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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – SEPTEMBER 14

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As The Flower of the Field,

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Part 7:

“How Dieth the Wise? As the Fool!”

To read Part 1, click here… “March 19th (As the Flower of the Field!)”

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 “Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth

even to me (Solomon); and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity. For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool!” Ecclesiastes 2:15, 16

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One man was lamenting to a friend about his grandson, and all the trouble he was going through in his short life of 21 years.

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The friend replied… “Well, you know, each person has to make choices. And if you make good choices, things are going to go well for you. But if you make bad choices, things are going to go badly.”

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To this comment, the grandfather answered… “Well, that’s true. My grandson makes a lot of bad decisions. But does that make his situation any less tragic? And does that mean that I should be any less sympathetic toward my grandson’s suffering and sorrow?”

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Punk with Mohawk haircut – cropped and altered image – Wikimedia – Share-alike License

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CAUSE-AND-EFFECT

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Back in Jesus’ earthly sojourn, the sect known as the Pharisees were the guardians of moral standards in Israel of that day.

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And these rulers held a very “cause-and-effect” viewpoint about life. And so, these self-righteous moralists attributed much, or most human tragedies and human sufferings to be the result of bad decision-making.

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James Tissot – The Pharisee and Publican – Brooklyn Museum & Wikimedia – US Public Domain

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A WORLD OF CHOICES

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Well, it truly is a world which requires many decisions to be made, both big and small.

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And it is also true that many people have the habit of making bad decisions, while others seem to make better decisions, generally speaking.

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And it has been proven over and over that good decision-making tends to result in a much happier life.

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Male – female symbol – Wikimedia – GNU General License

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But all this information is probably nothing new to the Reader. These concepts are merely basic concepts of life.

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But the question that today’s devotional would like to ask is this: “So what? What difference does it really make, if I am a bad decision-maker or a good one? Don’t we all go to the same place?”

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Question Marks – At a loss – svg – Wikimedia Commons – Share-Alike License

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SIDE-BY-SIDE FOREVER!

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Listen to the Wise Man once again…. “And how dieth the wise man? as the fool!” Ecclesiastes 2:16

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Oh yes, the good decision-maker is probably going to enjoy life more than the fool.

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But once life ends, the worldly-wise will go down to the grave! And as this above verse laments, both the fool and the wise man end up in the same place! The grave! Lying right next to each other! Worldly-wise men and fools together! Forever! (‘Sheol’ is the Hebrew translation for the English names, ‘Hell’, or, ‘the grave’)

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Wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery – Wikipedia – Public Dom.

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PLANET EARTH: A GIANT GRAVEYARD!

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Just think about it! The earth is the grave for all previous generations of those who have lived before us! Billions of souls who lived out their lives upon this planet. And some of them were wise in earthly wisdom.

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But the vast majority were bereft of earthly wisdom, more or less. They were fools, to put it concisely!

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Calvary Cemetery Queens – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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But what does it really matter? In the long term, why are the wise any better than fools?

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Question Marks – At a loss – svg – Wikimedia Commons – Share-Alike License

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THE WISE AND FOOLS DIE TOGETHER

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Listen once again to the wisest of all mortals…“Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity (worthlessness & meaningless). For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool!” Ecclesiastes 2:15, 16

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The point that Solomon is trying to convey here is that in the long term, it really doesn’t matter who was wise and who was a fool. Because all eventually return to the dust, and like that old song sings, “Dust in the wind. All we are is dust in the wind!” And the repeated message of Solomon’s swan-song book, Ecclesiastes, are the words, “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity!”

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Dore – Solomon – Proverbs – Wikipedia – Public domain

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“DUST IN THE WIND?”

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This is the big message of Ecclesiastes: that all is meaningless, because all will eventually return to the dust and be forgotten!

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Foggy Church Graveyard – Wikimedia – Creative Commons 2.0

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GOOD NEWS?

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Well now, with such a seemingly hopeless message as Ecclesiastes, is there any Good News to Solomon’s dismal summation of life? Well yes! Solomon ends this little book on a positive note…

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Listen to Solomon…“And further, by these (words of wisdom), my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:12-14

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Here Solomon is diminishing the value of studying many books. Yes, while the world is ever-learning, the world is never able to discover the one truly important attainment in life: to fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the only thing that has any real meaning!

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USMC – Prayer before Bible study – Wikimedia – Public Domain

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“NO LONGER I THAT LIVE, BUT JESUS IN ME”

Galatians 2:20

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And to keep God’s commandments is to allow Jesus to indwell our heart, and then let Him live out His holy life through us!

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And this is the only choice that has any meaning, because it guarantees eternal life and everlasting joy! And then and only then will life have any true meaning!

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Because eternal life insures that we won’t merely return to the dust for all eternity!

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The River Of The Water Of Life by H. Melville – Wikimedia – Public Domain

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RESURRECTION MORNING!

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And the fact is, on Resurrection morning there will be many who lived as fools, until the day they chose to become followers of Jesus. And they will rise up out of their graves only to fulfill the following passage…“And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel 12:2, 3

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Yes, all their former years of being fools will be nullified by their making that one wise decision…to follow Jesus! Then on that Glorious Morning, they will rise and shine as the stars forever and ever! And they will be forever young!

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Resurrection Morning – Jan Luyken – Bible – Wikipedia – US Public Domain

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ONLY ONE TRUE GOOD DECISION!

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And so, amidst all the good decisions that a worldly-wise man may make, there is only one good decision that has any true meaning: and that one meaningful decision is the choice, to follow Jesus as His disciple!

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Every other so-called “good decision” without Jesus, without Salvation, is merely “Dust in the wind!”

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TO READ PART 8, GO HERE…

January 19 (As The Flower of the Field, Part 8: “And Then I’ll Be Happy!”)

Girl – “Depression” – by Danielzanetti – cropped image – for Wikimedia – C.C. Share-alike License 3.0

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TODAY’S PRAYER…

“Dear Lord, I choose to become one of the truly rich souls who have everlasting life! Guide me up the Heavenward pathway, day-by-day…

Praying Hands – Otto Greiner – Wikimedia – .bassenge.com – Cropped image – Public Domain

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READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “The Flower of Heaven Constellation“ or you can also read this shorter article…JULY 19 (As The Flower of the Field, Part 4: The Eternal Beauty Salon!)

Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license

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THE END

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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN

Info & pics of constellations on this site from Wikipedia & International Astronomical Union (click here)

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FLOWER OF THE FIELD CONSTELLATION

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This is perhaps one of the most amazing constellations that God has created! It truly looks like a flower, and appears to be blowing in the direction of westward. But as autumn draws near, this constellation appears to bow itself down, just like the flowers of Earth bow down, at the summer’s end.

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And these are not merely obscure stars. These are among the biggest and brightest stars in the night heavens!

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The Two Turtle-Doves Constellation is also known as Sagittarius .

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The Flower of the Field is commonly known as Scorpio .

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But there is another obvious aspect to this constellation group. Notice that the birds are flying in the same direction as the flower is bending; it is as if the east wind is blowing these heavenly messengers…

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“The wind blows where it desires, and you hear the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it comes, and where it goes: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. John 3:8.

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So here is another incredible Bible concept, written in the heavens! And God has spoken of these signs! Listen… “For ever, O LORD, Thy Word is settled in heaven.” Psalm 119:89

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THE ZODIAC CONSTELLATION NAMES

By the way, it is not the purpose of www.theheavensdeclare.net to give any validity to the Zodiac or any pagan deities. But the common names of many constellations must be given, solely for the purpose of locating them on star-charts.

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FLOWER CONSTELLATION BOWS DOWN…

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AUGUST 28TH, 2011

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It has become apparent, on this date, that as summer draws to a close, this “Flower of the Field Constellation” appears to bend almost completely down. This occurs as it travels into the western skies. It somehow rotates in order to produce this effect. This is a very wonderful phenomenon…and biblical too! After all, the Bible says “the grass withers and the flower falls away”. And that’s exactly what this flower constellation seems to do. It almost seems to be bowing itself…in the direction of that bright and beautiful star, “Arcturus” (which represents Jesus). This would make sense. After all, Scripture states…

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“…unto Me (the Lord), every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear… Bel bows down, Nebo stoops… They stoop, they bow down together… Listen to Me… all you remnant of the house of Israel (God’s people)… which are carried from the womb: And even to your old age I am he… even I will carry, and will deliver you.” Isaiah 46″1-4 (condensed)

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READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “Flower of the Field Constellation”

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TOMORROW…

SEPTEMBER 15 (Eternal Torment? Part 12: Outer Darkness)

Brooklyn Museum – The Rich Man In Hell – James Tissot – Wikipedia – US Public Domain.

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20+ MINUTE AUDIO JEREMIAH STUDY

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ALL‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. 

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THIS IS STUDY #622 PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING…

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Prophet Jeremiah – www.christianimagesource.com – Public Domain

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Those who are interested in using photos on this page may click on the provided image credit link below each photo, to get to Wikimedia Commons for various licensing names, details, and tags, and all other necessary info on any particular photo.