If you want justice, seek God’s favor. If all you really want is to get your own way, seek the favor of government officials. Justice comes from God, not from an ever more powerful government.
There is nothing more wonderful and pleasant than living in harmony with our fellow believers. When we are able to do so it is evidence that God is blessing us. When we fail to do so it is evidence that we are failing to be completely faithful to God.
What struck me about this was the fact that John wept when no one was found to open the scroll. What is this scroll that someone should cry because it could not be opened and read? My conclusion is that this scroll represents the word of God, His instructions, commands, and promises about how people should live. If no one can open and read the scroll, then no one can know how they should live in order to please God and attain true happiness. This is why it was such a tragedy that John cried when no one was found who was worthy and able to open the scroll. However, just as John began to weep, he was told that One had been found who worthy and able to open the scroll. Jesus was, and is, that one. It is through Jesus that we are able to fully understand God’s will for us.
I always struggle with my blog on the book of Jonah, not because I have trouble finding something to write, but because there is too much too talk about. There is really several sermons in this passage…and since I am trying to keep this to less than a full sermon I find it hard to know what message to focus on.
However, I decided that today I would do a sort of character study of Jonah. Jonah wanted to serve God and do His will. He even knew what God’s will was. However, he hated the Assyrians and wanted to see them suffer the judgment from God they so thoroughly deserved. When God called Jonah to go and preach to the people of Nineveh, Jonah did not want to go. Jonah was glad to hear God’s judgment against Nineveh. Jonah did not want to go because he knew that if the people of Nineveh listened to his message and repented of their sins, God would forgive them and withhold His judgment. Jonah did not want God to withhold His judgment. When what he feared took place, Jonah was mad at God for showing mercy. All too often we are like Jonah, but God wants us to seek His mercy for sinners, even those who are our enemies. Rather than pray for God’s judgment on our enemies, let us pray that He will have mercy on them.
For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I apologize if my writing over the last few days has been below my usual standard. I have not been feeling well and if the doctor is to be believed I will feel this way for a few more. On the other hand, if my writing has not been substandard, praise God because it is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that such is possible.
Every time I read this proverb I struggle with how to express what it conveys to me. When a fool speaks eloquently they may convince many people to take foolish actions. It is even worse when a government leader lies. When a government leader lies a whole gamut of things can go wrong, from an innocent person being unjustly condemned to a nation going to war for no good reason.
As I read this passage this morning, it communicated something to me that I don’t think I have ever noticed about it before, even though it is something I have deeply believed for a long time. Cornelius was a God-fearing man who genuinely sought to know God. Cornelius followed where his search led him and that search led him to Jesus. I believe that every person who genuinely seeks to find God and to follow His will will come to Jesus, sooner or later.
On the other side, we have Peter. While God was showing Cornelius how to come closer to Him, He was also preparing Peter. Again this is how things work. God prepares us for changes in our lives before they come about. If we listen to the messages God sends us we will be prepared to serve Him.
Despite being placed in his position of power by God, Jeroboam failed to even make a pretense of faithfully serving God. This passage makes it clear that he knew the role God played in his becoming king of Israel. When his son got sick he sent his wife to consult the prophet who had told him he would one day be king. Jeroboam knowingly turned his back on God in his pursuit of what he believed was his own interest. He suffered as a result.
For today, One Year Bible Online links here. Christmas is coming soon. Let us remember what it is truly about, the birth of Jesus Christ. Let us strive to not be caught up in the commercialism which is what this season is about for many in our society today.
Many people seek to curry favor with the politically powerful, but if you wish to see justice seek the Lord. The righteous think poorly of the wicked and the wicked look on the righteous with disdain and contempt.
This psalm reminds us that God’s people should strive to live together in peace and unity. It is not an easy thing to do. We all have our shortcomings and we are all too ready to blame others when we fail to live as we know we ought. Let us strive to live in unity with those who also strive to serve God.
The passage begins with John noting a scroll in the hand of God. Since we do not normally use scrolls anymore we often overlook the significance of the fact that there is writing on both sides of the scroll. Ordinarily there is only writing on the inside of a scroll. The fact that this scroll has writing on both sides indicates that it is completely full. It is complete, there is no more to be written. The other important fact is that it is sealed with seven seals. This indicates that it is completely and perfectly sealed. There have been those who connect this scroll to the one referred to in Daniel 12:4. I believe they are correct. Further, I believe that John wrote this book intending to connect it with the apocalyptic prophesies from the Old Testament.
I should mention one thing here. I believe that what is recorded in the Book of Revelation represents visions which John actually saw. However, he described those visions in ways which reflect what he believed them to mean and the events which he thought they indicated. I believe that John struggled with what his visions meant much as we do today.
So, we have a scroll which represents God’s complete message that is completely sealed. A call is put forth seeking someone who is worthy and able to open the scroll, but no one in all of heaven and earth is found. When John breaks down and cries over this tragedy he is told that the Lion of Judah, David’s heir, is worthy and able to open the scroll. The Lion of Judah is Jesus. It is through Jesus, and only through Jesus, that we are able to hear, and understand, God’s complete message. Anyone who attempts to open the scroll of God’s message on their own will fail.
The book of Jonah starts out with God giving Jonah a calling. Not only did Jonah not obey God’s calling, he went in the opposite direction. I spend so much of my time seeking clear direction from God that I sometimes wonder how Jonah could have done that. Yet, I remember one time when I felt a clear call to do something for God and chose not to do it. I justified my decision by convincing myself that I was not prepared for the role. Looking back I regret the decision I made at the time.
On the other hand, the rest of the book of Jonah suggests that maybe my perception of God’s call was mistaken. Why do I say that? Because when Jonah refused to answer God’s call, God did not take that first “No” for an answer. When God calls us, He will not easily take “No” for an answer. God drove Jonah to the deepest depths. When he was in the belly of the fish, Jonah could have laid down and died. Instead, he cried out to God and repented his sins. When God called Jonah once more to go to Ninevah and preach, Jonah still did not like what the results would be, but he realized that he like the results of not doing God’s will anymore. So Jonah went and did God’s will.
Sure enough, the actions God called Jonah to perform had the effect that Jonah feared. God could have left it at that. Jonah had done what he asked and the people of Ninevah repented. He did not need Jonah to be happy about it. But God wanted Jonah, and us, to understand why He did what He did here. As evil, wicked, and nasty the people of Ninevah had been, God did not desire their destruction. He desired that they turn from their wickedness to doing good. To make a modern comparison, God does not desire the destruction of the people who make up ISIS (Islamic State of Syria and Iraq). He desires them to turn from their evil to serve Him.
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
Today’s passage is the entire book of Jonah. So often we are like Jonah. At first when God calls Jonah to confront evil people for their sins, he resists, going so far as to go in the opposite direction. God is calling Jonah to confront people for their sins, but rather than do so, Jonah moves away from them. Who in my life is God calling me to announce His judgment against? Who does He desire me to confront?
When Jonah ran into problems because of his choice to act against God’s will, he repented and cried out to God. It is worth noting that God took action to save Jonah from the consequences of his disobedience even before Jonah cried out to Him. It is also worth noting that God used Jonah to bring others to Him even in Jonah’s disobedience (the sailors worshiped God and vowed to serve Him). When Jonah cried out to God in his desperation, God brought him forth from the “belly of the fish” and set the task before him once more.
This time Jonah followed God’s command and confronted the sinners of Nineveh. He told them that God was going to destroy them because of their sin. When they heard his message, they turned from their sin and stopped their evil ways. They cried out to God and begged Him for mercy. God listened to their cry and chose not to carry out the destruction which he had had Jonah proclaim. Jonah became angry with God because what he had predicted did not come to pass. I believe Jonah’s anger was a result of hurt pride. He had told the people of Nineveh that they would be destroyed and now it was not going to happen. He set himself up just outside of the city to watch the city, hoping that perhaps the destruction was merely delayed for a short time. God caused a plant to grow up over Jonah’s shelter, providing relief from the hot sun. Then, in order to communicate a lesson to Jonah, God caused the plant to wither and die. Once more Jonah was angry enough that he wished to die. God pointed out that Jonah had more concern for a plant, which had come into being and grown with no intervention on Jonah’s part than he did for the many people living in Nineveh. Do we have more concern for plants and animals than we do for people? Am I willing to listen to God’s will and give people God’s message, even if I have to risk looking like a kook?
Next John saw that the one who was sitting on the throne had a scroll in His hand. When no one was found worthy to break the seals and read the scroll, John wept. However, he was told not to weep because there was one who was worthy to read the scroll. John had not been patient enough. He needed to wait until the Lion of Judah had won the victory (this to me is a metaphor for our patience and for the history of the world from Creation until Jesus’ death and resurrection). So, John looked, and what he saw was a Lamb which had been slain, but was now living.
The Lion who has won the victory is the Lamb who was slain. Do we understand the significance of this? God did not gain victory by crushing His enemies. He gained victory by allowing them to crush Him. The Christian message is not that of Islam. Islam proclaims that God will rule the world through the military conquests of His followers. Christianity proclaims that God will rule the world through the death of Jesus Christ. God will rule the world through the apparent defeat of His followers. Let us not be disheartened by apparent defeat because in God’s calculus, being defeated while faithfully serving God results in victory. Death results in new life.
It is definitely true that it is good and pleasant when brothers live together in harmony, whether that brotherhood is biological or the brotherhood of believers. It is God’s will that we live in harmony with one another and I will strive to do so, in as much as doing so is within my power.
Many seek the favor of those with earthly power, but if we truly desire justice we must apply to God. You can tell a lot about someone by whom they dislike. The righteous dislike those who are dishonest and unjust. The wicked despise those who are godly.
I have been using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study for almost a year. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I started writing this blog because the only way I can get myself to read the Bible everyday is to pretend that I am teaching someone about what it says to me. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
One of Jeroboam’s sons became very sick. Jeroboam convinced his wife to disguise herself and approach the prophet Ahijah, the man who had prophesied that Jeroboam would become king over the ten northern tribes. Jeroboam’s wife did as he asked. However, as she approached the prophet’s door, he called out to her by name because God had told him she was coming. Ahijah then told her that God was angry with Jeroboam because of his failure to follow God’s commands and the evil Jeroboam had done. He told her that God was going to destroy Jeroboam and his entire house because of his evil. Ahijah finished by telling her that she should go home and her son would die when she got there. God was going to raise up a king over Israel who would destroy Jeroboam’s family. She returned home and as she entered her house, her son died. Jeroboam reigned for 22 years and when he died his son, Nadab, became king.
In the meantime, Rehoboam was ruling over Judah. The people of Judah also did evil in God’s sight. They set up shrines and Asherah poles in the high places and under “spreading trees”. They went so far as to have shrine prostitutes throughout the land. They chose to follow the practices of the people whom God had driven out of the land to make room for them. As a result of their sin, the king of Egypt came up, attacked and sacked Jerusalem. Rehoboam ruled from Jerusalem for seventeen years and was succeeded by his son, Abijam.
Abijam ruled for three years and committed the same sins as his father. He was at war with Jeroboam for his entire reign. The passage makes note that Abijam’s mother was Maacah, the daughter of Absalom. When he died, he was succeeded by his son, Asa. Asa ruled for forty-one years and did what was pleasing to the Lord. Asa banished the shrine prostitutes from the land and got rid of the idols which his ancestors had made. He even deposed his grandmother from the role of queen mother because she had made an Asherah pole. He cut down his grandmother’s Asherah pole and burned it. Although he failed to destroy the shrines at the high places, Asa’s heart was dedicated to the Lord.
Throughout Asa’s reign he was at war with King Baasha of Israel. King Baasha had the upper hand in their conflicts, conquered Ramah and began fortifying it. So, Asa sent the gold and silver remaining in his treasuries to Ben-hadad who was ruling Aram from Damascus asking him to break his treaty with King Baasha. Ben-hadad did as Asa requested and attacked the towns of Israel. King Baasha withdrew from Ramah in order to meet the attack from Ben-hadad. King Asa had his workers remove the materials which King Baasha was using to fortify Ramah and used them to fortify other towns. Asa was succeeded by his son Jehoshaphat.
While Peter was staying in Joppa, an angel of God appeared to Cornelius, a Roman centurion stationed at Caesarea. Cornelius was terrified. However, the angel quickly reassured him and told him that his gifts to the poor and devotion to God had been noted. The angel instructed Cornelius to send for Peter who was staying in Joppa. Cornelius did so at once.
The next day, as Cornelius’ messengers were approaching Joppa, Peter went up onto the roof to pray. It was approaching lunch time and Peter was hungry. While the meal was being prepared, Peter fell into a trance. While in the trance Peter had a vision of a large sheet being lowered out of heaven. On the sheet were all kinds of animals, including many that were not kosher. A voice came out of heaven telling Peter to get up and eat. Peter replied that he had never eaten anything unclean or impure. The voice then told Peter not to call anything unclean which God had made clean. This was repeated three times. Peter was still pondering what this vision might mean (if anything) when the men from Cornelius arrived outside of the gate.
They called out asking if Simon Peter was staying at this house. The Holy Spirit told Peter that some men were looking for him. Peter was to go with them without worrying because God had sent them (the passage makes it clear that Peter received this message in the context of thinking about the vision he had just had). Peter went down and told the men that he was the man they were looking for. They told Peter that Cornelius had sent them. They went on to tell Peter that Cornelius was a God-fearing man. They further told Peter that an angel had told Cornelius to summon Peter so that Cornelius might hear Peter’s message. Peter invited the men to stay the night. In the morning, Peter accompanied the men back to Cornelius’ house. Several other believers went with Peter.
Today’s psalm talks about how wonderful it is when God’s people live together in peace and harmony. This is a goal that Christians find harder to attain than we should.
Today’s first proverb tells us that a fool (godless fool according to the NIV) who is eloquent is a bad thing, but a lying ruler is even worse. I realized as I was reading this that this proverb was telling us that someone who eloquently makes the argument for foolish action will lead many people to destruction, but however bad that is, when those who have government authority lie to the people it is much worse.
The second proverb has greater depth than is at first apparent. I prefer the NIV translation for this because it makes clear the point of the proverb in ways that the other translations obscure. A bribe is like a lucky charm. Those who give them are convinced that they make their life better, but just as the effectiveness of lucky charms are dubious, so too are the effectiveness of bribes.
