Psalm 102

Verse 16 speaks of a time when the LORD will rebuild Zion. Verse 14 mentions the ruins of that city. From these references it seems that the oppressed man attributed with the words of this psalm is viewing the desolation that was once the city of Jerusalem. A city that now has been destroyed because of the rebellion of the nation of Israel. But even in the midst of destruction God has lit the candle of hope. The words of this weary man reflect the hope that could only have their origins in God. The one who gives second chances.
Stuart

2 Chronicles 4-7

In 2 Chronicles 5:13 we see the reappearance of the cloud of the LORD. For generations the people of Israel had been told about the cloud. It had been the physical reminder of God's presence as the Jews wandered in the wilderness. Once Joshua had led the nation into the Promised Land the cloud was no longer mentioned. Hundreds of years later God sends the cloud of his presence again. And just like what had happened when the tabernacle was completed (Exodus 40:34-35) God got in the way of his people seeking to worship him. In this act, which God repeated I see a subtle message. Even though God enjoys the worship of his people I think he would rather inhabit the works of their hands. Especially when those works are intended to focus on him.
Stuart

Psalm 101

Many of David's psalms offer the words of a man of sorrows or turmoil. Some of his psalms speak of his sinfulness or God's gracious and loving nature. But in psalm 101 I hear the angry words of a man overflowing with righteous indignation. David seems obsessed with the obliteration of the unrighteous, unjust people who were living around him. People who were receiving the benefits of God's inheritance but rejection God's call for justice among his people. Such rebellion made David's blood boil. My question is; how should Christians apply this psalm to our life? If David was being literal then I don't think we are called to follow his example. But we can and should apply his principles to the rebellious attitudes in our flesh nature. Paul's words in 2 Corinthians 10:4-7 sound equally as violent as David. Yet I see Paul's words directed toward the spiritual battle being waged with the flesh. In that battle we face an enemy toward whom we are to show no mercy.
Stuart

1 Corinthians 15-16

Paul closes out his letter with some strong challenges to the believers in Corinth. There is an apparent contrast of focus between 16:13 and 14. In verse 13 Paul states four traits necessary to face the challenges of this world; alertness, faith, courage, and strength. These traits can show evidence of a self-will. Yet the challenge in verse 14 softens the sense of the four traits. How will love alter the perspective of our circumstances? That will change the intentions of our alertness. Love directs the actions of our faith outwardly; into the lives of other people. Expressing courage with love will be evident in the boldness of our witness. Demonstrating strength with a flavor of love with overflow into meeting the needs of others.
Stuart

Psalm 100

The last line reminded me of Jesus' response to the rich ruler in Luke 18:19; "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone." Verse 5 of psalm 100 gives us two characteristic that make up God's goodness. He demonstrates an enduring love. It is one thing to be able to process eternal love. I think the Bible makes it quite clear that God not only possesses an eternal love he demonstrates it to his people. We could easily argue that for a time he will demonstrate that love to those who reject him as well. The second trait the paslmist mentions is God's faithfulness that spans generations. Since the demarcation of that fidelity is the descendants of people it would be safe to assume that he demonstrates his faithfulness on par with his love. I think that these are only two of the traits that make him a good God.
Stuart

1 Corinthians 12-14

In 1 Corinthians 12:7 Paul lays out a principle that is critical for the church to operate properly; individual gifting will benefit the entire body. Those gifted in leading normally recognize  that those gifted in teaching, serving, and generosity are equally important in the executing of ministry. What sometimes is missed is the need to include these gifts in the strategic and immediate planning for ministry.
Stuart

Psalm 99

There is no way to miss the connection of praise and prayer in psalm 99. This psalm could be adapted as a model prayer for all believers.
Stuart

1 Corinthians 6-8

“Glorify God with your body.” (1 Cor. 6:20b) Paul seems to be speaking to individuals about their physical bodies and not the assembly of believers and the body of Christ. We all agree that one key purpose of the body of Christ is to bring glory to God. We demonstrate that through our corporate acts of compassion, benevolence, and worship. But also through the unity of believers within the body. But how do we glorify God with our individual bodies? How do I honor God with the physical tent which he has entrusted to me? We could put Jesus writing all over the outside, for others to see, and the inside, so we can meditate on them. We could move the tent to places where Jesus is not known or revered and invited others to camp with us. The most important thing we as individual believers can do to glorify God is to obey him in every aspect of our life. In the context this is Paul’s closing statement of the call to live sexually pure lives. We might call this an invasion of privacy. Paul destroys that argument before he makes his charge, “  . . . you are not your own”. Before God we have no privacy, no secrets, no room in  which we can hide. When he come to Christ we give him everything.

 

Stuart

 

Hosea 12-14

There seems to be some difference of understanding as to the best translation of Hosea 13:14.

Is God telling Israel that he will call forth death and the grave?

 

Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol?
Shall I redeem them from death?
O Death, where are your thorns?
O Sheol, where is your sting? 

Compassion will be hidden from My sight. (NASB)

 

Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol?
    Shall I redeem them from Death?
O Death, where are your plagues?
   O Sheol, where is your sting?
   Compassion is hidden from my eyes. (ESV)

 

Should I, the LORD, rescue you

   from death and the grave?

   No! I call death and the grave

   to strike you like a plague.

   I refuse to show mercy. (CEV)

That is a far cry from the challenge God sends out to death and the grace in 1 Corinthians 15:55. An idea that more closely supports the thought in the NIV.

 

I will ransom them from the power of the grave;
   I will redeem them from death.
Where, O death, are your plagues?
   Where, O grave, is your destruction?

  I will have no compassion,  (NIV)

 

I wonder if the message from Hosea was focused on the failure of the Law to redeem people. Was the message from Paul was a “conversion” of Hosea’s words to celebration the change God made in the world through the cross?

 

Stuart

 

1 Corinthians 1-2

I wonder what Crispus, Gaius, and Stephanus’ household thought when Paul mentioned their names in the first letter to the Corinthians? Did they cower in fear? Were they humiliated? Were they honored to that he remembered them? We they party to one of the factions? How would I feel if Paul mentioned my name in a letter and I knew he was talking about me?

 

Stuart

 

1 Corinthian 5

The 5th chapter of the 1st Corinthian letter is a challenge to the modern church as it was in the ancient church. The propensity for people to selfishly choose their own sexual standards over God's design is nothing new. This chapter proves it. There is a high demand for moral purity among believers so that they stand out differently from the world. We I graciously take up the gentle call for moral purity among believers?
Stuart

1 Corinthians 3-4

Eliphaz the Temanite was one of Job's "friends". When he heard of Job's loss he came to comfort and encourage him. However, his immature understanding of God overwhelmed his compassion. Eliphaz spoke harshly to the man who had already suffered terrible loss. He words lifted no burden but added to Job's sorrows. Knowing that I wonder why Paul used the words of Eliphaz to corrected the divisive spirit in the people of Corinth? The believers in Corinth were focusing on wisdom and Paul hoped to redirect their focus on the foolishness of God. He pulls out Eliphaz's words from Job 5:13, "He catches the wise in their craftiness." Paul found some truth in Eliphaz's words. Truth that he hoped could help the Corinthian, and modern, believer grow in their dependence on God.
Stuart

Hosea 9-11

Hosea passes on God’s call for the people of Israel to return to him. Maybe some of them were unsure how to do that. After generations of ignoring God’s call for obedience some of the people surely desired to follow him but didn’t know how. In Hosea 10:12-13 God explains the solution and their problem in terms the people would understand; farming. Living righteously, as defined in God’s Law, will produce a harvest of God’s unfailing love. But the people of Israel only planted wickedness; in the form of idolatry, and all sorts of evil living. Because of their moral corruption justice was perverted, and deception was standard fare.

That is basically the message Paul shared with the Galatian believers in 6:7-8; “ ⁷ Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. ⁸ The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” So God validates this truth in the times before and after the cross. Some things in life will never change.

 

Stuart

 

Hosea 5-8

Half-baked. The idiom means that something is not well thought out. On dictionary defines it as “exhibiting a lack of good judgment or common sense. I don’t know if the origin of the idiom is Biblical or not, but it could definitely have come from Hosea 7:8; “Ephraim is like a ruined cake of bread that is scorched on one side.” When God looked at the persistent rebellion of the northern tribes he saw one part of the people overdone with empty religion and the other part of the kingdom lacking any of the moral restraint and reverence toward his name that Yahweh had longed for them. The people were burnt out on one side and sickenly raw on the other.  I’m sure we can find the same struggles inside of the church, and maybe even in our own lives. What can we do about it? In verse 10 of that same chapter God indicates what he wanted the people of Israel to do. It is the same things that he wants from modern believers; return to him. Go back to his word, follow his commands, love others like he loves us. This message is not for those who have never known the truth about God’s will. Hosea wrote to people who knew God and rejected him. That is why the message of Hosea applies to believer today as well as in the time of Hosea.

 

Stuart

 

Hosea 1-4

I have some questions about Hosea's story. What did his family think about Gomer before they got married? Was she a "woman with a reputation?" What did Hosea see in her? Were she and Hosea ever intimate in the first period of their marriage? What did Hosea's family think about the names for his children? Did their grandmother give them nick-names that were much more affectionate? I assume that Gomer left Hosea and the three children at home. What did Hosea tell his children about their mother? What did Hosea's family think and say when he bought Gomer at the auction block? Was Gomer faithful to Hosea from that day on? Did Jezreel, Lo-Ruhamah, and Lo-Ammi forgive their mother? Did they live to see the words of fore telling that father spoke came to pass? What lessons and stories of faith did they pass on to their children about God?
Stuart

Ecclesiastes 12

Solomon comes to a very wise conclusion at the end of Ecclesiastes. Obeying God is the intention of creation. But what led to that conclusion; wisdom or faith? I tend to think that it was a conclusion of faith, which is heavenly wisdom. The skeptical writings of modern scholar is clear evidence the wisdom alone is not sufficient to conclude favorably about God. Even when the evidence shouts the creator's name some "wise" people will reject that truth.
Stuart

1 Chronicles 21-23

Did you ever wonder who the adversary in 1 Chronicles 21:1 was? One scholar noted that the lack of a definite article would not require Satan to be the adversary who acted. It could have been another king who threatened to attack Israel with a huge army.  Maybe this king sought to lower David through a bragging contest on who’s army was larger. Regardless the real adversary showed himself through David’s pride. Instead of allowing the windbag to vent David called his bluff and counted the army. His foolishness led to the death of many. Were they warriors who also boasted in the size of Israel’s army? It seems unlikely that God would have sentenced to death those who persisted in honoring him.  Like those who were slain because of the golden calf (Exodus 34:35) God surely struck down those who approved for goaded the king on toward this action that displayed human pride.

 

Stuart

 

1 Chronicles 18-20

Twice in 1 Chronicles 18 the divine protection God provided David is remembered (18:6, 13).  It should serve as a reminder to us that whenever we engage in any spiritual battle for the Kingdom God will fight beside and before us. He will deliver us in the same way he delivered David.
Stuart

1 Chronicles 15-17

I've always wanted to start something new. To be a trend setter. To be the first to say or do something unique. I would also like to know that I have contributed something special in the Kingdom of God. Beginning with 1 Chronicles 15:16 David did something new in the Kingdom of God. Something that is still a practice in the modern Kingdom of God; the church. He introduced singing as a means to worship the God of Israel. The first praise team was made up of 16 Levites. In 1 Chronicles 16:7 David gave the new praise team a song of thanksgiving. The song is cited in verses 8 through 34. David set the standard for worshiping God through song as a part of the regular rituals.
Then David submitted a prayer for the people to include in their worship (35-36).
Stuart

Ecclesiastes 9

There is a statement made in Ecclesiastes 9:10 that clearly displays the attitudes of one struggling with the world. "Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might,..." In contrast to that thought is what Paul wrote in Colossians 3:17. "whatever you do in word or in deed, do it all in the name of the Lord, Jesus,...." I find the contrast of these two statements very revealing of the faith of the two authors. The older author was much wiser in worldly wisdom than the younger author. But the faith of the second man's word is bolder, more dramatic, possibly even stronger than those earlier words of wisdom. Is it possible that Solomon could have grasped the grace of God before the cross of Jesus? That is a significant handicap.
Stuart

Ecclesiastes 8

There can be no question that the Bible teachers that godly wisdom brings God's favor and peace to a life. But the beginning of Ecclesiastes 8 points out two more benefits of pursuing and possessing wisdom. It "brightens their appearance." Godly wise people radiate God's joy because his wisdom has permeated their hearts.
It also softens his harsh countenance. Learning can lead to great confidence which can cause unrealistic expectation being projected on to other people. The one who adds godly wisdom "softens his harsh countenance." A soft spoken attitude can be more valuable than a head full of knowledge in almost any conflict.
Stuart

1 Chronicles 5-8

One of the descendants of Ephraim was a daughter named Sheerah (1 Chron. 7:24). It seems that she was responsible for the building up of three walled villages; Lower Beth Horon, Upper Beth Horon, and Uzzen Sheerah. I wonder if she was the model for the Proverbs 31 woman?
Stuart

1 Chronicles 9-11

The name that caught my attention in this passage was found in 1 Chronicles 9:17-18; Shallum. He was a Levite the leader of the returning gate keepers. He was the only one listed of his brothers who guarded the threshold of the tent of meeting until the new temple was built. I need to look into his life some more.
Stuart

Ecclesiastes 7

The teacher who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes sets forth many difficult truths. I believe one of the hardest to accept is chapter 7 verse 14: God has created both prosperity and adversity. I think it likely that he not only made both he controls both. That is why the verse ends with the thought that no one understands the future. Our faith in God can not exclude that sorrows may enter our lives for a time or as a life-long companIon. Neither can our faith limit God to only bring rebuke and punishment.
Stuart

1 Chronicles 1-4

The beginning of first Chronicles has to be among the most difficult chapters in the Bible.  The names are unfamiliar and the ancestral lines difficult to follow.  But there were some names in the first few chapters the caught my attention.

In 1:10 the name of Nimrod is mentioned. He was the son of Cush, grandson of Ham, great-grandson of Noah. His mention in Genesis 10:8-9 calls him a warrior (gibbowr) and hunter (gibbowr tsayid)  before the LORD. The chronicler refers to him only as a warrior (gibbowr). The Hebrew word is commonly used of an impetuous soldier or hero. I wonder whether Nimrod established his name in the early time of warring among the post-flood people, or because he was skilled at the hunt.  If he was the former then such a claim may not be desirable.

Beginning in 2:12 the family line of Boaz is listed.  His grandson, Jesse, had seven sons. The youngest was king David.  Jesse also had two daughters; Zeruiah and Abigail (2:16). Both of these women had sons as well.  I think it is very noteworthy to remember that David had two sisters.  We may never know what role these two women played in the formative years of the great king of Israel.  However, I have two sisters who have impacted my life in many positive ways.  Surely that is why God led the chronicler to include them.

Three obscure people mentioned in the Bible.  Yet they were very real and their influence can still be seen in the pages of scripture.

 

Stuart

 

Amos 7-9

Three times at the beginning of Amos 7 God presents a question regarding the punishment of Israel.  First is the locust (vss 1-2a).  Amos implores for God’s mercy and God changes his plans.  Next was the shower of fire (vs 4).  Amos steps up again on Israel’s behalf and God relents.  The third time God build a wall  with his leaded weight (vss 7-9).  This is an ancient description for what modern builders would call a plumb line. The third display was not open for discussion.  Amos had twice stayed God’s judgment against Israel but regardless of Amos’ interventions there was no way that Israel could measure to God’s standards.  God expected the wall he had built to be true and strong.  Israel had become weak and crooked in their pride.  The only option available to God was to tear down the wall and start all over.  There comes a time in each of our lives, as well as our church and culture, where God has no choice but to tear down and start all over.  He did it with Israel, many times.  We should not be surprised if continues this action of rebuilding even as we await the fulfillment of Grace in Jesus.

 

Stuart

Amos 1-3

In the beginning of Amos 3 God wants to make certain that the people of Israel understand their coming punishment is not fate or bad fortune; he had dictated it. He make the point by asking seven questions with obvious answers. Beginning in verse 3 he asked about friendships. Verse 4 includes two questions about lions. Verse 5 presents two questions about traps.  Verse 6 ends the series with questions about a city under attack. The answer to that last question in verse 6 is rhetorical. It is the same answer as the previous six questions. God's methods are intentional and sure. Yet he does not act out of hatred, but from a broken heart that looks for any way possible to bring his people back to him.
Stuart

Ecclesiastes 2

As Ecclesiastes chapter 2 closes the teacher notes the difference of a life lived pursuing God and a life of selfish endeavors. Though both lifestyles produce fruit in this life what God gives in addition by far exceeds wealth in this world. God provides his people wisdom, knowledge, and joy. Joy in our accomplishments in the midsts of the futility of life.
Stuart

Luke 22-24

Even after Jesus had risen from the dead the disciples still couldn't understand what God had revealed of his plan of grace in the Hebrew scriptures. Finally, Jesus' words were able to penetrate the hearts of sin-broken men. In Luke 24:45 Jesus "opened their minds so that they could understand the scriptures." How did he do that? John recalled a miraculous imparting of the Holy Spirit on those believers (John 20:22). Maybe Jesus spoke with more clarity in his words. Perhaps they were able to understand because they moved from living by sight and began listening through faith (2 Corinthians 5:7). The last seems most likely to me since it is through our faith that we become receptive to the Gospel message.
Stuart

Psalm 97

The words of psalm 97 are intended to encourage us as we seek God. In verse 10 there is a challenge set forth for those who pursue God. Our love for him should be our motive to act in goodness. I wonder if the psalmist was driving at the idea that we validate our love for God through our actions towards others. Which is a message that John shared in his epistle (1 John 4:20).
Stuart

Luke 18-20

Luke 20:9 is where the parable of the vineyard begins. The vineyard owner sold the harvest to the tenants in exchange for their labor. But we learn what the tenants really wanted was the vineyard. They desired an inheritance. That quest for the inheritance drove them to extreme expressIons of selfishness. They claimed as their own that which was not (vss 10, 11). They even lorded their position of tenants as superior to the servants who came to collect the owners due (vs 12). Finally their ultimate intentions became clear when they recognized the son (vs 14).  Their actions betrayed their selfish motives. 
The lesson we need to learn is both the owner's reaction to such idolatry, and the warning signs that we are being tempted to perform such atrocities.
Stuart