Psalm 37:14-26

Rachel Workman: 14 The wicked draw their swords
    and string their bows
to kill the poor and the oppressed,
    to slaughter those who do right.
15 But their swords will stab their own hearts,
    and their bows will be broken.

16 It is better to be godly and have little
    than to be evil and rich.
17 For the strength of the wicked will be shattered,
    but the Lord takes care of the godly.

18 Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent,
    and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever.
19 They will not be disgraced in hard times;
    even in famine they will have more than enough.

These are great verses. I have seen them to be true. There were times I wasn't sure how I made it with what I had but I did. I've always had more than enough when it didn't seem possible.

20 But the wicked will die.
    The Lord’s enemies are like flowers in a field—
    they will disappear like smoke.

21 The wicked borrow and never repay,
    but the godly are generous givers.
22 Those the Lord blesses will possess the land,
    but those he curses will die.

23 The Lord directs the steps of the godly.
    He delights in every detail of their lives.
24 Though they stumble, they will never fall,
    for the Lord holds them by the hand.

I love these verses. It's hard to imagine God delighting in every detail of our lives. He's there when we're happy and he sees us when we're sad. I've stumbled plenty but so far I haven't fallen.

25 Once I was young, and now I am old.
    Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned
    or their children begging for bread.
26 The godly always give generous loans to others,
    and their children are a blessing.

____________________________________________________________________________________

John Burnett:  ¹⁴ The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow
To cast down the afflicted and the needy,
To slay those who are upright in conduct.
¹⁵ Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.

¹⁶ Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.
¹⁷ For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the Lord sustains the righteous.  Forever and ever.
¹⁸ The Lord knows the days of the ^[a]blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever.  See, forever and ever.
¹⁹ They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have abundance.
²⁰ But the wicked will perish;
And the enemies of the Lord will be like the ^[b]glory of the pastures,
They vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
²¹ The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.
²² For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off. 

²³ The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
²⁴ When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the Lord is the One ^[c]who holds his hand.
²⁵ I have been young and now I am old, 
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken  David is old and he has made his fair share of mistakes, yet God did not forsake him.
Or his ^[d]descendants begging bread.
²⁶ All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his ^[e]descendants are a blessing.  How true.  David’s descendants are a blessing considering one of his descendants died on the cross as a ransom for sin.  What a blessing it is to belong to the King of kings and Lord of lords. We have a lot to be thankful for.

Psalm 37:1-13

Rachel Workman: 1 Don’t worry about the wicked
    or envy those who do wrong.
2 For like grass, they soon fade away.
    Like spring flowers, they soon wither.

3 Trust in the Lord and do good.
    Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
4 Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you your heart’s desires.

You're hearts desires. I suppose this is where you'll need to evaluate what your heart's desires are. David is not speaking about material things here but what our heart is designed to desire. Which is what God freely gives us. Love, peace and joy.

5 Commit everything you do to the Lord.
    Trust him, and he will help you.
6 He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn,
    and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.

So if you want to stand out from the crowd here is your chance. We often strive for acceptance, honor and nobility. But often we strive in the wrong ways. Commitment and trust, two things we lack in today's society. We will never fail or be disgraced when we are commit to trusting the Lord. We will shine like the noonday sun in other words we will stand out.

7 Be still in the presence of the Lord,
    and wait patiently for him to act.
Don’t worry about evil people who prosper
    or fret about their wicked schemes.

I actually find these to be hard verses. Perhaps I need to evaluate my heart.

8 Stop being angry!
    Turn from your rage!
Do not lose your temper—
    it only leads to harm. Yep. Been there done that.
9 For the wicked will be destroyed,
    but those who trust in the Lord will possess the land.

10 Soon the wicked will disappear.
    Though you look for them, they will be gone.
11 The lowly will possess the land
    and will live in peace and prosperity.

12 The wicked plot against the godly;
    they snarl at them in defiance.
13 But the Lord just laughs,
    for he sees their day of judgment coming.

____________________________________________________________________________________

John Burnett:  37 Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.  Those people who do wrong and prosper will lose more and the pain of losing the possessions they love will only increase as their possessions increase.
² For they will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb.
³ Trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land and ^[a]cultivate faithfulness.
⁴ Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.  Peace and joy, not new toys.
⁵ Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
⁶ He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.   

^7 [b]Rest in the Lord and wait ^[c]patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
⁸ Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
⁹ For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.  These verses brought me comfort and encouragement to be better than those who were doing evil against me.  I wasn’t going to return evil for evil but I wanted revenge and these verses reminded me that vengeance belongs to the LORD.
¹⁰ Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
¹¹ But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.  I love prophesy and this little snippet makes my heart sing.  I look forward to Christ’s return like a kid waits for Santa on Christmas eve.

¹² The wicked plots against the righteous
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
¹³ The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees his day is coming.

This passage is one of the most comforting passages in the Bible and helped me through a very tough time in my career 6 years ago.  There is a movie called “Flywheel” that uses this passage as foundation for the storyline and it was during this movie that I heard this passage for the first time. Psalms 37 calls for us to not worry when people do evil against us because they will be cut off.  It also calls for us to cease from anger and forsake wrath which was the hardest thing for me to do.  When verse 12 is happening, so is verse 13 and there is nothing we can do that compares.  He takes care of His own because we were bought for the ultimate price.

2 Timothy 4:9-22

Rachel Workman: I don’t have any comments for today’s reading.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Allen Michaels:   Do your best to come to me quickly, ¹⁰ for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Demas was not ready to share or risk the same kind of suffering that Paul had. Perhaps he wanted an easier life. Perhaps a desire for money caused him to leave Paul. Whatever the reason, he did leave Paul and went to Thessalonica. ¹¹ Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. ¹² I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. ¹³ When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.

¹⁴ Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. ¹⁵ You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.

¹⁶ At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. When Paul first had to go in front of the judge he was alone. He had expected some of his friends to be there. They could have helped him to answer those who accused him. They could have encouraged him. This was the custom in those days. But none of them came and stood with him. They all left him to answer for himself. It may be that they were afraid to stand with him. I think in the coming days we are going to see more of this. Our so-called Christian friends will start “turning tail” once the torture, beheadings, and the killing of Christians starts. Unfortunately some will take the easy, pain free path by accepting Islam. ¹⁷ But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. Paul was able to preach the message in full. His task was to preach the gospel. He felt that now that he had preached it in Rome, he had completed that task. He had finished all that the Lord had given him to do. I would like to die AFTER finishing what God wants me to do and not before or during. I would hate to have “that one thing I didn’t do” be the one thing that keeps me out of heaven. ¹⁸ The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen. How often do we thank and appreciate the goodness of the Lord, which shines like a bright light? All glory belongs to Christ for who he is. And for what he has done. His glory will never end.

¹⁹ Greet Priscilla and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. ²⁰ Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. ²¹ Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers and sisters.

²² The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.

2 Timothy 4:1-8

Rachel Workman: 4 I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead when he comes to set up his Kingdom: 2 Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching. Although I know in the letter this isn't directed to me. I still think it's applicable. Patiently correct, rebuke and encourage with good teachings. I think in love we can encourage people to live a good life.

3 For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will reject the truth and chase after myths. Uh oh that time is now.

5 But you should keep a clear mind in every situation. Don’t be afraid of suffering for the Lord. Work at telling others the Good News, and fully carry out the ministry God has given you.

6 As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God. The time of my death is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. 8 And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing. I love these verses and I hope one day I can say the same. My life does not resemble a life that has been poured out as an offering to God. But just because my past has stains doesn't mean I can't start today. God has new mercy for me every day.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Allen Michaels:  4 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: ² preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with ^[a]great patience and instruction. ³ For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, ⁴ and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. ⁵ But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.  The word says there is no one righteous, no not one, but many of the preachers out there today preach these little 15 minute feel good how to sermons that make the congregation feel good about themselves because they don’t sin like those people the preacher is referencing.  Little do they know, self-righteousness is one of the sins that God hates the most.  They want to hear how good they are compared to what the Word says, we are wretched sinners in need of a Savior.  Woe to the Pastor who preaches a gospel that does not save.

⁶ For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. ⁷ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; ⁸ in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.  The Lord is the righteous judge and he is going to judge everyone at the bema seat.  Those of us who are in Christ are co-heirs with Him and will reign with Him.  Paul is calling for us to fight like he did for the gospel of Christ, overcome the persecution we will face by keeping the faith and we will receive our crown.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Krista Cook:  Probably my favorite part of 2 Timothy.

Gives us things to do (v. 2, 5) but also promises a reward (v.8).

 What a way to finish your walk on earth by having the words of v.7 said about you.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Mike Grimm:  4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: When the Lord Jesus appears again he will be the judge. All those who have died will have to stand before him. And so will all those who are then alive. He will examine all that they have done. Then he will decide what to do with them. Knowing this should make us all more careful to do what the Lord wants us to do. When Jesus comes, he will not only be the judge. He will be the king too. This too should encourage us to work for him now.

² Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. ³ For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. While Timothy has the chance, he must preach the truth. This is because Paul is warning him about a future time. It appears that the time is already here. At that time, the people will not listen to the truth. The truth would make them uneasy because of their sin. It would demand that they repent and change. Many will then oppose the good news of Jesus Christ. We like to sugar-coat our sins or try and justify them. We like to think that if it feels right in our heart than the Bible must be wrong. ⁴ They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. ⁵ But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. As for Timothy, he must be aware of what is happening. He needs to be in control of himself at all times. As he lives for the truth, he may well have to suffer what other people will do against him. There are some to whom the Lord gives a special task. That task is to preach the gospel. But all Christians should spread the good news of Christ. Paul tells Timothy that he should do the work of one who preaches the good news.

⁶ For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. To Paul death would make him free from this life and be the way to a better life. ⁷ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Life is like the race that those who compete have to run. They have to work hard to run the distance. They have to reach the end of the race. Paul says that he has finished the race. That race was the work that the *Lord had given him to do. He has completed that task. ⁸ Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. Paul had worked hard to achieve all that the Lord asked of him. The crown is a reward for those who are righteous. But Paul would not claim that he was righteous by himself. The good news is that Jesus is righteous. He gives that righteousness to all who trust him for it. There will be a day when the Lord Jesus Christ will come again. He will be the judge of all that men and women have done. He will then give that crown as a reward to Paul. He will change Paul to be perfect as he himself is perfect. This promise is not only for Paul. This same promise is for all who love Christ. It is for all those who are waiting for him to appear. They too will receive this crown. They will become like the Lord Jesus and be perfect.