Week 12

God’s grace and His love for us is endless – we can see from Psalm 34:18 “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Often we rely on our ability when we deal with our daily things but in Psalm 16-22 tells us: that “no king is saved by size of his army or no warrior escapes by his great strength”. Even a horse “is in vain hope for deliverance despite his great strength it cannot save” but only God’s unfailing love for us and Him continually having mercy on us to deliver us from death and keep us alive!

Let us remember to fear God for “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry” and the consequences of turning away from God would be forever forgotten by God – Psalm 34: 15-16

Week 13

Mon 21 Jul 2008	Genesis 48-50
Tue 22 Jul 2008	1Samuel 11-15
Wed 23 Jul 2008	Psalms 36-38
Thu 24 Jul 2008	Job 25-26
Fri 25 Jul 2008	Jeremiah 1-6
Sat 26 Jul 2008	Mark 5-6
Sun 27 Jul 2008	1Corinthians 9-10

1 Corinthians 7-8

• It's good for man not to have sexual relations (7:1). This was raised by the Corinthian church when communicating with Paul. But is this God's intention?
• But for the sake of temptation, should just get married. (v2)
• Once married, life is not about self anymore. Husband has authority over wife's body and likewise wife has authority over husband's body (v4)

• Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. (8:8-9)
• While we know these things will not distant our relationship with God, we must be aware not do these things if it will make others stumble (also v13)

Mark 3-4

• Even the uncleaned spirit acknowledged Jesus is the son of God (3:11)
• Appointing the Apostles (v14-19)
• Jesus rebukes why the logic of Jesus being part of Satan to rid unclean spirits is flawed (v22-26)
• "Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" (v28-29)
• What is blasphemy against Holy Spirit?
• For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother." We are all part of God's one family (v35)

And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.

-- Mark 4:18-19

• There are those who do not bear fruit, who enjoy God's word but also still get attached to the earthly desires, failing to spread God's word beyond to other people.
• We are the light of the world, so we should serve our purpose and do what we are supposed to do (v21)
• They are already with the Lord, who could they perish? (v38) Even the apostles are learning to live in faith.

Psalms 33-35

Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.

-- Psalms 33:20-22

Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry. The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

-- Psalms 34:13-16

1 Samuel 6-10

• Have the Philistines just made this guilt offering and its constituents up, but one thing is, they are living in fear of God (6:3-4)
• It's funny how even their priests and magicians acknowledge that their gods are below God. Then why aren't they throwing it away? (v5)

• They lament and feel bad. (7:2). Repenting always followed by your commitment to the repentance by throwing your old life out and coming back to God (v3)
• God wants us to understand that we are limited and acknowledge we can only rely on Him alone, and he will provide (v8-10)

• Israel wants Kings (8:5) now that Samuel's sons could not be successors. What happened to his sons? Why weren't Samuel blessed for the generations after him for following God? Does that mean we can't take things for granted?
• Wanting a king is rejecting God as his rule. (v6). I wonder whether that has any implications on the catholic church in particular with head of church
• God warns the consequences of departing God (v8-18), like today warns us the consequences of not submitting to Christ.

• Saul was a Benjaminite, from the least of the tribes of Israel, but God still chooses. O God's plans are different to what we perceive. (9:21)

• They wanted king and they got one, but them they complainedhe wasn't good enough (10:27)

Genesis 44-47

• Joseph is not angry at all but is thankful with the things the Lord has provided (45:5)
• Pharaoh looks after Joseph and leaves for him the best (v16-20)

• Israel gives thanks to God by offering to God immediately after good news (46:1). Today, if we thank God, what are we to offer?
• Jacob trusted God and took ALL family down to Egypt without any doubt about being killed by Pharaoh etc after seeing vision (v3-26)