From A Gospel Pageant: A Reader's Guide to the Book of Revelation by Allan Chapple, page 69.
Showing posts with label The Bible. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Bible. Show all posts
10 September 2014
God's Kingdom will prevail
From A Gospel Pageant: A Reader's Guide to the Book of Revelation by Allan Chapple, page 69.
12 June 2014
Encouragement to share what you know
Like attracts like. So I am pretty sure that you, dear reader, like reading your Bible like me. That you probably know your way around the whole of the Bible. That you know Bible reading isn't just a daily exercise one does to tick a box but something we do to deepen our relationship with God. That the more you read the Bible, the easier it is to understand and the more you understand it, the hungrier you are to read it.
It occurred to me a while ago that rabbiting on about Bible reading here on this blog is probably "preaching to the converted" for the most part. I like to keep you all ( and myself) encouraged. But guess what?? I had a light bulb moment a few months ago. There are people who I sit with in church week after week who find the Bible an enigma.
Last year I got up in church during the notices section and started flapping my favourite Bible reading plan around - just like I do my virtual flapping around of it periodically on this blog - explaining the options of doing the full plan or just a part of it (like following along the New Testament readings to start with, to help get into the habit.) And at various points this year I've got up and given my three suggestions for those who started but ground to a halt or for those who never started and wished they had...
I spent ten minutes going through the contents page of the Old Testament explaining the three different sections and how the genres change, each requiring a different approach to reading.
We had a break for a cup of tea and then I spent the last half hour showing this page from the IVP New Bible Commentary found at the beginning of the section on 1 and 2 Kings - a table of who was king - when and where - during the period of the kings.
Finally I gave them my notes from here about how the books of the prophets fit into the chronology of the kings, most of which I had sourced from the Lion Handbook to the Bible - nothing too complicated. I didn't read through the notes slavishly but just ran through a couple by way of example and left it at that. (Feel free to lift and use this - or anything else from my blog - if that is helpful.)
I'd been a Christian ten years, struggling my way through the Bible, before I met that roadmap. What a revelation! And as long time readers will know, it is only in recent years that I have come to grips with the prophets - and that in only a small way. But now I've got a handle on that section of the Bible and it's making much more sense.
One of the women who came to the guided tour said that she had been in churches and in and out of the Bible for 60 years and this was the first time she'd had this stuff explained to her. This isn't a criticism of the preaching she's sat under all these years. You just don't learn frameworks during church sermons. That's not what sermons are about. She left encouraged to press on with the hard but rewarding work of Bible reading.
Maybe you don't know your way around the Old Testament yet. And if not, these particular posts might be of help. Maybe you DO know your way around the Old Testament but don't think you could possibly manage to do something like this. That's fine. This is not for everyone. But I'm pretty sure that some of you could do this. And if that is you, then can I encourage you to have a go at sharing the framework of the Old Testament with those around you. (Or ask someone you know who could do this sort of thing to do it for you.)
There will people you know - people who maybe, just maybe, don't read as widely as you might - who don't know how the Bible hangs together and whose lives will be transformed if you give them the basics. I've been blogging about this sort of thing for years. It's good to have shared it in person with some of those I meet Sunday by Sunday in church and I'm looking forward to doing it again some other time down the track.
Oh, and by the way, if you aren't using a Bible reading plan but wished you were, the beginning of July is another EXCELLENT entry point for this plan. And I'll be saying that in church in the next couple of weeks too.
It occurred to me a while ago that rabbiting on about Bible reading here on this blog is probably "preaching to the converted" for the most part. I like to keep you all ( and myself) encouraged. But guess what?? I had a light bulb moment a few months ago. There are people who I sit with in church week after week who find the Bible an enigma.
Last year I got up in church during the notices section and started flapping my favourite Bible reading plan around - just like I do my virtual flapping around of it periodically on this blog - explaining the options of doing the full plan or just a part of it (like following along the New Testament readings to start with, to help get into the habit.) And at various points this year I've got up and given my three suggestions for those who started but ground to a halt or for those who never started and wished they had...
- Start from where you left off and don't worry about the dates. Don't be a slave to the dates.
- Start from where you left off, do double readings as you can and soon you will catch up.
- Cut your losses and start from today's date.
I spent ten minutes going through the contents page of the Old Testament explaining the three different sections and how the genres change, each requiring a different approach to reading.
I then spent 40 minutes going through this road map, telling the story of the Old Testament that is covered in the history books. Explaining how the kingdom splits in two is the key sticking point.
 |
| This diagram is from Gospel and Kingdom: A Christian Interpretation of the Old Testament by Graeme Goldsworthy, page 32. (Published by Paternoster Press in 1982) |
We had a break for a cup of tea and then I spent the last half hour showing this page from the IVP New Bible Commentary found at the beginning of the section on 1 and 2 Kings - a table of who was king - when and where - during the period of the kings.
I'd been a Christian ten years, struggling my way through the Bible, before I met that roadmap. What a revelation! And as long time readers will know, it is only in recent years that I have come to grips with the prophets - and that in only a small way. But now I've got a handle on that section of the Bible and it's making much more sense.
One of the women who came to the guided tour said that she had been in churches and in and out of the Bible for 60 years and this was the first time she'd had this stuff explained to her. This isn't a criticism of the preaching she's sat under all these years. You just don't learn frameworks during church sermons. That's not what sermons are about. She left encouraged to press on with the hard but rewarding work of Bible reading.
Maybe you don't know your way around the Old Testament yet. And if not, these particular posts might be of help. Maybe you DO know your way around the Old Testament but don't think you could possibly manage to do something like this. That's fine. This is not for everyone. But I'm pretty sure that some of you could do this. And if that is you, then can I encourage you to have a go at sharing the framework of the Old Testament with those around you. (Or ask someone you know who could do this sort of thing to do it for you.)
There will people you know - people who maybe, just maybe, don't read as widely as you might - who don't know how the Bible hangs together and whose lives will be transformed if you give them the basics. I've been blogging about this sort of thing for years. It's good to have shared it in person with some of those I meet Sunday by Sunday in church and I'm looking forward to doing it again some other time down the track.
Oh, and by the way, if you aren't using a Bible reading plan but wished you were, the beginning of July is another EXCELLENT entry point for this plan. And I'll be saying that in church in the next couple of weeks too.
12 May 2014
This is the day
Last Friday was one of those rare days when I actually did my Bible reading first thing in the morning. Occasionally it happens mid-morning. Often during the afternoon. Sometimes last thing before my head meets my pillow. And sometimes today's reading happens tomorrow. But last Friday it was first thing, and I believe that was by God's good design. God had something to show me. The psalm of the day was Psalm 118 - a psalm that holds a very familiar verse.
This verse reminds me of Sundays - and of singing that chorus at church. You've probably got the tune in your head right now. Whenever I read these words I find I am easily distracted - singing the song (at least in my head) - and with dear memories of congregational singing in various church settings, the side effect being that I have come to associate this verse with Sundays.
Last Friday God had other plans. My eyes fell upon this verse. No tune. No mind wandering off to churches past. This time around these words found some traction.
I reflected upon those very familiar words all through the day (the one that the Lord had made) and it gave added joy and purpose to each of my tasks. By late afternoon I began to imagine what it would be like to start each and every day aware that it was a day the Lord had made, worthy of joy and full of Kingdom potential. Because this isn't a verse just for a Sunday chorus. It's a verse for every day.
This is the day the Lord has made. Let us be glad and rejoice in it.
Last Friday God had other plans. My eyes fell upon this verse. No tune. No mind wandering off to churches past. This time around these words found some traction.
THIS is the day the Lord has made.
This is THE day the Lord has made.
This is the day that THE LORD HAS MADE.
And so REJOICE. Be GLAD in that.
I reflected upon those very familiar words all through the day (the one that the Lord had made) and it gave added joy and purpose to each of my tasks. By late afternoon I began to imagine what it would be like to start each and every day aware that it was a day the Lord had made, worthy of joy and full of Kingdom potential. Because this isn't a verse just for a Sunday chorus. It's a verse for every day.
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may
gain a heart of wisdom.
Psalm 90:12
Psalm 90:12
10 February 2014
Servants and slaves
Speaking of loving Jesus first and best, while we were on holidays we heard a really interesting sermon on the first six words of Romans.
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus...
It included a bit of a discussion about slaves and servants because the word "servant" here really ought to be "slave." Both words are fraught with difficulty - and I'm not looking to get into a debate about all of that here - but there is a helpful insight or two to be gained from stepping back for a moment and considering some definitions of sorts.
A servant can be hired and fired.
A slave is bought and owned. This has permanence.
Both can be treated poorly or well. So the terms themselves don't represent the spectrum of ill or good treatment.
Paul is a slave of Christ Jesus. And so are all who love Jesus. This helps me to understand the idea of "purchased with the blood of Christ" more deeply. And the language of redemption.
And then we serve those around us. But they cannot master us. Because we can't serve two masters.
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus...
It included a bit of a discussion about slaves and servants because the word "servant" here really ought to be "slave." Both words are fraught with difficulty - and I'm not looking to get into a debate about all of that here - but there is a helpful insight or two to be gained from stepping back for a moment and considering some definitions of sorts.
A servant can be hired and fired.
A slave is bought and owned. This has permanence.
Both can be treated poorly or well. So the terms themselves don't represent the spectrum of ill or good treatment.
Paul is a slave of Christ Jesus. And so are all who love Jesus. This helps me to understand the idea of "purchased with the blood of Christ" more deeply. And the language of redemption.
And then we serve those around us. But they cannot master us. Because we can't serve two masters.
06 February 2014
Loving Jesus first and best
That moment when I became a Christian, taking up the faith I'd had as a child and making it my own as an adult, was more a case of bowing down before the throne of God rather than kneeling at the cross of Christ. Which is not to say that Jesus was not important in the equation. That was just how it was. And that has shaped me as a Christian all these years. My default position is before the throne of God. I get God the Father more naturally than I get God the Son. That's just how it is. But at long last (God waits for us patiently) I see I have some growing to do.
At times I long for heaven. When I see people around me struggling, when I struggle myself and even when I just feel bone tired or stressed or worried, I long for that time when Jesus will come again and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain. What am I really longing for? I am longing rest found in God. That perfect rest. But it's a selfish longing.
The other day I was reading Psalm 25. David loves God. He knows with all his heart, as he says in verse 10, that
All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant.
Sure as he is of God's love and His promises, David makes many requests of God throughout this psalm.
Don't let me be put to shame.
Show me your ways, teach me, guide me.
Remember your mercy and love and remember not my sins.
Turn to me and be gracious.
Look upon me and take away my sins.
Guard my life and rescue me.
I read that psalm and I read those requests and I nod my head in agreement. Yes Lord. But why I am nodding in agreement with David? I know in my heart that I want those things for selfish reasons. Get all those things right and it's comfortable. It's a selfish longing.
But directly after verse 10, and right bang smack in the very centre of the psalm I read this.
For the sake of your name O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
Being forgiven is not about me. It's not about me feeling comfortable or being seen in a good light. It's for His sake. That verse shot out at me like the proverbial silver bullet. It's for His sake.
I've read through Philippians quite a number of times this year - stage one of memorising it. And going over those words again and again is already working upon my soul. Paul says, famously,
I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far, but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.
Philippians 1:20-24
Paul longs for heaven. Not to be comfortable. Not to rest. There's not an ounce of selfishness in his longings. He longs to see Jesus. And if it is not his time, then to live is Christ.
This year as I read the Bible, as I try to memorise Philippians, as I love and serve the people around me and as I think, read, pray and reflect I find I am asking God a new thing, many times a day. Help me Lord to love Jesus first and best.
It's not all about me. It's not about me at all. It's about loving Jesus first and best.
At times I long for heaven. When I see people around me struggling, when I struggle myself and even when I just feel bone tired or stressed or worried, I long for that time when Jesus will come again and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain. What am I really longing for? I am longing rest found in God. That perfect rest. But it's a selfish longing.
The other day I was reading Psalm 25. David loves God. He knows with all his heart, as he says in verse 10, that
All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant.
Sure as he is of God's love and His promises, David makes many requests of God throughout this psalm.
Don't let me be put to shame.
Show me your ways, teach me, guide me.
Remember your mercy and love and remember not my sins.
Turn to me and be gracious.
Look upon me and take away my sins.
Guard my life and rescue me.
I read that psalm and I read those requests and I nod my head in agreement. Yes Lord. But why I am nodding in agreement with David? I know in my heart that I want those things for selfish reasons. Get all those things right and it's comfortable. It's a selfish longing.
But directly after verse 10, and right bang smack in the very centre of the psalm I read this.
For the sake of your name O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
Being forgiven is not about me. It's not about me feeling comfortable or being seen in a good light. It's for His sake. That verse shot out at me like the proverbial silver bullet. It's for His sake.
I've read through Philippians quite a number of times this year - stage one of memorising it. And going over those words again and again is already working upon my soul. Paul says, famously,
I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far, but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.
Philippians 1:20-24
Paul longs for heaven. Not to be comfortable. Not to rest. There's not an ounce of selfishness in his longings. He longs to see Jesus. And if it is not his time, then to live is Christ.
This year as I read the Bible, as I try to memorise Philippians, as I love and serve the people around me and as I think, read, pray and reflect I find I am asking God a new thing, many times a day. Help me Lord to love Jesus first and best.
It's not all about me. It's not about me at all. It's about loving Jesus first and best.
08 August 2013
Some more comfort
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
2 Corinthians 1:3-7
05 August 2013
Aramaic, Latin and Greek
"Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek."
John 19:19
"The highly respected German scholar Adolf Harnack calculated that by A.D. 250 no less than 30,000 Christians lived in Rome. Most of these came from the poorer classes. We know this because for more than a century Christians in Rome spoke Greek, the language of slaves and poor men. True Romans of the upper classes used Latin."
From Church History in Plain Language by Bruce L. Shelley p.31
And I have this noted in the margins of my previous Bible at John 19:19...
Pilate's sign:
Aramaic/Hebrew - the language of religion.
Greek- the language of culture and thought.
Latin - the language of government, law and institutions.
Just in case you ever wondered why Pilate wrote his sign in three languages.
John 19:19
------------------------------------------------------------------
From Church History in Plain Language by Bruce L. Shelley p.31
------------------------------------------------------------------
And I have this noted in the margins of my previous Bible at John 19:19...
Pilate's sign:
Aramaic/Hebrew - the language of religion.
Greek- the language of culture and thought.
Latin - the language of government, law and institutions.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Just in case you ever wondered why Pilate wrote his sign in three languages.
18 June 2013
Stephen and the books I've been reading
I find the stories of Pakistan, Afghanistan, North Korea and that unlikely convert are still roaming around my mind.
Last Sunday I covered the two chapters in Acts about Stephen in Sunday School - how and why he was chosen, that magnificent speech and then his persecution and horrible death. We spent most of the lesson talking about persecution - and what a blessing it is to live here in freedom and safety.
I could have illustrated the idea of persecution with anecdotes from Afghanistan or North Korea but in the interests of developmental appropriateness I told the story of how a Chinese couple under threat of persecution prayed the Lord's Prayer instead. These two, they sat together, held hands and prayed the Lord's Prayer in their minds, too scared to even whisper the words in case someone heard them, squeezing one another's hand at the beginning of each new line. That way they knew they were praying the words of the prayer together. And we had a go at it ourselves.
But I am always gripped by the last two verses of Stephen's story.
While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.
Acts 7:59,60
It is the mark of a life of deeply faithful, prayerful, loving devotion to God that one faces a violent death by praying for the perpetrators of the awful crime. I find myself continuing to think about how it isn't ours to decide upon the extent of the reach of the gospel. Stephen didn't. He prayed that God would forgive those who were so angrily and awfully ending his life. He was praying for their salvation.
And then there is Saul, standing there, giving his approval to Stephen's death. No-one would dare go near Saul with the good news of eternal salvation through Jesus Christ for fear of similar treatment. And yet, Saul's world was turned upside down soon after and then he proceeded to turn the gentile world upside down with the good news of Jesus.
These verses take my breath away. They encourage me to keep digging where the ground is hard. And to keep praying for those doing hard yards in hard places. It's not our decision. And with God, all things are possible.
Last Sunday I covered the two chapters in Acts about Stephen in Sunday School - how and why he was chosen, that magnificent speech and then his persecution and horrible death. We spent most of the lesson talking about persecution - and what a blessing it is to live here in freedom and safety.
I could have illustrated the idea of persecution with anecdotes from Afghanistan or North Korea but in the interests of developmental appropriateness I told the story of how a Chinese couple under threat of persecution prayed the Lord's Prayer instead. These two, they sat together, held hands and prayed the Lord's Prayer in their minds, too scared to even whisper the words in case someone heard them, squeezing one another's hand at the beginning of each new line. That way they knew they were praying the words of the prayer together. And we had a go at it ourselves.
But I am always gripped by the last two verses of Stephen's story.
While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.
Acts 7:59,60
It is the mark of a life of deeply faithful, prayerful, loving devotion to God that one faces a violent death by praying for the perpetrators of the awful crime. I find myself continuing to think about how it isn't ours to decide upon the extent of the reach of the gospel. Stephen didn't. He prayed that God would forgive those who were so angrily and awfully ending his life. He was praying for their salvation.
And then there is Saul, standing there, giving his approval to Stephen's death. No-one would dare go near Saul with the good news of eternal salvation through Jesus Christ for fear of similar treatment. And yet, Saul's world was turned upside down soon after and then he proceeded to turn the gentile world upside down with the good news of Jesus.
These verses take my breath away. They encourage me to keep digging where the ground is hard. And to keep praying for those doing hard yards in hard places. It's not our decision. And with God, all things are possible.
10 September 2012
Reading the Bible in chronological order - discovery # 3
What are some things that come to mind immediately at the mention of David from the Bible?
The shepherd boy who took on Goliath.
A man after God's own heart.
Serving, fleeing from and honouring King Saul.
Psalms and music.
The friendship with Jonathan.
King David.
Countless battles.
Bathsheba.
Building a palace and putting in extensive plans for the temple.
I am just about at the end of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles and the Psalms in the chronological reading plan - the full sweep of David's life. The narrative of 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles is an exciting part of the Bible. It's certainly one of the high points in the Old Testament. It seems as though God's promises to Abraham way back in Genesis 12 are reaching their fulfillment. And the Psalms are a glorious, personal reflection on life in all its highs and lows.
But what happens when you interweave the events of David's life with his personal reflections upon those events? Something quite wonderful. To read those Psalms when David is crying out to God when he fears for his life, when he seems to have no support, when he knows he has mucked up, when he is hiding a cave, when he is about to go into a fierce battle - or to read those Psalms when David is giving joyful thanks to God for His faithfulness shown in David's life in personal or national victory and for the pure goodness of knowing, loving and serving God - to read those Psalms when David is overwhelmed and amazed that he should be king - to read all these Psalms alongside the actual action does something amazing. It gives humanity to the events and context to the emotions. And both become all the more powerful for it.
Now I haven't done the reading to know this for sure, but I am guessing that we don't know the exact placement for all of the Psalms. There are some that can be placed exactly, either from the small print or from the content. But I'm not sure that we have the information to place all of them precisely. As I said, that may be wrong...I haven't done the reading...so don't quote me on this point. So I can't be sure of the 100% accuracy of the placement of the Psalms against events in the reading plan I am using. However I know the plan won't have been constructed together lightly, and it has read very well to me.
And as I have read through this section of readings I've come to the conclusion that this might be a great way to get into the Psalms with children. They all love the action of the life of David but his psalms are a bit harder for children to engage with because some of the emotions expressed will be foreign to them (thankfully), the poetic form and language is unfamiliar and psalms do fall more at the abstract end of the spectrum.
To that end, if you are interested in reading through the life of David alongside the Psalms, or having a go at it with your children, I have copied below just that section of the reading plan. It's a list of 50 or so readings, which could be broken down further if you go chapter by chapter and psalm by psalm. Don't be overwhelmed by the volume. What is posted below represents an amazing adventure in Bible reading.
1 Sam 13‐14
1 Sam 15‐17
1 Sam 18‐20, Ps 11, Ps 59
1 Sam 21‐24
Ps 7, Ps 27, Ps 31, Ps 34, Ps 52
Ps 56, Ps 120, Ps 140‐142
1 Sam 25‐27
Ps 17, Ps 35, Ps 54, Ps 63
1 Sam 28‐31, Ps 18
Ps 121, Ps 123‐125, Ps 128‐130
2 Sam 1‐4
Ps 6, Ps 8‐10, Ps 14, Ps 16, Ps 19, ps 21
1 Chr 1‐2
Ps 43‐45, Ps 49, Ps 84‐85, Ps 87
1 Chr 3‐5
Ps 73, Ps 77‐78
1 Chr 6
Ps 81, Ps 88, Ps 92‐93
1 Chr 7‐10
Ps 102‐104
2 Sam 5:1‐10, 1 Chr 11‐12
Ps 133
Ps 106‐107
2 Sam 5:11‐6:23, 1 Chr 13‐16
Ps 1‐2, Ps 15, Ps 22‐24, Ps 47, Ps 68
Ps 89, Ps 96, Ps 100, Ps 101, Ps 105, Ps 132
2 Sam 7, 1 Chr 17
Ps 25, Ps 29, Ps 33, Ps 36, Ps 39
2 Sam 8‐9, 1 Chr 18
Ps 50, Ps 53, Ps 60, Ps 75
2 Sam 10, 1 Chr 19, Ps 20
Ps 65‐67, Ps 69‐70
2 Sam 11‐12, 1 Chr 20
Ps 32, Ps 51, Ps 86, Ps 122
2 Sam 13‐15
Ps 3‐4, Ps 12‐13, Ps 28, Ps 55
2 Sam 16‐18
Ps 26, Ps 40, Ps 58, Ps 61‐62, Ps 64
2 Sam 19‐21
Ps 5, Ps 38, Ps 41‐42
2 Sam 22‐23, Ps 57
Ps 95, Ps 97‐99
2 Sam 24, 1 Chr 21‐22, Ps 30
Ps 108‐110
1 Chr 23‐25
Ps 131, Ps 138‐139, Ps 143‐145
1 Chr 26‐29, Ps 127
Ps 111‐118
1 Kgs 1‐2, Ps 37, Ps 71, Ps 94
Ps 119:1‐88
1 Kgs 3‐4, 2 Chr 1, Ps 72
Ps 119:89‐176
The shepherd boy who took on Goliath.
A man after God's own heart.
Serving, fleeing from and honouring King Saul.
Psalms and music.
The friendship with Jonathan.
King David.
Countless battles.
Bathsheba.
Building a palace and putting in extensive plans for the temple.
I am just about at the end of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles and the Psalms in the chronological reading plan - the full sweep of David's life. The narrative of 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles is an exciting part of the Bible. It's certainly one of the high points in the Old Testament. It seems as though God's promises to Abraham way back in Genesis 12 are reaching their fulfillment. And the Psalms are a glorious, personal reflection on life in all its highs and lows.
But what happens when you interweave the events of David's life with his personal reflections upon those events? Something quite wonderful. To read those Psalms when David is crying out to God when he fears for his life, when he seems to have no support, when he knows he has mucked up, when he is hiding a cave, when he is about to go into a fierce battle - or to read those Psalms when David is giving joyful thanks to God for His faithfulness shown in David's life in personal or national victory and for the pure goodness of knowing, loving and serving God - to read those Psalms when David is overwhelmed and amazed that he should be king - to read all these Psalms alongside the actual action does something amazing. It gives humanity to the events and context to the emotions. And both become all the more powerful for it.
Now I haven't done the reading to know this for sure, but I am guessing that we don't know the exact placement for all of the Psalms. There are some that can be placed exactly, either from the small print or from the content. But I'm not sure that we have the information to place all of them precisely. As I said, that may be wrong...I haven't done the reading...so don't quote me on this point. So I can't be sure of the 100% accuracy of the placement of the Psalms against events in the reading plan I am using. However I know the plan won't have been constructed together lightly, and it has read very well to me.
And as I have read through this section of readings I've come to the conclusion that this might be a great way to get into the Psalms with children. They all love the action of the life of David but his psalms are a bit harder for children to engage with because some of the emotions expressed will be foreign to them (thankfully), the poetic form and language is unfamiliar and psalms do fall more at the abstract end of the spectrum.
To that end, if you are interested in reading through the life of David alongside the Psalms, or having a go at it with your children, I have copied below just that section of the reading plan. It's a list of 50 or so readings, which could be broken down further if you go chapter by chapter and psalm by psalm. Don't be overwhelmed by the volume. What is posted below represents an amazing adventure in Bible reading.
1 Sam 1‐3
1 Sam 4‐8
1 Sam 9‐121 Sam 13‐14
1 Sam 15‐17
1 Sam 18‐20, Ps 11, Ps 59
1 Sam 21‐24
Ps 7, Ps 27, Ps 31, Ps 34, Ps 52
Ps 56, Ps 120, Ps 140‐142
1 Sam 25‐27
Ps 17, Ps 35, Ps 54, Ps 63
1 Sam 28‐31, Ps 18
Ps 121, Ps 123‐125, Ps 128‐130
2 Sam 1‐4
Ps 6, Ps 8‐10, Ps 14, Ps 16, Ps 19, ps 21
1 Chr 1‐2
Ps 43‐45, Ps 49, Ps 84‐85, Ps 87
1 Chr 3‐5
Ps 73, Ps 77‐78
1 Chr 6
Ps 81, Ps 88, Ps 92‐93
1 Chr 7‐10
Ps 102‐104
2 Sam 5:1‐10, 1 Chr 11‐12
Ps 133
Ps 106‐107
2 Sam 5:11‐6:23, 1 Chr 13‐16
Ps 1‐2, Ps 15, Ps 22‐24, Ps 47, Ps 68
Ps 89, Ps 96, Ps 100, Ps 101, Ps 105, Ps 132
2 Sam 7, 1 Chr 17
Ps 25, Ps 29, Ps 33, Ps 36, Ps 39
2 Sam 8‐9, 1 Chr 18
Ps 50, Ps 53, Ps 60, Ps 75
2 Sam 10, 1 Chr 19, Ps 20
Ps 65‐67, Ps 69‐70
2 Sam 11‐12, 1 Chr 20
Ps 32, Ps 51, Ps 86, Ps 122
2 Sam 13‐15
Ps 3‐4, Ps 12‐13, Ps 28, Ps 55
2 Sam 16‐18
Ps 26, Ps 40, Ps 58, Ps 61‐62, Ps 64
2 Sam 19‐21
Ps 5, Ps 38, Ps 41‐42
2 Sam 22‐23, Ps 57
Ps 95, Ps 97‐99
2 Sam 24, 1 Chr 21‐22, Ps 30
Ps 108‐110
1 Chr 23‐25
Ps 131, Ps 138‐139, Ps 143‐145
1 Chr 26‐29, Ps 127
Ps 111‐118
1 Kgs 1‐2, Ps 37, Ps 71, Ps 94
Ps 119:1‐88
1 Kgs 3‐4, 2 Chr 1, Ps 72
Ps 119:89‐176
31 August 2012
The getting of wisdom
Speaking of slowing down one's Bible reading, look what happened at Bible study when we put the brakes on our reading of the first five verses of Proverbs and asked ourselves the question, "Why would you actually want to read the book of Proverbs?"
The proverbs of Solomon
son of David,
king of Israel:
The proverbs of Solomon
son of David,
king of Israel:
for attaining wisdom
and discipline;
for understanding words of insight;
for acquiring
a disciplined
and prudent life,
doing what is right
and just
and fair;
for giving prudence
to the simple,
knowledge
and discretion
to the young—
let the wise
listen
and add
to their learning,
and let the discerning
get guidance.
What a fantastic list. What a great set of reasons to read Proverbs. The getting of godly wisdom - from Proverbs and from the full counsel of God - is for all...for the young and the old, for those who lack wisdom and those who already have some. And the benefits are many.
and discipline;
for understanding words of insight;
for acquiring
a disciplined
and prudent life,
doing what is right
and just
and fair;
for giving prudence
to the simple,
knowledge
and discretion
to the young—
let the wise
listen
and add
to their learning,
and let the discerning
get guidance.
What a fantastic list. What a great set of reasons to read Proverbs. The getting of godly wisdom - from Proverbs and from the full counsel of God - is for all...for the young and the old, for those who lack wisdom and those who already have some. And the benefits are many.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
Proverbs 1:7a
Proverbs 1:7a
02 August 2012
Reading the Bible in chronological order - discovery # 2
Psalm 90
A prayer of Moses the man of God
1Lord, you have been our dwelling place
throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn men back to dust,
saying, “Return to dust, O sons of men.”
4 For a thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep men away in the sleep of death;
they are like the new grass of the morning—
6 though in the morning it springs up new,
by evening it is dry and withered.
7 We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.
10 The length of our days is seventy years —
or eighty, if we have the strength;
yet their span is but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of your anger?
For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13 Relent, O Lord! How long will it be?
Have compassion on your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble.
16 May your deeds be shown to your servants,
your splendor to their children.
17 May the favour of the Lord our God rest upon us;
establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands.
When I read the Psalms I don't tend to read the fine print. That is, I don't tend to read the little subheadings under the Psalm numbers. You know..."A psalm of David", "A song of ascents", "Of the Sons of Korah", "A maskil of Ethan the Ezratite", "A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day", "A psalm for giving thanks", "A prayer of an afflicted man. When he is faint and pours out his lament before the Lord"... And because I don't tend to read those little subheadings I miss little important pieces of information.
So there I was, making my way through Numbers. It has been a bit over a year since the people of Israel were rescued from Egypt. They are in the desert and Moses, under God, is trying to hold it all together. But there are ructions.
The people are begging for food, anything other than that manna.
Miram and Aaron start opposing Moses' leadership.
There is the exploration of Canaan, the Promised Land, and then the subsequent rebellion of the people who are too scared to go in and take ownership of the land.
Then God plans to kill them all for their disobedience and lack of faith and trust. Moses pleads their cause and God decides that Caleb and Joshua, the faithful spies, will enter the land but no-one else from that generation.
It should have been so good. Life as God's people under His rule and care. And it was all going so very badly. And then, at least in this particular chronological plan, up pops Psalm 90.
I love Psalm 90. I read it often. It's a great wisdom psalm. It helps me to humble myself before the Lord - to know my right, small place in space - and it helps me to ask for the right, wise things in prayer. It is a psalm that I often turn to when someone I know has died. It shows me that God is control and it shows me what is important.
But because I don't read the fine print I don't think I have ever taken in (or at least, not in recent memory) that this, a favourite of mine, is a psalm of Moses. I usually read Psalm 90 as a personal psalm. But it takes on amazing power when read as a national psalm. Imagine Moses, trying so desperately to usher an enormous group of people into the land God has promised them. Imagine Moses, described in Numbers 12:3 as "a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth" on his knees praying this prayer for the whole nation of Israel, not just for himself. Imagine if we prayed this psalm for our church communities, for our wider communities, for the Kingdom of God.
Breathtaking.
Read the fine print. At least, read the biblical fine print. It is important.
02 July 2012
Reading the Bible in chronological order - discovery # 1
I don't know that I have ever really thought too hard about where the book of Job fits into the scheme of biblical things. I usually just get to Job, take a breath and dive in. It's there in the midst of the wisdom literature with a timeless message and it just IS. But when was Job knocking about the place?
Well, I was not three days into the chronological read through of the Bible, eleven chapters of Genesis under my belt, and there I was being redirected to Job, just before Abraham enters stage left at chapter twelve. Interesting.
Turns out there are at least a couple of theories as to the dating of Job. The theory that places him around the time of Abraham rests particularly on the fact that in chapter one, amidst Job's calamities, his camels were carried off by a raiding party from the Chaldeans (Job 1:17). Abraham was from Ur of the Chaldeans. And the area of Chaldea later became known as Babylonia - important around the time of the exile. So the suggestion is that Job was around the time when Chaldea was Chaldea, not Babylon.
Another theory has Job around the time of the exile. He is mentioned in Ezekiel 14:12-14.
The word of the Lord came to me: "Son of man, if a country sins against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply and send famine upon it and kill its men and their animals, even if these three men - Noah, Daniel and Job - were in it, they could save only themselves by their righteousness," declares the Sovereign Lord.
Curious that Job is mentioned last in that list – and so the question is, does the order have any significance? And it has been said that whoever wrote Job shows a great knowledge of distant lands and is therefore unlikely to have been around any time before Solomon.
The bottom line is that we don't really know. There are a few clues - and they are just too few. But the folk who constructed the reading plan I am using had to put him somewhere, so on this occasion they opted for the association with Abraham rather than Ezekiel. And I'm glad they did because it made me sit up, pay attention and read Job with fresh eyes.
24 June 2012
Mid year Bible reading reboot
If you need to reboot your Bible reading here are a few ideas. If you use take this Bible reading plan (my old friend) you could...
1. Start from 1st January (on 1st July - and it is OK to do this...really it is) and use this plan to get you through the lion's share of Old Testament history, all of the Psalms and all of the New Testament.
2. Start from 1st July and use this plan to get you through the tail end of Old Testament history and all of the wisdom literature and prophets, the Psalms and the New Testament.
Options one and two have you reading three or four chapters a day.
3. Use either half (January to June or July to December) to get through one part of the Bible if working in three sections is too difficult. Maybe Psalms or New Testament.
4. Go here for other reading plans to start from the beginning or from the middle.
Having finished my tour of the prophets for now, I have decided to embark upon a slightly ambitious project of doing a read through of the Bible in chronological order. Ambitious because I am going to try to get through it in six months which means double readings each day. Ambitious because the second half of the year contains those particularly busy months of November and December. And if I don't make it then that will be OK. But I'm going to try.
1. Start from 1st January (on 1st July - and it is OK to do this...really it is) and use this plan to get you through the lion's share of Old Testament history, all of the Psalms and all of the New Testament.2. Start from 1st July and use this plan to get you through the tail end of Old Testament history and all of the wisdom literature and prophets, the Psalms and the New Testament.
Options one and two have you reading three or four chapters a day.
3. Use either half (January to June or July to December) to get through one part of the Bible if working in three sections is too difficult. Maybe Psalms or New Testament.
4. Go here for other reading plans to start from the beginning or from the middle.
Having finished my tour of the prophets for now, I have decided to embark upon a slightly ambitious project of doing a read through of the Bible in chronological order. Ambitious because I am going to try to get through it in six months which means double readings each day. Ambitious because the second half of the year contains those particularly busy months of November and December. And if I don't make it then that will be OK. But I'm going to try.
HEALTH WARNING: If you are new to Bible reading or in a floundering patch, don't be overwhelmed by my overambitiousness. Anyone who has read this blog for more than three minutes will know that I think reading the Bible is pretty important and pretty wonderful but I have floundered too. Pick what works. But pick something because it is a valuable and wonderful use of your time.
And if you don't need to reboot, then as you were. Press on. What are you reading at the moment and how do you plan your reading?
18 May 2012
Thus saith the Lord
I've been doing a group Bible study on prayer lately and one of the studies makes the point that prayer is talking to God, not listening to Him. God doesn't speak to us in prayer. We speak to Him. I was talking to my husband about this, who cleverly observed that it can be quite easy to get the wrong impression about God speaking to us, personally and audibly, from the pages of the Old Testament.
You see, God spoke to Adam and Eve and Cain.
He spoke to Noah.
And Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
He spoke to Moses.
And Joshua.
God spoke to Gideon.
He spoke to Samuel and Nathan.
And to Elijah and Elisha.
And God spoke to all those prophets who have books of the Old Testament named after them.
There may be others. These are the ones I can recall off the top of my head.
And when you put all the things He said to that collection of people together, it accounts for a good part of the Old Testament. Pages and pages and pages of God speaking personally and audibly. That's a lot of God speaking. But He only spoke to a small selection of people. Count them up. There aren't that many of them, for all the words of God recorded in the Bible.
It was the responsibility of this small group to pass on the message of His words to the multitudes. God didn't speak to each and every Israelite camped out at Mt Sinai or to the wayward kings and commoners of Judah, Israel, Egypt or even Ninevah. Just to a handful of people whose role it was to pass on the message.
And then in the New Testament He spoke through one man. Jesus.
This is not to say that God couldn't speak personally and audibly to someone if He chose to. He is the Creator and sustainer of the universe. But given the pattern set in the Bible, it seems fairly likely that He speaks to people now far less often than many might otherwise suggest.
I've never done the maths before (of how many God actually spoke to in the Bible) but it's pretty interesting - a small but important point to note.
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
Hebrews 1:1,2
You see, God spoke to Adam and Eve and Cain.
He spoke to Noah.
And Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
He spoke to Moses.
And Joshua.
God spoke to Gideon.
He spoke to Samuel and Nathan.
And to Elijah and Elisha.
And God spoke to all those prophets who have books of the Old Testament named after them.
There may be others. These are the ones I can recall off the top of my head.
And when you put all the things He said to that collection of people together, it accounts for a good part of the Old Testament. Pages and pages and pages of God speaking personally and audibly. That's a lot of God speaking. But He only spoke to a small selection of people. Count them up. There aren't that many of them, for all the words of God recorded in the Bible.
It was the responsibility of this small group to pass on the message of His words to the multitudes. God didn't speak to each and every Israelite camped out at Mt Sinai or to the wayward kings and commoners of Judah, Israel, Egypt or even Ninevah. Just to a handful of people whose role it was to pass on the message.
And then in the New Testament He spoke through one man. Jesus.
This is not to say that God couldn't speak personally and audibly to someone if He chose to. He is the Creator and sustainer of the universe. But given the pattern set in the Bible, it seems fairly likely that He speaks to people now far less often than many might otherwise suggest.
I've never done the maths before (of how many God actually spoke to in the Bible) but it's pretty interesting - a small but important point to note.
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
Hebrews 1:1,2
17 May 2012
Reading through the Prophets
I've spent this year reading through the Prophets in my personal Bible reading time. It has been fantastic to give them the freshness of summer light and energy rather than crashing into them during the cold and dark winter months and dying, as has happened year after year. I worked through all of them over four months, with some help along the way from some online sermons, the occasional commentary and a little book called The Minor Prophets by Jack Lewis.
I'm onto my second run through now, going a bit faster. It hasn't been an exhaustive study. My aim was to get some basic facility with them, so that when their names were mentioned the essentials would spring to mind, rather than being met with a black hole. It has been Bible reading time well spent. I am hoping to be finished the second run through by the end of June and then plan to do a dash through the whole Bible during the second half of the year. (That may be being a little optimistic. I'll let you know how I go.) I'm liking this plan a lot and am thinking that I will do it again in future years - giving the first few months over to something specific (so maybe next year I will take on just Isaiah with a commentary or Job or...) and then going through the whole Bible after that.
Here are some things I have noticed about the Prophets, from my first sweep through.
At one level, they all basically say the same thing. They're all messages from God through individual prophets to various nations, cities or kings to repent of their current godless practices and to turn and follow Him. It is often presented, just as God first spoke to the Israelites through Moses in Deuteronomy, in terms of blessing and cursing.
Sometimes the message is delivered in very black and white terms. And on first glance it can seem quite harsh. But while that message is being delivered, God has not drawn down on His sentence. With abundant mercy, He is throwing out a lifeline. At other times the words of the Prophets are heavy with God's compassion for His people. He aches for them to turn back to Him. It is tender reading.
Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
Joel 2:13
We know, looking back in a purely historical sense, that God did bring down judgment on His people. The Northern Kingdom was overtaken by Assyria and the residents of the Southern Kingdom were taken into exile by the Babylonians. It is grim reading, as these events unfold. And it is easy to wonder where God is in the lives of the innocent bystanders - in the lives of the humble Israelites who loved God while all those around them were serving false gods, following their own way and receiving their due punishment. It doesn't seem to fair to bring down such harsh judgement on the innocent. But there are small passages here and there throughout the Prophets where God addresses this. As humans, when the chips are down, we fear for our mortal lives and seek to avoid pain and hardship. But God's purposes are much higher and are eternal. There is an especially moving example of this in Isaiah.
The Day of the Lord is a common theme throughout the Prophets. Interesting to note that some the Prophets talk about this day as one which will be glorious beyond imagining. They almost turn themselves inside out trying to express the wonder of it all. But others paint a more sober view, explaining in clear terms that it is a day to be feared. It is a day which will bring judgment and great distress and for those who have ignored the call to follow God, it will not end well.
Another interesting thing I noted was that there is lots of evidence that God's people will be found amongst the Gentiles as well as the Jews. Paul certainly draws attention to this in Romans 15. I did find myself wondering, given the weight of the evidence, why there was so much shock about the place in the very early church when the Gospel made its first push out into the Gentiles. Maybe they all hadn't read the Prophets.
In God's good providence I was reading through the Prophets while being swept away with JI Packer's Knowing God. And this section of the Bible certainly gives you the BIG PICTURE of God in all His holiness, right to judge, power, love and compassion. I have been both humbled before Him (the fear of the Lord in its fullest sense) and strengthened in His grace, love and mercy.
Not easy. But good and rich reading.
I'm onto my second run through now, going a bit faster. It hasn't been an exhaustive study. My aim was to get some basic facility with them, so that when their names were mentioned the essentials would spring to mind, rather than being met with a black hole. It has been Bible reading time well spent. I am hoping to be finished the second run through by the end of June and then plan to do a dash through the whole Bible during the second half of the year. (That may be being a little optimistic. I'll let you know how I go.) I'm liking this plan a lot and am thinking that I will do it again in future years - giving the first few months over to something specific (so maybe next year I will take on just Isaiah with a commentary or Job or...) and then going through the whole Bible after that.
Here are some things I have noticed about the Prophets, from my first sweep through.
------------------------------------------------------------------
At one level, they all basically say the same thing. They're all messages from God through individual prophets to various nations, cities or kings to repent of their current godless practices and to turn and follow Him. It is often presented, just as God first spoke to the Israelites through Moses in Deuteronomy, in terms of blessing and cursing.
Sometimes the message is delivered in very black and white terms. And on first glance it can seem quite harsh. But while that message is being delivered, God has not drawn down on His sentence. With abundant mercy, He is throwing out a lifeline. At other times the words of the Prophets are heavy with God's compassion for His people. He aches for them to turn back to Him. It is tender reading.
Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
Joel 2:13
We know, looking back in a purely historical sense, that God did bring down judgment on His people. The Northern Kingdom was overtaken by Assyria and the residents of the Southern Kingdom were taken into exile by the Babylonians. It is grim reading, as these events unfold. And it is easy to wonder where God is in the lives of the innocent bystanders - in the lives of the humble Israelites who loved God while all those around them were serving false gods, following their own way and receiving their due punishment. It doesn't seem to fair to bring down such harsh judgement on the innocent. But there are small passages here and there throughout the Prophets where God addresses this. As humans, when the chips are down, we fear for our mortal lives and seek to avoid pain and hardship. But God's purposes are much higher and are eternal. There is an especially moving example of this in Isaiah.
The righteous perish,
and no one ponders it in his heart;
devout men are taken away,
and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
to be spared from evil.
Those who walk uprightly
enter into peace;
they find rest as they lie in death.
and no one ponders it in his heart;
devout men are taken away,
and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
to be spared from evil.
Those who walk uprightly
enter into peace;
they find rest as they lie in death.
Isaiah 57:1,2
The Day of the Lord is a common theme throughout the Prophets. Interesting to note that some the Prophets talk about this day as one which will be glorious beyond imagining. They almost turn themselves inside out trying to express the wonder of it all. But others paint a more sober view, explaining in clear terms that it is a day to be feared. It is a day which will bring judgment and great distress and for those who have ignored the call to follow God, it will not end well.
Another interesting thing I noted was that there is lots of evidence that God's people will be found amongst the Gentiles as well as the Jews. Paul certainly draws attention to this in Romans 15. I did find myself wondering, given the weight of the evidence, why there was so much shock about the place in the very early church when the Gospel made its first push out into the Gentiles. Maybe they all hadn't read the Prophets.
------------------------------------------------------------------
In God's good providence I was reading through the Prophets while being swept away with JI Packer's Knowing God. And this section of the Bible certainly gives you the BIG PICTURE of God in all His holiness, right to judge, power, love and compassion. I have been both humbled before Him (the fear of the Lord in its fullest sense) and strengthened in His grace, love and mercy.
Not easy. But good and rich reading.
27 February 2012
Did you also know...
...that it turns out there is another phrase that is repeated time and again in the book of Ezekiel. Not quite as often as the 200+ mentions of "Sovereign LORD" but often enough to make its presence felt.
Then you will know that I am the LORD.
Mentioned a good sixty five or more times through Ezekiel, God makes it clear that He is the Sovereign LORD - the One who will judge, the One who will rescue, the One who is true to His promises.
In the days of oral tradition, repetition made it easier to remember what was being passed down from one hearer to the next by word of mouth. But I think there is more to the repetition than that. Having eyes open to these phrases deepens the reading and points to key themes.
Here are some others from the early books of the Old Testament that help make sense of these books.
Be holy because I am holy in Leviticus.
Remember me or Do not forget me (God, that is) in Deuteronomy.
Be courageous or Do not be afraid in Joshua.
In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit in Judges.
Fear the LORD in Proverbs.
Look out for them as you read these books - and please let me know if you can think of any others.
 |
Then you will know that I am the LORD.
Mentioned a good sixty five or more times through Ezekiel, God makes it clear that He is the Sovereign LORD - the One who will judge, the One who will rescue, the One who is true to His promises.
In the days of oral tradition, repetition made it easier to remember what was being passed down from one hearer to the next by word of mouth. But I think there is more to the repetition than that. Having eyes open to these phrases deepens the reading and points to key themes.
Here are some others from the early books of the Old Testament that help make sense of these books.
Be holy because I am holy in Leviticus.
Remember me or Do not forget me (God, that is) in Deuteronomy.
Be courageous or Do not be afraid in Joshua.
In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit in Judges.
Fear the LORD in Proverbs.
Look out for them as you read these books - and please let me know if you can think of any others.
25 February 2012
Did you know...
...that God is described as "Sovereign Lord" over 200 times in the book of Ezekiel? Which is interesting given that Ezekiel is a prophet to the people of Israel who are newly in Babylon and who would be wondering at God's sovereignty following the ordeal of exile.
But Ezekiel knows that God is sovereign. After describing his first vision of God he says,
This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
Ezekiel 1:28.
This was the appearance
of the likeness
of the glory
of the LORD.
A few times removed and even so, he fell facedown in the fear of the LORD. What an amazing example of reverence, awe, obedience, faith, belief, fear of, trust in, love of and dependence upon the LORD.
But Ezekiel knows that God is sovereign. After describing his first vision of God he says,
This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
Ezekiel 1:28.
This was the appearanceof the likeness
of the glory
of the LORD.
A few times removed and even so, he fell facedown in the fear of the LORD. What an amazing example of reverence, awe, obedience, faith, belief, fear of, trust in, love of and dependence upon the LORD.
19 February 2012
Choose life
Fifteen chapters into the book of the prophet Jeremiah and you reach these verses:
Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go!
And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the LORD says:
"Those destined for death, to death;
those for the sword, to the sword;
those for starvation, to starvation,
those for captivity, to captivity."
Jeremiah 15:1,2
This is the sort of passage that would have many asking, "Where is the God of love in that?"
But let's back up a bit.
Right back to Deuteronomy. All through Deuteronomy the phrase "remember the Lord" is repeated, page after page, chapter after chapter. Remember Him when you go into the Promised Land, when you enter the land of plenty, when you find yourself surrounded by other nations that don't follow God, when life is good and when life is hard. At all times, remember the Lord. Throughout Deuteronomy God is galvanising His people before they become a nation in their own land. It all comes together magnificently in Deuteronomy 30, where God presents His people with a choice.
See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
By the time you get to Jeremiah God's people have been long in the Promised Land, it is drawing towards the end of the era of the kings and the people of Israel have made their choice. They have turned away from God. And Jeremiah is pleading with them to repent and turn back to Him. God, through Jeremiah, is pleading with His people to turn back to Him, to remember Him.
So back to Jeremiah 15:1-2. It IS a harsh passage. But it's not a bolt out of the blue. Just four chapters earlier Jeremiah has this message from the Lord:
From the time I brought your forefathers up from Egypt until today, I warned them again and again, saying, "Obey me." But they did not listen or pay attention; nstead they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts.
Jeremiah 11:7,8
God has shown extraordinary patience over centuries. Centuries is a long time to be patient. Especially when I think about how hard it is to remain patient even for five minutes sometimes. God has given His people countless warnings. And they have ignored Him.
However God continues to show compassion, love and mercy. God could have turned all His people over to death, sword and starvation. He gave them countless opportunities to turn back to Him. He told them point blank that He would destroy them if they continued to ignore Him. And yet He saved some. He preserved a remnant, sending them into capitivity.
"Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; he will escape with his life."
Jeremiah 21:9
Even amongst the captives there were those whose trust failed. Towards the end of Jeremiah there's a story of the group who rebelled against the Babylonian captivity and escaped to Egypt. The Lord spoke to the people through Jeremiah, warning them against this plan. That they would perish if they fled to Egypt. He was asking them to trust Him, to go to Babylon. A group fled to Egypt, thinking it the better option. They perished.
But those who went to Babylon were established in that land. They built houses, planted vineyards, grew crops, settled safely and lived in prosperity.
While there are sweeping passages of hope and promise, Jeremiah is, at core, an overwhelmingly sad book. God, through Jeremiah, pleads desperately with His people to repent from their ways, to follow Him, to trust Him. Relatively few trust and follow, walking through the small gate and along the narrow road. But some do. And for them the future is full of glorious hope and life.
Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go!
And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the LORD says:
"Those destined for death, to death;
those for the sword, to the sword;
those for starvation, to starvation,
those for captivity, to captivity."
Jeremiah 15:1,2
This is the sort of passage that would have many asking, "Where is the God of love in that?"
But let's back up a bit.
Right back to Deuteronomy. All through Deuteronomy the phrase "remember the Lord" is repeated, page after page, chapter after chapter. Remember Him when you go into the Promised Land, when you enter the land of plenty, when you find yourself surrounded by other nations that don't follow God, when life is good and when life is hard. At all times, remember the Lord. Throughout Deuteronomy God is galvanising His people before they become a nation in their own land. It all comes together magnificently in Deuteronomy 30, where God presents His people with a choice.
See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
By the time you get to Jeremiah God's people have been long in the Promised Land, it is drawing towards the end of the era of the kings and the people of Israel have made their choice. They have turned away from God. And Jeremiah is pleading with them to repent and turn back to Him. God, through Jeremiah, is pleading with His people to turn back to Him, to remember Him.
So back to Jeremiah 15:1-2. It IS a harsh passage. But it's not a bolt out of the blue. Just four chapters earlier Jeremiah has this message from the Lord:
From the time I brought your forefathers up from Egypt until today, I warned them again and again, saying, "Obey me." But they did not listen or pay attention; nstead they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts.
Jeremiah 11:7,8
God has shown extraordinary patience over centuries. Centuries is a long time to be patient. Especially when I think about how hard it is to remain patient even for five minutes sometimes. God has given His people countless warnings. And they have ignored Him.
However God continues to show compassion, love and mercy. God could have turned all His people over to death, sword and starvation. He gave them countless opportunities to turn back to Him. He told them point blank that He would destroy them if they continued to ignore Him. And yet He saved some. He preserved a remnant, sending them into capitivity.
"Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; he will escape with his life."
Jeremiah 21:9
Even amongst the captives there were those whose trust failed. Towards the end of Jeremiah there's a story of the group who rebelled against the Babylonian captivity and escaped to Egypt. The Lord spoke to the people through Jeremiah, warning them against this plan. That they would perish if they fled to Egypt. He was asking them to trust Him, to go to Babylon. A group fled to Egypt, thinking it the better option. They perished.
But those who went to Babylon were established in that land. They built houses, planted vineyards, grew crops, settled safely and lived in prosperity.
While there are sweeping passages of hope and promise, Jeremiah is, at core, an overwhelmingly sad book. God, through Jeremiah, pleads desperately with His people to repent from their ways, to follow Him, to trust Him. Relatively few trust and follow, walking through the small gate and along the narrow road. But some do. And for them the future is full of glorious hope and life.
11 January 2012
Holding fast to the Word of God
I have to admit that I'm not very good at reading LONG quotes in blog posts. There's a small handful of bloggers whose quotes, long or short, I will read because I just know it will be worthwhile. But for the most part, I am like everyone else circling about in cyberspace, with my increasingly short concentration span. If it is too long I will just skim over it, or worse, skip it.
I say this because what follows is a long-ish quote. It is from the most linked-to sermon on this blog - John Piper's "Holding Fast to the Word of God in 2010" from 10th January (in 2010, funnily enough.) I don't know how many times I have listened to that sermon now. So worthwhile just for the first fifteen minutes where he reads the whole of Philippians magnificently.
But a little way into the actual sermon there is a wonderful section (that makes for a long-ish quote) that has stayed with me ever since I first heard it. If you are serious about reading your Bible, hang in there with the following long-ish quote. Read it through. Or go to the sermon itself and listen from the 22 minute mark. And be encouraged.
I would guess that almost everyone in the hearing of my voice is dissatisfied with the spiritual power and consistency and faithfulness and fruitfulness of your life. I certainly am with my life. I would assume everyone else is also dissatisfied with the level of your own spiritual power.
And I do not consider that anything I say is a simple remedy to that spiritual weakness. God is sovereign. He changes times and seasons. And that includes global political seasons and it includes church seasons and it includes family seasons and it includes personal spiritual seasons.
God changes seasons. Are you in a dry season? God changes seasons.
But one thing I know: There is a spiritual diet without which no Christian can be strong or healthy or fruitful. And that diet is the Word of God. That I know.
Now I want you to hear me very carefully, lest I be misunderstood. You may be surprised at what I say. I am making you zero promises that reading or memorising the Bible will make you strong or healthy or fruitful spiritually.
The Pharisees read and memorized their Bible more than you or I ever will. And almost all of them went to hell, Jesus said in Matthew 8:12, "cast into outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth," filled with the Bible.
I am not giving you any guaranteed technique for power. The Spirit blows where and when he wills.
I have known terrible seasons of barrenness in reading the Bible. Did you hear what I said? Not in neglecting the Bible - in reading the Bible. I am not God. The Bible is not God. God is God. And He blows with His power where and when He pleases. I make you zero promises that reading the Bible will make you strong. God will make you strong if He chooses to make you strong.
But this I know. He will not do it without the Bible. That I know.
Wonderful words.
I say this because what follows is a long-ish quote. It is from the most linked-to sermon on this blog - John Piper's "Holding Fast to the Word of God in 2010" from 10th January (in 2010, funnily enough.) I don't know how many times I have listened to that sermon now. So worthwhile just for the first fifteen minutes where he reads the whole of Philippians magnificently.
But a little way into the actual sermon there is a wonderful section (that makes for a long-ish quote) that has stayed with me ever since I first heard it. If you are serious about reading your Bible, hang in there with the following long-ish quote. Read it through. Or go to the sermon itself and listen from the 22 minute mark. And be encouraged.
I would guess that almost everyone in the hearing of my voice is dissatisfied with the spiritual power and consistency and faithfulness and fruitfulness of your life. I certainly am with my life. I would assume everyone else is also dissatisfied with the level of your own spiritual power.
And I do not consider that anything I say is a simple remedy to that spiritual weakness. God is sovereign. He changes times and seasons. And that includes global political seasons and it includes church seasons and it includes family seasons and it includes personal spiritual seasons.
God changes seasons. Are you in a dry season? God changes seasons.
But one thing I know: There is a spiritual diet without which no Christian can be strong or healthy or fruitful. And that diet is the Word of God. That I know.
Now I want you to hear me very carefully, lest I be misunderstood. You may be surprised at what I say. I am making you zero promises that reading or memorising the Bible will make you strong or healthy or fruitful spiritually.
The Pharisees read and memorized their Bible more than you or I ever will. And almost all of them went to hell, Jesus said in Matthew 8:12, "cast into outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth," filled with the Bible.
I am not giving you any guaranteed technique for power. The Spirit blows where and when he wills.
I have known terrible seasons of barrenness in reading the Bible. Did you hear what I said? Not in neglecting the Bible - in reading the Bible. I am not God. The Bible is not God. God is God. And He blows with His power where and when He pleases. I make you zero promises that reading the Bible will make you strong. God will make you strong if He chooses to make you strong.
But this I know. He will not do it without the Bible. That I know.
Wonderful words.
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