Day 188  - Jonah

This guy is pretty gutsy.  Jonah 4:1 says that Jonah was “greatly displeased and became angry.”  With who – you might ask???  With God!!!!  That takes Guts.  Jonah is fired up, red hot angry because God kept his word and was true to character.  Instead of punishing Nineveh, God saved Nineveh and this frustrated Jonah….No – it made him angry.  Do we have a right to be angry with God about anything?
Then Jonah goes on saying, “I knew that you are gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.”  Most of us are pretty excited about God’s love and grace, but not Jonah.  He is fuming in Anger and decides to pout outside the city, rather than celebrate God’s salvation inside the city.
Most of us are not even told of this aspect of story.  The VeggieTale movie doesn’t highlight this, just as most Sunday School lessons leave it out.  We are told that Jonah was a wayward missionary who eventually came around to God’s plan for his life.  It took a storm and whale, but in the end Jonah delivers the message to Ninevah and they are saved.  Jonah is seen as a hero in the end.  Yeeaaahhhh!  But the Scriptures show differently, Jonah is really more of a jerk than a hero.
Maybe I shouldn’t be too hard on Jonah.  Maybe there is even a little of Jonah in me?  Maybe there is anger and resentment pent up in me, just like in Jonah?  Maybe I can be a jerk too?
I’ll admit there have been times I have seen a hard-pressed poverty area OR driven through a wicked section of a city OR passed by a person from another religion and said to myself, “They deserve to be punished for choosing to neglect God and his ways.”  My ways are sometimes along the lines of judgment, not compassionate grace.
I’ll admit that I get angry when people don’t get wait they deserve.  Of course, I enjoy the fact that I don’t get what I deserve.  God’s grace is sufficient for me…shouldn’t it be sufficient for others also?

What does the story of Jonah say about God…about our Adversary…about our Human Condition and about God’s rescue/restoration efforts?

This week’s reading catches us back in between selections of Proverbs and soon to be reading of Ecclesiastes. These books, as well as Psalms, Song of Songs and Lamentations comprise a body of biblical literature known as, “Wisdom Literature.” Coming off a few weeks of sermons related to marriage and retirement, wisdom might be the thing we need most for success. In particular, our culture and certainly our church, needs great wisdom in the area of finance. Did you know that majority (over 50%) of marriages fail because of financial stress, mismanagement and miscommunication?
Most people think that marriage failure revolves around extra-marital affairs, both in reality most people are not cheating on their spouse as much as they are cheating on their bank-book. Debt and financial mismanagement not only lead to marital stress, but will lead us away from the retirement dreams we may have. Proverbs has a ton to say about money. Some people feel uncomfortable when preachers talk about money. If that is you, then don’t listen to this preacher; rather – listen to the Word of God. A few excerpts from our reading in Proverbs will help you get started:

Proverbs 6:1-5 “Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter…” This is said as a way to escape a pledge made to co-sign for someone’s debt. Dave Ramsey extrapolates this and speaks towards the whole trap of debt and says GET OUT OF DEBT with GAZELLE INTENSITY. Basically, run from debt, because like a lion hunting a gazelle it will kill you.
Proverbs 6:6-11 “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!” There is that word again “Wise.” What does an ant do? It simply does not cease from working faithfully to provide food and security year round. Rest and Relaxation are part of God’s plan, but laziness and neglect are not!
Proverbs 11:25 “A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.” A cheap-skate does not gain according to God. Of course, we can’t give what we don’t have. So implied in this statement is fiscal responsibility that will allow for generosity.
Proverbs 13:11 “Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.” There is something about discipline and consistency that always pays off. Many people live by ‘easy come easy go.’ But when you work hard and save bit by bit, one is not willing to let it go easily through frivolous spending. Hence, interest grows because the money is invested.
Proverbs 15:27 “A greedy man brings trouble to his family, but he who hates bribes will live.” There are real implications of Greed, namely your family will be in TROUBLE. Greed is not just the quick deal or the quick money, but it is a desire to want more than you need, such that one is willing to work too much, bend the rules of integrity, go around the law and so on. Many a man started out saying, “Well this will help my family in the long run,” only to lose his family altogether. Be Warned – God stands against Greed.
Proverbs 21:17 “Whoever loves pleasure will become poor…” Americans probably need to hear this axiom, watch films about it, read blogs on the topic and then listen to podcasts on the subject. America has become Pleasure Island – we live for pleasure and work for the weekend. Pleasure is not evil in itself, but loving it above other things (incl. God, family, friends) will lead us to poverty. Has anyone seen our national debt? It’s safe to say that our nation has become poor…we just continue to borrow and act like we are rich.
Proverbs 22:7 “The rich rule over the poor and the borrower is servant to the lender.” We have come full circle, this proverb is reminiscent of the first one I mentioned: Borrowing money and going into debt comes with more than the price of interest – we become servants of another master. Living within our means is not easy and not always fun…but can be and is FULFILLING, because one is not enslaved to the bank, credit union or mortgage company, rather one is FREE to live and spend how one wants.
Proverbs has plenty more to say and so will Ecclesiastes. In fact, Bible teachers have shown that God’s Word talks more about money than about heaven & hell. One cannot serve two masters – We will serve either God or Money. If we serve God first…then he promises to take of our needs. That includes marital needs and retirement needs.

Not sure why things happen the way they do? Unsure why we do things that we don’t really want to do? Can’t figure out how something so simple, can turn into a big disaster? King David faces these questions as he takes a Census of Israel and reveals some answers for us, namely: Satan & Human Pride (who work very well together!) take us off of God’s course for success.

On the surface taking a census doesn’t seem like a BIG DEAL, our country takes a census every 10 years. King David was only interested in numbering the fighting men and yet Joab, the Commanding General, was resistant to the Census from the beginning. This should clue us in…that something was terribly wrong. Being outranked, he carried out the Census but only to disastrous ends (another clue that the census was wrong).

Presumably, David wanted to know how powerful his army was, forgetting that God was actually the source of the power. David may have desired more conquest, when God was preparing David (and Solomon) for rest & peace so his Temple could be built. God wanted to glorify himself in worship throughout all of Israel, but David was glorifying himself by promoting the size of his army. That’s the human pride part, which was incited by Satan. So God punished David’s census by actually decreasing the number of Israelites through a plague.

Way back in Genesis 15:5, God promised Abraham that he would multiply his offspring, which included King David and all of Israel & Judah. In that passage, God took Abraham outside and said: “Look up at the heavens and count the stars – if indeed you can count them’. Then he said to him, ‘so shall your offspring be.”

By numbering Israel, David showed a distrust of the divine promise, this was his sin. God did not need David’s help to further his conquest, God was going to fulfill his promise to multiply his people another way (eventually through Jesus); but David got stuck in his own view of God’s promise and saw himself (pride) as the means to that end. Satan only has to incite us a little bit to get our juices flowing and David not only listened to Satan, but also over-rode his friend & counselor Joab, resulting in a strong punishment from God.

Don’t listen to Satan. Listen to God’s promises and Don’t forget to listen to your friends.

Day 124 — 2 Samuel 5:11-6:23 – 1 Chronicles 13-16 Day 176 — 2 Chronicles 13-16 – 1 Kings 15:1-24
Day 125 — Psalm 1-2 – Psalm 15, 22-24, 47 and 68

The Ark of the Covenant was finally being brought back home.  The very presence of God was recaptured from the Philistines and traveling on an oxcart back to its rightful place among the Israelites. The only problem was the road.  Similar to our Worcester Roads, the ancient roads probably had potholes.  (one of the worst examples I know of is the turn off from Lincoln St. to our church property…a small car could lose a wheel or break an axle…BEWARE!)  Anyway, the Ox stumbled, the cart wobbled, and Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark.  Most would think this a noble and correct response…to save the sacred Ark from falling on the ground; but instead of a reward, Uzzah received God’s punishment and loses his life.  Uzzah had broken God’s rule and David had forgotten it – NO ONE was to HANDLE the ARK EXCEPT the LEVITES.
 
Have you ever tried to do the “right thing” and then had it back-fire in your face?  Have you ever tried to figure out  what in the world went wrong?
 
It’s not that God was against the idea of moving the Ark, or against Uzzah or against David; rather God is gravely concerned about how things get done…not just the fact that they are getting done.  We often wrestle with the question – LORD, am I doing your will?  A better question to ask is – LORD, am I doing your will according to your way?
 
This is why it is so important to know God’s Word, so we will know his way.  Psalm 1 tells us that he would meditates on God’s “law” (Hebrew Word TORAH…which can be translated Law, Rule or Way of life) will be like a tree, firmly planted, who prospers in whatever he does.  Psalm 15, a Psalm written by David, gives us some specific ways in which we should live.  Ways which will affect our ability to ascend into God’s presence.  Ways which will keep us firmly planted and keep us from being shaken.  Ways which will steady our travel over the potholes of life.
 
Psalm 15 –  A psalm of David.
 
1 LORD, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?
2 The one whose walk is blameless,
who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from their heart;
3 whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to a neighbor,
and casts no slur on others;
4 who despises a vile person
but honors those who fear the LORD;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
and does not change their mind;
5 who lends money to the poor without interest;
who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
Whoever does these things
will never be shaken.

Today we enter the book of Judges, so it’s probably “high time” that I comment on the Book of Joshua!!  You can tell a lot about the theme of an Old Testament book by focuses on how it begins and how it ends.  At the beginning of the book, the Lord affirms Joshua by telling him that the promises made to Moses will be carried over to him.  Then the Lord reminds Joshua of the battles he is to fight and the territory he is to conquer.  Before Joshua can get too scared – God reminds him that he will be with him all the way – “No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live.  For I will be with you as I was with Moses, I will not fail you or abandon you “(Joshua 1:5).  Undoubtedly these words built faith and courage in Joshua, just like they do for us, when we hear Jesus say, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  But just in case Joshua might miss the point, the Lord tells him directly in verse 6, “BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS”  and later in verse 9, the Lord ramps up his rhetoric saying,  “This is my Command – be strong and courageous.  For the Lord your God is with you where you go.”

If we listen closely there is a pattern in the Lord’s language.  The Lord starts with a statement of fact (I will not fail you or abandon you), then moves to a statement of encouragement (Be Strong and Courageous) and just in case the encouragement doesn’t take root, the Lord gives Joshua a Command (This is my Command – be strong and courageous.  For the Lord your God is with you where you go).

The Lords’ language builds form statement of fact, to encouragement to outright command. This is often how the Lord clarifies his message.  He tells us about the reality of our situation, then builds us up and then gives us a straight forward command.  Returning to some questions I posed at the beginning of the year:  What does this approach tells us about God and what does this say about the Human Condition?

I think God is saying, look – I will never change.  I was faithful to Moses, I will be faithful to Joshua and by extension…God will be faithful to you and me.  How faithful?  He will never leave us & never abandon us.  But God knows something about us, namely, that our Human Condition is so fallen and sinful, we often feel alone, separated from God and subsequently abandoned.  So God knows that we will struggle to believe in his faithfulness.  What does he do?  God encourages us.  But knowing us at the deepest level, God knows that encouragement alone may not move us to act like He is with us…some of us need a cattle prod of motivation to believe.  So God in his infinite wisdom actually commands Joshua to – be Strong and Courageous.  God is saying…I will be faithful to you so act like it! BE STRONG & COURAGEOUS in this life, not because you are great, but because a GREAT GOD is WITH YOU ALWAYS.

Out of Leviticus, through Numbers and into Deuteronomy…are you starting to see a pattern emerge? Leviticus out the Law, Numbers repeats aspects of the Law and Deuteronomy is a retelling of the Law. The Greek word “Deuteronomy” actually means “second-law.” God knows his creation well…he must keep telling us over and over again his plan for our life, the boundaries of life & worship of Him, along with the rewards of obedience and the consequences of disobedience. Just like we deal with our children, having to tell them over and over and over and over to CLEAN their ROOM, Pick up their clothes, DO HOMEWORK, etc… Father-God tells us over and over how to live correctly in this world he has made.

Leviticus gave us several types of Laws: Ceremonial, Civil and Moral. We don’t keep the Ceremonial laws as Christians, because Jesus has Fulfilled the LAW (Matt 5:17). Jesus completed the “ceremony” of cleansing on the Cross; we are now clean through his blood. Regarding Moral laws, they continue to stand and be relevant in God’s New Testament with his people. For instance, Murder is always wrong – Adultery is always wrong and so on. God’s views these as wrong and so do most people in our world. The civil laws are tricky…we no longer stone someone for adultery or punish an “eye for an eye.” While Jesus reinterprets these laws for us in light of God’s loving Grace, he is not willy-nilly or casual with love either. Jesus tells us not to fellowship with someone (excommunicate) when they have been confronted for sin, extended loving grace, but reject it (see Matt 18:15-20).

God dealt with his people of according to the Laws of the Old Testament and NOW deals with his people according to the Laws of the New Testament. LAW is a funny word…in Hebrew the word is TORAH which doesn’t mean quite the same as we Americans think of the word LAW, as it is often translated. LAW has a negative connotation in our society…sure, Laws are here to protect us…but we think of LAW in terms of “Law Enforcement” or “being in trouble with the LAW” or to borrow a phrase from a western movie – “I had a run in with the law.” TORAH means a way of life. This should sound vaguely familiar to us…Jesus says in John 14:6 that he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. So the TORAH “way of life” is fulfilled in Jesus, the one who is “the way, the truth and the life.”

Even as we read the Old Testament, Let us embrace Jesus Christ as the way to life, the one who will usher in the New Testament.

First I need to say that I have fallen behind. I wanted to write this blog every week, then I found that every-other week is more reasonable. Now I am stretching into every third week…arrgghh! Sometimes life gets busy and what we intend to do…does not play out in reality. This can be true of our devotional life, our READING of GOD’s WORD, journaling, prayers and so on…they can all fall lax.
 
If and When this happens, our reaction as humans is mixed. Some of us bounce right back and “get on track.” Others of us shy away even more…maybe even give up all together. A word of encouragement here is necessary. When children learn how to ride-a-bike, they fall off a lot. A good parent expects this, picks them up and puts them right back on the bike. Our Father in Heaven is no different. In our younger years as Christians, we will “fall of our bike” spiritually speaking a lot. Father is there and wants to us to get up and keep at it, until we learn how to pray, read, serve and give with consistency.
 
As we mature as Christians, sometimes our devotional life will be pulled away from consistency. If and When this happens, our human response can be just as varied. Some of us rush back to Father, while others of us pull away even further. During this phase of distance between God and us, I imagine God misses us more than he is disappointed in us. He is a jealous God, a loving God and our Creator-God. He desires to have fellowship with us, just like he did with Adam & Eve in the Garden. God’s highest agenda is to know us and have us know him; according to John 17:3, this is what eternal life is all about.
 
Point being – if we fall off track, know that God is right there to pick us up and receive us with open arms. Never let guilt or self-condemnation get in the way of spending time with God. Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
 
More on Leviticus and and Numbers to follow.

Our reading thus far has followed God’s People from Egypt, into the Wilderness and on our way to the Promised Land.  This basic path should sound familiar to us, not just from a historical perspective, but also at the personal level.  As Christians we have been delivered from the slavery of sin (Egypt) and are on our way to the peace and joy of heaven (Promised Land).  Of course, we too have to pass through the “Wilderness” of our earthly journey.  It sounds dreadful, but the Wilderness is where the Israelites met God and it is where we also meet our God.  What kind of God is he?

As I mentioned in the last blog entry, the book of Exodus zoomed in on the Human Condition and God’s rescue & restoration.  Both of these themes stand out in the Golden Calf episode of Ex 32-34, and give us a pretty good glimpse of What Kind of God we Serve.  We humans were (and are) so careless, sinful, impatient and disrespectful, that we actually made a Golden Calf Idol right at the base of the mountain where our God was present and active on our behalf.  This same God, who calls himself Yahweh, had already given us the 10 commandments and the by making the Golden Calf, we broke the first two. It sounds easy to criticize the Israelites for their disobedience; but are we really any different?

No…we still sin in the presence of Yahweh.  We build things with our hands, minds, traditions, etc… that focus our attention and capture our worship; even while Yahweh is present and active on our behalf.  Sin is the state of the Human Condition.  AND YET surprisingly, Yahweh rescues and restores.  It comes as no surprise the sin has consequences and there were many attached to the Golden Calf episode.  However, God does not reject his people b/c they are sinners, He renews his covenant with them and they continue their journey together.

I love the exchange between Yahweh and Moses in Exodus 34:6-8, which summarizes how sinful people like us walk with a Holy God this Yahweh

Yahweh!  The Lord!  The God of compassion and mercy!  I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.  I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations.  I forgive iniquity, rebellion and sin.  But I do not excuse the guilty.  I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected – even children in the third and fourth generations.

Moses immediately threw himself to the ground and worshipped.  And he said, “O Lord, if it is true that I have found favor with you, then please travel with us.  Yes, this is a stubborn and rebellious people, but please forgive our iniquity and our sins.  Claim us as your own special possession.”

God is Holy and punishes our sin, but God is also filled with Love and covers our sin.  Thankfully, we are his special possession and can receive his forgiveness and continue our journey with him.

As Exodus helped us see our sinful condition, Leviticus helps us see the Holiness of God and all the sacrifice that is required to walk with Yahweh.

The book of Genesis (or book of the beginning) follows the diagram of understanding I already showed you in Week 1. Let’s take a minute to review. In the Beginning there was God. The adversary, reared his ugly head in the Garden with a temptation too much for Humans to resist. Once we followed our own desires, we performed the first Mutiny, namely: Humans desired to steer the ship of their destiny rather than follow the Captain’s orders. The Fallen Human Condition was clearly evident in Cain, but the results are still with us. Cain was jealous, angry, destructive, and full of pride, denial and fear, all part of a “sinful nature.” These descriptions should sound vaguely familiar to all of us HUMANS …as we haven’t changed much in thousands of years! Thankfully, our God sees our human condition and punishes Cain accordingly, but also makes a way of rescue and at least partial restoration. On a micro-scale, God “saves” by giving him a mark, so that he will be spared from death. On a much grander scale, God punishes all humanity in the flood and rescues only Noah and chooses to restore humanity through his family. As we continue to read the bible throughout this year, we will see this storyline played out time and time again. Reason being…God does not change and He wants to reassure us that HE IS FAITHFUL and He is A GOD WHO SAVES.

As we approach the book of Exodus, we will take off the “wide lens” of perspective and put on a
“zoom lens.” Exodus will zoom in and focus primarily on the Human Condition and God’s rescue & restoration…often called God’s deliverance.

In chapter one, we read of God’s blessing on the People of Israel, while they were living in Egypt. The Hebrews became so numerous and strong, that the Pharaoh became afraid of them. The human condition of FEAR moved the heart of Egypt’s leader to take extreme measures to gain security in his land. (NOTE: Egypt is currently in the news sorting out their leadership…security and fear are topics once again). This FEAR drove the ancient Egyptians to deplorable behavior. They resorted to slavery and even, infanticide; the killing of innocent children. Throughout history FEAR has driven humans to terrible degrees of mistrust, resentment, and despicable behavior. This can be said of tyrants like Hitler and Castro, as well as “regular” people and how they treat their families. We must remember that FEAR is not from God. God is LOVE and PERFECT LOVE casts out all FEAR (verses found in 1 John 4:8 & 1 John 4:18). Notice that FEAR relates to punishment and LOVE relates to God. Thankfully God loves us so much that He spares us from the punishment we deserve!

Chapter two of Exodus leads us from the Human Condition to God’s plan of rescue & restoration. At the micro-level, God ordains the salvation of Moses using a basket and a princess. At the macro-level, God will achieve the salvation of the entire Hebrew Nation using an obedient Moses and a simple staff.

Remember – God is a God of LOVE. God is a God who SAVES. We find security as we put our trust in God.

Our reading this week moves us from Job, back to Genesis. WE journey from the tough lesson about Respect & Trust for the LORD, to the journey of Abraham, a story of faith and God’s faithfulness.
 
Abraham’s story tells us a lot about God, like: God speaks. God directs. God provides. God wants to bless. God saves…like Lot & family. God answers prayers from the heart…like Abraham & Sarah’s to have a child. The good news for us is that God has not changed. God will speak to us, direct us, provide for us, bless us, save us and answer our prayers as well.
 
Abraham’s story is no fable; rather, it is an example to us. As we read, we understand who God is and how he works with people, no matter what century of human history we are in.
 
One of the primary examples found in Abraham’s journey is that of Faith. It took amazing faith to journey to a land you did not know. It took faith to go to Egypt during the famine. It took faith to rescue Lot and family when they were taking captive. And it took faith to believe the promises of blessing that God was speaking to Abraham.
 
One of my favorite verses is in this week’s reading. It’s a prime example of Faith, as matter of fact, after John 3:16, this was the very next verse I taught my boys.
 
Genesis 15:6 “And he believed the Lord and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
 
Some people struggle with the idea that God still speaks to us. But most hear his voice and struggle with actually believing it. Abraham not only hears God, but BELIEVES (puts his faith in God). Not only does blessing come to Abraham as he believes, but he is counted as righteous for having believed.
 
In Short, Abraham is made right with God by believing. NOTHING HAS CHANGED. We are only made right by believing in God and namely, his son Jesus Christ. Many of us believe God for our salvation; but struggle to believe when God talks to us about other areas of our life.
 
Believe that God speaks. Believe when he directs. Believe that he will provide. Believe that he will bless (note: God blesses, so that you will become a blessing, not a rich fat cat!). Believe that God saves your family and Believe that God will answer your prayers.