God promises: “Even a woman may forget her nursing child, yet I will not forget you. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.” (Isaiah 49: 15,16) Among those who first heard these words, who could have anticipated the Greatest Cost, Christ’s engraved/cross-scarred hands, seven hundred years later?

Friends, pastor/poet Holy George Herbert (1593 -1633) shone like a lodestar for my college English Lit. professor, Dr. Ed Ericson. Ericson told us: “When Herbert crossed from his home to pray in the church at regularly scheduled hours, men working in the fields stopped working, knelt in prayer, joining their parson in spirit. He became known throughout England as Holy Mr. Herbert.”
That 364-year-old story planted a lively seed in my liberated soul.
Paul wrote: “You belong to him who has been raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God.” (Romans 7:4) “Valley of Vision” heralds: “Resurrected Jesus strides forth as Victor, Conqueror of death, hell and all opposing might, trampling the powers of darkness, the devil’s scepter shivered, his wrongful throne leveled.”
Really? Yes.
Despite having only a mustard-seed faith, for me, college meant new worlds opening, including Herbert’s “soul-full” poetry.
For “soul,” some pursue “psychology” – literally, “soul” (“psyche”) “study” (“logy”). But, much “psychology” grasps neither our souls nor God. Understand Solzhenitsyn: “The meaning of earthly existence lies not in material prospering but in soul development.”
Here, to develop “soul,” we’ll be grounded by Scripture: a Hebrew word, ‘qashar’ and Isaiah. Eventually, we’ll return to Herbert.
The Bible is refreshingly soul-full. Consider, Benjamin’s father, Jacob. Jacob’s “‘soul’ is ‘bound up’ ‘in’” (‘with’/’attached to’/‘dependent upon’/‘joined to’/‘trussed to’) Benjamin’s “‘soul.’” And: “Jonathan’s ‘soul’ was “knit” to the ‘soul’ of David. Jonathan loved him as his own ‘soul.’” (Genesis 44:30, 1 Samuel 18:1)
Note the connection of “qashar,” “bound up”/“knit,” with “soul.” Healthy/holy souls deepen relationships.
Likewise, when a co-laborer first held his adopted baby, my friend felt his heart enlarge with new rivers of love. Tender filigrees of love in the soul may become strong cords binding soul and soul.
Sadly, forces, like death, attempt to rupture those bonds. “We said a heartbreaking goodbye to my Uncle Nat Belz, a great and kind friend. We already miss his brilliant sense of humor and his unwavering faith in God.” (Stephen Lutz, 4/1/23)
Accordingly, the Great Soul asks: “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no ‘compassion’ on the son of her womb?” (Isaiah 49:15) “Compassion” is from “racham,” “womb,” often a place of bonded love.
Could a mother “forget” her nursing child? Yes, the Fall made us self-absorbed, oblivious “fools.”
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These rules I propose to teach to those who are able and willing to learn, if God our Lord do not withhold from me, while I write, the thoughts He is wont to vouchsafe to me in my meditations on this subject. But before I enter upon this undertaking, I think it well to meet the objections of those who are likely to take exception to the work, or who would do so, did I not conciliate them beforehand.

There are certain rules for the interpretation of Scripture which I think might with great advantage be taught to earnest students of the word, that they may profit not only from reading the works of others who have laid open the secrets of the sacred writings, but also from themselves opening such secrets to others. These rules I propose to teach to those who are able and willing to learn, if God our Lord do not withhold from me, while I write, the thoughts He is wont to vouchsafe to me in my meditations on this subject. But before I enter upon this undertaking, I think it well to meet the objections of those who are likely to take exception to the work, or who would do so, did I not conciliate them beforehand. And if, after all, men should still be found to make objections, yet at least they will not prevail with others (over whom they might have influence, did they not find them forearmed against their assaults), to turn them back from a useful study to the dull sloth of ignorance.
There are some, then, likely to object to this work of mine, because they have failed to understand the rules here laid down. Others, again, will think that I have spent my labor to no purpose, because, though they understand the rules, yet in their attempts to apply them and to interpret Scripture by them, they have failed to clear up the point they wish cleared up; and these, because they have received no assistance from this work themselves, will give it as their opinion that it can be of no use to anybody.
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Faith is the substance of things hoped for. It is not a blind leap of hope into darkness, but a very tangible realism. That’s one of the reasons why it is so vital for a believer to read the Bible, be conversant with its claims, for the more one does the more the evidence that Russell cried out for will inhabit your soul and give it peace and comfort. Many times in life we allow doubt to flourish because we don’t take the time to nourish faith with truth, truth about God, truth about forgiveness of sin, and many other aspects of our Christian religion.

There’s been a theme developing the last week or so in our evening service on the Lord’s Day and in adult Sabbath School, that wasn’t intentional on my part. However, that’s how God in His providence works all the time. Sweetly complying things with one another in order to show forth His glory. We’ve been looking at Romans in the morning and our topical series on Sunday nights has explored the question “How God Works”. If you know anything about either of those then it makes sense why they make a good pair. One of Paul’s main concerns is how is it that our perfect and holy God was reconciled with fallen, sinful humanity if He is the all-powerful mighty one? As we have seen as we’ve spent time considering Jehovah’s attributes it is because He is the God of mercy and grace that this is the case. In today’s prayer and worship help we will speak a little bit on the topic of the practicality presented to a believer by the great truths offered in a better understanding of the nature of our Heavenly Father, His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. We’ll see how the Trinity especially is of great help to Christians everywhere, at all times.
In the passage we looked at this most recent Sabbath morning, Romans 9, we have these famous words. “…for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls.” In that discussion of Jacob and Esau the apostle makes clear that the establishment of Jacob as the son of promise, and not Esau, was grounded in nothing about them as individuals. But that’s too narrow in a sense. We need to understand something concerning the reality that election is neither about Jacob nor Esau. The former was the beneficiary of the sovereign love of God in a way the later was not for sure, but what should that then result in for those of us on Team Jacob rather than Team Esau?
Considering the truth that Jehovah through His great benevolence towards men as sinners has sent His Son to lay down His life for the ungodly, and how the Father and the Son send the Spirit to make effectual that which was decreed by the Triune God it should drive us not merely towards obedience, but something higher than that, pure worship and praise.
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