No matter how smart, wise, and knowledgeable you are, if you make plans which run counter to God’s plans they will fail. No matter how well prepared you are, you will only succeed if God ordains it to be so.
We often sin by what we say, especially what we say when in the presence of those who do not love the Lord. However, the answer is not keeping quiet, it is not failing to respond to the provocations of the wicked. No, the answer is to acknowledge our sin and turn to the Lord. The way to avoid sinning by what we say is to ask God to guide our words and acknowledge that we will not live long enough to have all of the answers (or even most of them). Let us remember that we are but travelers passing through this life. It is not our home.
Paul continues his argument in favor of the idea that there will be a resurrection of the dead. Actually, Paul’s argument is more than that; he is arguing that there is more to life than just the material world, that our existence does not end with our death. If our existence ends with our death, than there is no reason why we should not do whatever brings us pleasure. The belief that our existence ends with our death is what led to the Columbine shootings and many other mass murders.
One of the arguments made against the resurrection of the dead is the nature of our bodies. The argument is a many faceted one, including such things as, “But what about people whose bodies are destroyed (either through cremation, or being eaten by wild animals, or some other means)?” Paul’s answer is simple. The natural body we wear in this life is not the same as the body we will wear in eternity. Our bodies will be transformed by God into something suitable for eternity. It is beyond our ability to comprehend what those bodies will be like, but we can begin to understand what it will be like by looking at the way a seed is transformed into a new plant.
Job reacts to his friends arguments by pointing out that they are no better than he, which highlights an important thing to remember when we seek to comfort those who are suffering. We are not offering comfort when we speak and/or act as if we are somehow better than those we are attempting to comfort. It is important that we remember that sometimes only God can provide answers as to why someone is suffering, sometimes only God can offer comfort to those who are in pain. If we do not have specific examples of how a person has sinned, we should not accuse them of being a sinner. If they have sinned in secret, God will know and convict them.
I could not help but think of what is going on in the world today. Those who look for “root causes” rather than confront those who do wrong encourage more people to do wrong. It is those who rebuke wrong doers for their wrong behavior who encourage people to act appropriately.
Every time I read this psalm I start thinking it means one thing, then it goes in a different direction and in the end I am unsure what the psalmist’s point was. That being said, I am going to write about what the first couple of verses mean to me.
The first thing this psalm reminds me of is the importance of not sinning in what we say. I am convinced that this is an important thing for us to do and it is something I struggle with. As a matter of fact, I often struggle with it to the point where I do as the psalmist did and resolve to keep quiet. I strive to say nothing so as to not give offense, but when I do that those around me who see the world differently start to assume I share their view. Since they believe I share their view, they say more and more things which I find offensive or insulting. Until finally I can stand it no more and my rebuttal bursts forth.
The key I realize, both from reading this psalm and from experience, is to choose my words carefully. I must let those around me know that I see the world differently, but I must not try to over power them by the force of my arguments. I must recognize that if I am right in the view that I hold (and I am quite convinced that I am, otherwise, I would hold a different one) it will take the actions of the Holy Spirit to convince them. I will not bring anyone to the truth by overwhelming them by the force of my argument. And if I am wrong (as unlikely as I believe that to be), the more forcefully I make my case, the more embarrassing it will be when I discover my error.
When Jesus returned to Nazareth, at first, He was well received. However, it was not long before the people began to dismiss His teachings because they had known Him since He was a child and knew His family. How often are we like that? We are happy to hear of a local made good. Until such a time that they start to tell us that we are not doing things the way we ought and that we need to change. Then, all of a sudden, we tend to ask who are they to tell us that we are wrong? Aren’t they from the same background as we are? Where do they get the authority to challenge us?
Shortly after this Jesus sent out the Twelve to preach repentance of sin and turning to God. On this occasion, He told them to take no supplies with them. They were to live off of the donations of those they met in the villages and towns. However, in each town and village they visited they were to stay with one person or family for the length of their stay in that town. They were to form relationships.
The passage describes diagnosing various contagious skin diseases. In a society with little or no medical technology the only way to control the spread of disease is quarantine. Later in the passage it addresses the issue of mold in clothing. In a nomadic society where people’s are often packed and unpacked it is important to stop the spread of mold quickly or a person could easily lose all that they own. In addition, we know today that there are molds which are health hazards.
No matter how well you know the situation, how wisely planned your actions, no matter how well-crafted and chosen your words, your plans will fail if they are counter to the will of God. We need to prepare for the battles we will face, but recognize that, no matter how well prepared, victory will only come if we are fighting on God’s side.
When we strive to avoid sinning by what we say, remaining silent is not an option. Let us speak only that which is good and cry out to God for His forgiveness and guidance. Our lives are short, we have but a little time to do God’s will, let us not waste it.
Paul continues his arguments for believing in the resurrection of the dead. He points out that if we do not believe in the resurrection than we may as well live by the philosophy of “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” If this life is all that there is, we may as well seek all the pleasure we can find and put no effort into anything else.
Paul then addresses another argument about the resurrection. When we are raised from the dead, our bodies will be different than the bodies we have on this earth. Our current bodies break down and decay, they are subject to the Second Law of Thermodynamics. However, the bodies we will have after the resurrection will be imperishable, no longer subject to breakdown and decay. It is when this transformation happens that Christ’s victory over death will be fully realized. We will see a place where death and decay no longer hold sway over life.
Job responds to the lectures he receives from his friends by reminding them that he knows what they know, that he is every bit their equal. He has seen what they have seen and understands what they have understood. He asks his friends to hear the arguments he would like to lay before God. Job tells them not to meet his arguments with lies and warns them that God will call them to account if they do.
I always struggle with the middle portion of the book of Job. I know there are important things to be learned here, but it is hard to be sure what, since at the end of the book God confronts most of the characters in the book for what they said. However, today I noticed something important. Job warns his friends against lying in order to make the case against him. We should be careful not to ever attempt to make the case for God and the Gospel with things that are not true.
When we come to offer comfort to those who are suffering, let us always be honest and truthful. We should not attempt to make them feel better by telling them things that are not true, nor should we attempt to convince them to accept the Gospel as a sure fire relief for their physical suffering. Further, we should not have the attitude that we are better than they or wiser than they. We are all equal before God. It is more important that we allow those who are suffering to express their pain and anguish than it is to offer them answers to their troubles.
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, or more. in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
Those who look the other way, or excuse bad behavior have caused trouble just as if they had actively done so. Someone who reproves bad behavior may cause peace.
Let us remember to watch our behavior and our words in the presence of the ungodly. I will strive not to allow my behavior or words give unbelievers an excuse to not turn to God. However, I will not keep silent when I can praise the Lord. I will tell everyone of God’s goodness and remind them that life is short.
It is interesting to note that when Jesus began teaching in His home town of Nazareth the people were initially amazed by His teaching. However, they soon found reason to dismiss Him and His teachings because they knew His parents and His siblings. The passage tells us that as a result of their lack of faith Jesus was only able to perform a few minor miracles of healing in Nazareth. Mark does not say this, but I believe that the reason Jesus was able to perform so few miracles there was because few came to Him for them while He was there.
When Jesus left Nazareth and began going from village to village preaching He sent the Twelve out two by two to preach and cast out demons. What strikes me today is what He told them to do in those towns which did not welcome them or listen to them. He told them to “shake the dust off of their feet” as they left the town to show that they were leaving them to their fate. There comes a time when we need to “give up on” those who will not listen to the Gospel message. This reminds me of some of my friends who are struggling with problems in their lives. I try to explain to them how Christ is the answer to their struggles. Some of them are unwilling to listen. At some point, I need to tell them that if they will not turn to Christ I have no other answers for them.
The passage gives a description of dealing with communicable diseases in a society that had no real way of treating those diseases…quarantine. It then goes on to describe how to deal with fabric, leather, or animal hides which have become contaminated.
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. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
Job responds to Zophar by sarcastically saying that when his visiting friends die, wisdom will die with them. However, Job tells them that he knew everything they had said, they are no better than he. Job claims that he, a just and blameless man, is facing trouble while the wicked live in safety. He tells his friends to look around, it is clear that his trouble comes from the hand of God.
Job continues by saying that while those who have age and experience possess some wisdom, true wisdom and power belong to God. Everyone is subject to God’s plans and actions. No one is able to escape the fate that God has chosen for them. From that statement, Job moves on to asking for the opportunity to make his case before God directly. He asks God to show him what he has done wrong.
Eliphaz responds to Job a second time. He accuses Job of lacking proper fear and respect for God. He asks Job if any mortal can be pure or just in God’s sight? Eliphaz then says that the wicked suffers torment continuously. He goes on to describe the kinds of trouble that he says finds the wicked. The implication of what he is saying is that, since Job is suffering these torments, he must be a wicked man.
Paul continues his arguments for believing in the resurrection of the dead with an interesting question,
Now if there is no resurrection, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them?(NIV)
Further he asks why would he and those ministering with him risk their lives on a regular basis if there was no resurrection from the dead. Finally, Paul argues that if there is no resurrection of the dead than we should drink and party for tomorrow we die. Paul responds to this by saying that we should not be fooled by those who say such things. We are to think carefully and stop sinning. Some of those who make such arguments do not know God at all.
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Paul’s question about being baptized for the dead is an interesting one. I would really like to know what was going on with that. However, it suggests that the early Church put more emphasis on the importance of baptism than we do today. This makes me think that the early Church believed that baptism was required for salvation. So much so that they were baptized for those who had died without the chance to be baptized in life (there are other possible interpretations that I will not go into today).
There is another point in this discussion that I think is worth thinking about as well. Paul quotes here a Greek poet who says “Bad company corrupts good character.” In this context Paul seems to be saying two things. First, that some people hold to certain beliefs that are contrary to the Gospel because those beliefs justify to them continuing to practice one sin or another (in my experience this is usually some sort of sexual sin, but greed runs a close second). Second. that we should not associate with such people because in time, even if we do not initially share their beliefs, we are likely to be corrupted by their heresy.
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Paul then continues his discussion of the resurrection of the dead by discussing what kind of bodies we will have after we are resurrected. He emphasizes that we will have bodies. However, they will be different from our current bodies in ways which we cannot even begin to comprehend. They will be at least as different from our current bodies as the sun is from the moon. Our current bodies are subject to sinful impulses. Our heavenly bodies will have no such weaknesses. Paul tells us that not all of us will die, but all believers will be transformed from earthly bodies to heavenly bodies.
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This passage is one which gives me as a Christian great hope in the face of death. God has promised that our mortal bodies will be transformed into bodies that will not know corruption, that will not be subject to the aches and pains we all begin to feel as we age. More than that, I can have confidence that those I love who know the Lord who have died are experiencing something wonderful beyond description.
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?
What a wonderful thought that the day is coming when I will understand this in full, when death will be a thing of the past and I will no longer need to say goodbye, if even only for a short while, to those I love. But even now, I know that those I love who know the Lord will only be parted from me for a short while. Which is even greater incentive for me to preach the Gospel to my friends. If they do not accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, then death will part us forever.
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There is one final thing that Paul says in today’s passage. He instructs us to work enthusiastically for the Lord, because nothing we do for the Lord is ever useless. In other words, if we dedicate ourselves to some task for the purpose of serving God, even if we fail to accomplish the goal to which we set ourselves something of value will result. It reminds me of the story of the Sunday School teacher who taught Sunday School in a small congregation that never got very big all of her life. One of her children she taught went on to preach somewhere else. That child, now a grown man, led someone to commit their life to Christ. That latter someone became a major evangelist who called hundreds of thousands to the Lord. The Sunday School teacher never saw much fruit from her labor, but because of her labor many were saved.(When I first heard this story the evangelist was named, but I no longer remember who it was).
The psalmist tells us that he vowed to himself not to sin in what he said. In order to keep this vow, he kept silent around the ungodly. But when he kept his silent as they did what was wrong, his heart burned within him. Until the words burst forth to call upon God. He was reminded, and reminded those around him, that his days were limited and his life would be short. His only hope is in the Lord, without God life is short and meaningless. If we do not turn to God and allow Him to rescue us, our life will be nothing but suffering and misery. It will be empty and meaningless.
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I know what I wrote above to be true. I experienced how empty life is without God and am grateful that He has granted me the gift of His grace. I read this psalm and thought of the many friends I have who believe that there is no God. I weep for them, because I was there and the depression I felt was unbearable. I am not positive that the meaning I read into this psalm is what the psalmist meant, but it is the one that came to me.
No matter how wise we are, no matter how carefully we plan, if what we are attempting is not what the Lord wills, it will fail. In addition, no matter what we try, God’s plans will come to fruition resulting just as He intended. We may make all the preparations that we wish, but when battle is joined, victory will belong to those chosen by God.
