Cornerstone

Psalm 119:161-168 (163)

¹⁶¹ Rulers persecute me without cause,
but my heart trembles at your word.

¹⁶² I rejoice in your promise
like one who finds great spoil.

¹⁶³ I hate and abhor falsehood
but I love your law.

¹⁶⁴ Seven times a day I praise you
for your righteous laws.

¹⁶⁵ Great peace have they who love your law,
and nothing can make them stumble.

¹⁶⁶ I wait for your salvation, O LORD,
and I follow your commands.

¹⁶⁷ I obey your statutes,
for I love them greatly.

¹⁶⁸ I obey your precepts and your statutes,
for all my ways are known to you.

Some people don’t like going by the rule book.  The Psalmist tried to express his exasperation regarding this when he said, “Princes have persecuted me without a cause.”  Today we may shake our head in exasperation when we see someone making a left turn from the right lane of a four lane road.   We are disgusted when we see someone throwing trash from their car onto the side of the road as they drive by.  We may be angered during a board game when an opponent keeps coming up with their own “rules”.

A cubit may have meant one thing for Noah and another for his son.  If a cubit was the distance from the tip of the finger to the elbow then the length would vary depending on who you talk to last.  This is the reason that various countries developed a standard for weight and measurement which over time became accepted globally.  People realized that only when everybody followed the same set of rules could a sense of equity be determined.

This fact is one of the main reasons there is so much conflict in the world today.  Even though many have agreed to an international standard of weight and measurement for trade, they cannot seem to agree on a standard for moral conduct.  God has given us the rule book that must be followed if we hope to be delivered from sin, know the saving grace of Jesus Christ, and have a hope of eternal life.

Dr. Gayle Woods

II Kings 2:1‑12 (9)

Elijah the senior prophet made such a profound impression upon the junior prophet Elisha that when he died Elisha’s last request was that he could have a “double portion of his spirit.”  To want to be like someone is impressive.  To want to have their spirit doubled tells of the awesome influence Elijah wielded.

Quite often you can assume what people have made an impression on people by who they quote.  Sometimes this is even seen in physical mannerisms that are unknowingly assumed.  During my college days at Kansas City College and Bible School I was privileged to sit under the teaching of some men of great spiritual prowess.  I have noticed since those days that students who attended the college with me were marked by these men as well.  A pithy quote from Dr. Omar Lee is often tossed into a conversations by one of his former students.  Many are the stories that are shared in and out of the pulpit by Dr. Robert E. Carroll’s preacher boys.  The classes that began on our knees and continued on through the next period are memories that glow brightly.

To know people of spiritual stature is noteworthy.  To emulate them desiring to attain spiritual vistas that they were unable to reach is desirable.  “Lord, could we have a double portion of their spirit?”

by Dr. Gayle Woods