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.

     When Solomon had finished having the Temple built he summoned the leaders of Israel and had the Ark of the Covenant brought to the Temple. Unlike when David had the Ark brought to Jerusalem on a cart, Solomon had the Ark moved by priests carrying it using the carrying poles which were designed for that purpose when the Ark was first built. In his prayer of dedication Solomon touches on two very important points. The first is that God does not dwell in a Temple. That not even heaven can contain God. Solomon built the Temple as a unifying symbol for those who worship God. The second important point in Solomon’s dedication prayer is that God will forgive sins. Solomon prays that when people sin, and he says that they will sin, if they repent of their sins and turn back to God, he asks God to answer their prayers and deliver them. There is one additional point in Solomon’s prayer worth noting. He calls on God to accept those foreigners who turn to Him and worship Him, to answer their prayers just as He does those of the Israelites. Solomon does this because he knows that God is the God if all the earth and not just of the Israelites.

     Now we come to the climax of Stephen’s speech before the Sanhedrin. He has pointed out how the Israelites rejected Moses repeatedly. Now he points out that the Israelites, the ancestors of those on the Sanhedrin, persecuted the prophets. He tells the Sanhedrin that they are like their ancestors in rejecting the One who brought God’s message. When he said this, the members of the Sanhedrin became furious and started to express their anger at him. Stephen then said that he saw the heavens opened and the “Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” The Sanhedrin knew he was referring to Jesus when he said “Son of Man.” At this point they took actions so as not to be able to hear anything further he said and dragged him out of the city and stoned him. As he died, Stephen cried out to God asking Him not to hold his death against them. I have trouble forgiving people who cut me off on the highway. How would I manage to forgive those who were causing my painful death?
     The writer tells us that the death of Stephen was followed by persecution of all of the believers such that most of the Church was scattered throughout the region. But despite being persecuted and scattered, the believers preached the Gospel wherever they went. One such story is that of the deacon Philip. He went to Samaria and preached the Good News. The crowds listened intently because he was a good speaker and performed miracles. The writer tells us that many were healed and came to believe and be baptized. One in particular was Simon the sorcerer, who had performed acts of power and presented himself as a “Power of God”. Simon had long been influential in the city of Samaria because he had astounded the people with his magic. But now the people were turning from him to follow Jesus. Simon could have been angry and become an enemy of the Church, but he did not. Instead, he became a believer and was baptized. Simon began following Philip around, recognizing real power when he saw it. Philip did not turn Simon away because of his past. Despite a background that suggested he would be hostile to the believers, Philip welcomed Simon when he asked to be baptized. The passage tells us that Simon was amazed by the signs and miracles Philip performed. Are those around us amazed at what we do in the name of Jesus? Why are we not performing similar signs and miracles?

     The psalmist says that Israel has been persecuted from its beginning, but God has freed them from those who enslaved them. The psalmist requests that the enemies of Jerusalem be turned back in defeat. I believe that God has granted that request throughout history. Those who have driven the Jews out of Jerusalem have soon gone down to defeat.

     This proverb tells us that it is better to have nothing more to eat than the image in the above thumbnail if one is at peace with those around one than it is to have a feast if one is arguing and in conflict with those around.