1 Thessalonians 3-4 August 18, 2009
Posted by Sparky in 1 Thessalonians, Epistles.Tags: 1 Thessalonians, idleness, Paul, understanding context
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Scripture:
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12
11Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, 12so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
Observation:
These words, in the middle of a letter from Paul to one of the earliest churches in what is commonly thought to be the earliest of his letters, should make one stop and think, as they did for me. They don’t sound the same as ‘go out and win people for Christ’ to me (but they do sound like what we as Christians often settle for instead of that). But of course, ripping them out of context and applying them to our lives because they sound comforting is not acceptable. Why did Paul write this to the Thessalonians?
Well, we can guess / assume various things from these 2 verses – presumably there were people in this church who were not working, and living off the kindness of others, which wasn’t the example of Christian living that Paul wanted to cultivate. We get more clues in his second letter to the church (2 Thess 3:6-15), where Paul develops the theme, and makes it very clear indeed what he was referring to! So far from being an instruction to live one’s life in secret, the original verses from 1 Thessalonians were an instruction to those Christians to abhor idleness and get on with life without sponging off others.
Application:
Paul’s application, from 2 Thessalonians, is simple – if you don’t work, you don’t eat. Simple, clear, economically sound! For me, this is another reminder of context being vital in understanding and applying Scripture. I can imagine Christians (new or otherwise) reading the verses I selected and applying them to their lives for ever, leading quiet Christian lives that don’t bother anyone because that’s what Paul teaches. But that doesn’t match with the whole of the rest of the Bible, which challenges us continually to ‘get out there’ and spread the good news. I have been very challenged about this recently, through my Bible reading, my Bible listening which I have recently started (podcasts from www.dailyaudiobible.com – I’m not a big fan of the presenter’s delivery, or the occasional cheesy ‘I love you all’ message at the end, but it is really uplifting to listen to the text of the Bible regularly, and I love the fact that they use a different translation each week – keeps it varied), and sermons at church. Now I need to do something about it…
Prayer:
Lord, praise you for the whole of Scripture, and that we have instruction and teaching that matches up – please help us to use your word responsibly, and apply it to our lives with wisdom. And Lord, please help me to listen to you and do what you’re asking me to, in terms of spreading the gospel to friends who I want to know you.
Psalm 91-95 July 11, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Psalms.Tags: 'the wicked', Psalms
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Scripture:
Psalm 94:3-9
How long will the wicked, O LORD,
how long will the wicked be jubilant?
They pour out arrogant words;
all the evildoers are full of boasting.
They crush your people, O LORD;
they oppress your inheritance.
They slay the widow and the alien;
they murder the fatherless.
They say, “The LORD does not see;
the God of Jacob pays no heed.”
Take heed, you senseless ones among the people;
you fools, when will you become wise?
Does he who implanted the ear not hear?
Does he who formed the eye not see?
Observation:
It was the last verse of this section that stopped me as I was reading today – I just liked the psalmist’s use of irony! So it got me thinking properly about what he’s writing about (yes, I confess that sometimes I can read the Bible fairly superficially, and still expect it to feed my spirit – not sure why, but sometimes God just does it anyway!) – people, referred to as ‘wicked’, who think they can just get on with their lives and do what they want because God doesn’t see or hear them. Who are ‘the wicked’? It’s a question one can ask oneself when reading pretty much any Psalm, as they are mentioned on a regular basis. Well, in this section here, it’s people who are arrogant, who boast, who oppress believers, who don’t care about the vulnerable in the world, and who deny God’s existence.
Application:
When you think about it this way, it’s pretty clear how relevant this Psalm is to modern life in the West. Ask yourself these questions – do I know people who think they’re the best thing around (and most of us do at some point)? Do I know people who make fun of Christians (just watch any comedy show on TV for evidence)? Do I know of situations where the most vulnerable people in the world are being exploited by those with more power? Do I know people who deny that God exists? When you go through these, it’s easy to see that ‘the wicked’ referred to by the psalmist are not a special breed of horrific people, but just those who don’t live God’s way – the darkness that Jesus’ light came to break into. We all have ‘the wicked’ around us, and need to pray for wisdom and enlightenment for them, as the psalmist (kind of) does.
Prayer:
Lord, help me to see the need for Jesus in people’s lives more acutely, and pray effectively for those I know and love who aren’t going your way. Also, help me not to slip into the habits and characteristics described as ‘wicked’ in this psalm.
2 Samuel 11-15 May 15, 2009
Posted by Sparky in 2 Samuel, History.Tags: 2 Samuel, Absalom, David, good from evil, History, redemption, Tamar
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Scripture
2 Samuel 14: 27 “Three sons and a daughter were born to Absalom. The daughter’s name was Tamar, and she became a beautiful woman.”
Observation
OK, so this verse only stands out in importance within the context of the whole passage, 2 Sam 11-15, which starts with David’s adultery with Bathsheba and ends with David and loads of Jerusalem’s inhabitants hiding outside the city, scared of the conspiracy that has been started by his son Absalom. In the middle is the key to why this verse stands out. After the account of David and Bathsheba, we get the first fruits of David’s sin: Amnon and Absalom are half-brothers, both sons of David, and Tamar is Absalom’s sister. Amnon becomes infatuated with Tamar, and rapes her, leading her into desolation and despair, and himself into death at the hands of Absalom. This is why I love the fact that the writer of the book (unknown for sure, but some scholars think it could have been Nathan or Gad, both prophets) inserts this lovely little moment of Absalom naming his daughter after his shamed sister, and her growing into a beautiful woman – good can come out of evil, there is redemption after sin.
Application
I guess the most obvious application of this truth is that no matter how horrific a situation we might be going through, God can redeem it for good. When my mother killed herself when I was nine years old, I had no idea what life was going to be like after that. I knew my Dad loved us, and I trusted God, and today I have a wonderful step-mother, and younger sister and brother who are a result of Dad’s re-marrying – I praise God for them, because had my mum not died, they wouldn’t be here, and my life might be all the poorer. That’s exactly the kind of redemption that God can bring out of disaster.
Prayer
Thank you Lord that time and time again, both in Scriptures and modern life, your love exceeds human tragedy, and you are willing to bring hope and joy out of doom and shame. Praise you for that!
Exodus 1-4 April 2, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Exodus, Law.Tags: Exodus, Hebrew women, Law, Moses, worship
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I think the first section of Exodus (Moses’ birth & calling, the battle between God & Pharaoh and the escape from Egypt) might be my favourite section of story-telling / history in the Bible. I love the drama of it! For that reason I’m going to abandon SOAP today and just free-form.
First of all, I love the cheek / courage / ballsiness of the Hebrew women in chapters 1 & 2. The midwives disobey an order to kill male Hebrew babies, and when asked why, they, presumably at risk of losing their lives for disobeying such an order, respond with a slur so cheeky that it just makes you laugh – “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.” After that, when Moses’ basket is found and Pharoah’s daughter calls for a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby, Moses’ own mother is employed to do it – and paid! Genius.
I also really like the account of the encounter at the burning bush in chapters 3-4. Considering that Moses probably wrote this originally (and it seems likely, as he was the only human there to see it), he doesn’t write up his part in the whole affair. Moses comes off as pretty cowardly here, finding as many excuses and reasons as he can not to go and rescue his people ; so many, in fact, that God ends up getting angry with him – not for the last time, of course. This all brings Moses int o a very realistic light as a human being, despite the reverence (rightly) accorded him in the Jewish faith subsequently.
And finally, it is great to see that the Israelites knew where to direct their complaints, and where to direct their adoration when He sends someone to lead them out:
4:29-31 Moses and Aaron brought together all the elders of the Israelites, and Aaron told them everything the LORD had said to Moses. He also performed the signs before the people, and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped.
I just find this really encouraging! The first thing they do when they hear they’re going to be saved is worship, not react in cynicism, as the Jews of Jesus’ time did.
Matthew 25-26 March 30, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Gospels, Matthew.Tags: faith, Gospels, Jesus, Judas, losing faith, Matthew
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Scripture:
Matt 25:20-25
When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve. And while they were eating, he said, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me.”
They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, “Surely not I, Lord?”
Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”
Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, “Surely not I, Rabbi?”
Jesus answered, “Yes, it is you.”
Observation
What was going through Judas’ mind in these days and hours? This is what I kept asking myself while reading this chapter, and this passage in particular. Before this, Judas had gone to the chief priests, just after the disciples get all angry over the waste of perfume that Jesus refers to as a beautiful thing. It’s interesting to see those two events side-by-side, as if the one had led to the other in some capacity. Was Judas becoming convinced that he had ended up following a madman? Secondly, it is interesting to note the change of language used by Judas in the passage quoted above. He refers to Jesus as ‘Rabbi’, whereas the others call him ‘Lord’. So can we derive from this that Judas respected Jesus as a teacher, but was no longer sure that he was the Messiah (if he ever had been sure of that), and so his claims of being God’s Son were blasphemous and he needed to be got rid of. It’s possible.
Application
So Judas lost faith in Jesus. Not an uncommon part of Christian life, whether we like it or not. And if our faith wanes, or we lose it completely, we have choices to make, just as Judas did. Do we carry on pretending to keep people happy, but feel an inauthentic fraud, as maybe Judas had done for some time? Do we just get out, probably hurting others along the way but not perpetuating a lie. Or do we hold on, trusting that God will reveal himself at some point in the future, and trusting that the experience of our past and the history of others is a true representation of God’s faithfulness. This, for me, is true faith – holding on and trusting when it seems like madness to do so, when all the evidence is against you, still believing that God is good and real and active and loving.
Prayer
God, you know how personal what’s in this post has become. Please do something. I love you and I trust you!
1 Samuel 1-5 March 13, 2009
Posted by Sparky in 1 Samuel, History.Tags: 1 Samuel, blessing, Hannah, History, prayer
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Scripture:
1 Samuel 1:19-20
Early the next morning they arose and worshipped before the LORD and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah lay with Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her. So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the LORD for him.”
Observation:
The phrase “and the LORD remembered him / her / them” occurs several times in Scripture, and I particularly love it here. It is not supposed to indicate that God had forgotten Hannah and was suddenly reminded – not really possible for an all-knowing God. The way I like to ‘translate’ it is something like “God decided to bless him / her / them” – and it tends to happen after that person or people have spent time pouring their heart out to God in prayer or worship. I love Hannah’s story as a whole – her selflessness, her boldness, and the way God blessed her – but this verse particularly stood out to me today.
Application:
I’ve been reading Bill Hybels’ book “Too Busy Not To Pray” recently, which has convicted me about how I pray, and reading this today has reinforced this. I don’t pray fervently or for extended periods of time; I get very distracted and though I might say something to God each day, it never feels like it’s anything very meaningful. But I want to be in the position Hannah finds herself in here, where she can see concrete results from her prayer – the existence of her son Samuel is direct proof that God heard and listened to her prayer. Guess I need to follow her example and pour my heart out to God a bit more.
Prayer:
Lord, please help me revitalise my prayer life over the next few weeks and months. Please don’t let me fall into the trap of starting unsustainable habits for the sake of it, but lead me to a place where I can make realistic changes to my prayer life, that bring me closer to you and your presence.
Acts 19-20 March 11, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Acts, NT - Other.Tags: Acts, Paul, preaching, raised from dead
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Short post today – mainly for comedy value!
Acts 20:7-9
On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead.
Observation
People may have fallen asleep while I’ve preached, but I’m delighted to say that none of them have died in the process!
PS It’s okay after this - Eutychus was raised from the dead!
Wordle March 7, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Uncategorized.add a comment
Just thought I’d see what my blog looks like visually (I just love these images, created at http://www.wordle.net/). Enjoy!
Psalms 1-5 March 7, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Psalms.Tags: David, forgiveness, Psalms, sin, sinner
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Scripture:
Psalm 5:4-6
You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil;
with you the wicked cannot dwell.
5 The arrogant cannot stand in your presence;
you hate all who do wrong.
6 You destroy those who tell lies;
bloodthirsty and deceitful men
the LORD abhors.
Observation:
When I got to these verses in my reading this morning, I couldn’t help but stop and read them again, as I have issues with the theology behind the wording (and I checked several translations – thank you Bible Gateway – and they all say the same thing, pretty much). I’m fine with verse 4, and the first half of verse 5, but then the verbs in the rest of the selection are directed very clearly towards the people involved rather than the sins they exhibit. It doesn’t say “you hate the wrong that men do” but “you hate all who do wrong”. Nor does it say “the LORD abhors the actions of bloodthirsty and deceitful men”, but it says he hates the men themselves. This doesn’t sit well with me in these verses because everything else I know about God through Scripture and experience tells me that he loves all people equally, but certainly can’t stand the sins that we all exhibit during our lives.
Application:
So how do I rationalise this? Do I just assume that this is young, slightly more naïve David writing here, who would later fall into sin himself and understand more about forgiveness of people? That seems somewhat arrogant on my part! Is it something in the Hebrew worldview that sees the sin / sinner issue in a more black-and-white way, so I am less likely to be happy with it due to cultural reasons? Or is David just more honest – is “love the sinner, hate the sin” just a platitude that we have come to accept in current Christian circles that actually gives us an excuse to not say much or do much when we know people are sinning? I’d love to have some comments with your thoughts!
Prayer:
Praise you Lord for being a sinless God. Thank you that we can trust in your perfect holiness and righteousness, and that sin cannot stand before you. Help me Father to make sense of your Scriptures in a way that honours you and those who wrote them down. And please Lord give me the courage to make a stand against sin, as Jesus did, while showing love to the sinner.
Job 41-42 February 28, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Job, Wisdom.Tags: depression, Job, Revelation, suffering, Wisdom
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Scripture:
Job 42:5 – My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
Observation:
Having now read through the majority of the book of Job over the past 2 months, I am increasingly warming to the interpretation of the book as an ancient morality play of some kind (especially with its reference to the two beasts towards the end in chapters 40-41, Behemoth and Leviathan, none of the interpretations for which I am totally happy with, apart from a mythological one). However, you can’t deny that, as exemplified in the verse quoted above, the book has its fair share of personal revelation for Job. At the end of this period of intense suffering, and this long discourse between him, his friends and finally Yahweh, he knows that he is closer to God than he was before, and that he has been given a gift that others do not have.
Application:
My wife has suffered from depression for several years now, and this, along with other factors, has led her to come to the conclusion that God isn’t there. It’s really hard for me to pray about this these days, but I look at Job’s journey of suffering and his maintaining his faith, and I think about the revelation he has at the end, that now his eyes have been opened to what was going on, and I can’t help but want the same thing for my wife. Sadly, she has not been able to find the strength to stand firm in her faith, but I am convinced that that is not a barrier for God, who can reveal himself when He wants to – and so I pray for the same revelation for her.
Prayer:
God, please please reveal yourself to Heidi, who so desperately needs you, as we all do. Show yourself to be the almighty God, but also the god who wants to be near her on such a personal level. Do it Lord.
Matthew 11-12 February 9, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Gospels, Matthew.Tags: forceful men, Gospels, Kingdom of God, Matthew
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Scripture:
Matt 11:12 – From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.
Observation:
The first thing that I thought when trying to pick a verse for this entry was, “Wow! The words of Jesus in these chapters are full of gold, and so powerful – what do I pick?” Anyway, this verse has lots of different interpretations when you look in different versions, some of which involve the Kingdom of God being attacked by the violent men. I have always taken the ‘forceful men’ to mean men of the kingdom, people who understand what the Kingdom is, going after what they can see because they want to see the Kingdom advance, or they want more of it on the earth. Maybe I shall have to do some more digging around to find out what the Greek might be getting at.
Application:
I’m not convinced there is much in the way of forcefulness in me, in the way that I think Jesus means it here. I can’t claim to be regularly thinking about how to advance the Kingdom of Heaven where I am, though I do want to see it take more ground, obviously, and am delighted when I hear about people becoming Christians or being healed or delivered. I think it’s probably a valid question to ask oneself every now and again, “Is what I’m doing for the Kingdom of God helping it to advance forcefully? Or am I just rolling long with it? Or, even worse, am I hindering its work?”
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, please show me where I can be more forceful / violent / daring / opportunistic in bringing the Kingdom of God to those around me. Never let me be someone who just goes along for the ride.
Genesis 13-16 January 22, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Genesis, Law.Tags: Abram, eternal life, Genesis, Law, Lot, rescue, value of following Jesus
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Scripture:
Genesis 14:13-16
“One who had escaped came and reported [Lot’s kidnapping] to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshcol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.”
Observation:
It is rare that one thinks of Abram (or Abraham, for that matter) as a great military leader or strategist, but here that is exactly what he is. Having parted ways with his nephew Lot, he hears that Lot and his family have been taken captive by certain warring kings, and decides to take matters into his own hands. His family was vitally important to him, causing him to go so far as to organise a minor military campaign against these kings. This surprised me (I am glad to still be surprised by reading the Bible after nearly 25 years of being a Christian!), and made me think about what God put into the father of Israel in terms of characteristics. His descendants, of course, would show a lot of this military capacity later in history.
Application:
Sometimes you don’t really discover what God has put into you until it just comes out, until you absolutely have to do something about a situation, and you discover what’s most important to you. Abraham was totally willing to leave all his wealth for the sake of another family member, and saved him in this way. This reminds me of Jesus’ promise about leaving mothers and brothers and whatever you value for his sake (Matt 19:29) – there is a reward for doing this, and Jesus says that it is eternal life. Way better than any money or possessions I might accrue here on earth, which frankly only brings more stress.
Prayer:
God, teach me more and more the value of following you, and enable me to put unimportant things aside for your sake.
Acts 5-6 January 21, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Acts, NT - Other.Tags: Acts, disciples, doing God's will, Gamaliel, Jesus, Jews, prayer
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Scripture:
Acts 5:38-39 – “In the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
Observation:
Praise God for the wisdom of Gamaliel. The verses above are from a speech that this member of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish council, gave in response to the crisis brewing because of the apostles’ actions in Jerusalem. He compared their movement to two others that had failed due to leaders being killed and then the followers dispersing after a while. Hoping that the same would happen with Jesus’ disciples, he encourages the Sanhedrin members to leave them largely alone, and see what happens. Maybe this was short-sighted (but hey, we can praise God for that!), but the last line of the speech is so perceptive. If God is determined to do something, no human can even hope to stop it.
Application:
How can this be applied? I think it’s in the area of prayer that we can use this lesson – if we’re seeking God’s will in our lives and the lives of those around us, and our prayers line up with his will, then they are very worthwhile indeed. As a Christian of many years, I have gone through times when I thought prayer was a total waste of time, just a boring activity that I had to go through. I’ve also had times when I’ve really seen its power – those times get forgotten so easily! When we join our prayers to God’s determination to get certain things done, then we will see those prayers answered.
Prayer:
Lord, may my prayers match up with your will for my life and the people I pray for. Help me to remember the times when I’ve really seen prayer work, and believe that you listen and act, no matter what I see around me or what I hear from others. Help me to increase my faith in You.
Job 11-15 January 17, 2009
Posted by Sparky in Job, Wisdom.Tags: God-centred, Job, sin, troubles, Wisdom
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SScripture
Job 13:15 – Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him;
I will surely defend my ways to his face.
Observation
This verse is an astonishing example of Job’s resolve in the face of trial. He attributed everything in his life as coming from God, both the good and the bad, and so was thankful for his blessings at the start of the book, and when those were taken away, knew that it was God’s doing for some reason. Job is convinced that he hasn’t sinned against the Lord, at least, not in such a major way as to warrant the punishment he gets, whereas his friends are persuaded that sin is the reason for Job’s troubles. They go through this verbal dance for many chapters – “You’ve sinned!”, “I haven’t!” – and eventually God speaks, but here we have Job stating unequivocally that he still believes that he worships a good God, though he doesn’t understand what’s going on with him.
Application
There’s something about this God-centred worldview that doesn’t really exist any more. An ‘act of God’ in modern parlance is a generally a disaster of some kind, and people ask why God doesn’t just stop suffering in the world, but blessings that are received are often put down to good luck, or results of hard work, or being in the right place at the right time. Even Christians don’t tend to put everything down to God acting in their lives. But what if we did? Perhaps we’d be more grateful for the good things that he gives us… But when life goes wrong, would we have the strength to be like Job, and say, “Fine, I don’t get it, and I don’t like it, but I’m still going to worship and believe in you God”? What would the world be like if there were lots more people like Job?
Prayer
God, help me to see your hand in my whole life, not just Sundays. Help me to give thanks for the blessings you give us, and to continue loving and worshipping you through the trials and difficulties that come our way, whether big or small. Praise you Lord!
