People hate this kind of talk.  Raw truth is never popular.  But here it is, bluntly spoken.  Because you run roughshod over the poor and take the bread right out of their mouths, you're never going to move into the luxury homes you have built . . . portion of Amos 5:10-12

My favorite Bible teacher is Dr. Applebee from London.  When he was a young man, he lived in London during WWII.  There were flying bombs, Doodle Bugs, the GI's called them.  They were Ram Jet flying bombs.  (You can see videos about them on YouTube.). When the jet engine ran out of fuel, they just dropped like a stone onto London.  All wondered how they were guided from the low lands.

Current Events - If Putin's War leads to a nuclear war, many of us will die.  Do you know for sure where you will go after death?  If you believe you will go to heaven, it will not be because of the following:

You always went to church / tithe your income / are better than your neighbor / gave away $$ all the time / were raised in a church and baptized and pray every day / keep the 10 commandments / the good you do outweighs the bad you do.

Jesus was not condemning praying while standing up.  

(See Luke 18:9-14).  The issue was attitude.

Are you upset?  If we are upset while having food and warmth . . how must those enduring many scarcities of comfort, not to mention being separated from their families . . how upset must they be?

A few days ago my husband, Jerry, and I watched the bombing of Ukraine ordered by Putin who is a dictator.  I had a gut reaction of nausea, shaking and tears.  Except for movies, it was impossible for me to understand and imagine what it was like to be sheltered with bombs falling.

Let's pretend we're watching an episode of "Little House on the Prairie".  The youngest girl, Carrie, had crayons, (pretend).  She drew a picture for Mommy's birthday.  Mommy hung it up where everyone could see.  Carrie's picture made Mommy happy.

When Nellie (the storekeepers daughter), found out, she decided to draw a picture for her mother too.  Nellie drew a picture of herself.

There is a Rabbinic tale which tells of the destruction of the Egyptians in the Red Sea.  (Think the 10 Commandments movie with Charleton Heston).  When the Egyptians were drowned, so the tale runs, the angels began a song of praise, but God said sorrowfully:  "The work of my hands are sunk in the sea, and you would sing before me?!"  The love of God is such that He can never take pleasure in the destruction of any of the creatures whom His hands have made.

Today's scripture seems to be the words of Christ that are the most challenging to get our minds around as well as obey.

A subject debated, misunderstood and the cause of much confusion.  An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.  How many times have you heard that said?  People say it as though they intend to carry it out.  However, this law did not involve a private individual.  It was a law laid down for a Judge in the law court to assess punishment and penalty.  Called the Lex Talionis, the original aim was the limitation of vengeance.

When Jesus announced the end of oaths, He was not referring to swearing (cuss words) nor that you could not swear to an oath in court.  He was referring to the religious powers-that-be in that day and their common practices of Frivolous and Evasive swearing.  Evasive was divided into those who said the name 'God' and those who did not.  One was binding and the other not.  He was telling them they could not keep God out of any transaction at any time or in any place.  Please watch "I Pledge Allegiance to the Lamb" YouTube video on my blog . . whatwouldajesusgirl.com

Mary & Martha would talk on Mondays and share about church plus what each Pastor had talked about.    One Monday Martha quoted her Pastor that according to the Bible, divorce is the only thing that God hates.  Mary's back stiffened and her pace slowed.  She took a deep breath and told Martha the Bible says there are 6 things God hates plus one more in Proverbs 6:16-19.