PROFILE OF SINNERS

“Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call on the LORD?" (Psalm 14:4 NKJV).

Instead of praising the wicked like society does, the Bible profiles the wicked correctly. It does not acquit but convicts the sinner. Our verse list three condemnatory things that truly characterize sinners: the ignorance of sinners, the inflicting by sinners, and the impiety of sinners.

Ignorance of sinners – “Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge?” This is a rhetorical question which strongly implies a ‘yes’ answer. It speaks of the ignorance of sinners to the most important truths of all: ignorance of the Scriptures, of God, of salvation, of holiness, and of judgment. Some folks think Christians are ignorant because they are not knowledgeable in the world’s philosophies. However, it is not a lack of knowledge of the world that condemns but a lack of the knowledge of the Word than condemns. And that ignorance will destroy the ignorant (Hosea 4:6).

Inflicting by sinners – “Who eat up my people as they eat bread.” This is a figure of speech which speaks of the cruelty of the wicked against the righteous. The wicked ‘attacks and robs’ the righteous. The more wicked the society becomes, the more God’s people will be persecuted. In these last days we are seeing a great increase in persecution which only corroborate and confirm the great increase of wickedness in the world.

Impiety of sinners – “And do not call on the Lord.” Sinners are not interested in calling on God; they leave God out of their lives. They are not interested in church because their interests are all secular not spiritual. This will doom the wicked eternally.

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“Worldly values are a poor investment - they never pay what they promise!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Carpenter

In Mark 6:3 we read, “Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us? And they were offended at Him” (NKJV).

Carpenter is the is the Greek word tektōn (τέκτων = tek'-tone) and means carpenter or craftsman. It is a generic word for anyone who makes things. In Classical Greek tektōn meant a craftsman in wood, stone, or metal. In the Septuagint tektōn refers to craftsmen in general. In the New Testament tektōn appears only as a result of identification of Jesus by the people of Nazareth (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3). These two references are descriptive and gives us one of the few glimpses into a central part of Jesus’ life from childhood to manhood.

Although “carpenter” is the most common usage of tektōn, it could also mean that Jesus and Joseph were both carpenters and masons. Jews, unlike the Greeks and Romans, held a high regard for manual labor and a deep respect for those who worked skillfully.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – The Messiah would be declared the “Beloved Son” (Psalm 2:7)

New Testament Fulfillment – Matt. 3:17

Bible Facts About Jesus

Jesus was a carpenter by trade

Jesus was known to be a carpenter (Mark 6:3). It was the normal custom for fathers to teach their children to follow their trade. Jesus learned to be a carpenter from Joseph and likely took over the family business after Joseph died. This indicates that He not only grew up in the house of a carpenter (Matt. 13:55), but He worked in the trade long enough that people knew Him to be a carpenter.

Bible Quiz

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given...” What “shall be upon his shoulder?"

**Answer to last week’s trivia: Where did Job live? In the land of Uz (Job 1:1)

That’s in the Bible

"Son of Belial”

"Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the LORD” (1 Sam. 2:12 KJV).

“Son of Belial” - The expression “son of Belial” carries the idea of a vile or wicked person. Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas were very wicked indeed. They were the main cause of all the ungodliness in Israel. Their shameful and abominable conduct caused the people to abhor, i.e. regard with disgust the Lord’s offering (1 Sam. 2:13-17). Hophni and Phinehas not only showed disrespect for the sacrifices on the altar, but they also had no regard for the women who served at the door of the tabernacle (v. 22). Instead of encouraging them in their spiritual walk, the two brothers seduced them. This was the depth of wickedness into which Eli’s sons had fallen. And tragically, some believers today have sunk to the very same depths. Yet, God warns believers that they will be held accountable; we will have to give account to God for our behavior.

Did You Know – Christian History

Timothy Dwight was born May 15, 1752 in Northampton, MA. He was an academic and educator, a Congregationalist minister, theologian, and author. He was the eighth president of Yale College (1795–1817).

After graduating from Yale in 1769, Dwight served two years as rector of the Hopkins Grammar School in New Haven, CT. From 1771-1777, he was a tutor at Yale College, and was appointed as the chaplain to Congress in 1777. Besides managing the family’s farms, Dwight preached and taught, establishing a school for both sexes. During this period, he served two terms in the Massachusetts legislature.

When Dwight became President of Yale in l795, students and faculty had drifted far from the Christian faith upon which the college was founded. The college church was neglected; the students were wild and skeptical. Timothy fired all of the faculty members who favored the anti-Christian ideas of French rationalism. Subsequently, about one third of the student body were converted to Christianity.

On the matter of the Bible being God’s word, Dwight provided an array of fact and logic. He preached on the subject for six months in the chapel, and lectured on Evidences of Divine Revelation. Under Timothy, Yale caught the spirit of the Second Great Awakening. His ability as a teacher and his talents as a religious and political leader soon made the college the largest institution of higher education in North America.

Dwight was also a founder of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences and Andover Theological Seminary. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and was also an early member of the American Antiquarian Society. He received honorary degrees from the College of New Jersey and Harvard College.

Dwight died of prostate cancer, and was buried in New Haven’s Grove Street Cemetery. The Timothy Dwight Elementary School in Fairfield, CT is named after him, as well as the Timothy Dwight Park. In 2008, The Library of America selected Dwight’s account of the murders of Connecticut shopkeeper William Beadle for inclusion in its two-century retrospective of American True Crime.

A Little Humor

A teacher asked the kindergartners, “Can a bear take his warm overcoat off?” “No,” they answered. “Why not?” Finally, after a long silence, a little fellow spoke up. “Because only God knows where the buttons are.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“Grace does not offer freedom to sin; it offers freedom from sin!”