Hello everyone.
About a month ago I wrote about God's heart. I am finally finishing up that thought for you. In the first part, we looked at how God's heart was deeply hurt by the sin of the world in Gen. 6, and how God carries his sheep close to his own heart in Isa. 40, but mostly we looked at his love and compassion for Moab, a people that were not his own chosen people, yet his heart still cried out for them.
To finish this look at God's heart we will look at the prophet Hosea. In the beginning of the story of Hosea, God appears to him and tells him to marry a promiscuous woman. (Hos 1:2) God is going to make Hosea an object lesson for the nation, because Israel, in God's words, is like an adulterous wife. So, in verse 3, Hosea marries Gomer and they have a child that they name Jezreel. As time goes by, Gomer has another child. The text implies here that Hosea is not the father. A daughter is born and she is named Lo-Ruhamah, which means "not loved." Gomer later gives birth to another son, and again Hosea is apparently not the father. The third child is named "Lo-Ammi," which means "not my people." God tells Hosea to name the child Lo-Ammi because "you are not my people, and I am not your God."
Imagine how Hosea must have felt knowing that his wife had been unfaithful to him repeatedly. God is expressing the same feeling here toward Israel and its repeated unfaithfulness. If you read Hosea chapter 2, you see the anger that God feels toward Israel for their unfaithfulness. Perhaps the saddest part comes in Hosea 2:5-8, where Israel does not acknowledge that God had given many blessings to Israel, instead Israel credits God's blessings to other "lovers," and uses those blessings in worship of Baal. Gomer and Israel deserve nothing but punishment here. In return for kindness and blessing, they have given only unfaithfulness.
By chapter 3, Gomer is prostituting herself. No one would fault Hosea for severing all ties to her. Her unfaithfulness would undoubtedly be the cause of tremendous pain for him. We have to remember that the relationship of Hosea and Gomer parallels the relationship between God and Israel. Israel has committed that kind of unfaithfulness against God. Who could fault Him if He completely destroyed Israel? No one. So what does God do? He has Hosea go to Gomer and buy her out of her prostitution. (Hos. 3:1-2) The parallel is there. But God not only buys Israel out of it's prostitution, He buys our way out of our sins with Jesus on the cross.
The picture of God's heart comes in on chapter 11:1-9. For several chapters, God spells out his anger but in chapter 11, he says, "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son." God then expresses the kind of concern for Israel that a parent would. He talks about taking Israel by the arms and teaching it to walk (v. 3). God says that He had led Israel with cords of human kindness, lifted it up to his cheek and bent down to feed them. Still, Israel was determined to turn away from him and deserves to be punished. Never-the-less, in verse 8, God says that He cannot give Israel up, and that his heart is changed within Him. Within God's heart, all of His compassion is aroused. There is the picture of God's heart. In spite of all of the unfaithfulness, God still loves Israel and has compassion for the nation.
Place yourself in Hosea's shoes for a moment. How much compassion could you find in your heart for Gomer? I think most people would answer "none." God's relationship with Israel parallels the Hosea/Gomer relationship, so I think we would understand if God had reached the end of his compassion for Israel, and it appears that He has. Yet God still finds compassion for Israel, because that's God's heart. How can He still care about Israel? The answer is in verse 9. Because He is "God and not a man."
We established in Gen. 6, that God feels deep pain because of our sin, but now we see that he feels deep compassion for us in spite of it.
Tom
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Thursday, March 5, 2015
The Anatomy of God: God's Heart
Hey everyone.
Along with my study on Acts, I have been reading a book called Knowing God by J.I. Packer. It has been great to learn more about God's attributes. Something he said gave me an idea for continued study. Packer suggested that when we read about God's wisdom, we are seeing God's mind. When we read about God's power, we are seeing his arm, and when we read about God's love we are seeing his heart. It made me wonder what other body parts God has. So interspersed with my study of Acts, I am also now looking at the scriptures and what they have to say about God's anatomy.
I started with God's heart. God's heart is mentioned a few times in the scriptures and I will share a few of the things that I learned with you.
I Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:22 tells us that David was a man after God's own heart. This tells two things. First, God has a heart. Second, we can have a heart like His. So as we look at His heart, we can appreciate God for who He is, and also be challenged to work on our own hearts.
Gen 6:6 is the first mention of God's heart. It says, "The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth and his heart was deeply troubled." That is what is says in the NIV (2011). Personally I prefer the translation in the NIV translated in 1973 where it says that God's "heart was filled with pain." It helped me to understand that God is an emotional entity and that He feels things very deeply. (It would be interesting to study out God's emotions. Just off the top of my head I can think of examples where God expresses anger, jealousy, joy and sadness.) We need to think about this passage and see what was causing God such pain. It is pretty clear that the cause of God's pain was sin. As we look at God's heart, this will come up again.
In Isaiah 15:5 and 16:11, God says, "My heart cries out for Moab," and "My heart laments for Moab like a harp." So twice, God expresses that he feels sadness in his heart for Moab. To understand this we need to have some understanding of who Moab is; so I will give you a brief history of Moab. We see the original Moab in Gen. 19:30-38. After the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his daughters are living in a cave. The daughters get Lot drunk and have sex with him. The offspring of these incestuous relationships are Moab and Ben-Ammi. Gen. 19:37 tells us that the Moabites are the descendants of this Moab.
The Moabites appear again in Numbers 22 through 25. It is Balak, the king of Moab, that summons Balaam and his talking donkey to curse Moses and the Israelites. Balaam refuses to curse them, telling Balak that he can only do what God tells him to do, and instead blesses Israel. So we see early on that Moab stands in opposition to God's people. In Judges 3, the Moabites have conquered Israel and are oppressing them until God sends Ehud to rescue them. (It is an interesting story, in which Ehud stabs Eglon, king of Moab, with and 18 inch sword, but Eglon is so fat that Ehud loses his sword inside and the fat closes over it.) In Judges 10:6 it says that the Israelites had served the gods of Moab. So the Moabites had been a thorn in Israel's side throughout much of the period of the judges. (The positive I find on Moab's ledger is that Ruth was a Moabite.) In I Kings 11:7 Solomon builds a high place for Chemosh, a Moabite god, for one of his wives. Based on what I have read, there is not a lot known about Chemosh. The name may mean "Destroyer" or "Fish God," but archaeology seems to indicate that Chemosh did have a taste for blood. So by the time of Isaiah, Moab had opposed or hindered Israel for about 700 years.
Back in Isaiah 16 we see that even though God's heart cries for Moab, He has reached the point where He can no longer tolerate their sin. Seven hundred years is a long time to tolerate something. God has shown abundant patience. In Isaiah 16:14 He says, "But now the Lord says: "Within three years, as a servant bound by contract would count them, Moab's splendor and all her many people will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble." As much as God's heart is filled with compassion, He will deal with sin, just as He had during the time of Noah. We have to take our sin seriously, because He does.
I will conclude this post with Isaiah 40:11. Since Moab's story is a bit of a downer, this can pick us up a little bit. Isaiah 40 says:
He tends his flock like a shephard:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.
For those of us who are of His flock, He carries us close to His heart. Imagine yourself in His embrace. Perhaps you can feel the vibration of His heartbeat. Take comfort and know that you are near His heart.
More to come.
Tom
Along with my study on Acts, I have been reading a book called Knowing God by J.I. Packer. It has been great to learn more about God's attributes. Something he said gave me an idea for continued study. Packer suggested that when we read about God's wisdom, we are seeing God's mind. When we read about God's power, we are seeing his arm, and when we read about God's love we are seeing his heart. It made me wonder what other body parts God has. So interspersed with my study of Acts, I am also now looking at the scriptures and what they have to say about God's anatomy.
I started with God's heart. God's heart is mentioned a few times in the scriptures and I will share a few of the things that I learned with you.
I Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:22 tells us that David was a man after God's own heart. This tells two things. First, God has a heart. Second, we can have a heart like His. So as we look at His heart, we can appreciate God for who He is, and also be challenged to work on our own hearts.
Gen 6:6 is the first mention of God's heart. It says, "The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth and his heart was deeply troubled." That is what is says in the NIV (2011). Personally I prefer the translation in the NIV translated in 1973 where it says that God's "heart was filled with pain." It helped me to understand that God is an emotional entity and that He feels things very deeply. (It would be interesting to study out God's emotions. Just off the top of my head I can think of examples where God expresses anger, jealousy, joy and sadness.) We need to think about this passage and see what was causing God such pain. It is pretty clear that the cause of God's pain was sin. As we look at God's heart, this will come up again.
In Isaiah 15:5 and 16:11, God says, "My heart cries out for Moab," and "My heart laments for Moab like a harp." So twice, God expresses that he feels sadness in his heart for Moab. To understand this we need to have some understanding of who Moab is; so I will give you a brief history of Moab. We see the original Moab in Gen. 19:30-38. After the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his daughters are living in a cave. The daughters get Lot drunk and have sex with him. The offspring of these incestuous relationships are Moab and Ben-Ammi. Gen. 19:37 tells us that the Moabites are the descendants of this Moab.
The Moabites appear again in Numbers 22 through 25. It is Balak, the king of Moab, that summons Balaam and his talking donkey to curse Moses and the Israelites. Balaam refuses to curse them, telling Balak that he can only do what God tells him to do, and instead blesses Israel. So we see early on that Moab stands in opposition to God's people. In Judges 3, the Moabites have conquered Israel and are oppressing them until God sends Ehud to rescue them. (It is an interesting story, in which Ehud stabs Eglon, king of Moab, with and 18 inch sword, but Eglon is so fat that Ehud loses his sword inside and the fat closes over it.) In Judges 10:6 it says that the Israelites had served the gods of Moab. So the Moabites had been a thorn in Israel's side throughout much of the period of the judges. (The positive I find on Moab's ledger is that Ruth was a Moabite.) In I Kings 11:7 Solomon builds a high place for Chemosh, a Moabite god, for one of his wives. Based on what I have read, there is not a lot known about Chemosh. The name may mean "Destroyer" or "Fish God," but archaeology seems to indicate that Chemosh did have a taste for blood. So by the time of Isaiah, Moab had opposed or hindered Israel for about 700 years.
Back in Isaiah 16 we see that even though God's heart cries for Moab, He has reached the point where He can no longer tolerate their sin. Seven hundred years is a long time to tolerate something. God has shown abundant patience. In Isaiah 16:14 He says, "But now the Lord says: "Within three years, as a servant bound by contract would count them, Moab's splendor and all her many people will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble." As much as God's heart is filled with compassion, He will deal with sin, just as He had during the time of Noah. We have to take our sin seriously, because He does.
I will conclude this post with Isaiah 40:11. Since Moab's story is a bit of a downer, this can pick us up a little bit. Isaiah 40 says:
He tends his flock like a shephard:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.
For those of us who are of His flock, He carries us close to His heart. Imagine yourself in His embrace. Perhaps you can feel the vibration of His heartbeat. Take comfort and know that you are near His heart.
More to come.
Tom
Friday, February 20, 2015
Confidence
Hey Everyone.
In my studies I have reached Acts 12 and the story of Peter's miraculous escape from prison. In the early verses of Acts 12, Herod had the apostle James put to death by the sword. This action pleased the Jews so much that Herod had Peter arrested and placed under guard. We can assume that Herod planned to do the same to Peter, as after the Passover, he was going to put Peter on trial publicly. I think that it is safe to assume that Herod's plan was to find Peter guilty and have him publicly executed shortly thereafter.
Peter was being held in a cell, chained to two guards, while two other stood at the door. They did not want Peter to escape. Never-the-less, on the night before Peter was to go to trial, an angel entered his cell to release him. Interestingly enough, Peter was sound asleep. The angel had to strike Peter to wake him up. It was an interesting behavior for a man who was about to be put on trial for his life. I think that we can say that Peter had great confidence in God here. I'm sure he had spent some time in prayer, but now he slept confidently. (Perhaps Peter looked back at Jesus' prophecy in John 21:18 that said that Peter would live to be old.) Meanwhile, the church had gathered at John Mark's house and was fervently praying for Peter.
To continue, the angel came, struck Peter to wake him, released him from the chains and told him to get dressed. He then led him out of the cell, through the prison gates and out into the street. I'm sure that this is all very surreal for Peter, because is thinking that he is seeing some sort of vision like he had in Acts 10. He does not realize that he is awake and that the angel is releasing him from prison. It is not until the angel leaves him that Peter realizes that this really happened. Finally realizing what has happened, Peter goes to present himself to the rest of the disciples at John Mark's house. In v. 13, Peter knocks on the outer entrance and a servant named Rhoda comes to answer the door. When she hears Peter's voice, she gets so excited that instead of letting him in, she runs back to tell everyone and leaves him standing at the door. But when she announces it, no one believes her. In fact, they tell her that she is out of her mind. Peter continues to knock at the door until someone finally lets him in and they are all astonished by his miraculous escape.
Now, the disciples had been praying for his release yet were surprised when it happened. It makes me wonder, what they were actually expecting to happen. Perhaps they were praying that Herod's court come back with a "not guilty" verdict. Needless to say, whatever they were expecting was not what happened. God circumvented Herod's whole trial process. God's plan was very simple and straightforward, so much so, that it took everyone by surprise. He just send and angel and released him from the prison. Peter didn't expect it this way. The other disciples didn't expect it this way either.
Here is where I'm going with this. God is at work. Often times we don't understand how He is working. Our faith can be challenged when things don't go the way we expect them to. God did not rescue James. This certainly had to be a blow to the faith of many. But God's solution here took everyone by surprise (including the enemies of the church.) And for us today, we can trust God as well. God doesn't always work the way we expect Him to, but He is still at work. Let's keep our eyes and hearts open for how God will surprise us!
Tom
In my studies I have reached Acts 12 and the story of Peter's miraculous escape from prison. In the early verses of Acts 12, Herod had the apostle James put to death by the sword. This action pleased the Jews so much that Herod had Peter arrested and placed under guard. We can assume that Herod planned to do the same to Peter, as after the Passover, he was going to put Peter on trial publicly. I think that it is safe to assume that Herod's plan was to find Peter guilty and have him publicly executed shortly thereafter.
Peter was being held in a cell, chained to two guards, while two other stood at the door. They did not want Peter to escape. Never-the-less, on the night before Peter was to go to trial, an angel entered his cell to release him. Interestingly enough, Peter was sound asleep. The angel had to strike Peter to wake him up. It was an interesting behavior for a man who was about to be put on trial for his life. I think that we can say that Peter had great confidence in God here. I'm sure he had spent some time in prayer, but now he slept confidently. (Perhaps Peter looked back at Jesus' prophecy in John 21:18 that said that Peter would live to be old.) Meanwhile, the church had gathered at John Mark's house and was fervently praying for Peter.
To continue, the angel came, struck Peter to wake him, released him from the chains and told him to get dressed. He then led him out of the cell, through the prison gates and out into the street. I'm sure that this is all very surreal for Peter, because is thinking that he is seeing some sort of vision like he had in Acts 10. He does not realize that he is awake and that the angel is releasing him from prison. It is not until the angel leaves him that Peter realizes that this really happened. Finally realizing what has happened, Peter goes to present himself to the rest of the disciples at John Mark's house. In v. 13, Peter knocks on the outer entrance and a servant named Rhoda comes to answer the door. When she hears Peter's voice, she gets so excited that instead of letting him in, she runs back to tell everyone and leaves him standing at the door. But when she announces it, no one believes her. In fact, they tell her that she is out of her mind. Peter continues to knock at the door until someone finally lets him in and they are all astonished by his miraculous escape.
Now, the disciples had been praying for his release yet were surprised when it happened. It makes me wonder, what they were actually expecting to happen. Perhaps they were praying that Herod's court come back with a "not guilty" verdict. Needless to say, whatever they were expecting was not what happened. God circumvented Herod's whole trial process. God's plan was very simple and straightforward, so much so, that it took everyone by surprise. He just send and angel and released him from the prison. Peter didn't expect it this way. The other disciples didn't expect it this way either.
Here is where I'm going with this. God is at work. Often times we don't understand how He is working. Our faith can be challenged when things don't go the way we expect them to. God did not rescue James. This certainly had to be a blow to the faith of many. But God's solution here took everyone by surprise (including the enemies of the church.) And for us today, we can trust God as well. God doesn't always work the way we expect Him to, but He is still at work. Let's keep our eyes and hearts open for how God will surprise us!
Tom
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
The Arm of the Lord
Hey everyone.
This will be my first post of 2015. I have continued in my study of Acts and have reached Acts 8, where Philip converts the Ethiopian eunuch. I was curious about the passage that they looked at together in Isaiah 53. I wondered what made the message so powerful that the eunuch was so urgent to be baptized. So I spent a few days looking at it in my Quiet Times.
Isaiah 53 is a prophecy about the Suffering Servant. We all understand that it is talking about Jesus. In truth, I have read it many times, but I really wanted to look at it fresh, like the Ethiopian had. After reading verse 1, I realized that I had never really paid much attention to it. I generally had read through it quickly to get to the more familiar, seemingly meatier parts, but this time it made a impact on me. It says, "Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord be revealed?" I had always read it as though it were two questions, "Who has believed our message?" and "To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?" However, it appears to be one big question that ties believing to seeing the arm of the Lord revealed.
So we need to pause and ask ourselves, "what does "the arm of the Lord" mean? It means "power." I may be oversimplifying things, but it seems to me to be implying that if we truly believe the message then we will be allowed to see the power of the Lord. Belief and seeing God's power are connected. This is awesome, because who doesn't want to see the power of God at work in their lives? I certainly do.
Another thought I had about this verse went something like this: During the time of Isaiah, I'm sure the actual answer to this was most likely, "Not many." There were probably not many who believed and not many to whom the arm of the Lord had been revealed. I would hope that today the answer would be more encouraging.
Of course, we get see the arm of the Lord, or the power of God, in the life of Jesus. That is what this prophecy is about. In the verses that follow we read about the Servant, who in his sacrifice bore the sin of many (verse 12). Maybe this is what the eunuch learned. If you want to see the arm of the Lord, look intently at Jesus.
Tom
This will be my first post of 2015. I have continued in my study of Acts and have reached Acts 8, where Philip converts the Ethiopian eunuch. I was curious about the passage that they looked at together in Isaiah 53. I wondered what made the message so powerful that the eunuch was so urgent to be baptized. So I spent a few days looking at it in my Quiet Times.
Isaiah 53 is a prophecy about the Suffering Servant. We all understand that it is talking about Jesus. In truth, I have read it many times, but I really wanted to look at it fresh, like the Ethiopian had. After reading verse 1, I realized that I had never really paid much attention to it. I generally had read through it quickly to get to the more familiar, seemingly meatier parts, but this time it made a impact on me. It says, "Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord be revealed?" I had always read it as though it were two questions, "Who has believed our message?" and "To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?" However, it appears to be one big question that ties believing to seeing the arm of the Lord revealed.
So we need to pause and ask ourselves, "what does "the arm of the Lord" mean? It means "power." I may be oversimplifying things, but it seems to me to be implying that if we truly believe the message then we will be allowed to see the power of the Lord. Belief and seeing God's power are connected. This is awesome, because who doesn't want to see the power of God at work in their lives? I certainly do.
Another thought I had about this verse went something like this: During the time of Isaiah, I'm sure the actual answer to this was most likely, "Not many." There were probably not many who believed and not many to whom the arm of the Lord had been revealed. I would hope that today the answer would be more encouraging.
Of course, we get see the arm of the Lord, or the power of God, in the life of Jesus. That is what this prophecy is about. In the verses that follow we read about the Servant, who in his sacrifice bore the sin of many (verse 12). Maybe this is what the eunuch learned. If you want to see the arm of the Lord, look intently at Jesus.
Tom
Friday, November 28, 2014
The Message
Hey Everyone.
Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I'm sitting in a coffee shop in North Tonawanda, NY, with my Black Friday shopping complete.
So tonight I'm going to continue to share from my study in Acts. As I studied through Acts 2, 3 and 4 I began to notice some things about Peter's messages. Here is what I mean: In Acts 2, Peter is speaking to the people of Jerusalem after a great miracle. (Everyone is hearing the message in their own language) He delivers a message how Jesus was given to them by God (2:22), they had killed him (2:23), but this had been God's plan (2:23) and then God raised him from the dead (2:24). He goes on to say that this fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament (2:25-35), that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah and they killed him (2:36) and that they should repent (2:38). This sums up Peter's message on the day of Pentecost.
In chapter 3 Peter and John are going to the temple. Peter performs a great miracle by healing a man born lame (3:1-10). He uses this miracle to preach another sermon that includes the following: Jesus was given to them by God (3:13), they had killed him (3:13-15), but this had been God's plan (3:18) and then God raised him from the dead (3:36). He goes on to say that this fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament (3:18, 24-25), that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah (3:20) and that they should repent (3:19).
Do you notice the similarities? It is almost the same message. The points are the same any way. It makes me wonder then, was this simply The Message. Peter and the other apostles had spent time with Jesus between the Resurrection and the Ascension, where Jesus explained things to them and prepared them for this ministry. This is just my speculation, of course, but I wonder if Jesus spent a lot of time explaining this message to them. It makes sense to me.
It makes me think, though, "What is my message?' Peter seemed to preach a fairly simple message of Jesus crucified and resurrected, and that this was God's redemptive plan all along. It times my message has been "Come, be a part of my awesome church," or "Come, be a disciple." These are important but they aren't the message. The message of Jesus crucified and resurrected drew a lot of people in Acts 2 and 3. It is still the message that draws. What is your message?
Tom
Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I'm sitting in a coffee shop in North Tonawanda, NY, with my Black Friday shopping complete.
So tonight I'm going to continue to share from my study in Acts. As I studied through Acts 2, 3 and 4 I began to notice some things about Peter's messages. Here is what I mean: In Acts 2, Peter is speaking to the people of Jerusalem after a great miracle. (Everyone is hearing the message in their own language) He delivers a message how Jesus was given to them by God (2:22), they had killed him (2:23), but this had been God's plan (2:23) and then God raised him from the dead (2:24). He goes on to say that this fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament (2:25-35), that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah and they killed him (2:36) and that they should repent (2:38). This sums up Peter's message on the day of Pentecost.
In chapter 3 Peter and John are going to the temple. Peter performs a great miracle by healing a man born lame (3:1-10). He uses this miracle to preach another sermon that includes the following: Jesus was given to them by God (3:13), they had killed him (3:13-15), but this had been God's plan (3:18) and then God raised him from the dead (3:36). He goes on to say that this fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament (3:18, 24-25), that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah (3:20) and that they should repent (3:19).
Do you notice the similarities? It is almost the same message. The points are the same any way. It makes me wonder then, was this simply The Message. Peter and the other apostles had spent time with Jesus between the Resurrection and the Ascension, where Jesus explained things to them and prepared them for this ministry. This is just my speculation, of course, but I wonder if Jesus spent a lot of time explaining this message to them. It makes sense to me.
It makes me think, though, "What is my message?' Peter seemed to preach a fairly simple message of Jesus crucified and resurrected, and that this was God's redemptive plan all along. It times my message has been "Come, be a part of my awesome church," or "Come, be a disciple." These are important but they aren't the message. The message of Jesus crucified and resurrected drew a lot of people in Acts 2 and 3. It is still the message that draws. What is your message?
Tom
Saturday, October 18, 2014
On All People
Hello everyone.
It has been a while since I have written anything. I have since finished my study of the book of John and have now started on a study of the book of Acts. I am currently in Acts 2, where, as you know, the Holy Spirit comes and fills the apostles and they begin to speak in other languages as the Holy Spirit enables them. This is where I would like to start today.
At the time in which the apostles are filled up with God's Holy Spirit, there are God-fearing Jews from all over the place, in Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost. (Acts 2:5) They are amazed as the apostles begin speaking in different languages because everyone can hear the message in their own language. Luke records that many in the audience were "amazed and perplexed," recognizing that this was a pretty awesome miracle that they were witnessing. Others, ever critical, heard the noise and simply attributed it to drunkenness.
That is when Peter stands up and begins to speak. He defends himself and his partners in the Gospel, saying that they were not drunk, and then uses a prophecy from Joel to explain what was really happening. God was pouring out his Spirit. Here is a Hughes' paraphrase of what Peter is saying, "People, what you are witnessing is not drunkenness, it is the Holy Spirit. Joel prophesied that God would pour out His spirit on people and this what is happening right now." So Peter uses Joel's prophecy about the Holy Spirit in this sermon that opens up the doors to God's church, and it's pretty awesome. Let's take a look at a couple of things.
First, God is pouring out his Spirit on all people. The idea that the Holy Spirit was now available to all people is really important. In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was given only to certain people of God's choosing to serve specific purposes, usually leaders (ex. Moses, Joshua, David) or prophets (ex. Elijah, Ezekiel). Peter is using Joel's prophecy to say that now the Holy Spirit is now available to all people. He mentions sons and daughters. (Everyone is one of those, either a son or a daughter.) In verse 18, it says that the Spirit would be poured out on God's servants, both men and women. Just before that he mentions both young and old. This was going to be different than it ever had been. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God Almighty was now going to be available to all.
Second, I personally love the part about how the young men would see visions and the old men would dream dreams. I like it because with the Holy Spirit in us, the dreams of youth are not relegated to the young. Older people get to be dreamers too. At an age when most people have sort of settled in and accepted the harsh realities of life, those who have had the Holy Spirit poured out on them are vibrant and full of dreams.
So then, we are fortunate to live in a time in which we have such a great power available to us all, man, woman, young and old.
Tom
It has been a while since I have written anything. I have since finished my study of the book of John and have now started on a study of the book of Acts. I am currently in Acts 2, where, as you know, the Holy Spirit comes and fills the apostles and they begin to speak in other languages as the Holy Spirit enables them. This is where I would like to start today.
At the time in which the apostles are filled up with God's Holy Spirit, there are God-fearing Jews from all over the place, in Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost. (Acts 2:5) They are amazed as the apostles begin speaking in different languages because everyone can hear the message in their own language. Luke records that many in the audience were "amazed and perplexed," recognizing that this was a pretty awesome miracle that they were witnessing. Others, ever critical, heard the noise and simply attributed it to drunkenness.
That is when Peter stands up and begins to speak. He defends himself and his partners in the Gospel, saying that they were not drunk, and then uses a prophecy from Joel to explain what was really happening. God was pouring out his Spirit. Here is a Hughes' paraphrase of what Peter is saying, "People, what you are witnessing is not drunkenness, it is the Holy Spirit. Joel prophesied that God would pour out His spirit on people and this what is happening right now." So Peter uses Joel's prophecy about the Holy Spirit in this sermon that opens up the doors to God's church, and it's pretty awesome. Let's take a look at a couple of things.
First, God is pouring out his Spirit on all people. The idea that the Holy Spirit was now available to all people is really important. In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was given only to certain people of God's choosing to serve specific purposes, usually leaders (ex. Moses, Joshua, David) or prophets (ex. Elijah, Ezekiel). Peter is using Joel's prophecy to say that now the Holy Spirit is now available to all people. He mentions sons and daughters. (Everyone is one of those, either a son or a daughter.) In verse 18, it says that the Spirit would be poured out on God's servants, both men and women. Just before that he mentions both young and old. This was going to be different than it ever had been. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God Almighty was now going to be available to all.
Second, I personally love the part about how the young men would see visions and the old men would dream dreams. I like it because with the Holy Spirit in us, the dreams of youth are not relegated to the young. Older people get to be dreamers too. At an age when most people have sort of settled in and accepted the harsh realities of life, those who have had the Holy Spirit poured out on them are vibrant and full of dreams.
So then, we are fortunate to live in a time in which we have such a great power available to us all, man, woman, young and old.
Tom
Saturday, August 30, 2014
The Secret Disciple
Hello everyone.
Today, I am sharing the story of Joseph of Arimathea. It is told a little bit in each of the Gospels. Matthew 27:57 tells us that Joseph was wealthy. Mark 15:43 tells us that he was a member of the Sanhedrin, was waiting for the kingdom of God and that he went boldly to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus. Luke 23:50-51 tells us that while he was a member of the Jewish ruling council, he had not consented to their actions. It is what John says, however, that gives us the full picture. John 19:38-42 also tells about the wealthy member of the Jewish ruling council who boldly approached Pilate in order to bury the body of Jesus. John adds that Joseph was "a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews." Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but to this point he had kept it a secret. His secret was motivated by fear. Today, Joseph would certainly be considered on the fringe of the fellowship at best, yet Joseph steps up big time in an hour of need and God uses him to accomplish his will. He, along with Nicodemus, buried Jesus in Joseph's own tomb.
It's funny to me, that at a time when Jesus' closest associates (the apostles) were in hiding, and it appears that Jesus had lost his battle with the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, that this is the moment when Joseph steps forward and makes his association with Jesus public. He had not had the faith to overcome his fear during Jesus' public ministry. He had summoned some courage during Jesus' trial and had not consented to what the Council was doing, but after Jesus was dead, when all seemed lost, he boldly goes to Pilate for the body of Jesus. His discipleship is no secret now. But now, with Jesus dead, it would seem that he had nothing to gain by stepping forward. It is difficult to say what motivated Joseph to come forward at this point. Perhaps seeing Jesus on trial had bolstered his faith or created such a deep love for Jesus that fear didn't matter anymore. Perhaps God had set Joseph aside for this special purpose, knowing that he had the financial means and the influence to get it done. The best I can do is speculate as to the turning point and the motivation for Joseph stepping out like he did at a time when all seemed lost.
OK, so what does this mean? To me, it means that we just never know who God has set aside for a specific purpose or plan, or who has the heart to step in at the right moment. Even those that are seemingly the weakest among us may be the one that God has chosen to do something amazing.
Tom
Today, I am sharing the story of Joseph of Arimathea. It is told a little bit in each of the Gospels. Matthew 27:57 tells us that Joseph was wealthy. Mark 15:43 tells us that he was a member of the Sanhedrin, was waiting for the kingdom of God and that he went boldly to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus. Luke 23:50-51 tells us that while he was a member of the Jewish ruling council, he had not consented to their actions. It is what John says, however, that gives us the full picture. John 19:38-42 also tells about the wealthy member of the Jewish ruling council who boldly approached Pilate in order to bury the body of Jesus. John adds that Joseph was "a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews." Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but to this point he had kept it a secret. His secret was motivated by fear. Today, Joseph would certainly be considered on the fringe of the fellowship at best, yet Joseph steps up big time in an hour of need and God uses him to accomplish his will. He, along with Nicodemus, buried Jesus in Joseph's own tomb.
It's funny to me, that at a time when Jesus' closest associates (the apostles) were in hiding, and it appears that Jesus had lost his battle with the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, that this is the moment when Joseph steps forward and makes his association with Jesus public. He had not had the faith to overcome his fear during Jesus' public ministry. He had summoned some courage during Jesus' trial and had not consented to what the Council was doing, but after Jesus was dead, when all seemed lost, he boldly goes to Pilate for the body of Jesus. His discipleship is no secret now. But now, with Jesus dead, it would seem that he had nothing to gain by stepping forward. It is difficult to say what motivated Joseph to come forward at this point. Perhaps seeing Jesus on trial had bolstered his faith or created such a deep love for Jesus that fear didn't matter anymore. Perhaps God had set Joseph aside for this special purpose, knowing that he had the financial means and the influence to get it done. The best I can do is speculate as to the turning point and the motivation for Joseph stepping out like he did at a time when all seemed lost.
OK, so what does this mean? To me, it means that we just never know who God has set aside for a specific purpose or plan, or who has the heart to step in at the right moment. Even those that are seemingly the weakest among us may be the one that God has chosen to do something amazing.
Tom
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