Today is a sad day. Today's going to be the last blog for a while that our beloved Craig will read in Warrington. He's disappearing to the not properly South to try and win me the heart of a girl. And maybe get a degree. As such I'm off out tonight with him and maybe some of you to a comedy club. Should be fun fun fun. Thus I'm doing the blog relatively early. Hurrah! Onto business then,
Today’s readings:
Genesis 29:1-30:43
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2029-30:43&version=MSG
Matthew 11:16-30
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2011:16-30&version=NIV
Psalm 9:7-12
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%209:7-12&version=NIV
Today's Old Testament passage is another one of those rather challenging tales which gets watered down for Sunday School. Basically we have a really nice start and an ok ending but the middle is so... strange. Let's do the easy stuff. Jacob starts off by meeting Rachel and the way he meets her is very similar to how his mother was found for his father. I like when God does things like this to show that He's still there. Of course He could do it differently, but would we spot it then?
Then it gets a bit murky. Everything starts great with Jacob's uncle Laban welcoming him into his household. He's delighted at how Jacob works for him and is happy to offer his daughter as wages. And for all his faults, what a romantic bloke Jacob is! 7 years he toils for this woman and in that time he's not getting paid beyond having somewhere to sleep and food to eat. But then the wedding happens and rather confusingly he marries the wrong woman. Even MORE confusingly, he manages to sleep with her before he realises it's not Rachel. Now I can believe that it was dark and there were veils and after seven years, Jacob was probably quite keen to have a smooch, but really Jacob... Poor show for not noticing! I guess sometimes we can also get so caught up in something we enjoy that we actually start to forget what makes it special. If there's someone in your life that you're fortunate enough to love, then maybe today is the day to spot the little things that made you fall in love and really relish them :) Gosh I've gone all soppy...
Next Jacob works another 7 years and finally gets his prize. Happily ever after? Not by a long shot. God is brilliant here because He realises that Jacob isn't going to honour his commitment that he made to Leah. Yes he was tricked into it but if he'd paid a little bit more attention he wouldn't be in the mess he's in. So God blesses Leah with sons so that Jacob values her. Of course this does mean that Jacob's quite happy to sleep with Leah time after time but still doesn't really love her. Sometimes people can be such idiots and I can just see God getting more and more distraught at how Jacob is getting everything wrong. I always thought the ten commandments were really obvious but when you look at how God's people were living before that... Yikes!
Then Rachel gets jealous of her sister being able to have children and in the Soul Survivor blog today, Ali paints her in quite a sympathetic light. But personally I think Rachel's really naughty here. She's been with Jacob for a good number of years and hasn't been blessed with children. However, her husband loves her so much that it's noticable just how much he loves her compared to her sister. Which would be normal if they weren't both married to him... This is why you shouldn't two time guys. Girls are crazy and having two at once will end with your death...
So what does Rachel do? Does she pray that she be blessed with a child? Let's not forget that she's related to Jacob's mum and so would have known how old Abraham was when he had children. No. She doesn't even try and ask God and that's the most challenging thing to me. Her desire to have children seems less about being blessed herself and more about scoring points. Jacob then sleeps with both maid servants of his wives and gives them children. Put it in your pants Jacob!!
Then Rachel gets even crazier!! She decides that she wants some flowers and so happily lets Leah sleep with Jacob again. Seriously woman... decide what you want!! Then God blesses Rachel with children. So in fact, all the problems that will come with Israel having all these tribes, all of the heartache that every person in this whole situation must have gone through could have been avoided by just trusting in God and relying on Him. People can be stupid... this is a very important lesson. Stop trying to fix situations by doing things you know God wouldn't approve of.
Into the New Testament we get more of Jesus' fiery preaching. It must have been a pretty exciting spectacle seeing Him in full flow. First He talks about how people are never satisfied and will always want things or people to be slightly different. How can we want Jesus to be slightly different? To me this is a challenge in our attitudes towards people and I know I can be guilty of being judgemental and Jesus here is saying that people are the way they are for a reason.
He then talks about how it is vital that we respond to the news that we have heard. If you know that Jesus is love and that having Jesus in your life is the most fantastic thing ever, but you're not living that? Then you're in trouble. He also talks about how the message of God's love is a simple one that anyone can understand so don't panic if you don't think you understand bits of what you've been reading. Here Jesus says that the true message is for everyone to understand. If you remember that God loves you and everyone else then life is very simple.
Finally Jesus offers us the best holiday ever. If you're feeling tired then go to Him. If you feel weary and like you can't go on then go to Jesus. Well what does that mean? This is more than a call to faith. This isn't just for new and non Christians. We all get tired and run down and Jesus is there to listen to our problems, carry our burdens and refill our hearts with joy. And I'd like to at this moment point to all the bits of the Old Testament we've read so far where people didn't believe God could help or that they had to do the majority on their own and how it blew up in their faces because God CAN do amazing things and WILL do amazing things if we ask and wait to receive his love.
Lastly the Psalm from yesterday continues today. We read about how David sings for joy that again, we have a place to rest and dwell with God. That there is a peace and a comfort to be found in just waiting on God's word. Stop rushing oh you teenagers. Stop fretting oh you housewives. Stop distracting yourself oh you Craiggy. (I think that's all my demographic covered) Take some time to stop, clear your heart and your head and just listen and wait on what God has for you. Because He loves you and wants to give you peace.
And that's your lot for today. Hopefully I'll keep up this sort of time rather than five hours later! Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always
Jon
Tuesday, 14 September 2010
Monday, 13 September 2010
Day 13 - Robots in Disguise
Bleurgh. Will it ever stop raining? Sorry for the lateness once again. I have little excuse beyond napping. I will endeavour to get back to my teatime schedule this week. Onto business then,
Today’s readings:
Genesis 27:1-28:22
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2027-28&version=MSG
Matthew 10:32-11:15
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2010:32-11:15&version=MSG
Psalm 9:1-6
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%209:1-6&version=MSG
So we start of with Jacob doing a bang up job of deceiving his father and cheating his way to being God's chosen guy. Now this is a bit troublesome isn't it? On Soul Survivor's blog they say that this is a contradictary example to what Jesus would do as a son but that doesn't explain how Jacob became such a fantastic man of God and was looked over by God... This whole thing seem very complicated because as much as Jacob is at fault for cheating his way to the blessing, his mum Rebekah is really not coming off well in this chapter. She's picking favourites and then has the cheek to go back to Issac with her concerns. So where's the truth? To me, Jacob isn't doing the right thing. But neither is Issac. I really feel for Esau because he's desperate to get some sort of blessing from his father. Esau realises that Issac's blessings carry the authority of God and will come to fruition and is aghast that Issac has given everything to just one son. I wonder if Esau would have been as understanding if he received the blessing first. But he's right, Issac shouldn't have put all the great things on one son, especially when his reasons are the two seconds that split them coming out of the womb and favouritism. I think the first lesson here is that God provides for us equally. Issac thinks of something for Esau eventually which leaves Esau annoyed but in a way this is a little like our relationship with God. Some people will appear to have got more than others and that can really upset us. But we've already read what Jesus said about wealth and we have to remember that the real treasures are in heaven waiting for us.
Second lesson to me is that Jacob did something wrong but he earned God's promise. Now God is a just God and could have judged against Jacob, maybe we would have done. But God knew what sort of a man Jacob was and would be and honoured His promises to him. That's good news. No matter how much we think we're not worthy of the promises that are made in the Bible, God honours them anyway.
Next Issac warns off Jacob from marrying a Hittite or Caananite like his brother. There's a little lesson here about going out with someone who doesn't believe the same things as you do. It can work, but it's blooming hard going and you need to make sure that God is still the main focus of your life. Jacob then has a fantastic dream, and just a small point on this that's never really occurred to me before. Jacob managed to sleep outside, in the wilderness where there are all sorts of scary beasties, using a rock as his pillow. Now that's impressive but I think that maybe the reason Jacob fell asleep was because God wanted to talk to him. I think that if God really needs to say something to you, He'll find a way. We just have to make sure we're listening! God then confirms that He's following through on Issac's blessing and Jacob's reaction is brilliant. He believes, he honours and he commits. Now that is how we ought to respond to the word of God!
Into the New Testament we have more teaching from Jesus. First of all Jesus points out that believing and following Him might make you fall out with family. I know a lot of you Connect chaps and chapesses are from non Christian families and I hope you take a real lift from knowing that Jesus understands and has planned for your family situation and how it might not be the easiest thing for you to deal with. But then as we were singing at Impact, if our God is for us then what can stand against? Jesus will honor that commitment to Him! Jesus also says not to pick son or daughter over Him. That's a little reminiscient of Issac to me. He picked sons over God's just way and ended up fracturing his family and hurting his favourite.
We then see what has become of John the Baptist. Trapped in a prison where he will see out the rest of his days, John's first thought is excitement at what his cousin Jesus is achieving. What a witness! Jesus spends a fair amount of time talking about John and what a great man of God he is. He talks about how John fulfils prophecies in the Old Testament and is a prophet himself. This is big praise because the prophets were incredibly highly thought of as God chose them to speak to. He also points out how John points the way to Him. A lot of people say Jesus never admitted to being the Messiah. This to me seems like Him not so much saying "Yes I am" but saying "Well what do you think?!" He lists all the reasons that point to him being the Messiah without specifically saying it so that it is still a matter of free choice. And what is interesting to me is verse 15 where Jesus checks that everyone is really listening to what He's been saying. As though that last bit might have been quite important!!
Finally our Psalm for today and David is full of joy at how God delivers justice to humanity. There are so many times when this world seems such a messed up and injust place and it can be hard to believe that God is keeping His justice. But David had been through a lot before writing this and he still had the passion and truth in his heart to know that God will always love and protect His people.
And that's the lot. Sorry it's so late again. I'm off out tomorrow evening so I really will have to squeeze the blog in around 5pm most likely. Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always
Jon
Today’s readings:
Genesis 27:1-28:22
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2027-28&version=MSG
Matthew 10:32-11:15
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2010:32-11:15&version=MSG
Psalm 9:1-6
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%209:1-6&version=MSG
So we start of with Jacob doing a bang up job of deceiving his father and cheating his way to being God's chosen guy. Now this is a bit troublesome isn't it? On Soul Survivor's blog they say that this is a contradictary example to what Jesus would do as a son but that doesn't explain how Jacob became such a fantastic man of God and was looked over by God... This whole thing seem very complicated because as much as Jacob is at fault for cheating his way to the blessing, his mum Rebekah is really not coming off well in this chapter. She's picking favourites and then has the cheek to go back to Issac with her concerns. So where's the truth? To me, Jacob isn't doing the right thing. But neither is Issac. I really feel for Esau because he's desperate to get some sort of blessing from his father. Esau realises that Issac's blessings carry the authority of God and will come to fruition and is aghast that Issac has given everything to just one son. I wonder if Esau would have been as understanding if he received the blessing first. But he's right, Issac shouldn't have put all the great things on one son, especially when his reasons are the two seconds that split them coming out of the womb and favouritism. I think the first lesson here is that God provides for us equally. Issac thinks of something for Esau eventually which leaves Esau annoyed but in a way this is a little like our relationship with God. Some people will appear to have got more than others and that can really upset us. But we've already read what Jesus said about wealth and we have to remember that the real treasures are in heaven waiting for us.
Second lesson to me is that Jacob did something wrong but he earned God's promise. Now God is a just God and could have judged against Jacob, maybe we would have done. But God knew what sort of a man Jacob was and would be and honoured His promises to him. That's good news. No matter how much we think we're not worthy of the promises that are made in the Bible, God honours them anyway.
Next Issac warns off Jacob from marrying a Hittite or Caananite like his brother. There's a little lesson here about going out with someone who doesn't believe the same things as you do. It can work, but it's blooming hard going and you need to make sure that God is still the main focus of your life. Jacob then has a fantastic dream, and just a small point on this that's never really occurred to me before. Jacob managed to sleep outside, in the wilderness where there are all sorts of scary beasties, using a rock as his pillow. Now that's impressive but I think that maybe the reason Jacob fell asleep was because God wanted to talk to him. I think that if God really needs to say something to you, He'll find a way. We just have to make sure we're listening! God then confirms that He's following through on Issac's blessing and Jacob's reaction is brilliant. He believes, he honours and he commits. Now that is how we ought to respond to the word of God!
Into the New Testament we have more teaching from Jesus. First of all Jesus points out that believing and following Him might make you fall out with family. I know a lot of you Connect chaps and chapesses are from non Christian families and I hope you take a real lift from knowing that Jesus understands and has planned for your family situation and how it might not be the easiest thing for you to deal with. But then as we were singing at Impact, if our God is for us then what can stand against? Jesus will honor that commitment to Him! Jesus also says not to pick son or daughter over Him. That's a little reminiscient of Issac to me. He picked sons over God's just way and ended up fracturing his family and hurting his favourite.
We then see what has become of John the Baptist. Trapped in a prison where he will see out the rest of his days, John's first thought is excitement at what his cousin Jesus is achieving. What a witness! Jesus spends a fair amount of time talking about John and what a great man of God he is. He talks about how John fulfils prophecies in the Old Testament and is a prophet himself. This is big praise because the prophets were incredibly highly thought of as God chose them to speak to. He also points out how John points the way to Him. A lot of people say Jesus never admitted to being the Messiah. This to me seems like Him not so much saying "Yes I am" but saying "Well what do you think?!" He lists all the reasons that point to him being the Messiah without specifically saying it so that it is still a matter of free choice. And what is interesting to me is verse 15 where Jesus checks that everyone is really listening to what He's been saying. As though that last bit might have been quite important!!
Finally our Psalm for today and David is full of joy at how God delivers justice to humanity. There are so many times when this world seems such a messed up and injust place and it can be hard to believe that God is keeping His justice. But David had been through a lot before writing this and he still had the passion and truth in his heart to know that God will always love and protect His people.
And that's the lot. Sorry it's so late again. I'm off out tomorrow evening so I really will have to squeeze the blog in around 5pm most likely. Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always
Jon
Sunday, 12 September 2010
Day 12 - In it for the long haul
Yikes. Late again. I think weekends are harder to write on because other people are free! Also today's been slightly God overload and so I've not been as quick to reach for my Bible. Bad Jon? Maybe... but I do think it shows that this project is helping me certainly, and maybe you, to realise the power God's word has in effecting us. On to business then,
Today’s readings:
Genesis 25:1-26:35
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2025-26&version=MSG
Matthew 10:1-31
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2010:1-31&version=MSG
Proverbs 1:20-33
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%201:20-33&version=MSG
Genesis today gets really interesting with Issac and Rebekah having two sons, Esau and Jacob. I'm mildly bemused that the Soul Survivor blog focused on all the names that were listed and I'll echo what they said. The lists are there and there are LOTS more to come (seriously, I'm dreading having to blog about Numbers...) and they are very dry and hard to get excited about. But it's important to see that God is present in all generations and that it's not just the big important Bible people who are remembered by God but every descendent and all of the off shoots of their family.
So we get onto the twins. Firstly, I think it's mildly cheeky of Issac to be praying at the age of 60 for God to give him children because his wife is barren. Yeah, Issac. It's Rebekah that's only going to be having problem conceiving! But there's a little lesson here about not being proud before God and just accepting that He knows us and our strengths and weaknesses, no matter how much we try and hide them.
Now I always liked Jacob and Esau's story because the younger brother, albeit younger by a few seconds, won out in the end. And being a little brother myself I was most pleased by this outcome! But look at the text more closely. God doesn't actually say to Rebekah which son will be the dominant one, just that one will be. Esau could easily have been the father of the Jewish nation instead of Jacob but he took his eye of the ball. We've already read how Jesus spoke to people and told them not to worry about food and shelter as God will always provide in one way or another. And here's Esau, who's had a hard day at work, surrendering his entire inheritance for a bit of food. I mean that's like agreeing to let your brother or sister have whatever they want from your room, all of your pocket money, any present our parents might get you and all because they made you a can of soup. Seriously! The Message even says that it's a lentil soup. LENTILS?! Esau clearly didn't take his brithright seriously. He just assumed that it would always be his because that's the way it had been and later on he goes mental when he realises what he's lost. We'll come to that another day though
Then we have Issac proving the old saying that the apple never falls far from the tree. He goes to see Abimelech and does he be honest about who his wife is? Of course not... She's his sister. Now there are two lessons here. Number one, don't lie about who your wife is! If you're going out with someone and you're too shy or ashamed to admit it then you're disrespecting them and God's love of them. Number two, don't be doing the smoochies too much in public. Issac gets spotted because he's having a fun cuddle with Rebekah in the view of Abimelech. Naughty man! We then finish of today's reading in Genesis with a long description of how Issac made a fair bit of wealth thanks to God's blessings, how he founded an awful lot of wells which became towns and how Esau married two women who, cliffhanger alert, are going to be thorny problems for his parents apparently.
Now I will say one thing because I said I wasn't going to ignore the Biblical inconsistencies that crop up and we have one here. The well of Beersheba has been mentioned before in Genesis with it getting its name from a deal Abraham made there. And yet here it appears to be Issac giving it it's name. Confusing stuff. I think that this is a case of the Bible being a book that is culturally important to the people it was written for and letting them know that the places they live in have a history that dates way way back. Warrington is called that because we've had a ton of battles fought here but there is a bit of debate about when it first received the name. I think another possiblity is that Abraham made the well and then as our reading today says, the Philistines filled it in (well with a name like that what do you expect?) and then Issac re-established the well and the name. Thoughts?
Into the New Testament and we see Jesus calling his twelve disciples. Now I believe quite strongly that there weren't the only guys that Jesus hung around with. They arrive as an immediate answer to prayer, which is epic, and Jesus is very quick to equip them with instructions on how to go and minister to people. Now I know that Jesus spent a lot of time with the disciples but I believe that they must have also been out spreading His truth even while He was alive and He has told them to do that right here! As such I don't think that any of us should feel that Jesus picks favourites or only wants certain people to be the best Christians.
Jesus goes on though to really outline how we should be carrying out mission work. This stuff is really important for you to highlight in your Bible as it's the attitudes and motives that you should be carrying with you when you talk about Jesus. Pretty much everything from verse 5 to verse 23 is how we need to be when we look towards reaching out to our community. I'd also like to point out verse 5 specifically. Now I know Emily and Sophie went abroard on missions this year and I think that's fantastic. Does that contradict this verse? I don't think so. In the Message Jesus says, "Don't begin by travelling to some far-off place to convert unbelievers." There are two important phrases here. Firstly begin. I believe that if you feel God is calling you to preach His gospel and tell other's about His love then that's fantastic but you have to get some experience locally so that you can be strong enough in Jesus to go somewhere exotic and preach. Secondly, convert unbelievers. Spreading the gospel is the most important commission we have but most foreign charity trips are about aid work and spreading God's love practically. It can be very dangerous to go and "convert" people in far off lands and then never see them again. There are all sorts of problems with so called Christian churches in Africa that have been tainted by Satan because they have been ignored by the very people who first introduced Jesus to them. If you're going to commit to telling people about Jesus then you have to be ready to support that person and help them grow. And we finish with a fantastic little bit about how God values each of us immensely. Always nice to hear!
That was a big old paragraph! More proverbs to finish. Well not really proverbs yet, we're still in the first chapter and Solomon is setting out how this book should be used. This collection of verses is talking about wisdom and how people can ignore it and think they know best. Proverbs is a fantastic book full of God's wisdom and I think it's important that we look at it remembering that these are God inspired bits of wisdom and not just old wives' tales. Solomon talks about how people were complacent and careless and how they forgot to be in awe and in fear of the power and majesty of God and that can be true of us. We like the loving, caring God and that's fantastic. But we should also remember that we're only saved thanks to His grace and we ought to be daily thankful for such a massive privilege.
That's your lot. I've put some links to the passages for today and will do my best to keep doing that in case any of you don't have your Bible handy. I'll be putting them in the Message translation because that's how I like to read it but you can use to drop down menu to pick another one. I'd recommend either the NIV, which is the Soul Survivor Bible, the NRSV, which is the translation most schools study or the Youth Bible because it's youth innit.
Also, please do feel free to comment even if it's just a hello! I've had three really nice bit of feedback today and they've really helped me keep going knowing that the hit counter isn't lying and that real people, not just Google bots, are looking at this. If you want to comment and don't have a blogspot account then choose the url option and just put your name, leave the url box blank and type me things! Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always
Jon
Today’s readings:
Genesis 25:1-26:35
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2025-26&version=MSG
Matthew 10:1-31
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2010:1-31&version=MSG
Proverbs 1:20-33
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%201:20-33&version=MSG
Genesis today gets really interesting with Issac and Rebekah having two sons, Esau and Jacob. I'm mildly bemused that the Soul Survivor blog focused on all the names that were listed and I'll echo what they said. The lists are there and there are LOTS more to come (seriously, I'm dreading having to blog about Numbers...) and they are very dry and hard to get excited about. But it's important to see that God is present in all generations and that it's not just the big important Bible people who are remembered by God but every descendent and all of the off shoots of their family.
So we get onto the twins. Firstly, I think it's mildly cheeky of Issac to be praying at the age of 60 for God to give him children because his wife is barren. Yeah, Issac. It's Rebekah that's only going to be having problem conceiving! But there's a little lesson here about not being proud before God and just accepting that He knows us and our strengths and weaknesses, no matter how much we try and hide them.
Now I always liked Jacob and Esau's story because the younger brother, albeit younger by a few seconds, won out in the end. And being a little brother myself I was most pleased by this outcome! But look at the text more closely. God doesn't actually say to Rebekah which son will be the dominant one, just that one will be. Esau could easily have been the father of the Jewish nation instead of Jacob but he took his eye of the ball. We've already read how Jesus spoke to people and told them not to worry about food and shelter as God will always provide in one way or another. And here's Esau, who's had a hard day at work, surrendering his entire inheritance for a bit of food. I mean that's like agreeing to let your brother or sister have whatever they want from your room, all of your pocket money, any present our parents might get you and all because they made you a can of soup. Seriously! The Message even says that it's a lentil soup. LENTILS?! Esau clearly didn't take his brithright seriously. He just assumed that it would always be his because that's the way it had been and later on he goes mental when he realises what he's lost. We'll come to that another day though
Then we have Issac proving the old saying that the apple never falls far from the tree. He goes to see Abimelech and does he be honest about who his wife is? Of course not... She's his sister. Now there are two lessons here. Number one, don't lie about who your wife is! If you're going out with someone and you're too shy or ashamed to admit it then you're disrespecting them and God's love of them. Number two, don't be doing the smoochies too much in public. Issac gets spotted because he's having a fun cuddle with Rebekah in the view of Abimelech. Naughty man! We then finish of today's reading in Genesis with a long description of how Issac made a fair bit of wealth thanks to God's blessings, how he founded an awful lot of wells which became towns and how Esau married two women who, cliffhanger alert, are going to be thorny problems for his parents apparently.
Now I will say one thing because I said I wasn't going to ignore the Biblical inconsistencies that crop up and we have one here. The well of Beersheba has been mentioned before in Genesis with it getting its name from a deal Abraham made there. And yet here it appears to be Issac giving it it's name. Confusing stuff. I think that this is a case of the Bible being a book that is culturally important to the people it was written for and letting them know that the places they live in have a history that dates way way back. Warrington is called that because we've had a ton of battles fought here but there is a bit of debate about when it first received the name. I think another possiblity is that Abraham made the well and then as our reading today says, the Philistines filled it in (well with a name like that what do you expect?) and then Issac re-established the well and the name. Thoughts?
Into the New Testament and we see Jesus calling his twelve disciples. Now I believe quite strongly that there weren't the only guys that Jesus hung around with. They arrive as an immediate answer to prayer, which is epic, and Jesus is very quick to equip them with instructions on how to go and minister to people. Now I know that Jesus spent a lot of time with the disciples but I believe that they must have also been out spreading His truth even while He was alive and He has told them to do that right here! As such I don't think that any of us should feel that Jesus picks favourites or only wants certain people to be the best Christians.
Jesus goes on though to really outline how we should be carrying out mission work. This stuff is really important for you to highlight in your Bible as it's the attitudes and motives that you should be carrying with you when you talk about Jesus. Pretty much everything from verse 5 to verse 23 is how we need to be when we look towards reaching out to our community. I'd also like to point out verse 5 specifically. Now I know Emily and Sophie went abroard on missions this year and I think that's fantastic. Does that contradict this verse? I don't think so. In the Message Jesus says, "Don't begin by travelling to some far-off place to convert unbelievers." There are two important phrases here. Firstly begin. I believe that if you feel God is calling you to preach His gospel and tell other's about His love then that's fantastic but you have to get some experience locally so that you can be strong enough in Jesus to go somewhere exotic and preach. Secondly, convert unbelievers. Spreading the gospel is the most important commission we have but most foreign charity trips are about aid work and spreading God's love practically. It can be very dangerous to go and "convert" people in far off lands and then never see them again. There are all sorts of problems with so called Christian churches in Africa that have been tainted by Satan because they have been ignored by the very people who first introduced Jesus to them. If you're going to commit to telling people about Jesus then you have to be ready to support that person and help them grow. And we finish with a fantastic little bit about how God values each of us immensely. Always nice to hear!
That was a big old paragraph! More proverbs to finish. Well not really proverbs yet, we're still in the first chapter and Solomon is setting out how this book should be used. This collection of verses is talking about wisdom and how people can ignore it and think they know best. Proverbs is a fantastic book full of God's wisdom and I think it's important that we look at it remembering that these are God inspired bits of wisdom and not just old wives' tales. Solomon talks about how people were complacent and careless and how they forgot to be in awe and in fear of the power and majesty of God and that can be true of us. We like the loving, caring God and that's fantastic. But we should also remember that we're only saved thanks to His grace and we ought to be daily thankful for such a massive privilege.
That's your lot. I've put some links to the passages for today and will do my best to keep doing that in case any of you don't have your Bible handy. I'll be putting them in the Message translation because that's how I like to read it but you can use to drop down menu to pick another one. I'd recommend either the NIV, which is the Soul Survivor Bible, the NRSV, which is the translation most schools study or the Youth Bible because it's youth innit.
Also, please do feel free to comment even if it's just a hello! I've had three really nice bit of feedback today and they've really helped me keep going knowing that the hit counter isn't lying and that real people, not just Google bots, are looking at this. If you want to comment and don't have a blogspot account then choose the url option and just put your name, leave the url box blank and type me things! Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always
Jon
Saturday, 11 September 2010
Day 11 - Who's in charge?
Oh it's another late one. Silly Blogspot decided to error on me and not let me post. Then I've been out all night entertaining Craig so sorry for the delay! Blame him... Onto business then
Today’s readings:
Genesis 24:1-67
Matthew 9:14-38
Psalm 8:1-9
And so we're pretty much winding up Abraham's story here as he realises that he's getting on a bit and so sends out his servant to find Issac a wife. First things first, how comes my parents haven't found me a wife yet? Tsk... What I like about this passage initially is that Abraham makes sure that his son marries one of God's chosen people by putting his requirements in the oath. But what he also does is not put God on the spot. He FINALLY accepts that he doesn't know more than God and so while he'd like things to work out one way, he makes sure that the servant isn't tied to his rules, he's tied to God's will.
The servant then goes to Abraham's own people and is quick to pray that God gives him a clear sign of which is the right wife. What I think is fantastic about this is how even before the servant finishes his prayer, God has already sent out Rebekah and fulfilled the exact requirements of the servant's prayer before it leaves his lips. I think sometimes we forget that prayers aren't just requests that God needs to hear, they're a way of letting us notice when God actually works in our lives. So often it's hard to focus and notice his blessings and through praying and letting God and yourself know what you are thinking about then you will notice when those prayers are answered. But God already has his answers ready for when you pray.
The New Testament continues with more of Jesus' teaching and miracles. Jesus first of all teaches on fasting and addresses why his disciples aren't constantly tasking themselves physically. Now this to me is a dangerous one if people don't really understand it. Jesus here is saying that his disciples don't mope and fast because they're with Him and so they're enjoying being in His presence. Now how does that apply to us? Are we ok to just be happy all the time and never concerned? Should we never fast so that we can focus on God? I think that what Jesus is saying here is that we should not be afraid to just have times when we are full of excitement and joy and that when those times come we should just bask in God's love. I think at Soul Survivor those times were very easy to come by and they should be the goal as that's what Heaven will be. Now we should be looking for those times to happen regularly and I think the only way THAT can happen is if we do take our faith seriously and not just as a club we belong to. Be proud of your faith, be serious when you need to be, take steps to discipline your life so that you can have those amazing moments where you really connect with God and feel His presence with you.
Jesus then does two amazing things. He raises a girl from the dead showing that He has power over sin and can conquer Satan's influence. But to me the prior miracle is even more amazing. Jesus was surrounded by his disciples, getting jostled from all sides and yet felt his healing power being needed by just the slightest of touches. Now I've heard people describe this miracle as though Jesus had no say in the matter but I think Matthew here shows that Jesus hears and responds to even the weakest cry for help. You might feel like your faith is weak or you're undeserving of God's love, but if you have the faith to believe and the will to change for Jesus then He will do amazing things for you.
Jesus then heals two more men and the interesting point to me here is verse 34 when the Pharisees start to accuse Jesus of using Satan's authority to remove demons. This makes no sense to me at all. If Jesus were working for Satan, why did He defy Satan in the wilderness? And why would Satan be letting him torment his demons and drive them out of people?! Clearly the Pharisees saw Jesus power and as powerful and religious people themselves, they realised that He was something special. And we finish of with Jesus commanding us to pray. So that's your homework for today. Jesus tells us we need to pray for God to send workers into the fields so I'd like you to think of an area of the world where you think God needs his people to work in and pray over that. Big or small, at home or abroad, we're all God's children and deserve his love and justice.
Our Psalm today is another Davidic one (meaning David wrote it unsurprisingly ;o) ) and is a brilliant praise song. David has been banging on about how he is constantly threatened and reliant on God and this Psalm feels like a break from that where he just yells about how amazing God is. He sings of how God is in all things and that really echoes the call to prayer that Jesus gives us. So we have three passages today that tell us to pray for God's people to do his work, that God is at work in all things, and that God will answer your prayers; sometimes before you've even finished them. Now that to me is a lovely bit of linking. Hallelujah!
Short again! I would like to keep it this length unless there's something that really bothers me. Hope you've all had a great Saturday and see some of you tomorrow. Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always.
Jon
Today’s readings:
Genesis 24:1-67
Matthew 9:14-38
Psalm 8:1-9
And so we're pretty much winding up Abraham's story here as he realises that he's getting on a bit and so sends out his servant to find Issac a wife. First things first, how comes my parents haven't found me a wife yet? Tsk... What I like about this passage initially is that Abraham makes sure that his son marries one of God's chosen people by putting his requirements in the oath. But what he also does is not put God on the spot. He FINALLY accepts that he doesn't know more than God and so while he'd like things to work out one way, he makes sure that the servant isn't tied to his rules, he's tied to God's will.
The servant then goes to Abraham's own people and is quick to pray that God gives him a clear sign of which is the right wife. What I think is fantastic about this is how even before the servant finishes his prayer, God has already sent out Rebekah and fulfilled the exact requirements of the servant's prayer before it leaves his lips. I think sometimes we forget that prayers aren't just requests that God needs to hear, they're a way of letting us notice when God actually works in our lives. So often it's hard to focus and notice his blessings and through praying and letting God and yourself know what you are thinking about then you will notice when those prayers are answered. But God already has his answers ready for when you pray.
The New Testament continues with more of Jesus' teaching and miracles. Jesus first of all teaches on fasting and addresses why his disciples aren't constantly tasking themselves physically. Now this to me is a dangerous one if people don't really understand it. Jesus here is saying that his disciples don't mope and fast because they're with Him and so they're enjoying being in His presence. Now how does that apply to us? Are we ok to just be happy all the time and never concerned? Should we never fast so that we can focus on God? I think that what Jesus is saying here is that we should not be afraid to just have times when we are full of excitement and joy and that when those times come we should just bask in God's love. I think at Soul Survivor those times were very easy to come by and they should be the goal as that's what Heaven will be. Now we should be looking for those times to happen regularly and I think the only way THAT can happen is if we do take our faith seriously and not just as a club we belong to. Be proud of your faith, be serious when you need to be, take steps to discipline your life so that you can have those amazing moments where you really connect with God and feel His presence with you.
Jesus then does two amazing things. He raises a girl from the dead showing that He has power over sin and can conquer Satan's influence. But to me the prior miracle is even more amazing. Jesus was surrounded by his disciples, getting jostled from all sides and yet felt his healing power being needed by just the slightest of touches. Now I've heard people describe this miracle as though Jesus had no say in the matter but I think Matthew here shows that Jesus hears and responds to even the weakest cry for help. You might feel like your faith is weak or you're undeserving of God's love, but if you have the faith to believe and the will to change for Jesus then He will do amazing things for you.
Jesus then heals two more men and the interesting point to me here is verse 34 when the Pharisees start to accuse Jesus of using Satan's authority to remove demons. This makes no sense to me at all. If Jesus were working for Satan, why did He defy Satan in the wilderness? And why would Satan be letting him torment his demons and drive them out of people?! Clearly the Pharisees saw Jesus power and as powerful and religious people themselves, they realised that He was something special. And we finish of with Jesus commanding us to pray. So that's your homework for today. Jesus tells us we need to pray for God to send workers into the fields so I'd like you to think of an area of the world where you think God needs his people to work in and pray over that. Big or small, at home or abroad, we're all God's children and deserve his love and justice.
Our Psalm today is another Davidic one (meaning David wrote it unsurprisingly ;o) ) and is a brilliant praise song. David has been banging on about how he is constantly threatened and reliant on God and this Psalm feels like a break from that where he just yells about how amazing God is. He sings of how God is in all things and that really echoes the call to prayer that Jesus gives us. So we have three passages today that tell us to pray for God's people to do his work, that God is at work in all things, and that God will answer your prayers; sometimes before you've even finished them. Now that to me is a lovely bit of linking. Hallelujah!
Short again! I would like to keep it this length unless there's something that really bothers me. Hope you've all had a great Saturday and see some of you tomorrow. Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always.
Jon
Friday, 10 September 2010
Day 10 - I've got to do what?!
Double figures!! Woohoo!! Party time indeed. Let's see if I get to triple figures... On to business then,
Today’s readings
Genesis 21:1-23:20
Matthew 8:23-9:13
Psalm 7:10-17
Genesis continues today with the birth of Issac who, for such an important bloke in the big picture, really only does three things. Two of them are in today's passage. He's born and he nearly gets sacrificed. Quick points about chapter 21. Issac's birth is obviously a huge deal to Abraham but he realises that it is a blessing from God and Sarah too is full of praise. God follows through on his promises and we need to learn to trust Him no matter how long it takes or how stupid it seems.
Then we see Ishmael being sent away and even though Abraham and Sarah reject him, God doesn't forget our promise. I like that here is a God who doesn't take sides. God hates evil, he doesn't ever hate people and will always love someone no matter what circumstance they're born into. God provides for them as He promised and makes Ishmael into a huge nation.
Then we get the biggy. God tells Abraham to go and kill his son as an thank you to God for all His blessings. Now this seems backwards. God's blessings ARE Isaac so why should Abraham kill him? Not to mention that Abraham would have been personally torn up about this. And yet, Abraham, who has messed up countless times, finally trusts God's word and God's plan and goes ahead with it. Now God stops him and honours his trust and faith with even huger blessings but what a test hey? To me, and this has required a fair bit of thinking, it seems like God isn't testing Abraham. I don't think He would have condemned him if Abraham hadn't done it. I don't think God would have loved him less. But to me it seems like this passage is saying that in certain situations it might seem like you know better than God. You might think that you probably should stand up for what you believe but that would mess things up for you, or that you should offer to help someone but someone else will do it so it's not needed. Well here God gives the craziest instruction and Abraham follows it and reaps the benefits!
Finally we have the death of Sarah. Point one is that Sarah died at age 127 even though God said earlier than people would only live to 120. I'm not going to ignore contradictions like this because I think that's insulting to the Bible. To me the 120 figure is a human explanation of about how long people lived. So maybe you can live over that, God's not going to zap you on your 120th birthday as a rule... The only other thing that I got out of this passage is how cool Ephron is. Despite his sucky name (booo to high school musical) he is desperate for Abraham to use his land as a burial patch. Kind of a precursor to Jesus' own death.
Onto the New Testament then. We get some big Jesus activity today. First he stills the storm, then he heals two guys and then he heals a paralytic and calls another disciple. Now the storm story is a nice reminder of the start of Genesis with God/Jesus being in control of all creation. I also like that the disciples are scared and human and that Jesus has to sleep. This guy is human, not Superman.
The interesting thing about the healing of the demon possessed men isn't the speaking demons or the suicidal pigs, though it's cool that once the demons had legs they RAN from Jesus. To me I find it fascinating that after Jesus performed His miracle, people pleaded with Him to leave the whole region! Now that to me shows just how holy Jesus was. Evil flees in terror and people are scared because they realise that not only, as we found out yesterday, does this guy practice what He preaches but He has huge amounts of power to back up His wishes. People were scared that Jesus could force them to live they lives they ought to. Wow. Now there's a challenge. Would you be happy for Jesus to force you to lead the life He wants for you? What's in your life that you couldn't possibly give up but know that you should? Wow...
And then Jesus shows that his power isn't just for show or for helping people out. His power is directly linked to the forgiveness of sin. It seems like Jesus is saying here that you can't receive the fullness of His blessings if you don't realise first that you need to say sorry and be made right with Him. People complain that they don't see God but these people won't change their lives so that they CAN see God. And verse 8, here's a odd one. People see are filled with awe. Now they're not pleading Jesus to leave but awe is a powerful thing. Awesome as a word has lost so much of it's meaning but true awe leaves you speechless, not quite understanding or believing what you're seeing. And that can be scary. We need to br praying not just that we see God's awesome glory but that we're prepared to receive it and praise God rather than being scared and clinging to what we want for ourselves.
We finish up with Jesus calling Matthew the tax collector and making the point, which should have been obvious to the Pharisees, that Jesus has come for those who need Him most. This is also fantastic news as we can trust that whenever we truly need Jesus, He'll be there for us.
Finally our Psalm today carries on from yesterday's. And it's full of amazing pictures of how powerful our God is. Remember all these pictures and images of this powerful warrior who will protect and defend you for when you really need to hear it. And what's really cool is that David finishes by pointing out that even though God is armed to the teeth and is protecting him, it's his enemies who are their own downfall. God won't actively try and hurt people as He loves all of them, even those who are against us but he ensures that people who aren't following His ways will be in trouble because of their own actions.
Much shorter today but I've got to dash and watch a load of Police Academy :) Oh I wanted to say a quick word about this whole burning the koran thing that's going on. Personally I think it's disgusting and crazy. I hate the fact that this guy seems to think that a Christian response to tragedy and hurt should be destruction and hatred. Where's the loving attitude? I don't believe that the Koran is holy but I think the motivation of this guy is just plain wrong and un Godly.
That's all for now. Have an ace weekend and I'll see you tomorrow. Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always.
Jon
Today’s readings
Genesis 21:1-23:20
Matthew 8:23-9:13
Psalm 7:10-17
Genesis continues today with the birth of Issac who, for such an important bloke in the big picture, really only does three things. Two of them are in today's passage. He's born and he nearly gets sacrificed. Quick points about chapter 21. Issac's birth is obviously a huge deal to Abraham but he realises that it is a blessing from God and Sarah too is full of praise. God follows through on his promises and we need to learn to trust Him no matter how long it takes or how stupid it seems.
Then we see Ishmael being sent away and even though Abraham and Sarah reject him, God doesn't forget our promise. I like that here is a God who doesn't take sides. God hates evil, he doesn't ever hate people and will always love someone no matter what circumstance they're born into. God provides for them as He promised and makes Ishmael into a huge nation.
Then we get the biggy. God tells Abraham to go and kill his son as an thank you to God for all His blessings. Now this seems backwards. God's blessings ARE Isaac so why should Abraham kill him? Not to mention that Abraham would have been personally torn up about this. And yet, Abraham, who has messed up countless times, finally trusts God's word and God's plan and goes ahead with it. Now God stops him and honours his trust and faith with even huger blessings but what a test hey? To me, and this has required a fair bit of thinking, it seems like God isn't testing Abraham. I don't think He would have condemned him if Abraham hadn't done it. I don't think God would have loved him less. But to me it seems like this passage is saying that in certain situations it might seem like you know better than God. You might think that you probably should stand up for what you believe but that would mess things up for you, or that you should offer to help someone but someone else will do it so it's not needed. Well here God gives the craziest instruction and Abraham follows it and reaps the benefits!
Finally we have the death of Sarah. Point one is that Sarah died at age 127 even though God said earlier than people would only live to 120. I'm not going to ignore contradictions like this because I think that's insulting to the Bible. To me the 120 figure is a human explanation of about how long people lived. So maybe you can live over that, God's not going to zap you on your 120th birthday as a rule... The only other thing that I got out of this passage is how cool Ephron is. Despite his sucky name (booo to high school musical) he is desperate for Abraham to use his land as a burial patch. Kind of a precursor to Jesus' own death.
Onto the New Testament then. We get some big Jesus activity today. First he stills the storm, then he heals two guys and then he heals a paralytic and calls another disciple. Now the storm story is a nice reminder of the start of Genesis with God/Jesus being in control of all creation. I also like that the disciples are scared and human and that Jesus has to sleep. This guy is human, not Superman.
The interesting thing about the healing of the demon possessed men isn't the speaking demons or the suicidal pigs, though it's cool that once the demons had legs they RAN from Jesus. To me I find it fascinating that after Jesus performed His miracle, people pleaded with Him to leave the whole region! Now that to me shows just how holy Jesus was. Evil flees in terror and people are scared because they realise that not only, as we found out yesterday, does this guy practice what He preaches but He has huge amounts of power to back up His wishes. People were scared that Jesus could force them to live they lives they ought to. Wow. Now there's a challenge. Would you be happy for Jesus to force you to lead the life He wants for you? What's in your life that you couldn't possibly give up but know that you should? Wow...
And then Jesus shows that his power isn't just for show or for helping people out. His power is directly linked to the forgiveness of sin. It seems like Jesus is saying here that you can't receive the fullness of His blessings if you don't realise first that you need to say sorry and be made right with Him. People complain that they don't see God but these people won't change their lives so that they CAN see God. And verse 8, here's a odd one. People see are filled with awe. Now they're not pleading Jesus to leave but awe is a powerful thing. Awesome as a word has lost so much of it's meaning but true awe leaves you speechless, not quite understanding or believing what you're seeing. And that can be scary. We need to br praying not just that we see God's awesome glory but that we're prepared to receive it and praise God rather than being scared and clinging to what we want for ourselves.
We finish up with Jesus calling Matthew the tax collector and making the point, which should have been obvious to the Pharisees, that Jesus has come for those who need Him most. This is also fantastic news as we can trust that whenever we truly need Jesus, He'll be there for us.
Finally our Psalm today carries on from yesterday's. And it's full of amazing pictures of how powerful our God is. Remember all these pictures and images of this powerful warrior who will protect and defend you for when you really need to hear it. And what's really cool is that David finishes by pointing out that even though God is armed to the teeth and is protecting him, it's his enemies who are their own downfall. God won't actively try and hurt people as He loves all of them, even those who are against us but he ensures that people who aren't following His ways will be in trouble because of their own actions.
Much shorter today but I've got to dash and watch a load of Police Academy :) Oh I wanted to say a quick word about this whole burning the koran thing that's going on. Personally I think it's disgusting and crazy. I hate the fact that this guy seems to think that a Christian response to tragedy and hurt should be destruction and hatred. Where's the loving attitude? I don't believe that the Koran is holy but I think the motivation of this guy is just plain wrong and un Godly.
That's all for now. Have an ace weekend and I'll see you tomorrow. Questions, criticisms and comments welcome as always.
Jon
Thursday, 9 September 2010
Day 9 - Paying the Price
I've been having a lovely lazy day today. Listening to podcasts, not getting my jeans on till after lunchtime, getting told I might get my redundancy at long last. It's a day of Sun through the window and smiles on Jon's face. Oh I suppose I should do my very quick film review. I ended up going to see Jonah Hex because Scott Pilgrim vs the World had just started when we got there (bloomin Pizza Express forgetting about us and making us late...) Now I only went to see Jonah because it's a comic film and I tend to have to watch them even though I know I'll be disappointed. For what it was, it wasn't that bad. It was a pretty standard cowboy film with a few explosions thrown in. John Malkovich did nothing and I bet they spent far too much money getting him to play the villain which they could have spent on more effects. I also have a problem with Megan Fox loving a man that looks like Jonah Hex. Google him and you'll see what I mean. Overall, it's rentable if you're into westerns but not worth it otherwise. On to business then!
Today’s readings
Genesis 19:1-20:18
Matthew 7:24-8:22
Psalm 7:1-9
I really don't think I'm going to type that much today although there is a lot we could cover. Genesis has some really tough and confusing words today. First you have Sodom. Now anytime there are angels involved, things can get confusing and you might not think it's factual. That's up to you but I'd urge you to look for the truth behind the story. Personally I believe (just like westlife) in angels and that God can protect people in bizarre ways. Now these two angels had been sent to find virtuous men remember? They get to the city and find Lot and are happy to sleep outside in the street. Lot insists they come in but it's not because he is being massively hospitable. Instead he knows that the way the city works is that strangers get attacked, raped and probably killed. Lot comes off in these two chapters as being essentially good but continually scared. He's afraid to stay in the city when he hears of its destruction but he's slow to leave because it's the only life he understands. He's scared of going to the mountains so goes to the small town but then is scared of staying in Zohar and ends up back in the mountains. Remember when we first met Lot and he chose all the fantastic lush land to settle in? What went wrong? To me this is a clear lesson of how you have to remember God in the fortunate times. If we cry out for God in the troubled times but then forget about what He would want when things go well then we're not going to stay prosperous in Him.
A quick word about the whole Lot being raped by his daughters. Obviously this is mega not ok and it shows just how much humanity needed God to give them laws. So much wicked behaviour happens in our world today because people accept it as normal. Injustice and slavery only exist because they are established and accepted. The child sex trade in India is obviously wrong but people are used to it. This to me is a lesson in keeping your mind fresh with God's rights and wrongs so that you don't become desensitized to evil.
The other big message of Sodom is of course one of redemption. Now reading this today and having it fresh in my mind has shown me a different side to the story. What used to seem like an act of punishment and fury is actually a form of salvation. The angels say that they have come because of the cries of the victims within the town. God is obviously condemning the behaviour but He's doing it because it is damaging to so many people. If we sin and it messes us up then that's bad but when our sin directly hurts other people, God's not going to stand for it.
Genesis continues with Abraham once again being an idiot when it comes to lying about who his wife is. I can't believe that Abraham is doing the exact same thing to get himself in trouble. It must have been hard to remember that God was with him and keep that faith when he was still just wandering and without children but really... Abraham's sin damages a lot of people here. It nearly costs Abimelech his life, it could have cost Abraham and all his people their lives. It meant that women stopped having children whilst Sarah was there. Just so much potential disaster because Abraham, even with his flimsy and somewhat disturbing loophole, can't trust that God will keep him safe and keep His promise to him.
Into the New Testament and we have the end of the Sermon on the Mount which rather beautifully ties in with the previous passage. All of these sins were because people had no foundation in God. Jesus says that the wise man roots his whole life on the reliable truths of God. Connect 2, our lesson on Sunday about holding onto truths to break misconceptions. This is the sort of thing that I was trying to say. If we keep our mind fixed on what God has promised us then we stay with a head that's full of a God type of attitude.
I love the picture Matthew paints at the end of the chapter with Jesus being cheered not just for his words but for how He lives them to the full unlike the other teachers. CHALLENGE!!!
Matthew could have stopped his gospel there really considering that's the most amazing teaching in the Bible (in my humble opinion) but he continues by showing Jesus not just being a man of great ideas but also a man of action. First he heals aa leper but it's his interaction with the Roman Captain which is fantastic to read. What I like most in this is that Jesus' is surprised. That to me is His fully human side. Now I believe that God knows everything but I could imagine it being very boring knowing exactly what we'll do. This shows though that God and Jesus can have emotional reactions to our choices. I love the idea of Jesus being taken aback with one man's huge faith. There's a challenge here to remember that just because we are Christians and some of us have been a part of church all of our lives, we don't have all the answers and should always be trusting God no matter how familiar He might become.
Our New Testament passage finishes today with a short bit of Jesus talking to people wanting to follow Him. Quite simply Jesus says that He should be your first priority. Can't argue with that and it's something we'll touch on throughout the year but in all things, Jesus can help you and support you so obviously He should be your first priority.
And finally our Psalm. David's again panicking. Again shouting. It's strange isn't it that so many of these opening Psalms are cries for help. I think that to me shows how easy it is to talk to God when we're needing things and how little comparitively we say the thank you and the sorry stuff, unless it's tied into the help and please stuff. There's a quick homework challenge for you all. In your prayer time today or tomorrow just say thanks and sorry. Focus on what God's done and what his forgiveness will do for you. David here is saying to God that he accepts that his sins must be punished but that he also knows in God there is a sense of being made ready and right for living. What a fantastic summary of today's readings!
So that's all for today. Hope you're keeping up alright. Anyone want to comment with their favourite verse or story so far? Questions, criticisms and feedback welcome as ever
Jon
Today’s readings
Genesis 19:1-20:18
Matthew 7:24-8:22
Psalm 7:1-9
I really don't think I'm going to type that much today although there is a lot we could cover. Genesis has some really tough and confusing words today. First you have Sodom. Now anytime there are angels involved, things can get confusing and you might not think it's factual. That's up to you but I'd urge you to look for the truth behind the story. Personally I believe (just like westlife) in angels and that God can protect people in bizarre ways. Now these two angels had been sent to find virtuous men remember? They get to the city and find Lot and are happy to sleep outside in the street. Lot insists they come in but it's not because he is being massively hospitable. Instead he knows that the way the city works is that strangers get attacked, raped and probably killed. Lot comes off in these two chapters as being essentially good but continually scared. He's afraid to stay in the city when he hears of its destruction but he's slow to leave because it's the only life he understands. He's scared of going to the mountains so goes to the small town but then is scared of staying in Zohar and ends up back in the mountains. Remember when we first met Lot and he chose all the fantastic lush land to settle in? What went wrong? To me this is a clear lesson of how you have to remember God in the fortunate times. If we cry out for God in the troubled times but then forget about what He would want when things go well then we're not going to stay prosperous in Him.
A quick word about the whole Lot being raped by his daughters. Obviously this is mega not ok and it shows just how much humanity needed God to give them laws. So much wicked behaviour happens in our world today because people accept it as normal. Injustice and slavery only exist because they are established and accepted. The child sex trade in India is obviously wrong but people are used to it. This to me is a lesson in keeping your mind fresh with God's rights and wrongs so that you don't become desensitized to evil.
The other big message of Sodom is of course one of redemption. Now reading this today and having it fresh in my mind has shown me a different side to the story. What used to seem like an act of punishment and fury is actually a form of salvation. The angels say that they have come because of the cries of the victims within the town. God is obviously condemning the behaviour but He's doing it because it is damaging to so many people. If we sin and it messes us up then that's bad but when our sin directly hurts other people, God's not going to stand for it.
Genesis continues with Abraham once again being an idiot when it comes to lying about who his wife is. I can't believe that Abraham is doing the exact same thing to get himself in trouble. It must have been hard to remember that God was with him and keep that faith when he was still just wandering and without children but really... Abraham's sin damages a lot of people here. It nearly costs Abimelech his life, it could have cost Abraham and all his people their lives. It meant that women stopped having children whilst Sarah was there. Just so much potential disaster because Abraham, even with his flimsy and somewhat disturbing loophole, can't trust that God will keep him safe and keep His promise to him.
Into the New Testament and we have the end of the Sermon on the Mount which rather beautifully ties in with the previous passage. All of these sins were because people had no foundation in God. Jesus says that the wise man roots his whole life on the reliable truths of God. Connect 2, our lesson on Sunday about holding onto truths to break misconceptions. This is the sort of thing that I was trying to say. If we keep our mind fixed on what God has promised us then we stay with a head that's full of a God type of attitude.
I love the picture Matthew paints at the end of the chapter with Jesus being cheered not just for his words but for how He lives them to the full unlike the other teachers. CHALLENGE!!!
Matthew could have stopped his gospel there really considering that's the most amazing teaching in the Bible (in my humble opinion) but he continues by showing Jesus not just being a man of great ideas but also a man of action. First he heals aa leper but it's his interaction with the Roman Captain which is fantastic to read. What I like most in this is that Jesus' is surprised. That to me is His fully human side. Now I believe that God knows everything but I could imagine it being very boring knowing exactly what we'll do. This shows though that God and Jesus can have emotional reactions to our choices. I love the idea of Jesus being taken aback with one man's huge faith. There's a challenge here to remember that just because we are Christians and some of us have been a part of church all of our lives, we don't have all the answers and should always be trusting God no matter how familiar He might become.
Our New Testament passage finishes today with a short bit of Jesus talking to people wanting to follow Him. Quite simply Jesus says that He should be your first priority. Can't argue with that and it's something we'll touch on throughout the year but in all things, Jesus can help you and support you so obviously He should be your first priority.
And finally our Psalm. David's again panicking. Again shouting. It's strange isn't it that so many of these opening Psalms are cries for help. I think that to me shows how easy it is to talk to God when we're needing things and how little comparitively we say the thank you and the sorry stuff, unless it's tied into the help and please stuff. There's a quick homework challenge for you all. In your prayer time today or tomorrow just say thanks and sorry. Focus on what God's done and what his forgiveness will do for you. David here is saying to God that he accepts that his sins must be punished but that he also knows in God there is a sense of being made ready and right for living. What a fantastic summary of today's readings!
So that's all for today. Hope you're keeping up alright. Anyone want to comment with their favourite verse or story so far? Questions, criticisms and feedback welcome as ever
Jon
Wednesday, 8 September 2010
Day 8 - That's just nasty...
I appear to have misplaced my bible in a year... I think it's down the side of my sofa but i'm on my message until it reappears so apologies for the crossed translations. I had one feedback to me doing my vlog so I think i'm going to post one up this week at some point covering everything that we've done so far in a fairly short and chatty Jon way :)
Today I've mostly been mulling around in a bit of a stupor as I stayed up far too late last night. I of course blame this entirely on this blog having to be written and me forgetting to do it. So in fact it's all your fault for reading it!! But check me out making sure I'm doing it on time, if not early, today. Off out to the sillyma later to see a film of something so I have to make sure I'm posted within the next half and hour. Best get a move on then. On to business
Today’s readings
Genesis 17:1-18:33
Matthew 6:25-7:23
Proverbs 1:8-19
We start today with a passage that's just... ow. All the girls are giggling at the poor grimaces on the boys' faces. First of all God reminds Abram that he's going to have a huge family and Abram just doesn't seem to get it as God continually tells him this, albeit over 20+ years. At the start of this passage Abram's clearly forgotten (he is getting on a bit after all) and falls flat with surprise at the news. Then God brings out the big news. That Abram is now going to be called Abraham and his wife be called Sarah. Why change the names? Well God wants to show that Abraham and all his family belong to God and so as well as... what we'll come onto in a minute, God renames Abraham so he belongs to Him. I remember when my Gran and Grandad got a new dog from a rescue shelter and it came with a name but that wasn't the name they picked at it was a name that the dog had been given by people that had hurt and abused him. So they gave him a new name along with his new start. This seems very similar to me.
And then there's the other sign... All the blokes had to cut of a bit of their *ahem* to show that they belonged to God. Now I can understand doing it to new borns (the 8 day rule was probably to ensure that the baby would be strong enough to survive the operation) but imagine having to go to the doctor as an adult and ask for that to be done. And then imagine having to do it without any anaesthetic, any surgical instruments, just whatever you'd use to cut your dinner with most likely. OW!!! But Mike made an interesting point on the Soul Survivor blog. This is probably the bit of a guy that we're most keen to keep safe. And yet for God we have to risk everything. There's no holding back a little bit of our lives from what He wants from us. Challenging stuff...
The passage continues with an interesting interlude where Abraham is visited by three strangers. They say they'll be back to see Sarah have a child and then God straight away says that He'll be back to see Sarah have a child. Now this to me is another example of the Trinity existing throughout the Bible.
That's followed up by the start of the downfall of Sodom. Now Sodom is a problem for a lot of Christians and non Christians as it seems hard to accept a loving God destroying a city for their sin. The usual argument is that God is just and He is punishing the city for their sins. But I think what is more interesting is how God's actions are a direct consequence of prayer. He says He's heard the people crying out. He then talks to Abraham about the situation and again listens to prayer and acts upon it. Obviously God knew that there weren't any righteous people in Sodom but He listened to Abraham. Sometimes we pray as though God doesn't realise what's going on. But God does know and He does listen. But He also knows much more than us and just because we're praying for something it doesn't mean it can or ought to happen. God knows the bigger picture most certainly.
Onto the New Testament and we continue the Sermon on the Mount. We start with a brilliant bit about not worrying. It's so hard to not get caught up in the realities of life and to see that things just aren't as great as we want them to be. And then we start fretting that we're not doing enough or the right thing in the situation. But by doing that we're wasting time. There's nothing we can do in certain situations beyond trust that God has His plan and seek out that plan. It's incredibly hard to do this at times and I hope that I remember this passage as time passes where I don't have a job but I believe (certainly at the moment!) that God has moved me around this last year because He knows what He is doing.
There's an interesting verse that I've never really thought about until I read it in my Message translation (and that's saying something considering the amount of essays I've written on these three chapters!) in Chapter 7 verse 6 the NIV says "Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces." Which sounds very much like a warning to keep your valuable things safe. Maybe Jesus is talking about love and family as He doesn't usually talk about money.
But the Message translation says this "Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you're only being cute and inviting sacrilege." Now that's a jaw dropper for me. I know that God has a sense of humour and values laughter. In today's Old Testament passage he chooses Issac as a name because it means laughter. But God is saying that you have to be very careful when it comes to talking with Him, about Him or spending time for Him not to become flippant and jokey. I'm very guilty of this at times and I'm sure others are but here's Jesus specifically telling us to remember to respect the time we have with God and to give it the seriousness it deserves. By all means have a laugh when it's right to but if you're praying, worshipping or listening to His word then you should give God the opportunity to speak to you by giving Him the respect He deserves.
The passage finishes off with a further reminder that we'll get what we need and want if we ask for it and are ready to receive. People sometimes think that if you don't get an answer then God isn't there but if you're speaking to someone you have to listen. If you're knocking on a door you have to wait around for it to be answered. If you're searching for something you have to look and not just hope someone points it out. Jesus is true in saying that God will provide for us but we don't just get it by asking. We have to be ready and alert to receive His blessings. Finally there's a warning against other paths to God and the fact that there aren't any! Jesus warns against quick fixes and about showy Christianity. He tells us again not to be all about ego when it comes to God but to realise that we're a) way below God but b) equal to everyone else no matter what we do.
Finally our Proverbs. We start with a very important proverb about listening to your parents. Now this one gets trickier with the way the world changes and a lot of times our parents seem less and less wise but this proverb isn't just saying listen to them I think. I think it's also telling you to see how they act and to take that as an example, whether it's a good or a bad one. Don't make all the mistakes yourself if someone older than you has already made them for you. And then finally a rather obvious point about not robbing people. I'm hoping we don't need to study that one! There is a secondary warning in there too about trusting people that hurt other people. Be very careful who you deem trustworthy in your life and think about if they've proven they can be trusted.
And that's my lot. Off I go to the sillyma. Possibly to see Karate Kid, possibly Toy Story 3 if it's still on. I'll feedback tomorrow. Comments, criticisms and questions welcome as always.
Jon
Today I've mostly been mulling around in a bit of a stupor as I stayed up far too late last night. I of course blame this entirely on this blog having to be written and me forgetting to do it. So in fact it's all your fault for reading it!! But check me out making sure I'm doing it on time, if not early, today. Off out to the sillyma later to see a film of something so I have to make sure I'm posted within the next half and hour. Best get a move on then. On to business
Today’s readings
Genesis 17:1-18:33
Matthew 6:25-7:23
Proverbs 1:8-19
We start today with a passage that's just... ow. All the girls are giggling at the poor grimaces on the boys' faces. First of all God reminds Abram that he's going to have a huge family and Abram just doesn't seem to get it as God continually tells him this, albeit over 20+ years. At the start of this passage Abram's clearly forgotten (he is getting on a bit after all) and falls flat with surprise at the news. Then God brings out the big news. That Abram is now going to be called Abraham and his wife be called Sarah. Why change the names? Well God wants to show that Abraham and all his family belong to God and so as well as... what we'll come onto in a minute, God renames Abraham so he belongs to Him. I remember when my Gran and Grandad got a new dog from a rescue shelter and it came with a name but that wasn't the name they picked at it was a name that the dog had been given by people that had hurt and abused him. So they gave him a new name along with his new start. This seems very similar to me.
And then there's the other sign... All the blokes had to cut of a bit of their *ahem* to show that they belonged to God. Now I can understand doing it to new borns (the 8 day rule was probably to ensure that the baby would be strong enough to survive the operation) but imagine having to go to the doctor as an adult and ask for that to be done. And then imagine having to do it without any anaesthetic, any surgical instruments, just whatever you'd use to cut your dinner with most likely. OW!!! But Mike made an interesting point on the Soul Survivor blog. This is probably the bit of a guy that we're most keen to keep safe. And yet for God we have to risk everything. There's no holding back a little bit of our lives from what He wants from us. Challenging stuff...
The passage continues with an interesting interlude where Abraham is visited by three strangers. They say they'll be back to see Sarah have a child and then God straight away says that He'll be back to see Sarah have a child. Now this to me is another example of the Trinity existing throughout the Bible.
That's followed up by the start of the downfall of Sodom. Now Sodom is a problem for a lot of Christians and non Christians as it seems hard to accept a loving God destroying a city for their sin. The usual argument is that God is just and He is punishing the city for their sins. But I think what is more interesting is how God's actions are a direct consequence of prayer. He says He's heard the people crying out. He then talks to Abraham about the situation and again listens to prayer and acts upon it. Obviously God knew that there weren't any righteous people in Sodom but He listened to Abraham. Sometimes we pray as though God doesn't realise what's going on. But God does know and He does listen. But He also knows much more than us and just because we're praying for something it doesn't mean it can or ought to happen. God knows the bigger picture most certainly.
Onto the New Testament and we continue the Sermon on the Mount. We start with a brilliant bit about not worrying. It's so hard to not get caught up in the realities of life and to see that things just aren't as great as we want them to be. And then we start fretting that we're not doing enough or the right thing in the situation. But by doing that we're wasting time. There's nothing we can do in certain situations beyond trust that God has His plan and seek out that plan. It's incredibly hard to do this at times and I hope that I remember this passage as time passes where I don't have a job but I believe (certainly at the moment!) that God has moved me around this last year because He knows what He is doing.
There's an interesting verse that I've never really thought about until I read it in my Message translation (and that's saying something considering the amount of essays I've written on these three chapters!) in Chapter 7 verse 6 the NIV says "Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces." Which sounds very much like a warning to keep your valuable things safe. Maybe Jesus is talking about love and family as He doesn't usually talk about money.
But the Message translation says this "Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you're only being cute and inviting sacrilege." Now that's a jaw dropper for me. I know that God has a sense of humour and values laughter. In today's Old Testament passage he chooses Issac as a name because it means laughter. But God is saying that you have to be very careful when it comes to talking with Him, about Him or spending time for Him not to become flippant and jokey. I'm very guilty of this at times and I'm sure others are but here's Jesus specifically telling us to remember to respect the time we have with God and to give it the seriousness it deserves. By all means have a laugh when it's right to but if you're praying, worshipping or listening to His word then you should give God the opportunity to speak to you by giving Him the respect He deserves.
The passage finishes off with a further reminder that we'll get what we need and want if we ask for it and are ready to receive. People sometimes think that if you don't get an answer then God isn't there but if you're speaking to someone you have to listen. If you're knocking on a door you have to wait around for it to be answered. If you're searching for something you have to look and not just hope someone points it out. Jesus is true in saying that God will provide for us but we don't just get it by asking. We have to be ready and alert to receive His blessings. Finally there's a warning against other paths to God and the fact that there aren't any! Jesus warns against quick fixes and about showy Christianity. He tells us again not to be all about ego when it comes to God but to realise that we're a) way below God but b) equal to everyone else no matter what we do.
Finally our Proverbs. We start with a very important proverb about listening to your parents. Now this one gets trickier with the way the world changes and a lot of times our parents seem less and less wise but this proverb isn't just saying listen to them I think. I think it's also telling you to see how they act and to take that as an example, whether it's a good or a bad one. Don't make all the mistakes yourself if someone older than you has already made them for you. And then finally a rather obvious point about not robbing people. I'm hoping we don't need to study that one! There is a secondary warning in there too about trusting people that hurt other people. Be very careful who you deem trustworthy in your life and think about if they've proven they can be trusted.
And that's my lot. Off I go to the sillyma. Possibly to see Karate Kid, possibly Toy Story 3 if it's still on. I'll feedback tomorrow. Comments, criticisms and questions welcome as always.
Jon
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