Since the Beginning

Hannah was without children, and this distressed her greatly.

She was so distressed that Eli the priest mistook her prayers for drunkenness. 

Hannah replied that she was not drunk.

She explained she had poured out her soul before the Lord.

Hearing this, Eli told her to depart in peace.

God heard Hannah’s prayer and answered it with a son named Samuel.

In gratitude, Hannah dedicated Samuel to the Lord.

She also exalted the Lord in prayer as recorded in 1 Samuel.

In that prayer, Hannah recognized both God’s complete sovereignty and His role in creation.

1 Samuel 2:8b (NET) - The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord—he placed the world on them.

This certainly is not the only time scripture reminds us of God’s role as Creator.

Of course, there is the creation account as recorded in Genesis.

The Psalmist reminds us as well.

Psalm 8:3 (NET) - When I look up at the heavens, which your fingers made, and see the moon and the stars, which you set in place,

Then there is God’s response to Job.

Job 38:4 (NET) - “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you possess understanding.

Yes, scripture provides numerous reminders that God is the creator of all.

Christ was also present during creation.

In fact, John opens his gospel with this reminder.

John 1:1-3 (NET) - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God. The Word was with God in the beginning. All things were created by him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.

But John adds even more.

John 1:4-5 (NET) - In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind. And the light shines on in the darkness, but the darkness has not mastered it

How fortunate we are to receive this account.

The world created for us is beautiful.

But God loved us so much that He also gave us His Son who was there from the beginning.

Jesus is the Light of the World that has overcome the darkness.

He has overcome the darkness that once surrounded us.

He has also overcome the darkness within us.

God is deserving of our praise and our gratitude.

So may we, like Hannah, exalt God in prayer.

And may God find our exaltation both sincere and pleasing.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com/ on Friday, May 27, 2022.

I will be back here on Friday, June 3, 2022

Kindness, Compassion, Forgiveness

The Resurrection reminds us that we live in a new covenant.

But even the Old Testament reminds us of just how the Lord wants us to live.

It tells us how we were meant to live with one another.

For example, the prophet Zechariah delivered a message from God.

In that message, we are told what displeases the Lord.

Zechariah 8:17 (NET) - Do not plan evil in your hearts against one another. Do not favor a false oath—these are all things that I hate,’ says the Lord.

So, the Lord detests the planning of evil.

The Lord also detests lying.

In fact, we take offense when people do these things to us.

We also find it difficult to forgive such offenses.

But when we do these things to others, we often do not feel regret.

In fact, we find creative ways of justifying our actions.

And such practices become second nature in time.

In contrast, Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, tells us about what pleases the Lord.

Ephesians 4:32 (NET) - Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you.

Paul reminds us that kindness and compassion pleases the Lord.

If we are truly kind and compassionate, we must not do things that hurt others.

Additionally, Paul reminds us that we must forgive one another.

After all, God has already forgiven us through Christ.

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we ask of God: “forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us.”

As human beings, we often find forgiveness difficult.

But the most worthwhile endeavors are rarely successful when we try to do them alone.

The good news is that we do not have to rely on our own strength.

With God’s help, we can learn to forgive others just as we have been forgiven.

We can also learn to be kind and compassionate.

Ironically, the world that we live in believes these are signs of weakness.

But they are really qualities of strength.

And this strength is not of our own making.

Rather, it is an internal strength born of our relationship with the Lord.

A relationship made possible by Christ.

And that same Christ demonstrated both how we should live and how we should treat others.

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com/ on Friday, May 13, 2022.

I will be back here on Friday, May 20, 2022