Always Reforming

    We see here in Joshua 20 the repeating of a command given by God to Moses in Numbers 35.  It was a command that was not in effect in the Wilderness, but now that Joshua had led the Israelites to victory in the Promised Land of Canaan, it was time to implement it.  We have basically three characters in this passage.     Firstly, we read of the manslayer.  This was a person who had caused the death of another person unintentionally.  As verse 3 puts it, a manslayer is one who had struck any person without intent or unknowingly.   If two men were working on a house and one man accidentally dropped a stone and it struck the man below him and killed him, he would be labeled as a manslayer.  If a man struck a tree with what had been a perfectly intact axe and the head flew off and struck a bystander, he would be a manslayer.  This category did not include what we would call murderers — anyone who tried to kill another p...

    I was going to post a status on Facebook, but I realized that it would be way too long, so I decided to blog about it.  Here goes my rant.  Today I had a conversation at work with one of my bosses about why I should vote for Mr. Romney.  He didn't like that I said I plan on voting for Ron Paul even if I have to write his name in.  Now, it is not my attempt to discuss the merits of individual candidates.  I have made my choice.  You can make yours.  It is my desire to discuss briefly the peer pressure conservative folks apply to those who wish to vote their consciences and not along party lines.     My criteria for casting my vote behind a political candidate is based upon a Biblical understanding of the duties and qualifications of a leader.  I do not believe it venerable to cast away principles in lieu of pragmatism. When did it become morally superior to choose a candidate who can win instead of somebody who deserves my...

    As I'm reading through the New Testament, I keep on finding passages with such valid applications for our own day.  Part of my reading today included Luke 1.  There is passage is mainly focusing on the birth of John the Baptist, but Luke takes time to introduce Mary, John's aunt.  He shares the story of the angel, Gabriel, appearing to Mary and telling her that she would have a miraculous pregnancy, and that the child would inherit the throne of His father, David.  That's a lot to swallow, I'm guessing.  Notice Mary's answer.  She says, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word."  Mary embraces without reservation God's will for her life.  She understood her role.  She was God's servant.  Her very existence is at His mercy.  How could she refuse to follow her master's will?  If He wanted her to live a normal life, so be it.  If He wanted her to be the virgin mother of the S...