Posts Tagged ‘Moses’

Let the person who has not sinned cast the first stone

Monday, April 29th, 2013

Forgiven, April 29

Now early in the morning (Jesus) came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.
“Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?”
This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.
So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.”
And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground.
Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”
She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

John 8:2-11, www.solascriptura.com

Jesus, You teach us much in these verses. We pray for wisdom and discernment in understanding. You, again, cite, “early in the morning” as the time You went to the Temple to pray and teach. Prime time with the Father seems to be “early in the morning”.

Then You teach us that the scribes (lawyers) and Pharisees (religious leaders) are in the role of accusers. You did not say they accused falsely, Jesus, You said they too commit sins of various kinds and if any of them thought they were without sin, then step up and cast the first stone in the killing process.

You then teach us that everyone has a conscience that either accuses them or excuses them and that we personally know when we have sinned whether other people know it or not.

Then, in Your mercy, you teach us that adultery is not a sin unto death if one confesses and repents (changes direction). You forgive the woman and you encourage her. O’ God, if we could but have that kind of mercy and hope when we see sin in action. Help us today to be part of the healing process, not one of those who accuse. In Jesus’ Holy name, we pray, amen.

Bruce Caldwell

The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O.Box 302 Franklin, TN 37064

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Posted in Christianity, Conscience, Fidelity, Forgiven, Hope, Providence of God | 8 Comments »

Is the Law of God still relevant?

Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012

Law of God, August 22

 “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.
”And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.

For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

  “… let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins;
”and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.

John 1:17, Luke 16:16-17, Acts 13:38-39, www.solascriptura.com

Jesus, again You teach us that the law, given to Moses, has not changed. The 10 commandments count! Now we are reminded that through You, Father, comes grace and truth. The law counts but since every man has sinned, absent Your grace and forgiveness, we are lost.

Jesus, help us not look past the fact that Your word is truth. Cause us to seek the truth, daily, as we seek to know You on a personal basis, one that leads to our spending eternity with You and those that love You.

We know, Jesus, that as we love God, completely, and our neighbors as ourselves, that we are no longer judged by the law but we are judged by You. The straight edge of the law magnifies our sins and we need to stop sinning, but Jesus we can not do so in our own strength and wisdom. We seek to serve You and be led by You, every day. In Your Holy name, we pray, amen.

Bruce Caldwell

The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064

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Posted in Christianity, Forgiven, Law of God, wisdom | 5 Comments »

40 years in the desert and their sandals did not wear out?

Wednesday, August 15th, 2012

Temple of God, August 15

Now Moses called all Israel and said to them: “You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land
”the great trials which your eyes have seen, the signs, and those great wonders.
”Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day.
”And I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn out on your feet;
”you have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or similar drink; that you may know that I am the LORD your God.

Deuteronomy 29:2-6, www.solascriptura.com

Father, Your chosen people have experienced firsthand what it is to be the temple of the living God. You did miracles in their midst, giving them manna every day, giving them water where none should have existed and leading them in the paths You wanted them to go.

They saw how they were redeemed from captivity as Moses confronted Pharaoh with miracle after miracle showing him that You Father, were in total control. These people were walking examples of Your glory.

Yet, Father, disobedience persisted. They had eyes that did not see and ears that did not hear and their hearts were not full of discernment.

Father, we, and everyone in the world, have been chosen by You to receive Your grace. Jesus, when He went to the cross and was raised again, told us that His death and resurrection established a New Covenant, one in which the truth is written on the heart of every man, whereby no one is without at least some Light.

We are Your temples and You are our Lord. The evidence of Your love has been verified. Help us and every person in every nation to respond to Your grace. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

Bruce Caldwell

The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064

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Posted in Christianity, God's Children, Temple of God, salvation | 38 Comments »

Does the “law” redeem you or convict you?

Thursday, July 12th, 2012

Law of God, July 12

What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”
But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead.
I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.
And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death.
For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me.
Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.
Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.

Romans 7:7-13, www.solascriptura.com

Father, help us not to recoil from difficult teaching such as this. We know that everything written in the Bible has a purpose and that we should seek to understand. Here, Paul is emphasizing that if the law did not exist, we would not know that we were breaking the law. But when the law was given to Moses, it became our judge and we were all guilty. The law, Father, can never save us. It convicts us and only by dying to the dominance of our fleshly instincts can we be saved.

Paul asks; how can something good, like the law, destroy us? You have taught us that it is because our flesh is disobedient and can never be obedient, to the letter of the law, and that we need forgiveness and cleansing by the power of the Holy Spirit, sent by You. Father, if Jesus had never come and if He had not died for us, becoming a sacrifice for our sins, then our sins would still be with us.

We do not trust in our obedience to the law for our salvation. Only by the redeeming blood of Jesus, shed for us, can we ever hope to stand in Your Holy presence. That Father is what separates Christianity from every other belief system. We can not enter into Your presence stained by sin and Jesus takes away our sin, forever.

Such a simple fact should not be ignored by other faiths. Without Jesus there is no cleansing and forgiveness. Help us to understand, we pray, In His name, amen.

Bruce Caldwell

The Sola Scriptura Project, P.O. Box 302, Franklin TN 37064

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Posted in Christianity, Forgiven, Law of God, Perseverance, salvation | 17 Comments »