THE CROSS

“And what does the LORD

Micah 6:8

Intr.:

require of you?

1. To act justly and
2. to love mercy and
3. to walk humbly with your God.”

End:

“Confronting debt important for less stress life,” it says in the paper today. (Northern Advocate, Friday, September 16, 2016)

I am surprised myself that I am reading about debt again. In the article I am told what debt can do to us:

• Relationships can be destroyed by debt.
• Lives can be destroyed by debt.
• Debt repayments can cause financial hardship.
• Debt can drag us down
• Debt can cause fear.

Tips are given on how to confront debt. I think the summary is to pay off debt and not to take on more.

The Bible says in Romans 13:8, “LET NO DEBT REMAIN OUTSTANDING, EXCEPT THE CONTINUING DEBT TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER,…”

People who do what the Bible says do not have to confront debt.

THE CROSS

“I knew

Jonah 4:2

Intr.:

that you are

1. a gracious and
2. compassionate God,
3. slow to anger and
4. abounding in love,
5. a God who relents from sending calamity.”

End:

“MAN KOMMT DEM GEHEIMNIS DES DREIEINIGEN GOTTES AM BESTEN NAHE, WENN MAN IHN ANBETET.” – Wilhelm Busch

People have debt. Countries have overseas debt.

What does it mean to be in debt?

Two things:

1. It means one is living beyond one’s income
2. It means one must pay interest on the debt.

Where there is debt there is a lender and a borrower. Debt is profitable for the lender. Debt is a burden for the borrower.

Countries with large overseas debt create a burden for generations to come as they are the ones required to pay the debt. Someone said, “being committed to debt from cradle to grave.”

The Bible says, “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, …” You find that in Romans 13:8

The LORD wants us to return to him and in the middle of chapter four in the prophet of AMOS we find out how far he goes to make us return to him.

Here are some of the things he does:

• Empty stomachs and lack of bread he gives us.
• He is also withholding rain from us.
• He is striking our gardens with blight and mildew.
• He is sending plagues as well.

But in Amos chapter four in the verses 6-11 it says five times, “‘…, yet you have not returned to me,’ declares the LORD.”

What is your answer?