it can be used at a moment's notice.
 
In verse 106 David says, "I have sworn...." The Hebrew word for sworn is 'shaba' and means seven. When making a legally binding oath, the person swore, or stated, his declaration seven times to indicate his sincerity and obligation to abide by what he was stating. So this is a serious promise, basically a covenant, that he is entering into with the Lord, that he will keep God's righteous judgments. 
 
Verse 107 says, "I am afflicted very much: quicken me, O Lord, according to thy word." The Hebrew word is 'chayah' and means to live or revive. For the unsaved it would mean to be made alive, and for the Christian is means to be stirred up or brought back to life. I immediately thought of Psalm 51:12, "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit." Spurgeon made an interesting comment, "Frequently the affliction is made the means of the quickening, even as the stirring of a fire promotes the heat of the flame."
 
My husband has been doing an informal study on worship. People talk about worship, but from what we have seen what they call a 'worship service' is actually just a 'feel-good' service' because the focus is on them and not God. Hubby asked a group of preachers what worship was. One gave a definition he liked, I don't remember it exactly, but basically it was when someone is suddenly so moved by the truth and reality of God and his presence that you are moved to praise.  In verse 108 is says, "Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings or my mouth...." The Hebrew word for 'freewill offerings' is 'nedabah' and means 'spontaneity.'  Spurgeon says, "He pleads that the homage of his mouth was cheerfully and spontaneously rendered: all is utterances were freewill offerings." This all is sounding a lot like what the one preacher told hubby. So is a freewill offering worship? He will be looking into that.  Spurgeon goes on to say, "There can be no value in extorted confessions, God's revenues are not derived from forced taxation, but from freewill donations."  It struck me that 'forced taxation' would equate with the sacrifices under the Law, and that 'freewill offerings' would equate to the cheerful giving of those who are now under Grace. I particularly liked this quote from Spurgeon, "there is no work of free grace where there is no fruit of freewill."
 
Verse 110 says, "The wicked have laid a snare for me: yet I erred not from thy precepts."
 
The enemy is cunning, crafty and deceitful.  There is always an element of truth in what he presents us, and that is what captures our attention, but then he subtily and cunningly twists it slowly but surely until it is no where close to the truth and we have been drawn away. My husband was a trapper as a teenager. In order to be successful at trapping he had to understand the animals he was trying to catch. He had to know what their food sources were, where those food sources could be found, what the animal did when it was hunting and stalking it's food, the movement habits of the animal when it was moving from area to area looking for food. He had to basically get inside the mind of the animal, know how it would react to new things in it's environment, etc. Spurgeon says, "Hunters set their traps in the animals' usual runs, and our worst snares are laid in our own ways." A person who abhors drunkenness will not be led to a bar or a party in an attempt to ensnare him. No, the enemy will take something that you like, something you are already inclined to, and will put it right in the paths you are always on. For the Christian, this will involve, most frequently, family or even church. Not every good thing is the right thing. This is why we need to weigh carefully what is presented to us and above all seek God's leading in all matters. 
 
Spurgeon also said, "From this verse let us learn to be on our guard, for we, too, have enemies both crafty and wicked." It reminded me of the verse in 1 Peter 5:8, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." My husband was at a field training exercise one year, and they were working on convoying and recognizing improvised explosive devices, or booby traps. The commander had set up some booby traps along the route they had to take. Hubby was the only one to spot every one, including the one the commander was very proud of and sure no one would see. But hubby was on alert and he knew what subtle clues to look for. Because of this trapping experience he was familiar with what forest terrain would like like, what was natural and what was man made. Because he had spend years placing and camouflaging traps for animals he knew how to apply this to the situation he was now in -- the hunted. He even spotted a potential ambush point, and alerted the others in the vehicle and urged them to treat it as such, but was chastised and ignored because they were not told that an ambush would be part of the exercise. They continued along the route and ran right into an ambush. We are being hunted by someone who wants to take us down. Being familiar with God's word and living according to his precepts will help us be alert and identify the traps that have been laid for us in our path.
 
A couple weeks ago I posted what I had learned about "for ever." The word comes up again in verse 111. This word will "for ever" stand out to me, lol.
 
In the second half of verse 111 it speaks of the rejoicing of the heart. Spurgeon says, "It is not the head knowledge but the heart experience which brings joy." There are a good many Christians that know a lot about the Bible, they may have a lot of the Bible committed to memory, but it hasn't touched their hearts, they haven't truly experienced the truth of God's Word, and they live joyless lives.
 
"That which rejoices the heart is sure to be chosen and treasured." -- Spurgeon. This brought to mind these verses:

Matthew 5.8
Matthew 6.12
Matthew 12.35
Matthew 22.37
Matthew 12.33
Mark 12.33
 
Verse 112, "I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end."
The word 'have' is an action word, David has done it to himself. This implies proactive, determined and disciplined action in his life to achieve this state. What came to my mind was a bonsai tree or fancy topiaries in gardens. These things must be trained, wires and guides are used to lock limbs in place to grow the direction that is desired. The person doing this work has to inspect it regularly and make adjustments. It takes time, diligence and dedication. The same is required of us if we want to make the Word such a part of our lives that we live according to God's statutes.

My childhood church, the church I attended college, church after college, church upon being married, church hubby co-pastored, 4 churches after moving out of state. We've been at our current church about 8 years. Every church we went to we intended to stay at, but different incidents and circumstances made it necessary to move.

That's where we are at the moment. Kind of in a "holding pattern." Doing what we can and waiting to see where the Lord leads.

I can totally relate. We truly wanted to stay in a church about 17 years ago, but the church split. After the split, I took on the roll of temporary pulpit filler...after several weeks of being attacked by the deacon who had caused the split in the first place, my wife and I decided to leave the church "Martin Luther" style! I put a notice on the front door after leaving my key on the pulpit. I knew that certain deacon would find it that Wednesday night. He had been attacking me because I was trying to be the peacemaker between the two factions, and I had nearly convinced the side that left to come back. But, this deacon wouldn't allow it. I spoke to the other deacons, and they agreed that he shouldn't be holding the people from coming back, but in such a small church, the deacons all had to agree or there wouldn't be any reconciliation. After being stalked by phone and in person for a week, we left and joined the split. We had been gone when the initial battle started. My wife's mother had passed away and we were in Augusta, GA at the funeral. We walked back into church on Sunday to a raging battle. It was horrible. We've been through at least 27 splits...most of which were somewhat minor. We stayed with most of those churches. In the church we're in now, we've had at least four minor splits in six years, and we're still there. There's no doctrinal reason to leave, and the Lord still wants us there.

My childhood church, the church I attended college, church after college, church upon being married, church hubby co-pastored, 4 churches after moving out of state. We've been at our current church about 8 years. Every church we went to we intended to stay at, but different incidents and circumstances made it necessary to move.

I was working on my Bible study lesson, and saw a lot in it today. I first go through the passage, this week it is Psalm 119:105-112 with the heading NUN, and define words, then I read the corresponding chapter from Spurgeon's The Golden Alphabet. After that I work through the workbook lesson. All three usually bring things to mind that I can interconnect.
 
In relation to verse 105, which states, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." Spurgeon explains, "Having no fixed lamps in eastern towns, in old time each passenger carried a lantern with him, that he might not fall into the open sewer, or stumble over the heaps of ordure which defiled the road." I found it interesting, and more relatable, knowing that individuals had to possess their own light sources in order to get around. This is exactly where we are at. Each person on earth needs their own light source to survive and make their way in the world. Some choose inferior sources (nature, humanist philosophy, etc.) which leaves them stumbling and lost. The Christian has the Word of God. But how well it lights our way and keeps us from stumbling is directly related to how much of it we hide in our heart and turn to for guidance. Just having it is enough to light the way to keep from stumbling, the more we know, though, the brighter the path gets and the more detail we can see.  This also reminded me of the parable of the Ten Virgins and their lamps in Matthew 25. Five had tended their lamps and kept them ready, five had not. The wise virgins had light to draw upon when they needed it, and the other five were left in the dark. Staying in the Word keeps the oil level in our heart where it needs to be, so it can be used at a moment's notice.
 
In verse 106 David says, "I have sworn...." The Hebrew word for sworn is 'shaba' and means seven. When making a legally binding oath, the person swore, or stated, his declaration seven times to indicate his sincerity and obligation to abide by what he was stating. So this is a serious promise, basically a covenant, that he is entering into with the Lord, that he will keep God's righteous judgments. 
 
Verse 107 says, "I am afflicted very much: quicken me, O Lord, according to thy word." The Hebrew word is 'chayah' and means to live or revive. For the unsaved it would mean to be made alive, and for the Christian is means to be stirred up or brought back to life. I immediately thought of Psalm 51:12, "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit." Spurgeon made an interesting comment, "Frequently the affliction is made the means of the quickening, even as the stirring of a fire promotes the heat of the flame."
 
My husband has been doing an informal study on worship. People talk about worship, but from what we have seen what they call a 'worship service' is actually just a 'feel-good' service' because the focus is on them and not God. Hubby asked a group of preachers what worship was. One gave a definition he liked, I don't remember it exactly, but basically it was when someone is suddenly so moved by the truth and reality of God and his presence that you are moved to praise.  In verse 108 is says, "Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings or my mouth...." The Hebrew word for 'freewill offerings' is 'nedabah' and means 'spontaneity.'  Spurgeon says, "He pleads that the homage of his mouth was cheerfully and spontaneously rendered: all is utterances were freewill offerings." This all is sounding a lot like what the one preacher told hubby. So is a freewill offering worship? He will be looking into that.  Spurgeon goes on to say, "There can be no value in extorted confessions, God's revenues are not derived from forced taxation, but from freewill donations."  It struck me that 'forced taxation' would equate with the sacrifices under the Law, and that 'freewill offerings' would equate to the cheerful giving of those who are now under Grace. I particularly liked this quote from Spurgeon, "there is no work of free grace where there is no fruit of freewill."
 
Verse 110 says, "The wicked have laid a snare for me: yet I erred not from thy precepts."
 
The enemy is cunning, crafty and deceitful.  There is always an element of truth in what he presents us, and that is what captures our attention, but then he subtily and cunningly twists it slowly but surely until it is no where close to the truth and we have been drawn away. My husband was a trapper as a teenager. In order to be successful at trapping he had to understand the animals he was trying to catch. He had to know what their food sources were, where those food sources could be found, what the animal did when it was hunting and stalking it's food, the movement habits of the animal when it was moving from area to area looking for food. He had to basically get inside the mind of the animal, know how it would react to new things in it's environment, etc. Spurgeon says, "Hunters set their traps in the animals' usual runs, and our worst snares are laid in our own ways." A person who abhors drunkenness will not be led to a bar or a party in an attempt to ensnare him. No, the enemy will take something that you like, something you are already inclined to, and will put it right in the paths you are always on. For the Christian, this will involve, most frequently, family or even church. Not every good thing is the right thing. This is why we need to weigh carefully what is presented to us and above all seek God's leading in all matters. 
 
Spurgeon also said, "From this verse let us learn to be on our guard, for we, too, have enemies both crafty and wicked." It reminded me of the verse in 1 Peter 5:8, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." My husband was at a field training exercise one year, and they were working on convoying and recognizing improvised explosive devices, or booby traps. The commander had set up some booby traps along the route they had to take. Hubby was the only one to spot every one, including the one the commander was very proud of and sure no one would see. But hubby was on alert and he knew what subtle clues to look for. Because of this trapping experience he was familiar with what forest terrain would like like, what was natural and what was man made. Because he had spend years placing and camouflaging traps for animals he knew how to apply this to the situation he was now in -- the hunted. He even spotted a potential ambush point, and alerted the others in the vehicle and urged them to treat it as such, but was chastised and ignored because they were not told that an ambush would be part of the exercise. They continued along the route and ran right into an ambush. We are being hunted by someone who wants to take us down. Being familiar with God's word and living according to his precepts will help us be alert and identify the traps that have been laid for us in our path.
 
A couple weeks ago I posted what I had learned about "for ever." The word comes up again in verse 111. This word will "for ever" stand out to me, lol.
 
In the second half of verse 111 it speaks of the rejoicing of the heart. Spurgeon says, "It is not the head knowledge but the heart experience which brings joy." There are a good many Christians that know a lot about the Bible, they may have a lot of the Bible committed to memory, but it hasn't touched their hearts, they haven't truly experienced the truth of God's Word, and they live joyless lives.
 
"That which rejoices the heart is sure to be chosen and treasured." -- Spurgeon. This brought to mind these verses:

Matthew 5.8
Matthew 6.12
Matthew 12.35
Matthew 22.37
Matthew 12.33
Mark 12.33
 
Verse 112, "I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end."
The word 'have' is an action word, David has done it to himself. This implies proactive, determined and disciplined action in his life to achieve this state. What came to my mind was a bonsai tree or fancy topiaries in gardens. These things must be trained, wires and guides are used to lock limbs in place to grow the direction that is desired. The person doing this work has to inspect it regularly and make adjustments. It takes time, diligence and dedication. The same is required of us if we want to make the Word such a part of our lives that we live according to God's statutes.

Leading the flock as an undershepherd should take on more importance in the lives of those who are called to such a service. I do believe that a person attending a church should be following their pastors teaching, as long as it is in line with Scripture. Those of us who have been lay-preachers, deacons or SS teachers in the church should be trying to help our pastors in any way that we can, serving the Lord with gladness. There are things within EVERY denomination that are bringing shame to Christ and the church, and followers of Christ should be on their guard against such things.

Morales, why do you keep calling her the Virgin Mary? She was only a virgin until the birth of her first child. She was a virgin - but is never called the Virgin Mary in the Bible. You are referring to her in a Catholic sense that is not right or appropriate.

I think that once again you are using the term "most" incorrectly against Baptists. I've not found this to be the case in either the Baptist churches or the Pentecostal churches. I've heard many sermons on Mary in the 50 + years I've been in the Baptist churches, and when visiting in the churches of my cousins that are Pentecostal. 

I think the title comes straight out of Catholicism - and most Protestants that use it (unless they are heretics) use it without thinking about it; however, it is a title that is idolatrous and should be avoided.
On another note, there is enough on the actual Biblical Mary that someone can do an excellent, Biblical, character study on her, her life, her faith and response to Gabriel (ie. response to God's message), her reactions to seeing Jesus in the temple at 12, her words at the wedding, seeing how Jesus accepted His brethren (ie. those saved) over His physical family, watching the events of the crucifixion afar off (and relating it to her song in Luke 1, about the sword piercing her own soul), comparing her song with Hannah's, her gathering with the 120 believers praying in the upper room).
I think some avoid preaching about her because of the many falsehoods told about her - but we should learn from what the Bible says about her as we would any other Bible character. You could preach on motherhood, on the events around Jesus' birth, on seeing those you love suffer, on how important following and obeying Jesus is - even use the passages about her to preach against false teachings on her.

Just to clarify: Mary is not the mother of God. She is the mother of Jesus, of His human nature.
I have heard various messages through the years about Mary's faith, about how the Lord used Mary, her as an example to us, her words "whatsoever He saith to you, do it"). She was only a virgin until after the birth of Jesus. She had at least 6 other children (four sons, and at least two daughters, because the passages say "sisters").
She certainly was a godly woman, a woman of faith. Of course, we should teach about her as much as any other Bible character - but not exalt her or focus on her more exclusively than anyone else (not saying you are trying to do that - just want to clarify, as I came from a nominal Catholic background).

Since we married hubby and I have almost always been together, except for his weekend drills with the Army.  His last few years in the military he ended up in a unit where he had to go away for annual training, the first was three weeks and that was rough. Most of the time he was able to stay local and come home each evening. The last unit he was in he took me to drill with him. I sat in the lobby and crocheted until the supervisor of the survey team (who is a Christian and lay preacher) took pity on me and put me up in a corner of his department. When hubby retired I gifted him a blanket I had crocheted while camped out there, lol. Hubby takes me on the road with him when he has to work out of town, one of the main reasons is for me to navigate, but also because he doesn't want to go without me. The trips are fun, the travel gives us time to be alone and talk.

Thank you!

@trapperhoneySome helpful thoughts there indeed!

that is awesome!

Our church is currently working through Psalm 119 as our Bible study on Wednesday evenings. 
Psalm 119:44
So shall I keep thy law continually for ever and ever.

It pays to look up every word! I work my way through each word in the verse, checking the Hebrew words to see what they mean. In English we use the phrase "forever and ever" to just mean ongoing, to just emphasize that we mean "always." So, I went to look up the first "ever" and assumed they would both be the same Hebrew word. They weren't.
ever = H5769 "olam" properly, concealed; that is, the vanishing point
ever = H5703 "ad" (as in ad infinitum) properly a (peremptory) terminus; that is (by implication) duration,  in the sense of perpetuity
 
So when I looked up both words it indicates that the distance/time period talked about here it to the point that can no longer be seen, and past that, it keeps going, which immediately brought to mind Buzz Lightyear in Toy Story where his call to arms is "To Infinity and Beyond!"

I will always see "for ever and ever" in scripture now as "To Infinity and Beyond" lol. 
It's the little things that make scripture meaningful and memorable.

I have also used the term, but in reference to asking God to give one a sign to confirm something, much like Gideon did.

"Forever" is how Americans write it. 
"For ever" the Brits.

in English that is true, and if I had just gone on that assumption I would have missed this new insight that really made it come more alive for me.

There are other options, such as CBD oil or tinctures, many without the concerning THC, and still gives excellent pain relieving benefits. My husband has a serious degenerative arthritis and the VA wants to give him narcotics for the pain. He does not want to become dependent or an addict so he has refused. He has had success with CBD that does not contain the THC that gives the typical side effects.

Ms. trapperhoney: Yes, it's a pity that for years before it was widely legalized some of the huge pharmaceutical companies were raking in enormous profits for patent monopolies of conventional meds, when, altenatives, if safely researched, based on cannabis resin could have cut the costs greatly for those who were ill. (Remarkable that along the border with Mexico and Canada, seniors would cross the border to buy the same conventional meds sometimes for 1/20th of the cost.)
There was a video of a lady in Vancouver, Canada using a vending machine from the Vancouver Pain Society and becoming the first vending machine customer for marijuana: if the person is a genuine patient, I think like you that it can be a positive thing.
Probably baking cookies into which very carefully measured cannabis resin has been added is a better way of ingesting it medicinally rather than smoking it, isn't it?
(An added advantage to its open market availability is that it puts dealers out of business.)
These issues have proven to be rather searching for some Christians, but people should be able to get genuine medical benefit with a clear conscience, imho.
Yes, Peter's vision in Acts is a very significant passage, I think.

God put plants/herbs here for our benefit. If there is a legitimate health/medical benefit from ANY herb I support it. There is always a danger of abuse, so it needs to be handled carefully. I do not support "recreational" use of any herb/drug. As to specific herbs, that is up to the individual's judgment and conscience to use responsibly.

Ms. trapperhoney: Thank-you!

Amen!

"For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall." (Isaiah 25.4)