BONUS DAY #138

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

NINTH IDEA (For previous ideas look at previous blog posts)

Question: “What kinds of behaviors do we see in people going to Heaven?”

Answer: “Who despises a vile person”–V. 4 Simply put–(ayin, baah, bazah) in the Hebrew means someone “who puts other people down.”  A person going to Heaven doesn’t put others down, but builds them up, helps them out, gives them encouragement.

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

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BONUS DAY #137

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

EIGHTH IDEA (For previous ideas look back at previous blog posts)

Question:  “What kind of behaviors do we see in people going to Heaven?”

Answer:  “Casts no slur on others” V. 3–Casts (nacah) means to lift up and advance an agenda.  Slur (charpah) is the general idea of shame or disgrace, but the specific idea looking down on others; talking down to others; thinking you are superior to/toward others; and being condescending in attitude and approach.  The idea would also include scheming against someone, but includes the things not so obvious as well.  A person going to Heaven ISN’T AGAINST PEOPLE–but is “for” people.  

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #136

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

SEVENTH IDEA (For previous ideas check out previous blog posts)

Question:  “What kind of behaviors do you see in a person going to Heaven?”

Answer:  “Who does no wrong to a neighbor” V.3–“no wrong” (ra’) is the idea of adversity or affliction in an evil sense.  Your “neighbor” (reya) means any/all of your associations.  The bottom line–NOT doing or saying anything adverse toward others.  Is that hard or impossible?  NOT FOR PEOPLE ON THEIR WAY TO HEAVEN!

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #135

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

SIXTH IDEA (For previous ideas check out previous blog posts)

Question:  “What kind of behaviors do we see in people who are going to Heaven?”

Answer:  “Whose tongue utters no slander.”  “Ragal” is any kind of intentional slander that speaks against someone else.  The tongue idea (leshonah) is the idea of influence.  Together they define the behavior that “uses influence against others.”  People who are going to Heaven are people who use their influence to help others–not hurt or hinder them.  

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #134

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

Fifth idea (for previous ideas look at previous blog posts)

Question:  “What kind of behavior gets me to Heaven?”

Answer:  “Who speaks the truth from his heart”  V. 2–“Speaks the truth”  (dabar emeth) is not the idea of “brutal honesty” but is the idea of intentional arrangement; consistent preparation; stable and solid–IN SPEAKING.  This idea doesn’t go anywhere with out the concept of “heart” (leb–meaning the most central part).  So…the person who is going to Heaven is the person you see who is intentional in their life; consistent in their understanding and preparation; solid and stable in their relationships with others.  An important (and over riding) idea in this passage is the person going to Heaven might not be perfect in these areas but they have a “supreme desire for….” stability, consistency, honesty, understanding, organization, etc.  

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #133

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

FOURTH IDEA (for previous ideas from this text look back at previous blog posts)

Question:  Who is going to make it to Heaven?  Answer:  V. 2 –“Who does what is righteous.”  The combination of the original Hebrew words is insightful (paal tsadaq) has to do with honesty (or equity of character specifically).  Not just honesty but (paal) type of execution of honesty.  “Paal” is to do or make something systematically and habitually.  It is a disciplined intentional approach to living one’s life in an honest way.  Honesty (the kind that will get you to Heaven) is systematic, practical, habitual, consistent, and intentional.  

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #132

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

Third idea (for previous ideas look at the previous blog posts)

Question the Psalmist is presenting:  “Who is making it into Heaven?”

V. 2 “The one whose walk is blameless”–Walk (halak) means the general course of one’s life.  The key to the idea is in the concept of (tamiym)–meaning–“consistent honesty.”  Who is going to make it to Heaven?  A person whose life is consistently honest.  Not “perfect” but honest.  

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #131

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

SECOND IDEA–(for the first idea look back at previous blog)

“Who may live on your holy mountain?”

There is clarity the Psalmist is stoking up the idea at this point.  In the first part, the Psalmist is dealing with the peace and security in this present life, but in this second part of Psalm 15:1 it brings out the true double meaning in the Hebrew concept of “har” (HILL).  The “har” means first a range of mountains, but secondly means a promotion of HIGHEST ORDER and esteem.  This part of the passage is talking about an eternal home–Heaven as we know it.  The whole Psalm (15) is centralized on the idea of “what are the attributes/attitudes of people who are bound toward Heaven?” The answer?  Keep reading this blog in the coming days, it will be answered.  

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #130

Just before “drifting off” to sleep the other night, Marceil read Psalm 15 out loud to me.  (I put a quote around “drifting off” because that never really happens for me.  I have acute sleep apnea so I generally turn on the c-pap machine and just hope I can more like “conk out.”

Her purpose for reading the Psalm was to under-gird with Scripture a situation I faced down in Haiti a couple of months ago where a Church was charging 18% interest on a micro-loan fund that was meant to help middle age women.  I was confrontational with the leaders involved and they told me it was “cultural” to which I replied that you can’t call a “Scriptural issue” a “cultural issue” just because the Scripture doesn’t fit into your philosophy.  The Scriptures were not written in America….or in Haiti, but instead 2000 to 6000 years ago in a land 6000 miles from Haiti.

As I worked to break Psalm 15 down, there were so many things I thought I would take it point by point over the next couple of weeks and blog about them.

Let’s start with the entire passage and after the passage I will address it a concept at a time.  You will notice the introduction will have been “cut and pasted” day to day to give the background.

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
    Who may live on your holy mountain?

² The one whose walk is blameless,
    who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;
³ whose tongue utters no slander,
    who does no wrong to a neighbor,
    and casts no slur on others;
⁴ who despises a vile person
    but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
    and does not change their mind;
⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest;
    who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
    will never be shaken.

First idea:

” Who may dwell in your sacred tent?”  V. 1

The Psalmist recognizes the need we all have to find a place of security and refuge.  A place of peace and understanding.  A place to lodge and not feel rushed.  A place to unwind and recharge.  In a Biblical sense, we are all weary travelers who need to first of all admit we are weary and secondly, realize the only rest comes from God.  It is God who will provide me with the needed place for me to dwell so the rest, the understanding, the peace and the security I need in my life is possible.  It isn’t possible to achieve it on your own.  As the Psalmist is saying–only in God is there a “sacred tent,” a place of peaceful rest and security.

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc

BONUS DAY #129

I heard a story today from a long time Pastor who I have known (and been friends) for 20 years.  He told me of something that happened 25 years ago in his ministry that really changed the course of his life.  He was working for someone who had a great opportunity and the person accepted, but it left him with no where to go.  God supplied him a Church and met the need but it wasn’t anything near the level of challenge he had previously.  This Pastor stayed over 20 years at the place God provided.  He was upbeat and positive about the whole experience.  His words, his attitude, his anointing warmed my heart.  There are still some great ones present among us!

Every day is a Bonus Day.

Much Love,

Marc