Breaking Bread

relocation...

2006-06-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

I've moved this blog to http://markguinn.wordpress.com/
Also available at http://www.markguinn.com/

We're going through Genesis now. You should join us.

Isaiah 59-61

2006-04-29T15:33:00.000-07:00

Chapter 59: The reality of this life / of who I know myself to be / of the really tragic, disappointing consequences of sin.

Broken relationship to God (1-4)
Inability to affect change - we look for light but always find darkness (5-14)
Need for God - both for justice and for salvation - He had to do it himself and that's our only hope. (15-20)

Chapter 60: The reality of hope / of who God says I am and will be / of the faithful, sure promises and glory of God.

Glorified by God - his glory upon us - He will make us whole.
Repaid for wrongs - materially and morally - He will make things right.
Union with God - he will be their light - We will know Him fully and openly.

Chapter 61: The call to the priesthood.

To own God's agenda in the world - not just as our holy chores, but as our real desires and mission in life
Then you will be an agent of God's restoration - a kingdom of priests
Then you will enjoy the "double portion" - the blessing of the firstborn son - and JOY.

In the OT, there were these concentric circles of closeness to God: the high priest, then the priests and Levites, then the rest of the Israelites, then the rest of the world. All the tribes were part of God's covenant. All were in relationship with Him but that mostly consisted of receiving His blessings and coming to the temple a few times a year to kill an animal and receive the work of God. I think God is calling us to step up and become priests. Become part of the work of God. To look outward at how we can actually, physically (and spiritually) bring God's redemption into the lives of those around. To make sacrifices to see those things happen.

I think this is the Biblical answer to living in this crazy tension between chapters 59 and 60. To look past ourselves, our fulfillment, hurts, and whatever and begin meeting the needs of those around us. I don't know how to do that all the time, but I want to learn.

Mark

Isaiah 26-28: Now and Then

2006-02-15T10:59:00.000-08:00

Overall, we are still in the context of Isaiah trying to convince Judah and her kings to trust God and not foreign alliances to keep them safe. We are also still in the context of ch 24-25, the end of the present age, after the “day of the Lord”. These chapters are posed as a series of “now...but then...” statements (sometimes the “now...” is implied), to make us consider how we live and what we value.

I. Now you have war and unrest (ch7); then you will have total knowledge of peace. (ch26)

confidence in the right place (1-6)
desire in the right place (7-11)
salvation from the right place (12-21)

II. Now you are an unruly vineyard (ch5); then you will be fruitful again. (ch27)

has to do with their destiny and role in God's great story
has to do with the impact that they have
has to do with their discipline being purposeful and the nation being regathered
We are wild branches, grafted in (see Rom 11), and so have some part in the fruitfulness (see John 15), the discipline (see Heb 12), and the regathering (se

III.Now you value kings and cities (28:1-4); then you will value Me and My people. (28:5-6)

what do we think of as “cool”?
who do we think of as having it together?

IV.Now you are led by crooked, worldly, immature priests who teach only rules (28:7-15); then you will be led by the Jesus, the Cornerstone. (28:16-29)

they act like jerks and are offended when Isaiah calls them out
they have rejected God's rest and so God's Word sounds like childish rules
God will send the True Cornerstone.

See: Psalm 118:19-24; Acts 4:11; Rom. 9:30-33, 10:11; 1 Pet. 2:4-11 (so powerful)
Also interesting: Isa. 8:14-15, Dan 2:34-35, Zech. 12:1-5

God will do a new thing in saving the gentiles (v21-29)

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee; because he trusts Thee.” (26:3)

This verse, especially the King Jimmy, is the key to the whole passage for me. God can give us peace inside when the whole of our inside is “stayed on Him” - when it “stops with Him and rests on Him.” Charles Spurgeon gives the illustration of the body being at rest on a bed when every part of the body is resting on it. So the same with our souls (Heb. “yetser” meaning mind, thoughts, plans, imagination, our internal “form” or how God has made us tick). Every part must be at rest in God: our security, our desires, our salvation, our destiny, our fruitfulness, our ideas of what is “cool”, our righteousness - everything. That is God's challenge to me today.

Links:

Spurgeon on perfect peace - this is a long read, but insightful
Interesting insight into Jewish views of the sea and Leviathan - from Ray Van der Laan

Isaiah 15-25: God's heart for all nations

2006-02-08T09:26:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the long silence. I've had a lot on my plate and this blog has suffered. We went through ten chapters last night and it was pretty intense.

Ch. 15-23: Judgment on the nations

Assyria - will be destroyed and their yoke lifted
Philistia - God will destroy them by famine and Assyria will also attack them (fulfilled under Sargon II)
Moab - will be destroyed quickly in a night raid because of their pride; this will happen within three years.
Damascus (Aram) - cities will be destroy and only a remnant left
Cush (included modern Ethiopia, Sudan, and Somalia) - will be captured by the Egyptians and led away bare-bottomed.
Egypt - civil war and a tyranical king (happened in the late 8th century), at some future point the Nile will be dried up; they will be given bad leadership and advisors and will also be captured by Assyria (happened in 721BC).
Babylon - will be destroyed by Elam and Media (was fulfilled by Cyrus the Persian who was from Elam and ruled over Media). This will be a hopeful prophecy to Israel someday.
Edom - temporary relief from oppression, but more coming.
Arabia - Kedar (most significant Bedouin tribe) will be destroyed within a year (they were captured by Sargon II in 715BC)
Jerusalem (how offensive would it have been to be lumped in with all these pagan nations?) - though delivered from Assyria, they will still be destroyed because of their callousness and lack of faith. Shebna and Eliakim are personal examples.
Tyre (Phoenicia) - will be overthrown (happened in 701BC) and forbidden commerce for 70 years (happened from 700-630BC); prostitute theme prefigures whore of Babylon in Rev. 17

Ch. 24: Judgment on the whole earth

Brings equality (1-3)
Universally doled out - the curse is on everyone (4-13) - see Gen 3, Rom 5
Division - some destroyed, some sing praise (14-16)
God's judment is like water in a dam - the earth gets the overflow now, but someday it will all be released.
Even spiritual powers will be punished and the King will reign in Zion (see Rev 20)

Ch. 15-23: Mercy to the nations

God actually hates destroying people and nations - read 15:5, 16:7b-12 (that is definitely God speaking), 21:3, 22:4, Luke 13:34-35
God desires to bring everyone into the blessings of his people - 14:32, 16:1-7, 17:3,7-8, 18:7, 19:18-22, 21:12 (maybe) - see Exodus 12:38 - coming out of your own kingdom and becoming part of God's - a change in nationality
Even the bitter enemies of God and his people will turn to him and be accepted - 19:23-25

Ch. 25: Mercy to all peoples

Brings equality (1-5) - God brings down the high things and protects the poor
Universally available (6-9)

feast for all peoples - all who will have Him
will destroy the shroud of death and spiritual blindness
will swallow up death and remove the curse

Brings division (10-12) - Those who cling to their own kingdom will still be destroyed, but those who embrace Jesus and become part of God's people will avoid the judgment to be poured out (because Jesus already bore it for us).

I love the picture these chapters paint about God's love for all people and how much he hates destroying and punishing and mourns for the loss. I love that about our God.

Maps:

The world as known to the Hebrews - from Blueletterbible.org - kind of confusing, but lots of info
Nations mentioned in this passage: Assyria, Damascus (Aram), Cush, Babylon, Arabia, Tyre (Phoenicia), Philistia, Moab, Egypt, Edom, etc. (note: I don't necessarily agree with the theology posted on some of these sites, but they have a lot of maps)
Modern Egypt/Cush , Modern Palestine (Google maps)

Isaiah 5-6: When God Calls

2006-01-18T12:39:00.000-08:00

Luke 13:34-35 - on the way to be crucified, Jesus shows his feelings
God desire is ALWAYS that his people would turn to him so that he can cleanse them and use them to call others

Chapter 5: God’s Call to Israel – name means “He struggles with God”

He has revealed himself but they did not respond (1-7)
He speaks a word of rebuke (8-24)
He has sent and will send his discipline (25-30)

Chapter 6: God’s Call to Isaiah – name means “Yahweh is salvation”

He reveals himself to Isaiah (revelation of holiness – "God is great, God is good...")
He speaks a word of cleansing (revelation of atonement)
He sends Isaiah on His mission (revelation of love for the world)

Two paths:

Conviction > Rebuke > Discipline
Conviction > Cleansing > Commission

God is always wanting to reveal more of himself to us. If we respond to him, we grow as he reveals himself in stronger and better ways and we get to go with him on His mission. If we reject him, he must reveal himself in stronger and stronger discipline.

Gen. 3 - Adam sees God in the garden
Luke 5:1-11 - Peter sees Jesus in a new way (naturally)
Rev. 1 - John sees Jesus in a new way (supernaturally)
Ex. 34:29-35 - Moses sees God and his face glows

Some of us are really stuck at conviction because we, like Adam, are scared to look at the holiness of God. So let’s go there. Let’s think about, pray about, meditate on the glory of God, the holiness, the majesty, the fearful awesome wonder of the king on His throne. Let’s ask him to reveal himself – it could be like John or like Peter – so that our faces can reflect his glory like Moses. See 2 Cor. 3:7-18. That’s how I want to live.

Food for thought:
Read Hebrews 9:23-28, 10:12-14, and 12:18-29 and think about how these passages temper and enrich this passage. Isaiah was witness to this heavenly temple and benefited by the one sacrifice for all. That is crazy.

Other Resources:

A.W. Tozer - Knowledge of the Holy - this is an amazing book
A.W. Tozer - The Attributes of God - similar theme, but different book, also very good
John Piper on Isaiah 6 - This is amazing stuff. I was tempted to just read this sermon instead of trying to say anything of my own. Please read this.

Isaiah 2-6: God and His People

2006-01-11T11:35:00.000-08:00

God’s judgment and redemption are always tied up together. Even our four chapters tonight go back and forth. It’s like he can’t talk too long about punishing them without his Love bursting out in a glorious “but…”

Chapter 2: The Coming Kingdom brings perspective – thinking about what it will be like “in that day” – when God’s purposes are finally and fully realized – should change the way we live and what we value.

The Kingdom comes in blessing – image of Jewish feasts

People will know and recognize the Truth (2)

People will be hungry for righteousness and knowledge of God (3)

People will be happy for justice and not fight or oppress one another (4)

The Kingdom comes in judgment (universal)

We will see idols for what they are (6,8,18,20)

anything that exalts itself against the knowledge of God

We will see money, possessions, etc. for what they are (7,12-16)

fashion, success, comfort?

things that might not be idols still need to be seen correctly

We will be humbled and hide in fear (9-11,17,19,21)

The Kingdom should touch our lives

Live in the light of that day--live as if it’s real (5)

Don’t put hope or fear in men, including churches and leaders (22)

Chapter 3: The Coming Judgment brings discipline – this judgment is not some far off thing, but is coming specifically and immanently to you (7th century Israel), not for your destruction but your discipline. Key verses: 8-9

Remove supply and support (1-3)

Food and water

“pillars of the community”

Weaken government (4-7)

Anyone with even an outward symbol of nobility is made king (6)

Give oppressive leadership (12-26 and 4:1)

God never wants to see people oppressed, however he will sometimes give them leaders with the same character as the people. These leaders are corrupted by their power and end up oppressing the people, which is still a sin and God still holds them accountable for it.

The “women of Zion” are obviously upper class and probably are representative of the nobility as a whole who are flaunting their wealth and greed (as in 5:8)

Both a rebuke and an explanation

God still takes care of individuals (10,11)

Ruth in the midst of Judges

Esther in the midst of Babylonian/Persian exile

His promises to individuals are not negated

Chapter 4: The Coming Redemption brings hope

The Branch (2,4)

Will come “in that day” – like a shoot from the stump of an olive tree (to be expanded in ch. 11), see links below

Will restore dignity, wash filth, and cleanse bloodstains

Will partially fulfilled physically with the return from exile in Ezra/Nehemiah (branch/fruit would be botanical terms)

Will be absolutely fulfilled in the Messiah

The Remnant (3)

Will be called “holy”

All those “recorded among the living” – ref Rev 20:11-15?

The Glory (5-6)

The Lord will be with you as He was after the Exodus (pillar of smoke & fire)

The glory (manifestation of his holiness) will be a canopy – wedding terminology

Shelter and a hiding place

Chapter 5: The Complaints of the Coming King

Against the nation (1-7)

The Lord’s care in planting

The Lord’s deep disappointment in harvesting

The Lord’s method of discipline – remove protection

Jesus' references: Matthew 20:1-16 and John 15

Against individuals (8-23)

Finances – God owned the land (Lev 25:23b), but they were coveting other’s plots and oppressing the poor

a bad investment – will be destroyed

a bad return - crops are cursed – 90% loss (see Hag. 1)

Recreation – making an idol out of fun and pleasure

bondage–drinking early and all day; “strong drink” implies drunkenness— leads to destruction

flippancy—don’t regard the works of the Lord—leads to humbling, loss

Religion – relating to God, either open defiance or taking his name “in vain” (Heb. Shav = ‘deceit’)

burdened by sin (as in 1:4)

some in this state are defiant (“Bring it on!”)

some are hypocrites (“We want to see God…” in vain)

Morality – we are to accept God’s definitions of things

renaming – calling bad things names that sound good (aka marketing and political correctness)

explaining away

Intellect – trusting what they “know”; thinking they don’t need Isaiah’s message; can’t see our own sin

Justice – apparently aimed at judges and officials

should be real heroes and champions of the poor

instead they oppress others to pay for their own pleasures

The Consequences (24-30)

Complete destruction (root and blossom) – for individuals (24)

Calls to mind earthquake during Uzziah’s reign, roughly 750BC, see Amos 1:1, Zech. 14:5 (25)

Predicts the coming of the Assyrians (26-30)

What “woes” would God have for me? What would I throw to the “rodents and bats” if I saw the truth about God and my future? How would I live differently if I understood God’s present-yet-coming kingdom operating in my life and if I let God alone be exalted in me? These are the questions this text asks of me.

Links:

Significance of Olive Trees - from Ray Vander Laan, a well known expert on Jewish history and one of Rob Bell's mentors
Olive Trees - info and pictures from the same site

Isaiah 1-2

2006-01-04T14:19:00.000-08:00

These first two chapters talk about our attitude towards God. He is not fooled by our shinanigans.

Chapter 1: When God is not exalted

I. A Rebellious Nation

In spite of knowing better (2-3)
In spite of guilt (4)
In spite of punishment (5-9)

II. A Useless Religion – shocking after Hezekiah’s reforms

Offerings (10-13a) see Psalm 51
Meetings (13b-14) see 1 Cor 11:17
Prayers (15) see James 1
All meaningless without REPENTANCE

washing (16,18) – first requires cleansing from God by faith
doing (17,19-20) – also requires submission to God by obedience

III. A Gross Deterioration

The quality of kings (21-22) 2. The crimes of kings (23)
The cleanup of kings (24-26) – both removal and cleansing

IV. A Regret and Restoration

Restoration will come, both temporarily and eternally (26-28)
Idols will be exposed. What will we regret? (29-31) see 1 Cor 3:11-15

Chapter 2. When God alone is exalted

I. The Kingdom comes in blessing – “in the last days” – when God’s purpose’s find ultimate fulfillment

People will know and recognize the Truth (2)
People will be hungry for righteousness and knowledge of God (3)
People will be happy with justice and not fight or oppress one another (4)

II. The Kingdom comes in judgment

We will see idols for what they are (6,8,18,20)

Anything that exalts itself against the knowledge of God

We will see money, possessions, and “every lofty thing” for what they are (7,12-16)

Fashion, success, comfort?
Things that might not be idols still need to be seen correctly

We will be humbled and hide in fear (9-11,17,19,21) see Rev 16-18

III. The Kingdom touches our lives

Live in the light of that day; live as if it's real (5)
Don’t put hope or fear in men, including churches and leaders (22)

I pray that God would reveal Himself to us in such a way that we see our rebellion, religion, and idolatry for what it is; that we could learn a repentant heart and a right attitude toward Him. If we only saw the Truth instead of living in a bored, self-righteous sleep.

Isaiah: Introduction

2006-01-04T14:14:00.000-08:00

I want you to image for a minute that you live in Jerusalem. The year is 701BC and Hezekiah is king of Judah. He’s a good king who’s made sweeping religious and social reforms:

He reopened the temple during the first month of his reign
He purified it from the idolatrous practices his father Ahaz introduced
He re-instituted Passover and possibly other feasts in the Levitical calendar
He raised a lot of money for repairs to the temple and support of the Levites
He was one of the most prolific and innovative builders in Judah’s history

But there are problems with Assyria…

A huge empire about 500 miles northeast of Jerusalem (think upstate New York from Muncie)
Known cruelty to captives
Began really aggressive empire building in 745BC under Tiglath-Pileser III
It was a yearly ritual for the armies to go out and conquer more territory every spring
Devastated the northern kingdom of Israel in 721BC, deporting or killing almost everyone
704BC – Sennacherib becomes king of Asseria
Hezekiah withholds tribute – an act of open defiance
Assyria marches out, destroying Tyre (think Chicago from Muncie) first
They work their way down to Lachish (think Indianapolis), destroying every fortified city in Judah on the way. Capturing Lachish would have cut off help from Egypt.
At some point Hezekiah sends a bunch of gold and silver as tribute, but either it didn’t satisfy Sennacherib, or Hezekiah changed his mind and decided to trust the Lord instead.
Hezekiah fixes the walls of Jerusalem and gathers the people, rallying them to trust the Lord
Eventually Sennacherib surrounds Jerusalem, besieging it

A good picture of this would be the siege of Gondor from Return of the King. Or imagine what it would have been like to live in Baghdad, knowing what happened in the first Gulf War, knowing that they are strong, more numerous, and more technologically advanced, but if the inviding nation were much more cruel than Saddam Hussein ever dreamed of being. That’s how it MIGHT have felt to live through the siege of Jerusalem in 701.

So at some point in this story, Isaiah stands up in a marketplace, or the city gates, or maybe even the temple and gives a speech. He tells them how God sees their predicament, the real reasons why they are where they are, and what the future holds for them…

Who was Isaiah son of Amoz?

Long ministry during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, and probably Manasseh: two good kings, a bad one, a really good one, and a really, really bad one.
Probably married with at least two children
Probably had a group of disciples, maybe a “school of the prophets” like Elijah
Probably from an aristocratic background; seemed to have easy access to kings
Jewish tradition has him sawn in half by Manasseh (see Heb 11)

If the book were a movie:

Ch. 1-5 would set the stage
Then a flashback to the beginning: Isaiah’s call in ch. 6
Ch. 6-39 tell all the backstory, getting us caught up to the scene at the beginning and finishing the story
Ch. 40-66 would be a long, confusing-but-beautiful epilogue that would make much sense until the sequel comes out, but would introduce a new and enigmatic character and end on a hopeful, unfulfilling “To be continued…”

How do we interpret prophecy?

Humbly and carefully
Like someone doing shadow puppets with a flashlight, OT prophecy often has an immediate, concrete subject (like the hand) but is speaking poetically and typologically of something bigger (the shadow), which is God’s eternal kingdom.
Because God’s kingdom touches this present age in many ways – Jesus’ life and death, the Church, my life and choices, etc. – it can often be applied in many different contexts (just look at how the NT writers used the OT).

Links

The Taylor Prism - a picture of the Assyrian account of the siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC.
The text of this account - Sennacherib speaks (kings were known to inflate their accounts)

Isaiah: Authorship and Unity

2006-01-03T11:51:00.000-08:00

Except for one twelfth-century rogue rabbi, the authorship of Isaiah was never really questioned. With the rise of modern critical scholarship, though, it has become one of the most hotly debated books in the Old Testament. Most critical scholars hold that Isaiah son of Amoz and his disciples wrote the first 39 chapters, and some other prophet, known as "Deutero-Isaiah" wrote the second have of the book (ch. 40-66) after the Babylonian captivity. Some scholars would also divide ch. 56-66 into a third section written by a third prophet ("Trito-Isaiah") who lived after the return from captivity.

I have summarized the argument here for those who are interested in the debate. The important thing to remember, though, is that one can believe in multiple authors and still be a real Christian with a high respect for God's Word and one can believe in a single author and still be an educated and thinking person. So decide for yourself, but don't let it get in the way of hearing what the real Author has to say to us in the book itself.

Arguments for a single author:

Tradition: Jewish tradition and early Christian writers considered Isaiah son of Amoz to have written the whole book. The New Testament always refers to it as a unity. The Dead Sea Scrolls have the whole book in one scroll without a significant break between ch. 39 and 40 (in fact, a few lines from ch 40 are at the bottom of a column). While this doesn't prove anything historically, it carries some weight in my book.
Differences aren't conclusive: Isaiah was an accomplished writer who lived a long time. All writers change the way they write through the course of a lifetime, even from one setting to another (As a case in point, did you know that John "I-only-write-stupid-legal-thrillers" Grisham wrote the book from which the movie Christmas with the Kranks was made?). The theological differences are actually not as extreme as critics make them out to be, and certain words and phrases are used in both sections that are hardly used in any other prophetic books.
Anonymity: Who in the world wrote the second have of Isaiah? He was one of the greatest writers in the whole Bible and we don't have any mention of him anywhere until the 18th century?

Arguments for multiple authorship:

Style and focus: Abrupt change in style and vocabulary at chapter 40 - becomes more lofty and poetic whereas ch. 1-39 are more concrete and illustrative. Theologically, ch. 1-39 tend to focus more on themes of God's judment, 40-66 contain more hopeful material, dealing with the restoration of Israel.
Anonymity: Isaiah is not mentioned by name at all in ch. 40-66. (however, the same is true of 20-37)
Predictive prophecy: references to specific people (Cyrus of Persia) and situations (the Babylonian exile) that Isaiah son of Amoz shouldn't have any knowledge of 150 years before they happened. Many, though not all, scholars who take this view don't account for the supernatural nature of the text.

Links:

http://www.biblicalresources.info/pages/isaiah/unityofisaiah.html - a pretty thorough explanation of the argument for unity, without resorting to silly name-calling
http://www.cresourcei.org/isaiahunity.html - a good, thoughtful discussion of the issue by a Bible-believing (though admittedly more theologically liberal) Christian who believes in multiple authors

Isaiah on Wednesday nights

2006-01-03T11:04:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the first of a series of sermons on the book of Isaiah. I'm hoping we can use this blog as a way to supplement what goes on on Wednesday night. Please post comments and have discussions. If you know of good websites on the subject, post links. I certainly don't know everything.

Let's see if we can learn together how to live this stuff out instead of just being entertained (or not) by little Bible talks. Eh?

Mark

Missing God's party

2005-12-08T05:52:00.000-08:00

This morning I was reading Matthew 22:1-15, the parable of the wedding feast:

"The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. Again he sent out other slaves saying, 'Tell those who have been invited, "Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are {all} butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast."' But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. Then he said to his slaves, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find {there,} invite to the wedding feast.' Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests."

I'm always struck by the beginning of the parable, where those upright citizens who are originally invited reject their king and he is forced to invite everyone, both good and bad. It sends shivers of glee up and down my spine to think of Jesus' audience and how offensive that could be to them and any of us today who find ourselves in their religious shoes. However, I'm always troubled by the end of the parable where the king throws a man out for not wearing wedding clothes.

"But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?' And the man was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

I feel sorry for the poor bloke, you know? But I think there's something important here as well. I think it's important that we understand that God's grace comes on God's terms. We want to party 'til dawn with the King of Kings but we don't want to let him actually be king if it means giving up our right to choose what we do, what we believe, who we treat how, and all that.

How many of God's little parties will I miss in this life because I won't come to God on his own terms--because I want him to bless what I'm doing instead of accepting his "party clothes"? I want to give, but be sure I get credit. I want to serve people, but don't make me change my attitudes toward them. I want to pray and follow God's voice, but only insofar as it doesn't cut into my day or my comfort level too much. And in the end, how many of us may miss the Big Party because we didn't want to come dressed in the righteousness of Christ (that these party clothes are a free gift is the common interpretation, which I agree with and won't take time to argue). We didn't want to come as a forgiven sinner but as a religious bigshot with plenty of notches on our good-works gun.

Lord, help us not to miss your party because we're too busy and self-absorbed or because we're too stubborn and only come on our own terms. Lord, help me, especially.

Mark

Two kinds of food

2005-11-25T09:10:00.000-08:00

Last week I was reading in Joshua and I happened across these verses:

5:11 On the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched {grain.}
5:12 The manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the yield of the land of Canaan during that year.

Manna is a great thing. It's a beautiful example of God's provision and care for his people as well as the need to trust him for "daily bread." As such it's often applied symbolically to one's need to "spend quiet time with God" every day, using a similar metaphor to the title of this blog. But what about when the manna stops?

So as I was thinking about this, I thought of a verse in John:

John 4:34 Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.

Is there a point in the Christian life when simply spending time with the Lord is not enough to satisfy? This made me think of:

Hbr 5:12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food.
Hbr 5:13 For everyone who partakes {only} of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant.
Hbr 5:14 But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.

Could it be that the "solid food" the writer of Hebrews speaks of is actually not some more sophisticated teaching, but a deeper knowledge of God that is only born out of daily obedience--loving people in practical ways, obeying the little promptings of his Spirit, re-ordering our lives around God's values, and taking actual risk in doing so. The mature believer still takes some milk with his steak, but his doing of the Word allows a deeper capacity for and appreciation of his knowledge. I think that maybe this is what Jesus was speaking of when he said that his food is to do the will of his father, and that, in an imperfect metaphor, it is like eating the "fruit of the land."

So perhaps if the Scriptures are feeling dry and not as alive as they once did, I don't need to read for another hour every day, go to another conference or Bible study, or hear some fresh new teaching. Perhaps I'm just getting tired of milk. Perhaps it's time to step out and take a risk on yesterday's insight.

A challenge to my intellectual self and perhaps yours too.

Mark

NOTE: Symbolism is a touchy thing in Biblical interpretation. I believe that the Bible is both a historical text with an actual intended meaning and the living words of God. Thus we can't say that the text in Joshua is about "quiet times". It's about Israel entering the promised land. But we can say that "quiet times" are like this text. Just my hermeneutical two cents.

Who is this guy?

2005-08-10T15:11:00.000-07:00

1. I love the Lord Jesus more than anything.
2. I recently married a beautiful woman named Angela.
3. I just finished up a two year internship at Muncie Alliance Church in Muncie, IN. During that time we had classes on the Bible, missions, pastoral ministry, etc. and in the second year got a chance to teach a few classes. I had the honor of teaching Ephesians, Numbers, 1 Corinthians, Isaiah, and Romans, and I found that I really loved it. I also grew a lot as a person and hopefully added some depth to my faith.
4. Right now, we're still living in Muncie and waiting for what's next. In September we're going to Northern Ireland for three months as a part of that process. We made a blog about it, if you're interested.
5. I love music. I was a voice major at Taylor University and I also love some pickin' and grinnin'. I'm in a band called The Lions.
6. I like being ouside.

In homiletics you learn to reduce everything into a bulleted list - see it even works on people!

-mark

What is this all about?

2005-07-20T15:34:00.000-07:00

I thought it would be fun to make a blog to share my thoughts on different passages of scripture as I'm teaching or studying them. Hopefully in the next few weeks I'll have some time to commit to writing down the fruits of my class on the book of Romans. Peace.
-mark