[Ohio-Communities-of-Faith] DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 21

[preacherdp1961 at gmail.com]

DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 21

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

When I die I want a crank on the side of my casket that plays the Jack in
the Box song ...just to see who has the guts to turn it!!!

___

DAILY DEVOTION

Ten Reasons to Go to Church, Even When You Don't Feel Like It
Day 3


"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of
some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day
approaching."
(Hebrews 10:25)

Monday, we looked at Reason #1: To Hear the Preaching of the Word.
Yesterday, we looked at Reason #2: To Participate in Corporate Worship
Today, we are going to look at Reason # 3. Because Iron Sharpens Iron

 3. Because Iron Sharpens Iron

That is what Proverbs 27:17 tells us. Meeting regularly with other believers
is a source of encouragement and strength. But know this: when iron rubs
against iron, not only does it become sharper, it also causes sparks! It's
just part of the process.

Jesus said, "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matthew
12:34). When you live in community with other Christians you will get
bumped. And what spills out of you is what's in your heart. God uses our
interactions with others to show us the areas He would have us repent and
turn to reflect more the image of His Son. Working alongside Christians in a
church fellowship is a wonderful way to grow your love for God and for
others. And it is also God's way of showing you areas He wants to mature
your walk with Christ.

If you've stopped attending church because people hurt you, didn't measure
up to your expectations, or are hypocritical, know that the enemy has you
right where he wants you. Satan's tactic is to divide and conquer. If he can
pull you from the flock, you are vulnerable to his deceptions and attacks.
Satan will use your lack of love for God's people to quench your love for
God.

___

DAILY BIBLE READING

Hosea 11-14 New King James Version
God's Continuing Love for Israel
11 "When Israel was a [a]child, I loved him,
And out of Egypt I called My son.
2 [b]As they called them,
So they went [c]from them;
They sacrificed to the Baals,
And burned incense to carved images.

3 "I taught Ephraim to walk,
Taking them by [d]their arms;
But they did not know that I healed them.
4 I drew them with [e]gentle cords,
With bands of love,
And I was to them as those who take the yoke from their [f]neck.
I stooped and fed them.

5 "He shall not return to the land of Egypt;
But the Assyrian shall be his king,
Because they refused to repent.
6 And the sword shall slash in his cities,
Devour his districts,
And consume them,
Because of their own counsels.
7 My people are bent on backsliding from Me.
Though [g]they call [h]to the Most High,
None at all exalt Him.

8 "How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I set you like Zeboiim?
My heart [i]churns within Me;
My sympathy is stirred.
9 I will not execute the fierceness of My anger;
I will not again destroy Ephraim.
For I am God, and not man,
The Holy One in your midst;
And I will not [j]come with terror.

10 "They shall walk after the Lord.
He will roar like a lion.
When He roars,
Then His sons shall come trembling from the west;
11 They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
Like a dove from the land of Assyria.
And I will let them dwell in their houses,"
Says the Lord.

God's Charge Against Ephraim
12 "Ephraim has encircled Me with lies,
And the house of Israel with deceit;
But Judah still walks with God,
Even with the [k]Holy One who is faithful.

Ephraim's Sins Rebuked by God
12 "Ephraim feeds on the wind,
And pursues the east wind;
He daily increases lies and [l]desolation.
Also they make a [m]covenant with the Assyrians,
And oil is carried to Egypt.

2 "The Lord also brings a [n]charge against Judah,
And will punish Jacob according to his ways;
According to his deeds He will recompense him.
3 He took his brother by the heel in the womb,
And in his strength he struggled with God.
4 Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed;
He wept, and sought favor from Him.
He found Him in Bethel,
And there He spoke to us-
5 That is, the Lord God of hosts.
The Lord is His memorable name.
6 So you, by the help of your God, return;
Observe mercy and justice,
And wait on your God continually.

7 "A cunning [o]Canaanite!
Deceitful scales are in his hand;
He loves to oppress.
8 And Ephraim said,
'Surely I have become rich,
I have found wealth for myself;
In all my labors
They shall find in me no iniquity that is sin.'

9 "But I am the Lord your God,
Ever since the land of Egypt;
I will again make you dwell in tents,
As in the days of the appointed feast.
10 I have also spoken by the prophets,
And have multiplied visions;
I have given [p]symbols [q]through the witness of the prophets."

11 Though Gilead has idols-
Surely they are [r]vanity-
Though they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal,
Indeed their altars shall be heaps in the furrows of the field.

12 Jacob fled to the country of Syria;
Israel served for a spouse,
And for a wife he tended sheep.
13 By a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,
And by a prophet he was preserved.
14 Ephraim provoked Him to anger most bitterly;
Therefore his Lord will leave the guilt of his bloodshed upon him,
And return his reproach upon him.

Relentless Judgment on Israel
13 When Ephraim spoke, trembling,
He exalted himself in Israel;
But when he offended through Baal worship, he died.
2 Now they sin more and more,
And have made for themselves molded images,
Idols of their silver, according to their skill;
All of it is the work of craftsmen.
They say of them,
"Let [s]the men who sacrifice [t]kiss the calves!"
3 Therefore they shall be like the morning cloud
And like the early dew that passes away,
Like chaff blown off from a threshing floor
And like smoke from a chimney.

4 "Yet I am the Lord your God
Ever since the land of Egypt,
And you shall know no God but Me;
For there is no savior besides Me.
5 I [u]knew you in the wilderness,
In the land of [v]great drought.
6 When they had pasture, they were filled;
They were filled and their heart was exalted;
Therefore they forgot Me.

7 "So I will be to them like a lion;
Like a leopard by the road I will lurk;
8 I will meet them like a bear deprived of her cubs;
I will tear open their rib cage,
And there I will devour them like a lion.
The [w]wild beast shall tear them.

9 "O Israel, [x]you are destroyed,
But [y]your help is from Me.
10 [z]I will be your King;
Where is any other,
That he may save you in all your cities?
And your judges to whom you said,
'Give me a king and princes'?
11 I gave you a king in My anger,
And took him away in My wrath.

12 "The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up;
His sin is stored up.
13 The sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him.
He is an unwise son,
For he should not stay long where children are born.

14 "I will ransom them from the [aa]power of [ab]the grave;
I will redeem them from death.
O Death, [ac]I will be your plagues!
O [ad]Grave, [ae]I will be your destruction!
Pity is hidden from My eyes."

15 Though he is fruitful among his brethren,
An east wind shall come;
The wind of the Lord shall come up from the wilderness.
Then his spring shall become dry,
And his fountain shall be dried up.
He shall plunder the treasury of every desirable prize.
16 Samaria [af]is held guilty,
For she has rebelled against her God.
They shall fall by the sword,
Their infants shall be dashed in pieces,
And their women with child ripped open.

Israel Restored at Last
14 O Israel, return to the Lord your God,
For you have stumbled because of your iniquity;
2 Take words with you,
And return to the Lord.
Say to Him,
"Take away all iniquity;
Receive us graciously,
For we will offer the sacrifices[ag] of our lips.
3 Assyria shall not save us,
We will not ride on horses,
Nor will we say anymore to the work of our hands, 'You are our gods.'
For in You the fatherless finds mercy."

4 "I will heal their backsliding,
I will love them freely,
For My anger has turned away from him.
5 I will be like the dew to Israel;
He shall [ah]grow like the lily,
And [ai]lengthen his roots like Lebanon.
6 His branches shall [aj]spread;
His beauty shall be like an olive tree,
And his fragrance like Lebanon.
7 Those who dwell under his shadow shall return;
They shall be revived like grain,
And [ak]grow like a vine.
Their [al]scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

8 "Ephraim shall say, 'What have I to do anymore with idols?'
I have heard and observed him.
I am like a green cypress tree;
Your fruit is found in Me."

9 Who is wise?
Let him understand these things.
Who is prudent?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right;
The righteous walk in them,
But transgressors stumble in them.

Footnotes
Hosea 11:1 Or youth
Hosea 11:2 So with MT, Vg.; LXX Just as I called them; Tg. interprets as I
sent prophets to a thousand of them.
Hosea 11:2 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX from My face
Hosea 11:3 Some Heb. mss., LXX, Syr., Vg. My arms
Hosea 11:4 Lit. cords of a man
Hosea 11:4 Lit. jaws
Hosea 11:7 The prophets
Hosea 11:7 Or upward
Hosea 11:8 Lit. turns over
Hosea 11:9 Or enter a city
Hosea 11:12 Or holy ones
Hosea 12:1 ruin
Hosea 12:1 Or treaty
Hosea 12:2 A legal complaint
Hosea 12:7 Or merchant
Hosea 12:10 Or parables
Hosea 12:10 Lit. by the hand
Hosea 12:11 worthless
Hosea 13:2 Or those who offer human sacrifice
Hosea 13:2 Worship with kisses
Hosea 13:5 Cared for you
Hosea 13:5 Lit. droughts
Hosea 13:8 Lit. beast of the field
Hosea 13:9 Lit. it or he destroyed you
Hosea 13:9 Lit. in your help
Hosea 13:10 LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg. Where is your king?
Hosea 13:14 Lit. hand
Hosea 13:14 Or Sheol
Hosea 13:14 LXX where is your punishment?
Hosea 13:14 Or Sheol
Hosea 13:14 LXX where is your sting?
Hosea 13:16 LXX shall be disfigured
Hosea 14:2 Lit. bull calves; LXX fruit
Hosea 14:5 Lit. bud or sprout
Hosea 14:5 Lit. strike
Hosea 14:6 Lit. go
Hosea 14:7 Lit. bud or sprout
Hosea 14:7 Lit. remembrance