Happy New Years! Okay, am about 10 days late...
Anyway, back to the lifetime project of blogging through the Bible...
Coming up on the end of Chapter 1 ...
The Bible does contain elements of "deep thought." But I think foremost there is a linkage between theology and living life.
Here in the latest part of chapter one is a very practical challenge:
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
There is the truth of a holy God and what God has done in sending Jesus.
Then there is a response that is called for ... love.
This isn't intellectual rocket science!
But it does require a transformation ...
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." And this is the word that was preached to you.
Do we naturally love without God changing us?
Parental love for children is real. The love of friends is real.
These are beautiful expressions of love and reflect God's desire for how we are to live.
But of course, we have a connection in both cases ... a family tie and some common ground that provides emotional affinity for our friends.
How hard is it love a stranger?
This is where the church as a community can rise or fall. The people listening to this letter from Peter might have some family ties to each other. Some might have friendship connections from daily life. But I would guess that some (many?) would be strangers to each other.
Will they live up to this call to love?
Will having the desire to follow Jesus in common spur a love beyond family and friends?
And, of course, will the call to love extend beyond their own church community?
Indeed, one can marshal evidence of how Christians have failed to love. All too true.
But one must also look at the schools, hospitals, orphanages, support groups and other things that people of faith have started.
And hopefully, my transformed life will be evidence that God is alive as well.
Lord, thank you for Jesus and the transformation he has brought. Help me to live out the command to love. Clear out the hardness of my heart and replace it with a new heart that sees with your eyes and hears with your ears. Amen.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Sunday, December 27, 2009
1 Peter 1:17-21
Continuing on ...
Since you call on a Father who judges each person's work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
What jumps out at you?
For me ...
"foreigners here in reverent fear"
and
"chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
I think one of the struggles of living out the Christian faith is finding the healthy tension between recognizing a higher calling (we belong to God) which leads us to be foreigners yet not become isolated from this present life in the process.
As an ethnic minority, I have experienced some of that "foreign-ness" in that there is sometimes not full acceptance by the majority culture. Some differences are innocuous and fall into the realm of mere "taste" or "preference." But some differences are real values clashes.
If we are living out the Christian faith, there will be times we feel like "foreigners." For example, today, there is a very aggressive strand of atheism that views Christians as intellectually deficient and the source of many problems in society. For less aggressive atheists, they view Christians as odd people but tolerable as long as they don't say too much.
Because of this, it will be easy to retreat to one's own enclaves.
But, of course, the life of Jesus and his message calls us to influence the lives of others by demonstrating love, calling people to turn back to God and building bridges. Thus, the temptation to retreat to a private precinct is to be resisted.
Its mind blowing to consider "chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
The mission of Jesus was planned before the creation of the world? Whoa.
As humans, we think in linear time: creation of world --> fall of humanity --> Jesus.
This passage says that Jesus was chosen to the sacrificial lamb before the creation... before the fall ... before it was necessary (in our sense of linear time)!
Jesus, as the sacrificial lamb, at that moment in human history, is effective not just for those in the first century but for us in the 21st century and for that matter for all time?!
And in God's time line, Jesus' revelation is "the last times."
People sometimes object to the Christian faith because it isn't rational.
In most people's mind, people believe that means Christianity is irrational and thus not true.
I propose for your consideration that that is inaccurate.
Rather, I consider Christianity supra-rational.
Is that a real word?
Yes.
Love cannot be comprehended by reason alone. It involves reason in that we observe the beloved and interact with words and deeds. But the choice of love, the commitment to love, the cherishing of the beloved requires more than reason.
Christianity posits that God is a person who is seeking to reconcile wayward creatures to himself and each other. Since this existentially is about relationships it cannot be exclusively a rational endeavor.
Do you buy it?
Lord, thank you for redeeming me. I was stuck in a futile path. I was alienated. I was without hope. But you have paid a price to transfer me from that lost life. Through Jesus' life, example, teaching, death and resurrection, there is hope and life and love. Help me to live in this truth with reverence. Amen.
Since you call on a Father who judges each person's work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
What jumps out at you?
For me ...
"foreigners here in reverent fear"
and
"chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
I think one of the struggles of living out the Christian faith is finding the healthy tension between recognizing a higher calling (we belong to God) which leads us to be foreigners yet not become isolated from this present life in the process.
As an ethnic minority, I have experienced some of that "foreign-ness" in that there is sometimes not full acceptance by the majority culture. Some differences are innocuous and fall into the realm of mere "taste" or "preference." But some differences are real values clashes.
If we are living out the Christian faith, there will be times we feel like "foreigners." For example, today, there is a very aggressive strand of atheism that views Christians as intellectually deficient and the source of many problems in society. For less aggressive atheists, they view Christians as odd people but tolerable as long as they don't say too much.
Because of this, it will be easy to retreat to one's own enclaves.
But, of course, the life of Jesus and his message calls us to influence the lives of others by demonstrating love, calling people to turn back to God and building bridges. Thus, the temptation to retreat to a private precinct is to be resisted.
Its mind blowing to consider "chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times."
The mission of Jesus was planned before the creation of the world? Whoa.
As humans, we think in linear time: creation of world --> fall of humanity --> Jesus.
This passage says that Jesus was chosen to the sacrificial lamb before the creation... before the fall ... before it was necessary (in our sense of linear time)!
Jesus, as the sacrificial lamb, at that moment in human history, is effective not just for those in the first century but for us in the 21st century and for that matter for all time?!
And in God's time line, Jesus' revelation is "the last times."
People sometimes object to the Christian faith because it isn't rational.
In most people's mind, people believe that means Christianity is irrational and thus not true.
I propose for your consideration that that is inaccurate.
Rather, I consider Christianity supra-rational.
Is that a real word?
Yes.
Love cannot be comprehended by reason alone. It involves reason in that we observe the beloved and interact with words and deeds. But the choice of love, the commitment to love, the cherishing of the beloved requires more than reason.
Christianity posits that God is a person who is seeking to reconcile wayward creatures to himself and each other. Since this existentially is about relationships it cannot be exclusively a rational endeavor.
Do you buy it?
Lord, thank you for redeeming me. I was stuck in a futile path. I was alienated. I was without hope. But you have paid a price to transfer me from that lost life. Through Jesus' life, example, teaching, death and resurrection, there is hope and life and love. Help me to live in this truth with reverence. Amen.
Friday, December 25, 2009
1 Peter 1:13-16
Its Christmas!
Can we get an Advent perspective on this reading from 1 Peter?
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy.
When is "when Jesus Christ is revealed?"
At one level, when Jesus came to be born in a manger, he was revealed!
Most didn't notice.
But Jesus will come again ...
Some think this passage describes Jesus return, At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. If so, there will be no missing it!
And so Peter appears to be encouraging us to set our hope on that future event. But suffice to say, hope and grace has already begun breaking into the world with the arrival of the Christ child!
The hearers of 1 Peter didn't live to see the day of Christ's return. And 2000 years later, we wonder when Jesus will return. Will it happen in our lifetime?
Mark 13:32-36 tells us no one except God knows when Jesus will return.
And what advice did Jesus give while we wait?
Be on guard ...
Be alert ...
Be about our assigned task ...
And Peter echoes Jesus words:
Prepare your minds for action
Be self-controlled
Set your hope on grace
Do not conform to evil desires
Be holy
Thank you Lord for Christmas! Grace has been given in the Christ child, grace is given each day and grace will be given to your people when you return. But for today my prayer is as the words of the Christmas Carol ...
Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"
Amen.
Can we get an Advent perspective on this reading from 1 Peter?
Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy.
When is "when Jesus Christ is revealed?"
At one level, when Jesus came to be born in a manger, he was revealed!
Most didn't notice.
But Jesus will come again ...
Some think this passage describes Jesus return, At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. If so, there will be no missing it!
And so Peter appears to be encouraging us to set our hope on that future event. But suffice to say, hope and grace has already begun breaking into the world with the arrival of the Christ child!
The hearers of 1 Peter didn't live to see the day of Christ's return. And 2000 years later, we wonder when Jesus will return. Will it happen in our lifetime?
Mark 13:32-36 tells us no one except God knows when Jesus will return.
And what advice did Jesus give while we wait?
Be on guard ...
Be alert ...
Be about our assigned task ...
And Peter echoes Jesus words:
Prepare your minds for action
Be self-controlled
Set your hope on grace
Do not conform to evil desires
Be holy
Thank you Lord for Christmas! Grace has been given in the Christ child, grace is given each day and grace will be given to your people when you return. But for today my prayer is as the words of the Christmas Carol ...
Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"
Amen.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
1 Peter 1:10-12
Continuing in I Peter ...
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Jesus changed everything.
The prophets of old pointing were pointing to that change. But they didn't get to see it in their lifetimes.
The angels "long to look ..." I wonder what does that really mean?
image source: http://www.binoculartips.com/
Imagine if you will, angels in the presence of God and God speaks to them of His plans to initiate a salvation plan through Jesus. The angels wonder, what is going to happen?
God, being God, can see how it will unfold ... down to the details of ...
people sneering at a pregnant Mary...
Joseph feeling the cold shoulders of people who think he's clueless...
Jesus experiencing the joy of people responding...
and the pain of people rejecting...
the agony of bearing the cross...
the power and glory of the resurrection...
the birth of the church...
and how the church will sometime embody the grace God wants to extend to God's delight...
and how the church will all too often fall into self-righteousness and cold heartedness grieving God...
the culmination of all things when God turns the kingdoms of this world into his kingdom...
But the angels, not being God, can't see how the future unfolds.
They wonder what is going to happen?
They know something wonderful is going to happen and so they in their own way, in ways we don't understand, do as God directs them and participate with us in the unfolding of what God is doing?
Thank you Lord that grace has come. Reconciliation with You and our fellow human beings is unfolding. The suffering of Jesus has opened the gates of salvation and that glory flows out and the angels watch with awe and wonder. May this Christmas season see a renewal in my own heart of the amazing thing you have done and a renewal of my commitment to take part in what you are doing in this world. Amen.
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Jesus changed everything.
The prophets of old pointing were pointing to that change. But they didn't get to see it in their lifetimes.
The angels "long to look ..." I wonder what does that really mean?
image source: http://www.binoculartips.com/
Imagine if you will, angels in the presence of God and God speaks to them of His plans to initiate a salvation plan through Jesus. The angels wonder, what is going to happen?
God, being God, can see how it will unfold ... down to the details of ...
people sneering at a pregnant Mary...
Joseph feeling the cold shoulders of people who think he's clueless...
Jesus experiencing the joy of people responding...
and the pain of people rejecting...
the agony of bearing the cross...
the power and glory of the resurrection...
the birth of the church...
and how the church will sometime embody the grace God wants to extend to God's delight...
and how the church will all too often fall into self-righteousness and cold heartedness grieving God...
the culmination of all things when God turns the kingdoms of this world into his kingdom...
But the angels, not being God, can't see how the future unfolds.
They wonder what is going to happen?
They know something wonderful is going to happen and so they in their own way, in ways we don't understand, do as God directs them and participate with us in the unfolding of what God is doing?
Thank you Lord that grace has come. Reconciliation with You and our fellow human beings is unfolding. The suffering of Jesus has opened the gates of salvation and that glory flows out and the angels watch with awe and wonder. May this Christmas season see a renewal in my own heart of the amazing thing you have done and a renewal of my commitment to take part in what you are doing in this world. Amen.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
I Peter 1:3-9
1 Peter 1:3-9 launches into a uplifting reflection of the end of our stories and how that helps us in the day-to-day.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
image source: http://www.callbox7.com/a-complete-guide-to-ambulance/
2000 years separate us in the USA from the recipients of this letter from St. Peter. In some ways, we are quite different from those people. I think that the shadow of death hung over them much more than it does today. In a time with no medicine or hospitals, death was probably something the average person saw quite often. A trauma on the street with no ER to rush them too, an infection with no antibiotics and on goes the list of things that could strike someone down that today we could do something about was a potential death sentence for the hearers of St. Peter's letter.
And so the living hope of Jesus would be very powerful. The idea that something that would not perish, spoil or fade would be immensely re-assuring.
How about us today?
Though we have banished many causes of death with medicine and technology, our essential mortality remains.
And so suffering is still as real today as it was then ... maybe here in the USA we can push it from our minds a little more easily ... but it still lingers and haunts in moments ...
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
... and so suffering remains a fact of life ... but rejoicing is possible ... how?
These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
image source: http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/eduoff/vt-2004/Background/Infol2/EIS-D1.html
Pain, suffering, grief, death ... these remain constants in the human story. The slave in ancient Egypt worked to near death, the farmer in the early church seeing a loved one dying for reasons he does not know, John Donne wondering for whom the bells were tolling ...
And so we believe that this can be gone through and redeemed.
Humility, compassion, gratitude, trust ... these can come from suffering. These things, worth more than gold, could be won from the dark nights of despair.
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Lord, through a glass darkly, I see. But I see. And I await the full dawning of the salvation you have begun. Help me to get a taste of the inexpressible and glorious joy. Amen.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
image source: http://www.callbox7.com/a-complete-guide-to-ambulance/
2000 years separate us in the USA from the recipients of this letter from St. Peter. In some ways, we are quite different from those people. I think that the shadow of death hung over them much more than it does today. In a time with no medicine or hospitals, death was probably something the average person saw quite often. A trauma on the street with no ER to rush them too, an infection with no antibiotics and on goes the list of things that could strike someone down that today we could do something about was a potential death sentence for the hearers of St. Peter's letter.
And so the living hope of Jesus would be very powerful. The idea that something that would not perish, spoil or fade would be immensely re-assuring.
How about us today?
Though we have banished many causes of death with medicine and technology, our essential mortality remains.
And so suffering is still as real today as it was then ... maybe here in the USA we can push it from our minds a little more easily ... but it still lingers and haunts in moments ...
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
... and so suffering remains a fact of life ... but rejoicing is possible ... how?
These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
image source: http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/eduoff/vt-2004/Background/Infol2/EIS-D1.html
Pain, suffering, grief, death ... these remain constants in the human story. The slave in ancient Egypt worked to near death, the farmer in the early church seeing a loved one dying for reasons he does not know, John Donne wondering for whom the bells were tolling ...
And so we believe that this can be gone through and redeemed.
Humility, compassion, gratitude, trust ... these can come from suffering. These things, worth more than gold, could be won from the dark nights of despair.
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Lord, through a glass darkly, I see. But I see. And I await the full dawning of the salvation you have begun. Help me to get a taste of the inexpressible and glorious joy. Amen.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
I Peter 1:1-2
It took quite a while to work through Job. The subject of suffering is both a theological and existential concern.
In this life long project of blogging through the Bible, I thought I'd continue to examine suffering.
As far as I can tell, there is no other Bible book that deals with suffering as directly as Job. But I think 1 Peter and 2 Peter do touch on the subject a bit more than many other writings of Scripture. These two books discuss many other topics as well.
So buckle up and let's continue the ride ...
Let's get to the introduction.
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
image source: http://saintpetersbasilica.org/Exterior/StPeterStatue/StPeter-Apos.jpg
I hope someday to visit St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
I would venture to say that Peter was probably the most famous of the 12 disciples as he was the most outspoken of the bunch sometimes to his detriment!
It is generally believed by scholars that the Gospel of Mark was influenced strongly by Peter's preaching. The Book of Acts which chronicles the growth of the early church has much material about Peter (Chapters 1-12). The Book of Acts eventually followed the role of Paul in the advancement of the church (Chapters 13-28).
Some scholars question whether Peter could have written I and II Peter because he was a plain old fisherman from Galilee.
Though Peter would not have had the high level of education of a Jewish rabbi, being a good Jew, he would had a solid knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures. He would also, of course, have had the benefit of sitting at the feet of Jesus!
It should be noted also that he give up the fisherman's life and would have spent much more time contemplating the teachings he heard from Jesus, re-examining the Hebrew Scriptures in that light, discussing with the other Apostles and the Holy Spirit was promised to the disciples to help them.
We can also speculate on the role Silas may have had in helping him craft this letter.
To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia,
image source: http://www.bible-history.com/maps/asia_minor.html
Today, Turkey is an almost exclusively Muslim country with a small number of Christians. But way back at the beginning of the church, Jesus followers could be found there, a small number also, in what was probably a society dominated by Greek and Roman polytheism.
who have been chosen
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through the sanctifying work of the Spirit,
for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Isn't this re-assuring?
These believers, whom Peter called strangers in the world, were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God!?
Won't delve into the philosophical implications of that here! 8-)
But it is re-assuring to know that God knew!
There is also the sanctifying work of the Spirit ... we are being made holy and pure.
This work was begun by the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus for the purpose of our being obedient to Jesus.
All three persons of the Trinity are involved in our lives!
Thus, abundant grace and peace can be available to us.
Thank you Lord that you were not content to see us lost in this world alienated from you and living in turmoil. Instead you sent Jesus. Instead you sent the Spirit. You have called us to something better... to yourself. Thanks be to God! Amen.
In this life long project of blogging through the Bible, I thought I'd continue to examine suffering.
As far as I can tell, there is no other Bible book that deals with suffering as directly as Job. But I think 1 Peter and 2 Peter do touch on the subject a bit more than many other writings of Scripture. These two books discuss many other topics as well.
So buckle up and let's continue the ride ...
Let's get to the introduction.
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
image source: http://saintpetersbasilica.org/Exterior/StPeterStatue/StPeter-Apos.jpg
I hope someday to visit St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
I would venture to say that Peter was probably the most famous of the 12 disciples as he was the most outspoken of the bunch sometimes to his detriment!
It is generally believed by scholars that the Gospel of Mark was influenced strongly by Peter's preaching. The Book of Acts which chronicles the growth of the early church has much material about Peter (Chapters 1-12). The Book of Acts eventually followed the role of Paul in the advancement of the church (Chapters 13-28).
Some scholars question whether Peter could have written I and II Peter because he was a plain old fisherman from Galilee.
Though Peter would not have had the high level of education of a Jewish rabbi, being a good Jew, he would had a solid knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures. He would also, of course, have had the benefit of sitting at the feet of Jesus!
It should be noted also that he give up the fisherman's life and would have spent much more time contemplating the teachings he heard from Jesus, re-examining the Hebrew Scriptures in that light, discussing with the other Apostles and the Holy Spirit was promised to the disciples to help them.
We can also speculate on the role Silas may have had in helping him craft this letter.
To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia,
image source: http://www.bible-history.com/maps/asia_minor.html
Today, Turkey is an almost exclusively Muslim country with a small number of Christians. But way back at the beginning of the church, Jesus followers could be found there, a small number also, in what was probably a society dominated by Greek and Roman polytheism.
who have been chosen
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through the sanctifying work of the Spirit,
for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Isn't this re-assuring?
These believers, whom Peter called strangers in the world, were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God!?
Won't delve into the philosophical implications of that here! 8-)
But it is re-assuring to know that God knew!
There is also the sanctifying work of the Spirit ... we are being made holy and pure.
This work was begun by the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus for the purpose of our being obedient to Jesus.
All three persons of the Trinity are involved in our lives!
Thus, abundant grace and peace can be available to us.
Thank you Lord that you were not content to see us lost in this world alienated from you and living in turmoil. Instead you sent Jesus. Instead you sent the Spirit. You have called us to something better... to yourself. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Job 42:7-17
The Epilogue to Job ...
After the LORD had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job's prayer.
After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the LORD had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.
The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job's daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so he died, old and full of years.
And so after all the turmoil and shouting and questioning and arguing, we do reach, "and they lived happily ever after ..."
Did Job know he was on the center stage in a spiritual battle described in Job 1-2?
We don't know.
If he did know, he didn't appear to make any comment about it. If he did know, God's "answer" of I am the Creator and you are not was enough for Job.
And so what if Job never knew about the spiritual battle?
God showing up was enough.
Each of us faces struggles in life. In my humanity, I know I have sometimes, often times, asked WHY?
Yancey in his book, Disappointment with God suggested getting an answer to the WHY question might not actually help us because God's perspective is so much larger than ours.
And so our WHY question is washed away when we sense we are not alone. God "showing up" through Jesus. God "showing up" by the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. God "showing up" when we are loved by family and friends. And indeed, God "shows up" in the kindness of strangers.
Is the story of Job true?
It is definitely true in the existential sense that all of us struggle with suffering and that we can argue ourselves into knots trying to explain it to ourselves and each other.
It is definitely true in that God "showing up" makes all the difference in the world.
But was the story "literally" true?
Will we meet Job in the afterlife?
If Job is a moral story than Job may or may not be a literal person. He could be a stand-in everyman for all who have faced suffering. The power of this tale doesn't rest on Job existing as is.
But, if Job was a literal person, did the story happen as literally described?
Job as a book has literary style. It is Hebrew poetry.
We do not talk to our friends in poetry. We talk in prose. We can reflect on life in poetry.
And so perhaps Job was a real man who suffered and his story was memorialized in the poetry of this book.
Another hint of "editing" or "stylizing" in Job was the speeches of Elihu.
Job was visited by his three friends and Job prayed for them.
As a side point, isn't it interesting how in life we go to comfort the sufferer and the sufferer winds up comforting the comforters?
But back to the idea of literary forms... Elihu isn't mentioned as one of the three friends yet he spoke in chapters 32-37 in pretty strong terms!
He was younger than the other three and held back until the end.
Yet, he isn't mentioned in any other way with the three friends.
Was he there all along and omitted in the friends list? Maybe he wasn't really close at all?
Or perhaps those chapters were added later?
Elihu's comments do have elements in common with God's speech at the very end. Maybe it was added by the editors of Job to foreshadow what God would say?
Don't know.
But whether Job's story is more or less as it was in here, underwent some editing or was a moral tale, I think the message stands regardless: suffering is real and our only comfort is having God show up not so much to explain it but to show us he cares for us as individuals.
"God with us" ... Immanuel = Heb. God with us. Jesus the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Lord, thank you that you invite me to bring my complaints to you. You hear my prayers. Thank you that you were not content to allow the world to continue in its course and so sent Abraham, Moses, the Prophets and most significantly Jesus. Though things seem lost now, you are at work restoring. Help me to receive that restoration and be an agent of it. Amen.
After the LORD had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job's prayer.
After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the LORD had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.
The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job's daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so he died, old and full of years.
And so after all the turmoil and shouting and questioning and arguing, we do reach, "and they lived happily ever after ..."
Did Job know he was on the center stage in a spiritual battle described in Job 1-2?
We don't know.
If he did know, he didn't appear to make any comment about it. If he did know, God's "answer" of I am the Creator and you are not was enough for Job.
And so what if Job never knew about the spiritual battle?
God showing up was enough.
Each of us faces struggles in life. In my humanity, I know I have sometimes, often times, asked WHY?
Yancey in his book, Disappointment with God suggested getting an answer to the WHY question might not actually help us because God's perspective is so much larger than ours.
And so our WHY question is washed away when we sense we are not alone. God "showing up" through Jesus. God "showing up" by the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. God "showing up" when we are loved by family and friends. And indeed, God "shows up" in the kindness of strangers.
Is the story of Job true?
It is definitely true in the existential sense that all of us struggle with suffering and that we can argue ourselves into knots trying to explain it to ourselves and each other.
It is definitely true in that God "showing up" makes all the difference in the world.
But was the story "literally" true?
Will we meet Job in the afterlife?
If Job is a moral story than Job may or may not be a literal person. He could be a stand-in everyman for all who have faced suffering. The power of this tale doesn't rest on Job existing as is.
But, if Job was a literal person, did the story happen as literally described?
Job as a book has literary style. It is Hebrew poetry.
We do not talk to our friends in poetry. We talk in prose. We can reflect on life in poetry.
And so perhaps Job was a real man who suffered and his story was memorialized in the poetry of this book.
Another hint of "editing" or "stylizing" in Job was the speeches of Elihu.
Job was visited by his three friends and Job prayed for them.
As a side point, isn't it interesting how in life we go to comfort the sufferer and the sufferer winds up comforting the comforters?
But back to the idea of literary forms... Elihu isn't mentioned as one of the three friends yet he spoke in chapters 32-37 in pretty strong terms!
He was younger than the other three and held back until the end.
Yet, he isn't mentioned in any other way with the three friends.
Was he there all along and omitted in the friends list? Maybe he wasn't really close at all?
Or perhaps those chapters were added later?
Elihu's comments do have elements in common with God's speech at the very end. Maybe it was added by the editors of Job to foreshadow what God would say?
Don't know.
But whether Job's story is more or less as it was in here, underwent some editing or was a moral tale, I think the message stands regardless: suffering is real and our only comfort is having God show up not so much to explain it but to show us he cares for us as individuals.
"God with us" ... Immanuel = Heb. God with us. Jesus the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Lord, thank you that you invite me to bring my complaints to you. You hear my prayers. Thank you that you were not content to allow the world to continue in its course and so sent Abraham, Moses, the Prophets and most significantly Jesus. Though things seem lost now, you are at work restoring. Help me to receive that restoration and be an agent of it. Amen.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Job 42:1-6
And so we reach the end of the story ...
Then Job replied to the LORD :
I know that you can do all things;
no plan of yours can be thwarted.
You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?'
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.
You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.'
My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes.
When confronted with God, what is there to say?
God is holy. But what does Holy mean?
One simple answer I heard was that holy is all that makes God God and not us!
Though we are made in the image of God, that image is now marred. That is why we look at the world with a sense of unease and a sense that things are not the way they should be. Thus, in many ways God is so completely different than us. He is so "other" (holy) compared to us.
When Isaiah met God, he said, "Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."
Are we stuck in this place of ruin?
Yes ... unless ... we recognize our state and allow God to restore!
For Isaiah, it came out this way: Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
Lord, have mercy. On too many occasions I have walked in the opposite direction you want. All too often my thoughts are of self and not You and others. Yet, though you are holy and totally other than me, you have made a path for restoration. Thank you for such a gift. Help me to live in that. Amen
Then Job replied to the LORD :
I know that you can do all things;
no plan of yours can be thwarted.
You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?'
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.
You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.'
My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes.
When confronted with God, what is there to say?
God is holy. But what does Holy mean?
One simple answer I heard was that holy is all that makes God God and not us!
Though we are made in the image of God, that image is now marred. That is why we look at the world with a sense of unease and a sense that things are not the way they should be. Thus, in many ways God is so completely different than us. He is so "other" (holy) compared to us.
When Isaiah met God, he said, "Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."
Are we stuck in this place of ruin?
Yes ... unless ... we recognize our state and allow God to restore!
For Isaiah, it came out this way: Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
Lord, have mercy. On too many occasions I have walked in the opposite direction you want. All too often my thoughts are of self and not You and others. Yet, though you are holy and totally other than me, you have made a path for restoration. Thank you for such a gift. Help me to live in that. Amen
Friday, October 09, 2009
Job 40-41
Continuing toward the end of Job ...
Usually don't cover two chapters in one bite. But I figured addressing the "behemoth" and "leviathan" in one shot might be the way to go.
The LORD said to Job:
"Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him?
Let him who accuses God answer him!"
Job had pretty strong words in lamenting his situation to God through the many chapters.
And God went face-to-face with Job in return.
I suppose we can take comfort in the fact that when Job went toe-to-toe with God that Job didn't become a smoking hole in the ground.
Now, before we get too comfortable, God can turn cities full of people into ashes as in the case of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18-19.
Why the difference?
Sodom and Gomorrah was truly wicked ... Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous ... but Abraham begged God to spare the cities if 10 were found righteous. God said yes. Alas, not even 10 were found righteous and so Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed.
How about Job?
We know from the beginning of the story that he was a righteous man. He wasn't sinless because no man is sinless. But he was right with God by seeking to live rightly and when he went astray confessing and seeking God's forgiveness.
Was his complaints about God ... was that sin?
It seems that God would rather we go face-to-face with Him with our complaints than go off and live a life of sin ignoring God.
Then Job answered the LORD:
"I am unworthy - how can I reply to you?
I put my hand over my mouth.
I spoke once, but I have no answer -
twice, but I will say no more."
Job wanted an audience with God and got it. The questions melted away and he had nothing really left to say.
God continued to dwell on His power as His response to Job's complaints...
Then the LORD spoke to Job out of the storm:
Prepare to defend yourself;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.
Would you discredit my justice?
Would you condemn me to justify yourself?
Do you have an arm like God's,
and can your voice thunder like his?
Then adorn yourself with glory and splendor,
and clothe yourself in honor and majesty.
Unleash the fury of your wrath,
look at all who are proud and bring them low,
look at all who are proud and humble them,
crush the wicked where they stand.
Bury them all in the dust together;
shroud their faces in the grave.
Then I myself will admit to you
that your own right hand can save you.
Some scholars think behemoth was the hippopotamus!
image source: http://animal.discovery.com/mammals/hippopotamus/
Look at the behemoth,
which I made along with you
and which feeds on grass like an ox.
What strength it has in its loins,
what power in the muscles of its belly!
Its tail sways like a cedar;
the sinews of its thighs are close-knit.
Its bones are tubes of bronze,
its limbs like rods of iron.
It ranks first among the works of God,
yet its Maker can approach it with his sword.
The hills bring it their produce,
and all the wild animals play nearby.
Under the lotus plants it lies,
hidden among the reeds in the marsh.
The lotuses conceal it in their shadow;
the poplars by the stream surround it.
A raging river does not alarm it;
it is secure, though the Jordan should surge against its mouth.
Can anyone capture it by the eyes,
or trap it and pierce its nose?
I've seen some hippos while on safari. I suspect the fact that I saw them at a pretty safe distance inside a large vehicle made them seem less fearsome!
We now get a description of the leviathan.
Can you pull in the leviathan with a fishhook
or tie down its tongue with a rope?
Can you put a cord through its nose
or pierce its jaw with a hook?
Will it keep begging you for mercy?
Will it speak to you with gentle words?
Will it make an agreement with you
for you to take it as your slave for life?
Can you make a pet of it like a bird
or put it on a leash for the young women in your house?
Will traders barter for it?
Will they divide it up among the merchants?
Can you fill its hide with harpoons
or its head with fishing spears?
If you lay a hand on it,
you will remember the struggle and never do it again!
Any hope of subduing it is false;
the mere sight of it is overpowering.
No one is fierce enough to rouse it.
Who then is able to stand against me?
Who has a claim against me that I must pay?
Everything under heaven belongs to me.
Some experts say the leviathan is a crocodile while others say a whale.
What does it sound like to you from the description so far?
Did the ancients in the Middle East hunt for whales?
I suppose you could throw spears and harpoons at crocodiles.
I will not fail to speak of Leviathan's limbs,
its strength and its graceful form.
Who can strip off its outer coat?
Who can penetrate its double coat of armor?
Who dares open the doors of its mouth,
ringed about with fearsome teeth?
Its back has rows of shields
tightly sealed together;
each is so close to the next
that no air can pass between.
They are joined fast to one another;
they cling together and cannot be parted.
Now this part sure sounds more like an armored beast like the croc!
image source: http://colquitt.k12.ga.us/tsmith/new_page_14.htm
Its snorting throws out flashes of light;
its eyes are like the rays of dawn.
Flames stream from its mouth;
sparks of fire shoot out.
Smoke pours from its nostrils
as from a boiling pot over burning reeds.
Its breath sets coals ablaze,
and flames dart from its mouth.
Fire-breathing dragon of fantasy tales?
Or is it poetic license in describing how fearsome a crocodile is?
Strength resides in its neck;
dismay goes before it.
The folds of its flesh are tightly joined;
they are firm and immovable.
Its chest is hard as rock,
hard as a lower millstone.
When it rises up, the mighty are terrified;
they retreat before its thrashing.
The sword that reaches it has no effect,
nor does the spear or the dart or the javelin.
Iron it treats like straw
and bronze like rotten wood.
Arrows do not make it flee;
slingstones are like chaff to it.
A club seems to it but a piece of straw;
it laughs at the rattling of the lance.
Its undersides are jagged potsherds,
leaving a trail in the mud like a threshing sledge.
It makes the depths churn like a boiling caldron
and stirs up the sea like a pot of ointment.
It leaves a glistening wake behind it;
one would think the deep had white hair.
Nothing on earth is its equal -
a creature without fear.
It looks down on all that are haughty;
it is king over all that are proud.
Again, the ruggedly look of this creature seems more in line with a crocodile than a whale or some other ocean faring beast.
Some insist that these two creatures were dinosaurs because they seemed so terrible and frightening.
I think that might be a stretch.
To us, the hippo and croc aren't as fearsome because we now have guns.
But to the ancients, these beasts would be quite scary for they had mere spears.
As Job listened to God speak of these mighty creatures, he is reminded that God made them. GOD is mightier than the mightiest. And God deigns to speak with Job.
Lord Jesus, you are the God who speaks the words of this story of Job. Yet, you set aside the rights of that divinity to make yourself like us, like Job. You even humbled yourself to dying on a criminals cross. And so you are vindicated and exalted to the highest place so that we have nothing to say against you and instead bow down and thank you for your grace and love. Amen.
Usually don't cover two chapters in one bite. But I figured addressing the "behemoth" and "leviathan" in one shot might be the way to go.
The LORD said to Job:
"Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him?
Let him who accuses God answer him!"
Job had pretty strong words in lamenting his situation to God through the many chapters.
And God went face-to-face with Job in return.
I suppose we can take comfort in the fact that when Job went toe-to-toe with God that Job didn't become a smoking hole in the ground.
Now, before we get too comfortable, God can turn cities full of people into ashes as in the case of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18-19.
Why the difference?
Sodom and Gomorrah was truly wicked ... Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous ... but Abraham begged God to spare the cities if 10 were found righteous. God said yes. Alas, not even 10 were found righteous and so Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed.
How about Job?
We know from the beginning of the story that he was a righteous man. He wasn't sinless because no man is sinless. But he was right with God by seeking to live rightly and when he went astray confessing and seeking God's forgiveness.
Was his complaints about God ... was that sin?
It seems that God would rather we go face-to-face with Him with our complaints than go off and live a life of sin ignoring God.
Then Job answered the LORD:
"I am unworthy - how can I reply to you?
I put my hand over my mouth.
I spoke once, but I have no answer -
twice, but I will say no more."
Job wanted an audience with God and got it. The questions melted away and he had nothing really left to say.
God continued to dwell on His power as His response to Job's complaints...
Then the LORD spoke to Job out of the storm:
Prepare to defend yourself;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.
Would you discredit my justice?
Would you condemn me to justify yourself?
Do you have an arm like God's,
and can your voice thunder like his?
Then adorn yourself with glory and splendor,
and clothe yourself in honor and majesty.
Unleash the fury of your wrath,
look at all who are proud and bring them low,
look at all who are proud and humble them,
crush the wicked where they stand.
Bury them all in the dust together;
shroud their faces in the grave.
Then I myself will admit to you
that your own right hand can save you.
Some scholars think behemoth was the hippopotamus!
image source: http://animal.discovery.com/mammals/hippopotamus/
Look at the behemoth,
which I made along with you
and which feeds on grass like an ox.
What strength it has in its loins,
what power in the muscles of its belly!
Its tail sways like a cedar;
the sinews of its thighs are close-knit.
Its bones are tubes of bronze,
its limbs like rods of iron.
It ranks first among the works of God,
yet its Maker can approach it with his sword.
The hills bring it their produce,
and all the wild animals play nearby.
Under the lotus plants it lies,
hidden among the reeds in the marsh.
The lotuses conceal it in their shadow;
the poplars by the stream surround it.
A raging river does not alarm it;
it is secure, though the Jordan should surge against its mouth.
Can anyone capture it by the eyes,
or trap it and pierce its nose?
I've seen some hippos while on safari. I suspect the fact that I saw them at a pretty safe distance inside a large vehicle made them seem less fearsome!
We now get a description of the leviathan.
Can you pull in the leviathan with a fishhook
or tie down its tongue with a rope?
Can you put a cord through its nose
or pierce its jaw with a hook?
Will it keep begging you for mercy?
Will it speak to you with gentle words?
Will it make an agreement with you
for you to take it as your slave for life?
Can you make a pet of it like a bird
or put it on a leash for the young women in your house?
Will traders barter for it?
Will they divide it up among the merchants?
Can you fill its hide with harpoons
or its head with fishing spears?
If you lay a hand on it,
you will remember the struggle and never do it again!
Any hope of subduing it is false;
the mere sight of it is overpowering.
No one is fierce enough to rouse it.
Who then is able to stand against me?
Who has a claim against me that I must pay?
Everything under heaven belongs to me.
Some experts say the leviathan is a crocodile while others say a whale.
What does it sound like to you from the description so far?
Did the ancients in the Middle East hunt for whales?
I suppose you could throw spears and harpoons at crocodiles.
I will not fail to speak of Leviathan's limbs,
its strength and its graceful form.
Who can strip off its outer coat?
Who can penetrate its double coat of armor?
Who dares open the doors of its mouth,
ringed about with fearsome teeth?
Its back has rows of shields
tightly sealed together;
each is so close to the next
that no air can pass between.
They are joined fast to one another;
they cling together and cannot be parted.
Now this part sure sounds more like an armored beast like the croc!
image source: http://colquitt.k12.ga.us/tsmith/new_page_14.htm
Its snorting throws out flashes of light;
its eyes are like the rays of dawn.
Flames stream from its mouth;
sparks of fire shoot out.
Smoke pours from its nostrils
as from a boiling pot over burning reeds.
Its breath sets coals ablaze,
and flames dart from its mouth.
Fire-breathing dragon of fantasy tales?
Or is it poetic license in describing how fearsome a crocodile is?
Strength resides in its neck;
dismay goes before it.
The folds of its flesh are tightly joined;
they are firm and immovable.
Its chest is hard as rock,
hard as a lower millstone.
When it rises up, the mighty are terrified;
they retreat before its thrashing.
The sword that reaches it has no effect,
nor does the spear or the dart or the javelin.
Iron it treats like straw
and bronze like rotten wood.
Arrows do not make it flee;
slingstones are like chaff to it.
A club seems to it but a piece of straw;
it laughs at the rattling of the lance.
Its undersides are jagged potsherds,
leaving a trail in the mud like a threshing sledge.
It makes the depths churn like a boiling caldron
and stirs up the sea like a pot of ointment.
It leaves a glistening wake behind it;
one would think the deep had white hair.
Nothing on earth is its equal -
a creature without fear.
It looks down on all that are haughty;
it is king over all that are proud.
Again, the ruggedly look of this creature seems more in line with a crocodile than a whale or some other ocean faring beast.
Some insist that these two creatures were dinosaurs because they seemed so terrible and frightening.
I think that might be a stretch.
To us, the hippo and croc aren't as fearsome because we now have guns.
But to the ancients, these beasts would be quite scary for they had mere spears.
As Job listened to God speak of these mighty creatures, he is reminded that God made them. GOD is mightier than the mightiest. And God deigns to speak with Job.
Lord Jesus, you are the God who speaks the words of this story of Job. Yet, you set aside the rights of that divinity to make yourself like us, like Job. You even humbled yourself to dying on a criminals cross. And so you are vindicated and exalted to the highest place so that we have nothing to say against you and instead bow down and thank you for your grace and love. Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)