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When Fiesta Bean Dip Makes a Salad Extraordinary 
JEREMIAH 51:54-52:34 | TITUS 3:1-15 | PSALM 100:1-5 | PROVERBS 26:18-19
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The weeping prophet has come to the end of his prophecies.
Jeremiah wraps up with a final foretelling of the doomsday that Babylon will soon see. Not only does he speak these prophecies, but he writes them down and sends the scroll to Babylon to have it publicly read and then tossed into the mighty Euphrates.
Any Babylonian with half an ear would have done well to have heard these words, and one can only wonder if there might have been any who might have made further inquiries and efforts to reverse these horrific prophecies against them!
Regardless, Nebuchadnezzar’s reign will not last long.
Next, there is some back-tracking of the account of the fall of Jerusalem, and in this way, the book of Jeremiah comes to a close.
We turn now to our reading of Paul’s letter to Titus, and continue to learn more about Paul’s intent in giving out these many detailed directives on personal and corporate conduct. One can only hope that Paul’s attempts at clarity concerning the reasons advocated for doing good come through to his readers in the church.
Paul starts out by offering a broad exhortation to be mindful of authority, and mentions in passing “to be ready to do whatever is good,” but it is only a few lines further that he lays out the plan of salvation and takes care to state unequivocally the non-association between our good works, also known as “righteous things” and the “kindness and love of God” who “because of his mercy” has “justified (us) by his grace” and made us “heirs having the hope of eternal life.”
So powerful and essential is this doctrine that Paul follows it up by saying, “And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
“Doing good” is a fundamental part of the Christian life, and a by-product of our “rebirth and renewal” in the new law of Christ.
Remember, this is a new law, a new covenant between God and man which makes null and void the previous one, also known as the Mosaic Law.
Paul has already addressed the old law earlier on in this very letter in pointing out the purpose of the law which was to make us aware of our sinful nature, but the fulfillment of the law has been accomplished by the work of Christ on the cross. The knowledge, realization, and acceptance of this truth brings about salvation, i.e., the saving of one’s soul.
The two most fundamental aspects of this phenomenon are: Salvation cannot be earned by good works, and is free to all who believe in the saving grace of the work of Christ on the cross.
One might ask this question of Paul: You mean to say there’s nothing further I must do to earn it? Perhaps a pilgrimage, or a penance, or a feeding of the poor that would demonstrate and measure my good works to further earn meritorious favor with God?
And Paul’s answer would be: That’s right, you need do nothing more, but you would WANT to do it because it is the right thing to do, and because you can!
But enough of my paraphrasing Paul’s words. In his own words, these are his fundamental statements that point to the fact that we are saved in order to do good. Not the other way around!
Paul says: 3 At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
Paul also has some very practical advice that is quite timeless in its relevance and appeal.
He says to Titus, 9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. 10 Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. 11 You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned.
Is that sufficiently clear, gentle reader? Paul’s rule of thumb is as simple as it comes: once, twice, and that’s all, folks!
And in this way, Paul wraps us this short letter to Titus. He has dwelt much on the business of advocating “doing good” and has backed that up with an infrastructure of contextual information and advice that is as broad as it is deep.
But one last time, Paul exhorts Titus to instill in the church the good practice of doing good. He goes on to say: 14 Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives.
Finally, Paul ends his letter in his affectionate style of sending greetings to friends, and asking Titus to come and visit him in the winter. His inimitable style is evident in these lines: 15 Everyone with me sends you greetings. Greet those who love us in the faith. Grace be with you all.
Next, we turn to our Psalm of the day. Psalm 100 is another Psalm that I have had committed to memory since my childhood, thanks to my mother. I reproduce it in its entirety in the King James Version that I am familiar with:
1Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
2Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
Finally, a couple of verses from the book of Proverbs in which Solomon, wise king of Israel, speaks of the ills of afflicting pain on another in a deceptive way. He says:
18 Like a maniac shooting
flaming arrows of death
19 is one who deceives their neighbor
and says, “I was only joking!”
May God bless the reading and reflection of His Word. Amen.
Ukai’s: The Best Sushi in Town 
Guess Which One’s Mine! 
BM Harvest Pumpkin Ale? Must Be Fall 
Tomato Juice? Must Be Tuesday! 
JEREMIAH 51:1-53 | TITUS 2:1-15 | PSALM 99:1-9 | PROVERBS 26:17
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Jeremiah has been on a roll. After prophesying the downfall of Jerusalem and of ten Gentile nations, he now takes a moment to catch his breath.
But only long enough to exhale, and then he returns with a vengeance, but this time to predict the fall of Babylon itself.
For all practical purposes, Israel is no more: the holy city of Jerusalem has been decimated; the people taken into captivity; the rest of the people have hastened to go into exile; and barely a handful remain where they are—desolate, and in despair.
But Jeremiah has words of promise for this pathetic group. This is what he prophesies for the “remnant”:
5 For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the LORD Almighty,
though their land is full of guilt
before the Holy One of Israel.
And that is not all. There is a time and place for everything. It is Babylon that receives a most harsh verdict in the foretellings of Jeremiah. This is what is in store for them, says Jeremiah:
The LORD will carry out his purpose,
his decree against the people of Babylon.
13 You who live by many waters
and are rich in treasures,
your end has come,
the time for you to be destroyed.
Jeremiah has no qualms in telling it like it is, and he does so yet again. He has many a time lamented the abhorrent practice of idolatry, and he is reiterating his views on the matter in the following verses. He says:
17 “…every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
The images he makes are a fraud;
they have no breath in them.
18 They are worthless, the objects of mockery;
when their judgment comes, they will perish.
19 He who is the Portion of Jacob is not like these,
for he is the Maker of all things,
including the people of his inheritance—
the LORD Almighty is his name.
And as for Babylon, a day will soon come, when this will be their fate, says Jeremiah:
31 One courier follows another
and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
that his entire city is captured,
32 the river crossings seized,
the marshes set on fire,
and the soldiers terrified.”
No, it does not bode well for Babylon. Her worst nightmare will certainly come to pass, as per the word of the Lord delivered to Jeremiah, who goes on to say:
37 Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
a haunt of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,
a place where no one lives.
Well, we must leave this domain for a little while, and turn now to our reading of Paul’s letter to Titus.
Titus, a young man, not unlike Timothy, has found a mentor in Paul, who cares deeply for the church that has been planted in Crete, and to which Titus has been sent to minister to. Paul takes care to go over so many details, both small and large, that I never cease to be amazed at his capacity for thinking of every possible thing concerning one’s conduct, one to another.
He has specific advice for all, and pays attention to each group. There was evidently a mix of people from every walk of life in these newly founded churches: Jew and Gentile, bond and free—no one was barred from accepting the free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, and all were a part of the church.
Paul’s advice to Titus, the pastor of this church, is therefore specific to the various groups. The advice, is timeless, however, and it would behoove us to note how essential each aspect ought to be in these modern times as well.
For the older men, Paul says: 1 You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine. 2 Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.
For the older women who would in turn teach younger women, his advice is: 3 Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. 4 Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.
For young men, the advice is: 6 Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. 7 In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness 8 and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.
And for the slaves, there is specific advice as well: 9 Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, 10 and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.
And if there was any doubt about why even bother about instructing this one or that one, Paul makes it clear with this statement:
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.
Is that sufficiently clear, gentle reader?
Paul carries on: 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
Therefore, do good for the sake of doing good, and nothing more, he seems to say. Not because you can earn something from it, but because it is the right thing to do, and because it is the least that you can do after so great a gift of redemption in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ has been given to you.
Given all that, why would you NOT do good?!
We turn now to our Psalm of the day, and find in Psalm 99, a majestic psalm of praise. In these simple lines, the psalmist speaks of the Lord’s great love and forgiveness to his people, Israel. David says:
8 LORD our God,
you answered them;
you were to Israel a forgiving God,
though you punished their misdeeds.
Finally, a marvelously graphic verse concerning busybodies:
17 Like one who grabs a stray dog by the ears
is someone who rushes into a quarrel not their own.
May God bless the reading and reflection of His Word. Amen.
Carrot Juice: Good and Good for You? 
