Matthew 10
Jesus gives power to his 12 disciples to heal and drive out demons. These are the twelve - Simon-Peter, Andre, James & John, Philip & Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot.
Jesus sent them out like sheep among wolves, instructing them to be shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves. He told them to freely give because they had been given freely.
He warned them that there mission would be tough and they would be arrested. He told them not to worry about what to say because the Spirit of the Father will speak through them. He warned "All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved" (Matthew 10:22).
Matthew 11
The disciples went out into Israel to perform the work Jesus had instructed them to do. Jesus went on to preach in Galilee. John the Baptist was in prison and sent his disciples to go and ask Jesus if he was the one who was to come. Jesus replied to go back and report what you see, the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear and the dead rise.
Jesus then proclaims that John the Baptist was the greatest of all men born to woman, but less than the least in the kingdom of Heaven. He told the crowds that John the Baptist was the Elijah who was to come. That was an interesting verse:
"And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear" (Matthew 11:14-15).
Jesus proclaims the truth, but acknowledges that there are some who would be unwilling to accept this truth. He denounced the generation because they are fickle. John was fasting and the people said he had a demon. Jesus wasn't fasting and they called him a glutton.
Jesus denounces the cities where he performed most of his miracles because they had not repented. He stated that the gentile cities in the area, if he had performed his miracles there, would have already repented.
Jesus offers rest to the weary.
Matthew 12
Jesus' disciples are then decried by the Pharisees for picking up grain and eating it on the Sabbath. Jesus rebukes them because they do not understand the words 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice'. He then reminds the Pharisees that David and his men ate consecrated bread and that the Priests of the Temple work on the Sabbath but they are innocent. Jesus then healed a man's hand on the Sabbath. The Pharisees plotted how to kill Jesus.
Jesus then drove out a demon and the Pharisees tried to convince everyone he drives out demons by the power of the devil. Jesus denounces this and warns everyone that they will be forgiven of all sins except the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
12:35 "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him". Lord, help me to store good things in me.
Jesus calls those asking for signs wicked. He had already performed signs and they did not believe. Jonah preached in Nineveh and they repented, but God's own people won't repent when someone greater than Jonah is here.
12:43-45 "When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left'. When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation". This is an interesting thing to think about. Jesus is out here at the moment casting out demons, healing people, sweeping up the house and putting it in order. But, they aren't fully accepting him in and the house remains unoccupied. The driven out spirits are unable to find rest and come back to find their old house unoccupied and return with their buddies to make things worse. I've had a few unclean spirits in my time Lord, sweep out and put my house in order. But, live in it so that the unclean spirits won't find it unoccupied and leave me off worse than I was before.
12:46-50 is a hard little passage, a 'difficult verse'. Jesus doesn't go to his mother and brothers who want to speak to him, instead he points out whoever does the will of the Father is his brother, mother and sister. It seems a bit harsh on his family.
Matthew 13 - The Parables
Parable of the sower
The seed that fell upon the path was eaten by the birds. These are those who hear the message of the kingdom but don't understand it.
The seed that fell upon the rock places grew quickly, but was scorched by the sun. These are those who accept the message of the kingdom with joy but quickly fall away at the first sight of trouble.
The seed that fell among the thorns was choked out. These are those who hear the message, but 'the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.'
The seed that fell on good soil grows and produces a crop. These are those who hear the message and understands it and produces a crop.
Parable of the Weeds
A farmer plants good seed, but his enemy plants weeds in the same field. When the crop starts to grow the servants ask if they should rip up the weeds. The farmer says, no, wait until harvest then the weeds and the crop can be separated, otherwise removing the weeds might damage the growing crop.
I hadn't thought of this now, but the harvester is not the servants, but the farmer. I think that the Church has often sought to rip up the weeds, maybe even in good intentions, but this has damaged the roots of the crop. It isn't my job to weed the field. The angels will harvest and throw the weeds into the fire at the end of the age.
Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
-The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed. Small when planted, but it grows to become a tree.
-The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, mixed into flour and worked throughout the whole dough.
Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl
-The kingdom of heaven is like hidden treasure. A man finds it and sells everything he has to buy the field where he found it.
- The kingdom of heaven is like a great pearl, when the merchant finds it, he sells everything he has to buy it.
Parable of the Net
- The kingdom of heaven is a net, it will catch all kinds of fish, both good and bad. When it is brought ashore the angels will collect the good fish and the bad will be thrown away. Thus, the wicked will be separated from the righteous.
13:52 "He said to them, 'Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old". What are the old and new treasures?
Jesus did not do miracles in his hometown because of their lack of faith. Lord, let me have faith so you will not refuse to do your miracles.
Matthew 14
John the Baptist is beheaded and Jesus is told of his death. Jesus withdrew to a solitary place, but crowds followed him.
The disciples wanted to send the crowds away, but Jesus told his disciples to feed them with only five loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus fed around 5,000 men plus women and children with that food after praying to God.
Jesus then walked out on the water to his disciples, throughly terrifying the disciples in the process. Peter then walked out on the water to meet him, but became afraid and began to sink. Jesus saved him and walked him out to the boat where the disciples bowed down and declared him to truly be the Son of God.
Jesus then healed all those who came to him on the other side of the lake.
Saturday, February 13, 2016
365 Day Bible Catch Up (Jacob)
Genesis 28 (starting in verse 10)
Jacob's ladder story happens here. Jacob calls it 'the House of God' and 'the Gate of Heaven'. God continues his covenant with Abraham through Jacob, stating "Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring" (28:14). Not only will Jacob's descendants be blessed through God's covenant with Abraham, but all peoples of the earth.
Jacob's vow has always perplexed me. "If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking... then the Lord will be my God". That doesn't sound like the faith of Abraham.
Genesis 29
- Jacob arrives in the area of his uncle, Laban and meets Rachel. He greets her enthusiastically.
- Jacob ends up working for Laban for seven years in return for the hand of his daughter, Rachel. But when the time came to be married, Jacob slept with Leah (Rachel's older sister). When Jacob found out, this is of course after having slept with Leah, he asked Laban why he had deceived him. Laban gave a cultural response and gave Rachel to Jacob for another seven years of work. After the week long ceremony with Leah, Jacob was married to Rachel as well. "Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years" (29:30).
First, how in the world did Jacob not know who he was sleeping with? Was he drunk?
- The Lord saw that Leah was not loved and opened her womb and she gave birth to four sons - Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah
Genesis 30
- Rachel was now the jealous one. She gave Bilhah (her servant) to Jacob to sleep with so that Rachel could have a family as well. Bilhah gave birth to Dan and Naphtali.
Napthali means 'my struggle'. Rachel names her son (through Bilhah) Napthali because 'I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won'. What incredible jealousy!
- Now the pendulum had swung back and Leah was jealous. Leah gave her servant, Zilpah to Jacob to sleep with. Zilpah had Gad and Asher for Leah's side of the family.
- Reuben, the oldest goes out during harvest time and brought some mandrake plants back to Leah that he had found. Rachel asked for some and when Leah brushed her off, Rachel traded a night with Jacob for the mandrakes. "So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. 'You must sleep with me,' she said. 'I have hired you with my son's mandrakes.' So he slept with her that night." (Genesis 30:16). That's a very funny verse. But God gave Leah a son through this affair, Issachar. Leah then had a sixth son, Zebulun and then a daughter, Dinah.
- Finally after Leah had bore Jacob six sons, Bilhah had bore him two and Zilpah had bore him two, ten sons in all, God remembered Rachel and she gave birth to Joseph. (11 sons).
- Jacob wishes to leave, but Laban asks him to stay because he has learned through divination that he has been blessed through Jacob. (That's another one of those things that I just noticed that others are getting blessed just by being in proximity to Abraham. Think Lot and Abimelech.)
- Jacob gets his wages from Laban to stay and becomes exceedingly wealthy by breeding his flock with the stronger females and the weaker females offspring went to Laban.
Genesis 31
Laban's sons become jealous of Jacob because his wealth was waxing and theirs was waning. Laban's attitude changed as well towards Jacob. The Lord instructed Jacob to return to the promised land and Jacob gathered his wives, children and household to flee without telling Laban. But, Rachel stole her father's household gods.
Laban pursued Jacob and when he was about to catch up the Lord appeared to Laban and warned him not to say anything good or bad to him. Laban finally says to him "Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?" (Genesis 31:30).
Jacob makes a pretty rash response about the stolen gods. He says that if anyone has the gods of Laban they shall not live. He didn't know Rachel had stolen the gods. Rachel sat on them and lied saying that she couldn't stand because she was on her period.
Jacob and Laban made a covenant not to harm one another by crossing the spot where they piled rocks to fight. Laban then kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them before returning home.
Genesis 32
Jacob sent men out to meet Esau, and when they returned they informed him Esau was coming with 400 men to meet him. Jacob panicked and split his group into two so that if Esau attacked one group, the other could escape. In fear Jacob prayed to God.
32:10-11 "I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children". This is a stark contrast to how Jacob spoke in chapter 31. In chapter 31 he is righteously indignant with Laban, lambasting him for the way he treated him, talking about his toil and his hard work. Now, when he talks to God, he is humble and admits that all his gains are because of the Lord's blessing, in spite of his unworthiness. It's an interesting contrast.
Jacob sends out a big gift of goats, sheep, camels, cows and donkeys to Esau ahead of him in the hopes of pacifying Esau.
Jacob then has an encounter with God where he wrestles him. Jacob won't let go until the man blessed him. The man (God) changed Jacob's name to Israel because Jacob had struggled with God and with men and overcame it.
Genesis 33
Jacob meets Esau and expecting the worse he bows down, but Esau embraces him.
Genesis 34
Dinah, Jacob's daughter by Leah was violated by Shechem, the son of the local ruler, Hamor. Hamor came to Jacob and his sons to ask for Dinah to be married to Shechem. They lied and said they would agree if all the men were circumcised. After the men of the city were circumcised Simeon and Levi (the brothers of Dinah) killed all the men of the city while they were still in pain and looted the city, carrying off the livestock, women and children of the city. Jacob rebuked his sons, but they asked 'should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?'
Genesis 35
Jacob was told by God to go to Bethel. Jacob told his house to get rid of their foreign gods, which he buried and went to Bethel, safely because God had filled all the people with terror of them.
Jacob was visited by God at Bethel and renewed his covenant. Jacob built an altar to God there and renamed the place Bethel (it was called Luz).
Rachel then died in childbirth, giving birth to Benjamin (the twelfth of Jacob's sons).
Reuben then slept with Jacob's concubine Bilhah.
They met with Isaac and Isaac died at 180 years old. Jacob and Esau buried him.
Genesis 36
Esau had three wives, two Canaanites and the daughter of Ishmael. His descendants became the Edomites and the rulers of Edom.
Jacob's ladder story happens here. Jacob calls it 'the House of God' and 'the Gate of Heaven'. God continues his covenant with Abraham through Jacob, stating "Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring" (28:14). Not only will Jacob's descendants be blessed through God's covenant with Abraham, but all peoples of the earth.
Jacob's vow has always perplexed me. "If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking... then the Lord will be my God". That doesn't sound like the faith of Abraham.
Genesis 29
- Jacob arrives in the area of his uncle, Laban and meets Rachel. He greets her enthusiastically.
- Jacob ends up working for Laban for seven years in return for the hand of his daughter, Rachel. But when the time came to be married, Jacob slept with Leah (Rachel's older sister). When Jacob found out, this is of course after having slept with Leah, he asked Laban why he had deceived him. Laban gave a cultural response and gave Rachel to Jacob for another seven years of work. After the week long ceremony with Leah, Jacob was married to Rachel as well. "Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years" (29:30).
First, how in the world did Jacob not know who he was sleeping with? Was he drunk?
- The Lord saw that Leah was not loved and opened her womb and she gave birth to four sons - Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah
Genesis 30
- Rachel was now the jealous one. She gave Bilhah (her servant) to Jacob to sleep with so that Rachel could have a family as well. Bilhah gave birth to Dan and Naphtali.
Napthali means 'my struggle'. Rachel names her son (through Bilhah) Napthali because 'I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won'. What incredible jealousy!
- Now the pendulum had swung back and Leah was jealous. Leah gave her servant, Zilpah to Jacob to sleep with. Zilpah had Gad and Asher for Leah's side of the family.
- Reuben, the oldest goes out during harvest time and brought some mandrake plants back to Leah that he had found. Rachel asked for some and when Leah brushed her off, Rachel traded a night with Jacob for the mandrakes. "So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. 'You must sleep with me,' she said. 'I have hired you with my son's mandrakes.' So he slept with her that night." (Genesis 30:16). That's a very funny verse. But God gave Leah a son through this affair, Issachar. Leah then had a sixth son, Zebulun and then a daughter, Dinah.
- Finally after Leah had bore Jacob six sons, Bilhah had bore him two and Zilpah had bore him two, ten sons in all, God remembered Rachel and she gave birth to Joseph. (11 sons).
- Jacob wishes to leave, but Laban asks him to stay because he has learned through divination that he has been blessed through Jacob. (That's another one of those things that I just noticed that others are getting blessed just by being in proximity to Abraham. Think Lot and Abimelech.)
- Jacob gets his wages from Laban to stay and becomes exceedingly wealthy by breeding his flock with the stronger females and the weaker females offspring went to Laban.
Genesis 31
Laban's sons become jealous of Jacob because his wealth was waxing and theirs was waning. Laban's attitude changed as well towards Jacob. The Lord instructed Jacob to return to the promised land and Jacob gathered his wives, children and household to flee without telling Laban. But, Rachel stole her father's household gods.
Laban pursued Jacob and when he was about to catch up the Lord appeared to Laban and warned him not to say anything good or bad to him. Laban finally says to him "Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?" (Genesis 31:30).
Jacob makes a pretty rash response about the stolen gods. He says that if anyone has the gods of Laban they shall not live. He didn't know Rachel had stolen the gods. Rachel sat on them and lied saying that she couldn't stand because she was on her period.
Jacob and Laban made a covenant not to harm one another by crossing the spot where they piled rocks to fight. Laban then kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them before returning home.
Genesis 32
Jacob sent men out to meet Esau, and when they returned they informed him Esau was coming with 400 men to meet him. Jacob panicked and split his group into two so that if Esau attacked one group, the other could escape. In fear Jacob prayed to God.
32:10-11 "I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children". This is a stark contrast to how Jacob spoke in chapter 31. In chapter 31 he is righteously indignant with Laban, lambasting him for the way he treated him, talking about his toil and his hard work. Now, when he talks to God, he is humble and admits that all his gains are because of the Lord's blessing, in spite of his unworthiness. It's an interesting contrast.
Jacob sends out a big gift of goats, sheep, camels, cows and donkeys to Esau ahead of him in the hopes of pacifying Esau.
Jacob then has an encounter with God where he wrestles him. Jacob won't let go until the man blessed him. The man (God) changed Jacob's name to Israel because Jacob had struggled with God and with men and overcame it.
Genesis 33
Jacob meets Esau and expecting the worse he bows down, but Esau embraces him.
Genesis 34
Dinah, Jacob's daughter by Leah was violated by Shechem, the son of the local ruler, Hamor. Hamor came to Jacob and his sons to ask for Dinah to be married to Shechem. They lied and said they would agree if all the men were circumcised. After the men of the city were circumcised Simeon and Levi (the brothers of Dinah) killed all the men of the city while they were still in pain and looted the city, carrying off the livestock, women and children of the city. Jacob rebuked his sons, but they asked 'should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?'
Genesis 35
Jacob was told by God to go to Bethel. Jacob told his house to get rid of their foreign gods, which he buried and went to Bethel, safely because God had filled all the people with terror of them.
Jacob was visited by God at Bethel and renewed his covenant. Jacob built an altar to God there and renamed the place Bethel (it was called Luz).
Rachel then died in childbirth, giving birth to Benjamin (the twelfth of Jacob's sons).
Reuben then slept with Jacob's concubine Bilhah.
They met with Isaac and Isaac died at 180 years old. Jacob and Esau buried him.
Genesis 36
Esau had three wives, two Canaanites and the daughter of Ishmael. His descendants became the Edomites and the rulers of Edom.
Friday, February 12, 2016
365 Day Bible Catch Up Psalm 11 - 16
Psalm 11
11:7 "For the Lord is righteous, he loves justice; upright men will see his face".
The reward for being upright is to see the face of God.
Psalm 12
A couple things stand out in this chapter.
12:5 "Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy I will now arise, says the Lord. I will protect them from those who malign them".
12:7 "O Lord, you will keep us safe and protect us from such people forever".
-God is roused to protect the needy and oppressed.
12:6 "And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times".
- The words of the Lord (the Bible in our case) is flawless. Refined and purified.
12:8 "The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men".
How truly does this reflect today's culture?
Psalm 13
A reminder that even when things seem to be going wrong we should trust in the Lord and praise him.
13:2 "How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?
13:5-6 " But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me".
Psalm 14
14:1 "The fool says in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good".
"The Hebrew words rendered 'fool' in Psalms denote one who is morally deficient."
This little footnote really changes the way I look at this verse. I've seen (especially in comment sections on internet articles), Christians throwing around the term 'fool' like those who believe in God are stupid and then being made to look stupid by those who don't believe in God. But, if fool denotes a morally deficient person, the meaning of this verse makes much more sense.
- God is present in the company of the righteous. (Psalm 14:5). That's comforting and interesting to those looking to be righteous. When your are upright, you are righteous because God is in your presence.
Psalm 15
Be blameless. Do what is righteous. Speak truth from your heart. Don't slander. Honor those who fear the Lord. These are what it takes to live on God's holy hill.
Psalm 16
Teach me to always remember "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing" (16:2).
Sorrow will increase in those who run after other gods (16:4).
11:7 "For the Lord is righteous, he loves justice; upright men will see his face".
The reward for being upright is to see the face of God.
Psalm 12
A couple things stand out in this chapter.
12:5 "Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy I will now arise, says the Lord. I will protect them from those who malign them".
12:7 "O Lord, you will keep us safe and protect us from such people forever".
-God is roused to protect the needy and oppressed.
12:6 "And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times".
- The words of the Lord (the Bible in our case) is flawless. Refined and purified.
12:8 "The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men".
How truly does this reflect today's culture?
Psalm 13
A reminder that even when things seem to be going wrong we should trust in the Lord and praise him.
13:2 "How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?
13:5-6 " But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me".
Psalm 14
14:1 "The fool says in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good".
"The Hebrew words rendered 'fool' in Psalms denote one who is morally deficient."
This little footnote really changes the way I look at this verse. I've seen (especially in comment sections on internet articles), Christians throwing around the term 'fool' like those who believe in God are stupid and then being made to look stupid by those who don't believe in God. But, if fool denotes a morally deficient person, the meaning of this verse makes much more sense.
- God is present in the company of the righteous. (Psalm 14:5). That's comforting and interesting to those looking to be righteous. When your are upright, you are righteous because God is in your presence.
Psalm 15
Be blameless. Do what is righteous. Speak truth from your heart. Don't slander. Honor those who fear the Lord. These are what it takes to live on God's holy hill.
Psalm 16
Teach me to always remember "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing" (16:2).
Sorrow will increase in those who run after other gods (16:4).
365 Day Bible Catch Up (Matthew 5 - 9)
Matthew 5:27-48
A couple verses stand out.
First, "If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell" (Matthew 5:29-30). What a strong verse. I've always wondered if this is to be taken literally. I mean, in all honesty there is nothing worse than being thrown into hell. If any part of you is doing something that warrants damnation than surely losing a body part is less worse than being thrown into hell. But, is this to be taken as an absolute literal command? I don't know, this is one of those difficult verses.
The part about the eye for an eye is easier to swallow and obviously meant literally. "If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you" (Matthew 5:41-42). Give freely of yourself to those who ask. And not just to your friends or brothers. Even the wicked and pagans do that.
Matthew 6
6:1-4 is something that American Christians really need to understand. Don't do your 'righteous acts' in front of people for a reward. Give your gifts in secret, then the Father who sees what you're doing will reward you.
6:5-15 is chalk full of things that are important. Obviously, there is the Lord's prayer. This is well trodden and written about so I'll gloss over it for now. What stands out to me is the words before it.
"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Matthew 6:5-8).
There is a lot here so bear with me. First, let's use the context of contemporary America. Depending upon where you live, you live in a post-religious society or a still relatively religious society. Here in the south I live where Christianity is still the norm and fairly prevalent in even the secular society. So, men praying on the streets might get some praise and they would have their reward in full. But, in other sections of America, when men pray on the streets they are derided as fools, or crazy. So I think taken in context that matches Jesus' day we have to take these verses in relation to the Christian community. At this point, I must admit I could be extremely wrong and ask for forgiveness if I am. I think some of the religious prayers and babbling that Jesus is condemning here shines through in modern, post-denominational churches that I've visited. These are where people get up in frenzy and pray and pray to be admired by their peers rather than raising a prayer to God. Of course, I'm not in a position to judge a man's heart so, I could be totally off base. But, this is how these verses stick to me at the moment.
I think some of the most pressing verses of this chapter to me come from verses 19-21. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also". I struggle with this. I definitely store treasures here on earth and need to refocus my attention to store treasures in heaven. Verse 21 is so on point when it states where your treasure is, so there too is your heart. I need to take 6:33 to heart "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well".
Matthew 7
What is the meaning of Matthew 7:6?
"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".
7:12 sums up the Law and the Prophets - "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets".
A tree and its fruit is an interesting passage. "A good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit" (7:18). We are known by our fruit. But, if a good tree cannot bear bad fruit what of when Christians mess up? What about me when I screw up and have a disaster fall on my head? Am I a bad tree?
Matthew 8
- Jesus heals a man with leprosy. But, he tells the healed man not to tell anyone.
The Faith of The Centurion:
"When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth". Matthew 8:10-12.
I always think about this story and the story where Jesus will not, initially help the Samaritan woman. He says its not proper to take food from the children to give to the dogs and yet the woman persists. Jesus was definitely Jewish, but he was expanding what it meant to be a part of the kingdom of Heaven with the Centurion and seemingly restricting it initially with the Samaritan woman. I know I've heard that Jesus was testing the woman's faith, or possibly the faith of his disciples. And if that's the case I guess it's consistent. But, it is sometimes strange to see Jesus' logic.
- Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law
- Jesus heals many and drove out the demons of the demon-possessed.
- The story of the pigs is also an odd one. Two demon-possessed men come up to Jesus and the demons ask if the Son of Man has come to torture them before the appointed time. Then Jesus gives the demons their wish and sent them into a herd of pigs, who subsequently died by drowning. The townsfolk came out and pleaded for Jesus to leave their region. What does this story mean? Are the townsfolk to blame for valuing their possessions (the pigs) more than their souls?
Matthew 9
- Jesus heals a paralytic and causing a major controversy by forgiving the sins of the paralyzed man.
- Jesus eats with Matthew, sinners and tax collectors
- Jesus raises a girl from the dead and heals a sick woman
- Jesus heals two blind men and tells them not to tell anyone about it (but they do anyway)
"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36). Jesus has compassion for the helpless.
A couple verses stand out.
First, "If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell" (Matthew 5:29-30). What a strong verse. I've always wondered if this is to be taken literally. I mean, in all honesty there is nothing worse than being thrown into hell. If any part of you is doing something that warrants damnation than surely losing a body part is less worse than being thrown into hell. But, is this to be taken as an absolute literal command? I don't know, this is one of those difficult verses.
The part about the eye for an eye is easier to swallow and obviously meant literally. "If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you" (Matthew 5:41-42). Give freely of yourself to those who ask. And not just to your friends or brothers. Even the wicked and pagans do that.
Matthew 6
6:1-4 is something that American Christians really need to understand. Don't do your 'righteous acts' in front of people for a reward. Give your gifts in secret, then the Father who sees what you're doing will reward you.
6:5-15 is chalk full of things that are important. Obviously, there is the Lord's prayer. This is well trodden and written about so I'll gloss over it for now. What stands out to me is the words before it.
"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Matthew 6:5-8).
There is a lot here so bear with me. First, let's use the context of contemporary America. Depending upon where you live, you live in a post-religious society or a still relatively religious society. Here in the south I live where Christianity is still the norm and fairly prevalent in even the secular society. So, men praying on the streets might get some praise and they would have their reward in full. But, in other sections of America, when men pray on the streets they are derided as fools, or crazy. So I think taken in context that matches Jesus' day we have to take these verses in relation to the Christian community. At this point, I must admit I could be extremely wrong and ask for forgiveness if I am. I think some of the religious prayers and babbling that Jesus is condemning here shines through in modern, post-denominational churches that I've visited. These are where people get up in frenzy and pray and pray to be admired by their peers rather than raising a prayer to God. Of course, I'm not in a position to judge a man's heart so, I could be totally off base. But, this is how these verses stick to me at the moment.
I think some of the most pressing verses of this chapter to me come from verses 19-21. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also". I struggle with this. I definitely store treasures here on earth and need to refocus my attention to store treasures in heaven. Verse 21 is so on point when it states where your treasure is, so there too is your heart. I need to take 6:33 to heart "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well".
Matthew 7
What is the meaning of Matthew 7:6?
"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".
7:12 sums up the Law and the Prophets - "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets".
A tree and its fruit is an interesting passage. "A good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit" (7:18). We are known by our fruit. But, if a good tree cannot bear bad fruit what of when Christians mess up? What about me when I screw up and have a disaster fall on my head? Am I a bad tree?
Matthew 8
- Jesus heals a man with leprosy. But, he tells the healed man not to tell anyone.
The Faith of The Centurion:
"When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth". Matthew 8:10-12.
I always think about this story and the story where Jesus will not, initially help the Samaritan woman. He says its not proper to take food from the children to give to the dogs and yet the woman persists. Jesus was definitely Jewish, but he was expanding what it meant to be a part of the kingdom of Heaven with the Centurion and seemingly restricting it initially with the Samaritan woman. I know I've heard that Jesus was testing the woman's faith, or possibly the faith of his disciples. And if that's the case I guess it's consistent. But, it is sometimes strange to see Jesus' logic.
- Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law
- Jesus heals many and drove out the demons of the demon-possessed.
- The story of the pigs is also an odd one. Two demon-possessed men come up to Jesus and the demons ask if the Son of Man has come to torture them before the appointed time. Then Jesus gives the demons their wish and sent them into a herd of pigs, who subsequently died by drowning. The townsfolk came out and pleaded for Jesus to leave their region. What does this story mean? Are the townsfolk to blame for valuing their possessions (the pigs) more than their souls?
Matthew 9
- Jesus heals a paralytic and causing a major controversy by forgiving the sins of the paralyzed man.
- Jesus eats with Matthew, sinners and tax collectors
- Jesus raises a girl from the dead and heals a sick woman
- Jesus heals two blind men and tells them not to tell anyone about it (but they do anyway)
"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36). Jesus has compassion for the helpless.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
365 Day Bible Catch Up Psalms 6 - 10
Psalm 6
Lord teach me to pray this fervently. I don't know if I have ever prayed so hard as David did in this moment. I know I have been worn out from groaning in certain situations and I have lifted prayers to you in my times of need, but have I really ever prayed so deeply as this? I should because you hear.
6:9 "The Lord has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord accepts my prayer.
Psalm 7
Psalm 7 warns us of what happens when you do evil.
7:14 - "He who is pregnant with evil and conceives trouble gives birth to disillusionment"
7:16 - "The trouble he causes recoils on himself; his violence comes down on his own head"
Evil never prospers. It always bites us in the end. 7:14 is especially poignant and telling. Conceiving of schemes that are troublesome gives birth to an experience when you discover that what you were thinking of ends up not nearly being as good as you initially thought. How true is that? Lord, clear the evil from me so that I am not in the birth pangs of disillusionment.
Psalm 8
8:2 "From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger". When you see a child praising God it reminds you of what life should be like. Children speak frankly (when brought up right) about God and their faith is the faith that Jesus praises. It silences the enemies of God. God could thunderbolt and rage and accomplish this silence, yet it is through the voice of children that he chooses to silence his foes. How humbling.
Psalm 9
The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed and a stronghold in times of trouble? (v8) Why? Because those who know your name will trust in you because you have never forsaken those who seek you. (v9) On the flip side, those that don't know your name won't trust you because they haven't seen your steadfastness.
9:15 echoes 7:14 & 7:16. "The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden". The trouble has recoiled.
While the wicked are ensnared and perishing and having their memory wiped from the earth, the needy will not be forgotten (9:18).
Psalm 10
Psalm 10:4 is a perfect explanation of why pride is so harmful to man. "In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God". Lord, let me not be this proud man. Let me always make room for you.
Psalm 10 has one of those 'difficult verses' 10:15 "Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out". How do we reconcile a loving God with one that would break the arm of a man? Well, that's for another time to discuss. While typing this I realized just how scary this verse is. "Call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out". How much iniquity is done in secret that no man could ever know? But, God knows. Lord, forgive me of the sins I have done in secret. Hear my prayer and forgive me.
Lord teach me to pray this fervently. I don't know if I have ever prayed so hard as David did in this moment. I know I have been worn out from groaning in certain situations and I have lifted prayers to you in my times of need, but have I really ever prayed so deeply as this? I should because you hear.
6:9 "The Lord has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord accepts my prayer.
Psalm 7
Psalm 7 warns us of what happens when you do evil.
7:14 - "He who is pregnant with evil and conceives trouble gives birth to disillusionment"
7:16 - "The trouble he causes recoils on himself; his violence comes down on his own head"
Evil never prospers. It always bites us in the end. 7:14 is especially poignant and telling. Conceiving of schemes that are troublesome gives birth to an experience when you discover that what you were thinking of ends up not nearly being as good as you initially thought. How true is that? Lord, clear the evil from me so that I am not in the birth pangs of disillusionment.
Psalm 8
8:2 "From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger". When you see a child praising God it reminds you of what life should be like. Children speak frankly (when brought up right) about God and their faith is the faith that Jesus praises. It silences the enemies of God. God could thunderbolt and rage and accomplish this silence, yet it is through the voice of children that he chooses to silence his foes. How humbling.
Psalm 9
The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed and a stronghold in times of trouble? (v8) Why? Because those who know your name will trust in you because you have never forsaken those who seek you. (v9) On the flip side, those that don't know your name won't trust you because they haven't seen your steadfastness.
9:15 echoes 7:14 & 7:16. "The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden". The trouble has recoiled.
While the wicked are ensnared and perishing and having their memory wiped from the earth, the needy will not be forgotten (9:18).
Psalm 10
Psalm 10:4 is a perfect explanation of why pride is so harmful to man. "In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God". Lord, let me not be this proud man. Let me always make room for you.
Psalm 10 has one of those 'difficult verses' 10:15 "Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out". How do we reconcile a loving God with one that would break the arm of a man? Well, that's for another time to discuss. While typing this I realized just how scary this verse is. "Call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out". How much iniquity is done in secret that no man could ever know? But, God knows. Lord, forgive me of the sins I have done in secret. Hear my prayer and forgive me.
365 Day Bible Catch Up (Proverbs 1-4)
Catching up in Proverbs now...
1:29-33
-Because they did not accept rebuke or advice, because they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord they will eat the fruit of their ways.
1:32 "For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them" - What a terrifying verse. I know I have been guilty of complacency on more than one occasion. Lord, help me to cease to be complacent.
But, luckily, 32 is counterbalanced with 33: "but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm".
Proverbs 2
1-5: If you look for it, if you search for it like its valuable (like silver or a hidden treasure) then you will find it. You will find the fear of the Lord and the knowledge of God.
10 - Wisdom will enter your heart
11 - Discretion will protect you
2:19 is somewhat distressing considering my history. "None who go to her return or attain the paths of life". Her being the wayward wife with her seductive words.
Proverbs 3
3:3-4 "Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man". I need to really bind these things and write them on the tablet of my heart. Let this soak in Lord.
3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight". Let this soak in as well. I need to really not lean on my own understanding (a thing I am consistently guilty of).
Here in Proverbs 3 we see a little literal? allegorical? metaphorical? account of creation:
3:19-20 "By wisdom the Lord laid the earth's foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place; by his knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew". Genesis doesn't use any of this wordage and yet it makes sense on both a literal and allegorical/metaphorical account.
In light of rereading and typing my notes on Rand and her views on altruism, I can say that it is truly opposite to the Biblical approach to ethics. Proverbs 3:27-28 "Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act. Do not say to your neighbor, 'Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow' - when you have it with you". Rand talks about altruistic ethics being hypothetical, asking, 'Should I act if a man is hanging on by his fingernails off a ledge' or 'Should I pull the person from a moving car'. If it is in you power, then act. That is the ethics we are to practice.
God mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble. Another point against the prideful ethics of Rand. (Proverbs 3:34).
Proverbs 4
How important is wisdom? 4:7 "Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding" or "Whatever else you get, get understanding".
Proverbs 4:14-17 warns against walking in the wicked's ways -
"Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way. For they cannot sleep till they do evil; they are robbed of slumber till they make someone fall. They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence".
It's like wickedness is an addiction. You get hooked and pulled in further and further until you cannot sleep without doing evil. It gets so bad that they get trapped in it. 4:19 "But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble". Why did you do that? I don't know it just happened. Nothing in particular triggered it. It just happened. How many times has that (paraphrase) happened to me? Break my chains Lord.
1:29-33
-Because they did not accept rebuke or advice, because they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord they will eat the fruit of their ways.
1:32 "For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them" - What a terrifying verse. I know I have been guilty of complacency on more than one occasion. Lord, help me to cease to be complacent.
But, luckily, 32 is counterbalanced with 33: "but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm".
Proverbs 2
1-5: If you look for it, if you search for it like its valuable (like silver or a hidden treasure) then you will find it. You will find the fear of the Lord and the knowledge of God.
10 - Wisdom will enter your heart
11 - Discretion will protect you
2:19 is somewhat distressing considering my history. "None who go to her return or attain the paths of life". Her being the wayward wife with her seductive words.
Proverbs 3
3:3-4 "Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man". I need to really bind these things and write them on the tablet of my heart. Let this soak in Lord.
3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight". Let this soak in as well. I need to really not lean on my own understanding (a thing I am consistently guilty of).
Here in Proverbs 3 we see a little literal? allegorical? metaphorical? account of creation:
3:19-20 "By wisdom the Lord laid the earth's foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place; by his knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew". Genesis doesn't use any of this wordage and yet it makes sense on both a literal and allegorical/metaphorical account.
In light of rereading and typing my notes on Rand and her views on altruism, I can say that it is truly opposite to the Biblical approach to ethics. Proverbs 3:27-28 "Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act. Do not say to your neighbor, 'Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow' - when you have it with you". Rand talks about altruistic ethics being hypothetical, asking, 'Should I act if a man is hanging on by his fingernails off a ledge' or 'Should I pull the person from a moving car'. If it is in you power, then act. That is the ethics we are to practice.
God mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble. Another point against the prideful ethics of Rand. (Proverbs 3:34).
Proverbs 4
How important is wisdom? 4:7 "Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding" or "Whatever else you get, get understanding".
Proverbs 4:14-17 warns against walking in the wicked's ways -
"Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way. For they cannot sleep till they do evil; they are robbed of slumber till they make someone fall. They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence".
It's like wickedness is an addiction. You get hooked and pulled in further and further until you cannot sleep without doing evil. It gets so bad that they get trapped in it. 4:19 "But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble". Why did you do that? I don't know it just happened. Nothing in particular triggered it. It just happened. How many times has that (paraphrase) happened to me? Break my chains Lord.
365 Day Bible Catch Up (Isaac)
Genesis 25 (starting at verse 19)
-Isaac was 40 when he married Rebekah, who was barren. Isaac prayed to God and Rebekah became pregnant with twins. The twins jostled inside of her and Rebekah asked the Lord why this was happening and the Lord explained that two peoples were struggling inside of her and that the older would serve the younger.
-Esau was born first, covered in red hair. Jacob came second grabbing onto the heel of Esau. Esau became a hunter and was loved by Isaac. Jacob was quiet and loved by Rebekah.
-One day Esau came home from a hunt and asked Jacob for some of the stew he was making because he was hungry. Jacob said he'd give him some stew if Esau sold him his birthright. Esau did so "so Esau despised his birthright".
Genesis 26
- During a famine Isaac went down to the land of the Philistines and met with King Abimelech and pulled the old 'my wife is my sister trick' and when Abimelech saw Isaac caressing Rebekah from his window he called Isaac out on his trickery. But, Isaac was blessed by God and became very wealthy until he was envied by the Philistines. Abimelech then told Isaac to move away from them because he had become too powerful.
-After being visited by the Lord, Isaac built an altar to the Lord. Like Lot, Isaac was blessed for the sake of Abraham (Genesis 26:24).
-Like Abimelech had done with Abraham, he came to Isaac with a request of a non-aggression treaty.
-Esau married a couple of Hittite women who were a "source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah"
Genesis 27 - 28:9
- Rebekah devises a plan to have Jacob receive the blessing of Isaac before his death. Jacob dresses up like Esau and steals the blessing. Esau then came in and Isaac realized the deception and has no real blessing for Esau other than when Esau grows restless he will throw the yoke of Jacob off his neck.
- Esau then plotted to kill him. Rebekah plotted to send Jacob to her brother Laban's until Esau was no longer angry. Rebekah went to Isaac and claimed that Esau's wives were driving her into misery. Isaac told Jacob not to marry a Canaanite woman but go to Laban's to find a wife.
- When Esau realized how much his Canaanite wives were displeasing to his parents he went to Ishmael and married one of his daughters.
-Isaac was 40 when he married Rebekah, who was barren. Isaac prayed to God and Rebekah became pregnant with twins. The twins jostled inside of her and Rebekah asked the Lord why this was happening and the Lord explained that two peoples were struggling inside of her and that the older would serve the younger.
-Esau was born first, covered in red hair. Jacob came second grabbing onto the heel of Esau. Esau became a hunter and was loved by Isaac. Jacob was quiet and loved by Rebekah.
-One day Esau came home from a hunt and asked Jacob for some of the stew he was making because he was hungry. Jacob said he'd give him some stew if Esau sold him his birthright. Esau did so "so Esau despised his birthright".
Genesis 26
- During a famine Isaac went down to the land of the Philistines and met with King Abimelech and pulled the old 'my wife is my sister trick' and when Abimelech saw Isaac caressing Rebekah from his window he called Isaac out on his trickery. But, Isaac was blessed by God and became very wealthy until he was envied by the Philistines. Abimelech then told Isaac to move away from them because he had become too powerful.
-After being visited by the Lord, Isaac built an altar to the Lord. Like Lot, Isaac was blessed for the sake of Abraham (Genesis 26:24).
-Like Abimelech had done with Abraham, he came to Isaac with a request of a non-aggression treaty.
-Esau married a couple of Hittite women who were a "source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah"
Genesis 27 - 28:9
- Rebekah devises a plan to have Jacob receive the blessing of Isaac before his death. Jacob dresses up like Esau and steals the blessing. Esau then came in and Isaac realized the deception and has no real blessing for Esau other than when Esau grows restless he will throw the yoke of Jacob off his neck.
- Esau then plotted to kill him. Rebekah plotted to send Jacob to her brother Laban's until Esau was no longer angry. Rebekah went to Isaac and claimed that Esau's wives were driving her into misery. Isaac told Jacob not to marry a Canaanite woman but go to Laban's to find a wife.
- When Esau realized how much his Canaanite wives were displeasing to his parents he went to Ishmael and married one of his daughters.
365 Day Bible Catch Up (Abraham)
So it's February 11 and I'm already vastly behind. So I'm going to catch up (at least through all of January). But, instead of reading piecemeal from four books like the plan has me doing, I'm going to go through a book at a time.
Genesis 13 - Abraham & Lot separate.
- Lot chooses what looks good and goes and lives among the cities of the plain, near Sodom. But, "the men of Sodom were wicked and sinning greatly against the Lord" (13:13).
- God tells Abram that all the land he sees will be the property of 'you and your offspring forever'.
- Abram pitches his tent near Mamre at Hebron and builds an altar
Genesis 14 - Abraham rescues Lot from captivity
- Abram is called "Abram the Hebrew". This is the first mention of Hebrew in the Old Testament
- Melchizedek, the king of Salem (Jerusalem) was a priest of God Most High. He blessed Abram and the God Most High. Abram gave a tenth of everything to Melchizedek. Who is Melchizedek?
- Abram refused the goods of the king of Sodom so that the king could not claim to have made Abram rich.
Genesis 15 - God makes a covenant with Abraham
- the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision claiming to be Abram's shield and very great reward. Incredibly, Abram seems upset and able to talk to the vision about being childless. The Lord however promised that he would indeed have a son and his offspring would be more numerous than the stars. "Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness" (15:6).
- God then put Abram in a deep sleep and made a covenant with him and told him that his offspring would be enslaved for four hundred years, but would come out of slavery to the land God promised him with 'great possessions'. Why would they be enslaved for 400 years? So that the sin of the Amorites could reach full measure because it hadn't yet. What was the sin of the Amorites?
Genesis 16 - Hagar & Abram
- Sarai, the wife of Abram gives him her servant, Hagar to start a family that way, which seems odd, but was probably culturally acceptable at the time. But, when Hagar was pregnant she began to despise Sarai. Sarai became jealous and angry with Abram and mistreated Hagar with Abram's blessing (or at least indifference).
-Hagar ran away but the angel of the Lord told Hagar to go back to Sarai but promised that Hagar's descendants would be too numerous to count. The angel said to name the son Ishmael, but he would be a wild donkey of a man and be hostile towards basically everyone.
- Abram was 86 when Ishmael was born
Genesis 17 - The covenant of circumcision
- The Lord appeared to Abram at 99 and said to him 'walk before me and be blameless'. He instructed Abram that he was now to be called Abraham and to have everyone of his household and his descendants to be circumcised as it will be the sign of the covenant between Abraham and God.
-Incredibly, like when Abraham received the vision, he talked with God frankly, asking how he would have a son at 100 through his 90 year old wife. He asks God to make the covenant through Ishmael.
-God blesses Ishmael but claims that the covenant will run through his son through Sarah, who they will call Isaac.
-Everyone in Abraham's household, slaves and all, were circumcised.
Genesis 18 - Judging Sodom
- God appeared to Abraham again and they sat down for dinner. (How amazing would that be?) The Lord said he would return in a year and by then they would have a son, Isaac. Sarah laughed at this, but when God called her on it, "Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, 'I did not laugh'. But he said, "Yes, you did laugh" (18:15). I don't blame her, I would have been afraid too.
- The Lord revealed then that he was going down to Sodom to see if the reports of the city's sins were as bad as they seemed. Abraham bargains with the Lord and asks him if he will destroy the righteous with the wicked if 50 good men are found in the city. The Lord says he will spare it for 50, for 45, for 40, for 30, for 20 and even for 10.
Genesis 19 - The destruction of Sodom and Gommorah
- The two angels arrived at Sodom and were invited by Lot to spend the night with him in his house. When they were in the house the men of the city lined up and called out to Lot for him to produce the two men that were staying with him so they could have sex with them. Lot pleaded for them to not do these things and to take his virgin daughters instead. When the people threatened Lot the angels saved him and told them to flee and dragged Lot, his wife and two daughters out of the city and destroyed the cities. What had Lot done to deserve this mercy? Other than providing hospitality for the angels, I don't see much. But, it seems Lot's connection to Abraham is what saved him. "So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived" (Genesis 19:29)
- After the destruction of Sodom and Gommorah things get a bit strange. I'm classifying this as a difficult verses passage so I can study it further. I can't tell if what Lot's daughters did was wicked or not. Of course it's strange and pretty gross, but their reasoning doesn't seem as perverted as the act. They both slept with Lot (after getting him drunk) "Let's get our father to drink wine and then lie with him and preserve our family line through our father" (Genesis 19:33).
- Both daughters had sons who would become the fathers of the Moabites and the Ammonites.
Genesis 20 - Sister Wife thing again
- Abraham moved into another region of Canaan under the control of King Abimelech. Abimelech took Sarah as they had claimed to be brother and sister. The Lord came to Abimelech and threatened to kill him on account of Sarah, but Abimelech protested his innocence. The Lord agreed and told Abimelech to have Abraham pray for him and not to touch Sarah. Abimelech did this, gave gifts to Abraham and Sarah and Abraham prayed for Abimelech which healed him and his household.
- I always find this and the Egypt story confusing. Abraham kind of gets off on a technicality. "Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife" (Genesis 20:13).
Genesis 21
- Isaac is born and circumcised.
- Sarah becomes jealous of Hagar and Ishmael and tells Abraham to send them away. This distresses Abraham because Ishmael was his son as well, but the Lord tells him to send them away but promises to make Ishmael into a nation as well.
- After the provisions run out, Hagar leaves Ishmael in the bushes because she cannot bear to watch him die. But, the angel of the Lord comes to Hagar and provided for them. "God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt" (Genesis 20:20-21). Even though Ishmael didn't get the same blessing as Isaac, God provided for him.
- Abraham and Abimelech made a treaty not to harm one another. Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time and called upon the name of the Lord.
Genesis 22 - The near sacrifice of Isaac
- God calls on Abraham to take Isaac (your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love) as an offering and burn him on a mountain in Moriah. Isaac asks Abraham on the journey, 'I see the wood, the fire and the knife, but uh... where is the sacrifice?' Abraham replies that God himself will provide the lamb. Abraham builds the altar and binds Isaac and is about to sacrifice his son when the angel of the Lord stops him and provides a ram. The Lord then swears on his own self that because Abraham was obedient that He will surely bless Abraham and his descendants. What's interesting here to me is verse 18. "And through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me".
- Up until this point, God has been promising Abraham that he will be the father of countless children, a great nation and that even through Ishmael a nation will be born, "He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation" (17:20)
- We are also introduced to Rebekah (the future wife of Isaac) as the granddaughter of Nahor, Abraham's brother
Genesis 23 - The death of Sarah
- Sarah dies and Abraham purchases land from Ephron the Hittite to bury Sarah in the cave of Machpelah.
Genesis 24 - Isaac marries Rebekah
- Abraham makes one of his servants promise to go get a wife for Isaac from his own clan, and not to let Isaac marry one of the Canaanites he was living amongst or to let Isaac leave the land promised to him by God. The servant does this by praying to God and finds Rebekah, Abraham's great-niece by his brother Nahor. Isaac and Rebekah are married in the tent of his mother Sarah. Isaac loved her and was comforted after his mother's death.
Genesis 25 - The death of Abraham
- Abraham took another wife who bore him six sons. As Abraham was dying he left everything to Isaac, but gave gifts to all of his other sons and sent them to live in the east. Ishmael and Isaac buried Abrham in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre with Sarah. After the death of Abraham God blessed Isaac.
- Ishmael had twelve sons (the twelve rulers) and died at an old age.
Genesis 13 - Abraham & Lot separate.
- Lot chooses what looks good and goes and lives among the cities of the plain, near Sodom. But, "the men of Sodom were wicked and sinning greatly against the Lord" (13:13).
- God tells Abram that all the land he sees will be the property of 'you and your offspring forever'.
- Abram pitches his tent near Mamre at Hebron and builds an altar
Genesis 14 - Abraham rescues Lot from captivity
- Abram is called "Abram the Hebrew". This is the first mention of Hebrew in the Old Testament
- Melchizedek, the king of Salem (Jerusalem) was a priest of God Most High. He blessed Abram and the God Most High. Abram gave a tenth of everything to Melchizedek. Who is Melchizedek?
- Abram refused the goods of the king of Sodom so that the king could not claim to have made Abram rich.
Genesis 15 - God makes a covenant with Abraham
- the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision claiming to be Abram's shield and very great reward. Incredibly, Abram seems upset and able to talk to the vision about being childless. The Lord however promised that he would indeed have a son and his offspring would be more numerous than the stars. "Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness" (15:6).
- God then put Abram in a deep sleep and made a covenant with him and told him that his offspring would be enslaved for four hundred years, but would come out of slavery to the land God promised him with 'great possessions'. Why would they be enslaved for 400 years? So that the sin of the Amorites could reach full measure because it hadn't yet. What was the sin of the Amorites?
Genesis 16 - Hagar & Abram
- Sarai, the wife of Abram gives him her servant, Hagar to start a family that way, which seems odd, but was probably culturally acceptable at the time. But, when Hagar was pregnant she began to despise Sarai. Sarai became jealous and angry with Abram and mistreated Hagar with Abram's blessing (or at least indifference).
-Hagar ran away but the angel of the Lord told Hagar to go back to Sarai but promised that Hagar's descendants would be too numerous to count. The angel said to name the son Ishmael, but he would be a wild donkey of a man and be hostile towards basically everyone.
- Abram was 86 when Ishmael was born
Genesis 17 - The covenant of circumcision
- The Lord appeared to Abram at 99 and said to him 'walk before me and be blameless'. He instructed Abram that he was now to be called Abraham and to have everyone of his household and his descendants to be circumcised as it will be the sign of the covenant between Abraham and God.
-Incredibly, like when Abraham received the vision, he talked with God frankly, asking how he would have a son at 100 through his 90 year old wife. He asks God to make the covenant through Ishmael.
-God blesses Ishmael but claims that the covenant will run through his son through Sarah, who they will call Isaac.
-Everyone in Abraham's household, slaves and all, were circumcised.
Genesis 18 - Judging Sodom
- God appeared to Abraham again and they sat down for dinner. (How amazing would that be?) The Lord said he would return in a year and by then they would have a son, Isaac. Sarah laughed at this, but when God called her on it, "Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, 'I did not laugh'. But he said, "Yes, you did laugh" (18:15). I don't blame her, I would have been afraid too.
- The Lord revealed then that he was going down to Sodom to see if the reports of the city's sins were as bad as they seemed. Abraham bargains with the Lord and asks him if he will destroy the righteous with the wicked if 50 good men are found in the city. The Lord says he will spare it for 50, for 45, for 40, for 30, for 20 and even for 10.
Genesis 19 - The destruction of Sodom and Gommorah
- The two angels arrived at Sodom and were invited by Lot to spend the night with him in his house. When they were in the house the men of the city lined up and called out to Lot for him to produce the two men that were staying with him so they could have sex with them. Lot pleaded for them to not do these things and to take his virgin daughters instead. When the people threatened Lot the angels saved him and told them to flee and dragged Lot, his wife and two daughters out of the city and destroyed the cities. What had Lot done to deserve this mercy? Other than providing hospitality for the angels, I don't see much. But, it seems Lot's connection to Abraham is what saved him. "So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived" (Genesis 19:29)
- After the destruction of Sodom and Gommorah things get a bit strange. I'm classifying this as a difficult verses passage so I can study it further. I can't tell if what Lot's daughters did was wicked or not. Of course it's strange and pretty gross, but their reasoning doesn't seem as perverted as the act. They both slept with Lot (after getting him drunk) "Let's get our father to drink wine and then lie with him and preserve our family line through our father" (Genesis 19:33).
- Both daughters had sons who would become the fathers of the Moabites and the Ammonites.
Genesis 20 - Sister Wife thing again
- Abraham moved into another region of Canaan under the control of King Abimelech. Abimelech took Sarah as they had claimed to be brother and sister. The Lord came to Abimelech and threatened to kill him on account of Sarah, but Abimelech protested his innocence. The Lord agreed and told Abimelech to have Abraham pray for him and not to touch Sarah. Abimelech did this, gave gifts to Abraham and Sarah and Abraham prayed for Abimelech which healed him and his household.
- I always find this and the Egypt story confusing. Abraham kind of gets off on a technicality. "Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife" (Genesis 20:13).
Genesis 21
- Isaac is born and circumcised.
- Sarah becomes jealous of Hagar and Ishmael and tells Abraham to send them away. This distresses Abraham because Ishmael was his son as well, but the Lord tells him to send them away but promises to make Ishmael into a nation as well.
- After the provisions run out, Hagar leaves Ishmael in the bushes because she cannot bear to watch him die. But, the angel of the Lord comes to Hagar and provided for them. "God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt" (Genesis 20:20-21). Even though Ishmael didn't get the same blessing as Isaac, God provided for him.
- Abraham and Abimelech made a treaty not to harm one another. Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time and called upon the name of the Lord.
Genesis 22 - The near sacrifice of Isaac
- God calls on Abraham to take Isaac (your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love) as an offering and burn him on a mountain in Moriah. Isaac asks Abraham on the journey, 'I see the wood, the fire and the knife, but uh... where is the sacrifice?' Abraham replies that God himself will provide the lamb. Abraham builds the altar and binds Isaac and is about to sacrifice his son when the angel of the Lord stops him and provides a ram. The Lord then swears on his own self that because Abraham was obedient that He will surely bless Abraham and his descendants. What's interesting here to me is verse 18. "And through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me".
- Up until this point, God has been promising Abraham that he will be the father of countless children, a great nation and that even through Ishmael a nation will be born, "He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation" (17:20)
- We are also introduced to Rebekah (the future wife of Isaac) as the granddaughter of Nahor, Abraham's brother
Genesis 23 - The death of Sarah
- Sarah dies and Abraham purchases land from Ephron the Hittite to bury Sarah in the cave of Machpelah.
Genesis 24 - Isaac marries Rebekah
- Abraham makes one of his servants promise to go get a wife for Isaac from his own clan, and not to let Isaac marry one of the Canaanites he was living amongst or to let Isaac leave the land promised to him by God. The servant does this by praying to God and finds Rebekah, Abraham's great-niece by his brother Nahor. Isaac and Rebekah are married in the tent of his mother Sarah. Isaac loved her and was comforted after his mother's death.
Genesis 25 - The death of Abraham
- Abraham took another wife who bore him six sons. As Abraham was dying he left everything to Isaac, but gave gifts to all of his other sons and sent them to live in the east. Ishmael and Isaac buried Abrham in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre with Sarah. After the death of Abraham God blessed Isaac.
- Ishmael had twelve sons (the twelve rulers) and died at an old age.
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Assessment of my notes on Rand
In June - July 2006 I was reading Ayn Rand's The Virtue of Selfishness. I was also big on my "Quest for Knowledge" which was my personal maxim of looking at everything (I shudder to use the word in light of Rand's usage) objectively and gleaning truth from it. I most certainly didn't look at Rand from an objective standpoint. I probably should go back and read more of her work. But, In the past nine and a half years I think I have at least read some of her works again (we'll find out if I took any notes or if they survive). At the time I was throwing around the big boy words I was learning in my philosophy classes and practicing my own little word games to trap Rand in her words. Thankfully, I didn't use the phrase 'existentially repugnant', which was a personal favorite of mine for a mercifully short time. But that essence was there.
That said, I find much of the ethical framework of Rand's to be morally backwards. I do think that she praised what ought not to be praised and despised that which should not be despised. It lends itself nicely to a depraved form of (using a word that I seemed particularly fond of at the time of my notes) megalomania. But, I have to ask for forgiveness because at the time I was still learning politics and hadn't yet matured into my own brand of political thought. I was massively addicted to the 24-hour news cycle at the time and a particular fan of Hannity & Colmes. I cheered Hannity and jeered Colmes. In essence I was whipped up by the rhetoric and fell right into the trap they laid for me. I didn't realize until later how much of a farce this fair & balanced show was. But, it was in this educational indoctrination that I found myself after having yelled at a book suddenly nodding along when it came to Rand's political philosophy of unadulterated laissez-faire capitalism. In light of maturity, I no longer watch Hannity (or really any of the 24-hour news cycle, realizing now that it is all entertainment based on the Jerry Springer model of debasing humanity for our pleasure, without the almost redemptive bit of Springer's little morale at the end of each show).
While my political leanings put me much more squarely in the center, I haven't abandoned my conservative roots. I find that I need to say that I doubt I would nod along with Rand's political theories any longer. Her arguments against Collectivism were one thing I think that I nodded along with as they were an attack on racism (something which needs to be attacked). Then I provided my little wit and word play (like the Sophist I am working to grow out of) to attack her 'racism', which was unfair (it would more rightly have been called a classism). But, I think coming from a more experienced standpoint I could read the book and glean a bit more now. I still think I might yell at it though.
However, Nathaniel Branden's essay The Psychology of Pleasure stood out for me about his assessment of of looking at work. My notes said:
"Work which can be looked upon in various ways:
1) one can find profound pleasure in work and will never cease to learn, to think and to achieve.
2) One can find pleasure in working in routines and enjoy a daze-like life. He sees happiness as being free from challenge. He has low self-esteem
3) One who cannot find pleasure in work and works only for money to buy pleasures that shut off consciousness.
4) Those who do not work productively but seek to destroy others as pleasure. They are parasites who live off the work of others"
At 22, I really didn't know what productive work was. I was young, enthusiastic and full of energy. Even when I did dead-end jobs it didn't matter because everything was new. Now at 32 I understand a bit more. Thankfully, I have never experienced 4. But the other three I have known at various stages in my career. Unfortunately I have fallen prey to the trap of 3 now twice.
Ostensibly, the purpose of this blog is to gather all of my notes together so I can write books and draw on my past knowledge and experiences. What I'm learning in doing this is that it's simply a continuation of the aforementioned 'quest for knowledge'. I'm not as bright-eyed as I once was. I'm not as innocent and have lived a bit more than I would have liked at this point in my life. There is a creeping cynicism that crops up now and then, sometimes more viciously than others. I'm not calling it such a lofty thing as the 'quest for knowledge' although I tamely called the last bit of information in my notebook 3 something like 'my little theory of everything'. It was somewhat sarcastic, but I might still have those flashes of grandeur underneath my cynicism that crop up as well from time to time. So, I guess in my assessing my notes on Rand I've come to the conclusions that I've forgotten some of what I've learned, I probably should read the book again and that I need to do productive work in a way that I find pleasure in it, ceaselessly learning, thinking and as humbly as I can put it, achieving. I need to write those books that are plaguing my mind. I need to get out of the mindset of taking on pleasures that shut off consciousness. These are too short-lived and have far too great of consequences to continue to pursue with such verve.
That said, I find much of the ethical framework of Rand's to be morally backwards. I do think that she praised what ought not to be praised and despised that which should not be despised. It lends itself nicely to a depraved form of (using a word that I seemed particularly fond of at the time of my notes) megalomania. But, I have to ask for forgiveness because at the time I was still learning politics and hadn't yet matured into my own brand of political thought. I was massively addicted to the 24-hour news cycle at the time and a particular fan of Hannity & Colmes. I cheered Hannity and jeered Colmes. In essence I was whipped up by the rhetoric and fell right into the trap they laid for me. I didn't realize until later how much of a farce this fair & balanced show was. But, it was in this educational indoctrination that I found myself after having yelled at a book suddenly nodding along when it came to Rand's political philosophy of unadulterated laissez-faire capitalism. In light of maturity, I no longer watch Hannity (or really any of the 24-hour news cycle, realizing now that it is all entertainment based on the Jerry Springer model of debasing humanity for our pleasure, without the almost redemptive bit of Springer's little morale at the end of each show).
While my political leanings put me much more squarely in the center, I haven't abandoned my conservative roots. I find that I need to say that I doubt I would nod along with Rand's political theories any longer. Her arguments against Collectivism were one thing I think that I nodded along with as they were an attack on racism (something which needs to be attacked). Then I provided my little wit and word play (like the Sophist I am working to grow out of) to attack her 'racism', which was unfair (it would more rightly have been called a classism). But, I think coming from a more experienced standpoint I could read the book and glean a bit more now. I still think I might yell at it though.
However, Nathaniel Branden's essay The Psychology of Pleasure stood out for me about his assessment of of looking at work. My notes said:
"Work which can be looked upon in various ways:
1) one can find profound pleasure in work and will never cease to learn, to think and to achieve.
2) One can find pleasure in working in routines and enjoy a daze-like life. He sees happiness as being free from challenge. He has low self-esteem
3) One who cannot find pleasure in work and works only for money to buy pleasures that shut off consciousness.
4) Those who do not work productively but seek to destroy others as pleasure. They are parasites who live off the work of others"
At 22, I really didn't know what productive work was. I was young, enthusiastic and full of energy. Even when I did dead-end jobs it didn't matter because everything was new. Now at 32 I understand a bit more. Thankfully, I have never experienced 4. But the other three I have known at various stages in my career. Unfortunately I have fallen prey to the trap of 3 now twice.
Ostensibly, the purpose of this blog is to gather all of my notes together so I can write books and draw on my past knowledge and experiences. What I'm learning in doing this is that it's simply a continuation of the aforementioned 'quest for knowledge'. I'm not as bright-eyed as I once was. I'm not as innocent and have lived a bit more than I would have liked at this point in my life. There is a creeping cynicism that crops up now and then, sometimes more viciously than others. I'm not calling it such a lofty thing as the 'quest for knowledge' although I tamely called the last bit of information in my notebook 3 something like 'my little theory of everything'. It was somewhat sarcastic, but I might still have those flashes of grandeur underneath my cynicism that crop up as well from time to time. So, I guess in my assessing my notes on Rand I've come to the conclusions that I've forgotten some of what I've learned, I probably should read the book again and that I need to do productive work in a way that I find pleasure in it, ceaselessly learning, thinking and as humbly as I can put it, achieving. I need to write those books that are plaguing my mind. I need to get out of the mindset of taking on pleasures that shut off consciousness. These are too short-lived and have far too great of consequences to continue to pursue with such verve.
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