"Especially the Parchments"

Sunday, March 17, 2024

by Dr. Paul Chappell

Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me: For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry. And Tychicus have I sent to Ephesus. The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.

2 Timothy 4:9-13

Just five days after being sworn in as President, Franklin D. Roosevelt paid a visit to retired Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. who was celebrating his ninety-second birthday. Holmes had been appointed to the court by Teddy Roosevelt, and for nearly thirty years served as one of the most noted members of the body. Roosevelt found the elderly justice reading a copy of Plutarch's Parallel Lives, with biographical sketches of numerous Greek and Roman leaders. When FDR asked why he was reading that (with the implication that at his advanced age Holmes was wasting his time) Holmes replied, “To improve the mind.”

We never reach the point where we have learned all there is to know about God and His Word. No matter how many years we have been saved, how many church services we have attended, and how many times we have read the Bible, there is always more to discover. Even as an aged prisoner, knowing that he would never be released from jail, Paul asked Timothy to bring him copies of the Hebrew scriptures. Even before his conversion, Paul as part of his training as a Pharisee had become intimately familiar with the Old Testament. It is likely that he had memorized most of the first five books of the Bible. After his conversion, Paul studied the Old Testament even more in light of now knowing Jesus personally. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit inspired Paul as one of the human penmen of much of the New Testament. So from every angle, Paul was familiar with both the Old and the New Testaments. Yet, even after all of the years Paul had spent in Scripture and even as he knew he would soon be martyred, Paul was still seeking and finding truths and insights from the Word of God.

Today's Growth Principle
A healthy Christian at any age will be characterized by a desire to know more of God and His Word.

Old Testament Reading

Deuteronomy 30-31

CHAPTER 30

¹ And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee, ² And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; ³ That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee. ⁴ If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee: ⁵ And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers. ⁶ And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. ⁷ And the LORD thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee. ⁸ And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the LORD, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day. ⁹ And the LORD thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the LORD will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers: ¹⁰ If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.

¹¹ For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. ¹² It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? ¹³ Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? ¹⁴ But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

¹⁵ See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; ¹⁶ In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. ¹⁷ But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; ¹⁸ I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it. ¹⁹ I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: ²⁰ That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

CHAPTER 31

¹ And Moses went and spake these words unto all Israel. ² And he said unto them, I am an hundred and twenty years old this day; I can no more go out and come in: also the LORD hath said unto me, Thou shalt not go over this Jordan. ³ The LORD thy God, he will go over before thee, and he will destroy these nations from before thee, and thou shalt possess them: and Joshua, he shall go over before thee, as the LORD hath said. ⁴ And the LORD shall do unto them as he did to Sihon and to Og, kings of the Amorites, and unto the land of them, whom he destroyed. ⁵ And the LORD shall give them up before your face, that ye may do unto them according unto all the commandments which I have commanded you. ⁶ Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. ⁷ And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this people unto the land which the LORD hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it. ⁸ And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

⁹ And Moses wrote this law, and delivered it unto the priests the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and unto all the elders of Israel. ¹⁰ And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles, ¹¹ When all Israel is come to appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose, thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing. ¹² Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law: ¹³ And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.

¹⁴ And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thy days approach that thou must die: call Joshua, and present yourselves in the tabernacle of the congregation, that I may give him a charge. And Moses and Joshua went, and presented themselves in the tabernacle of the congregation. ¹⁵ And the LORD appeared in the tabernacle in a pillar of a cloud: and the pillar of the cloud stood over the door of the tabernacle. ¹⁶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them. ¹⁷ Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us? ¹⁸ And I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods. ¹⁹ Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel. ²⁰ For when I shall have brought them into the land which I sware unto their fathers, that floweth with milk and honey; and they shall have eaten and filled themselves, and waxen fat; then will they turn unto other gods, and serve them, and provoke me, and break my covenant. ²¹ And it shall come to pass, when many evils and troubles are befallen them, that this song shall testify against them as a witness; for it shall not be forgotten out of the mouths of their seed: for I know their imagination which they go about, even now, before I have brought them into the land which I sware.

²² Moses therefore wrote this song the same day, and taught it the children of Israel. ²³ And he gave Joshua the son of Nun a charge, and said, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou shalt bring the children of Israel into the land which I sware unto them: and I will be with thee. ²⁴ And it came to pass, when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished, ²⁵ That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying, ²⁶ Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee. ²⁷ For I know thy rebellion, and thy stiff neck: behold, while I am yet alive with you this day, ye have been rebellious against the LORD; and how much more after my death? ²⁸ Gather unto me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their ears, and call heaven and earth to record against them. ²⁹ For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days; because ye will do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands. ³⁰ And Moses spake in the ears of all the congregation of Israel the words of this song, until they were ended.

New Testament Reading

Mark 15:1-25

¹ And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate. ² And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it. ³ And the chief priests accused him of many things: but he answered nothing. ⁴ And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answerest thou nothing? behold how many things they witness against thee. ⁵ But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marvelled. ⁶ Now at that feast he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired. ⁷ And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection. ⁸ And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had ever done unto them. ⁹ But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews? ¹⁰ For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy. ¹¹ But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them. ¹² And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews? ¹³ And they cried out again, Crucify him. ¹⁴ Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.

¹⁵ And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified. ¹⁶ And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band. ¹⁷ And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head, ¹⁸ And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! ¹⁹ And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him. ²⁰ And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him. ²¹ And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.

²² And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. ²³ And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. ²⁴ And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. ²⁵ And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.

Proverbs Reading

Proverbs 17

¹ Better is a dry morsel, and quietness therewith, than an house full of sacrifices with strife. ² A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren. ³ The fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold: but the LORD trieth the hearts. ⁴ A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips; and a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue. ⁵ Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker: and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished. ⁶ Children's children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers. ⁷ Excellent speech becometh not a fool: much less do lying lips a prince. ⁸ A gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it: whithersoever it turneth, it prospereth. ⁹ He that covereth a transgression seeketh love; but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends. ¹⁰ A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool. ¹¹ An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him. ¹² Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly. ¹³ Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house. ¹⁴ The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with. ¹⁵ He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD. ¹⁶ Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it? ¹⁷ A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. ¹⁸ A man void of understanding striketh hands, and becometh surety in the presence of his friend. ¹⁹ He loveth transgression that loveth strife: and he that exalteth his gate seeketh destruction. ²⁰ He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief. ²¹ He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and the father of a fool hath no joy. ²² A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. ²³ A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment. ²⁴ Wisdom is before him that hath understanding; but the eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth. ²⁵ A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him. ²⁶ Also to punish the just is not good, nor to strike princes for equity. ²⁷ He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. ²⁸ Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.