Women at the tomb - Mary the mother of James

It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. Luke 24:10

The third woman at the tomb of Jesus was Mary the mother of James.  In other verses she is referred to as Mary the mother of James and Joses.  Her son is James the less, a disciple of Jesus.

Mary followed Jesus from Galilee ministering to him. Albert Barnes says, “Attending him and providing for his wants. While multitudes of people joined in the cry, “Crucify him!” and forsook him in his trying moments, it does not appear that any of his female followers were thus unfaithful.”

Mary was one of the faithful. She stood by the cross of Jesus and watched as he was crucified. (John 19:25) Mary was at the tomb with Mary Magdalene. (Matthew 28:1) She brought spices to anoint her Lord’s body (Mark 16:1)

Herbert Lockyer says of Mary in All the Women of the Bible, “Motivated by the inner urge of gratitude to Him for all He had done for her, she became generous, faithful, loving and true. Hers was a simple faith and a trusting love.”

As I look at the life of Mary the mother of James, I see a faithful follower of Jesus. She was faithful to Him to His very last breath on this earth. She was devoted to Him and served Him even after His death by taking spices to his tomb.

I want to be faithful to Jesus till my very last breath. Do you? The only way to be faithful to Jesus is by daily making a choice to follow Him.

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: I Peter 2:21

Have a blessed day,
Donna

Self-righteousness

16  Be not righteous over much; neither make thyself over wise: why shouldest thou destroy thyself? 17 Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time? 18 It is good that thou shouldest take hold of this; yea, also from this withdraw not thine hand: for he that feareth God shall come forth of them all. Ecclesiastes 7:16-18

Wow! that is a mouthful, but what exactly is Solomon saying in this portion of scripture? In the book, Be Satisfied, Warren Wiersbe says, “he was warning them against self-righteousness and the pride that comes when we think we have “arrived” and know it all.” When being honest with ourselves, before God, each of us might say, “I have been there.”

How can we get rid of this sin of “self-righteousness”? The answer is in verse 18, fear God. The Hebrew meaning of fear is morally reverent. When we fear God we realize that He is the God of gods and the Only One to fear.

Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul. Psalm 66:16 

Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. Proverbs 2:5 

Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. 2Corinthians 7:1 

Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king. 1Peter 2:17 

Let’s take the “self” out of righteousness and look on the pure righteousness of God.

Have a blessed day,
Donna

Restoration continues

[23] In those days also saw I Jews that had married wives of Ashdod, of Ammon, and of Moab: [24] And their children spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in the Jews' language, but according to the language of each people. [25] And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves. [26] Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin. [27] Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying strange wives? [28] And one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was son in law to Sanballat the Horonite: therefore I chased him from me. [29] Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood, and the covenant of the priesthood, and of the Levites. [30] Thus cleansed I them from all strangers, and appointed the wards of the priests and the Levites, every one in his business; [31] And for the wood offering, at times appointed, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good. Nehemiah 13:23-31

The book of Nehemiah ends. We can see the progression of sin, repentance, obedience, restoration and then the  cycle starts again.

Wow, is this just in Nehemiah’s time. I dare say no. The Christian life is like any other life. We make mistakes, we learn from our mistakes, we make more mistakes, we learn from those. Life is a circle. Hopefully we learn and grow and do not make the same mistakes again, but sometimes we do. We are imperfect people but we have a perfect Savior. He is always waiting to teach us His way.

For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief. Proverbs 24:16 

We may not have the same problems as the people in Nehemiah’s time, but we still have problems.

In this portion Nehemiah is saying, what you are doing is the same thing that King Solomon did. Do you not remember that he was drawn away from God because of sin?

For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 1Kings 11:4 

I think of all the things/events/people/places that can draw me away from God. I have to make a conscience decision to stay away from those things. It is not easy to do right.

·        The first step is to know yourself and know your weaknesses. Stay away from those temptations.

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 1Corinthians 10:13 

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. James 1:12 

·        Learn from the mistakes of others. There are many examples in the Bible as well in history and even in our own circle of family and friends.

·        Ask the Lord to restore you. No matter what one has done He is waiting with outstretched arms to receive us.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1John 1:9 

Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Psalm 51:12 

·        We can break the cycle of sin if we are willing to wholly follow Him.

But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. 1 Timothy 6:11 

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: 1Peter  2:21 

Please join me on my next post. I will sum up what I learned about Nehemiah.

Have a blessed day,
Donna

Christmas Lights

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Each year as I get older it seems like Christmas is 10 times more commercialized than the year before. When I was a child the Christmas season would start the weekend after Thanksgiving. It now starts at the end of October or the beginning of November. This year Santa Claus was at our local mall on November 12. Thanksgiving doesn’t even register on most people’s radar, why? because there is really no money to be made on Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time to thank God for the blessings He has given us throughout the year. Even Thanksgiving is not the same as it was during my childhood. Take time next year to listen to what people say about Thanksgiving, not much of what is said is in relation to God.

As Christians, we need to look at what Jesus did for us. He came as a baby; he had a purpose and a job. We as Christians also have a purpose and a job to perform in this world. Our job is to be lights and testimonies in this dark, sin cursed world. (Phil 2:15) An easy job it is not but a rewarding one it is. What can we do this Christmas season to show others that we follow a kind and forgiving Savior?

We need to be kind and forgiving to those around us. Not acting like harried, frazzled, anxious shoppers that push and shove to get by. We need to stand out and demonstrate that we are different, not just in talk but in actions. Anyone can say they are Christian but the world is watching our actions, to see if they match the words we speak.

Are we squandering all our money on ourselves or are we looking at those in our community and church community who are less fortunate than us? Are there ways we can help those around us? Can we give a gift to a lonely elderly person? Can we buy a gift card at a grocery store to help someone at church who may have lost a job? There are many opportunities for us to share what we have with others. Each one of us is in a different situation, but most of us have money for little things such as a cup of coffee, a new CD, or a new app for an I-phone. This Christmas season ask the Lord what you can do to help someone else. It may seem like a small gesture to you but it will be a LARGE BLESSING to the one who receives.

We need to adopt I Peter 2:9 into our everyday life, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:”

Have a blessed day,
Donna

Bridge Building

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: 1Peter 2:21

From my devotional reading:

Have you ever built a bridge?

The priest in the Old Testament was instructed to do precisely that: build a bridge between holy God and sinful humankind. He did it through the offering of endless sacrifices, the blood of animals to cover the sins of a nation.

The nation of Israel was selected by God to be a bridge builder to surrounding nations, to show by her lifestyle of faith that God rewards those “who earnestly seek him”.

And the same job description has been passed down to you. As a Christian, you are to be salt in a decaying world, light in the midst of darkness, and a priest bringing people back to God. (Matthew 5:13-16; I Peter2:9)

Think of today as a unique opportunity to build a bridge between a lost sinner and his loving God. Perhaps you can’t build an entire bridge in a single day, but you can begin that all-important process by your speech, conduct, and genuine concern about the life of another person.

Bridge-building. It’s time-consuming, costly and worth it!

Blessed is the influence of one true, loving soul on another!

-- Daily Walk Devotional

Have a blessed day,
Donna