The One Year Bible- February 22nd

It seems like every year we get busier and busier.  Life seems to add things to our plates on a daily basis.  This past week I have been busy preparing for our new Youth Minister, moving furniture, gathering supplies, as well as doing some sermon prep, getting ready for Lenten family devotions, looking over VBS curriculum and gearing up for Mission Alaska and the National Youth Gathering this summer.  Right now time seems to be at a premium.  To put it mildly, I am busy.  The one constant this week has been my daily readings.  I have managed to read every day and it has been a source of strength and a blessing for me.  When you have days, or, weeks, or months like this I hope you will lean on the strength that you will find in God’s Word.  On to the study...

Seth’s Thoughts

The Old Testament

Not much to talk about from a theological perspective on this week’s readings from the Old Testament.  The big thing is the rules and regulations regarding offerings and health.  Last week I gave you some info on the different kinds of offerings.  Please refer back to that if you need to as we continue to read.  The other thing about this week is the copious use of blood.  I think we have talked about this before, but remember that this was a different time and culture.  In our day, blood is seen as bad and possibly containing diseases.  For the people of Israel the spilling of blood gave them life.  This all points to Jesus and we have talked about that time and again.  I got an email a few years ago at this time from someone who was reading The One Year Bible and I want to share the question and the answer with you:

Good Morning Seth,

In Leviticus 11:1-12:8 today the Bible states the following:

"And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you."  What does it mean when God says it is unclean?  Is it His law that we not eat pig or does it just make us unclean?  This was interesting this morning as I did not know that God has commanded us to eat or not eat certain foods.

Any insight you could offer would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

My Reply:

I just finished that reading myself.  The thing you need to remember about all these laws and regulations is that they are for the people of Israel in the wilderness as God is forming them to be his people.  All these laws were not written for us in the US in the 21^st Century.  The reason that God placed some dietary restrictions on the people was two-fold.  First of all many of the animals that were considered unclean had problems with parasites and other things that could make the people sick if they were not cooked or handled properly.  God needed the people to be healthy.  Secondly, many of these animals were used by the pagan people they would encounter in the Promised Land in their worship of false Gods.  God did not want them to associate with them so he set them apart. 

Fast forward to today...some people still follow these dietary laws but they are no longer required.  The ceremonial law was fulfilled in Jesus and we now have freedom.  This does not mean that we can abuse our freedom, but we are not bound to all of the requirements of the Old Testament Law.  If it were so we would have many more things to do every day (like ceremonial washing, staying outside of the city until sunset if we are unclean, men not shaving beards, etc.)  Rest assured that eating pork, or lobster, or a cheeseburger (all would be unclean in the OT) is OK.  I hope this helps.

Seth

You may have had the same question and I hope this helps you as well.  Please feel free to email me your questions or better yet make a comment on the blog, I will answer it and others can benefit from the discussion.  You can always comment as “anonymous” if you would like. 

The New Testament
The book of Mark is filled with miracles and parables. It is no wonder many point new believers to this Gospel. Mark lays out the evidence that Jesus is the savior of the world and Jesus proves it by his miracles. Jesus also is a good teacher and as all good teachers he uses the power of stories. Stories teach in ways that other words cannot. Stories captivate our imaginations, they take us to places we have never been, they can help us understand complex ideas. Jesus knew the power of story and he used it. In our reading for the 20th we see that “He did not speak to them without a parable.” (Mark 4:34a ESV). What better way to teach to a bunch of uneducated people. I think at times we have lost the art of storytelling in our Churches. We do a good job of it in Sunday School but we often forget it with Adults. I feel that we all can benefit from a good story and what better story to start with than the story of Jesus Christ.

I also want to address one historical point today.  In the reading for Feb. 22^nd we are introduced to King Herod.  We have not seen that name since Matthew’s Gospel.  What you need to know is that the Herod in Mark 6 is not the same one as in Matthew 2.  A bit of history here; in Matthew 2 we are talking about Herod the Great who was the king of Judea, Galilee and other areas at the time of Jesus’ birth.  He was the one who ordered all the baby boys killed to try to take care of the new king that was born.  When he dies his kingdom is split between his three sons, Herod Philip II, Archelaus, and Herod Antipas.  Herod Antipas was the ruler of Galilee and is the one who puts John the Baptist to death and is mentioned in Mark 6 (And Matthew 14).  This is also the same Herod we will see in Luke 23 when Pilate sends Jesus to see him just before the crucifixion.  We will see two more Herods.  In Acts 12:1-24 we will see Herod Agrippa I who is a grandson of Herod the Great.  Herod Agrippa I is the one responsible for killing the apostle James, who put Peter into prison and was killed by an angel.  In Acts 25 and 26 we will see Herod Agrippa II who is the son of Herod Agrippa I.  This is the Herod who Paul has a trial with before he is sent to Rome.  If you didn’t follow all of that don’t worry.  Just remember that we are talking about one royal family with the same name. 

Have a great week!