The One Year Bible- July 22nd
There have been
times in my life where I can just feel the presence of God. At times I can hear his call and he seems
close. But there are also times when God
seems distant and far removed from my daily life. Have you ever felt this way? Remember that it is all just a matter of
perspective. In reality in our
sinfulness we are the ones that drift away.
Sin takes us far from God and in our own minds we try to blame God for
leaving us. Some times I would like God
to give me a big sign in the sky to tell me his plan or that he is right
there. The people of the Old Testament
got a visual show. When God’s presence
came to earth, the people would see it in the form of a thick cloud. God revealed himself to his people visually
so they could believe. He did the same
when he sent his son Jesus. Jesus became
the walking temple for all of us to see.
Today we can see him every time we partake in the Lord’s Supper, every
time we read His Word, and every time he calls another child his own in
baptism. When you think that God is
distant, remember that he is right here, closer than you think. On to the study…
Seth’s Thoughts
The Old Testament
Some good stories
this week in the Old Testament. Most of the counting and lists are done with
and the narrative picks up in earnest. You may not have even been aware that we
started 2 Chronicles this week. Solomon continues to build the Temple for the
LORD. It was an impressive structure! There was so much gold used it could not
be counted. Silver meant nothing and bronze was almost worthless. It is
interesting to note that the curtain of the temple is mentioned. It is what
separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. This is the curtain that
tore in two (in a different temple mind you) when Jesus died. Jesus’ death
brings Holy God and sinful man back into a relationship again. It must have
been an awesome sight to see the thick cloud of YAHWEH filling the temple. This
was the first time in a while that there had been a physical manifestation of
God on earth. Solomon’s prayer was a good one and got the people back on track.
God’s response to Solomon was also quite amazing. All was good during the life
of Solomon but soon he would be buried with his fathers and his son Rehoboam
would become king. Rehoboam did not fare to well. He did not listen to his
father’s advisors and soon the kingdom was split. Civil war then raged and the
Northern Kingdom went on a road to destruction as they worshiped idols and
bowed down to other Gods. King Asa tried to get things right with God but it
did not last. Jehoshaphat tried to do what was right but we will soon find out
that he has troubles as well. Here are the vital stats for the book of 2
Chronicles:
PURPOSE: To unify
the nation around true worship of God by showing his standard for judging
kings. The righteous kings of Judah and the religious revivals under their rule
are highlighted, and the sins of the evil kings are exposed.
AUTHOR: Ezra,
according to Jewish tradition
TO WHOM WRITTEN:
All Israel
DATE WRITTEN:
Approximately 430 B.C., recording the events for the beginning of Solomon’s
reign (970 B.C.) to the beginning of the Babylonian captivity (586 B.C.)
SETTING: Second
Chronicles parallels 1 and 2 Kings and serves as their commentary. Originally 1
and 2 Chronicles were one book. It was written after the exile from a priestly
perspective, highlighting the importance of the temple and the religious
revivals in Judah. The northern kingdom, Israel, is virtually ignored in this
history.
KEY VERSE: “If my
people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my
face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will
forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV).
KEY PEOPLE:
Solomon, the queen of Sheba, Rehoboam, Asa, Jehoshephat, Jehoram, Joash,
Uzziah, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Josiah
KEY PLACES:
Jerusalem, the temple
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Includes a detailed record of the temple’s construction
The New Testament
Paul really gets on
a roll in this weeks readings. If you were not convinced you were a sinner
before, I bet you are now. Romans six deals with the idea that those who have
been united with Christ have been united with him in his death and more
importantly in his resurrection. This is great news because now those who are “in Christ” (one of Paul’s favorite
phrases) will receive all the benefits of God. Those who are in Christ are dead
to sin and alive in Christ. We do not have the freedom to just continue
sinning. We are no longer slaves to sin. But then Paul brings up a good point.
This is a confusing passage (especially in the NIV) but the NLT (New Living
Translation) is a bit clearer for me. “I
don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do
it. Instead I do what I hate...I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want
to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it
anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing
wrong; it is sin living in me that does it” (Romans 7:15,18b-20 NLT). Paul
realizes that in this world, we are so interwoven with sin that it is
impossible to extract ourselves. We are in dire straights! We cry with Paul. “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24 NIV). In the end it is all
about Jesus. He is the only one that can free us from this problem. His death
and resurrection make it possible for us to leave the sin of this world behind
and live for Him in all we do. We now live our lives by the Spirit of God and
we have been adopted into his family. And we can call him Daddy (Abba, Father).
This relationship cannot be broken. It holds firm even when sin attacks.
Therefore do not worry about your status in the world. The important thing is
that we are part of the family of God. On the 27th we will read that
being a member of this family is easy, “If
you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9 ESV). Good news indeed!!! Now this verse has been used by many
Christians to support a view that human beings must do something in order to
become a Christian. This is not a new
idea. Now days we call it “decision
theology” but this has been with the Faith for a long time. To use a $2 word it is called
syncretism. This means that in some way
we have to cooperate with God in some way shape or form for our salvation. When we make some sort of an effort towards
God then he will have mercy on us. The
point of view goes something like this:
We encounter the message of salvation and then we need to make a
decision to accept this good news. The
power of God does not begin in our lives until we make a conscious choice to
follow him. Until then we are lost. This point of view is prevalent in many
Christian circles. Those who hold this
view are big believers in altar calls and praying the “sinners prayer” in order
to become a believer in Jesus. There
are two passages that help me understand that this is not how God
operates. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, “Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God
says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is
Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 12:3 NIV) Paul
also says in Romans 8, “The sinful mind is hostile to
God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the
sinful nature cannot please God.” (Romans 8:7-8 NIV) When we
confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord, is cannot be an act of a sinful person,
because this pleases God. There must be
something that was working in us before we could even do this. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. He works in us before we even know who Jesus
is. He comes to us in the waters of
baptism before we can even talk. He
starts working on our sinfulness even before we know. There is no way we can cooperate with
God. Salvation is his action and his
action alone. I could go on and on with
this one but I think you get the idea.
Please let me know if you have any more questions about this.
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