14.You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill can’t be hidden.
15.Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house.
When we talk about understanding something often we will express it in terms of “the light coming on”. The light Jesus is referring to here, I think, is the understanding that comes through relationship with Him, with Papa and with Holy Spirit. Why do I think that? Because the lamp Jesus was referring to is an oil burning lamp. So, it is a picture of us (the lamp) and the burning oil (Holy Spirit).
But all too often, Jesus is saying, we grab a measuring basket and we put it on top of that relationship and effectively stop any sensation of the “light coming on”. Or, to put it another way, we allow measures into our lives that diminish the relationship that gives us real understanding.
Herein we find a definition of an ungodly measure: Anything that restricts the light flowing from the relationship between us and Papa/Jesus/Holy Spirit. "
The root word picture meaning for the phrase "for they shall soon" is: "mountain water".
Here the focus is on how fast, how swiftly change will come.
Psalm 69:17 And hide not thy face from thy servant; for I am in trouble: hear me speedily.
As I look back on my 59 years of life one things stands out above all else, the speed with which change has occurred through technology.
Isn't it strange how I can so easily attribute the speed of change to the ingenuity of man. Yet, I remain indifferent to this image of the power of God entering into my circumstances, like a river cascading powerfully down a mountain, filling the air with sound and transforming everything that it touches.
​Today, remember you serve the God of the "mountain water", who is mighty to save.
6.in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
The above understanding is that which you get through your own efforts.
It may surprise you to know that the word “aknowledge” also has to do with understanding, but it is an understanding that comes through relationship and specifically in this case understanding that comes through relationship with God.
Many of us, after reading these two verses, find ourselves zeroing in on the word “trust”. Then in one way or the other we begin to apply the “How do you measure up?” question to our current level of trust in the Lord. Almost inevitably this leads us down the path called our own understanding rather than down the path called acknowlege ie entering into deeper relationship with God.
Can I boldly suggest that this is the equivalent of eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good & Evil as opposed to eating from the Tree of Life!!!
You see, in order to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good & Evil Adam and Eve had to turn their backs on the relationship they had with God. In other words they had to forsake the understanding they had through relationship with God in favour of the understanding they acquired through their own self effort.
For me this illustrates just how dangerous the “How do you measure up?” or to the more personal “How do I measure up? questions really are. These questions are constantly being asked of us at work, in our marriages, in our relationships, through our culture, through advertising and through all shapes and sizes of religion, including the one we call christianity. In fact these questions so permeate our lives that for the most part we no longer realise that they are being asked of us, we simply accept them as the norm."
The word picture meaning for envious is: "what follows the action of strength".
An action of strength should be a reason to celebrate victory.
But, all too often we immediately start comparing our action of strength with the actions of others. Not long after that we find ourselves consumed with thoughts of envy and jealousy and the idea of celebrating anything quickly vanishes.
I believe this cycle exposes our core beliefs regarding our unique God given purpose.
Your purpose is your "action of strength" and if your purpose is unique to you, and you alone, then there is no place for comparison, envy or jealousy.
​Because you are the only person on the planet who can do what God designed you to do.
So, rather than comparing yourself with people, look for the uniqueness of purpose in others and join the celebration of their "actions of strength". Before you know it, there will be standing room only at your victory parties.
The Hebrew word picture behind evildoers is: "a person to be seen to see".
Could it be that evildoers want to be seen by you?
In order to see your heart response.
One of our greatest weapons in life is for evildoers to see the response they did not expect from us.
Luke 6:29 “To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.
In Hebrew the word fret is associated with anger and envy.
Basically when we fret we are inclined towards getting hot and fiery.
There is plenty of material in daily life that we can "fret" about.
Strangely, the Hebrew word picture for fret is: "to separate a person to reveal".
When you get hot and fiery you are not a person others want to be around.
So, next time you "fret" and suddenly find yourself alone, calm yourself and check the state of your heart.
Could be your fretting has revealed your level of distrust in the Lord's ability to work in and through all your circumstances.
Do not fret, rather be thankful that Father is working all things together for good.
If you are like me you have probably been in the habit of ignoring the little headings, like the one above, "A Psalm of David".
The word picture for psalm is "to cut off the bitterness of chaos".
Given that the word picture for thoughts is "silent balance of chaos" it would appear to me that a daily dose of the Psalms (to cut off the bitterness of chaos) is essential as we rise from chaos into the fullness of our God given purpose.