April 5

NT – Luke 11:14-36
Vs 17 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined and a house divided against itself will fall.”
I had no idea this was in the Bible. I thought Abraham Lincoln had made it up.
Instead, he quotes the Bible in the 1858 speech he gave while he was running unsuccessfully for Senate against Stephen Douglas, his long time nemesis.
Click here for the body of the speech. I have to say, he is speaking to us even if the issue is different, the attitudes are not.
Lincoln was, of course, talking about some states permitting slavery while other did not. Jesus was talking about serving God and Beelzebub at the same time. Maybe they are the same.
All of the similes in this section are ideal images for us to hold onto as touchstones for when we are assailed by wickedness. Even the picture of the evil spirit who has left but comes back with 7 more to a clean house is true to form.
Being wicked, for me, is like dieting. I always say, it will never happen again. So, I don’t need to prepare. But you and I both know that tempting food is lurking everywhere and so is the inclination to follow evil rather than good. The trick is to have something to fill your attention so that you don’t obsess over the cupcake or whatever the flavor of the month wicked is. We need to prepare IN ADVANCE our strategy for handling wicked. Think on this today and jot down some notes for yourself. Then slip these ideas in your Bible.

OT – Deuteronomy 28:1-68
My Strong Chumash has this to say about this chapter in Deuteronomy:
This is the Second Admonition in the Torah: The first was uttered by God and its litany of punishments is expressed in the first person, for God was telling Israel what He would do (Leviticus 26); THIS Admonition was uttered by Moses and it is expressed in the third person, for he was saying in his own words what God would do to those who defied Him. This is Rashi’s interpretation.
Ramban, on the other hand, says that the first Admonition referred to the years leading up to the destruction of the First Temple and the Babylonian exile. The Second Admonition refers to the waning years of the Second Temple and the current Diaspora.
Sylvia: Either way, it is a chilling prophesy of the way people behave when the chips are down. To all those out there who are prepping for the coming end of modern civilization, I think you need to read Deuteronomy 28 and then hope you are one of the ones that goes first…..

Proverbs 12:18
Reckless words pierce like a sword but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
Truer words were never spoken. My mother always prays this prayer for me when I go to visit my in-laws “Lord, keep one hand on her shoulder and the other over her mouth.”
Clearly, this is an issue for me.

On a personal note, Don’s dad fell 4 ½ weeks ago and they did not find him for 12 hours. He suffered a stroke during this period and has been hospitalized and is now in a nursing home for ‘rehab’. He is very unhappy and very weak and is desperate to go home. Prayers would be extremely appreciated especially for wisdom.