Friday, November 29, 2013
What's up Doc?
Luke
First impression: finding the context
The Original Reader of Luke are actually Gentiles, in other words: non-Jews. I really enjoyed Luke’s perspective because he was writing to the people who were not “the people of God”, “the chosen ones”, but all the rest. And it makes a lot of sense since Luke himself was not a Jew. I can see evidence of him writing to “outsiders” because he explains it at the very beginning of this book:
“Many people have set out to write accounts about the events that have been fulfilled among us. They used the eyewitness reports circulating among us from the early disciples. Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write a careful account for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.” (Luke 1:1-4)
Theophilus is a Greek name. Now, Theophilus means “lover of God”, and for that reason some think that the book was written to people who love God and not to a single person. (SourceView Bible p. 1315) I believe that either way it was written for people who were outside of the inner circle.
Luke was detail oriented. I have to say, very very very detail oriented. He starts the first chapter of this book by letting his reader(s) know that other people have written about the same events (verse 1), and then he let the reader(s) that he has “carefully investigated everything from the beginning” he also decided to write an account like the others (verse 3).
Another detail that he added is a very exhaustive genealogy, so much that it goes back to Adam who “was the son of God.” (Luke 3:38) I feel he went that far because he wanted to let all the people that we are all descendants of God and that He cares for ALL of us regardless of our nationality or background. I personally really appreciate this because I’m not a Jew, so I feel like Luke wrote this book for me (and people like me, the gentiles). I believe Luke also paid special attention to details about things that would prove the importance of reaching the rest of the people. He recorded this story that Jesus told, when the other gospels did not:
“Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner—a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian.” (Luke 4:24-27)
Please note two things: the first one is that the actual story happened in the Old Testament, “Elijah’s time” and “in the time of the prophet Elisha”. And the second thing is that the two people mentioned by Jesus are not from Israel, they are gentiles, yet Elijah and Elisha helped them.
I believe that the main idea of this whole book is that God’s love is not restricted by nationalities or country borders! His love is for everyone! This topic is supported by the fact that Luke records a lot of personal encounters with Jesus. And most of them were “underdogs”. For example, in this gospel, Jesus is talking, helping, delivering and showing his love to women, foreigners, the sick, the lost, the broken, the poor, the needy, the suffering, the powerless and the despised! (SourceView Bible p. 1315)
The primary reason why this book was written is to bring the good news of a Savior to all people! The opportunity of salvation had to be presented to all regardless of origin:
“One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. Then he sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” (Luke 9:1-2)
I do not see any fine print there or exceptions here. Do you?
Theme tracing
Nothing is impossible with God. (1:37)
God is a father… to Adam (3:38)
He is an abundant provider (5:6-7)
Jesus is the Lord over everything, “even over the Sabbath” (6:5)
God is compassionate and He urges us to be like Him (6:36)
Jesus is God’s son, God’s “Chosen One” (9:35)
God cares for us [even more than He does care for birds!] (12:24)
What does this book show about God’s redemptive plan for mankind?
For me the story of the man who prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations is the key to the redemptive plan of God presented in this book. Here is the story in Luke 14:16-24
Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I now have a wife, so I can’t come.’
“The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’”
The way I read this story is that God invited the Hebrew people to be His special people, His chosen people, but they decided they had other things to do, other gods to worship and finally, they even killed Jesus, His son, His messenger. So, God decided to “invite” other people to His banquet… and the gentiles are that other people! And they did attend… there are many followers of Christ outside of the Jewish faith nowadays. I know, that in the way I’m saying it seems like as if God changed His mind, but I think His plan of salvation was for all humanity from the very beginning. I just feel like as if He wanted to bless the whole humanity through Israel, but when they failed to do so, He decided to continue the plan with or without them. And because He loves everyone, and wants all people to be saved, all people are welcome to follow Him, and to love Him over everything and anything. Even those who decided long ago not to follow Him…
Personal application
I was really challenged and encouraged at the same time with the idea of abundant provision from God. I don’t want to go into the whole idea of the “Prosperity Gospel” [a quick search online will tell what that is, if you are not familiar with that theory] because I see Jesus blessing everybody, giving food to His followers and to the rest alike. I see Jesus healing ALL the sick in the towns, not only those who followed Him. He even stated that He had come to cure the sick, not the healthy, referring to the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. And even then, He tried to reach them as well, but they refused His teachings, it’s a shame, they were so close to salvation but they did not recognize it.
I also noticed that in this book there are a few Timeless Truths but one called my attention more powerfully than the others:
“…When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.” (Luke 12:48)
This has been a personal concern of mine since I started reading and studying the Bible, because the more I know, the more responsibility I have… and more and more is required of me every time I learn more about the Bible. I know that it is a weird way to think about knowledge, but it is true, because knowledge equals power, and the more power you have, the more you are asked to do and to deliver accordingly. Right? Is a timeless truth, no matter what religion you are from, or even if you are not part of a religion, in jobs and at academic levels, the more you know, the more you earn. The more you know, the more you are entrusted with. Anyway, I feel encouraged to continue learning. After all, the more you know, the more you can help others… because…
“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones…” (Luke 16:10)
Point of passion
Well, well, well… I also found a lot of food and provision in these pages! But I want to concentrate in only a couple of examples…
The “last supper”, well, I usually say that the best thing to do is to have good food with good people. And Jesus had His last meal with the people who were the closest to Him! He even shared that last meal time with the person who was going to betray Him. That really speaks to me, because Jesus was so in tune with what He preached that He invited His enemies to eat with Him. I am not at that level… yet.
The other thing that called my attention is that when Jesus was in tempted by the devil, He was very hungry, because He had been tempted for 40 days! And the first interaction we read about between the two of them has to do with food; the devil told Jesus “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become a loaf of bread.” (4:3) And Jesus replied “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone’.” (4:4) And sometimes I feel like I live for eating! And not the other way around! However, this passage, encourages me to see food for what it is, fuel to accomplish other goals in our lives. I also believe that Jesus was referring to the fact that we not only need physical food, but we also need the spiritual nourishment.
Now, I have to say this in the most respectful way possible, I know this scripture to be true… I cannot live only on bread alone, I also need steak.
Hurry up and wait!
Mark
First impression: finding the context
Because of the allusions to Roman customs make it clear that this Gospel was written to the believer who lived in Rome. (SourceView Bible p. 1283)
Mark, also called John Mark in other books of the NT [New Testament] wrote this book which carries his own name. Now, some people believe that this account should be named after Peter because even when John Mark was who wrote it, because he was Peter’s translator, it seems like Mark is recording the Gospel according to Peter! (SourceView Bible p. 1283) Mark is an interesting book because, unlike the other Gospels, it does not start with the genealogy of Jesus. He jumps right into the action! He talks about the messenger that was to come before the Messiah, John (Mark 1:1-8) He seems to be in a bit of a rush to tell everyone about Jesus’ ministry.
What are the main themes, and repeated ideas in this book, and what is a one sentence summary of the “main idea”?
Mark is also the Gospel in which I noticed the words “immediately” and “instantly” are used the most times! Things just happened quicker for Mark, I guess.
The main idea I would say is the fact that Jesus did not “…come to be served but to serve others and to give his life as ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) Mark captures Jesus’ story in an action novel that can be read quickly. We need to remember that he is writing this Gospel during the persecution period. So, the faster the better, and even then, Mark made sure to include many of Jesus’ miracles and stories!
What is the primary reason this book was written?
Mark wanted to encourage the suffering believers of Rome and the world. What can encourage you more than the story of Jesus, who came to this world to fulfill the prophecies, even the one about His own death. They all needed to hear that even when the Messiah was killed, He rose from the dead and went to heaven to prepare a place for His followers in heaven! They needed to hear the miracles and the teachings of Jesus, to remember Him, and His teachings, so that they could pass the knowledge on. And Mark encourages people by telling them that Jesus’ last word were these:
“Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.” (Mark 16:15-18)
Good job Mark, good job!
Theme tracing
God/Jesus is:
Holy (1:24)
Full of authority (1:27)
A healer (2:11 / 6:56)
A teacher (4:1)
The disciples’ tutor (4:34)
Our provider (6:8-9)
Cool, He can walk on water (6:48)
The Messiah (8:29)
Powerful (12:24)
The God of the living, not the dead (12:27)
The One and Only Lord (12:29)
As far as a Redemptive plan… Mark recorded these words from Jesus:
Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:34-38)
The message is clear, whoever gives their live for Jesus’ sake, will save it. And over all things, protect and treasure your soul, because no matter what you get in this life, if you lose your soul, you got nothing left!
Personal application
My timeless truth is that everything is possible with God. (10:27) The disciples thought that no one could attain salvation, and Jesus basically answered “indeed”, but He right away added that with God’s help there is no impossible thing.
I am encouraged in the area of faith because many of the miracles occurred because of the person’s faith… for example the woman who had a constant bleeding for 12 years! He thought to herself “If I can touch His robe, I will be healed” (Mark 5:28) So, she came as close as she could and touched the very corner of Jesus robe… and guess what? Yes, she got healed instantly! So, I want to have more faith, a faith like that, a “little corner” faith!
Point of passion
I want to share this story because it applies to my Point of Passion, which is provision for the poor and the needy. But in this case it is used the wrong way! Please pay attention to the motives of the heart of the different character in the story:
Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard. She broke open the jar and poured the perfume over his head.
Some of those at the table were indignant. “Why waste such expensive perfume?” they asked. “It could have been sold for a year’s wages and the money given to the poor!” So they scolded her harshly.
But Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why criticize her for doing such a good thing to me? You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could and has anointed my body for burial ahead of time. I tell you the truth, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.” (Mark 4:3-9)
And here we are, thousands of years later, talking about this woman and her actions. She spent a lot of money [a year’s wages] to get this perfume and then she just poured all in Jesus’ head. And I can almost hear the people at the table, giving her a hard time for “wasting” this expensive perfume, instead of doing “the right thing” and giving all that money to the poor. But I love Jesus’ response, about Him only being with them for a short season and the poor being with us for all of our days. And here we are, with the poor still among us!
I think the guys at the table were right in paper, as far as written laws go, but they did not see the heart of the woman. And Jesus opened their eyes to the fact that this woman was preparing Him for Burial, because after His death, there was not going to be time for the proper preparations. But only He knew these things…
I need to remember to have my heart at the right place as well. And not to be only thinking about the price of things but also about the purpose of things…
Knock knock! Who's there?
Matthew
First impression: finding the context
The New Testament… I did not think I was going to make it this far! We finished reading the Old Testament last week. We rested over the weekend and started with new strength this week. I know I’m not the Original Reader, but I’m enjoying the read.
The OR of this book was the Jews of Jesus’ time, approximately in the middle of the 1st century, probably only a few decades after the events of Jesus’ life and ministry. (SourceView Bible p.1235) Another piece of information to back this up, is the first chapter of Matthew, it starts right away with the genealogy of Jesus, to trace it back to Abraham, and going by King David [just like the prophecies said!] (Matthew 1:1-16). And right before and after that family name dropping Matthew states that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus also sent his disciples, in Matthew, telling them: “Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, but only to the people of Israel - God’s lost sheep.” (Matthew 10:5-6)
The Author of this book is Matthew himself. A tax collector for the Roman empire, was a very interesting addition to Jesus crew, especially because no one liked the tax collectors. Common people told they were evil puppets of the Empire and Pharisees and Teachers of the Law called them “sinners” with no hesitation! Yet Matthew was invited by Jesus himself for a long walk with Him. Matthew paid attention and recorded everything that seemed important to him.
This book was written as “irrefutable proof that the long-awaited Jewish Messiah had come to inaugurate God’s kingdom on earth.” (SourceView Bible p. 1235) Matthew backs this up with several references to the Old Testament (that Jesus mentioned). For example:
“This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says,
‘When you hear what I say,
you will not understand.
When you see what I do,
you will not comprehend.
For the hearts of these people are hardened,
and their ears cannot hear,
and they have closed their eyes—
so their eyes cannot see,
and their ears cannot hear,
and their hearts cannot understand,
and they cannot turn to me
and let me heal them.’” (Matthew 13: 14-15)
And this prophecy is in itself the very thing that is repeated in the whole book: Jesus talks to the people in parables, they don’t understand; they see the miracles but they don’t comprehend; and they don’t turn to Him so He can heal their hearts. The other thing that is also a repeated theme is that Jesus fulfilled many of the Old Testament prophecies.
Theme tracing
What does this book show about the character and nature of God?
This is the first book of the New Testament, therefore, it talks a lot about Jesus, so my references to God’s character will include characteristics of both, the Father and the Son alike. He is:
Just, He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good (5:45)
Perfect, and He wants us to be like the Father in Heaven is (5:48)
Compassionate, Jesus always healed the sick (14:14)
Abundant provider (five thousand men fed 14:15-25 & four thousand men fed 15:32-39)
Humble King (21:5)
What does this book show about God’s redemptive plan for mankind?
The book of Matthew closes with the last instruction from Jesus. At this point, He had been crucified, buried and risen! This is what He told His disciples:
“I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
I feel very encouraged by this because plan of salvation is for all nations. At the beginning of the book, I read that Jesus was sent to the Jews, and in the process of the book that view changed. For one reason or another, it really don’t matter. The important thing is by the end of Matthew, everyone is invited to be a disciple of Jesus and to partake on salvation!
Personal application
Is there a timeless truth, or maybe a specific verse, or perhaps the main idea of the book you are studying that is challenging you in your life?
I am proud in the areas that I am proficient or good at… and this book has been challenging me in that exact area. For Jesus told the crowd one day:
“And don’t let anyone call you ‘Teacher,’ for you have only one teacher, the Messiah. The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:10-12)
So, I see that the proud are going down… I’ll keep working on this one. I want to say that I’m improving, but that might take me a few steps back!
What area of your life is God encouraging you, convincing you or empowering you in through this book?
So much food… that encourages me any given day! But in all seriousness it helps me to see that Jesus can create so much food from so little resources. I know I can trust Him to come with us in the Food Trucks and provide us with endless “fish & bread”! I feel very encouraged, because I usually worry about the price of the trucks and then gas, and then food… but I know all things are possible with God. So, no more worries for me about those trucks!
Point of passion
I have read parts of the Bible in my life… but never had I read complete books, especially not this many in a row. And this is the first time I read a Gospel complete.
I read of the genealogy of Jesus, I read about Him before He was even there. He was a prophecy, hundreds of years before. A promise of redemption. A future King who would deliver them… that really sounded like a new world order if you did not read that He [the Messiah] was going to be humble and ride on a donkey. And the problem is that maybe no prophet said that He was going to be feeding and healing gentiles… and no one said that He was there to bring a new covenant, not to abolish the old one, but to fulfill it.
Expectation versus reality. It was hard to come to the conclusion that Jesus was not what they were waiting so many years for. He was not who they thought He was going to be. And the easy thing to do was to say that He was not “the one” they were waiting for, kill Him and then keep on waiting.
My point of passion for the New Testament has not changed a bit, but I wanted to say that we need to adjust our expectations to our reality or else, we might miss the main point.
Jesus was a provider of health, of food and ultimately of truth. And He did not just give these things in a regular way, but he made it rain! He provided in abundant ways! And I am feeling like these elements need to go together, and when I go on the streets to feed the homeless and the needy (at least once a week) I try to be available to talk about anything they want to talk about. I don’t think that my job is to indoctrinate them about the Bible, Jesus and/or God in any way. Not until they ask for that. I feel like the Gospel has been sold to the homeless and the poor with food… and I don’t want any part on that, not today, not tomorrow, not ever!
Friday, November 22, 2013
Fairy Tales and Curses
Esther
The book of Esther is very
inspirational. It itself it is like a “self-help” book [or whatever you call
those books]. And I would not be surprised if Disney got some inspiration for
his princess stories from the book of Esther! So, I tried really hard to get
the obvious love story out of the way, so that I could see more clearly, and I
found that it is kind of a business strategy
account. If you ever read a book about starting a business or “how to
become a better boss” kind of book, you will find that the clue is never to be
the smartest or fastest of the pack. However, those attributes help. It is
almost always [if not always] about being at the right place, at the right
time. And Esther was, without a doubt, very good at this. But she is not the
only one! Mordecai was always right at the success point, as well! He overheard
a conversation, that saved the Kings life, for what he got no recognition, but
sometime later the King repaid him and that changed the whole outcome of the
story! [I don’t want to spoil the end of the book, in case you haven’t read
it!]
So, I was encouraged by being at the
right place at the right moment. Right here, right now.
Point of Passion:
I really like festivals and parties,
do you know why? Exactly, they all have food! There is a festival that is born
in the time of Esther and it is called Purim. I found a very good explanation
of it in chapter 9, verse 22:
“He
[Mordecai] told them to celebrate these days with feasting and gladness and by
giving gifts of food to each other and presents to the poor. This would
commemorate a time when the Jews gained relief from their enemies, when their
sorrow was turned into gladness and their mourning into joy.”
And when I read this lines it made
me think about Christmas and how we wrap gifts and give them to our loved ones!
So this year, I’ll wrap a few presents and I’ll go look for a few poor people
and I will give them a Christmas gift. Does that sound like a good plan? If it
does, I urge you to do the same, but remember, it does not need to be something
very expensive, but it does need to be something useful for a poor person. Do
some research in your area or click here for a nice idea on this project…
Zechariah
I have to say that this book is one
of those which leave wondering “what did I just read?” And there are so many
things that I’m still trying to understand, and I will continue to ponder about
them for a while. But as far as a timeless truth that I can extract from its
lines, I would have to say that it is the fact that no matter how discouraged
you are, you should look past the present and focus on the goal. The
construction of the Temple was the task they were to complete, however, though
Zechariah’s visions the people of Judah were able to see “God’s purposes beyond
the restored Temple.” (SourceView Bible p.1213) The book ends talking about the
day when “even the harness bells of the horses will be inscribed with these
words: HOLY TO THE LORD.” (14:20) And people knew that they were far from that
day, but they needed to get ready for that very important day, when even the most
mundane thing in the world would be Holy to the Lord!
Point of Passion:
In all the countries of the world,
we have laws. I guess some countries have more laws that others, but we all
seem to need guidelines to live our lives, or else it would be a disaster 24/7.
In the Bible times, it was no different. And even when they had the written
law, they seemed to need a friendly reminder every once in a while. Here is one
from God himself:
“This
is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and
kindness to one another. Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and the
poor. And do not scheme against each other.” (7:9-10)
By the way, it seems very applicable
nowadays as well… we have not changed so much apparently. Now, this reminder affects
me in a different way because this time, God is even talking about the
foreigners, and I have been a foreigner in different places, and some people
have treated me good, and some others have treated me really lousily [I have to
say]. But sometimes I have treated foreigners good, and some other days, not so
good… so, thanks for the reminder!
I also hold this one closely because
now that I am married to a beautiful woman from another country I feel one way
or another, we will always have at least one foreigner in our family, it really
depends on what part of the world we are at in that precise moment…
Malachi - Application
Malachi gave me a great hope boost!
Because I feel like sometimes I think that God will not come back to me, but He
promised that if I come back to Him, He will certainly come back to me. And His
word is enough, because I have seen it done. Just this morning, one of our
staff for the class gave a nice devotional about purpose in life. And he said
that before he was born, his grandma had said that he would be a mouthpiece for
his generation. Those are very big words, but grandmas know what they are
doing. Then, in his teen years he went really far from this word, and tried to
get as far as possible from God as possible. And it sounded like he would never
come back to be able to be that “mouthpiece” he was supposed to be. And then,
one day, he came back to God, and started to disciple young people about God…
and without realizing it, he became a spokesperson, a teacher and a mouthpiece
for his generation. God redeems, even without our knowledge, we might realize
it later, but that’s a different story.
Point of Passion
I am impressed by how many times the
poor and the weak are mentioned in the Old Testament! When I started my “point
of passion” in the first weeks of the school, I did not expect to find so many
references to back up my passion for the poor and the homeless. And most of
them have been [so far] mostly about taking care of them, but every now and
then there is a warning and/or a judgment for those who don’t do it. Well, I
think is only fair enough that the last book of the OT, leaves us with a
warning/judgment message for those who do not help the weak:
“At
that time I will put you on trial. I am eager to witness against all sorcerers
and adulterers and liars. I will speak against those who cheat employees of
their wages, who oppress widows and orphans, or who deprive the foreigners
living among you of justice, for these people do not fear me,” says the Lord of
Heaven’s Armies.” (Malachi 3:5)
So, we better get on it…
Post Elixir Period
Ezra - book summary
The prophet Ezra wrote this book.
And the main purpose of it was to tell the story of the exiles coming back home
to the Promise Land! This is huge because Persia was the super power of the
time [after defeating Babylon], and King Cyrus had decided that it was better
to be loved that feared… so, he made a decree to let all exiles go back home! [Prophecy alert!!!! In Isaiah 44:26-28,
God tells Isaiah that “Cyrus” will decree to rebuild the cities and the temple.
That’s not really surprising unless you know that Cyrus, was born around two
hundred years after this word was given to the people of Israel. And the fact
that Cyrus was called by name gives me chills, because sometimes prophecies are
so general that we cannot tell with a 100% certainty that it already happened
or if it’s something that will happen in the future… but this one is a fact, it
did happen! King Cyrus of Persia, sent the Israelites back home and told them
to rebuild their city and the Temple! (Ezra 1:2-4)] Remember that it’s been
around 70 years for the Israelites in Babylon. They continued their lives, they
married and had kids, and maybe their kids had kids of their own! So, not
everyone wanted to go back, and in fact only a small portion of Israelite
exiles went back with Zerubbabel [first wave] to rebuild the Temple (Chapter
1-6). And then Ezra himself lead another wave of exiles back home with the
intention of rebuilding the spiritual condition of the people! (Chapters 7-10)
Character of God:
God takes care of His people:
“Ezra
arrived in Jerusalem in August of that year. He had arranged to leave Babylon
on April 8, the first day of the new year, and he arrived at Jerusalem on
August 4, for the gracious hand of his
God was on him.” (Ezra 7:8-9 / 7:28 / 8:18)
God demonstrates unfailing love to Ezra (7:28)
God protects His people! (8:31)
Redemptive plan:
I see the redemptive plan in the
stages in which the book is set up:
1st step is to
reconstruct the temple and the 2nd step is to rebuild the people’s
spirituality so that they could come closer to God. Sin had separated the
people from God, both, physically [the destruction of their place of worship
and sacrifice / exile to foreign lands] and spiritually [they had intermarried
with people from other nations and followed their customs and practices]. And
right at the very end, in the last chapter, I can see that God puts in Ezra’s
heart to purify the people by analyzing the marriages and deciding if they were
to divorce their pagan wives, one case at a time. It took them around 3 months
to sort the whole thing out! And then the offenders offered a guilt offering to
the Lord to atone for their sin, cleansing themselves from this sin.
This to me seems to be a clear
representation of the atonement that Jesus presented when He died in the cross
to help us clean our very own sins and He took our consequences with Him to the
grave.
Nehemiah
The book of Nehemiah was written by
Ezra! The books of Ezra and Nehemiah were actually one book originally! The
book was written “to remind God’s people of their spiritual heritage and to
keep them from becoming careless toward the Lord.” (SourceView Bible p. 613)
You might be wondering at this point, why is the book named Nehemiah and not 2nd
Ezra or Ezra Reloaded? Well, these are actually the memoirs of Nehemiah, but
they were compiled by Ezra. I know, these Bible book namers…
Character of God:
Great and awesome! (Nehemiah 1:5)
He has a gracious hand (2:8)
He is the God of Heavens (2:20)
He is my God! (5:19)
Ezra praised the Lord, the great God (8:6)
Great and Almighty and awesome, and
keeps His unfailing love (9:32)
He punishes because he is just
(9:33)
He is compassionate (13:22)
The people or Judah said this about
God:
“May your glorious name be
praised! May it be exalted above all blessing and praise!
“You alone are the Lord. You
made the skies and the heavens and all the stars. You made the earth and the
seas and everything in them. You preserve them all, and the angels of heaven worship you.
“You are the Lord God, who chose
Abram and brought him from Ur of the Chaldeans and renamed him Abraham. When he
had proved himself faithful, you made a covenant with him to give him and his
descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites,
Jebusites, and Girgashites. And you have
done what you promised, for you are
always true to your word.” (9:5-8)
Redemptive plan:
Again the redemptive plan for the
people of Judah seems to be in steps… and the whole book of Nehemiah is calling
the attention to the “…political and
geographical restoration.” (SourceView Bible p. 613) Because Nehemiah was in
distress because he learned that the city of Jerusalem [still] did not have a wall
to protect itself and its citizens, God moved his heart to do something about
it! He was a cupbearer for the King of Persia, and when he told the King about
this issue that was making him sad, the King let him go and rebuild the wall of
Jerusalem. I feel this is the last necessary step for Jerusalem [and its
people] to be back on its feet, the restoration comes from the inside out! And
the final little stage is the outside of the city: the wall. We cannot be whole
if we don’t receive a tune-up from the inside-out! And I feel that exactly what
restoration, redemption and salvation share as common ground. The change will
be evident in all levels of our lives, just like Jerusalem needed a restoration
of the people, the temple and the outside walls!
Esther
This is a book full of providence. However, there is no mention of God
in this book! When I think about the story of Esther all I can think about is
like a domino effect type of account… one thing leads to another one, and then
the next one and everything is a chain reaction of the very first event.
The [unknown] writer of this book
knew a lot about the Persian laws, words and customs. He [she?] even knows the
layout of the palace, which means he lived in the very same time of the events,
and had access to the palace. In addition, this person was a devout Jew.
(SourceView Bible p. 634)
The book was written as a “dramatic
reminder to the Jews of God’s protection.” (SourceView Bible p. 634) And this
is even truer because of the fact that these Jews are the ones that did not go
back to Jerusalem, for one reason or another, but they decided to stay away
from “the promise land”.
God’s character:
Even when God is not mentioned in
the book of Esther, I can see His hand at work. For example:
The fact that Esther was instantly
treated better than the other young ladies by Hagai, the person in charge of
King Xerxes’ harem.
The fact that King Xerxes selected
her from all the other “contestants” to be the Queen of Persia!
And the key verse for me where I see
that God is in control and He takes care of His people is when Mortecai
(Esther’s uncle/adoptive father) tells her “Who knows if perhaps you were made
queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14) And that is because the Jews
living in the provinces of Persia were facing a death sentence, decreed by the
Haman, the enemy of the Jew, in the name of the King.
Redemptive plan:
God has a way to surprise us…
especially when the most unlikely underdog pulls of the biggest trick and wins
the game! In this case, I can see that not only was Esther a minority in the
Persian empire but also she had no chance of changing the futile future of her
people, unless something miraculous occurred. And it did! But I think my
favorite story is not hers but Mordecai’s, because he had an explicit enemy, a
person who hated him and the worst thing is that this person was the second in
charge of this whole empire. What were the odds that God would deliver him from
his enemy and help him overcome all his
problems to have a good life? Not only did that happen, but also he became a
“…prime minister, with authority next to that of King Xerxes himself. He was
very great among the Jews, who held him in high esteem, because he continued to
work for the good of his people and to speak up for all their descendants.”
(Esther 10:3) And that for me is the clue to restoration: doing the right thing
consistently. God will not forget those who do good, He wants to bless them! If
you need further proof… read Deuteronomy 28 (the whole chapter)
Haggai
The author of this book is the prophet Haggai, who actually only
prophesied for less than 4 months! His prophecies all came in the same year
between August 29th to December 18th! (SourceView Bible
p. 1208)
The message is directed to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of
Judah, and to Jehozadak, the high priest (1:1) to encourage them to start the
work on God’s house: the Temple!
Another thing I really liked is that God asks the people of Israel about
the original temple and its splendor, and tells them to be strong, because He
will fill this temple with His glory. God even says that this new temple will
be even greater than Solomon’s temple! (2:2) This is because this second Temple
was smaller and not as fancy as the original… but God knew that Jesus was going
to visit this Temple! And He knew that when Jesus walked inside this Temple,
the glory of God would be there again! It’s nice to think about the very first
time that Jesus visited this Temple at age 12 as the fulfillment of this
prophecy of God.
Haggai also asks an important question about cleanliness (2:11-12) -
There was not law to clean the unclean by touching them, it was actually the
other way around in the Old Testament: the clean would become unclean by
getting in contact with the unclean! Jesus changed this himself when He walked
on earth but we haven’t read that yet… just know that Jesus touched unclean
people and made them clean!
Character of God:
The Lord of Heaven’s Armies (Haggai 1:2)
He is with us
and that sparks our enthusiasm!
(1:13-14)
God is almighty and powerful,
He can shake earth and heaven and he can overthrow thrones and win wars
(2:21-22)
Redemptive plan:
This little book is only a page a
quarter in my Bible. It only contains four short messages from God, delivered
by Haggai. Yet, it is packed with promises and prophecies. But my favorite has
to be the one in chapter 2 verse 9:
“The
future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord
of Heaven’s Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the Lord of
Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”
And I like it so much because the
Temple once was a majestic creation… and then it got destroyed, burned to the
ground. And here is God telling them not to worry about it, not to put their
trust in things but in Him. He reassures that the past was good, but the future
is greater! And He tells people that He will bring peace to this place [the
Temple]. He is promising restoration for the Temple, but at the same time He is
promising to restore the people. To bless them and to prosper them! Because
they are being obedient. God promised me good… and He has spoken!
Zechariah
This is the most difficult book in the
Old Testament [after Ezekiel] and for the very same reason that Ezekiel is: the
visions.
Here is a quick list of the visions
(SourceView Bible p.1212):
A man among myrtle trees
Four horns and four blacksmiths
A man with a measuring line
Jeshua clothed before the Lord
A gold lampstand and two olive trees
A scroll flying
A basket with a woman sitting inside of it
Four chariots from two mountains
A crown placed in Jeshua’s head
Zechariah wrote this book. He was a
priest by birth and a prophet by calling. He was contemporaries with Ezra and
Haggai, and all of them pushed to rebuild the Temple. In a very special way,
Zechariah was like the “cheerleader” of the time! The people of Judah were
discouraged about building the Temple, and Zechariah was especially assigned to
bring their morale up. And he did a great job because his visions really
inspired the people, and even when the visions are hard to understand, right
after them comes the encouraging words of God, who does not stop to tell people
how much He loves them and wants them to finish the task at hand. And of
course, people go right away to finish the Temple!
Character of God:
He is…
The Lord (Zechariah 1:2)
Passionate about His love for His
people (1:14-15)
Holy (2:13)
The one “who stretched out the
heavens, laid the foundations of the earth, and formed the human spirit.”
(12:1)
Redemptive plan:
There are some books were it is hard
to see the redemptive plan plainly, Zechariah is not one of those. It is even
displayed in a nice order: reference to Jesus and then the redemptive plan!
Here are the passages in chapter 9:
“Rejoice, O people of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem!
Look, your king is coming to you.
He is righteous and victorious,
yet he is humble, riding on a
donkey—
riding on a donkey’s colt.” (9:9 Reference to Jesus!!!)
“I will remove the battle chariots
from Israel
and the warhorses from Jerusalem.
I will destroy all the weapons used
in battle,
and your king will bring peace to the nations.
His realm will stretch from sea to
sea
and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
Because of the covenant I made with
you,
sealed with blood,
I will free your prisoners
from death in a waterless dungeon.
Come back to the place of safety,
all you prisoners who still have hope!
I promise this very day
that I will repay two
blessings for each of your troubles.” (9:10-12)
I really enjoy the very last
sentence in which a promise is made where people who have had troubles will
receive a double amount of blessings… that’s a pretty good deal I’d say…
Malachi
Malachi means “my messenger”, and
for this reason many people believe that this is not the actual name of the
person who wrote it. I want to believe that this was his name, and it happened
to mean “my messenger”, which is very appropriate for a prophet of God. This
messenger of God was sent at a time when the Temple had been finished, and the
people were caught up into a worship “routine”. So he wrote this book to
“…confront the spirit of complacency and indifference that so easily overcomes
God’s people and their spiritual leaders.” (SourceView Bible p.1227)
This is book is mainly a
conversation between, the prophet, God, and the people! And there’s a lot of
questions asked, but many answers come back right away. Throughout the book I
cannot stop noticing how much God pushes for a relationship with His people.
Maybe it’s because this is the last book of the Old Testament, the last push
before 400 years [approximately] of silence from Him.
God…
…is not pleased with you (Malachi
1:10)
…is a great King, and his name is
feared among the nations (1:14)
…hates divorce (2:16)
…loves you so much that He is
sending a messenger who will prepare the way for Him! (3:1)
…is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
(4:1)
God’s redemptive plan:
This starts a little rough, but I
promise it gets better toward the end…
“I
am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not
already destroyed. Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my
decrees and failed to obey them. Now return to me,
and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)