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SOCIAL INJUSTICE

“For you have taken pledges from your brother for no reason, and stripped the naked of their clothing.” ~ Job 22:6   REFERENCE: Job 22:5-11   Eliphaz wrongly scolded Job as a great sinner. He concluded that his suffering was because of his social injustice. He charged him with wickedness, extortion, oppression of the poor, denial of sustenance to the weary, and insensitivity to widows and the fatherless plight. He said that for these reasons, snares, darkness, and sudden troubles surrounded Job. Eliphaz was wrong because Job wasn’t all he said; Job’s situation was by divine permission.   Although Eliphaz was...
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TWO WRONGS

“But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs; therefore, the king was furious, and his anger burned within him.” ~ Esther 1:10-12   REFERENCE: Esther 1:1-12   The unfolding drama in today’s text led to the divorce of this royal couple; it all started with an ill-informed and ill-timed request from a drunk king, drunk with power and wine. It shows how most quarrels start in relationships, friendships, and marriages: two wrongs. The husband started it, the wife responded, and it elicited a response from the husband, and it all went sour.   In the...
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YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES: CULTIVATE IT

“And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.” ~ Matthew 25:15   REFERENCE: Matthew 25:14-30   Each man has received something from God; He cheats no one and sends no one empty. As in the parable, it may seem unfair that one has five, another two, and another one, but God gives each according to His ability. The good thing is that He will not also judge or require from each one more than He gave them. The difference is what...
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YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES

“I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things, I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” ~Philippians 4:12-13   REFERENCE: Philippians 4:12-19   God did not make you from leftover material. He made you in His image and of the finest stock. You are fearfully and perfectly made – a unique work of God’s genius, created specially by God for a special purpose. You are a partaker of God’s nature, full of...
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GOD CARES FOR THE WEAK

“God sets the solitary in families; He brings out those who are bound into prosperity…” ~ Psalm 68:6   REFERENCE: Psalm 68:3-6   There is a myth about a particular warrior Grecian tribe who killed children born with deformity or inability because they could not stand having a weakling among their tribe. The law of natural selection also shows that weaker species of animals will die because they cannot adapt to their environment, while the stronger ones will reproduce. However, God cares for the weak.   The Psalmist in our text exhorts the saints to be glad and to rejoice exceedingly....
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AT EASE IN ZION?

"Woe to you who are at ease in Zion, and trust in Mount Samaria, notable persons in the chief nation, to whom the house of Israel comes!" ~ Amos 6:1   REFERENCE: Amos 6:1-7   This chapter begins with words that sound strange to our pleasure-seeking and vain generation: "Woe to those who are at ease." That is not how we see things; we would rather say, "Blessed or happy are those who are at ease, who never experience the bite of economic hardship, are never worried about tomorrow's needs, and live very 'soft' lives." We consider they are doing well and envy...
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DIVORCED BUT DESIRED

“‘If a man divorces his wife, and she goes from him and becomes another man’s, may he return to her again?’ Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers, yet return to Me,” says the Lord.” ~ Jeremiah 3:1   REFERENCE: Jeremiah 3:1-5   Jeremiah uses striking imagery in our main text to describe backslidden Israel. Israel was not only backslidden; they shamelessly went after idols and polluted every mountain with shrines and groves to their gods. God likened Israel’s error to adultery – lying with strange men on strange beds. A man...
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TROUBLE

"God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble." ~ Psalm 46:1   REFERENCE: Psalm 46:1-11   No matter who you are or how rich you are, we do not want trouble. Trouble can turn kings into beggars and make strong men cry. It has broken families, drained their resources, and left them impoverished. Trouble is whatever gets you worried or agitated; it brings distress, inconvenience, anxiety, fear, and discouragement. However, God is our present help in trouble. I have been in situations where I was confused and fearful, times when I thought I would not see the...
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THE BLESSING TRIGGER

“…Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me… 14 For thus says the Lord… ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’ ”” ~ I Kings 17:13-14   REFERENCE: I Kings 17:8-16   What Elijah did would have made headlines in modern newspapers: “Itinerant Prophet defrauds poor widow of her meager resource” or “Fake pastor cons helpless widow.” How do you go to a poor widow...
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RESIST THE SCATTERER

“He who scatters has come up before your face. Man the fort! Watch the road! Strengthen your flanks! Fortify your power mightily.” – Nahum 2:2   REFERENCE: Nahum 2:1-6   In our text, God warns Nineveh that ‘he who scatters’ had come and that they should man the fort, watch the road, strengthen their flanks, and fortify themselves. Today, it is a call to us to be alert and ready to fight back when life throws you into situations that steal from you and drain you. It is a call to vigilance because if you don’t, life can rob you of...
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