Jeremiah 51:54-52:34, Titus 3:1-15, Psalms 100:1-5, Proverbs 26:18-19
Today is the 28th day of October. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian and what a joy it is to be here with you as we…as we get going into this workweek, start taking steps forward toward the new month that is a few days away. It’s great to be here with you. What a journey this year has been so far and we have some of the most beautiful territory in the Scriptures out in front of us still. So, what a journey it has been. We’re reading from the Amplified Bible this week. Today we’re gonna finish Old and New Testament writings. I don’t mean we’re like at the end of Bible. We’re gonna finish the book of Jeremiah in the Old Testament. We’re gonna finish the letter, the pastoral letter to Titus in the New Testament and we’re reading from the Amplified Bible this week. Did I already say that? We’re reading from the Amplified Bible this week. Jeremiah 51:54 through 52:34 today.
Commentary:
Okay. So, yesterday in our Proverbs reading we were…we were counseled about staying out of business that has nothing to do with us, like not inserting ourselves uninvited into someone else’s issues or matters or business. So, today the Proverbs is kind of continuing with that thought and is inviting us to…to consider basically lying and then saying you were just joking. And you may have seen this, you may even do this, you may like…only you would know inside yourself, but you may berate a person, you may be harsh to a person and then, you know, if they have finally have had enough and they start pushing back you’re like, “it’s just a…it’s just a joke, I was just joking.” And usually that kind of a person, they do…they don’t just…I mean…they do it a lot and they just walk around nicking and cutting these little wounds into people but then the second somebody’s had enough and steps up to it, “like, you’re not gonna bully me” basically and it’s all flipped around and they’re…they were “just joking” and they never really meant anything by it and then they try to flip it around so that it’s you’re…like…if you’re on the receiving end and it’s your fault because you can’t joke you don’t and you don’t know the difference. So, it’s like a no win situation because…because the person who spoke out with these little nicks and cuts with these words, they meant what they said…like they meant to be hurtful, but it’s done in such a way that they could deny that, which simply lets the lie, the falseness, remain. It’s a lie, but it’s twisted up. So, interestingly enough, the proverb is thousands of years old. So, this has been going on for thousands of years. And the proverb says, “like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death, so is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, was I not joking?” Another translation I think puts it the most starkly because every year when we come by here by this particular territory it just stops me my tracks. So, “just as damaging as a madman shooting a deadly weapon is someone who lies to a friend and then says, I was only joking.” So…so, the idea of a madman shooting a firebrand or a deadly weapon, right? That's…that’s a pretty…that’s a pretty current image these days. And the proverb is basically saying, “when you…when you say…when you cut somebody with your words and then kind of sidestep your wrongdoing and not owning it and trying to deceive the other person that they’re the crazy one because they didn’t understand you”, when you’re trying to insult somebody, tear them down and then injure them again by trying to make them believe it was a joke. The proverb says that’s like a madman shooting a deadly weapon. So…so, that’s pretty stark. And, so, if that’s something that’s maybe been a part of your story, that’s been happening to you for a long time, then you can probably exhale and stop feeling like you’re the one that’s going crazy. You’re actually in an unhealthy situation and maybe…maybe some counsel is what you need or maybe you need to name what it is and bring it into the light. But on the other side of that coin, if you’re feeling like convicted because you do this all the time and get some of your identity by trying to make yourself superior somebody else then name it and face it, because the implications from the Scriptures, the description of what that actually like is not something that any of us, I don’t think, that any of us want to be. So, let’s steward what we’re saying out of our mouths today because we have a choice with our words. Often, we’re saying them before we’re not thinking about what we’re saying, but that's…that’s simply because we’re not paying attention. Our words can and should, and actually must align themselves with Gods kingdom. But the alternative in this particular scenario is that we can align our words with God’s kingdom and be uplifting, lift everyone around us up, build them up and encourage them in their day or we can walk around like a dangerous madman shooting a deadly weapon with that same mouth. So…so, what are you gonna choose today.
Prayer:
Father, we invite You in that…into that because it is true. We find ourselves saying things that we wouldn’t say, had we thought about that. And in retrospect and reflection later on, we regret having said what we said. We feel awful about it. And the Scriptures have given us a visual today that helps us understand why. And, so we don’t want to be dangerous. We don’t want to be like a madman shooting a weapon. We want to be fully aligned with Your kingdom and Your will in our lives, and in this world, on earth as it is in heaven. So, Holy Spirit we invite You into that. We will not succeed without You. We will not. And You are ever present. It’s not like we have to summon You to help us with our mouths. It’s rather that we must become aware that You are present and are guiding us if we would submit. And, so, we surrender. We’ve all, everyone, we’ve all said things that we wish we hadn’t said. Some of us are habitual about it. And we need Your help. Help us to bridle our tongues to get them under control. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
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And that’s it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.
Community Prayer and Praise:
Hey guys, this is Mike Greenberg and I am a 10-year listener and maybe a first-time caller. I kind of made it an internal policy to not call in because of favoritism as I get to serve the team here at Daily Audio Bible in various ways, but a friend of mine, a dear friend of mine, David, his 18-year-old daughter took her life just a couple days ago and I don’t know how to pray for he and his family - his wife and his 14-year-old daughter. But if we can join hands together and pray for David and his family, his wife, and his 14-year-old daughter as they go through this process, I appreciate it. Love you guys. I listen to your prayer requests and no you intimately and appreciate you and appreciate you praying for David and for me to be able to help and serve them in any way I can. Blessings.
Good morning Daily Audio Bible brothers and sisters, Brian and family. My name is Norma and I just wanted to…I just felt like I needed to call and share a testimony about my son. He’s 37. He was just 37 yesterday and for like about 20 years my son was really angry and bitter and verbally abusive. And I knew that, you know, it…it…a lot of it came from a really nasty divorce from domestic violence but I kept praying and praying for like 20 years and finally yesterday on his birthday he told me that his father used to beat him. And I never knew that, he never told me when he used to go visit his dad. But somehow prayers, 20 years of prayers, finally…just…my prayers were answered, and I believe that my son and I are on the path of healing. And I just want to encourage all of you that are dealing with loved ones that are hurting and really angry and bitter, there’s a root, there’s a root that’s coming from somewhere. Don’t give up on them. Don’t give up on them because they’re hurting. And I pray that this testimony will help you all out there, prayers are answered. God will answer your prayers eventually. Just hang in there…
This is Holly from Glendale Arizona. I just ask for prayer for my brother Chris. It’s the 23rd of October. He’s going into rehab for alcohol today at 10 o’clock. This is my first time calling. I’ve been listening for about a year and I just want to thank you all for your prayers.
Hey DAB family it’s Shanda from Aberdeen South Dakota and I’m calling in because I am in need of prayer desperately. I called in yesterday in reference to somebody else’s need for prayer about kind of like displaced anger and I had a situation with it last night. I was arguing with my 17-year-old son. Instead of being the adult I entertained the argument over his disrespectful attitude and behavior of going into my room and just taking things without asking when all he’d have to do is ask. And then I yelled that my two younger children kind of out of context and I apologized after, but I just can’t get away from the shame of feeling like I’m not growing. And I’m at this point where I’m not really sure. I keep praying and __ but my anger…I just don’t know how to…I don’t know. I feel lost at this point and I’m just asking that you guys can lift me up in prayer please. Thank you. Bye.
Morning Daily Audio Bible community this is Natasha from Brooklyn. I’d called a while ago, probably back in September to ask for prayer regarding my work situation and some other things that was going on in my life. I just wanted to give a praise report to the community that I have started working and the Lord has blessed me with a really great job that is paying me extremely well. And my point in giving this praise report is to let everyone in the community know that prayer works. Stay strong people. Keep praying. The Lord answers us. He answers our requests and he is faithful. Stay strong. Keep praying. Keep asking Him to resolve the…the…the…the problems that occur in your life, the setbacks that come up. Keep asking Him to move those mountains out of your way and He will answer because He is faithful, and He is…He’s awesome and He loves us. And this is my testimony, that all the time that I was out of work the Lord was setting something up for me, a perfect job and more salary that I could even ask for, that I could even think about. It was a huge miracle and I thank Him and thank you guys. Thank you, Brian for this community and thank you everyone. Have a blessed and wonderful day in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Hey Max, this is Denise and the rest of the Daily Audio Bible community. Max, I almost fell off the treadmill when I heard you talking when I was listening to the podcast. And buddy, just stay with us and I’ve never called in before, but I heard the pain and I love you and I don’t even know you and I don’t want to lose you. So, stay with us. So, I’m gonna read Psalm 121 over you. Max will lift eyes up to the hills and from whence comes his help. His help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth. He will not allow Max’s foot to be moved. He who keeps Max will not slumber. Behold he who keeps Max shall neither sleep nor slumber. The Lord is Max’s keeper. The Lord is Max’s shad at his right hand. The son shall not strike Max by day nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve Max from all evil. He shall preserve his very soul. The Lord shall preserve Max’s coming in this time forth and forever more. Stay with us buddy. We love you.