Genesis 20...Strange Rumblings in Gerar...
Abraham (the father of faith) is once again pissing himself because he's worried that God won't protect him from the people of the land he sojourns in, so he asks Sarah to lie about being his wife. (What a model of resolute trust and integrity.)
And God DEFENDS this lying bad husband. Not only that, He tells Abimelech (who's really sort of innocent in my estimation) to get Abraham to pray for him or else he'll die. So the creep who belongs to God has to pray for the innocent guy, or else.
But this is one of those situations which, in retrospect, couldn't have happened any other way. Abimelech respects Abraham after this event, adds to Abe's already substantial riches, and tells all his subjects to give Abe a wide berth. In other words, God used Abraham's fear and lying as an opportunity to show His favor, both to Abraham and the heathen around him.
Backwards. Far out. Not the way I'd do it. God's ways.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Saturday, January 19, 2008
A Couple Thoughts from Job
I read Job earlier this month and was struck by a couple things--simple things really--I'd never noticed before.
1. Job is the only person among the talking heads (besides Satan) to address God Himself. He often answers his stupid friends' arguments and then immediately moves on to pouring out his questions and complaints to the Lord. Job was a man of relationship. He was familiar enough with God to talk to the Lord, and not just about the far and distant Almighty, after the manner of his friends.
"Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways to His face." - Job 13:15
2. Strangely enough, though Job was criticizing, accusing, and questioning God, and his friends Elihu, Bildad, and Zophar were seemingly defending God's position--His righteousness, name, deeds, and justice--God, ever unpredictable, was angry at the friends. The religious types mouthing fat and juicy opinions didn't really know God, and He was mad at them for misrepresenting Him.
3. Job didn't know God either. That's really the crux of the book. After it's over, his questions are silenced and there is only this:
"I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear; but now my eyes sees Thee. Therefore I retract, and I repent in dust and ashes."
God never once explains the mystery or purpose of Job's circumstances or suffering: in the end He reveals Himself, and that is enough. Job moves beyond a mental understanding, with all its implications of "being a good servant" of the Lord, making sacrifices, praying a lot, teaching his children well, helping the poor, etc., to an experience of El Shaddai.
4. "The words of Job are ended." - 31:40
When the words were expended, revelation came.
5. Satan left Job his wife. Think about it. Ha ha ha.
1. Job is the only person among the talking heads (besides Satan) to address God Himself. He often answers his stupid friends' arguments and then immediately moves on to pouring out his questions and complaints to the Lord. Job was a man of relationship. He was familiar enough with God to talk to the Lord, and not just about the far and distant Almighty, after the manner of his friends.
"Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways to His face." - Job 13:15
2. Strangely enough, though Job was criticizing, accusing, and questioning God, and his friends Elihu, Bildad, and Zophar were seemingly defending God's position--His righteousness, name, deeds, and justice--God, ever unpredictable, was angry at the friends. The religious types mouthing fat and juicy opinions didn't really know God, and He was mad at them for misrepresenting Him.
3. Job didn't know God either. That's really the crux of the book. After it's over, his questions are silenced and there is only this:
"I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear; but now my eyes sees Thee. Therefore I retract, and I repent in dust and ashes."
God never once explains the mystery or purpose of Job's circumstances or suffering: in the end He reveals Himself, and that is enough. Job moves beyond a mental understanding, with all its implications of "being a good servant" of the Lord, making sacrifices, praying a lot, teaching his children well, helping the poor, etc., to an experience of El Shaddai.
4. "The words of Job are ended." - 31:40
When the words were expended, revelation came.
5. Satan left Job his wife. Think about it. Ha ha ha.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Bible 1/17
I haven't updated this journal in a long time and I was thinking about scrapping it, but I might just use it to keep notes to myself from my (almost) daily Bible reading. Just jot down little notes and bits of text that stand out to me or seem interesting. I've never succeeded in reading the Bible through in a year, and I'm not holding myself to that standard this year either, though I do think it's good to have some kind of system. I'm going through chronologically and I've already finished the first 20 chapters of Genesis and the Book of Job.
Genesis 12-14. Abraham wasn't the most obedient, faithful guy. God told him to leave his family, but he took his nephew Lot with him, which caused problems among their herdsmen and ended Lot up in Sodom. Sodom was raided and Abraham fought to save his nephew. Further, Abraham lied about Sarah being his wife and stirred up a lot of trouble.
Genesis 15-18. God makes a promise that He will protect Abraham and give him a "great reward." Abraham says, "What? What will You give me? Because You haven't given me what I really want (and what You already promised)." God says, "But I will, and your seed will be as uncountable as the stars."
Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. (15:6)
Belief=leaving it up to Him, letting Him work out the details, trusting that He knows what He's doing. That sort of simple trust God considers righteousness.
Hagar had a personal promise from God before Sarah did. Hagar was not a "mistake:" she was a part of God's plan.
Why the wang? Why did the sign of the covenant have to be circumcision?
And Abraham said to God, "Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee!" But God said, "No..."
A God who makes this kind of determination isn't the God most Christians believe in. Their God is safer, easier to understand. But the God of Abraham says, "No. Ishmael will be blessed and will live for My purposes in the earth, but My covenant is not with him. It's with someone else, the fruit of you and Sarah." God is so politically incorrect and discriminatory.
And the LORD said, "The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave...[but] I will not destroy [Sodom] on account of the ten."
The outcry. Sodom must have been terribly harmful to people, absolutely reprobate. Men, women, children, and animals falling victim and held captive by the grossest, violent, miserable sins. It was the mercy of God that determined to destroy the cities, mercy to end the suffering for those past the point of turning. And it was the mercy of God to not destroy the cities if even ten righteous souls could be found in them.
Genesis 12-14. Abraham wasn't the most obedient, faithful guy. God told him to leave his family, but he took his nephew Lot with him, which caused problems among their herdsmen and ended Lot up in Sodom. Sodom was raided and Abraham fought to save his nephew. Further, Abraham lied about Sarah being his wife and stirred up a lot of trouble.
Genesis 15-18. God makes a promise that He will protect Abraham and give him a "great reward." Abraham says, "What? What will You give me? Because You haven't given me what I really want (and what You already promised)." God says, "But I will, and your seed will be as uncountable as the stars."
Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. (15:6)
Belief=leaving it up to Him, letting Him work out the details, trusting that He knows what He's doing. That sort of simple trust God considers righteousness.
Hagar had a personal promise from God before Sarah did. Hagar was not a "mistake:" she was a part of God's plan.
Why the wang? Why did the sign of the covenant have to be circumcision?
And Abraham said to God, "Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee!" But God said, "No..."
A God who makes this kind of determination isn't the God most Christians believe in. Their God is safer, easier to understand. But the God of Abraham says, "No. Ishmael will be blessed and will live for My purposes in the earth, but My covenant is not with him. It's with someone else, the fruit of you and Sarah." God is so politically incorrect and discriminatory.
And the LORD said, "The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave...[but] I will not destroy [Sodom] on account of the ten."
The outcry. Sodom must have been terribly harmful to people, absolutely reprobate. Men, women, children, and animals falling victim and held captive by the grossest, violent, miserable sins. It was the mercy of God that determined to destroy the cities, mercy to end the suffering for those past the point of turning. And it was the mercy of God to not destroy the cities if even ten righteous souls could be found in them.
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