Idols

First, for those that don't know, this blog is managed by blogger.com, a Google product. They apparently did an update that made what had been a heretofore easy process fairly infuriating, and I'm pretty tech savvy. Thanks, Google!

The words that got my attention today were Psalm 115:3-8:

³ Our God is in heaven;
   he does whatever pleases him.
⁴ But their idols are silver and gold,
   made by human hands.
⁵ They have mouths, but cannot speak,
   eyes, but cannot see.
⁶ They have ears, but cannot hear,
   noses, but cannot smell.
⁷ They have hands, but cannot feel,
   feet, but cannot walk,
   nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
⁸ Those who make them will be like them,
   and so will all who trust in them.

We’ve read much about idol worship, but we’re entering a period of Israel’s and Judah’s history where they’re going to practice it like never before. God’s first commandment, given 500 years prior, was to have no other gods. I’ve touched on it in the past, but seriously, what IS an idol?

These verses make it crystal clear what an idol is—a MAN-MADE object, and what kind of person worships a man-made object? The kind that considers man to be the pinnacle of creation. As we’ve discussed much this past year, idol worship is alive and well in the world today. We see it in the worship of possessions, status, wealth, but most often in the worship of SELF.

But without God, WE can’t speak, see, hear, smell, feel, walk or talk. Without God, we’re just senseless fools. Verse 3 describes God as well as any verse in the Bible—“he does whatever he pleases.” We might like to THINK we do what we want, but God knew everything we were going to do BEFORE HE CREATED THE WORLD. That’s more than can be said of any idol, real or imagined.

Scott

Busy Here and There (June 16)

"...While your servant was busy here and there, the man disappeared."   "That is your sentence," the King of Israel said.  "You have pronounced it yourself."
                                            1 Kings 20:40 NIV

Where are we busy here and there, and as a result of the "busy-ness;" we do not take time to show, tell, or explain what God has done for us; a man, an individual in darkness, does not get a chance to see the light, the Spirit, the truth, and as a result remains in darkness.  In a sense, the opportunity for life, eternal life, disappears.

We, in our actions, so often determine our outcomes, our joys and our challenges or sentences.

In our passage today, a man looses his life for being busy and not paying attention to the important matter of guarding another.

We, in our lives as Christians, are commissioned to go and tell the story to the ends of the earth.  If we, in our "busy-ness" do not take time to carry out this commission, men will disappear.

Take time, show and tell the story.

What have you done recently to show and tell the story of God and his love for you?

What specific action could you pray about to enable you to tell the story to others?

In Christ,

David P

The Still Small Voice

I’ve always been intrigued by the chain of events in today’s reading. 1 Kings 18 describes Elijah vs. the priests of Baal and Elijah’s overwhelming victory, and yet Chapter 19 immediately has him fleeing for his life. After forty days, Elijah eventually reached Mt. Horeb, where God asks him why he was there. Elijah’s answer is one I’m sure we’ve all felt:

I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.

Elijah, in the space of forty days, has gone from total and complete defeat of Baal’s priests to utter despair. God encouraged Elijah by promising to pass by, and what passed were:

1. A powerful wind

2. An earthquake

3. A fire

And as we all know, God was in none of them. 1 Kings 19:12 states:

And after the fire came a gentle whisper.

Gentle whisper? 

GENTLE WHISPER?

GENTLE WHISPER??? 

No, my friends, a thousand times, NO. Get out a pen and write in EVERY BIBLE YOU OWN these words instead:

STILL SMALL VOICE

I’m no huge proponent of the King James Bible, but there are instances where it possesses a simple majesty that modern language lacks. This is my primary example, and I encourage you to tell EVERYONE YOU KNOW that when God came to Elijah, he was present in the STILL SMALL VOICE. Consider the vivid imagery of this phrase—God didn't make his presence known in a mighty, ostentatious or showy manner. Just one chapter earlier, God consumed Elijah’s altar with a grand gesture, but here chose a STILL SMALL VOICE to make his presence known.

God can make himself known any way he wishes. As we make our way in the world, we Christians should choose the humble path as opposed to the showier one.  Our witness will be much stronger and clearer, and as the old song goes, they will know we are Christians by our love. Talk and great acts are cheap and ephemeral, the ultimate in chasing after the wind—love and humility are the cornerstones of a Christian life. 

Scott

P.S.--I was curious if other Bible versions had a more insipid word choice than "gentle whisper," and I was not disappointed. Consider these gems:

Common English Bible--"there was a sound. Thin. Quiet." (???)

Contemporary English--"gentle breeze"

Darby--"soft gentle voice"

Douay-Rheims--"a whistling of a gentle air" (???)

ESV--"the sound of a low whisper"

God's Word--"quiet, whispering voice" (no, God's Word is a STILL SMALL VOICE!!!)

Good News--"soft whisper of a voice"

Holman Christian--"a voice, a soft whisper"

The Message--"a gentle and quiet whisper"

New American Standard--"a gentle blowing"

New Century--"a quiet, gentle sound"

Young's Literal Translation--"a voice still small" (that is literally the dumbest one, and there's some pretty stiff competition)

STILL SMALL VOICE. Read it. Learn it. Live it.

It is What it Is (June 15)

So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
                                         1 Kings 18:42 NIV

Take time in 1 Kings 17 to 19 today to read about the great prophet Elijah.  Elijah's faith, trust and prophecy are exemplary.  Baal's inaction shows how worthless an idol is. God's action shows God as a God of power and control. Additionally, God's provision of flour and oil till the rain fell is truly an example of providing for each day, providing daily bread.

The chosen "verse of the day" is an example of contrasting behavior between a non-follower and a follower of the Lord.

Ahab, after the events of the day including the defeat of the many prophets of Baal went off to eat.  In contrast, Elijah, after the events of the day; the provision of fire by God on Mt. Carmel to consume the wood, the bull, and the water in the trench below; has reserve energy to climb to the top of Mt. Carmel and shows humility on the summit by bending down to the ground and putting his face between his knees. 

During this time of Elijah's humility and, I suspect, a time of prayer, God fulfills Elijah's prophecy of rain; by starting with a cloud as small as a man's hand rising from the sea and ending with the sky growing black with clouds.

Consider other small things that provide greatly; faith the size of a mustard seed, drawing water for or helping another, being a good Samaritan, showing love to the neighbor are some examples that come to mind.

How do you show your thankfulness for your daily bread?

Do you often say grace before a meal?

Consider what would chldren, your children, say about your honoring of the Lord.

Pray for the Spirit to lead you to humility and love in your actions toward and for others.

In Christ,

David P

 

Prophecy Fulfilled

We're one day from encountering one of the great prophets of the Bible, Elijah, and in the very last verse of today's reading, one verse before we meet Elijah, we read this in 1 Kings 16:34:

In Ahab’s time, Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, and he set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the LORD spoken by Joshua son of Nun.

It's when we read verses like this that it's very handy to have a Bible with a cross-reference at the very least, and explanatory notes. This is one of those cases where I believe the "Read the Bible without outside influence and let the Holy Spirit guide you" method of Bible study falls short. I strongly challenge anyone to understand what this verse means without expert commentary, and I further suggest that this IS the Holy Spirit guiding us in Bible study--by gifting others to instruct us when our own knowledge falls short.

Anyway, I went immediately to my NIV Study Bible upon reading that verse and started by checking for cross-references, which led me to Joshua 6:26:

At that time Joshua pronounced this solemn oath: “Cursed before the LORD is the one who undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho: “At the cost of his firstborn son he will lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest he will set up its gates.” 

We all remember how Jericho was destroyed upon Israel's entry into the Promised Land, some of you (not me) remember this prophecy, but I had no recollection of this fulfillment of the prophecy, over 500 YEARS after the fact. I have no further information as to how Hiel of Bethel lost his sons--did they die, were they ritually sacrificed, something else--no idea. What I do know is that God specifically told the people of Israel what not to do, what the consequences would be if they did, and when it occurred, did exactly what he said he would.

I'm going to say and write many things throughout the year. To put some numbers on it, if I write 400-word posts each day, that will be about 146,000 words, and if I present 20 times on Sundays and go 20 minutes each and speak at my usual 120-150 words a minute (let's go with 120), I'll speak around 48,000 words, which will put me in the neighborhood of around 200,000 words this year. Some things I'll say or write will be more memorable than others, some will resonate with you at different times, but I beg you to clearly etch these five words in your mind:

GOD'S WILL WILL BE DONE

This small example is a reminder that God's does what he says and is consistent in his actions. God's word is clear, unambiguous and available to all. 

Scott

Love (June 14)

Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel to anger than did all the kings of Israel before him.
                                       1 Kings 16:33 NIV

We read of an array of bad leaders who provide bad leadership and who proceed from bad to worse and worse and yet to even worse.  We will see low points of love under the rule of bad kings.

One can consider following the Lord's leadership and not turning to the right or to the left, to stay on the straight path.

One can also consider Paul's writing in Romans 1:28 where he writes of men who by not retaining the knowledge of God being given over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.

As we proceed through the Bible, consider the love shown by God to man and by man to others and to God.  Primarily following our recent journey through Ecclesiastes where we were told that the conclusion to the meaninglessness of life is to fear God and keep his commandments.  This might lead one to consider what Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-40: "Love the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it:  Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the Law and the Prophets hand on these two commandments."

In a very real sense, love of God and love of neighbor provides meaning to life.

How are you showing love of God and love of neigbor on a daily basis?

In Christ,

David P

A good King (June 13)

They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul.  All who would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, were to be put to death, whether small or great, man or woman.
                     2 Chronicles 15:12-13 NIV

When reading history of the kingdoms, observe the king, and observe if the king is attempting to please the Lord or if the king does evil in the sight of the Lord. One can consider the Lord's statement in 1 Samuel 2:30 about honoring those who honor Him and disdaining those who disregard Him. 

In reading about the kings, consider the kings stance with respect to the Lord, observe how the kingdom exists and one can discern unchanging and truthful attributes of God.

Today, we get a snapshot of good king Asa who began his reign of Judah in 910 BC.  He honored the Lord by his actions;  removing the detessable idols, expelling the shrine prostitutes, and cutting down an Asherah pole.  We also read of how God blessed the kingdom with rest on every side and no more war for several years into Asa's reign.

We can be thankful that we live under grace and have time to evangelize and allow the Spirit to work on and change hearts, as the Spirit may, toward the Lord.  In the time of Asa, we read that all were to be put to death if they were not seeking the Lord.  Again, be thankful, but realize the way to avoid the second death is by faith in the work of Jesus on the cross and in his resurrection.

Pray for wisdom and good leadership.

In Christ,

David P