Scattered stones.
Holy stones.
It caught my attention this morning.
I love reading through the entire Word of God this year. And I love reading it in a new translation. Both of these are causing things to jump out at me that I haven't noticed in all my years of studying the precious Scriptures.
"How the gold has grown dim,
how the pure gold is changed!
The holy stones lie scattered
at the head of every street." (Lamentations 4:1 ESV; emphasis mine)
The holy stones lie scattered...
Immediately upon reading that phrase, my mind jumped to Paul's words to the Gentile believers in Ephesians 2.
"For He himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility."
"So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In Him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit." (Eph. 2:14, 19-22; emphasis mine)
God's dwelling place.
Can you fathom it? GOD'S DWELLING PLACE!
Did God have to let it be completely destroyed, just like Jesus' body would be, in order to rescue His people from their sin...and to bring in the Gentiles as well?
In Moses' day, God dwelt in the tabernacle which He commanded Moses to build. The LORD's presence resided right over the mercy seat on the ark of the covenant. Moses could just walk right in and speak to God, or hear from God. His face even shone when he left God's presence!
In David's day, God dwelt in the makeshift tent the king erected to cover the ark of the covenant. God aparently loved this house so much--because of the wholehearted worship which took place within it--that He says He wants to rebuild it someday.
In his son Solomon's day, and from that day until the exile about which we just read, God dwelt in the temple in Jerusalem. He dwelt in the Holy of Holies behind the curtain that separated everyone except the high priest from God's presence upon the mercy seat. Was God tired of being separated from His people?
After the exile was over, and God's people returned to the promised land, they eventually rebuilt the temple--though not with near the beauty or glory of the original one. Could it be that God didn't really want another building to dwell within, but instead wanted His people's hearts?
Could it be that God was not only angry with His people for prostituting themselves to all manner of idols and ignoring His words through His prophets, but that our Heavenly Father downright missed the intimacy He experienced with David in that makeshift tent?
Could it be that, as His Word tells us, He knew us from the beginning of time and was ready to draw into His family not only the chosen nation but all nations?
Could it be that God Almighty was tired of being present only in a designated holy place like the tabernacle or the temple, and was instead ready to dwell in the hearts of every being made in His image who loved Him and gave their hearts to Him?
I am not a theologian or a doctrinal expert. These are just my ponderings from my time with Jesus this morning.
I cherish Jesus' words to the woman at the well. I come to Him, like her, for life-giving water that never fails: "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him." (John 4:23; emphasis mine)
"And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split." (Matt. 27:50-51; emphasis mine)
"When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appreared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and begain to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance." (Acts 2:1-4; emphasis mine)
"In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory." (Eph. 1:13-14; emphasis mine)
Could it be that when God seems to be destroying and taking away all we hold dear (as He did when the temple was destroyed), all we've ever known (as when God's people were taken captive into exile), that He has a much better plan prepared?
Would we be willing to trust that plan...to trust our God? That He will bring beauty from ashes, build a holy dwelling out of scattered stones, to the praise of His glory? Would we be willing to let Him smash us down, like the potter with the clay, so that He might rebuild us into something more glorious than we could have ever imagined?
I praise our glorious God, for I have seen Him do this in numerous ways this past week (after a very difficult and heart-wrenching week before), from a rescue baby with special needs provided the perfect home, to a college sister provided with an amazing last minute new practicum, to precious friends blessing us by meeting some needs that overwhelmed us, and many more. In many of these situations, what we thought was best was not God's best. His plan is always so much better! Thank you, Father, for always knowing what we need and providing nothing less than your best, even when the waiting is hard or long. May we always be willing to wait on You.
My memory verse, which I have been committing to memory to help me remember to trust my God when I cannot see the answer or the provision:
"Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my
salvation.
GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
He makes my feet like the deer's;
He makes me tread on my high places." (Habakkuk 3:17-19; emphasis mine)
For, dear friend, thanksgiving is the password into God's throne room. (see Psalm 100:4 in The Message)
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Driven Like a Peg...Nailed
So many portraits of Christ throughout Isaiah. Now I remember why it's one of my favorite books.
Here's a lesser known one...a good reminder to me...to us all.
"I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your sash on him, and will commit your authority to his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten [drive] him like a peg in a secure place, and he will become a throne of honor to his father's house. And they will hang on him the whole honor of his father's house...." Isaiah 22:21-24 ESV
Have you read the book Heaven is for Real? It's the account of almost 4-yr-old Colton Burpo's time in heaven when he died on the operating table. Absolutely precious! I love hearing him tell about heaven! As we read all of the descriptions of heaven and end times prophesies in Isaiah, I keep thinking of those child-like descriptions of the glories of heaven and the final battle.
Thank you, Jesus, for loving the children SO MUCH. And thank you for being driven...nailed...into a secure place for me.
Here's a lesser known one...a good reminder to me...to us all.
"I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your sash on him, and will commit your authority to his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten [drive] him like a peg in a secure place, and he will become a throne of honor to his father's house. And they will hang on him the whole honor of his father's house...." Isaiah 22:21-24 ESV
Have you read the book Heaven is for Real? It's the account of almost 4-yr-old Colton Burpo's time in heaven when he died on the operating table. Absolutely precious! I love hearing him tell about heaven! As we read all of the descriptions of heaven and end times prophesies in Isaiah, I keep thinking of those child-like descriptions of the glories of heaven and the final battle.
Thank you, Jesus, for loving the children SO MUCH. And thank you for being driven...nailed...into a secure place for me.
 |
| Prince of Peace by Akiane Kramarik, age 8 |
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
made in heaven
Just posted a short blog for our first rescue baby on my other blog "Loving for Jesus." Click the link below to view:
made in heaven
made in heaven
Saturday, July 9, 2011
A Love that Redeems
"Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." Isaiah 1:18-19, ESV
This week we began diving into the prophets of the Old Testament. For those of you new to the study of Scripture, there are two different categories of prophets: major prophets and minor prophets. We read from both this week. Amos and Hosea are minor prophets, while Isaiah is one of the major prophets. If your Bible has an introduction to each book, I encourage you to read that for each of these prophets so you understand what people/nation he was sent to prophesy and why.
As a teacher, I want to be so careful not to "spoon feed you" from my time in God's Word. You will only truly grow from YOUR time with the LORD in His Word. And yet, I want to make sure you get the most from your time of Bible reading so that you understand the significance of what you are reading. If I had not put myself under the discipleship of great teachers over the course of many years, I would not know what I do today and be able to continually learn more because of the historical background which I have. So right now, I feel the need to encourage you to do the same. If you really want to grow in your knowledge of God's Word, find a BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) or CBS (Community Bible Study) class to begin this fall when the new classes start (and do so quickly, because many classes fill up). I attended several years of BSF classes, along with many Beth Moore studies, and I am so daily thankful as I read my Bible and see the notes I took in the margin as I did those studies. As I am reading through the Bible this year, God is helping me to build upon that knowledge base. There is always something new to learn!
With that in mind, I want to point out a few significant things from our readings this week.
Speaking of Redeemer, I hope you took the time to read all of Hosea this week. That is a story of Redeeming Love. In fact, a wonderful Christian fiction writer has written a fantastic book that I know several of you have read, and it is completely based on Hosea taking a prostitute as his wife to be a real-life drama of God choosing us and loving us and redeeming us in the midst of our sin. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers is one of the best fictional books I have ever read, and I highly recommend it.
Finally, we whet our appetite with just the first four chapters of Isaiah, one of my favorite books in all of the Bible. A few fun facts about Isaiah:
There's more I could share about Isaiah, but I'll wait until we dive deeper into this beautiful portrait of our Savior. For now, soak up every word. It is beauty.
"In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel." Isaiah 4:2
This week we began diving into the prophets of the Old Testament. For those of you new to the study of Scripture, there are two different categories of prophets: major prophets and minor prophets. We read from both this week. Amos and Hosea are minor prophets, while Isaiah is one of the major prophets. If your Bible has an introduction to each book, I encourage you to read that for each of these prophets so you understand what people/nation he was sent to prophesy and why.
As a teacher, I want to be so careful not to "spoon feed you" from my time in God's Word. You will only truly grow from YOUR time with the LORD in His Word. And yet, I want to make sure you get the most from your time of Bible reading so that you understand the significance of what you are reading. If I had not put myself under the discipleship of great teachers over the course of many years, I would not know what I do today and be able to continually learn more because of the historical background which I have. So right now, I feel the need to encourage you to do the same. If you really want to grow in your knowledge of God's Word, find a BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) or CBS (Community Bible Study) class to begin this fall when the new classes start (and do so quickly, because many classes fill up). I attended several years of BSF classes, along with many Beth Moore studies, and I am so daily thankful as I read my Bible and see the notes I took in the margin as I did those studies. As I am reading through the Bible this year, God is helping me to build upon that knowledge base. There is always something new to learn!
With that in mind, I want to point out a few significant things from our readings this week.
- Read Amos 8:11-12. Amos prophesies what kind of famine? For what will all people be desperately searching?
- What Amos prophesies to the people of Israel and Judah comes true after the last words of Malachi the prophet (the last book of the Old Testament). God's people will have a time of silence from God--no more prophetic visions, no more angelic appearances, no more words from the Sovereign LORD...for 400 years! Sound familiar? Think back to the time between Joseph and Moses, when God's people were in slavery in Egypt. Just as God promised to send a deliverer to His people in bondage to Pharoah, so God now promises to send a Deliverer to His people in bondage to sin.
- Read what Malachi prophesies in Malachi 4:5-6. Who will come to break the silence of God? What else will he do?
- Now turn to Luke 1:5-19...and watch God's story unfold!
- Who broke the silence? (hint: he stands in the presence of God; v. 19)
- Who was the promised prophet to come in the spirit and power of Elijah? (Read more about his ministry in John 1:19-34.)
- What was John the Baptist's sole purpose in life? (hint: see the end of v. 17; compare with Mark 1:2-9)
Speaking of Redeemer, I hope you took the time to read all of Hosea this week. That is a story of Redeeming Love. In fact, a wonderful Christian fiction writer has written a fantastic book that I know several of you have read, and it is completely based on Hosea taking a prostitute as his wife to be a real-life drama of God choosing us and loving us and redeeming us in the midst of our sin. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers is one of the best fictional books I have ever read, and I highly recommend it.
Finally, we whet our appetite with just the first four chapters of Isaiah, one of my favorite books in all of the Bible. A few fun facts about Isaiah:
- the Bible has 66 books; Isaiah has 66 chapters
- the first 39 books of the Bible are Old Testament; the first 39 chapters of Isaiah prophesy mainly about events leading up to Captivity (God's judgement of Israel)
- the last 27 books of the Bible are New Testament; the last 27 books of Isaiah prophesy about events beyond the Captivity (God's redemption of Israel)
- the keyword of Isaiah is "salvation"
- Isaiah is the prophet of redemption; his name means "Salvation of Jehovah."
- Messianic prophesies (prophesy the coming of the Messiah--Jesus): Isaiah 2:4; 7:14; 9:2,6; 11:10; 28:16; 42:1; 53(most often quoted Old Testament chapter in the New Testament); 59:16; 61:1; 63:1
(some of the above is from the Thompson Chain-Reference comprehensive Bible helps)
There's more I could share about Isaiah, but I'll wait until we dive deeper into this beautiful portrait of our Savior. For now, soak up every word. It is beauty.
"In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel." Isaiah 4:2
Monday, June 20, 2011
tip for bible readings
Good morning ladies--
I wanted to make a quick suggestion this morning as we begin reading about all the kings of Israel and Judah. When I first studied these books, a teacher suggested we do this and it was SO helpful. If you have not read my blog yet about the Divided Kingdom, read that to understand what I'm talking about.
Use a blue colored pencil to underline (or mark however you choose) the kings of Judah (because blue is the Davidic color of the Jews).
Use a red colored pencil to mark the kings of Israel.
This will help you keep from getting confused which nation is being referred to. Remember, Judahbegins with Rehoboam (Solomon's son), so he and each of his successive descendants will be blue. Israel begins with Jeroboam. So he and each of his successive descendants will be red. You may even want to go back to the last day of last week and mark those kings at the beginning of their reigns.
This is when our readings become like a novel again, learning the history of God's people and why the Jewish nation was longing so desperately for Messiah to come. Enjoy!
Would you believe my bible fell open to this prophecy this morning?
"There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms...They will be my people, and I will be their God." (Ezekiel 37:22b, 23b)
O the joy of knowing the end of the story...that Messiah will come and reign!!!!!!!!!!
Love you gals,
Julie
Saturday, June 18, 2011
A Kingdom Divided
Something very significant happened in our Bible readings this week. If this is the first time you've read through God's Word, you may not have noticed this huge event, so I want to be sure and point it out to you.
First, however, I want to have you take a look at some passages from Jesus' life. Are you familiar with the story of the Samaritan woman in John 4? She was the woman at the well to whom Jesus spoke and asked for a drink of water.
5So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
7A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." 8(For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." 11The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock." 13Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,14but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." 15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water." (John 4:5-15)
This is an incredibly powerful story that gets even better, and I could write and talk about it all day (I have before, at women's retreats!). But the Living Water is not my point today--although He is the greatest thing we could ever thirst for, and the ONLY thing that truly satisfies!
Did you notice what the woman said about Jews associating with Samaritans? Then she brought up that bit about her father Jacob (renamed Israel) and that well of his from which she was drawing water. See Genesis 33:19 and Joshua 24:32 for the references about Jacob's well. Now read a little more of Jesus' conversation with this Samaritan woman.
20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship." 21Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." 25The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things." 26Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he." (John 4:20-26)
Wow! What an encounter! Her life was never the same.
What I want you to notice is the discussion about which mountain God is supposed to be worshipped upon, and worshipping what you do know versus what you don't know. IT ALL STARTED IN OUR READINGS THIS WEEK.
Sadly, as we read about the end of Solomon's life, we watched him fall into the sin of idol worship. He disobeyed God's command to not marry foreign women, for God knew they would lead him to worship their gods. The wisest man ever became very foolish at the end of his life. Actually, I don't think it was foolishness and much as laziness. He let down his guard, and that was not good. What's worse? His children and future descendants got to pay the price. Parents...take heed.
9And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice 10and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the LORD commanded. 11Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant. 12Yet for the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13However, I will not tear away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to your son, for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem that I have chosen." (1 Kings 11:9-13)
Consequences. Now Solomon's son Rehoboam gets to reap them...and he sure did miss the boat on the wisdom given to his father. Take a look at 1 Kings 12 for the full story. Because God caused Rehoboam to be so foolish and take very foolish advice, the kingdom was almost completely ripped away from him. The people's words were pretty clear: "What portion do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, David." (1 Kings 12:16b)
The result of Solomon's sin of idolatry and his son Rehoboam's folly? "So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day." (1 Kings 12:19) Then the prophecy given to Jeroboam comes true, and all Israel goes to him to be their king.
"And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. There was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Judah only." (1 Kings 12:20; emphasis mine)
Notice that part in bold letters. Which tribe remains part of the house of David? Judah. They were called "Judaites"and eventually shortened to "Jews." Thus we now have the Jewish nation made up of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin ("When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin" 1 Kings 12:21). What happened to the other ten tribes? They followed Jeroboam as the "Israelites."
So from this point on throughout the history of God's people, we now have Judah (called the southern kingdom) and Israel (the northern kingdom). Judah...the Judaites...the Jews...were the ones who remained true to the faith of their fathers and continued the line of David. They worshipped God at the temple Solomon built in Jerusalem and kept God's laws.
The Israelites, however, mixed their worship of God with foreign gods, and as we read this week, Jeroboam sought to counterfeit the things of God by creating his own version for fear his people would go back to Jerusalem and follow Rehoboam instead.
26And Jeroboam said in his heart, "Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David. 27If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the LORD at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah." 28So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, "You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough. Behold your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt." 29And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 30Then this thing became a sin, for the people went as far as Dan to be before one. 31He also made temples on high places and appointed priests from among all the people, who were not of the Levites. 32And Jeroboam appointed a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he made. And he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made. 33He went up to the altar that he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the month that he had devised from his own heart. And he instituted a feast for the people of Israel and went up to the altar to make offerings. (1 Kings 12:26-33)
Does any of this sound familiar? Are you thinking "Aaron" and "the golden calf" while Moses was on Mt. Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments? He even used the same words: “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” (Exodus 32:4b) As Solomon said, "There is nothing new under the sun." (Ecc. 1:9)
The Jewish people became so disgusted with Israel (the other ten tribes) at the way they had profaned God's law and gone to worship other idols they they wanted to have nothing to do with them. They counted them their enemies. Samaria was a town in Israel among these ten tribes. Now does the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman make more sense? How about the story of the Good Samaritan who helped the Jewish man who was robbed and beaten on the road, and not a Jewish priest or a Levite would stop to help him, but rather his enemy?
What about this story?
11On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance 13and lifted up their voices, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." 14When he saw them he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went they were cleansed. 15Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. 17Then Jesus answered, "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?18Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" 19And he said to him, "Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well." (Luke 17:11-19, emphasis mine)
This is why we are reading through the Bible together. When you read it in it's entirety, it makes so much more sense and has tons more meaning. Now we understand why Jesus calls the Samaritan a "foreigner." Don't you love Jesus words to him? Don't you love that Jesus didn't just reserve healing and salvation for the Jews, but freely gives both to all who believe? That is the beauty of the Gospel--undeserved grace!
We are all "foreigners" when it comes to God's kingdom, because our sin has separated us from God and made us His enemies (Romans 5:10). But at the great exchange, we are clothed in Jesus' righteousness as He takes our sins upon Himself.
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed." (1 Peter 2:24)
O for the day when we all are made pure and are brought together in unity in the Kingdom of the Son He loves!
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." (Colossians 1:13-14)
First, however, I want to have you take a look at some passages from Jesus' life. Are you familiar with the story of the Samaritan woman in John 4? She was the woman at the well to whom Jesus spoke and asked for a drink of water.
5So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
7A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." 8(For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." 11The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock." 13Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,14but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." 15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water." (John 4:5-15)
This is an incredibly powerful story that gets even better, and I could write and talk about it all day (I have before, at women's retreats!). But the Living Water is not my point today--although He is the greatest thing we could ever thirst for, and the ONLY thing that truly satisfies!
Did you notice what the woman said about Jews associating with Samaritans? Then she brought up that bit about her father Jacob (renamed Israel) and that well of his from which she was drawing water. See Genesis 33:19 and Joshua 24:32 for the references about Jacob's well. Now read a little more of Jesus' conversation with this Samaritan woman.
20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship." 21Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." 25The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things." 26Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he." (John 4:20-26)
Wow! What an encounter! Her life was never the same.
What I want you to notice is the discussion about which mountain God is supposed to be worshipped upon, and worshipping what you do know versus what you don't know. IT ALL STARTED IN OUR READINGS THIS WEEK.
Sadly, as we read about the end of Solomon's life, we watched him fall into the sin of idol worship. He disobeyed God's command to not marry foreign women, for God knew they would lead him to worship their gods. The wisest man ever became very foolish at the end of his life. Actually, I don't think it was foolishness and much as laziness. He let down his guard, and that was not good. What's worse? His children and future descendants got to pay the price. Parents...take heed.
9And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice 10and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the LORD commanded. 11Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant. 12Yet for the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13However, I will not tear away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to your son, for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem that I have chosen." (1 Kings 11:9-13)
Consequences. Now Solomon's son Rehoboam gets to reap them...and he sure did miss the boat on the wisdom given to his father. Take a look at 1 Kings 12 for the full story. Because God caused Rehoboam to be so foolish and take very foolish advice, the kingdom was almost completely ripped away from him. The people's words were pretty clear: "What portion do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, David." (1 Kings 12:16b)
The result of Solomon's sin of idolatry and his son Rehoboam's folly? "So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day." (1 Kings 12:19) Then the prophecy given to Jeroboam comes true, and all Israel goes to him to be their king.
"And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. There was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Judah only." (1 Kings 12:20; emphasis mine)
Notice that part in bold letters. Which tribe remains part of the house of David? Judah. They were called "Judaites"and eventually shortened to "Jews." Thus we now have the Jewish nation made up of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin ("When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin" 1 Kings 12:21). What happened to the other ten tribes? They followed Jeroboam as the "Israelites."
So from this point on throughout the history of God's people, we now have Judah (called the southern kingdom) and Israel (the northern kingdom). Judah...the Judaites...the Jews...were the ones who remained true to the faith of their fathers and continued the line of David. They worshipped God at the temple Solomon built in Jerusalem and kept God's laws.
The Israelites, however, mixed their worship of God with foreign gods, and as we read this week, Jeroboam sought to counterfeit the things of God by creating his own version for fear his people would go back to Jerusalem and follow Rehoboam instead.
26And Jeroboam said in his heart, "Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David. 27If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the LORD at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah." 28So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, "You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough. Behold your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt." 29And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 30Then this thing became a sin, for the people went as far as Dan to be before one. 31He also made temples on high places and appointed priests from among all the people, who were not of the Levites. 32And Jeroboam appointed a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he made. And he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made. 33He went up to the altar that he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the month that he had devised from his own heart. And he instituted a feast for the people of Israel and went up to the altar to make offerings. (1 Kings 12:26-33)
Does any of this sound familiar? Are you thinking "Aaron" and "the golden calf" while Moses was on Mt. Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments? He even used the same words: “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” (Exodus 32:4b) As Solomon said, "There is nothing new under the sun." (Ecc. 1:9)
The Jewish people became so disgusted with Israel (the other ten tribes) at the way they had profaned God's law and gone to worship other idols they they wanted to have nothing to do with them. They counted them their enemies. Samaria was a town in Israel among these ten tribes. Now does the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman make more sense? How about the story of the Good Samaritan who helped the Jewish man who was robbed and beaten on the road, and not a Jewish priest or a Levite would stop to help him, but rather his enemy?
What about this story?
11On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance 13and lifted up their voices, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." 14When he saw them he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went they were cleansed. 15Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. 17Then Jesus answered, "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?18Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" 19And he said to him, "Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well." (Luke 17:11-19, emphasis mine)
This is why we are reading through the Bible together. When you read it in it's entirety, it makes so much more sense and has tons more meaning. Now we understand why Jesus calls the Samaritan a "foreigner." Don't you love Jesus words to him? Don't you love that Jesus didn't just reserve healing and salvation for the Jews, but freely gives both to all who believe? That is the beauty of the Gospel--undeserved grace!
We are all "foreigners" when it comes to God's kingdom, because our sin has separated us from God and made us His enemies (Romans 5:10). But at the great exchange, we are clothed in Jesus' righteousness as He takes our sins upon Himself.
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed." (1 Peter 2:24)
O for the day when we all are made pure and are brought together in unity in the Kingdom of the Son He loves!
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." (Colossians 1:13-14)
Friday, June 17, 2011
Overflow
Hi sweet sisters in Jesus--
In our recent "read thru the Bible" readings, we've read through most of Psalms and Proverbs, all of Song of Songs (whoo hoo!), and this week Ecclesiastes. What a ride. Are you getting wisdom yet? Those of us in the women's "Wising Up" study are getting an incredible serving of the main course of wisdom, enjoying every bite--even the bitter-sweet ones. I've lost count, but we have well over 20 precious ladies in this study, a few college girls even, and I'm loving it!
Life and ministry have been blessedly full lately, so I have found little time for blogging about our readings. I have enjoyed our Sunday morning discussions and will once again look forward to that this Sunday. But this morning, during my quiet time with Jesus, I responded to Him with a poem I felt compelled to share with you.
As some of you know, I've been reading the book One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. Powerful, powerful stuff. So after my Bible reading this morning and then a little reading in that book, I wrote the following prayer/poem in my journal. If you've read her book, you'll understand.
"Overflow"
Eucharisteo.
He must increase, I must decrease.
The best gifts are down lower and lower.
Joy.
O LORD, what are You teaching me?
Where are You taking me?
How are You shaping me?
I cannot see.
I hold Your hand and trust-walk with covered eyes, open heart.
A heart I fear is about to be pierced beyond bearing--but You know what that's like...and You bore it for me.
Home study in just three days.
Babies about to be born in jail.
Babies, toddlers, living on streets...in dirty motel rooms...in only You know where.
How did you ever get me here, LORD?
Who would have thought?
Holding homeless mama's hand in hospital before she gives birth.
Lying quiet next to precious children as they fall asleep in my home--Your home--when what they need is their own place to call "home."
When...how...did You do this in my life?
In their lives?
Intersect.
The Grace of God.
It has touched me in a new way.
Never the same.
Thank you, Jesus.
Never the same.
Empty.
I empty.
You fill.
Overflow.
love,
Julie
In our recent "read thru the Bible" readings, we've read through most of Psalms and Proverbs, all of Song of Songs (whoo hoo!), and this week Ecclesiastes. What a ride. Are you getting wisdom yet? Those of us in the women's "Wising Up" study are getting an incredible serving of the main course of wisdom, enjoying every bite--even the bitter-sweet ones. I've lost count, but we have well over 20 precious ladies in this study, a few college girls even, and I'm loving it!
Life and ministry have been blessedly full lately, so I have found little time for blogging about our readings. I have enjoyed our Sunday morning discussions and will once again look forward to that this Sunday. But this morning, during my quiet time with Jesus, I responded to Him with a poem I felt compelled to share with you.
As some of you know, I've been reading the book One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. Powerful, powerful stuff. So after my Bible reading this morning and then a little reading in that book, I wrote the following prayer/poem in my journal. If you've read her book, you'll understand.
"Overflow"
Eucharisteo.
He must increase, I must decrease.
The best gifts are down lower and lower.
Joy.
O LORD, what are You teaching me?
Where are You taking me?
How are You shaping me?
I cannot see.
I hold Your hand and trust-walk with covered eyes, open heart.
A heart I fear is about to be pierced beyond bearing--but You know what that's like...and You bore it for me.
Home study in just three days.
Babies about to be born in jail.
Babies, toddlers, living on streets...in dirty motel rooms...in only You know where.
How did you ever get me here, LORD?
Who would have thought?
Holding homeless mama's hand in hospital before she gives birth.
Lying quiet next to precious children as they fall asleep in my home--Your home--when what they need is their own place to call "home."
When...how...did You do this in my life?
In their lives?
Intersect.
The Grace of God.
It has touched me in a new way.
Never the same.
Thank you, Jesus.
Never the same.
Empty.
I empty.
You fill.
Overflow.
love,
Julie
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