Monday 28 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 59
We have a list of unworthy sacrifices and for me, quite simply, this relates to God expecting our best. If we made 10 cakes and decided to give one to the Queen, we would take the most impressive one, the one of highest quality, perhaps the one that took us the longest but when it comes to God, we often expect Him to take the last money we have, the remainder of our time, the 3rd or 4th place in our heart and desires. We do this because He is a gentleman and we basically treat him like a pushover but it's not right. Let's pray that he will reveal more of himself so that we would treat him more like the Queen and less like an annoying guest.
The One Year Bible - Day 58
Leviticus 20 and that interesting phrase, "a land flowing with milk and honey". Superficially, that sounds alright. Milk is certainly not plentiful in most of the hot middle eastern countries and honey is quite nice but I think there is something more solid if we are to look at the spiritual picture. Ask yourself what milk and honey represent.
Firstly milk is nutritious and for many people a staple of everyday life. This can easily represent the nourishment we receive from God as we spend time with Him in prayer and Bible reading. Honey on the other hand never goes bad, it is not prone to bacteria or parasite which is why it is a useful food in these countries. For us, it is a reminder of testimony and how testimony cannot spoil.
I don't know about you but I love a life of nourishment and testimony, the land that God gives to those of us who follow Him unconditionally.
Firstly milk is nutritious and for many people a staple of everyday life. This can easily represent the nourishment we receive from God as we spend time with Him in prayer and Bible reading. Honey on the other hand never goes bad, it is not prone to bacteria or parasite which is why it is a useful food in these countries. For us, it is a reminder of testimony and how testimony cannot spoil.
I don't know about you but I love a life of nourishment and testimony, the land that God gives to those of us who follow Him unconditionally.
The One Year Bible - Day 57
Leviticus 19 is one of those passages that reminds us, as our vicar wrote last week, that being a true follower of Christ is about being great, rather than just good. It is not a box-ticking exercise of rules and regulations but a living relationship. I don't want to just say that I am a good person, I want to have everything that God has for me. When people ask why they should be baptised, often they are really saying that they want to be just good enough, just to get into Heaven and not understanding that baptism is much more than just an "outward sign of an inward change" or even simple obedience but a mechanism by which salvation is introduced into our lives. Romans 6 tells us that baptism is how we die with Christ and also how we are raised to new life, something which presumably is not possible (certainly in all its fullness) outside of baptism.
The One Year Bible - Day 56
I was reminded today how well God understands people and perhaps how well we could understand ourselves better if we reference what God says rather than what we think. God makes these laws related to festivals and offerings and they are not all as regular as each other. Some things you do as and when required, others are weekly and some are yearly. In other words, God knows that if we are burdened with large responsibilities constantly, we will simply avoid them. On the other hand, if we just have small responsibilities, we would never be encouraged to deal with bigger issues. God's way is to have regular smaller jobs to do and then less common large feasts/ceremonies to carry out the larger things. I guess the same is true of church that the week-to-week running might be mundane and regular but then once a year, it is good to check ourselves spiritually and ask what is next. This should be a considerable offering of time and effort since God requires so little of us in one sense from day to day.
The One Year Bible - Day 55
As I have been reading the Levitical laws, I have been constantly asking why God wants these animals to be sacrificed. Well, I think there are two aspects to this. Firstly, as God points out several times, "the life is in the blood". Whatever your meta-physical response to that statement, as far as God is concerned, blood represents life. If we understand a God who is just and holy, it would make sense that when we commit crimes, we have sinned against God and our blood (i.e. life) is required of us in punishment. The sacrifice of animals is a mechanism by which our blood is substituted for theirs, something that appeases God's justice. This might be why it is, "an aroma pleasing to God" i.e. justice is pleasing to God.
Now, God could, of course, have simply said, "tough luck" and demanded our lives for our sins but He instituted this OT system as a means to avoid our punishment. We know it was incomplete and hence the need for Jesus but it was a mechanism nonetheless and another reminder of God's grace and love in providing that, albeit temporary, means to be right with Him.
Now, God could, of course, have simply said, "tough luck" and demanded our lives for our sins but He instituted this OT system as a means to avoid our punishment. We know it was incomplete and hence the need for Jesus but it was a mechanism nonetheless and another reminder of God's grace and love in providing that, albeit temporary, means to be right with Him.
Wednesday 23 February 2011
Another awful piece of Wind Energy reporting
I interrupt this series of Bible comments to point out another classic poor piece of reporting, part of which is because of a poor quote and part of which shows plain misunderstanding about Wind Energy usage in the UK. I refer to this story about the Delabole wind farm redevelopment in Cornwall, particularly the quote by Chris Huhne, "Wind is an abundant, clean, home-grown alternative to fossil fuels" and then the usual cheap piece of technical data, "Potential electricity generated at the site will increase to 9.2 megawatts, enough to power 7,000 homes."
Firstly, Chris, wind is generally abundant and clean but this is such a poor painting of the subject. Despite being abundant, there is very little energy in wind because the mass of air is so low. In other words, you need a very large piece of equipment to generate the same electricity as a much smaller water or steam powered alternative. In general, the water/steam equivalent is the same size as just the generator part of the wind turbine. Secondly, to say it is an alternative with no qualification makes people think we could get a lot of our energy from wind, something which is simply not true. Wind farm output fluctuates massively over short and long periods of time and there is no way to make up this slack in a short time when there is demand for electricity. I won't even mention the fact that the financial side of things never adds up: "free energy" which costs millions in installation costs and doesn't last forever (Delabole is only 20 years old and already being replaced).
The main problem is the use, again, of sloppy and incorrect information about the capacity of these plants. Despite the unfortunate use of the word "potential" which in energy usually refers to stored energy sources like water, I'll assume they mean maximum output, it is unclear exactly what they are claiming. Energy demand is measured in Watt-Seconds or more commonly Kilowatt Hours so saying that the output is 9.2 megawatts doesn't really say anything. Is this average or maximum ('potential')? If it is maximum the figure is useless because when it produces nothing in very high or low wind speeds, then it powers no houses and if it is an average, it is still useless for the same reasons (i.e. sometimes it could power 20000 houses and at other times none).
The only obvious use I can see for wind turbines with their erratic output is to crack water into hydrogen which can then be stored and used for power or to fuel cars but while the popular press reports poor technical articles, the general population genuinely (and understandably) wonder why we haven't built loads of them.
Oh yeah and 7000 houses is hardly any since it works out at £1690 per house for the installation and this doesn't include things that were already installed.
Firstly, Chris, wind is generally abundant and clean but this is such a poor painting of the subject. Despite being abundant, there is very little energy in wind because the mass of air is so low. In other words, you need a very large piece of equipment to generate the same electricity as a much smaller water or steam powered alternative. In general, the water/steam equivalent is the same size as just the generator part of the wind turbine. Secondly, to say it is an alternative with no qualification makes people think we could get a lot of our energy from wind, something which is simply not true. Wind farm output fluctuates massively over short and long periods of time and there is no way to make up this slack in a short time when there is demand for electricity. I won't even mention the fact that the financial side of things never adds up: "free energy" which costs millions in installation costs and doesn't last forever (Delabole is only 20 years old and already being replaced).
The main problem is the use, again, of sloppy and incorrect information about the capacity of these plants. Despite the unfortunate use of the word "potential" which in energy usually refers to stored energy sources like water, I'll assume they mean maximum output, it is unclear exactly what they are claiming. Energy demand is measured in Watt-Seconds or more commonly Kilowatt Hours so saying that the output is 9.2 megawatts doesn't really say anything. Is this average or maximum ('potential')? If it is maximum the figure is useless because when it produces nothing in very high or low wind speeds, then it powers no houses and if it is an average, it is still useless for the same reasons (i.e. sometimes it could power 20000 houses and at other times none).
The only obvious use I can see for wind turbines with their erratic output is to crack water into hydrogen which can then be stored and used for power or to fuel cars but while the popular press reports poor technical articles, the general population genuinely (and understandably) wonder why we haven't built loads of them.
Oh yeah and 7000 houses is hardly any since it works out at £1690 per house for the installation and this doesn't include things that were already installed.
The One Year Bible - Day 54
Jesus walks on the water today in Mark 6:45. Now I don't know how deeply you look into this. On the surface, Jesus walking on the water is pretty amazing in its own right but there is more at play here.
To begin with, imagine you feel led to say goodbye to people and then pray by yourself even though you need to cross the sea which you can't do without a boat. Do you say:
a) Sorry God, I'll pray later. I need my lift in the boat
b) I'll do it God but then you need to find me another boat to cross in
c) Yeah, that's great. I'll walk across the water later and probably overtake them anyway?
A? Yep. Me as well. What actually happened here? At what point did Jesus know he could walk across the water and that this was OK despite it being a bit 'unnatural'? At what point did he have a conversation with his Father where he said, "sorry dad, I thought you said walk on water for a second".
It is challenging because it is another example of where the sky really was the limit for Jesus and should be for us. We should always be able to say, "I'll do what you want Lord and I know that you are able to provide the means even in the face of the impossible".
To begin with, imagine you feel led to say goodbye to people and then pray by yourself even though you need to cross the sea which you can't do without a boat. Do you say:
a) Sorry God, I'll pray later. I need my lift in the boat
b) I'll do it God but then you need to find me another boat to cross in
c) Yeah, that's great. I'll walk across the water later and probably overtake them anyway?
A? Yep. Me as well. What actually happened here? At what point did Jesus know he could walk across the water and that this was OK despite it being a bit 'unnatural'? At what point did he have a conversation with his Father where he said, "sorry dad, I thought you said walk on water for a second".
It is challenging because it is another example of where the sky really was the limit for Jesus and should be for us. We should always be able to say, "I'll do what you want Lord and I know that you are able to provide the means even in the face of the impossible".
Monday 21 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 53
A great passage here that reminds us that the priestly duties were not purely spiritual. They were doctors, judges and customs officials too! It is nice to remember that a Christian's job is not purely spiritual since the spiritual often comes to a person via the practical, whether feeding somebody, helping somebody or simply telling them how much Jesus loves them.
In Mark 6, that famous verse where Jesus says that, "a prophet is honoured everywhere except in his home town". (or perhaps church). It is a very sad fact that there were two things Jesus had no real control over, other people's lack of faith and the fact that he wasn't accepted in His home town despite being the model of perfect humanity.
What does it mean for us? Well, sometimes it is a challenge to move onwards and upwards. If you are not one of the leaders at your church or you are and do not think people take your gifting seriously, you need to either pray it through with them or ask whether God wants you to take your gifts and use them elsewhere. I have seen many people leave churches from frustration and although this is not ideal, if God can use it to move people into the areas He has for them then it's better than nothing.
In Mark 6, that famous verse where Jesus says that, "a prophet is honoured everywhere except in his home town". (or perhaps church). It is a very sad fact that there were two things Jesus had no real control over, other people's lack of faith and the fact that he wasn't accepted in His home town despite being the model of perfect humanity.
What does it mean for us? Well, sometimes it is a challenge to move onwards and upwards. If you are not one of the leaders at your church or you are and do not think people take your gifting seriously, you need to either pray it through with them or ask whether God wants you to take your gifts and use them elsewhere. I have seen many people leave churches from frustration and although this is not ideal, if God can use it to move people into the areas He has for them then it's better than nothing.
The One Year Bible - Day 52
Leviticus 11, the animals that are clean and unclean. What is so amazing about people, is that we would read a passage like this and accuse God of being arbitrary or irrelevant. Why can't we eat pigs? We all know how good they taste! Why not animals that chew the cud and have split hooves? Without pointing out the obvious, God knows why these rules were written down and I doubt they related to Him in any real way since animals are animals. So why would God say what you can and can't eat? Perhaps God knew that certain kinds of animals harbour certain types of microbes that are harmful or contagious to humans. Perhaps some animals harbour demons! (I was thinking of the snake!) Other animals might be naturally dangerous and not worth the hassle, especially for a fairly basic people. In most ways, we have ignored these commandments in the NT but I bet most of us don't really know why! I haven't ever had to eat vultures or millipedes but I'm sure some people have. What would be your advice to them if they proposed it?
The One Year Bible - Day 51
A great verse in Leviticus 10:10 about character: "You must distinguish between what is sacred and what is common, between what is ceremonially unclean and what is clean".
What I like about this, is that God's approach to holiness is not a list of dos and don'ts but it is also not a case of "do whatever you like". God is quite specific in His words here that if we are truly priests, we need to perhaps reduce or cut out things that are not bad per-se but are unhelpful or "common". Things that take our time, our money and our thought-life are prime candidates here. TV, hobbies that take a lot of time, having loads of holidays, always buying expensive food when people are starving, these sort of things might be described as common, something that we need to examine in each of our lives prayerfully.
What I like about this, is that God's approach to holiness is not a list of dos and don'ts but it is also not a case of "do whatever you like". God is quite specific in His words here that if we are truly priests, we need to perhaps reduce or cut out things that are not bad per-se but are unhelpful or "common". Things that take our time, our money and our thought-life are prime candidates here. TV, hobbies that take a lot of time, having loads of holidays, always buying expensive food when people are starving, these sort of things might be described as common, something that we need to examine in each of our lives prayerfully.
The One Year Bible - Day 50
I'm wrestling a bit with the whole area of the NT metaphor for the OT priests. Back then, you had a priesthood and then "common" people but nowadays, we are all made into a priesthood by Jesus' death and resurrection so how do we relate the behaviour towards the OT priests with us as Christians today?
The clothes are interesting because they demonstrate the priest as different from the common people - perhaps something about our lifestyle and character being markedly different? We also have the idea of the priests sharing in the offering so that some of it was kept and eaten by the priests to save them having to work and grow their own food. This is perhaps different to today since we are both the "common people" and the priests before God so I'm not sure what we share in that relates to the image of sharing in the people's offering. I suppose at the very least it implies God's generosity in blessing in that rather than taking everything himself, he provides for the needs of the priests out of his abundance.
The clothes are interesting because they demonstrate the priest as different from the common people - perhaps something about our lifestyle and character being markedly different? We also have the idea of the priests sharing in the offering so that some of it was kept and eaten by the priests to save them having to work and grow their own food. This is perhaps different to today since we are both the "common people" and the priests before God so I'm not sure what we share in that relates to the image of sharing in the people's offering. I suppose at the very least it implies God's generosity in blessing in that rather than taking everything himself, he provides for the needs of the priests out of his abundance.
The One Year Bible - Day 49
Leviticus 6. If you do something dodgy, you have to pay back + 20%. Now I like the simplicity of this and it could so easily be applied to people's crimes today. Never mind the "pay back 20p a week for 4000 years approach" if you steal and crash a car that costs £5000 to fix, you have to pay back £5000 + 20%, if you vandalise a bus shelter, you pay time, materials and 20%. So easy and so fair.
The One Year Bible - Day 48
I need to type a dirty word and I hope you all forgive me but it is needed for this article: "responsibility". In Leviticus 4 there is a section about unintentional sin, something which used to underpin UK law but which seems to be slowly removed if somebody "didn't mean to". (There is another section about unintended consequences too!). Anyway, if you are stopped speeding in your car, is your first reaction to say, "Sorry I didn't know, please let me off" or would you say, "Officer, I am in the wrong because I should have known the speed limit". We all say the first because we are naturally uncomfortable with responsibility unless it gives us kudos and fame. This is not surprising of course since we are by nature selfish people and anything which reflects badly on us is not good for our ego, especially if it isn't really "our fault". God reminds us however that we are responsible for our actions and to some extent to those under our authority. The 'punishment' might not be the same as for deliberate mistakes but the implication is still there.
How often do we examine our responsibilities before God and ask where we are not measuring up? Stewardship of our money and time, evangelism, commitment to God and His calling, our families and jobs. All of these things require a certain amount of responsibility and all of these reflect our character and need attention. How often then? not very often? Nope, me neither. Shame on me.
How often do we examine our responsibilities before God and ask where we are not measuring up? Stewardship of our money and time, evangelism, commitment to God and His calling, our families and jobs. All of these things require a certain amount of responsibility and all of these reflect our character and need attention. How often then? not very often? Nope, me neither. Shame on me.
The One Year Bible - Day 47
We are told in Leviticus 1 that the animals to bring for sacrifice should be without blemish. This alludes to the perfection required for an acceptable sacrifice, something personified in Jesus as the final sacrifice. It also however reminds us that what we give to God should be our best and our first-choice. In other words, if I spend 20 hours per week watching TV and 2 hours per week reading my Bible (more than some people do) then I am not giving God the first priority of my time and mind. Likewise if we choose to avoid church Sundays because we want to go out Saturday night and are too tired, then we are not honouring God with our first-choices which to be true to Him should be more like, "I can't go out late tonight since I have church in the morning". I don't want to be legalistic but the proof is in the pudding, we cannot say we are committed to follow God if nothing about our lifestyle and priorities proves this.
Tuesday 15 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 46
It is worth really studying the construction of the tabernacle and courtyard in Exedosu since there are many metaphors. The main one however is that in our natural fallen state, we do not have direct access to God. We have access by intermediaries especially chosen and prepared by God for the task, people who have to do things exactly right to avoid dying! Anyway, we know with hindsight how fortunate we are that because of Jesus death, we can all symbolically walk into the Most Holy Place where God's presence is without worrying about judgement. The curtain in the temple (the permanent replacement for the tabernacle) was torn when Jesus died and this proved that His death was accepted by God as a one-off all-covering sacrifice to pay for our sins.
The One Year Bible - Day 45
After yesterdays post about how God might choose one person to do something where we would share it out, we see here the flip side of that where each Israelite over 20 had to donate something to the building. What is worth noting is that even if a few people carry out a lot of the work, it is not an excuse for others to not do anything. As humans, our church history is mainly either a few people doing everything with everybody else doing nothing or else the opposite end of the spectrum where everybody is involved in everything and those with genuine anointing are missed out. Here we see that challenged. The Israelites gave money and materials but for Christians, they represent more than just money. They represent time and prayer and most importantly, they represent the fact that we should support and uphold those in positions of ministry rather than criticising them or clawing for their role.
Naturally that is easier said than done in some cases...
Naturally that is easier said than done in some cases...
Monday 14 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 44
The thing that struck me today was how much Bezalel was asked to do with regard to the construction of the tabernacle. It is again something that troubles us that one person should be asked to do so much, either because it is 'unfair' for one person to do so much or because it is not fair that one person gets credit for so much of such an important job.
This is where God differs from men. For God, there is a person who should do a job because they are anointed to do it. Not because they are necessarily the most skilled (although they might be) and not in a nice 'share it out' way to everyone can muck in but simply there is a correct person for a task or tasks and that person should do them.
In our churches, do we follow this simple procedure? Do we simply ask God who should do or lead something or do we try and share it all out or give it to our closest friends or those we think will be 'safe' rather than inspired. Do we choose people to do things when God would rather that they not be done?
This is where God differs from men. For God, there is a person who should do a job because they are anointed to do it. Not because they are necessarily the most skilled (although they might be) and not in a nice 'share it out' way to everyone can muck in but simply there is a correct person for a task or tasks and that person should do them.
In our churches, do we follow this simple procedure? Do we simply ask God who should do or lead something or do we try and share it all out or give it to our closest friends or those we think will be 'safe' rather than inspired. Do we choose people to do things when God would rather that they not be done?
Saturday 12 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 43
Today Moses has to chisel out 2 new stone tablets to replace the ones he smashed when he saw the golden calf. Chiselling out stone is not easy and these tablets would have been extremely heavy to carry UP the mountain to God. At the end of the day, God gets His way because He is sovereign but when we interfere with his plans, we end up working much harder to get to the same place. This is a challenge to listen to God and act on his timings and not ours. Moses shouldn't have smashed the first tablets, his anger had caused him to disrespect God's laws. Perhaps sometimes we do that too, we disrespect things God has promised us or guided us to do and in the end we spoil the best route for our life, making us backtrack and climb back to where we should be already.
I think people have this idea that hard work is good and easy work is bad but if we truly rest in God's timings, we can achieve so much more in so much less time!
I think people have this idea that hard work is good and easy work is bad but if we truly rest in God's timings, we can achieve so much more in so much less time!
The One Year Bible - Day 42
Exodus 32 and Aaron makes a fatal error, something that has sadly happened all too often. He played to the crowd! Here was a man who had been involved in many amazing adventures with Moses and the Israelites deciding after just a few days to build the people a golden calf as a God. I'm reading here about an insecure man who despite his experience, needed to please men instead of God - is this only a weakness for insecure people? He is probably feeling a bit awkward standing around seeing everyone looking for a saviour and decides to become Mr Popular by making one. It then says after he saw how excited they were, he built an altar - he had started on the slippery slope and decided it was easier to take it further than to stop. When Moses comes back down, I can imagine the shame and embarrassment of Aaron. He first tries to blame the people, "you know how evil they are", then twists the truth, "they said to me, make us gods.." followed by the unbelievable but sad excuse that he just threw the gold in the fire and out came this calf. It would have been funny if it wasn't extremely serious and very sad. Aaron was fortunate to escape punishment since 3000 people were killed in judgement for what they had done.
For us, it is easy for 'successful' Christians to play to the crowd. To enjoy the praise of men rather than the praise of God. It might be something as simple as holding back from a harsh prophetic word or as serious as totally misrepresenting God but it all ends in the same way. The loss of authority and face and sometimes a lot of collateral damage in other people who are hurt on the way.
For us, it is easy for 'successful' Christians to play to the crowd. To enjoy the praise of men rather than the praise of God. It might be something as simple as holding back from a harsh prophetic word or as serious as totally misrepresenting God but it all ends in the same way. The loss of authority and face and sometimes a lot of collateral damage in other people who are hurt on the way.
The One Year Bible - Day 41
We have a passage about the priests washing before they went into God's presence. We know that under Jesus, we have been made clean - Jesus said to Peter that someone who was already clean did not need to wash his whole body. But this made me remember something that has never quite resolved in my mind. In one sense, Jesus has made us clean and we are fully and completely forgiven, we are justified before God yet we are still called to be Holy and I have heard many people preach that we need a pure heart and clean hands before God when we pray etc. What is the score here? Do I need to wash or am I already clean? Peter was told to wash his feet and it has been said that this represents the cleansing of ourselves from the effects of the world as we live day-to-day. Perhaps we could also say that unholy living does not remove our forgiveness but it does reduce our effectiveness, not out of punishment or malice but out of a simple knock-on effect that occurs between us and God when we allow sin to make it all foggy again.
I guess the best course in life like that old story of "how close can you drive to the cliff" is to answer "not close enough to find out!".
I guess the best course in life like that old story of "how close can you drive to the cliff" is to answer "not close enough to find out!".
Wednesday 9 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 40
Did you have a school bully? The big hard guy that everyone was scared of, not because he did anything crazy like killing people but just because he could handle anything and anyone! These bullys usually like to have a gang of lesser kids who hang out with them because the bully makes them feel safe. When they are with the bully, they can say really bad stuff to you knowing that you won't fight back because you are scared of the big man, by themselves however they are nothing.
Peter is like this in Matthew 26. He tells Jesus that he will never leave him but Jesus knows that once Jesus, the Big Guy, is not around, all that security, all that courage will quickly fade and Peter will deny Jesus.
In our lives, the moral is simple, unless we stay close to Jesus, even the smallest things can be scary like someone speaking to us in a threatening way or a bit of barging in the street. When we stay close to Jesus however, we do not fear man who can kill the body but not the soul, rather we fear the Father who can send both body and soul into hell!
Peter is like this in Matthew 26. He tells Jesus that he will never leave him but Jesus knows that once Jesus, the Big Guy, is not around, all that security, all that courage will quickly fade and Peter will deny Jesus.
In our lives, the moral is simple, unless we stay close to Jesus, even the smallest things can be scary like someone speaking to us in a threatening way or a bit of barging in the street. When we stay close to Jesus however, we do not fear man who can kill the body but not the soul, rather we fear the Father who can send both body and soul into hell!
The One Year Bible - Day 39
I just want to mention one part of Exodus 28 and that is the section in verse 17 that talks about insetting gemstones to represent the 12 tribes of Israel. Each of these stones is different and we are reminded that God considers us all differently. He does not need to generalise but is able to personalise, able to relate to each one of us where we are and despite who we are. There is that great verse in Revelation 2:17 that says to the people who overcome, they will be given a new name known only to God and them and we won't all be called Jane or John! Isn't God great?
The One Year Bible - Day 38
One of those great passages today where we like to glance over it because we are not in the mood to build another tabernacle. Do you ask yourself why it is all so specific? If you have ever built an Airfix kit or an Ikea set of drawers and the instructions are incomplete, one of two things usually happens. Either you can't finish its construction or otherwise it is not built fit-for-purpose (I have seen both!).
What we have here is God giving no room for mistakes by saying something non-specific like, "build me a tabernacle about 100 feet by 50 feet" which would have led to either more questions than answers or otherwise some horrible cheapskate tent (you know what Christians are like!). Also however, God has the way of making sure that we make good things even if we don't know what we're doing. He tells them to overlay various items with gold. Why? Because he's extravagant? Nope, because gold doesn't corrode and it was probably the most abundant metal around their neighbourhood that behaved like that. The fact it was expensive was also good because it meant the tabernacle cost something!
Acacia wood, apart from being available, has many symbolistic and physical properties including its scent and medicinal uses which may have contributed to its choice.
As for the other designs such as angels and the priestly garments, we of course believe that they have little physical significance but much symbolic significance such as the precious stones reminding Aaron of who they are representing and the idea that angels somehow watch over the places where God meets with men. We are seeing a mystery but one which God has partially revealed to us in these chapters.
What we have here is God giving no room for mistakes by saying something non-specific like, "build me a tabernacle about 100 feet by 50 feet" which would have led to either more questions than answers or otherwise some horrible cheapskate tent (you know what Christians are like!). Also however, God has the way of making sure that we make good things even if we don't know what we're doing. He tells them to overlay various items with gold. Why? Because he's extravagant? Nope, because gold doesn't corrode and it was probably the most abundant metal around their neighbourhood that behaved like that. The fact it was expensive was also good because it meant the tabernacle cost something!
Acacia wood, apart from being available, has many symbolistic and physical properties including its scent and medicinal uses which may have contributed to its choice.
As for the other designs such as angels and the priestly garments, we of course believe that they have little physical significance but much symbolic significance such as the precious stones reminding Aaron of who they are representing and the idea that angels somehow watch over the places where God meets with men. We are seeing a mystery but one which God has partially revealed to us in these chapters.
The One Year Bible - Day 37
The three annual feasts in Exodus 23:14 made me wonder about what our anchors are in life. The Israelites were travelling around for years and would have felt restless and perhaps homeless whereas the festivals were their anchor points to remind them of fundamental truths. In the midst of our lives, we too need these.
The Festival of Unleavened Bread is related to the character of God. In essence it is to remind us before anything else of who God is. Unleavened means unspoiled because human teaching pervades spiritual teaching and pollutes us. This feast is like saying, go back to basics - who is God?
The Festival of Harvest occurs at the start of the harvest and it is where the first fruits of the harvest are given to God. This is a reminder to dedicate our ministry to God, to offer Him everything and to ensure our work is birthed and controlled by the Spirit.
The Festival of the Final Harvest is more like a festival of praise, where we can look back at what God has done either recently (preferably!) or perhaps further back and offer Him the praise of a grateful heart that He has guided us, helped us, blessed us and esteemed us to help Him in His work.
The Festival of Unleavened Bread is related to the character of God. In essence it is to remind us before anything else of who God is. Unleavened means unspoiled because human teaching pervades spiritual teaching and pollutes us. This feast is like saying, go back to basics - who is God?
The Festival of Harvest occurs at the start of the harvest and it is where the first fruits of the harvest are given to God. This is a reminder to dedicate our ministry to God, to offer Him everything and to ensure our work is birthed and controlled by the Spirit.
The Festival of the Final Harvest is more like a festival of praise, where we can look back at what God has done either recently (preferably!) or perhaps further back and offer Him the praise of a grateful heart that He has guided us, helped us, blessed us and esteemed us to help Him in His work.
The One Year Bible - Day 36
One of the interesting things about the Old Testament laws is that even if we don't agree that they should be implemented as-is in the modern day (either because it is not practical or it is not correct) we can still learn about God's character and the principles that should govern our laws.
Exodus 21:22 - the principle that if our carelessness causes something bad to happen, we are called to account. The idea that "I didn't mean to" is irrelevant.
21:26 - Even if we are permitted to "hit our slaves" i.e. do something in the course of our work. If we go too far, we are to be held to account.
21:28 - If we are genuinely innocent of the actions of those in our charge (whether animals or perhaps children) then we are not to be held to account but if we knew the potential even for a crime to be committed and do nothing, we are again liable.
21:33 - If your carelessness is at a cost to someone else, you must at minimum compensate the innocent party.
What is interesting is that pretty much all of these laws are extremely fair when considered for the community. Nowadays, people's only idea of fair is whether they are punished or inconvenienced whereas God's idea of fair seems much simpler. I am reminded constantly though that however much I rail against the country or the government and their lack of righteousness, Jesus is the only one who can bring fairness and justice. Any idea, ministry or effort whatsoever that does not hinge on Jesus (the person not just the principles) is doomed to failure because it is merely humanism.
Exodus 21:22 - the principle that if our carelessness causes something bad to happen, we are called to account. The idea that "I didn't mean to" is irrelevant.
21:26 - Even if we are permitted to "hit our slaves" i.e. do something in the course of our work. If we go too far, we are to be held to account.
21:28 - If we are genuinely innocent of the actions of those in our charge (whether animals or perhaps children) then we are not to be held to account but if we knew the potential even for a crime to be committed and do nothing, we are again liable.
21:33 - If your carelessness is at a cost to someone else, you must at minimum compensate the innocent party.
What is interesting is that pretty much all of these laws are extremely fair when considered for the community. Nowadays, people's only idea of fair is whether they are punished or inconvenienced whereas God's idea of fair seems much simpler. I am reminded constantly though that however much I rail against the country or the government and their lack of righteousness, Jesus is the only one who can bring fairness and justice. Any idea, ministry or effort whatsoever that does not hinge on Jesus (the person not just the principles) is doomed to failure because it is merely humanism.
The One Year Bible - Day 35
We read the 10 commandments today but I want to leave that to the many theologians who have probably covered most angles and imagery for these. Instead, I want to pick out something that can easily be missed because it is one of those hiccups in scripture that seem sort of odd and in some ways unnecessary but which have been included and which therefore must have significance. God has already told Moses to tell the people not to approach the mountain and when Moses goes up to see God, God again tells him to warn the people not to approach. Moses protests that he has already warned people and God then tells him to fetch Aaron and remind the people not to approach. Was this God's way of gently saying to Moses, "just go and tell them will you?". We don't really know but it made me think about being reminded of the things that God has says which we so easily forget. In fact, soon we read about the people getting bored that Moses has gone and decide to build a golden calf and many times when we allow our spiritual or church life to wane, we are in danger of creating our own idols to distract us from the pain that is a lack of relationship with God. If we continue to remind ourselves of God's promises and Jesus' instruction, then we might find it easier to live these things out. Jesus said we (corporately) would perform miracles, healings and supernatural signs but because we forget this, we wonder why we don't see the supernatural in our lives.
Thursday 3 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 34
Today we read a famous passage where the Israelites are fighting against the Amalekites and Moses stands on top of the hill holding his staff up and when he does this, the Israelites are winning, when it starts to drop, they start to lose. It is often taught as a metaphor for prayer and that is fine but I think not quite the whole story. Why? Because a staff represents authority rather than prayer. The police of years ago and various other officers of state had 'Tipstaffs' which were used to symbolise what or who these people represented.
In the case of Moses, I believe his staff demonstrates God's authority, in this case over the Amalekites, something that was decided by God and carried out by man.
Why am I saying all this? Well it is all very well saying we need to pray but most people either don't know what to pray about or they pray loads of things, most of which don't seem to come to pass. It is all very well saying that sometimes God says, "wait" but this is not my understanding for his answer to most prayers! We need to pray for something sensible and the only thing that is sensible to pray is that God's kingdom come, His will be done (by His authority) and that this work is carried out through his people who are willing to be used. There is no weakness in this chain of events:
God wants certain things to happen but will not force His will on humans, we want His will to be done but lack the knowledge or power to carry most of it out, we pray and invite God to work His power through us in a way that achieves what He wants and the result is His kingdom comes on earth as it is in heaven.
There is no other way we can expect this to happen!
In the case of Moses, I believe his staff demonstrates God's authority, in this case over the Amalekites, something that was decided by God and carried out by man.
Why am I saying all this? Well it is all very well saying we need to pray but most people either don't know what to pray about or they pray loads of things, most of which don't seem to come to pass. It is all very well saying that sometimes God says, "wait" but this is not my understanding for his answer to most prayers! We need to pray for something sensible and the only thing that is sensible to pray is that God's kingdom come, His will be done (by His authority) and that this work is carried out through his people who are willing to be used. There is no weakness in this chain of events:
God wants certain things to happen but will not force His will on humans, we want His will to be done but lack the knowledge or power to carry most of it out, we pray and invite God to work His power through us in a way that achieves what He wants and the result is His kingdom comes on earth as it is in heaven.
There is no other way we can expect this to happen!
Tuesday 1 February 2011
The One Year Bible - Day 33 - ps
Great scripture in Matthew 22. I had to post another entry even though these are pretty thick and fast!
"29.Your mistake is that you don't know the scriptures, and you don't know the power of God"
This could be a sermon or 10 in its own right. Most of our mistakes boil down to two things. Firstly we lack the foundation or soundness of our understanding because we base too much on what we think and not enough on what we read in scripture or we distort scripture that we know to match what we think. Secondly, even if we have sound knowledge of God from scripture, if we are unable to take this from theory into practice, we limit the power of God and we are weak and ineffective. If you go to many ineffective churches, one or both of those things are present.
At my church they have a phrase about the "twin rails of Spirit and Word" that represent the balance required between the written, objective knowledge of God and the subjective experience of the power of God. Take one away and the train derails.
"29.Your mistake is that you don't know the scriptures, and you don't know the power of God"
This could be a sermon or 10 in its own right. Most of our mistakes boil down to two things. Firstly we lack the foundation or soundness of our understanding because we base too much on what we think and not enough on what we read in scripture or we distort scripture that we know to match what we think. Secondly, even if we have sound knowledge of God from scripture, if we are unable to take this from theory into practice, we limit the power of God and we are weak and ineffective. If you go to many ineffective churches, one or both of those things are present.
At my church they have a phrase about the "twin rails of Spirit and Word" that represent the balance required between the written, objective knowledge of God and the subjective experience of the power of God. Take one away and the train derails.
The One Year Bible - Day 33
We start seeing this metaphor here of the Exodus of the Israelites and how it represents a Christian journey, not so much from Earth to Heaven but from our conversion until we enter the fullness of Christ in our promised land. Notice that even in the Promised Land, there were still trials so this cannot represent the heaven that we understand from scripture with "no more crying, pain" etc.
We see a number of features of this journey which have lessons to teach us. At this stage in Exodus 16, we read of the fact that their first journey leg led them to the law represented by Sinai. This is interesting because our modern teaching often omits the law as somehow not required (because of Jesus) when in actual fact, the law is still the datum of character for those in Christ, the foundation for our lives of 'grace'.
We read of how quickly the Israelites forgot of God's massive display of power against the Israelites when all of sudden, "we are going to die". As if God would save them and then forget them. We also do the same and sometimes need to look back to help us trust God when He feels distant.
We see God giving them food (read spiritual food for us) which is just enough for the day. We can't plan out our whole life, we can trust and live for today. God wants a relationship and therefore anything that is planned out for longer than a day weakens the relationship. There were people who tried to live off this spiritual food for longer than they were supposed to and it was spoiled. I think this happens in our ministries when we start under God and continue under our own steam.
We see a subtle metaphor about the importance of testimony when Aaron is told to keep a container of manna for future generations. We might not be able to live off a calling forever but we can certainly record God's blessing to inspire ourselves and others that He is alive and kicking!
We then see one of those awful situations where the people ask, "is the Lord here or not" when they want water. When things are dry in our Christian life, do we complain to God and ask Him if He is "here" or not, or do we trust that God will do His thing in His time and that is all we need to know. This is GOOD news since it means dryness is not always a measure of spirituality but a measure of reality. It also allows our character to be proved so that we do not complain when we don't see "water".
We see a number of features of this journey which have lessons to teach us. At this stage in Exodus 16, we read of the fact that their first journey leg led them to the law represented by Sinai. This is interesting because our modern teaching often omits the law as somehow not required (because of Jesus) when in actual fact, the law is still the datum of character for those in Christ, the foundation for our lives of 'grace'.
We read of how quickly the Israelites forgot of God's massive display of power against the Israelites when all of sudden, "we are going to die". As if God would save them and then forget them. We also do the same and sometimes need to look back to help us trust God when He feels distant.
We see God giving them food (read spiritual food for us) which is just enough for the day. We can't plan out our whole life, we can trust and live for today. God wants a relationship and therefore anything that is planned out for longer than a day weakens the relationship. There were people who tried to live off this spiritual food for longer than they were supposed to and it was spoiled. I think this happens in our ministries when we start under God and continue under our own steam.
We see a subtle metaphor about the importance of testimony when Aaron is told to keep a container of manna for future generations. We might not be able to live off a calling forever but we can certainly record God's blessing to inspire ourselves and others that He is alive and kicking!
We then see one of those awful situations where the people ask, "is the Lord here or not" when they want water. When things are dry in our Christian life, do we complain to God and ask Him if He is "here" or not, or do we trust that God will do His thing in His time and that is all we need to know. This is GOOD news since it means dryness is not always a measure of spirituality but a measure of reality. It also allows our character to be proved so that we do not complain when we don't see "water".
The One Year Bible - Day 32
Easy in, easy out! God is recorded as having decided that the Israelites should not come out to the promised land the easy way in Exodus 13. Why? Because if you get something easily, you also give it up easily whereas something you have fought for is something you want to keep.
We sadly see this often in the church where we are so grateful for people even coming to church that we teach an easy costless gospel that is so easy to accept that when we "face battle" like the seeds that are on rocky ground, we quickly revert to our old way of life.
We have a human way of putting our fears onto other people and say, "if we teach a gospel that is hard, we will not attract anyone to Christ". We think that this is wise but ironically, the churches with the most persecution are those who if not large are strong in what they believe. Jesus never taught an easy gospel, he didn't teach a lovey-dovey, happy-clappy, haughty-taughty message, he taught real sacrifice and in some cases division between us and friends/family as the God of the universe is in opposition to our sinful nature and we resist the change.
We need to remember that Christianity is not a cheap or easy option. If it is, we are not doing it right. It requires commitment, responsibility, humility and will attract opposition. Maybe then we will fight for it and stand our ground when the evil one tempts us.
We sadly see this often in the church where we are so grateful for people even coming to church that we teach an easy costless gospel that is so easy to accept that when we "face battle" like the seeds that are on rocky ground, we quickly revert to our old way of life.
We have a human way of putting our fears onto other people and say, "if we teach a gospel that is hard, we will not attract anyone to Christ". We think that this is wise but ironically, the churches with the most persecution are those who if not large are strong in what they believe. Jesus never taught an easy gospel, he didn't teach a lovey-dovey, happy-clappy, haughty-taughty message, he taught real sacrifice and in some cases division between us and friends/family as the God of the universe is in opposition to our sinful nature and we resist the change.
We need to remember that Christianity is not a cheap or easy option. If it is, we are not doing it right. It requires commitment, responsibility, humility and will attract opposition. Maybe then we will fight for it and stand our ground when the evil one tempts us.
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