Category Archives: Bible Stories

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March 15, 2018

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Bible Stories, God's Grace & Love, God's Plan, God's Promises, God's Word: The Bible, Salvation: A New You, Wisdom & Guidance

THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS

Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to the crowds. In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables. This fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet: “I will speak to you in parables. I will explain things hidden since the creation of the world.” [Matthew 13:34-35 (NLT)]

irisYesterday I wrote about Albert Einstein. The physicist was famous for his ability to replace complex scientific ideas with real-life scenarios called gedankenexperiments (thought experiments). For example, imagine that you have an identical twin. Immediately following birth, he is launched into space and travels through the universe nearly at the speed of light. When he returns, he’d be in his teens while you’d be planning your retirement. Time moved slower for your twin because the closer to the speed of light something travels the slower time moves for it. Never having studied physics (and not caring to start now), I think his scenario demonstrates the theory of relativity!

Gedankenexperiments is just a fancy German word for what Jesus did when he told parables; He took complex theological concepts and simplified them into everyday scenarios. When the Pharisees couldn’t understand why the ostracized, outcast and sinful were welcomed by Jesus as His followers, He could have given them a long-winded theological explanation. Instead, Jesus told them three parables. The first was about a shepherd who left his ninety-nine sheep safely in the sheepfold to search for one sheep that strayed. When the shepherd found it, he joyfully returned home with it and celebrated its rescue with friends. Jesus then told of a woman who lost one of her ten coins, searched carefully until she found it, and rejoiced when she did. Just in case the Pharisees didn’t get the point, He then told the parable of the lost son in which the rebellious son repents and returns home to his forgiving and loving father who also throws a party at the recovery of what had been lost. The second part of that parable, in which the elder brother begrudges the celebration welcoming his prodigal brother, was directed at the Pharisees. Did they see their resentment of the sinners at Jesus’s feet in the attitude of the self-righteous and unforgiving brother?

Like Einstein, Jesus used fictitious stories to illustrate a point or teach a lesson. That God doesn’t want to lose one of us, that He loves each of us so much that He seeks us, and that heaven rejoices at the repentance of one sinner were not new concepts to the Pharisees. Jesus presented these simple scenarios so they would understand that sinners are as valuable to God as lost sheep, money, and children are to shepherds, housewives, and fathers. Like Einstein’s thought experiments, however, His parables often weren’t understood. Their understanding, however, had nothing to do with either IQ or righteousness. Both Gedankenexperiments and Jesus’s parables were told in a way that only those who cared would ever understand them. The people who understood the parables, like those who understood Einstein, were the ones who cared enough to ask what they meant (which explains why the Pharisees never did get the point and I still don’t understand relativity!)

Christ taught in parables. Thereby the things of God were made more plain and easy to those willing to be taught, and at the same time more difficult and obscure to those who were willingly ignorant. [Matthew Henry]

Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.” Then he added, “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given—and you will receive even more. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.” [Mark 4:23-25 (NLT)]

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March 13, 2018

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, Family, Friends & Fellowship, Fruit of the Spirit, Love & Works, Nature, Salvation: A New You, Wisdom & Guidance

LITTLE BROWN BIRDS

My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. [James 2:1 (NIV)]

The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. [1 Samuel 16:7 b (NIV)]

house wren

Unless a bird is impressive and memorable, I give it little notice and classify it broadly by size and color. Yesterday’s devotion reminded us that people aren’t nameless/faceless little brown birds to God. I then asked myself if they are to me. Do I truly see the people around me for the unique and beautiful individuals they are or are some just little brown birds? Think of the quiet unobtrusive people we see every day but barely notice: the bagger at the grocery, the busser at the restaurant, the lady with the schnauzer, the fast food cashier, the fellow stocking shelves, the landscaper, the old man at the coffee shop, or the parking lot attendant. Do we simply look past or even through them without a second glance? I hate to admit how many times wait staff and sales clerks have introduced themselves only to have me immediately forget both their names and faces.

Do we only take notice of the eagles, cardinals, and great blue herons of life? When Samuel anointed Israel’s first king, it was Saul. Described as the most handsome man in Israel and taller than anyone else in the land, he may have been as impressive as an eagle but he was a weak leader and a cowardly king. In contrast, Israel’s next king, David, was more like a little brown bird. He may have been handpicked by God but he was overlooked and ignored by everyone else. When Samuel came to Jesse in search of a new king, he invited Jesse and all of his boys to a sacrifice. It was only after every one of Jesse’s sons was rejected by the Lord that Samuel learned the youngest boy, David, hadn’t even been invited to the feast. In spite of being anointed by Samuel, David continued to be insignificant to his father and brothers until he defeated Goliath. It was the little brown bird rather than the showy eagle who saved the Israelites with a slingshot and a few well-placed stones.

A pharmaceutical ad begins with psoriasis patients saying the words, “See me.” It’s not just people with skin conditions who want to be seen as individuals; we all want to be seen as the unique people we are. Consider Jesus; there were many who met a poor itinerant rabbi, a carpenter’s son from Nazareth, and never really looked at Him or listened to His words. That unimpressive little brown bird they so easily dismissed was God!

We don’t need a scope or telephoto lens to help us see the little brown birds of daily life and we certainly don’t need an Audubon book to learn their identities. We just have to open our eyes to the people around us, really look at them, acknowledge their presence, and listen to their words. In actuality, rather than elegant egrets or gaudy peacocks, most of us are more like little brown birds—ordinary, inconspicuous, and easy to overlook. Nevertheless, we are extraordinary in our own ways and we all want to be seen for who we are. God doesn’t judge by outward appearance and neither should we. After all, it’s the little brown birds that sing the sweetest songs in the forest.

He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. [Isaiah 53:2-3 (NIV)]

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March 7, 2018

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Bible Stories, Challenges & Difficulty, Faith & Hope, Family, Friends & Fellowship, Forgiveness, Miracles, Prayer

FAITHFUL FRIENDS

Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” … “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!” [Mark 2:4b-5,11 (NLT)]

monarch butterfly - cannaJesus had returned to Capernaum and the word was out—the rabbi from Nazareth could heal. People were flocking to Him and the crowd followed Jesus right into the house where he was staying. Four friends of a paralyzed man carried him to see Jesus but the house was so full they couldn’t get through the door. Determined to get to Jesus, they carried the paralyzed man up the outside stairs to the rooftop and started to dig through the thatch. Picture the scene. The room is jam-packed when a disturbance is heard overhead. Dried mud and straw start to fall into the room, a head peaks through, more straw and dirt come spilling through the opening, a mat is dropped, and then four men lower their paralyzed friend down to the ground right at the feet of Jesus.

Rather than heal the man, however, Jesus forgave his sins. Then again, Jesus always put first things first; even more important than health is the forgiveness of sin! Scandalized, the scribes thought His words blasphemy since only God can forgive sins. To prove His authority to forgive, Jesus then healed the paralytic. While the forgiveness of the man’s sins couldn’t be demonstrated, the scribes couldn’t refute the validity of his healing when the once paralyzed man jumped up, grabbed his pallet, and walked. Imagine the gasps of the astonished people as he worked his way through the crowded room to the door.

This story tells us we must be stretcher bearers. When our friends are weak, we should bring them to God as did those four men when they placed the paralytic at Jesus’s feet. We often think that Jesus healed the man because of his faith. Look more carefully at the words; Jesus healed the man because of the faith of his friends! They were so sure that Jesus could heal him that nothing discouraged or stopped them. Like them, nothing should stop us from carrying our friends (or even people we don’t know) to God in prayer. Yet, how often do we offer to pray for someone and pray just once, haphazardly, or not at all? Our faithful prayers can make a difference!

For the last several months, I’ve been praying for a toddler with metastasized cancer. Hundreds of us, many of whom don’t even know her (including fifty from my Tuesday Bible study), have joined in bearing her stretcher and placing it at Jesus’s feet. What looked absolutely hopeless in October looks hopeful today; her scans are good and she’s begun physical therapy. Knowing she still has to face a transplant, radiation, and immunotherapy, her stretcher bearers will continue to carry her until the day she lifts up her pallet and goes home—which brings me to another lesson from this story. It is God, and God alone, who has the authority both to forgive our sins and to answer our prayers. No matter how deep our faith, not everyone whose stretcher we bear will be healed. Some may pick up their pallet and go home to their family but others will pick up their pallet and go home to God. Nevertheless, let us never forget that before Jesus healed, He forgave; while health is not guaranteed, forgiveness is. Thank you, God, for your saving grace!

Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. [Romans 12:12-13a (NLT)]

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March 5, 2018

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, Challenges & Difficulty, Faith & Hope, Fear & Doubt, God's Plan, Miracles, Peace of God, Trusting God, Worry

TAKING THE LONG WAY

Tent Rocks - NMDon’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you. I’ve called your name. You’re mine. When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end—Because I am God, your personal God, The Holy of Israel, your Savior. [Isaiah 43:2-3a (MSG)]

When visiting New Mexico, we often drive from Albuquerque to Santa Fe. The shortest route is north on I-25. If we’re not in a rush, however, the best way is the longer Turquoise Trail, a national scenic byway on the east side of the Sandia Mountains. In theory, this route should only add about a half-hour to the trip but it always takes longer. The whole point of going that way is to enjoy some breath-taking scenery, take a hike in the high desert hills, check out one of the bizarre roadside attractions (like the Tinkertown Museum), visit various art galleries along the trail, and stop for lunch (and more shopping) in the reborn ghost town of Madrid. Sometimes the journey is as important as the destination.

When the Israelites escaped from Pharaoh, God didn’t lead them the shortest way to the Promised Land; His reasoning, however, had nothing to do with sightseeing or shopping. The most direct route would have taken them northeast along a coastal road and directly into Philistine territory. Instead, God led them south southwest into the desert on the eastern edge of Egypt. Although they were armed for battle, the Israelites were anything but ready to face a military conflict. Having been oppressed for generations, rather than a mighty nation, they were a ragtag band of former slaves. While the longer route made sense, God’s next instructions certainly didn’t! He told Moses that Pharaoh’s men would give chase but that the Israelites should turn back and camp in such a way that they were exposed and trapped against the sea. Although God promised this strange tactic would demonstrate his power and glory, I can’t help but think that Moses was shaking in his sandals when reassuring the people that God had everything under control.

If the Israelites weren’t ready to face the Philistines a few days earlier, they were no more ready to face Pharaoh’s mighty army then. In fact, from a logistical point of view, by turning back, the novice warriors moved into an utterly indefensible position. That, of course, is exactly why God arranged it. Whether facing Philistines or Egyptians, the Israelites’ reaction to either would be panic. With the Philistines, they could have fled, even if that meant returning to Egypt. With Pharaoh’s army, however, they had no escape route. Although their sarcastic complaints to Moses revealed their lack of faith, pinned against the sea as they were, they had no choice but to trust in God. Since we know the rest of the story, that trust was well-founded. The people of Israel walked through the Red Sea on dry ground and Pharaoh’s army perished in its waters. After experiencing God’s miraculous deliverance, the Israelites no longer feared Pharaoh. They did, however, fear, trust, and believe in the Lord!

Sometimes God takes us the long way around for a reason; while it may be for the scenery, there’s a good chance it’s to take us away from trouble. On the other hand, sometimes God takes us on detours that seem to make absolutely no sense because they lead us into trials and difficulty. That usually happens when there’s something we need to learn. When we find ourselves between an army and the sea or a rock and a hard place, there’s no need to panic. We just need to trust in the Lord.

And Israel looked at the Egyptian dead, washed up on the shore of the sea, and realized the tremendous power that God brought against the Egyptians. The people were in reverent awe before God and trusted in God and his servant Moses. [Exodus 14:30-31 (MSG)]

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March 2, 2018

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, Challenges & Difficulty, Fear & Doubt, God's Grace & Love, God's Promises, Miracles, Obedience

SUMMONED

prairie coneflower - blanket flower - black-eyed susanListen, O heavens, and I will speak! Hear, O earth, the words that I say! Let my teaching fall on you like rain; let my speech settle like dew. Let my words fall like rain on tender grass, like gentle showers on young plants. I will proclaim the name of the Lord; how glorious is our God! [Deuteronomy 32:1-3 (NLT)]

My granddaughter recently received a summons to jury duty. Although she attended law camp last summer and just might do better than some jurors, at fourteen, she’s not qualified to serve. Trying to get her out of jury duty, however, appears to be easier said than done. Because the grand’s birth date is “invalid,” the on-line juror qualification questionnaire cannot be completed. Her mother’s call to the clerk resulted in being told that the youngster must come to the court house to prove her age by presenting them with her driver’s license. When it was politely pointed out that at fourteen she has no license, the clerk irately asked why she got the summons. “I don’t know; you’re the ones who sent it to her!” was all her mother could reply. Let’s hope jury duty is an excused absence from junior high because it appears that the district court does not want to take “No!” for an answer.

When God summons us, He doesn’t take “No” for an answer either. Moses was sure it was a mistake when God called to him from that burning bush. He protested by listing all of his inadequacies and God countered with His assurances and provision. In his final objection, Moses claimed to be an inarticulate tongue-tied speaker so God gave him Aaron to act as his spokesman.

Aaron, however, died before the Israelites reached Canaan and, in the book of Deuteronomy, we finally hear Moses speak. In his first speech (lasting four chapters), Moses gives an historical review of what brought the people to be standing on the plains of Moab across the Jordan River from Jericho. An articulate powerful account, it’s as inspiring as one of Billy Graham’s sermons. The next thirty chapters are equally moving as Moses summarizes the Israelites’ covenant obligations and blessings.

To the county clerk, my grand was merely a name and address but, as the one who made us, God knows everything about us. He knows our weaknesses and capabilities and, unlike government bureaucracy, His summons is never in error. God knew what He was doing when he called Moses and He knows what He’s doing when He summons us. Where we see liabilities, inability, inadequacy and failure He sees assets, possibility, ability, and promise.

I can’t help but think of A.A. Milne’s Christopher Robin and the words he spoke to his bear, Winnie-the-Pooh: ”There is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we’re apart… I’ll always be with you.” Indeed, we are braver, stronger and smarter than we think and more capable than we can imagine. Moreover, like Christopher Robin, God is always with us. It is His faithfulness to us that empowers us to do His work.

When God puts a calling in our hearts, He won’t leave us stranded. He equipped and enabled Moses with wisdom and oratory skills and He’ll equip us. Moses’s final speech in Deuteronomy (ending with both a song and a blessing) rivals any motivational message given by Tony Robbins, Dave Ramsey, or Bear Grylls. When you doubt your abilities, remember that those eloquent words in Deuteronomy were spoken by a man who, because of his stammer and ineptitude at oration, considered himself unqualified. God knew better!

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you. [Deuteronomy 31: 8 (NLT)]

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February 26, 2018

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Bible Stories, God's Grace & Love, Love & Works, Obedience, Salvation: A New You, Temptation & Sin

OUT OF FEAR

turkey vulturesBut if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you… The Lord himself will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and abandoning me. [Deuteronomy 28:15,20 (NLT)]

In writing about the mezuzah last week, I learned that 4,649 laws govern every aspect of its writing. Each of the 713 letters must be perfectly shaped, written on handmade specially processed parchment made from a kosher animal, inscribed in black ink formulated from a specific recipe, with a unique quill pen, by a qualified scribe. Why so many rules to fulfill a requirement that was only a few words in Scripture?

The fourth commandment about the Sabbath is the longest one but pretty straightforward: make it a day of rest rather than work. Although Scripture referred to conducting business, field labor, treading in a winepress, loading animals, traveling and kindling fire as forbidden work, it never provided an all-inclusive list of prohibited activities. To further clarify the commandment, work was classified into thirty-nine categories of forbidden activity. To obey perfectly, however, more interpretation was needed. Since reaping (clearly field labor) was forbidden, what if someone climbed a tree and accidentally broke a branch or rode an animal and detached a stick to hit it? Since an accidental sin was still a sin and, technically, breaking a branch was reaping, those activities were prohibited, as well.

I’ve often given the Bible’s Pharisees, Sadducees, and scribes grief over their pettiness regarding the law. After studying Deuteronomy 28, however, I’m beginning to understand how the system of laws governing the conduct of the Jewish people became so complex. After listing the blessings for obedience, Moses laid out the many curses for the Israelites’ disobedience to God and those curses are far more extensive than the blessings. They include everything from wasting diseases, plagues, captivity, inflammation, boils, military defeat and scorching heat to becoming food for scavenging birds, madness, swarms of insects, starvation, and cannibalism. It’s not a pretty picture Moses paints as he warns the people to obey all the words of the law.  After reading those curses, it’s easy to see how fear of punishment led to legalism and why the minutiae of the law became more important than a relationship with the giver of the law. Fearful of punishment and striving for absolute obedience, the Jews wanted to cover every eventuality.

Although the law pointed out sin, what the people didn’t understand was that the law, no matter how intricately interpreted or followed, could not keep people from sin. We must never make the mistake of thinking we can reach a level of perfection good enough for God; the Israelites couldn’t and neither can we. In actuality, the law revealed that people are sinful and can never attain righteousness through obedience to it; no matter how carefully they try, they will always fall short. Righteousness is attained only through faith in Jesus Christ.

Several weeks ago, I received the following “wisdom” in my email: “Love God and do as you please.” A paraphrase of St. Augustine’s words, it is not carte blanche to sin. Rather, if we genuinely love God with all our being, we will want to do only what pleases Him. We don’t please him to avoid captivity or pestilence or to work our way into His good graces; we please Him out of love. We don’t do it on our strength, but through the power of the Holy Spirit. As for me, that seems a whole lot easier than having the Sabbath quandary of whether or not I can turn off the alarm clock, open an umbrella, or pick up the button that fell off my jacket.

Once and for all, I give you this one short command: love, and do what you will. If you hold your peace, hold your peace out of love. If you cry out, cry out in love. If you correct someone, correct them out of love. If you spare them, spare them out of love. Let the root of love be in you: nothing can spring from it but good. [St. Augustine]

Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law. [Romans 13:10 (NLT)]

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