ICEMANforChrist

Judges, Chapter 6, Verse 1-2 1 The Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, who therefore delivered them into the power of Midian for seven years, 2 so that Midian held Israel subject. From fear of Midian the Israelites made dens in the mountains, the caves, and the strongholds. Sometimes I wonder if the administrators of this country’s government have the power of Midian; because many of us have been hiding out in caves for the last seven years and have been reduced to utter poverty. However, one does wonder; what was the evil that the Israelites did in the sight of the Lord? Answer: Baal was the name of the supreme god worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. The practice of Baal worship infiltrated Jewish religious life during the time of the Judges (Judges 3:7), became widespread in Israel during the reign of Ahab (1 Kings 16:31-33) and also affected Judah (2 Chronicles 28:1-2). The word baal means “lord”; the plural is baalim . In general, Baal ...

Judges, Chapter 4, Verse 18 Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside with me; do not be afraid .” So he went into her tent, and she covered him with a rug.

Joshua, Chapter 24, Verse 14 “Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve him completely and sincerely. Cast out the gods your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. Joshua was telling the Israelites that it was a day for decision-making, a day for clarifying what they worship and to what they will give their ultimate allegiance. In a sermon by Rev. Margaret Bullitt-Jonas she states: “Put away the gods that your ancestors served...” Joshua declares. Doing that requires an act of self-examination. 1. What are the gods that I serve?  2. What does my bank statement or my credit card statement say about my values? 3. What does the way I spend my free time say about what matters most to me? 4. How does the way that I treat family-members and co-workers, neighbors and friends show which gods I serve? 5. To what do I give my best, most focused attention and care? 6. What do I really care about? 7. What motives really drive me? 8. What goals really draw ...

Psalm 33, Verse 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all who dwell in the world show him reverence. Reverence is "a feeling or attitude of deep respect tinged with awe; veneration". The word "reverence" in the modern day is often used in relationship with religion. This is because religion often stimulates the emotion through recognition of God, the supernatural, and the ineffable. Reverence involves a humbling of the self in respectful recognition of something perceived to be greater than the self. Thus religion is commonly a place where reverence is felt. However, similar to awe, reverence is an emotion in its own right, and can be felt outside of the realm of religion .  Whereas awe may be characterized as an overwhelming "sensitivity to greatness," reverence is seen more as "acknowledging a subjective response to something excellent in a personal (moral or spiritual) way, but qualitatively above oneself"   Solomon describes awe a...

Luke, Chapter 12, Verse 7 Even the hairs of your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid . You are worth more than many sparrows. When I read this passage I get the idea that I indeed must be the least of those in the Kingdom of God. I as a young man had beautiful strawberry blond hair and I gained the attention of many a young lady. Yet, as time went on it all fell out. At first I rebuked: No, I will not take this and I used various elixirs in an attempt to keep the hair. As it thinned I did the comb over and then one day I said screw it and shaved my head. Vanity all is vanity. As life went on the challenges of everyday life I lost more than my hair and every day I struggled to retain the joy of life against insurmountable odds in which I lost more than my hair. (Divorce, single parenthood, angry children, unemployment, bankruptcy, sickness) Bravely I continued but ever so slowly I found my joy of life was falling out and anger was replacing it. Yet, by the grace of G...

Luke, Chapter 12, Verse 4-5 4 I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but after that can do no more. 5 I shall show you whom to fear. Be afraid of the one who after killing has the power to cast into Gehenna ; yes, I tell you, be afraid of that one.  It would seem that Christ is talking about the Devil here or is He talking about our very selves. Christ may have been referring to the rabbinic duality of yetzer hara , the so-called "evil inclination," and the yetzer hatov , the "good inclination,". Yetzer hara is not a demonic force that pushes a person to do evil, but rather a drive toward pleasure or property or security, which if left unlimited, can lead to evil (cf. Genesis Rabbah 9:7). When a person’s will is properly controlled by the yetzer hatov, the yetzer hara leads too many socially desirable results, including marriage, business, and community. In Judaism adults are distinguished from children by the yetzer hatov, wh...

Joshua, Chapter 11, Verse 6 The L ORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for by this time tomorrow I will present them slain to Israel. You must hamstring their horses and burn their chariots.” The enemy was defeated; why destroy their horses and chariots? Horses and chariots were the tanks of that time.  God knows the human heart we tend to trust in our human strength, or our clout, or our wealth, or weapons. God knows and He wants us to trust in Him not any of these things. Even to this very day we have not learned this lesson we in America have learned to trust in the strength of our Army; which is the greatest Army in the world and have forgotten the true basis of our strength which is printed on our money: In God We Trust. Many people in high offices like to play the prophet: but “A wise person is superior to a prophet” (Bava Basra 12a) Think-a prophet can see the future but a wise person can see the present. God asks us to be present to each other each and every d...