Sunspots 968

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

Project 2025 is an extensive document, proposing many changes in government. The 2025 is because it is a plan for action, if Donald Trump is returned to the presidency, for the first year of his second presidency. However, Trump is trying to distance himself from the proposals, claiming that he isn't familiar with the contents, and doesn't know who developed it. But CNN has done a deep dive, and found lots of connections between the document and the former President's advisors.

Snopes reports that Project 2025 plans to eliminate free weather information from the government.

A Conversation writer explains decaf coffee.

Anti-pornography (and slander, and more) in the Bible

A Psalm by David.

101:1 I will sing of loving kindness and justice.

To you, Yahweh, I will sing praises.

101:2 I will be careful to live a blameless life.

When will you come to me?

I will walk within my house with a blameless heart.

101:3 I will set no vile thing before my eyes.

I hate the deeds of faithless men.

They will not cling to me.

101:4 A perverse heart will be far from me.

I will have nothing to do with evil.

101:5 I will silence whoever secretly slanders his neighbor.

I won’t tolerate one who is haughty and conceited.

101:6 My eyes will be on the faithful of the land,

that they may dwell with me.

He who walks in a perfect way,

he will serve me.

101:7 He who practices deceit won’t dwell within my house.

He who speaks falsehood won’t be established before my eyes.

101:8 Morning by morning, I will destroy all the wicked of the land;

to cut off all the workers of iniquity from Yahweh’s city. (World English Bible, public domain)

Verse 3a has an admonition against willingly experiencing pornography. And there are some more admonitions. Verse 5a is against slander. Verse 4b covers it all, I guess: "I will have nothing to do with evil." If that doesn't cover it all, there's 2a, "I will be careful to lead a blameless life." But, in spite of the importance of the warnings, Perhaps the first verse of the Psalm, "I will sing of loving kindness and justice. To you, Yahweh, I will sing praises" is the most important command. If I spend time praising God, verbally or in other media, I won't have time to slander anyone, or to indulge in pornography, or commit other sins. 

Thanks for reading. Praise God!

**** 

Added July 12, 2024:

Pornography is a form of adultery, and slander is a form of false witness. Both of these are forbidden by the Ten Commandments.

Sunspots 967

 Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

A discussion of the perils of Christian Nationalism, in Baptist News Global. 

Crosswalk reports that Southern Baptists voted against Christian Nationalism recently.

Stat discusses ethical questions about the results of the Human Genome Project.

NPR reports that a man tried to smuggle 100+ live snakes, of several kinds, into China. The snakes were hidden in his pants.

Thanks for reading!

Sunspots 966

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

A  discussion, in Naturalist Historia, pointing to more discussions, on how the immune system is related to origins.

Scientific American reports that leeches can jump.

Christianity Today on the question of Orthodox Jews serving in the Israeli military.

Snopes, the important fact-checking web site, supports Biden's claim that historians rank Trump as the worst President in US history. You can see how all Presidents, including Biden, are ranked by these historians, on this site.

LiveScience discusses the idea of what a species is. It's complicated.

Newsweek has compiled a long list of people who served in important positions in the Trump administration who have refused to endorse his current candidacy for President.

Thanks for reading.

Hymns and church songs with stones, rocks, or related ideas

 Rocks in songs and hymns

A previous post listed important Bible passages about stones or rocks, chosen from a few hundred occurrences in the Bible. This post lists songs and hymns that include the word stone, or the word, rock, or a related idea.

“Rock of Ages”

“The Lord’s Our Rock, in Him we hide”

“Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” includes the phrase “Here I raise my Ebenezer.” This comes from 1 Samuel 7:12 “Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and called its name Ebenezer, saying, “Yahweh helped us until now.”

“My Hope is built on nothing less” has this phrase: “On Christ, the solid rock I stand …”

“Behold the Sure Foundation Stone” -- note: I am not familiar with this one, but an on-line search turned it up, so I included it.

“A Wonderful Savior is Jesus, My Lord,” includes the phrase “He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock.”

Thanks for reading, and, possibly, singing or humming.

rocks and stones in the Bible

My Bible search tool tells me that there are about 140 occurrences of the word "rock" in the Bible, and about 330 occurrences of "stone." Here are some of the more important passages related to rock or stone.

In Genesis 28, Jacob, fleeing from his brother Esau, takes a rock for a pillow, and, when he wakes, sets that rock up as a pillar, and pours oil on it, and promises to give God from his goods.

In Exodus 28, the first instance of stoning to death as a punishment occurs. Stephen was stoned in Acts, and Paul was stoned and left for dead.

In Exodus 24, the Ten Commandments were engraved on two stone tablets, by God, Himself. Later, after Moses broke them in righteous anger, God made new tablets. These tablets were still in a sacred box, or ark, many years later.

In Exodus 28, twelve stones, as part of the garments of the High Priest, represented the twelve tribes. There are a number of other references to precious stones in the Bible.

In Exodus 33, God tells Moses that he can be hidden in a cleft of a rock, while God passes by.  

Leviticus 26:1 You shall make for yourselves no idols, and you shall not raise up a carved image or a pillar, and you shall not place any figured stone in your land, to bow down to it; for I am Yahweh your God.

Stoning to death was commanded several times in the Old Testament, or was given as the penalty if anyone were to commit certain sins.

In Numbers 20, Moses obtained water for the Israelites, in a sinful manner, by striking a rock.

Deuteronomy 27:1 Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, "Keep all the commandment which I command you today. 2 It shall be on the day when you shall pass over the Jordan to the land which Yahweh your God gives you, that you shall set yourself up great stones, and coat them with plaster. 3 You shall write on them all the words of this law, when you have passed over, that you may go in to the land which Yahweh your God gives you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has promised you."

Deuteronomy 32:3 For I will proclaim Yahweh’s name.  Ascribe greatness to our God! 4 The Rock: his work is perfect, for all his ways are just.  A God of faithfulness who does no wrong, just and right is he.

In Joshua 4, the Israelites were told to take stones from the bed of the Jordan River, which they were about to cross, and set them as a memorial to God's power.

1 Samuel 2:2 There is no one as holy as Yahweh, for there is no one besides you, nor is there any rock like our God.

David took 5 stones to use in his sling, when he confronted Goliath, according to 1 Samuel 17.

2 Samuel 22:2b Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, even mine; God is my rock in whom I take refuge; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge. My savior, you save me from violence.

There are several other times when God is called a rock, in the Old Testament.

1 Kings 5 - 7 describes the building of the Temple. Many stones were used in the construction.

In Ezra 5 and 6, stones were used to re-build the temple.

There is only one use of the word, stones, in the entire book of Psalms. It's in 102:14.

In Isaiah 2, sinners try to hide themselves from God, in the rocks.

In Matthew 4, Satan tempts Christ, suggesting that He turn stones into bread.

Matthew 7 has the parable of the house built on a rock.

Matthew has the parable of seed falling on rocky ground.

Matthew 16:15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" 16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 17 Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. ..."

In Luke 19, Jesus says that if the crowd hadn't hailed his entry into Jerusalem, the stones would have cheered for Him.

1 Peter 5 says that believers are like living stones.

Sunspots 965

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

Scientific American discusses tattoo ink. We don't really know what's in it. 

Scientific American also discusses the discovery of irrational numbers. We don't know that history very well.

Science Friday and other outlets report that elephants have names for other elephants.

NPR reports that some woodpeckers peck on metal to make a lot of noise, and explains why they do this.

Ten Commandments in classrooms?

A state legislature has required that the Ten Commandments be displayed in all public school classrooms.

Leaving aside questions of separation of church and state, another question arises. Why the enthusiasm for posting the Ten Commandments, rather than the Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12a) “Therefore, whatever you desire for men to do to you, you shall also do to them,”? or the two Greatest Commandments?: 

Matthew 22:35 One of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing him. 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?” 37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ [Deuteronomy 6:5] 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 A second likewise is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ [Leviticus 19:18] The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.” (This episode is also reported in Mark 12:28-33)

With Christ in the school of prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 219

 This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here: Sun and Shield: With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 218 His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color, although I seem to have lost the ability to do that. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

And then follows our Lord’s prayer for a still wider circle.  ‘I pray not only for these, but for them who through their word shall believe.’  His priestly heart enlarges itself to embrace all places and all time, and He prays that all who belong to Him may everywhere be one, as God’s proof to the world of the divinity of His mission, and then that they may ever be with Him in His glory.  Until then ‘that the love wherewith Thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.’ The disciple of Jesus, who has first in his own circle proved the power of prayer, cannot confine himself within its limits:  he prays for the Church universal and its different branches.  He prays specially for the unity of the Spirit and of love.  He prays for its being one in Christ, as a witness to the world that Christ, who hath wrought such a wonder as to make love triumph over selfishness and separation, is indeed the Son of God sent from heaven.  Every believer ought to pray much that the unity of the Church, not in external organizations, but in spirit and in truth, may be made manifest.

Rivers in songs and hymns

I recently posted on the word "river," in the Bible. In this post, I'll remind readers that the word, "river," or a word related to rivers occurs in songs used in worship and praise. The theology of some of these songs may be questioned, but they have had, and will have, their uses.

Down by the Riverside. 

Shall we gather at the River.

When they ring the golden bells begins with "There's a land beyond the river ...," and has, as part of the chorus, "In that far off sweet forever, Just beyond the shining river, When they ring the golden bells for you and me."

"On Jordan's stormy banks I stand," written by Samuel Stennett.

"Like a River Glorious."

"When Peace, Like a River."

Oh, now I see the Cleansing Wave," which has "The cleansing stream I see, I see" as part of the chorus.

"Down by the River to pray" is much newer than the songs mentioned above. So is "Because He Lives," which includes the phrase, "I'll cross that river ..."

Thanks for reading. Sing, if you are so inclined.

Sunspots 964

 

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

Politics: S. E. Cupp analyzes the effect of spending lots of money, your own, or other people's, on political races.

Quanta has a report on a newly discovered protein, that puts a microbe into a dormant state, in unfavorable conditions.

NPR reports that Bill Anders, who took the iconic photo of the earth, as background to the moon, has died.

NPR also reports on how big business pushed the use of one-time-use plastic.

rivers in the Bible

Rivers are mentioned often in the Bible. The Bible search tool I use says that there are 188 uses of the word, "river" in the Bible. Many of them seem trivial, landmarks. Here are some of the scriptural occurrences, some not so trivial:

Genesis 2 speaks of one river coming out of Eden, and splitting into four rivers.

Genesis 15:18 prophecies that Abraham's offspring will control the land from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates. There are similar statements in Deuteronomy 11:4 and Joshua 1:4.

In Genesis 41, Pharaoh described his dream of the future famine, in which dream cows by the river are symbolic.

In Exodus 1 and 2, baby Moses is set afloat on the river (apparently the Nile)

In Exodus 4-8, some of the plagues sent on the Egyptians involved a river, most likely the Nile.

The crossing of the Jordan river, arguably one of the highlights of the Old Testament, is described in Joshua 2-4.

Joshua 24 has three warnings about serving gods from beyond the river.

There are several instances where a river (sometimes not name, hence understood by the audience) is used as a border. For example, see 1 Kings 4:21-24.

In 1 Kings 5, Naaman of Syria complains when Elisha tells him to wash seven times in the Jordan, rather than washing in the rivers of Syria.

In 2 Kings 18:11 and 1 Chronicles 5:26, the captured Israelites are placed next to the Gozan river.

There are several references to "beyond the river" in Ezra and Nehemiah.

Psalm 46:4 "There is a river, the streams of which make the city of God glad, the holy place of the tents of the Most High."

There are several references to restoring the land, and its rivers, in Isaiah. Here's one such: Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, and flame will not scorch you. This chapter also says that God can create rivers in the desert.

Ezekiel 47 tells about a river that will flow out of the temple, and will have abundant trees along it, and abundant fish in it.

Amos 5:24 was used in Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech: "But let justice roll on like rivers, and righteousness like a mighty stream."

Mark 2 tells of the ministry of John the Baptist, who baptized Christ in the Jordan river.

Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit in John 7:38 “... He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, from within him will flow rivers of living water.”

In Acts 16, the first converts in Europe joined with Paul and his fellows at a place of prayer on a river.

The final chapter of the Bible refers to a river: Revelation 22:1 He showed me a[a] river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. On this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruits, yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. (See reference to Ezekiel, above)

Crossing the Jordan, Christ being baptized in that same river, the Holy Spirit being promised, the conversion of Lydia, and the abundant riverside in the Final Kingdom are not so trivial. May you and I experience that last instance! Thanks for reading.

Sunspots 973

Things I have spotted that might be of interest to others.

Scientific American points out that war is a major source of substances that lead to climate change.

A  Conversation writer tells us that the biggest danger from Tik Tok is not acquisition of data, but something more fundamental.

Another Conversation writer compares the speed of the Supreme Court's reaction to the current situation with the speed of responding to Nixon's events.

... and another Conversation writer discusses the complaints against TikTok, and points out that these problems existed well before TikTok was available. (I am not a TikTok subscriber.)

NPR tells us about dreaming.

Scientific American reports on research on the evolution of new species of cuckoos, adapted to their  parasitic life style.

With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 219

Note: I'm having trouble with Blogger. It's not taking links in the way I've done them for years, and is also not showing colored text as colored. Sorry.

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here: Sun and Shield: With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 218 His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

And then follows our Lord’s prayer for a still wider circle.  ‘I pray not only for these, but for them who through their word shall believe.’  His priestly heart enlarges itself to embrace all places and all time, and He prays that all who belong to Him may everywhere be one, as God’s proof to the world of the divinity of His mission, and then that they may ever be with Him in His glory.  Until then ‘that the love wherewith Thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.’ The disciple of Jesus, who has first in his own circle proved the power of prayer, cannot confine himself within its limits:   he prays for the Church universal and its different branches.  He prays specially for the unity of the Spirit and of love.  He prays for its being one in Christ, as a witness to the world that Christ, who hath wrought such a wonder as to make love triumph over selfishness and separation, is indeed the Son of God sent from 112 Twenty-Seventh Lesson. ‘Father, I will;’ Or, Christ the High Priest heaven.  Every believer ought to pray much that the unity of the Church, not in external organizations, but in spirit and in truth, may be made manifest. So much for the matter of the prayer. 

Don't trust in princes

Psalm 118:9 It is better to take refuge in Yahweh, than to put confidence in princes. 

Psalm 146:3 Don’t put your trust in princes, each a son of man in whom there is no help. 

There are few princes left in the world. But there are many political, business, entertainment, athletic and other influencers and leaders, avidly desiring followers, so as to stroke their own egos, or advantage themselves. These two verses, from the Psalms, warn against loyalty to such people, against uncritical belief in what they say, against expecting help from them. They certainly warn against worship of such people, rather than following Christ.

Thanks for reading!

With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 218

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here. His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

Our Lord next prays for the circle of His disciples.  He speaks of them as those whom the Father has given Him.  Their chief mark is that they have received Christ’s word.  He says of them that He now sends them into the world in His place, just as the Father had sent Himself.  And He asks two things for them:  that the Father keep them from the evil one, and sanctify them through His Word, because He sanctifies Himself for them.

Just like the Lord, each believing intercessor has his own immediate circle for whom he first prays.  Parents have their children, teachers their pupils, pastors their flocks, all workers their special charge, all believers those whose care lies upon their hearts.  It is of great consequence that intercession should be personal, pointed, and definite.  And then our first prayer must always be that they may receive the word.  But this prayer will not avail unless with our Lord we say, ‘I have given them Thy word:’ it is this gives us liberty and power in intercession for souls.  Not only pray for them, but speak to them.  And when they have received the word, let us pray much for their being kept from the evil one, for their being sanctified through that word.  Instead of being hopeless or judging or giving up those who fall, let us pray for our circle, ‘Father!  Keep them in Thy Name;’ ‘Sanctify them through Thy truth.’  Prayer in the Name of Jesus availeth much:  ‘What ye will shall be done unto you.

With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 217

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here. His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

This prayer [in John 17] is ordinarily divided into three parts.  Our Lord first prays for Himself (v. 1-5), then for His disciples (6-19), and last for all the believing people through all ages (20-26).  The follower of Jesus, who gives himself to the work of intercession, and would fain try how much of blessing he can pray down upon his circle in the Name of Jesus, will in all humility let himself be led of the Spirit to study this wonderful prayer as one of the most important lessons of the school of prayer.

First of all, Jesus prays for Himself, for His being glorified, that so He may glorify the Father.  ‘Father! Glorify Thy Son.  And now, Father, glorify me.’  And He brings forward the grounds on which He thus prays.  A holy covenant had been concluded between the Father and the Son in heaven.  The Father had promised Him power over all flesh as the reward of His work:  He had done the work, He had glorified the Father, and His one purpose 216 is now still further to glorify Him.  With the utmost boldness He asks that the Father may glorify Him, that He may now be and do for His people all He has undertaken. Disciple of Jesus!  here you have the first lesson in your work of priestly intercession, to be learned from the example of your great High Priest.  To pray in the Name of Jesus is to pray in unity, in sympathy with Him.  As the Son began His prayer by making clear His relation to the Father, pleading His work and obedience and His desire to see the Father glorified, do so too.  Draw near and appear before the Father in Christ.  Plead His finished work.  Say that you are one with it, that you trust on it, live in it.  Say that you too have given yourself to finish the work the Father has given you to do, and to live alone for His glory.  And ask then confidently that the Son may be glorified in you.  This is praying in the Name, in the very words, in the Spirit of Jesus, in union with Jesus Himself.  Such prayer has power.  If with Jesus you glorify the Father, the Father will glorify Jesus by doing what you ask in His Name.  It is only when your own personal relation on this point, like Christ’s, is clear with God, when you are glorifying Him, and seeking all for His glory, that like Christ, you will have power to intercede for those around you.

Sunspots 971

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others. I try not to post anything that requires a

password, and/or money, to access. 

A PhysOrg writer discusses the two species of rats that live in the US.

Learn about the matador bug, which waves warning signs, which are part of the insect's back legs.

Newsweek (and other outlets) point out that Hawaii is not protected by NATO. (It's in the Pacific, not the Atlantic).

Bible scholar Ken Schenck gives us a one-post interpretation of Revelation.

A Conversation writer points out sales pitches by the nutritional supplement industry.

PhysOrg reports that most of us believe in conspiracy theories.

PhysOrg also reports on how we are losing estuaries, which are important out of proportion to their sizes.

With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 216

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here. His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

‘Father, I will;’ Or, Christ the High Priest 

Father, I will that they also whom Thou hast given me may be with me where I am.’—John xvii. 24. 214 In His parting address, Jesus gives His disciples the full revelation of what the New Life was to be, when once the kingdom of God had come in power.  In the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, in union with Him the heavenly Vine, in their going forth to witness and to suffer for Him, they were to find their calling and their blessedness.  In between His setting forth of their future new life, the Lord had repeatedly given the most unlimited promises as to the power their prayers might have.  And now in closing, He Himself proceeds to pray.  To let His disciples have the joy of knowing what His intercession for them in heaven as their High Priest will be, He gives this precious legacy of His prayer to the Father.  He does this at the same time because they as priests are to share in His work of intercession, that they and we might know how to perform this holy work.  In the teaching of our Lord on this last night, we have learned to understand that these astonishing prayer-promises have not been given in our own behalf, but in the interest of the Lord and His kingdom:  it is from the Lord Himself alone that we can learn what the prayer in His Name is to be and to obtain.  We have understood that to pray in His Name is to pray in perfect unity with Himself:  the high-priestly prayer will teach all that the prayer in the Name of Jesus may ask and expect.

Sunspots 972

Special edition:

A Conversation writer discusses predictions of the Second Coming (all wrong, so far) based on astronomical phenomena, like the solar eclipse which is coming in a few days.

Christianity Today also considers the coming eclipse and the Second Coming.