"If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (Psalm 11:3)
As I have shared before, I am reading straight through the Bible this quarter, rather than my usual schedule. I am still reading the regular 5 Psalms a day, however, and today I finished Psalm 150. The version in which I was reading on my Kindle has notes at the end of the Psalms and I just happened to see a note for Psalm 11:3. It said that an alternate reading for our text is, "for the foundations will be destroyed; what has the righteous done?" It hit me like the proverbial "ton of bricks." Note that it is not a matter here of, "if," but, "....the foundations will be destroyed...." When a culture destroys, "the foundations," of faith in Jesus Christ and adherence to Jesus' Words, "what has the righteous done?" is the question of the Holy Spirit. Regardless, whether it is an, "If," or, "will," the question is still addressed to, "the righteous." And we can with complete accuracy also ask, "what has the [Church] done?"
As I walked the halls of Congressional office buildings, the Supreme Court, and walked around the US Capitol Building, I was playing the Scriptures and praying. I also did the same outside of the United Methodist Building which is right across from the Supreme Court Building. What was the original intent of that building? Bishop William F. McDowell stated in 1920, "The Board of Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals has the perfect site and the perfect plans....The new building will make our church visible and multiply its power at this world's center." At the dedication of the building in 1924, "its purpose was emphasized as being that of a 'sentinel' and a supporter for social reform in the Capitol; a voice for the religious community, a visible witness." We look at America then, and the America of now, and ask, "what has the righteous done?"
"For the foundations will be destroyed," has come to pass in the United States of America, and the question for you and me today, "....what has the righteous done?" There are some who think that it is enough to accept a person's response to a poll as to the state of Christianity in a nation. Others look at the mega-church phenomenon when accessing the strength of the Church in America. I put no argument before you today other than, "....the foundations will be destroyed, what has the righteous done?"
Father, in Jesus' Name, I say that I am, "righteous," only in Jesus, and the Blood of Jesus; therefore, I accept the "title," and with it ask myself, "What have [I] done?" Amen.
As I have shared before, I am reading straight through the Bible this quarter, rather than my usual schedule. I am still reading the regular 5 Psalms a day, however, and today I finished Psalm 150. The version in which I was reading on my Kindle has notes at the end of the Psalms and I just happened to see a note for Psalm 11:3. It said that an alternate reading for our text is, "for the foundations will be destroyed; what has the righteous done?" It hit me like the proverbial "ton of bricks." Note that it is not a matter here of, "if," but, "....the foundations will be destroyed...." When a culture destroys, "the foundations," of faith in Jesus Christ and adherence to Jesus' Words, "what has the righteous done?" is the question of the Holy Spirit. Regardless, whether it is an, "If," or, "will," the question is still addressed to, "the righteous." And we can with complete accuracy also ask, "what has the [Church] done?"
As I walked the halls of Congressional office buildings, the Supreme Court, and walked around the US Capitol Building, I was playing the Scriptures and praying. I also did the same outside of the United Methodist Building which is right across from the Supreme Court Building. What was the original intent of that building? Bishop William F. McDowell stated in 1920, "The Board of Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals has the perfect site and the perfect plans....The new building will make our church visible and multiply its power at this world's center." At the dedication of the building in 1924, "its purpose was emphasized as being that of a 'sentinel' and a supporter for social reform in the Capitol; a voice for the religious community, a visible witness." We look at America then, and the America of now, and ask, "what has the righteous done?"
"For the foundations will be destroyed," has come to pass in the United States of America, and the question for you and me today, "....what has the righteous done?" There are some who think that it is enough to accept a person's response to a poll as to the state of Christianity in a nation. Others look at the mega-church phenomenon when accessing the strength of the Church in America. I put no argument before you today other than, "....the foundations will be destroyed, what has the righteous done?"
Father, in Jesus' Name, I say that I am, "righteous," only in Jesus, and the Blood of Jesus; therefore, I accept the "title," and with it ask myself, "What have [I] done?" Amen.
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
