Hey Everyone.
In my studies of Deuteronomy, I am in chapter 3. To understand what is going on here we have to back up to Numbers 32. If you were to read that chapter, you would see that after conquering Sihon the Amorite and Og of Bashan, three Israelite groups, wanted that land, rather than the a piece of the Promised Land on the other side of the Jordan. These were the tribes of Reuben and Gad and half of the tribe of Manasseh. The tribes had large herds of livestock and it was a land very suitable for grazing, so they asked for that land to be their inheritance rather than some other piece of land on the other side of the Jordan River.
Initially, Moses accused them of discourage the people and of trying to get out of the military service that would be necessary for the conquest of the Promised Land. (Num. 32:6-15). He even called them a "brood of sinners." (v.14). But they responded that they would build fortifications for their wives, children and livestock and then go off to battle with the rest of the Israelites to help in the conquest of the Promised Land.
This brings us to Deut. 3:12-20, where these three tribes receive their allotment from God, then the able-bodied men set off with the rest of Israel to do battle, not knowing how long it will take. Now, I have to give these men credit. My mind would be filled with questions and concerns, like: "If all of the able-bodied men are gone, including myself, who is going to watch out for my wife,my children, my house, my livestock?" or "What about the Edomites, Ammonites or Moabites,won't our families and belongings be easy prey for them?" or "What will happen to my family if I am killed in battle?" Honestly, the only answer that you can give to these questions is, "God is going to look out for my family and belongings, and God will protect me in battle." This idea is easy to think and say, but in practical reality, knowing that non-able-bodied men and teenage boys and women would be the only visible protection against the armies of other nations would give me second thoughts. But the men of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh had a great faith because, not only did they go, it was their idea.
They return home in Joshua 22, after seven years of helping their brothers fight for the Promised Land. They return to their homes, wives, children and livestock, having kept their word and having pleased the Lord. In their absence, God protected what was theirs. Likewise, we can trust God, in every situation, and act on that faith, like the men of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh.
Tom
Friday, June 30, 2017
Saturday, June 24, 2017
Patience
Hello everyone.
Love is patient. That is what the Bible says in I Cor. 13:4. I think we probably all understand the truth of this statement, that when are showing patience, we are truly being loving, because patience is hard. I have yet to meet a person that has said, "Oh, patience is really easy for me." So for me, the question that comes into my mind is, "OK, how patient am I required to be?" I ask that question because there are people in my life that test the limits of my patience quite often. Those people are the ones I refer to as "family." Maybe you can relate.
So, as I have continued to study the book of Deuteronomy, I have received my answer in Deuteronomy 2 and 3. In those chapters, the Israelites are commanded to destroy Sihon, king of Heshbon and take the land. They are to destroy Og, king of Bashan, and take his land. These two kings were Amorites and in no way related to the Israelites. However, there were three groups that the Israelites were told to leave alone, and that God would not give Israel any of their land, not even enough to put a foot on (Deut. 2:5). These three groups were the Edomites, Moabites and Ammonites. Who were these people, and why were they under God's protection? Deut. 2:1-8 talks about the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, Israel's (Jacob's) brother. Now, even though this was about 400 years after the time of Jacob and Esau, God considered them family. The Edomites are called "relatives" twice, (v. 4and 8). Then, God tells the Israelites that they are not to harass the Moabites (Deut. 2:9-18) or the Ammonites (Duet. 2:19-23) either. Well, who are Moab and Ammon? they are the sons that Lot had through incestuous relations with his daughters (Gen. 19:30-38). Ok, you can sort of understand the relationship between Israel and Edom, since their originators were brothers, but Moab and Ammon were Israel's grandfather's nephew's sons. So it is a stretch to say that they were second cousins of Israel. So why treat them as family? I don't know. Never-the-less, God had driven other nations out of this land and given these three nations their territories, and Israel could not have it.
These three nations that God was protecting were not particularly righteous, either. It was Moab that called Balaam to curse Israel (Num 22). Moabite women had seduced Israelite men and led them into immorality and sacrificing to others gods in Numbers 25. Moab, with the aid of Ammon, subjugated Israel in Judges 3, until Ehud rescued Israel. In I Samuel 14:47, all three nations are mentioned as enemies that King Saul had to fight. David had to fight them too. So for generations these nations harassed Israel, yet God had protected them. Why? I think I find the answer in Isa. 15:5. God says, "My heart cries out over Moab." Then in Isa. 16:11, "My heart laments for Moab." Even after all those years, God still loved Moab, and had been very patient with the nation, giving them every opportunity to repent. But they had not. Isaiah goes on to prophecy that the time of the Moabites was nearly over (Isa. 16:13-14). The Kingdom of Moab lasted about a thousand years. The Kingdom of Ammon lasted about 700 years. The Kingdom of Edom lasted about 1200 years. (Interestingly, Obadiah prophesied Edom's destruction, for rejoicing over the destruction of his brother Israel, Obad. 11-12. So even by the time of Obadiah, written several centuries after Moses, God still considered them family.)
So this brings me back to my initial question, "How patient am I required to be?" What does that mean for me, when some family member is getting on my nerves? Well, God has set an example of being patient with groups of unrighteous people for generations, even centuries. I suppose that I can be patient with my loved ones as long as I need to be.
Tom
Love is patient. That is what the Bible says in I Cor. 13:4. I think we probably all understand the truth of this statement, that when are showing patience, we are truly being loving, because patience is hard. I have yet to meet a person that has said, "Oh, patience is really easy for me." So for me, the question that comes into my mind is, "OK, how patient am I required to be?" I ask that question because there are people in my life that test the limits of my patience quite often. Those people are the ones I refer to as "family." Maybe you can relate.
So, as I have continued to study the book of Deuteronomy, I have received my answer in Deuteronomy 2 and 3. In those chapters, the Israelites are commanded to destroy Sihon, king of Heshbon and take the land. They are to destroy Og, king of Bashan, and take his land. These two kings were Amorites and in no way related to the Israelites. However, there were three groups that the Israelites were told to leave alone, and that God would not give Israel any of their land, not even enough to put a foot on (Deut. 2:5). These three groups were the Edomites, Moabites and Ammonites. Who were these people, and why were they under God's protection? Deut. 2:1-8 talks about the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, Israel's (Jacob's) brother. Now, even though this was about 400 years after the time of Jacob and Esau, God considered them family. The Edomites are called "relatives" twice, (v. 4and 8). Then, God tells the Israelites that they are not to harass the Moabites (Deut. 2:9-18) or the Ammonites (Duet. 2:19-23) either. Well, who are Moab and Ammon? they are the sons that Lot had through incestuous relations with his daughters (Gen. 19:30-38). Ok, you can sort of understand the relationship between Israel and Edom, since their originators were brothers, but Moab and Ammon were Israel's grandfather's nephew's sons. So it is a stretch to say that they were second cousins of Israel. So why treat them as family? I don't know. Never-the-less, God had driven other nations out of this land and given these three nations their territories, and Israel could not have it.
These three nations that God was protecting were not particularly righteous, either. It was Moab that called Balaam to curse Israel (Num 22). Moabite women had seduced Israelite men and led them into immorality and sacrificing to others gods in Numbers 25. Moab, with the aid of Ammon, subjugated Israel in Judges 3, until Ehud rescued Israel. In I Samuel 14:47, all three nations are mentioned as enemies that King Saul had to fight. David had to fight them too. So for generations these nations harassed Israel, yet God had protected them. Why? I think I find the answer in Isa. 15:5. God says, "My heart cries out over Moab." Then in Isa. 16:11, "My heart laments for Moab." Even after all those years, God still loved Moab, and had been very patient with the nation, giving them every opportunity to repent. But they had not. Isaiah goes on to prophecy that the time of the Moabites was nearly over (Isa. 16:13-14). The Kingdom of Moab lasted about a thousand years. The Kingdom of Ammon lasted about 700 years. The Kingdom of Edom lasted about 1200 years. (Interestingly, Obadiah prophesied Edom's destruction, for rejoicing over the destruction of his brother Israel, Obad. 11-12. So even by the time of Obadiah, written several centuries after Moses, God still considered them family.)
So this brings me back to my initial question, "How patient am I required to be?" What does that mean for me, when some family member is getting on my nerves? Well, God has set an example of being patient with groups of unrighteous people for generations, even centuries. I suppose that I can be patient with my loved ones as long as I need to be.
Tom
Saturday, June 3, 2017
The Father Carries the Son
Hello everyone.
I have recently started a new study of the book of Deuteronomy. I hope to share with you some of the things I am learning along the way in this study. In Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people of all that had happened over the years since leaving Egypt, as he prepares them for the upcoming conquest of the Promised Land.
Today, I will be looking in Deut. 1:19-46. Moses retells the story from Numbers 13 and 14, where Moses sends twelve spies to explore the Promised Land. After their report, only Joshua and Caleb stand up and say, "we can take this land." The other ten give a discouraging report that the people buy into, and rebel against God, refusing to go up and take the Promised Land that God had given them. God punishes them for their lack of faith and their disobedience by making them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until that generation, save Joshua and Caleb, have died off.
Here is what I want to focus on. After the negative report of the ten spies, Israel responded like this, "The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt with fear. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky.'" Deut. 1:27-28) The Israelites looked at the situation, rather than God, and concluded that God must hate them. In verses 29 -31, Moses stands up for God and remind the nation of all that He had done for them, saying, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt before your very eyes and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
So, God is carrying them as a father carries his son, but they are saying to God, "You hate me." Maybe, your children have, at some difficult moment, perhaps when you are making them do something difficult, said that "You must hate me." It has happened to me. If it has happened to you, then you understand that nothing could be further from the truth. I don't hate my boys at all, I love them and want what is best for them. As parents, we are always looking out for their best interests, but that is not always the easy road that they would like it to be. In the heat of the moment our children can forget everything good we have ever done for them and focus on this one difficult moment and conclude, "You hate me!"
We can be the same way, We may look at our particular circumstances and be tempted to think, "God hates me," or "God is punishing me." But just like we care about our children deeply, God cares about us. The Israelites had forgotten very quickly all that God had done for them to bring them to the edge of the Promised Land. We must make sure that we don't forget all that God has done for us to bring us to the point that we are now. He has carried us this far, like a father carries a son, and He will continue to carry us into the Promised Land. What we view as punishment may be God's disciplining hand, but we can know for certain that God's loving concern is ever present and we have yet another opportunity for God to carry us through a difficult situation.
Tom
I have recently started a new study of the book of Deuteronomy. I hope to share with you some of the things I am learning along the way in this study. In Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people of all that had happened over the years since leaving Egypt, as he prepares them for the upcoming conquest of the Promised Land.
Today, I will be looking in Deut. 1:19-46. Moses retells the story from Numbers 13 and 14, where Moses sends twelve spies to explore the Promised Land. After their report, only Joshua and Caleb stand up and say, "we can take this land." The other ten give a discouraging report that the people buy into, and rebel against God, refusing to go up and take the Promised Land that God had given them. God punishes them for their lack of faith and their disobedience by making them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until that generation, save Joshua and Caleb, have died off.
Here is what I want to focus on. After the negative report of the ten spies, Israel responded like this, "The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt with fear. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky.'" Deut. 1:27-28) The Israelites looked at the situation, rather than God, and concluded that God must hate them. In verses 29 -31, Moses stands up for God and remind the nation of all that He had done for them, saying, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt before your very eyes and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
So, God is carrying them as a father carries his son, but they are saying to God, "You hate me." Maybe, your children have, at some difficult moment, perhaps when you are making them do something difficult, said that "You must hate me." It has happened to me. If it has happened to you, then you understand that nothing could be further from the truth. I don't hate my boys at all, I love them and want what is best for them. As parents, we are always looking out for their best interests, but that is not always the easy road that they would like it to be. In the heat of the moment our children can forget everything good we have ever done for them and focus on this one difficult moment and conclude, "You hate me!"
We can be the same way, We may look at our particular circumstances and be tempted to think, "God hates me," or "God is punishing me." But just like we care about our children deeply, God cares about us. The Israelites had forgotten very quickly all that God had done for them to bring them to the edge of the Promised Land. We must make sure that we don't forget all that God has done for us to bring us to the point that we are now. He has carried us this far, like a father carries a son, and He will continue to carry us into the Promised Land. What we view as punishment may be God's disciplining hand, but we can know for certain that God's loving concern is ever present and we have yet another opportunity for God to carry us through a difficult situation.
Tom
Monday, February 20, 2017
The Greatest
Hello everyone.
I am continuing my study of Matthew. I saw this recently in Matthew 22. An expert in the law asked Jesus, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment of the Law?" (22:36). We are all familiar with the reply. Jesus answered: "'Love the Lord your God with all you heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest command. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself." All the Law and the Prophets hand on these two commandments." (22:37-40) I want to focus on the last part of this statement, that all of the Law and Prophets hang on those two commands.
OK, first we can obviously see that both of the these two commands are about love. The first one is about our love for God, and the second is about our love for other people. These two things are inseparable. But what Jesus is telling us here is not love love is important, but that it is absolutely necessary. Imagine love were a nail that has been driven into a wall. If all of the Law and the Prophets, (not part,but all) hang on that nail, what happens if you pull the nail out. The Law and the Prophets fall, don't they? Without love, true Christianity falls apart.
Paul echoes this thought in I Cor. 13:1-3, "If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." Without love, we are at best, nothing, and more likely, some annoying noisemaker, whose sound slowly diminishes into nothing. It is sad that in our modern world, so many people who claim to be Christians, are such hate rather than love. Instead, we are called to love people the way we love ourselves.
In my experience, loving people can be hard. I mean, some people are easy to love, but many other people are not. But the call of Jesus and true Christianity is to love them any way. Imagine how different the world would be if everyone followed these two greatest commands.
Tom
I am continuing my study of Matthew. I saw this recently in Matthew 22. An expert in the law asked Jesus, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment of the Law?" (22:36). We are all familiar with the reply. Jesus answered: "'Love the Lord your God with all you heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest command. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself." All the Law and the Prophets hand on these two commandments." (22:37-40) I want to focus on the last part of this statement, that all of the Law and Prophets hang on those two commands.
OK, first we can obviously see that both of the these two commands are about love. The first one is about our love for God, and the second is about our love for other people. These two things are inseparable. But what Jesus is telling us here is not love love is important, but that it is absolutely necessary. Imagine love were a nail that has been driven into a wall. If all of the Law and the Prophets, (not part,but all) hang on that nail, what happens if you pull the nail out. The Law and the Prophets fall, don't they? Without love, true Christianity falls apart.
Paul echoes this thought in I Cor. 13:1-3, "If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." Without love, we are at best, nothing, and more likely, some annoying noisemaker, whose sound slowly diminishes into nothing. It is sad that in our modern world, so many people who claim to be Christians, are such hate rather than love. Instead, we are called to love people the way we love ourselves.
In my experience, loving people can be hard. I mean, some people are easy to love, but many other people are not. But the call of Jesus and true Christianity is to love them any way. Imagine how different the world would be if everyone followed these two greatest commands.
Tom
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
In Whose Image?
Hello everyone.
I have continued my study of the book of Matthew and I am now up Matthew 22, where Jesus asked about paying to Caesar. I have read this story many times. This time, while reading a commentary on Matthew called Be Loyal by Warren Wiersbe, I read a connection that I had not seen before. I want to share some thought about it.
I'm sure you are familiar with the story. The disciples of the Pharisees, teamed with the Herodians, attempt to trap Jesus in his words. Asking about paying taxes to Caesar, they think that if Jesus answers that they should pay taxes to the Romans, he will be in trouble with the people, and if He says that they shouldn't, he would be in trouble with the Romans. But as they always did, they underestimated Jesus, and He turned a o-win situation into a victory. He has them show him a coin, and asks, "Who's image is it?" The coin has Caesars' image on it, and Jesus says, "So give back to Caesar, what is Caesar's and give to God what is God's."
Here is the point Wiersbe made. While Caesar had placed his own image on the money, God, back in Gen. 1:27 had placed his own image on us. So, if I am understanding properly, we should pay our taxes (give to Caesar what is Caesar's), but more importantly, we are to give our selves to God, in whose image we carry. I don't know if those who heard Jesus say this, made that connection or not, but certainly his answer was good enough that they left. But whether they made the connection or not, we certainly can.
For me, this is a good time to think about such things. As I go into a new year, I always make some resolutions. Sometimes I do a good job keeping them, sometimes I do not. This year, I have to ask myself what can I do to better declare the image that I bare.
Tom
I have continued my study of the book of Matthew and I am now up Matthew 22, where Jesus asked about paying to Caesar. I have read this story many times. This time, while reading a commentary on Matthew called Be Loyal by Warren Wiersbe, I read a connection that I had not seen before. I want to share some thought about it.
I'm sure you are familiar with the story. The disciples of the Pharisees, teamed with the Herodians, attempt to trap Jesus in his words. Asking about paying taxes to Caesar, they think that if Jesus answers that they should pay taxes to the Romans, he will be in trouble with the people, and if He says that they shouldn't, he would be in trouble with the Romans. But as they always did, they underestimated Jesus, and He turned a o-win situation into a victory. He has them show him a coin, and asks, "Who's image is it?" The coin has Caesars' image on it, and Jesus says, "So give back to Caesar, what is Caesar's and give to God what is God's."
Here is the point Wiersbe made. While Caesar had placed his own image on the money, God, back in Gen. 1:27 had placed his own image on us. So, if I am understanding properly, we should pay our taxes (give to Caesar what is Caesar's), but more importantly, we are to give our selves to God, in whose image we carry. I don't know if those who heard Jesus say this, made that connection or not, but certainly his answer was good enough that they left. But whether they made the connection or not, we certainly can.
For me, this is a good time to think about such things. As I go into a new year, I always make some resolutions. Sometimes I do a good job keeping them, sometimes I do not. This year, I have to ask myself what can I do to better declare the image that I bare.
Tom
Saturday, November 19, 2016
Behold, your King
Good morning everyone.
As I have continued my study of Matthew, I have reached the triumphal entry into Jerusalem in Matthew 21 and I wanted to share some thoughts about it. You are probably familiar with the story. Jesus sends two of his disciples into the village to get a donkey and her colt. Jesus rides into Jerusalem and the crowds come out placing their cloaks and palm branches in the road so that Jesus could cross over them on his borrowed donkey. As he did they shouted things like, "Hosanna to the Son of David!," and "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"
There is a lot going on here. First, Jesus is showing himself to be king. He is entering Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey, fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9, which says:
Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Jesus knows this prophecy and by riding into Jerusalem in this manner is declaring himself to be king, the fulfillment of this scripture.
The people have apparently caught because the are receiving him with their cloaks and palm branched the way that they would receive a king. Plus they were shouting "Hosanna!" as Jesus rides in. According to Biblestudytools.com, the phrase "Hosanna' means something like "Praise God, we are saved." This crowd in Jerusalem really believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah and that he was on his way to save them. Meaning that he, as their king, would drive the Romans out once and for all and that he would return Jerusalem to the glory that it had in the days of King David.
We all understand, now, that this was not the kind of king that Jesus was going to be. He is a spiritual king, not a physical one. He did not return Jerusalem to its former glory. What must the following week been like for these people, when nothing went according to the visions that they had in their heads at this moment. This Jesus did not drive out he Romans, in fact, the first thing he does is overturn tables at their own temple, stirring up trouble with his own people, not the Romans. Eventually this king is executed by the Romans he was supposed drive out. Nothing matched their expectation.
But I want us to imagine for a moment that Jesus came into Jerusalem and did exactly what the people were expecting that he would. How would things have been different. Jesus drives the Romans out and assumed a position of kingship in Israel. Israel resumes it former glory, perhaps becoming even greater than before, matching Rome in power. This certainly would have been welcomed by this crowd. He would have even won the Pharisees over most likely, and Jesus would have gone down in history as the greatest Jewish king ever, surpassing even David.
But what would this mean for us. It would be a great story for the history books, but not such a great story for our spiritual well-being. We understand now that because of Jesus' death on the Cross, we have hope and a future in heaven. Without that death, we do not. So ultimately things are better off for all of us that Jesus went against everyone's expectations and did not become an earthly king. I have thought this a lot recently as some things have not turned out the way I expected them too, and the way they turned out were deeply concerning to say the least. Maybe you can identify. So never-the-less, no matter what happens, I must choose to trust God in circumstances like these, because Jesus is still King, and God is still in control, and things will ultimately work out for my best interests. I hope this helps you in some small way when the circumstances don't make sense and you can't see where God is going to trust Him any way.
Tom
As I have continued my study of Matthew, I have reached the triumphal entry into Jerusalem in Matthew 21 and I wanted to share some thoughts about it. You are probably familiar with the story. Jesus sends two of his disciples into the village to get a donkey and her colt. Jesus rides into Jerusalem and the crowds come out placing their cloaks and palm branches in the road so that Jesus could cross over them on his borrowed donkey. As he did they shouted things like, "Hosanna to the Son of David!," and "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"
There is a lot going on here. First, Jesus is showing himself to be king. He is entering Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey, fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9, which says:
Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Jesus knows this prophecy and by riding into Jerusalem in this manner is declaring himself to be king, the fulfillment of this scripture.
The people have apparently caught because the are receiving him with their cloaks and palm branched the way that they would receive a king. Plus they were shouting "Hosanna!" as Jesus rides in. According to Biblestudytools.com, the phrase "Hosanna' means something like "Praise God, we are saved." This crowd in Jerusalem really believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah and that he was on his way to save them. Meaning that he, as their king, would drive the Romans out once and for all and that he would return Jerusalem to the glory that it had in the days of King David.
We all understand, now, that this was not the kind of king that Jesus was going to be. He is a spiritual king, not a physical one. He did not return Jerusalem to its former glory. What must the following week been like for these people, when nothing went according to the visions that they had in their heads at this moment. This Jesus did not drive out he Romans, in fact, the first thing he does is overturn tables at their own temple, stirring up trouble with his own people, not the Romans. Eventually this king is executed by the Romans he was supposed drive out. Nothing matched their expectation.
But I want us to imagine for a moment that Jesus came into Jerusalem and did exactly what the people were expecting that he would. How would things have been different. Jesus drives the Romans out and assumed a position of kingship in Israel. Israel resumes it former glory, perhaps becoming even greater than before, matching Rome in power. This certainly would have been welcomed by this crowd. He would have even won the Pharisees over most likely, and Jesus would have gone down in history as the greatest Jewish king ever, surpassing even David.
But what would this mean for us. It would be a great story for the history books, but not such a great story for our spiritual well-being. We understand now that because of Jesus' death on the Cross, we have hope and a future in heaven. Without that death, we do not. So ultimately things are better off for all of us that Jesus went against everyone's expectations and did not become an earthly king. I have thought this a lot recently as some things have not turned out the way I expected them too, and the way they turned out were deeply concerning to say the least. Maybe you can identify. So never-the-less, no matter what happens, I must choose to trust God in circumstances like these, because Jesus is still King, and God is still in control, and things will ultimately work out for my best interests. I hope this helps you in some small way when the circumstances don't make sense and you can't see where God is going to trust Him any way.
Tom
Monday, August 8, 2016
I Desire Mercy
Hey everyone.
It has been a pretty crazy summer for me and my family. Since the end of the school year,we have driven to St Louis, spent four days with my Mom and Dad, went to the Reach Conference, closed on a house, moved and spent a week a Teen Camp. We are all pretty tired.
Anyway, I have been studying something in Matthew 12 that has really moved my heart and I want to share it with you. In Matthew 12:1-8 we see that Jesus and his disciples were walking through a grain field on the Sabbath and picking and eating grain. Jesus received some criticism from the Pharisees for this, because picking a few heads of grain and rubbing them in their hands would be considered "harvesting" and "winnowing" on the Sabbath. this was forbidden by Rabbinic law because they sought to make it absolutely impossible to break the Sabbath by making almost everything unlawful on the Sabbath. God's plan for the Sabbath was that it was a day of rest, and was designed to help people. The Pharisees, however, had made Sabbath laws such a burden for everyone, that no one was helped by it. As they usually did, the Pharisees were missing the point.
As Jesus makes his defense, he makes three references to the Old Testament. First, he talks about David and his men eating the consecrated bread in I Samuel 21. He also makes reference to the priests offering the sacrifices on the Sabbath. This is labor, but the priests are held innocent. The third O.T. reference is the one that I want to focus on. Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6. He says to the Pharisees, "If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent." Jesus quotes from Hosea the prophet, which tells the story of God's incredible love for Israel and the mercy he extends towards them. What I learned was that this was the second time that Jesus had quoted this same scripture to the Pharisees. Back in Matthew 9:13, as the Pharisees are asking Jesus's disciples why he eats with tax collectors and sinners, he tells them to go learn what this means; "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." So first he tells them to learn what it means. They clearly do not. The second time, he tells them that if they understood, they wouldn't treat people the way that do. The Pharisees were big on sacrifice, small on mercy.
It strikes me that this concept must be pretty important if God says it in Hosea and Jesus quotes it, not once, but twice in Matthew. So then, what does it mean. Is Jesus down on sacrifice? I don't think so. God commands sacrifice in the Old Testament, and I believe that He is pleased with us when we sacrifice today for contribution, Special Contribution or sacrifice our time to serve others, or to further the kingdom. But think about this, if what God really desires is mercy, but he is not down on sacrifice, then in what high esteem does God hold mercy? The Pharisees extended very little mercy, and Jesus called them on it twice. This is a game-changer for me. God is looking at my relationships. Does he see mercy being extended? Do I extend mercy to my family? Do I extend it to those in my ministry? Do I extend it to my students? Do I extend it to the poor, by serving them? These are the questions I am asking myself. I have seen how anger has not produced the behavior I desire in others (The Bible (James 1:20) is right about that one), so I am going to try being more merciful for a while and see how this works.
Tom
It has been a pretty crazy summer for me and my family. Since the end of the school year,we have driven to St Louis, spent four days with my Mom and Dad, went to the Reach Conference, closed on a house, moved and spent a week a Teen Camp. We are all pretty tired.
Anyway, I have been studying something in Matthew 12 that has really moved my heart and I want to share it with you. In Matthew 12:1-8 we see that Jesus and his disciples were walking through a grain field on the Sabbath and picking and eating grain. Jesus received some criticism from the Pharisees for this, because picking a few heads of grain and rubbing them in their hands would be considered "harvesting" and "winnowing" on the Sabbath. this was forbidden by Rabbinic law because they sought to make it absolutely impossible to break the Sabbath by making almost everything unlawful on the Sabbath. God's plan for the Sabbath was that it was a day of rest, and was designed to help people. The Pharisees, however, had made Sabbath laws such a burden for everyone, that no one was helped by it. As they usually did, the Pharisees were missing the point.
As Jesus makes his defense, he makes three references to the Old Testament. First, he talks about David and his men eating the consecrated bread in I Samuel 21. He also makes reference to the priests offering the sacrifices on the Sabbath. This is labor, but the priests are held innocent. The third O.T. reference is the one that I want to focus on. Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6. He says to the Pharisees, "If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent." Jesus quotes from Hosea the prophet, which tells the story of God's incredible love for Israel and the mercy he extends towards them. What I learned was that this was the second time that Jesus had quoted this same scripture to the Pharisees. Back in Matthew 9:13, as the Pharisees are asking Jesus's disciples why he eats with tax collectors and sinners, he tells them to go learn what this means; "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." So first he tells them to learn what it means. They clearly do not. The second time, he tells them that if they understood, they wouldn't treat people the way that do. The Pharisees were big on sacrifice, small on mercy.
It strikes me that this concept must be pretty important if God says it in Hosea and Jesus quotes it, not once, but twice in Matthew. So then, what does it mean. Is Jesus down on sacrifice? I don't think so. God commands sacrifice in the Old Testament, and I believe that He is pleased with us when we sacrifice today for contribution, Special Contribution or sacrifice our time to serve others, or to further the kingdom. But think about this, if what God really desires is mercy, but he is not down on sacrifice, then in what high esteem does God hold mercy? The Pharisees extended very little mercy, and Jesus called them on it twice. This is a game-changer for me. God is looking at my relationships. Does he see mercy being extended? Do I extend mercy to my family? Do I extend it to those in my ministry? Do I extend it to my students? Do I extend it to the poor, by serving them? These are the questions I am asking myself. I have seen how anger has not produced the behavior I desire in others (The Bible (James 1:20) is right about that one), so I am going to try being more merciful for a while and see how this works.
Tom
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