Birthday Verses

I got this idea from a catalog item that personalizes a bible verse with your birthday. Like mine is 1-25, so I guess they pick out a nice verse that matches. So I decided to see what I could find. Here are my favorites:

1 Corinthians 1:25

"Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men." KJV

Genesis 1:25

"God made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. God saw that it was good." KJV

Deuteronomy 1:25

"They took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down to us, and brought us word again, and said, "It is a good land which Yahweh our God gives to us." KJV

Proverbs 1:25

"but you have ignored all my counsel, and wanted none of my reproof;" WEB

Isaiah 1:25

"And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin" KJV

Ezekiel 1:25

"And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings." KJV

Luke 1:25

"Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men." KJV

Romans 1:25

"For they had bartered the reality of God for what is unreal, and had offered divine honours and religious service to created things, rather than to the Creator -- He who is for ever blessed. Amen." WEY

(Probably the best bible verse website I've found is Bible Browser. It's very quick and easy to use.)

Since I didn't do a Sunday Sermonette yesterday, maybe I'll do just a bit of Monday morning sermonizing.

The Mind and Heart of God

"Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men." I like that, and I think it's very true, especially in light of my recent rather perilous journeys into the Mind of God. It is very easy to become overwhelmed and disoriented in the vast, infinite really, expanse of possibilities within God's Mind. In order to keep from becoming completely lost one must have very special tools, a very good internal compass, and/or a guide.

"For they had bartered the reality of God for what is unreal, and had offered divine honours and religious service to created things, rather than to the Creator." Man must be careful not to rely too much on the creations of his own mind, for the human mind is susceptible to error and misjudgment. In the Mind of God we can see many things that are possible but not necessarily real and realized. In God all things are possible, and by extension since we are created in God's image we can create many things in our own minds. But just because it's possible to create them in our minds does not mean that they are real or realizable. When faced with all of these possibilities one must rely upon his special tools, internal compass, and/or guide to know the truth.

So what are these special tools? They are the Laws of Nature which keep those who know them on a path of reality. And what is this internal compass? I think it is our heart knowledge. This comes from God and not from our own minds. Incidentally, yesterday I did hear a little bit of a sermon on TV about how God often speaks to us through our hearts instead of our minds. This is the source and expression of faith. Faith lives in our hearts and comes straight from the Heart of God. We must learn to listen to our hearts and have faith in that heart knowledge because it comes from God. "And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin." What that means is that when we have faith in the Heart of God he will purge away the "dross and tin" (falsehoods and impurities) that our own minds have created. And if we think our hearts are foolish, we should remember that "the foolishness of God is wiser than men."

Most people cannot rely only upon their tools and compass. They need a guide to the Mind and Heart of God. Jesus is the guide for many people. There is more to say about this than I am able, "but you have ignored all my counsel, and wanted none of my reproof."

Well, I guess what I'm trying to say is that we humans aren't infallible. We make mistakes because we listen to our minds instead of our hearts. But in the infinite Mind and Heart of God we can find our way to the Truth when we have our tools, compass, and a guide - whether it is Jesus or another gift from God.

And that's this week's sermonette.