1 Year Bible Blog

Second Chronicles 9-12

2009-05-19T12:51:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God can and will provide all I need and far more. He will bring prosperity and abundance into my life. This blessing is dependent on my faith and recognition of Him. Solomon, in his early years as king, recognized that both he and the people of Israel were not deserving of God’s favor and that nothing they could ever build would be good enough or large enough to hold God. Only God’s love and grace provides us with His blessings and His promises to us supersede our unworthiness as He will never fail His promises.

Promises: God honors the honest prayers of His servants. Solomon asked for the wisdom to rule the Israelites as God intended. Because Solomon asked for the thing that would be most pleasing to God, he was granted wisdom in abundance as well as health wealth and power. He was the wisest, richest and most powerful king in history. His wisdom brought rulers from throughout the world to his throne to learn from him. He received tribute from all around him and, despite having ruled in peace throughout his entire reign, Solomon had one of the most powerful armies in the world.

Commands: Obey God’s command and keep your faith in Him or suffer the consequences. The division of Israel was a result of idolatry and false worship. The capture of the Israelites, the destruction of their lands and the general oppression the periodically went through was always a direct result of turning away from God.

Timeless principles: Advice is only as useful as the person who hears it. Rehoboam ignored the advice of his father’s advisors and took the bad advice of his friends resulting in a revolt which divided Israel and left Rehoboam as king of Judah while the rest of the nation separated and succeeded from the union.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Understand that peace comes through strength. The kings of Israel fielded some of the most powerful armies of their time. God granted victory to them against enemies who were far more powerful and at other times he granted such victory by providing Israel with the overwhelming force. Most often in Israel’s history, the times of peace were marked by wise kings who followed God and kept strong armies ready to defend the land. The victory of small Israeli forces over much larger forces was generally preceded by a time of weakness during which the Israelites neglected the necessity of having a strong military.

more to learn for in-depth study: More books and documents listed: The book of Nathan the prophet, the prophecy of Aijah the Shilonite the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the book of Shemaiah the prophet. These books are not scripture but they are the historic references used for compiling some of the books of the bible. Many would say that these books, written during captivity in foreign lands, are the result of oral traditions and subject to mistakes but the authors made it clear that they compiled the information from multiple written sources that recorded the events as they happened or shortly after, and in some cases prior to those events occurring.

tomorrow: Second Chronicles 13-17

Second Chronicles 6-8

2009-05-19T11:32:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Jerusalem and the temple are never abandoned by God. While there are times when the city and the temple have been destroyed and the people scattered or taken captive, the people have always returned to rebuild the city and the temple. Those times of punishment serve to remind the world what happens when we rebel against God. We see what He did to His own people and know how much more He would do to us.

Promises: When people turn to God and ask His forgiveness and His help, He is faithful to provide forgiveness and help regardless of whether we are Jew or Gentile as long as we fear and trust God for salvation.

Commands: “pray for the peace of Jerusalem”. God has placed His name there and true peace for that land and that city can only come when it is wholly under the control of His people Israel and when they turn to Him for salvation. Understand this when you pray for peace. There is no compromise between good and evil and “land for peace” deals will never work because God has condemned them.

Timeless principles: When Solomon finished his prayer of Dedication for the temple fire from heaven came down and consumed the sacrifice on the alter making it clear that God approved of what was done. Once again, God’s approval isn’t usually hard to recognize.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Trust God to provide when I call on His name and remember where He has chosen to place His favor and support that favor.

tomorrow: Second Chronicles 9-12

Second Chronicles 1-5

2009-05-19T11:30:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Find what God wants me to do, follow God’s plan for doing it, look for God’s result(it’s normally easy to spot).

Promises: It is not difficult to know when what your doing pleases God. When the Temple was dedicated, the cloud descended into it just as it had on the Tabernacle of Meeting in the wilderness to show that God was present there. When the church has done well in following God’s mandates we see great revivals in which Christians prosper, many are converted and the church itself finds great prestige and prosperity.

Paul was bitten by a poisonous snake and never got sick. He survived stoning, shipwrecks and other disasters. Other Apostles healed the sick, raised the dead and did other great works that showed God’s favor. Today is no different. If you want to see God’s power, do what God asks.

Commands: Find the best person for the job. When you are serving God the goal is to give Him your best. Because of that fact it is best to find the best people to do the jobs that need to be done. Solomon hired the best woodcutters, lumberjacks, jewelers, tailors, and other workers to do each of the jobs in building the temple.

Timeless principles: God has placed His name in a place, a city and a nation for all time and no Christian should ever turn from that fact. The Temple is the place, Jerusalem is the city and Israel is the nation and the Jews are God’s people in which He placed his name. No Christian has the right to undermine this fact. We must support the Jews, we must support the Nation of Israel, we must support Jerusalem as the home of the temple and the capital of Israel and we must support the Temple mount as the place in which God placed his name and the home of the Temple of God. No matter how politically correct and open minded it may appear to recognize these places as the home of Judaism, Christianity and Islam this idea is false. Christianity is the descendant of Judaism and should never be seen as separate. God made a blood covenant with the Patriarchs of Israel which can never be broken and no other people will ever replace the Jews as God’s chosen people. Christians are the adopted children of Israel and joint heirs not replacements. Islam did not exist until around 600 AD and the “Al Aqusa mosque” in Jerusalem wasn’t built until 691AD. The true Al Aqusa Mosque is in Mecca and dates to the time of Mohammad. Jerusalem was never said to be a holy sight in Islam until Israel was reborn as a nation and the Muslims needed an excuse to fight that outsiders might support.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Consider the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2. The disciples and Apostles watched as Christ ascended into heaven then returned to an upper room in Jerusalem where they prayed and studied and fellowshipped in the word for a month until the Holy Spirit came upon them. They walked out immediately into the city and preached in languages they didn’t even understand but were understood by others. 3000 people were added to the church that day. What was the formula? They prayed for 30 days, preached for 30 minutes and 3000 people were added to the church.

more to learn for in-depth study: 2 Chronicles 5:9 this is written while the temple is intact and the Ark of the Covenant is in the Holy of Holies in the Temple.

tomorrow: Second Chronicles 6-8

First Chronicles 28-29

2009-05-19T11:29:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God has already prepared a way. When David became king he had already made all the contacts he would need with neighboring kingdoms while he was running from Saul. When Solomon became king he had all David’s contacts and everything David prepared for him to accomplish the building of the temple. When Solomon died he left behind great treasuries that would provide for Israel’s rescue from trouble in multiple occasions over the next several hundred years.

Promises: When God has something for you to do you may rest assured that He has already prepared the way. It was Solomon’s job to build the temple. Just as God told Moses the exact details of the construction of the Tabernacle of Meeting, He provided David with the exact details of the Temple of God (mistakenly called the temple of Solomon by historians). When Solomon began the project he had a detailed written plan for every aspect of the temple and it’s contents, he had more supplies than he needed to do the job, all the money needed to pay the workers, exact details down to the weight of the metals to be used in each item, workers ready to do the job, and everything else he needed. All he needed to do was start the job.

Commands: Prepare the way for what God tells you will happen. Charity is a wonderful thing but so is passing along an inheritance. God provides the ability to gain great things and for some it is a means to do charity and for others it is a path for future generations to gain security. Next time you’re tempted to believe that the guy on TV telling you it’s evil to leave an inheritance and all your wealth should go to charity, remember how many biblical characters left their estates to charity (none, though several left large estates as well as large amounts given to the temple and/or national treasuries) and how many left large estates to their heirs(almost all of them though some died without heirs or without an estate) MAN’S WAY MAY SEEM RIGHT BUT GOD’S WAY IS RIGHT.

Timeless principles: God expects us to do the jobs He assigns. David was not to build the temple but he was given the plans and the requirements. David took what he knew and prepared for the building project by making certain all the supplies were ready, the plans were laid out, the people were in place and the job was assigned to the man who God wanted in charge of it, Solomon, before he left the throne and then died.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Judge everything deemed a virtue by the measure of God’s word. There are many fine sounding ideas in this world that most would deem virtuous but God would find offensive. The stories of David show us several. Leaving an inheritance, securing your land and your nation, weapons in a place of worship, arming ministers, and so on. given the rest of this post this portion may seem out of place but, this is what I got from the text. What did you get?

more to learn for in-depth study: The end of First Chronicles tells us where we can learn more of David. The books of Samuel are found among the scriptures and the books of Gad and Nathan would be found among historic documents like the Talmud.

I have been asked who decides what goes into the bible. The answer is, God decides and showed early leaders of the Israelites and of the early church what should and shouldn’t be there. Many books that didn’t make it into scripture are still found in the Talmud. They have history important to the Jews. Some are books of prophecy that applied only to the time. Some are books of history and legend that provide insight into the times but are not useful for teaching doctrine. Others are simply not from reputable sources. The reason that the books of the Apocrypha didn’t make it into protestant bibles is simple. When the King James bible was translated, the Rabbi’s who passed along the scripture pointed out that parts of the document were not scripture but merely history and legend. This doesn’t make them worthless it just means they should not be a source for doctrine and deciding how God wants us to live our lives.

tomorrow: Second Chronicles 1-5

Weekly Assignment

2009-05-18T10:00:00.000-04:00

Monday: Ezra 7-9
Tuesday: Ezra 10
Wednesday: Nehemiah 1-4
Thursday: Nehemiah 5-8
Friday: Nehemiah 9-10
Saturday: Nehemiah 9-10
Sunday: Esther 1-3

Weekly Assignment

2009-05-12T14:28:00.001-04:00

Monday: Second Chronicles 21-24
Tuesday: Second Chronicles 25-27
Wednesday: Second Chronicles 28-30
Thursday: Second Chronicles 31-33
Friday: Second Chronicles 34-36
Saturday: Ezra 1-3
Sunday: Ezra 4-6

still not up to date or fully recovered from that sinus infection that moved to my chest. Working on it though. Wanted to make sure you had your reading assignments in the mean time.

First Chronicles 24-27

2009-05-08T12:04:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Everyone has their place and their job. When the Apostles set out to seed churches throughout the world they would start out handling all the jobs until the church began to grow and then let the members take up those jobs. When there was strife over the division of food they appointed the first set of deacons to handle the job. In David’s time things were already in place. The Levites had the job of helping the sons of Aaron who were also Levites but set aside for the priesthood. With the temple about to be built and the Tabernacle of Meeting no long being need to be hauled around the Levites were redistributed from the duty of hauling specific items to doing specific jobs. Some were musicians, some were assistants some were guards and etcetera. Just as Christ told us were are all parts of the same body. We each have our function and none could function effectively without the rest. It’s also important to understand that God did not intend us to take on all the jobs or even many of the jobs. It isn’t wrong to help out in any area we can but to try and take over multiple jobs when others are there to fulfill them only causes us to fail in the job God created us for.

Promises: God made us for a purpose. We were intended for important work in the service of our Lord. Each of us is important even if we see other jobs as getting more glory. It is important to realize that our duty is vital to making the other jobs work. Someone has to do the jobs and if we don’t do what we are needed to do then someone else will be forced to take time from their duty to do what we aren’t doing.

Commands: Remember your place. David was not to build the Temple and so he did not. He was told by God through a prophet where to make his sacrifice for the sin of rushing the census. He set the place up as a place of worship and sacrifice because he knew that his actions had made God angry and was afraid to go to the Tabernacle. He prepared the supplies for his son to build the Temple but made no attempt to do it himself.

Timeless principles: Defense has always been a part of life. Even among the Levites there were people assigned to combat roles as guards and soldiers. When the city guards took time off for the Sabbath they were replaced by the Levite guard units. There are two false concepts that get a lot of play. The first is that a minister cannot be a combatant. Just as the priests and Levites took up arms in defense of their nation, US History provides many examples of pastors who took of their garments of ministry and put on military uniforms and took up arms to lead their congregation into the war of Independence from England and to defend the country in later wars.

The idea that weapons don’t belong in a church is newly popular because it gives government another excuse to pass laws in violation of the second amendment. The temple of God was protected by armed guards. Many of the pastors mentioned above wore their uniforms and weapons under their robes while they preached, and the only foreseeable purpose to disarming those in a church is to make them easier targets for oppression.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Understand the truth about biblical views. This section covered 3 points of contention that are playing out in US Politics. Weapons in church, armed pastors who lead in battle and just compensation for property. When we seek to choose leaders who represent us we should be seeking those who do not violate biblical principles. Politically correct views dressed up as religious fervor are still false doctrine and should be overcome. We should never let our political desires override what we know is right in the eyes of God. When we allow others to twist our faith to suit their political will we are no better than the Israelites who willingly turned from God to the golden calf because their king told them to.

more to learn for in-depth study: David had the poser, as king, to take whatever he needed. When Ornan learned that David needed part of his land to make sacrifices to God for an end to the plague he was willing to give anything without repayment. David knew that his actions had caused the problem and refused to use what wasn’t his to accomplish what he needed to do. He took what was needed but he refused to do so until payment was made. Our own government was founded with this principle when the Fifth Amendment to the constitution states “...nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” eminent domain laws do not comply with this amendment and the government has been abusing their authority for a long time. It would be good to consider this when you are deciding where to cast your votes on election day. When choosing a government representative we should be seeking those that will represent our values as Christians. One of those values is not stealing private property for public use without good cause and just compensation.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 28-29

Weekly Assignment

2009-05-08T11:17:00.001-04:00

Monday: First Chronicles 24-27
Tuesday: First Chronicles 28-29
Wednesday: Second Chronicles 1-5
Thursday: Second Chronicles 6-8
Friday: Second Chronicles 9-12
Saturday: Second Chronicles 13-17
Sunday: Second Chronicles 18-20

First Chronicles 21-23

2009-05-08T11:15:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Be prepared. Throughout the bible there are comments on the need to be prepared. The story of the bridesmaids and their lamps in the new testament is an example of being ready for the long term. Christ also told us not to burden ourselves with concern for tomorrow. This may seem contradictory but consider the examples. David knew that building the temple would be his son’s job so he set aside what he could to ensure Solomon would have the materials to build the Temple. The bridesmaids did not know when to expect the groom so the ones who kept extra oil and wicks to ensure their lamps would last as long as needed were rewarded.

God doesn’t ask us to do what is beyond us, He asks us to use the resources we have to make ready for what we know is coming. We all know that the end times are coming but the idea that “no one knows the hour of His return” has caused some to believe the study of prophecy is wrong. God didn’t give us the information so that we would ignore it. He has given us the signs and told us to know the times. We cannot predict the moment of Christ’s return but, we know what leads to it because it is written in the bible. It is important to know what is coming and what to do. God told us when we see these signs we should be looking up for the moment of His return is at hand.

Promises: Be prepared doesn’t mean we must get ready for every contingency. God tells us what to expect so that we can focus on the actual need rather than worrying about “what if”.

Commands: Stick to God’s timing. You cannot put off or speed up God’s will. David decided to take the census early and God brought judgment on Israel for his action.

Timeless principles: The acts of the leader effect the entire nation. David’s sin of rushing the census caused a plague that killed thousands in Israel. Neville Chamberlain made his country an easy target when he sought a treaty with Hitler. Hitler brought destruction and decades of division under the control of other countries to Germany with his campaign to rule the world(it’s important to note that the goal of Hitler’s Aryan Race program was to bring the Nephelim and the Rephiam to power over the world). Jimmy Carter sought to bring peace in the middle east with land for peace deals that chipped away at Israel’s territory and we all remember what life was like during his administration. While you may disagree with my conclusions, history is filled with the story of countries that suffered because their leaders did wrong.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Recognize the signs of the times. Prepare for what God has shown us will come. Stand up for God’s values and principles and seek leaders who will do the same.

more to learn for in-depth study: Prophecy is an in-depth study we haven’t gotten to yet but here are a couple signs ignored by those who predicted Christ’s return earlier. Christ would return within the lifetime of the generation that saw the rebirth of Israel. The message of the Gospel would go throughout the world. Life would me much as it was in the time of Noah just before the flood (whether this includes the physical presence of giants is debatable). The mark of the beast, an unmistakable mark of loyalty would be possible. There are others but, these few have only occurred in recent times. In fact all of them occurred after WWII.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 24-27

falling behind

2009-05-08T11:14:00.000-04:00

I am becoming an example of falling behind and trying to catch up. After the Revival I came down with a sinus infection that layer me out for a couple of days. With a temp going between 100 and 102 degrees I didn’t get on the computer so I never got caught up. I do apologize and am going to get you caught up as quick as I can.

First Chronicles 17-20

2009-05-02T10:31:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: I have written elsewhere that all the key prophecies have been fulfilled for the end times. One is still in question. Christ said that just before the rapture it would be as it was in the days of Noah. While the sinfulness of man is certainly at that stage this is not the first time that has been true. One point about Noah’s time that people don’t normally consider is the presence of 6 fingered, 6 toed giants descended from the Nephalim. The spirits of these giants were imprisoned after their bodies were killed but are connected to several biblical accounts of demon possession. While we may not see physical giants the alternative would be more possessed people making serious trouble and taking positions of authority through the use of supernatural power. While some suspect this is already happening, the giants of Noah’s time were not in the habit of concealing their power. They used it brazenly. This is something we don’t see yet.

Promises: God will establish you for His name’s sake. If you are working in His will and acting in a manner that promotes Him you will find success to come much more naturally. He wants the world to see examples of His people prospering because of Him. You are not condemned to poverty by your Christianity. In fact God wants to make the whole world know His power through your success. Give Him the glory for the things He has done and you will find He enjoys doing them even more.

Commands: Recognize your place in things. David felt it was wrong that he should have great palaces and homes while the Tabernacle of the Lord was a tent. God told him that is was not for him to build a house for the Lord and that his son would accomplish that goal. David made certain to dedicate great riches to that task so that his son would be able to build the temple quickly and grandly with little wasted time. He did not attempt to step outside God’s will and build the temple himself. He did give God the praise for all his successes recognizing that all of his talents and abilities were from God and that he could do nothing without Him.

Timeless principles: I can do all things through Christ but I am nothing without God who made me. I have been blessed with talents and worked hard to learn skills but without God I could do none of what I have accomplished. He gave me the intellect to learn, the judgment and endurance to work and to lead, the talent for music and the voice for teaching. I am proud of my achievements and thankful to God for the ability to achieve.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Never forget where my abilities come from. Trust God to provide what I need to succeed and thank God for the abilities He gave that lead to every success.

more to learn for in-depth study: Giants are a bible theme rarely visited outside of the story of David and Goliath. Nephelim, Rephaim, Anakim, whatever name is given to refer to them they are of serious importance. Others have done in depth studies of the giants and I won’t try to pretend this brief comment covers the subject but you should learn from them. The Nephelim or fallen ones were angels sent to earth to teach man God’s ways. Having taken a human form these angels fell prey to temptation and took wives of the daughters of men. The result was the giants who were the mighty men of renown. These descendents of fallen angels had no place among men. They did not share the ability of man to find salvation in Christ. Many of the great destructions in the old testament were meant to wipe out this race. The flood, the genocide of some nations in the promised land, wars against the giants by the Edomites and other events mentioned not only in biblical history but the history of the world. Even the Native Americans tell stories of a race of red haired, pales skinned giants with 6 fingers per hand and 6 toes per foot. The practice of raising a hand in greeting is not just a Hollywood affectation. The natives of this land lived in fear of a 6 fingered race and the practice of raising a hand when greeting unknown people was to get a good look at how many fingers they had and to show they themselves had only 5.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 21-23

First Chronicles 13-16

2009-05-02T09:55:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: doing things the right way is more important than getting them done.

Promises: When things are done right God grant’s success and the joy and celebration that go with it.

Commands: God has a proper order for things. When things are done wrong it brings problems. When they are done right it brings rejoicing. Calling the Levites to handle moving the ark and preparing the Tabernacle was the proper order. When we do the wrong thing, even for the right reason, it is going to bring trouble. Uzzah being struck down for touching the Ark is an example.

Timeless principles: Music is a large and important part of worship. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord. The Israelites worshiped God with cymbals, trumpets, sounding brass, etc. The made a lot of noise and had a lot of fun. Why are some Christians so afraid of noisy and rambunctious music?

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Learn how God wants things done before rushing off to do His work. so many get so enthused that they rush into things without knowing what should be done and they get it wrong. It’s so much faster and easier to learn first then act.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 17-20

First Chronicles 10-12

2009-04-30T09:06:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: It is important to understand the times. Past, present and future come together to form a picture we can use to understand our place in the world and God’s will for us. We are not of this world but we are in it and we are expected to effect it for the better. We cannot hope to do that unless we understand and act on the times.

1) Stand up for what God’s word tells us.
2) Stand up for the principles that protect our rights to worship and to teach the truth.
3) Stand up for God’s chosen people Israel.
4) Stand against those who label sin as personal choice.
5) Stand against those who demand we accept their “personal choice”.
6) Stand against those who redefine Christianity and Godliness as accepting everyone regardless of evil.
7) Stand up for the truth of the Gospel.

In the past few years I have heard leaders tell us that religion is the source of evil, that man is the source of law, that government is the source of wisdom, that Israel is a racist and evil state, that the US Constitution is an impediment to government and that the government can ignore the rights of the people when it is in the governments best interest(that last one is a supreme court decision regarding campaign finance reform). I see the present. I understand the past and how the progressives led us into the evils of Eugenics and Socialism while pulling us away from God. I see the future in the pages of scripture and know that Christ will return within my own life expectancy.

Promises: God’s word will tell us what is coming and what to do about it if we simply read it. While current events in the US may not be precisely predicted in scripture, the scripture can still be applied. Through it we know when what our leaders are doing is leading us in opposition to God. We can also see when the path our country is taking is right, wrong or even leading towards the end times.

Commands: Understand God’s word. When Saul was killed and David was made king there was a period of strife in the land because of those who didn’t understand or refused to acknowledge the prophecy of Samuel. Saul had disobeyed God in his first major act as king and was doomed by God to lose the kingdom. David was raised up to be Saul’s replacement. Those who knew and understood God’s will in the matter joined him immediately. Those who failed to keep up with what was going on found themselves on the wrong side of God’s will.

Timeless principles: Those who do not understand history are doomed to repeat it. The time of the Judges was a steady stream of Israelites repeating the same mistakes over and over again. The time of the kings was a steady stream of kings who followed God and kings who didn’t and history meaning nothing to most of them. Josiah learned history through the book of the law and mourned and prayed forgiveness for the sins of his fathers. Most kings served God or didn’t based on personality. Some would follow in their father’s footsteps while others did the opposite of their fathers. Few ever gave a glance at history or the idea of turning from God would scare them to death.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Understand the times. 1 Chronicles 12:32 mentions that members of the tribe of Issachar, that understood the times, came to make David king. God commands us in many places to understand the times and to understand prophecy so that we can be prepared. Like the men of Issachar that did not come, we will no be prepared to do the right thing and avoid the wrong actions if we don’t know what is happening and what God has to say about it.

more to learn for in-depth study: Keeping up with current events, understanding politics, knowing prophecy and learning history are all things people tend to avoid. Without and understanding of history you cannot hope to understand the present or to know the future. (those who don’t learn history are doomed to repeat it) Without understanding current events you will find the world passes you by. Without understanding politics you will find others control your life and you don’t even know why. Without understanding prophecy you will not know how the other 3 subjects apply to God’s plan and how you should react to what is happening and what is coming.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 13-16

First Chronicles 7-9

2009-04-29T08:27:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God has a purpose, plan and place for me. While the genealogies may seem pointless and refer to people we don’t even know, they show the plan that brought great things. While the you may need to check center column references you will see many names you have heard before. Some people were known by other names and, translation sometimes resulted in different spellings over time but, the references can show you the name you are familiar with. You’ll see the line of king Saul, the line of the priests. The line of later kings and other lines to important figures, even prophets.

Promises: God planned things long before we got here. You can see through these genealogies the path that brought high priests and kings into power and provided a place for the prophets. You can see how that plan was developed over generations and began to take shape decades or even centuries before the major players were born.

Commands: Another command for Israel. Take a census every ten years. The US Constitution provides for a census every 10 years based on that command. For us it is a simple count of the population to establish political districts. In Israel it was an exercise in Genealogy. Keep in mind that these were not separate family trees. These are all part of the same family tree going back to Jacob (Israel) for the family of Israel and beyond to Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Esau and others because they are cousins to the brothers of Israel. The relationship of Israel towards Edom and the Ishmaelite was determined by their familial relationship. God commanded Israel not to harass them because they were brothers. Edom and the Ishmaelite weren’t quite as good about recognizing that reason for peace which led to conflict and eventual destruction for them as we will see.

Timeless principles: No matter how much we try to stand out as individuals, our heritage will always be a factor in our lives. Whether we are descended from royalty or rug makers, Whether our families were rich or coal miners, we are a product of our background. Family ties are generally the strongest and determine how we interact with others. Even if we don’t like our family we are stuck with them and the influence us.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: The genealogies become more interesting as we realize how they effected who was king and how different kings were influenced by family loyalties. We’ve seen the line of kings in Israel (Samaria) and Judah (Jerusalem), these genealogies make it easier to understand the family ties that caused people to chose different kings.

more to learn for in-depth study: As the genealogies bring us up to date on where the major players came from we approach the details of stories we already heard. King Saul is the first person we see in the next section and we will flesh out details for a great many more.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 10-12

First Chronicles 4-6

2009-04-28T19:48:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: God has set aside an inheritance for me. All I have to do is ask for it.

Promises: Ask and it will be given to you. “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez (meaning He will cause pain) saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from Evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.

Commands: The commands were given to the Israelites. They were to provide cities for the Levites and cities of refuge for the man slayer. Those cities and how they were dispersed are described here.

Timeless principles: God has plans to prosper you not to harm you. The Promised land for the Israelites, it’s individual territories for each tribe, it’s cities for each family, the cities of the Levites throughout the land and the cities of refuge to ensure justice would be measured with mercy when appropriate.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Ask God for what I want and don’t be afraid to claim it when He gives it to me.

more to learn for in-depth study: here is a passage that launched a movement, not to mention a best selling book and a string of merchandise. The Prayer of Jabez. 1 Chronicles 4:9-10.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 7-9

finally caught up. Now to get ahead so that you will have a new blog each day even when I am busy prepping music for the Revival.

the other resolution

2009-04-28T18:03:00.001-04:00

I haven’t been on a scale in a couple of days but I was about the same weight as last week. Considering all that will be going on for the next week I can’t even think about dieting. On the other hand, as long as I remember to eat, I tend to do pretty well at controlling intake in the summer while I’m working so that I lose weight.

First Chronicles 1-3

2009-04-28T17:58:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: History is important to God. Whether it’s the descendants of Esau, the history of the US Civil war or the rise of the European nations it is important to know how things came about. If you don’t understand the past you can’t understand the present and you have no hope of seeing the future. The relationships of family members can translate to the relationship of nations and national interests can effect personal relationships. By understanding what came before you can realize where others went wrong and find the way to avoid their mistakes. Learning by example is what the bible is all about so it is wise to try and understand other histories as well.

Promises: God fulfills his promises no matter who He makes them to. Ishmael and Esau both were promised they would be the father of nations and the family trees given here show the nations they founded. The relationship of family members can be seen in the relationship of nations later as their descendants become nations that become neighbors, allies and even opponents. It’s also important to understand the fall of nations later. Often, the fate of nations in the bible is the result of their founders actions.

Commands: Be ready with a reason for your faith. God doesn’t call us to blind faith. He has given ample proof, evidence and historical records to back our faith and give reason for the way we believe. While this may be dry reading it establishes a history which we can point to and prove to support our beliefs. the next time someone tells you it isn’t proof and isn’t historically accurate point them to Simon Greenleaf. Dr Greenleaf was an atheist who put the bible to the test of evidence acceptable in court and found the bible to be proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Since then any number of other skeptics and unbelievers have tried to do the same and, like Greenleaf, they became evangelists. They also found ample historical and Archaeological evidence so that there is now more evidence supporting biblical history than there is for any other historical document in existence.

Timeless principles: Genealogy has been in practice for as long as man has been on the earth. The descendants of Adam and how they effected the earth before the flood are recorded. The descendants of Noah and how they became the nations of the world are recorded. The descendants of Abraham are described and explain the layout of the nation of Israel as you realize where the cities and regions got their names and how the families of the nation interacted. The genealogy of the kings is a habit that has been carried on throughout history and become the foundation of recorded history.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: I honestly don’t know yet. I hope I’ll have a better answer by the time I’m done with the genealogies that will be most of the study for the next couple of days.

more to learn for in-depth study: for those comparing timelines, this section should give you a lot of writing time.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 4-6

Second Kings 23-25

2009-04-28T15:25:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: your heritage means nothing. many good and God fearing kings had sons who were pure evil and Evil kings had sons who turned good. Hezekiah served God more thoroughly than any king since David and destroyed all false worship in Judah. His son rebuilt those high places and idols, He sacrificed his sons to false gods, he killed and destroyed in the name of false gods, he practiced witchcraft and consulted mediums. He was pure evil. His son Amon did the same. His grandson Josiah became king at age 8 and turned Israel back to god destroying idolatry and bringing back the law of God and begging God’s forgiveness for the sins of his father and grandfather and others. Josiah’s son went right back to all the evil of his grandfather and great-grandfather. His rule only lasted 3 months. Pharaoh made his brother king and he did all the same evils. When his brother was captured by Babylon, the king of Babylon made his uncle king and he continued the evil of his predecessors.

Promises: It’s hard to miss fulfilled prophecy. Hezekiah was warned that he showed Babylon all their treasures and now we can see where Babylon comes and takes those treasures.

Commands: Serve the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind and with all your soul.

Timeless principles: God fulfills his promises. Because he humbled himself before God and asked forgiveness for past sins, God withheld judgment during the time of king Josiah. The evil of Manaseh and Amon had caused God to promise judgment that would make it clear He didn’t tolerate disobedience and turning from God. The judgment would be terrible enough to make the ears tingle of those who heard it.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: God is just. I cannot expect to live like the devil then receive a full pardon and entry to heaven. God has always preserved a remnant who do not turn from His name and they have been made secure despite the troubles that come because of the evil of others. Noah, Abraham, the remnant of Benjamin, the survivors taken captive by Assyria and Babylon. He preserves this remnant and allows them to rebuild in His name that no one can ever say they over came Him.

more to learn for in-depth study: Josiah was zealous for God as no king before or after him. He destroyed all signs of Idolatry in Judah and in the cities of Samaria, some of which dated back to the time of Solomon. He eliminated the mediums, witches and perverted people who served false Gods with acts of evil. He read the law to all of his kingdom and swore to uphold it.

The king of Egypt at this time is Necho. Judah is captured by Babylon in the 8th year of king Nebuchednezer. The king of Babylon appointed Mattania as king and renamed him Zedikiah.

Chronicles is just that. History. It will involve a lot of lineages(begats) and reference material that some may wish to make notes on and use to clarify the timelines they already have. Some of it can be dry reading and boring but, it is important. Not only is every word of scripture meaningful, this section will help to clarify history and prophecy by laying out the details of events.

tomorrow: First Chronicles 1-3

Second Kings 20-22

2009-04-28T14:01:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: Be careful of the company you keep. As if it wasn’t bad enough that former kings of Judah spent so much time with the kings of Israel that their children led Judah in the same evil idolatry, Hezekiah welcomed the emissaries of Babylon and gave them the grand tour of every treasure in Israel. As Isaiah pointed out to him, he had shown the thieves where the valuables were kept. It was only a matter of time before they would come to claim those treasures as their prize.

Promises: Ours is a forgiving God who will protect those who honestly recognize their sin and ask forgiveness from God.

Commands: God loves you and wants to be with you but, He cannot be with you unless you recognize your sin and ask his forgiveness.

Timeless principles: The most important thing you can learn is not how you have sinned but how you react to learning of it. When Josiah learned the law of Israel he went into mourning for their sin and begged God to show him what to do about the law he had discovered. Because he humbled himself and mourned for past sin, God promised him security in his time and that the punishment for those past sins would not happen in his lifetime.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: I’ve already done it. I am washed in the blood of Jesus the Christ and forgiven by God for my sins. You can be too. Read this.

more to learn for in-depth study: Read John Chapter 3 and understand the path to salvation.

tomorrow: Second Kings 23-25

Second Kings 18-19

2009-04-28T13:38:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God is the ultimate power and none will ever stand against Him. None will survive the attempt to prove themselves more powerful than God.

Promises: No one stands against God successfully. God will not be mocked. He will make His strength known to all who look on it with reproach. When someone challenges you and says that God will not strengthen you against them you have only to pray and place your safety in His hands. God will not let anyone challenge His strength and those who do will be defeated by that strength.

Commands: Obey God and serve Him and He will be your strength.

Timeless principles: Ego is a big part of leadership but some rulers take it to extremes. Throughout history there has been a series of leaders who claimed greater strength than God and sought to prove that nothing could stand in their way. Every one of them has run into God like running into a brick wall. Every one of them has been smashed against that wall.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: never fear anyone who claims power greater than God. God doesn’t allow such claims to find any strength. He will defeat them when they try to prove their claim.

more to learn for in-depth study: Hezekiah turned back to serving God. He broke down the high places, sacred pillars and wooden images. He destroyed false worship from the land. He even destroyed the serpent Moses made in the wilderness because some of the people had been worshiping it.

tomorrow: Second Kings 20-22

Second Kings 16-17

2009-04-28T12:53:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God will give many chances to return to Him but, eventually, he will punish. It had been around 300 years since Solomon brought false worship into Israel but, most of the nation, ruled from Samaria, never turned back despite the warnings of the prophets and the minor judgments brought against them until the entire nation, except Judah, was taken captive by Assyria.

Promises: Our God is patient. I can count 12 generation between the time the Israelites began serving false God’s and the time when God sent them into captivity. Judah went back and forth with false worship but mostly chose to serve God while Israel never turned back from idolatry. The nation of Israel except Judah was taken as captives for the first time since the captivity in Egypt.

Commands: “thou shalt not have any other gods before Me”

Timeless principles: Patience waits for the appropriate time. Unending chances would be laziness and God is not lazy.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Stand up against false worship and lead people only to worship as God has prescribed. Defy false teachings that contradict the bible and boldly teach the truth as God has given it to us.

more to learn for in-depth study: Ahaz turned to the ways of Israel. He sacrificed his child, he worshiped false gods on the high places and under the trees(nature gods). When besieged by both Israel and Syria he sent gifts to the king of Assyria and asked his help to save Jerusalem. After the Assyrians took Damascus and turned aside the armies of Israel and Syria Ahaz went to visit the Assyrian king and saw an Alter that king had for worship. He made the chief priest build one to the same specifications and it was ready when he returned home. He immediately worshiped before it and put his sacrifices on it then he had it moved into the temple of God to replace the proper alter and removed many of the items that had been there for other use. In other words, he spit in God’s face repeatedly.

Hoshea ruled at a time when the king of Egypt was named So and the king of Assyria was Shalmaneser. These give room for independent coverage from the history of other nations. Also, the Author makes it clear in 2 kings 17:23 that these books are being written during the first period of captivity in Assyria, while Judah was still free.

The Assyrians took people from their homes and put them in the cities of other nations they had captured. The did this with the cities of Israel and as the captives proceeded to worship their false gods, God sent lions among them to kill them. The king of Assyria sent a Jewish priest to teach them how to serve Jehovah but, while they feared God they continued to worship false gods.

tomorrow: Second Kings 18-19

Second Kings 12-15

2009-04-28T10:00:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God will tolerate wrong for only as long as necessary. He promise Jehu that his sons would sit on the throne to the 4th generation. Jehu and each generation after him, continued to lead the people in idolatry and Jehu’s great -great-grandson(the fourth generation) held the throne 6 months be fore being killed in a coup.

Promises: God’s covenant stands through all time. His blood covenant to keep Israel forever has never been taken back. Despite the sins of the Israelites, God never allowed the oppression they suffered as punishment to destroy them. God always preserved a remnant to keep his promise.

Commands: Follow God or suffer the consequences. Continued idolatry led to the nation of Israel losing more cities and territories to neighboring Syria and Assyria. Eventually, the failure to fully remove false worship in Judah led to similar attacks against them by neighbors including Israel.

Timeless principles: It’s hard to overcome momentum. While Judah, routinely, went through purges of false religion, the “high places” remained from the time of Solomon to the time of this passage and beyond. Many of the false religions sought to gain a closer relation ship with the gods by sacrificing, burning incense and worshiping at the highest point available. Natural high points, like hills and mountains were enhanced by building mounds to reach higher, places that lacked high points would add towers to large structures. The idea went back to the tower of Babel which was meant to be the ultimate high place.

People had a tendency to adapt these places to worshiping God. Tradition told them to go to a high place in order to be close to god so they felt that the high place brought them closer to God, the Father. Of course, it also left an opening for those who continued to practice false religions as well. After so many years of doing it momentum carried them along the same path even when they were trying to do right.

Christians today are no different. A large part of the mistakes made in modern churches come from momentum and adapting “good parts” of false worship to true worship. This has led to political correctness, acceptance of things the bible calls sin, protests against practices the bible endorses, and even the idea of biblical evolution. They are wrong but, they creep in and get accepted because people do not want to stand up for the word of God. They think if they attack what is wrong and preach what is right they will offend someone and cause them to leave the church.

Here’s a basic principle. If the truth causes someone to lose faith and leave God then they never had Him in the first place. The truth can be a jarring thing. Consider how many new Christians you know that would be offended by the passages we have been reading if they heard them and believed them. This is the reason they are so eager to see the bible as allegorical and inaccurate. It allows them to dismiss the parts they find offensive. If they cannot reconcile with God over the parts they don’t like then they are not His servants. You need to begin again to teach them the truth until God can help them accept it.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: When God gives you a task do it thoroughly. Even if it is silly, symbolic or hard to understand. Jeroboam was told to strike the ground with a bundle of arrows when he was told to strike Syria and destroy them. He struck the ground 3 times and Elisha told him that he would only strike Syria 3 times and not destroy them. I can’t say I would have done differently under the circumstances but, given what I learned here, I wouldn’t stop hitting the ground until I was told to. The order came from God and so the task was from God.

more to learn for in-depth study: Here is a quick rundown of several kings. The passage just touches on some highlights from each administration with emphasis on the kings relationship to God and the results of that relationship. They say “the good die young”. I have to say that the bible shows they get long lives and long administrations while the evil ones get proportionally shorter amounts of time to cause damage. Having studied the gunfighters of the Old West the same seemed to hold true there. Without wasting to much time on details, the ones who sold their skill for a fast buck and personal gratification at the expense of the innocent never lasted 20 years. From the day of their first gunfight to their death was always under the 20 year mark and often much less. A few, who served others and made their reputations as peace officers or helped peace officers, not only lived much longer but died peacefully.

Jehoash and the high priest establish the offering box in this portion. The priests had been ordered to bring all the offerings, that the law did not specifically grant to them, to the temple to be used for construction and repair. When they didn’t do it the box was established so that all offerings brought to the temple that were not, by law, dedicated to the priests, would be collected and used to fund the repair of the neglected Temple of God.

The year count seems to get more out of sync the farther we get from David and Solomon but that was not unexpected. These accounts were pieced together after the fact from multiple sources and dates could be a bit mangles since years are measured but not months. In these circumstances, 23 months would count as 2 years but so would 14, since portions of 2 years were involved. Worse yet, if a six month period included the new year it might be marked as 2 years or compare to 2 years in the other kingdom.(king 1 rules six months king 2 rules 12 years. King 2 took the throne at the same time as king 1 and king one died in the second year that he was on the throne. You see how, after several generation, this gets the time line skewed over 2 kingdoms) This lines are repeated elsewhere with more details so, for those keeping track of the time line like I am, you will find details later to make them more accurate. The coup of Shallum over Zachariah in Israel is a perfect example. Zechariah took the throne in the 38th year of Azariah’s reign and was replaced in the 39th year of his reign but he only held the throne for 6 months.

Case Study: Meneham was a strong king whose government was quite effective in it’s goals. He executed the king and took over. Then he attacked a revolting city and brutally murdered all pregnant women. He continued to lead the Israelites in Idolatry. When the king of Assyria came to attack Israel, Meneham hired taxed the rich and gave the money to the Assyrians as a bribe so that they would work with him to force the Israelites to serve him then leave. This evil ruler held the country in an iron grip through his reign and his son’s reign until the coup that killed his son.

tomorrow: Second Kings 16-17

Second Kings 9-11

2009-04-27T18:08:00.002-04:00

God’s message to me: God fulfills his promises in His time. The priests of Baal were slaughtered in the temple of Baal which was then demolished and made a trash dump. The line of David was preserved on the throne as Joash took the crown at the age of 7. Jezebel was turned into dog food. Jehoram’s remains were tossed in the field he had stolen when Jezebel conspired against it’s owner. All of the house of Ahab was killed. And so the story goes when God makes a promise, it is only a matter of time.

Promises: God keeps his promises, long term or short term they will be upheld.

Commands: Obey God, do not turn to false worship, false religion and false Gods. Jehoash made a good start in removing Baal worship but, by continuing to turn Israel to idolatry, he doomed his kingdom. Under his rule the kingdom of Israel was picked apart piece by piece by surrounding nations.

Timeless principles: Politicians tend to stick with the tried and true methods even if they are wrong. Jehoash started well. He killed off the royal line that had brought so much destruction to Israel. he avenged the prophets against Jezebel and the priest of Baal. He destroyed Baal worship in Israel. Then he continued the first sin of leading Israel to worship the golden calves so that they wouldn’t turn to the Temple in Judah. The desire to consolidate power can lead the best leaders to evil. No matter how solid the foundation it can be torn down by the quest for power. Think of that when you hear that the US Constitution is an impediment to good government.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Stay true to God and don’t be turned by false religion. So many weak Christians are turned to a politically correct but false religiosity because they cannot fathom the truth of passages like the one we just read. Remember that one of the most common images given by God is the trial by fire. When everything seems to be going wrong God sometimes finds destruction the only path to salvation. That which is of value can only be purified by fire. When everything else is burned away, God’s chosen remnant can shine most brightly.

more to learn for in-depth study: Promises are obvious, commands should be obvious. This section is about a great slaughter. As horrifying as some of these images may be they ended in the removal of Baal worship, the end of the evil queen Jezebel and the destruction of those who turned Israel to destruction.

Are you a fan of fantasy books. JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis took their inspiration straight from the pages of the bible. The fact is, to best understand this era in Israel's history, you need to read it in large portions just like you would the Chronicles of Narnia or the Lord of the Rings. The story covers a lot of time and pieces together over large parts of scripture. Some prophecies take more than one generation to come true but, by reading it through as we are doing you can more easily see how God delivers on his promises and his curses.

tomorrow: Second Kings 12-15

Second Kings 7-8

2009-04-26T07:27:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Be careful who you associate yourself with. Even if you are strong enough to continue doing what is right your example and the influence of bad people on your associates and family could be detrimental. Jehoshaphat was a good king following God but his son married Ahab’s daughter and his son and grandson both followed Ahab’s ways when they were king.

Promises: Our God is a God of the Impossible. The waste and garbage was fetching premium prices and the Israelites had resorted to cannibalism in the city of Samaria. Famine in the land coupled with a siege they had no power to break made the people hopeless. The king had ordered the execution of Elisha but Elisha predicted fine foods would be selling for bargain basement prices within 24 hours. The guard sent to get him didn’t believe such a thing could happen unless the gates of heaven opened and food rained from the sky.

That night God sent the sound of chariots and marching into the enemy camp so that they believed Israel had hired mercenaries against them. They Syrians ran away leaving all they had brought in an intact camp. The animals, the food, the weapons, clothes and supplies were left to the Israelites and the sudden influx of so much caused the price of food to drop to prices normally unheard of in times of plenty.

Commands: Do not forsake God and do not serve false Gods. Jehoshaphat had been an obedient servant of God but made himself to close to Ahab. His son married Ahab’s daughter and, when he became king, he followed Ahab’s sinful ways so that he only reigned 8 years. It was in this time that Edom and Libnah revolted against Judah’s authority.

His son was just as bad and ruled only one year. Wounded in battle while fighting alongside the Samarians, he went to Jezreel to recover.

Timeless principles: God does not seek the suffering of His servants. Like the warnings given to others in the past God sent word through Elisha that there would be famine in the land. Elisha gave the message to the woman whose son had been raised from the dead so that she could escape the famine and live elsewhere for those seven years. You will remember that Joseph was set up to protect his family and all of Egypt from a famine and that others had also been told to go to safe places when famine was coming.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Be careful of my associations and how they influence those around me.

more to learn for in-depth study: We are developing a bit of a time line here. Ahaziah reigned until about 105 years after Solomon. Solomon and David each ruled 40 years and Solomon began work on the temple around 3148 years after creation. That means Ahaziah would have ended his reign around 3191 to 3193 years after creation. The times of the kings are slightly less precise with information we have now because we haven’t seen a specific point in Solomon’s reign that he began work on the temple. We just know it happened early. In any case we can get a rough idea of the times of each rule by comparing the time in office and the point at which the person took the throne compared to the other kingdom. It’s roughly accurate and will become more accurate as further books will give more precision to the times.

tomorrow: Second Kings 9-11

Weekly Assignment

2009-04-26T05:54:00.002-04:00

Monday: First Chronicles 1-3
Tuesday: First Chronicles 4-6
Wednesday: First Chronicles 7-9
Thursday: First Chronicles 10-12
Friday: First Chronicles 13-16
Saturday: First Chronicles 17-20
Sunday: First Chronicles 21-23

I am a week behind. These assignments are were we should be in the study but I am still working on last weeks assignments. I hoped to finish them yesterday but, it's taking longer. I will be caught up and ahead by the time the revival starts on Wednesday but I am not sure how long it will take to get there.

Second Kings 4-6

2009-04-25T18:11:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: How big is your faith? How many pots, jars, and other vessels would you gather if the man of God said you could fill them all from one small vessel of oil? Would you run to the prophet believing he could raise your son from the dead? Could you trust a small amount of food to feed a multitude of people?

Promises: Ours is a God of the impossible. He can make food multiply, He can raise the dead and heal the terminally ill. He can make Iron float on water. He can provide warning and information better than any spy.

Commands: Trust in the Lord and He will provide all your needs.

Timeless principles: When hard times come it is God’s people who get the blame. Whether it is the Jews or the Christians they are blamed for calamity. With famine in the land and the capital under siege the king of Israel called for Elisha to be killed. When hard times came to Germany Hitler blamed the Jews. When terrorists smashed planes into the twin towers Christians were blamed and faith was relabeled as hate.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: When everything is going wrong and you seem to have no way out, trust God to give you safe passage.

more to learn for in-depth study: The Jordan river was not the cleanest water source around. In fact, at that time it was a bit of a cesspool. Taking a bath in that filth would be dubious for a healthy man but, because the man of God had told him that God would heal him if he did so, Namaan, washed in that mucky river 7 times.

tomorrow: Second Kings 7-8

Second Kings 1-3

2009-04-25T12:40:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: We Christians really don’t know the power we can wield. God has promised us the ability to do all we read about in the bible and more. Despite that fact we continue to assume the days of miracles are over. With faith the size of a mustard seed we can move a mountain. We can heal and cast out demons. We can survive attack and withstand poison as long as God wills us to. We have no reason to fear embarrassment. If we can agree together before God and ask things in the name of His Son they will be granted that our joy may be full and that His power will be known.

Promises: God is not mocked. When the king demanded Elijah to come God revealed His power by burning the soldiers where they stood when Elijah asked Him too. He did it to prove He was God and Elijah was His man. He parted the waters for Elijah and again for Elisha to show Elisha he was indeed empowered as his predecessor. He also fulfilled the curse of Elisha on the boys who mocked him.

Commands: Do what God commands, no matter how useless it may seem, and He will provide far more than you could imagine to fulfill your needs and desires.

Timeless principles: God will often use the same thing that brings success to His people to bring disaster on their enemies. The king of Judah, who served God, went with the kings of Samaria(Israel) and Edom(the children of Esau) to battle the Moabites. Lacking water they sought the council of Elisha.

Because of Jehoshaphat, who served the Lord, Elisha inquired of the Lord and instructed them to dig ditches in the valley where they were camped. God filled the ditches with water so that the army and it’s animals could drink, he caused the water to look like blood to the Moabites so that they thought the three kings fought amongst each other and dashed in for an easy victory, only to find 3 armies, rested, fed and watered, ready to overcome them.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Trust God and don’t worry about the means. When God told the kings to dig ditches He also told them those ditches would be filled with water miraculously. The water wouldn’t come from rain or runoff or a stream or any other visible source. God would fill them. God did fill them and He can fulfill your needs just as miraculously.

more to learn for in-depth study: Baal Zebub, which is where we get the name Beelzebub, means Lord of the flies and was one of several false gods known as Baal.

tomorrow: Second Kings 4-6

First Kings 22

2009-04-25T12:02:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: You cannot hide from God. Ahab knew that the enemy would seek to target the king so he disguised himself as a soldier and left Jehoshaphat to ride in the full splendor of the king of Judah. The Syrians went straight for Jehoshaphat but recognized, when they got close, that he was not the king they were targeting. Meanwhile, a random shot by a Syrian archer put an arrow in Ahab’s back. Propped up in his chariot, Ahab slowly bled to death over the course of the day. The prophecy was fulfilled when his chariot was washed out. The dogs licked up his blood.

Promises: God fulfills His promises and justice is served. Ahab humbled himself before God and God let the judgment for his sin fall after his death. This did not change the fact that his family was wiped out. It didn’t change his untimely demise and it didn’t change the curse that his remains would feed the dogs. His son took the throne and did all Ahab had done and worse. Ahab’s son Ahaziah only ruled two years because of his sin and the sin of his family and the families leading the nation into sin against God and worship of false gods.

Commands: This should be obvious by now. ‘I am the Lord thy God and Thou shalt have no other god’s before Me’

Timeless principles: Good advice is nothing but an annoyance to those unwilling to hear it. Ahab wanted to attack the Syrians. He had hundreds of the best prophets money could buy telling him God would be with him in the war. He didn’t want advice from a God fearing prophet because he knew it wouldn’t agree. When the prophet agreed with him he demanded to know if it was a lie. When the prophet confirmed the advice of the other prophets was a lie and that this war would lead to Ahab’s death, Ahab had him locked up and went to war anyway. Ahab died on the battlefield that day. Truth wins even if you don’t like it.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Worship God and do not be led to false worship of false god’s. (the loving god that would never judge people for their lifestyles and wouldn’t send someone to hell for petty sins like lying, is a false god you must not worship.)

more to learn for in-depth study: The chronicles of the kings of Israel and Judah are historical references, not scripture. While they are referred to in this text, they are not necessary to understand what God wants us to learn. For those who are curious I would suggest contacting a messianic Jewish organization such as Zola Levitt Ministries. http://www.levitt.com/

tomorrow: Second Kings 1-3

First Kings 19-21

2009-04-25T09:23:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Major events can get a lot of attention but that doesn’t make them signs from God. God can make Himself known in the wind, the earthquake, the fire, the flood or even in a still, small voice. It is important to see that, while God was known mostly by major events in the Old Testament, He was known more in simple words in the New Testament. We have all heard of the miracles of Christ but, the New Testament tells much more of His message and of the words He spoke to show people the way to eternal life.

God is still available for the big miracles today, but when we need to know His will we are most likely to hear it when we learn to “be still and know that [He] is God.” It is only then when we are quiet enough to hear and learn from that “still, small voice”

Promises: There is always a remnant. Israel never failed to find trouble and usually in a very short time period after getting out of trouble. No matter how much evil they did and how thoroughly they were marked for destruction, God has always preserved a remnant for Himself. Since the Day of His promise to Abraham, he has never let Israel be destroyed. Not one tribe has been reduced so far that it could not be maintained. A remnant of those loyal to God has always been kept to ensure the continuation of His people.

Commands: When God gives a command it had better be followed. Ahab repeated Saul’s mistake by sparing a king who had been marked for destruction.

Timeless principles: Regardless of how we are seeking to do God’s will, fear is something we will experience. Fear is the basic response that causes us to quickly take action which removes us from danger. In this way it is a reasonable response given by God to protect us. When we allow it to control our lives and actions and to prevent us from doing right it falls into the real of problem. God has not given us a spirit of fear but of peace. Once the immediate crises is reacted to we must set aside fear and develop a reasonable plan of action.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Remember not to let fear rule your life. It isn’t wrong to protect yourself but, you can’t let fear prevent you from doing what God wants you to do. Praise God for the young lady who represented California in the Miss USA contest. She battled with her desire to win and allowed faith in God to override fear of loosing. She answered the truth in faith and represented not only God but the vast majority of people in her state. The politically correct judge sought to destroy her for her speech and to punish her for her thoughts and her faith. God has lifted her in the eyes of His people to stand as a shining example of faith.

more to learn for in-depth study: Elijah was sent to anoint 3 people to do God’s work. Hazael would be king of Syria, Nimshi would be king of Israel, and Elisha would become prophet in Elijah’s place. These three would become the tools of judgment against Israel for it’s idolatry.

This passage hints at the evil of Jezebel. She led the nation in worshiping Baal and in all the evil that went with that religion. She was treacherous, a schemer, a murderess, in short, “a Jezebel”. There is a reason that name has become a curse and an insult in our society and there is a reason people don’t name their daughter’s Jezebel. Unfortunately, far to few people remember that reason in a world that claims to love their faith but never reads their bibles. When preachers refuse to teach condemnation no one can learn the need for salvation. Jezebel is a case study in condemnation. That’s probably why no one really learns about her anymore.

On the upside, she will get her “come-uppins” in the end.

tomorrow: First Kings 22

Weekly Assignment

2009-04-25T08:38:00.002-04:00

Monday: Second Kings 7-8
Tuesday: Second Kings 9-11
Wednesday: Second Kings 12-15
Thursday: Second Kings 16-17
Friday: Second Kings 18-19
Saturday: Second Kings 20-22
Sunday: Second Kings 23-25

Well, There is no excuse. I just allowed everyday chores to get in the way instead of making this blog my priority. You have my deep apologies. You will also have my entries for the week by the end of the day. I will also be working on posts for next week early. My church is hosting a revival next week so I will be to busy to keep things timely. Instead I will get the posts done before events get in the way so I can cut and paste them to this blog each morning and stay on schedule for you.

First Kings 17-18

2009-04-15T09:23:00.001-04:00

this site is going down early tomorrow morning for maintenance and the next post may be late depending on how long it remains down. If things go as usual you shouldn't notice the interruption unless you try to get on between 2 and 5 am.

God’s message to me: “I will provide.” That’s what God says to me. Through every problem in my life and through every time of “famine” God has provided. There have been times of plenty. As a long haul trucker I made plenty of money and had no worries. I have also had times like this when I couldn’t get work, couldn’t make ends meet and God had to provide. As a child and as an adult, even in the leanest of times, I have never gone without a roof over my head and food on the table. It wasn’t always what I wanted but it was sufficient for my needs. God is capable of prospering us greatly or of simply providing our needs. He does these things to let us know He is God.

In my time of plenty I often forgot Him, skipping church for months or even years, being a workaholic, being a bad example and so on. In my times of little God has reminded me He provides all so that when the plenty returned I remembered Him and when the little returned I trusted Him.

Promises: God can provide all our needs and “possible” has nothing to do it. When the common way of doing things is not available God can use the uncommon and even the supernatural to provide.

Commands: Do not tolerate false Gods or false teachers. The Lord will provide the proof of His truth and existence. Just as he did for Elijah He can and will do the impossible to prove himself. Burning the offering on wood and alter socked with water and an offering soaked in water with a pool of water all around was nothing for the God who can let an entire town be leveled by a tornado and leave the church untouched in the middle. You’ve seen those photo’s and you understand what I’m saying. Those who can see His miracles and still deny Him have made their choice. The rest of us can learn and turn to Him.

It was predicted that the prophets of Baal and Asherah would be sacrificed and in this story we see them all killed after their god was proven false and Jehovah proven true. Note that God didn’t ask for blind faith but provided ample evidence before asking for action.

Timeless principles: not every little disaster is a curse from God. The widow’s son became very ill and died. She saw this as judgment for her sins. God used it as an opportunity to show His unlimited power. God raised the child from the dead showing he could do much more than simply meet their needs.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Trust God for our needs no matter how great or small. From providing the next meal to raising the dead, God has provided examples to show He is capable of all that we need.

more to learn for in-depth study: Here is an exception to the rule. Elijah is a hero of the bible who did not live the life of Donald Trump. After predicting drought and famine for the king of Israel He lived in hiding near a small stream where ravens brought him food and he drank from the stream. When the stream dried up he lived with a widow and her son. They had a little flour and a little oil and the Lord made sure it never ran out but they did not go without. they weren’t prospering. The four and oil weren’t multiplying so that they had extra and could give it or sell it. It was never used up and it was sufficient for their needs.

tomorrow: First Kings 19-21

First Kings 14-16

2009-04-14T09:17:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Prophecies are fulfilled literally even if it takes a long time. It was over 650 years after Joshua made the prophecy about Jericho that someone tried to rebuild the city and the prophecy was fulfilled exactly as it had been given.

Promises: God keeps his promises. He promised David that his family would keep the throne and they did because he had followed God throughout his life. Due to the sins of these ruler some had exceptionally short careers as king but the family did continue to rule. King Asa was one who had a long career. Because he walked in the ways of the Lord and even removed his Grandmother from being queen mother because of her Idolatry, God allowed him to rule 41 years in Jerusalem and lead his people in the ways of the Lord.

Commands: Do not turn from God and do not lead others away from Him. How many kings of Israel and Judah do you need to see destroyed for this sin before you know the consequence. Asa led the people back to God and reigned 41 years. David and Solomon ruled 40 years each so at this point Asa was setting a record for time on the throne.

Timeless principles: OK, this one should be obvious. Don’t make God angry. You won’t like Him much when He is angry at you.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: When reading prophecy, take it literally. When God speaks figuratively he always provides a literal translation or explains that the things described could not be understood in earthly terms. There are no exceptions to this rule in the bible. The Bible is filled with prophecies and over 2/3 of the are already fulfilled. Each one was fulfilled literally as it was written. Those who claim the prophecies are open to interpretation are LYING TO YOU.

more to learn for in-depth study: The books of the chronicles of the kings of Israel and the chronicles of the kings of Judah are more books that are not found in the bible. The books of first and second Chronicles cover a lot of that history as well but the history books referred to here are just that, history books. They aren’t scripture so they aren’t found in the bible.

Jeroboam reigned 22 years. Because he led Israel into worshiping idols and false gods, god promised to remove his family like trash and send the Israelites out of the land. God had given him most of Israel to rule because of Solomon’s idolatry and he didn’t learn from the previous king’s mistake. As predicted, his son Nadab was murdered by Baasha and Baasha took over the throne of Israel. Then he killed everyone in the house of Jeroboam.

God also promised that all these things would only be for a time. Other prophecies found elsewhere in the bible predict the reuniting of Israel, the birth and ruler ship of Jesus from the house of David, and the perpetual kingdom of Israel which will never be removed.

Jeroboam’s son Nadab took the throne after him. In the meantime Rehoboam is doing an equally bad job of leading Judah by setting up worship of false Gods. He rules only 17 years and is replaced by his son Abijam who reigned only 3 years and was replaced by his son Asa.

Baasha would only last 24 years and continue the sins of the house of Jeroboam. God made the same promise of destruction to him and after he died his son Elah took over and was murdered and replaced 2 years later by the commander of his Chariots, Zimri. Zimri then killed off all his family and friends.

The army wasn’t to happy with Zimri killing the king so they appointe Omri king and began another civil war within a civil war. Israel and Judah had been at war since Solomon’s death and now Israel was fighting amongst itself as well. The fight began only a week after Zimri took over and he burned the kings house down with himself in it when he lost the fight. Half the people wanted to make Tibni king and the other half were following Omri. Omri prevailed and Tibni died so that Omri became king of Israel. Omri built the city of Samaria and was followed by his son Ahab who ruled from that city and each was worse than the previous in continuing to provoke God.

Ahab married Jezebel the daughter of the king of Sidonia. He worshiped Baal and Ashorah. In his time the prophecy spoken through Joshua was fulfilled when Hiel of Bethel built Jericho laying its foundations with the life of his first born and setting up it’s gates with the life of his youngest.

tomorrow: First Kings 17-18

the other resolution

2009-04-13T14:11:00.000-04:00

It’s amazing the damage you can do in a day. Easter Sunday involved donuts, ham, sweet potatoes, corn, cake, cookies, candy, and so on. I was on a good track and blew it in one day. Weighing in at 234.6#

First Kings 12-13

2009-04-13T14:08:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Faith and the fear of God should always be a part of leadership. Religion should never be a matter of politics. It works one way but not the other. The goal of God is to provide protection and prosperity to His people. As such it is wise for a leader to look to God for direction and to guide his leadership based on God’s direction.

When leaders begin to set up principles and call them religion, WATCH OUT. The goal of the political leader is power and the quest for personal power is hindered by recognition of God’s power. For as long there have been governments there have been men willing to lead people down the wrong path in the guise of religious values. Always remember that truth is found in the bible not in philosophy. No matter how good something sounds or how convincing the speaker, if it disagrees with the bible it will lead to destruction.

Promises: God can make you great or destroy you and the fact that He has made you great will not stop Him from destroying you if you turn from Him and by your action lead others astray.

Commands: Turning from God is an act of evil but, intentionally turning the hearts of others from God and leading them into the sin of worshiping false gods is worse. Jeroboam turned most of Israel to false worship in order to secure political power and God promised to destroy his house for that sin. He also promised that the false priests and false prophets of those false religions would be killed on their own alter.

Timeless principles: Leaders fear what they cannot control. The Israelites served God and looked to the temple in Jerusalem as their most holy site. Jeroboam felt that they would turn against him and back to Rohoboam if they continued to go to the temple so he set up idols and strengthened worship in false gods so that the people would look to false religion outside of Jerusalem and not have a chance of their religion guiding their politics.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Understanding the bible and what God truly intended for us is the only antidote to political correctness. Politically correct is just the current standard that politicians can convince people is right. They will use all the right words to make it seem like it is of God but they will lead you straight to hell.

Freedom of choice sounds like a good thing but amounts to murder. Euthanasia seems like a dignified act of love but amounts to patricide(killing your parents). Population control is the political effort to avoid starvation, poverty and other evils brought on by overpopulation. It also goes by the name of Eugenics, National Socialism(the Nazi Party), Holocaust, Forced abortion, extermination of the weak or “defective”. In other words, all the evils that led to the worst and darkest days of the last century. Think “ethnic cleansing.”

It sounds great when people say we should give back to the community but the community didn’t give you anything to begin with. God did. Charity is wonderful, socialism is destructive. Remember this basic principle. Any beautiful thing that God creates, Satan will try to adopt, pervert and undermine. The best lie is the one hidden in the truth. Forced charity is anything but charitable. Volunteering isn’t an act of selflessness if you don’t have a choice not to volunteer. Sharing the wealth is charity, tax and spend is theft.

more to learn for in-depth study: Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, Acted foolishly in his first big decision as king. He could have kept all of Israel united by following the advice of those his father had chosen as advisers. God intended to break up the kingdom and so Rehoboam listened to his personal friends instead.

Those who had a rough time under Solomon asked to be treated better and that would have been wise. Rehoboam was not wise and his friends even less so and he listened to the advice of his friends who said that he should be aggressive. Faced with those who wanted more fairness he promised less and all of Israel, except the tribe of Judah in which the capital lay, turned against him. When he sent out the tax collector to demand the money he expected to receive as king the people killed the tax collector. The king was left to run away and the rest of Israel appointed Jeroboam as their king.

tomorrow: First Kings 14-16

Weekly Assignment

2009-04-13T12:51:00.001-04:00

Monday: First Kings 12-13
Tuesday: First Kings 14-16
Wednesday: First Kings 17-18
Thursday: First Kings 19-21
Friday: First Kings 22
Saturday: Second Kings 1-3
Sunday: Second Kings 4-6

First Kings 9-11

2009-04-13T12:49:00.000-04:00

I fell behind again. Go figure

God’s message to me: It’s easy to lean on God when everything is going wrong and you feel you have no where else to turn. It’s also easy to forget where your loyalty should lie when everything is going right. When life is good and God’s blessings are overwhelming it is all the more important to remember Who provided your good life.

Promises: This portion describes all God did for Solomon. Solomon asked only for wisdom and because that is all he asked for he received wisdom greater than anyone before or since. He also received wealth and power as God had promised so that he was the richest and most powerful king in the world.

Commands: Do not turn from God. God had commanded that the Israelites not intermarry with the people of the surrounding nations and the nations that he was rejecting from the promised land because they would turn their hearts to false gods. Solomon took 700 wives and 300 concubines most of whom came from the nations they were not supposed to marry into.

To keep his wives happy he built temples and alters to the false gods they served and he worshiped those gods with them. This act against God resulted in the second half of God’s promise. The kingdom of Israel was divided after Solomon’s 40 year reign and those who David and his generals had put down were the ones who came back and took over the portion that was not under control of the house of David. For the sake of His promise to David and His promise to place his name in the temple Jerusalem and the territory it was in remained under control of David’s decedents.

Timeless principles: The greatest blessing can lead to the greatest fall. Solomon had it all, literally. He had more power, wealth and wisdom than anyone. He got to comfortable in it and turned from God who had given it to him. He sacrificed the future for the pleasures of today.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: “it’s not hurting anybody” is not an excuse. Doing the right thing is required even if the wrong thing doesn’t seem to do any harm. We answer to God in the end and He judges on whether we followed His law, not on whether others liked us, not on how successful we were and not on whether we did something that didn’t hurt anyone.

more to learn for in-depth study: The book of the acts of Solomon is yet another reference to a book that is not found in the bible. Many books of Jewish history are mentioned throughout scripture. They are not scripture but historical reference. Some can be found in the Talmud and other works of significance to the Jewish faith and might prove useful to historical interest. They should not; however, serve as a replacement to scriptures. The bible is the divinely inspired word of God and is meant to provide us with all we need to know in order to serve Him. While other books are of interest to learn of the times in which biblical events occurred they are merely historical reference and not religious guidance. The books of the Apocrypha found in the Catholic bible are such documents. The Rabbis who provided the original document later translated into our modern bibles specified that these books were not seen as or treated as scripture which is why the translators of bibles used by most of the protestant faiths did not include them. Following the tradition of separating scripture from reference they left these books out of the bible so that the bible would remain purely the word of God.

tomorrow: First Kings 12-13

First Kings 8

2009-04-11T09:01:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God’s plan is to have all the world turn to Him in love, worship, thanksgiving and to fulfill their needs. This has been His plan from the beginning. For this cause He did great works that the entire world would know Him and His Power and recognize that He is God.

Promises: God hears our prayers and responds. He is not contained so that he can dwell in a building. He is Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Omnipotent. He knows all, can do all and is everywhere at the same time. He may take actions to make his presence known in one particular place but He is everywhere, always listening and waiting for our prayer.

Commands: Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem. This is not in the text you read today but it is a clear command repeated in the bible. This is the City in which God placed His name and in which he set the throne of His Kingdom and that of Israel. Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem and understand that true peace can only come when it once again belongs completely to Israel and is the Capital of that nation. Until the Jews can enter the Temple Mount without fear of reprisal there will not be true peace in Jerusalem.

Timeless principles: Jehovah is not the God of any one people. He is King of kings, Lord of lords, Alpha and Omega, I AM, The Uncaused Cause, He is the one true God and Creator of the Universe. He placed his name in Jerusalem because it was there that He established the Throne of His Kingdom and the Seat of His Rulership over the earth. Even Solomon, at a time when few outside of Israel recognized The Lord, knew that He was the God of everything and that anyone in all the earth who turned to Him deserved His reply. Solomon knew that God had done all He had done in Israel in order that the world would know He Is Lord. He knew that all the great miracles and acts of God leading up to that day and beyond would be known, not only in the surrounding countries, as it already was, but throughout the world. That Gentiles of all nations would turn their hearts to the One True God.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: First, God is God to all people in all lands and desires that all come to him. It is true that many will never turn to Him and will be lost in their sin. This does not change that fact that God loved the world so much that He sent His only Son to die for our sins. God did this so that all who Believe in Jesus and accept His gift of Salvation can be saved and come to Jehovah as their own God.

Second, Jerusalem is the place where God placed His name. It is the place He chose to be the Capital of Israel and, when He returns, the capital of his Earthly kingdom. Jerusalem should not be divided. Jerusalem should be the capital of Israel. Jerusalem does belong to the Jews. The temple mount is the place where God put his name and it is the rightful place of the Temple of God built first by Solomon, and rebuilt several times since and will be built again. The Dome of the Rock has no place there. The Al Aqusa Mosque is in Mecca, you need only look at maps of that region, ask those who have been there or ask someone there if you visit and they can show you to and into the Al Aqusa Mosque. The Dome of the Rock is not the true Al Aqusa Mosque and no one ever tried to claim it was until Israel became a nation and they needed an excuse to try and remove God’s chosen people from the City of Jerusalem which they always knew was the Capital of the Jews and the place where God placed his name.

more to learn for in-depth study: As with the Tabernacle of Meeting the sign that the Temple of God was accepted by God was His presence. As soon as the Ark of the Covenant was placed in the Holy of Holies The cloud, which had led the Israelites through the wilderness, filled the temple and it shown with the Glory of God so that the Priests could not minister inside the temple. This had been the way that God would dwell in the Tabernacle of Meeting as the Israelites traveled to the Promised land. When He entered the Tabernacle in this way Moses could go to the door of the Tabernacle to speak with Him.

tomorrow: First Kings 9-11

First Kings 5-7

2009-04-10T10:13:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Honor God. The construction and decoration of the temple show a great deal of glory and honor being given to God. It should be understood that we are dealing with the King of kings when we decide how we will honor our Lord. We, as Christians, are given the honor of being granted an Audience with the Creator and Ruler of the universe any time we desire one through prayer. All to often we take this for granted and treat it far to lightly and casually. It isn’t necessary to dress up for church every time but how would you dress if you knew the President of the United States was going to be there? It isn’t required that we clean and polish everything to perfection but how would you like your church to look if Jesus Christ were going to preach this Sunday?

Promises: God doesn’t ask for things He doesn’t provide. David obtained the treasures used to decorate the temple during his conquest of the enemies that came against him and Israel. Solomon obtained the materials from allies who gladly sold them out of friendship with both David and Solomon.

Commands: Honor God as God wishes to be honored. The design of the Tabernacle and the Temple were both divinely inspired. Remember what happened to the sons of Aaron when they offered incense outside of the boundaries of the ceremonies commanded by God. God expects nothing less and nothing more than that we fulfill his commands. Doing less is wrong. Going beyond is wrong.

The most humble mission can be used more mightily than the most beautiful cathedral but each should reflect the best we are able to give to our God.

Timeless principles: Churches are all different and some have more resources than others. Taking into account the resources available to your congregation, who’s house is nicer, yours or Gods? The people of Israel built the Tabernacle of Meeting and the Temple of God out of the best and most costly materials available. They Layered everything they could in gold and decorated with gemstones. For those things that needed more durability they used bronze which is similar in color and easily polished to great beauty. How do you honor God’s house?

How can I apply what I’ve learned: God is the King of kings and Lord of lords. It makes no sense to give Him anything but the best. Not only was the temple layered in Gold and the furnishings made from the best woods and metals, the best artisans were brought in to create the items so that they would be artistically and architecturally the best.

more to learn for in-depth study: It’s been a while since I did an in depth study of end times prophecy so I can’t remember the verse reference to back this. Egypt and Lebanon will turn to God and join with Israel against the Anti-Christ in the Tribulation. These two nations were allies of Israel under Solomon as well. Lebanon had a mostly Christian population with a large Jewish component and a minority Muslim group which was not militant prior to the nations takeover by Hezbollah and Hamas. The Muslims who took over the country were Shiite Iranians and the large Muslim contingent in Lebanon today is Iranian and not Lebanese. Since the Peace treaty with Egypt Israel has had little or no state sponsored trouble from that nation. While they are hardly swayed to side with Israel at this time, they are becoming less of a threat. It isn’t difficult to see the work of prophecy in the news.

480 years after the Israelites left Egypt, Solomon has been on the throne 4 years, it is the second month of the year and The Temple of God, sometimes called the temple of Solomon begins to be built. As we have dated things before this we can see that the Temple began to be built about 3148 years after the creation of the earth. It took 7 years to build it so that it would have been finished in about the year 3155 after creation.

I can’t find my notes and book on the Tabernacle of meeting right now but I’ll try to give you a comparison later. The temple was 90 feet long 30 feet wide and 45 feet high. The vestibule extended another 15 feet in front. It is interesting to note the details but I will only comment on 3.

The stones used to build it were finished at the quarry so that there would be no sound of hammers in the temple while it was being built. They would have to be transported carefully to ensure no damage after finishing and they would have to be carefully measured and accurately constructed in order to fit perfectly together when they arrived. The interior walls were covered in wood so that no stone was visible from inside the temple. Like the Tabernacle, furnishings were made of wood and covered in gold. While fine wood was used to make the walls and decorations they did not show within the temple. Every surface including the floors, ceilings, walls, doors and door frames were covered in gold.

When people talk about the lost treasure of Israel it has to do with this temple. The Temple itself, along with all that was in it was worth a fortune. King David made certain that there was treasure set aside for the construction of this richly appointed building. In fact there was much more than enough. Solomon, in turn, built the temple and added to the treasure so that, if something were to happen, there would be enough to rebuild it. This treasure was hidden well and portions used several times in the history of Israel then replaced, sometimes quickly and other times not for many decades. This secure treasure has been maintained throughout history and is believed to still be stored where it always has been. The Ark of the Covenant is believed to also be there.

Raiders of the Lost Ark is one of several theories on where the Ark is now but the important thing to note is that no sacrifices were continued at the Temple or the Tabernacle unless the Ark was there. The blood of the sacrifice had to go to the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant and so the sacrifice at the temple would not make sense without it. The end times prophecies tell us that sacrifices will have returned before the tribulation begins. This tells us we can look for the return of the Ark of the Covenant as one of the last things to occur before the Rapture. On the other hand, it is not marked as a sign of the Rapture so it may happen after the Rapture. The bible is unclear on the time table but the Rapture occurs a short time before the tribulation begins. This could be hours, days, months or potentially years. Given the rapid timetable of those times I expect it would be less than a year and the resulting mayhem that will occur when every Born Again Christian suddenly disappears will be a great opening for the anti-Christ who is described as a powerful world leader. Political power and popularity is most easily gained in time of crises. Note how many politicians have said things like “never waste a crisis” since the recession began.

tomorrow: First Kings 8

First Kings 2-4

2009-04-09T17:25:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Learn from your mistakes and don’t repeat them. Don’t pass on your problems to the next generation so that you can live the life of the politically correct.

Promises: God can give you everything you ever imagined and a great deal more. Solomon asked God only for the wisdom to judge Israel with justice. God made him the wisest man who ever lived in history. In all of time before and after Solomon there has never been one who was wiser. He was the richest and most powerful king despite a rule marked by peace. The military he commanded was more than sufficient to overcome any enemy. Solomon asked for wisdom and was granted wisdom, wealth, health, long life, power and strength beyond what any king of that time could have hoped.

Commands: Follow God’s commands and live within his statutes.

Timeless principles: An old dog can learn new tricks. David made a lot of promises and showed a lot of kindnesses he shouldn’t have. He saw and survived the aftermath of those bad decisions and so he reminded Solomon not to repeat the folly and to eliminate the problems he had protected. David’s oaths kept him from dealing with the trouble but his son could do so without breaking any promises.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Borrowing trouble for the next generation in order to make your own lifetime work the way that makes you comfortable is not a mark of wisdom.

more to learn for in-depth study: Adonijah never seemed to learn from his mistakes. He gained safety from his brother Solomon by showing he would respect him as king. Then he spoke to Bathsheba as if her son had stolen the throne. He also demanded, in marriage, the young woman who had tended David in his last days. Solomon could see trouble coming. The arrogance of his brother in the manner he claimed he had lost the throne and his desire to marry a woman who might help strengthen his claim to the throne because of her previous duties were enough to show he would be a problem. Having already attempted a coup once, Solomon didn’t wait for him to do so again. He ordered Adonijah killed.

Joab and Adonijah each went to the tabernacle and took hold of the alter expecting to be spared from execution. Aside from the fact that this action violated the law in regard to who could go where or touch what in the temple, this is also an early attempt to claim sanctuary. No one ever claimed sanctuary effectively in the tabernacle of meeting or the temple. Each person mentioned, hid there knowing their own guilt and expecting others to spare them for the temples sake. Every one of them was executed before the alter. This isn’t the first case nor will it be the last to be mentioned in the bible.

tomorrow: First Kings 5-7

wow, I caught up, who knew?

First Kings 1

2009-04-09T15:20:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: We must act on God’s will and remember that we are either sheltered by his will or overcome by it. Adonijah was the little brother of Absalom and even had the same mother but didn’t learn anything from his big brothers foolishness. As David was growing to old to be effective Adonijah convinced many in leadership to follow him and invited them to a feast and sacrifice to make him king. He didn’t invite the prophet, the priest or any others who knew that God had planned to place Solomon in power and he sought to reinforce his position so that Solomon couldn’t take the throne after David’s death.

David failed to correct Adonijah. He simply ignored his foolishness until Adonijah was celebrating his being made king.

Promises: God will not be subverted. He intended Solomon to be king and none who attempted to take the throne from him succeeded.

Commands: Do not attempt to undermine God’s will. Adonijah knew full well that God and David intended Solomon to be the next king. Because he knew this he was careful not to include Solomon or any of the people involved in choosing Solomon as the successor to celebrate and make him king. He thought he could get around the issue by reinforcing his position enough to get everyone else behind him before Solomon could be named. Once in power he could easily overcome them all. God ensured that his treachery was found out and undermined before he could get a following and so those who had come to help him become king abandoned him and left him in fear that Solomon would kill him for treason.

Timeless principles: The surest way to get a power-hungry person to go to far is to not stop him when he is starting out. Adonijah and his brother Absalom could have both been dealt with when they first started making trouble and a great deal of pain would have been averted. David failed to discipline his sons and to correct their improper behavior resulting in long term trouble.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Don’t sit still and quiet when you see trouble coming.

Allow me to demonstrate at the risk of offending some who read this. This country is heading down a road of pain because we have allowed our leaders to get away with to much. As a result of our failure to reign them in when they first started overreaching their authority, we now have a government who believes they have the authority to:

Remove the CEO of a private company from his job.
Appoint their own people to run private companies.
Confiscate the earnings of private individuals without due process or cause.
Tell private citizens what they can buy and how much of it they can buy.
Punish private individuals for being successful.

let’s skip past the political and move on to security.

Threaten God’s chosen people if they defend themselves.
Sanction God’s chosen people for defending themselves.
Force God’s chosen people to bow to those who wish their destruction.
Demand God’s chosen people give up part of the land Promised to them by God to people who want to destroy them.

Do I really need to continue?

Bless Israel, Be blessed. Curse/oppress Israel and face destruction. The bible is extraordinarily clear on this matter. We have given over the running of our nation to a group of people who will use our resources and power to undermine Israel, tear down our Judeao-Christian values, weaken our defenses and empower the enemies of the United States, Israel and God and the only reason they have been able to gain the power to do this is because we didn’t stop them. The constitution doesn’t grant the power they are wielding. The constitution forbids them from having most of these abilities and yet, when they took that power for themselves and admitted, “it’s a violation of the constitution but the government needs to have the power anyway”, no one stopped them. Now we will pay the price.

Don’t believe me? Look at the history, The great depression and WWII came after we backed the idea of Eugenics which declared Jews were subhuman and a drain on society. The recession and problems of the late 1970’s including the Iran Hostage Crises came after the United States demanded that Israel trade land for peace. Clinton tried to make similar demands without the full backing of the legislature and the personal cost could be seen in the constant cloud of legal scandals over his administration. As former president Bush and current President Obama continued to pursue more and more strenuous actions to force land for peace and “2 state solutions” on God’s chosen people we have dipped into one of the worst recessions in decades, had a US Cargo ship captured by pirates and slipped quickly into the anarchy we haven’t seen since 1979.

See a problem? Fight the problem. If you don’t, you can count on the problem to get a lot bigger until your forced to confront it at much greater cost.

tomorrow: First Kings 2-4

Second Samuel 22-24

2009-04-09T13:59:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: One nation, Under God, Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all. Government is at it’s best when it serves in the fear of the Lord. When we elect leaders who do not feat Him or allow them to be elected because of our apathy over weak leadership from those who oppose unGodly men, we deserve the pain we will suffer as a result.

Promises: I can do all things through Christ who Strengthens me. David knew and proclaimed that the Lord was the source of his strength. God gave him the strength and skill to defeat his enemies and delivered him through supernatural means from those enemies to strong for David to take on himself. It was God’s power that made enemies cower in fear at David’s presence. It was God’s power that overcame rebellion among the Israelites. It was God’s will which led David’s enemies to destruction.

Commands: The last words of David were the orders of God to leaders. Leaders must rule in the fear of God. Leaders must be just. Leaders are an example which shines like morning light and refreshes like fresh grass and the clean air after a rain. Rebellion must be dealt with decisively and with force so that it does not spread, clearing the rebels like removing weeds from the garden.

Timeless principles: When government abuses it’s power all the people suffer. Our own system of holding a census every 10 years is based on the law of Israel that calls for a census every 10 years. When David called for a census when it wasn’t due the result was a plague that wiped out about 2/3 of the fighting men of Israel. We should consider this when members of our government distort the constitutional rule of the census to use polling, ongoing census outside of the 10 year limit, or the requirement of information they are not entitled to being taken with the census. It seems like such a little thing that many would go along with the idea and not argue but, here we can see a biblical example of such abuse and the potential for it to cause harm.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: The stories of the rulers of Israel give us many principles for government. In fact it is easy to see parallels between the lessons of the old testament and the US Constitution. It is important to note that David did not simply take things from the people for public use. We can apply these principle by applying the constitution and forcing our political leaders to obey it. For example: “Amendment 5“ (the last line) “... nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”

more to learn for in-depth study: Read the Founding documents of the United States of America. You can get a free copy of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States for free from the Heritage Foundation by visiting https://secure.heritage.org/bookstore/. This isn’t an order and it’s not required to complete your study but, if you want to see how our founders felt about God and His place in government, these documents will help a great deal. You should also read the Federalist Papers and other writing of the founder such as the speeches of our early presidents which can be found online.

tomorrow: First Kings 1

the other resolution

2009-04-09T13:19:00.001-04:00

On Monday I weighed in at 235#. I’ve been horrible at looking after my own health lately. My wife and I have both suffered from a short bout of flu like symptoms recently. Partly because we neglect health needs.

I have gotten the exercise more regular at around 4.5 miles a day. The illness has us both hydrating more which is good even if the reason is uncomfortable. Obviously I'm way off schedule for my weight loss goals but, I’m a determined to continue trying just as I continue trying to catch up with this blog which is still way behind and, at this rate, will likely be backlogged until after Easter.

As of today my weight is 231.6

Second Samuel 20-21

2009-04-09T13:11:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Not every bad situation is a result of God’s wrath. When it is learned that something bad is resulting from such wrath it is our duty to do what God wants to turn that wrath. This nation has faced many disasters of financial, natural and even hostile origin in conjunction with actions taken against God’s people Israel. In each case the problems were resolved and the country found prosperity when our leaders turned their support in favor of Israel. I suspect we will soon find the recession is the least of our worries and it may deepen greatly itself as our leaders demand Israel bow to it’s enemies. i suggest we all keep that in mind next time we enter the election polls.

Promises: God finishes what he starts. The last of the Rephiam Giant’s were among the Philistines. David Slew Goliath and his generals and soldiers killed the other 4 that David had gathered stones for the day he killed Goliath. The descendants of the fallen ones (nephilim) were targeted for destruction by God and He saw to it they were wiped out.

Commands: Do not tolerate those who rebel against God. Not only did Sheba rebel but, David’s newly appointed general failed his duties in his first command by delaying the pursuit of the Rebels. Both men were killed.

Timeless principles: You really can teach an old dog new tricks. When famine came on Israel and David learned that God brought the famine because Saul violated a treaty with the Gibeonites that had been made before God. When the Gibeonites demanded the lives of 7 descendants of Saul he turned over 7 descendants to be killed. He protected the children of Jonathan because of his oath before God to Jonathan but he didn’t carry his protection of Saul’s house to an extreme that would harm Israel.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: People are often easily lead into both good and bad. Sheba managed to get a lot of followers to rebel against David. When one wise women convinced others to execute Sheba it ended the war and the rebellion without having to destroy all the other rebels. Without bad leadership they turned quickly back to God and the king God anointed. Frankly, this is the reason the leaders have a responsibility to eliminate threats. By killing, imprisoning, banishing or otherwise getting rid of the criminals we prevent them from leading others into evil.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 22-24

Second Samuel 17-19

2009-04-09T12:39:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: God’s plan is not always what we want. W must learn to rejoice in His perfect will and recognize the good that has been done rather than complaining of the things we don’t like.

It’s easy to understand the pain David felt when his son was killed. Absalom betrayed his father and turned against God’s plan in creating a coup to replace him as king. He turned the Israelites against God’s will in convincing them to make him king and depose David. His sin wasn’t just a personal act but an act of evil which led most of the country into rebellion against God and the king God anointed over them.

Promises: God does not permit His plan to be undone. God appointed and anointed David to lead Israel. Absalom was of David’s lineage and convinced the people to follow him. God could have permitted him to continue on the throne and the promise would not be broken. God did not plan for Absalom to rule, He did not plan for David to be deposed, He did not plan for Israel to become a nation which simply went from one ruler to the next based on who was popular, stronger, or most convincing. Absalom and his followers were killed because they went against God. The key members were hung(Absalom and Ahithophel) which God had said marked them as cursed. Absalom was hung in a manner which could only be seen as an act of God.

Commands: We do not live alone. When we react to the ups and downs of life we must remember the example we set for others and we must also be accountable to those whom God has put under our leadership.

God made David king and the people were rightly proud of defeating Absalom’s coup attempt. David became so overwhelmed with self pity over the death of his son that his grief caused the people to act as though they had done wrong. Joab was acting in the best interests of his country when he chastised the king for so vocally and publicly bemoaning the loss of his traitorous son when the people should have been celebrating the return of the king God appointed for them.

Timeless principles: There is a way that seems good to a man but it’s end is death. I can’t repeat this enough. Showing love to his enemies seemed good to David. it was politically correct and made a great show of following God’s command. It was also quite a quick path to destruction. These people were correctly marked as enemies. They should have been dealt with as enemies. David was quick to promise good to those who would not return the favor.

Ronald Reagan often referenced a book whose title described the problem with David’s habits. The title was “the Treaty Trap”. The United States and Israel are often caught up in the same mistake David made. In an effort to gain peace we establish treaties of friendship with those who desire our harm and never live up to their end of the treaty. We also proceed to continue living up to these treaties long after they have been broken by the other side and, in some cases, even after the state we made the treaty with ceases to exist. (look at all the treaties we still live up to despite the disappearance of the Soviet Union which never lived up to any of them anyway)

God gave us a mind and a heart and ordered us to use both. We love our enemies but we should never let that disable us. Reagan was happy to provide humanitarian aid and food to the Soviets but walked away from the negotiation table any time they tried to get the US to sacrifice sovereignty or defensive capability in exchange for peace. Compare this to David who would have appointed Gorbachev to the Joint Chiefs and placed Qaddafi in the seat of honor at his dinner table each evening.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: I have been considering this heavily in the past hour or so as I took my daily walk. David was a man after God’s own heart and he displayed that in the love he showed to people who were clearly his enemies. God has told us to love our enemies. Hate the sin and love the sinner. David clearly showed love to his son and to Jonathon’s son and to Saul’s family and so many others who would turn against him.

Joab privately corrected the king for his public actions which undermined the nation. David repaid his good action by replacing him as commanding general with a man from among the rebels. From a diplomatic standpoint it may have seemed good but personally it was wrong.

When we take actions we must consider all the ramifications. We must live within God’s law and love those who may hate us. We must also consider the life of others. David’s public grief over the death of an enemy of the state did much more harm to the Israelites than good. Loving the enemy and mourning the death of a criminal are different things. We have people who believe it’s a contradiction to fight abortion and stand up for capital punishment. The bible is clear that abortion is murder and capital punishment is the duty of state. There is no contradiction in saying “turn the other cheek” and “execute the criminal”. The personal duty is to turn the other cheek. The individual often flees from oppression in the bible. The leaders do not have this option. The first duty of leadership is common defense which is why judges, prophets, kings, generals and others in the bible hunt down killers, go to war and execute prisoners. The duty of the individual is separate from the duty of state. Without the leaders acting to enforce justice civilization ends.

more to learn for in-depth study: This story will go on for many years of Israel's history and many of the enemies David protected will be executed under the rule of Solomon. The history of Israel is long and complicated but much more important than any other history we can learn as Christians. If you have trouble understanding don’t be afraid to reread portions and to make notes of your questions. The details of their story spread across first and second Samuel, first and second Kings, first and second Chronicles, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the song of Solomon, and parts of the books of the various prophets. You will likely find yourself learning something new each time you read through these books.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 20-21

Second Samuel 15-16

2009-04-06T12:51:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: It’s easy to feel that an enemy which doesn’t play by the rules deserves similar treatment in return. Those who stand up and demand we act in accordance with our morals and treat enemies better than they treat us are not wrong. While this view does not make life easy it ensures that we remain honorable.

They say discretion is the better part of valor. Certainly David lived by that view when he chose to run from Saul and from Absalom rather than engaging in a bloody and dangerous fight. Had David stayed and fought for the throne the civil war might have torn Israel apart. Instead he cut and run leaving it in God’s hands to make a way for things to be put right.

We have every right to defend ourselves as a nation and to attack those who intend evil against us. That point is quite clear in the bible. We must remember to live up to a higher standard than our enemies if we are to find any meaning in that fight. If we overcome our enemy by acting like our enemy then all we are fighting for is already lost. We will have lost the very freedoms and values we sought to defend.

Promises: Doing the right thing always pays off with God. David lived a life that proves no good deed goes unpunished but, he still refused to return the favor. He continued to act in kindness to all. When battle was called for he fought with vigor but he would rather run from evil than attack those who acted from misguided views of entitlement among his fellow Israelites. He also treated no Israeli allies with all the kindness and friendship they had shown him and more. While his goodness was often repayed with evil he refused to stoop to that level.

Commands: “I want it and I claim it” does not equal “it’s mine.” I don’t care what the TV preacher told you, you can’t claim what isn’t yours. God didn’t anoint Absalom king. He didn’t choose him to rule Israel. He didn’t remove David from the throne. Absalom didn’t have a right to the throne but he wanted it, he claimed it and he got people to support him in that claim. It didn’t make him king in God’s eyes and didn’t mean he could have what wasn’t his.

Timeless principles: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished. David’s kindness came back in pain. Absalom was forgiven for killing his brother and he stole the throne in return. Mephibosheth was treated like a son for Jonathan’s sake and he sided with Absalom hoping to get the kingdom back. Saul’s relatives cursed David as a traitor despite his constant efforts to be loyal to Saul and his house and his revenge on those who attacked Saul’s family. Ahithophel was David’s councilor but joined Absalom in treason to take the throne and sent the boy in to rape David’s concubines in order to make him seem powerful. David was forced to run into the wilderness in order to avoid murder by his own son. After his years on the throne he was right back where he had been when Saul was king.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: This application applies more to national philosophy. While it may be fashionable to apply all our rules to our enemies it is total nonsense to apply our legal system to a wartime situation. investigating and prosecuting acts of war and terrorism through our criminal system is a recipe for disaster that no sensible individual could justify. They are acts of war that must be dealt with militarily. By the same token, we cannot apply military sensibilities to civilian operations. Dealing with domestic terrorism does fall under the jurisdiction of our criminal justice system and we don’t have the right to treat US citizens as enemy soldiers outside of a full blown civil war. We also cannot change our values and sense of proper behavior to match an enemy who doesn't share our view.

Terrorism isn’t restricted to Islam as the resurgent Irish Republican Army is proving in Europe. It is, however, the primary source of danger to the United States. These Jihadists do not share our values or sense of decency and no amount of “playing nice” is going to change their behavior. They will continue to attack us and to torture prisoners and execute “infidels” in accordance with their beliefs until they are rendered harmless by military action. On the flip side of that coin, we cannot alter our behavior to match them.

In addition to the fact that this means we cannot treat their prisoners with the disdain that they treat ours it also means we should not sacrifice freedom for security. The recent actions by our government to restrict the activities of citizens in the name of security is precisely opposite of what should be done. Our founding fathers, guided by their faith in God and their understanding of scripture, set up a system which provided maximum freedom for the individual and depended on the individual desire for liberty to protect the nation.

Taking away arms from citizens makes them targets for armed thugs. Strip searching random citizens to satisfy a twisted sense of justice while ignoring individuals that fit the profile of known terrorists for the same reason infringes on freedom without delivering safety. The use of life threatening torture techniques in place of more traditional and effective methods of interrogation including lie detectors and chemical truth agents like sodium pentathal (I probably spelled that wrong) isn’t an improvement and it sacrifices our values. It is not better to gain the world and lose your own soul. I’d rather die fighting than sacrifice my beliefs to survive.

The simple fact is that the goal of Islamic terrorism is to force us to accept their way of life and “Submit” to their views. If we begin to behave like them in order to defeat them we have handed them the victory.

more to learn for in-depth study: Amnon’s crime against his sister was extreme and could bring the death penalty. In that, Absalom was not completely wrong to kill Amnon though his method of ambush was certainly questionable. David, who had a habit of making his own life miserable, forgave Absalom and brought him back to Jerusalem. Absalom returned the favor by turning the people to follow him and then conspiring to take the kingdom in a coup. Once again, David found himself on the run in the wilderness, hiding from a person claiming ruler ship of Israel. The 600 men that had stood by him against Saul were still there to run with him from his son.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 17-19

Second Samuel 12-14

2009-04-06T09:18:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Sin has consequences. God will forgive us when we ask for it but, that does not mean we will not suffer the consequences of our actions. I heard a great example once.

A little girl breaks a lamp while playing. She is sad and sorry for her actions and her dad wipes away her tears and forgives her. “Great, that’s what God should do” people say. two problems. First, she asked for forgiveness and to many believe they can go to heaven without taking responsibility for their sin. You must recognize the sin and ask God to forgive it. Second, who pays for the lamp? The simple fact is that there was an action and a consequence and even if there is forgiveness the cost of the consequence still exists.

Jesus Christ paid the price for the lamp we broke but, until we ask forgiveness and accept the gift of salvation we still owe him for the lamp. They say you can’t take it with you and the fact is, this life is the only place where we have the opportunity to seek forgiveness. That opportunity stays on earth when we move on. If we don’t use that opportunity while we are alive we will have to pay for our lamp in hell. It’s not a pretty fact but, it is a fact.

Promises: Just as Forgiveness through Jesus the Christ is promised to all who accept Him, judgment is also promised for our sin. We can receive forgiveness from God but, the consequences of our actions are still coming. “That which you sow, that shall you also reap.” When a farmer wants tomatoes he doesn’t plant corn seeds. If he plants dandelion seeds he won’t get strawberries. By the same token, if you sow wild oats your going to get wild oats. You can’t do the wrong thing and expect to harvest good things.

Commands: Don’t create a double standard for yourself. No matter your position, that which you recognize as wrong by others is wrong when you do it too.

Timeless principles: Family life is complicated enough when it fit’s the ideal. Add wealth, power, multiple wives, royal intrigue and overindulged kids and you have a recipe for disaster. The TV Series KINGS is not off the mark in displaying a dysfunctional and scandalous royal family. While the scandals may have a bit more modern flair, the basic sins behind them are not only ancient they are the same ones that history shows existed in the Royal families of Saul, David and Solomon. In fact they existed through most of the royal families of Israel/Judah but, the sins of some of the later families would make you wish they stuck with adultery, murder, rape and theft. Sadly, some of the later kings found crimes that make those look like good behavior.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Next time you begin to judge someone’s actions, examine yourself. There is often no better mirror for the misdeeds in our life than the misdeeds that make us most angry in others. David’s anger at the rich man in Nathan’s story which reflected David’s actions with Bathsheba and His protection of the widow who was reflecting his actions with his sons. When we see evil in others it is often most clear because we have done similar things ourselves. We must hold ourselves to the same standard we set for others and should understand the weakness of others because of our own weaknesses.

THIS DOES NOT MEAN WE SHOULD ACCEPT SIN. Just because weakness makes us vulnerable does not give us the right to forgive everything and say “nobodies perfect.” Sin is sin and we must stand against it. We must not support and encourage those who refuse to turn from it. We are to hate the sin and love the sinner but, you cannot lead a sinner from evil by wallowing in it with him or telling him it’s alright because he’s only human. GOD FORGIVES THOSE WHO ASK FOR FORGIVENESS AND TURN FROM THEIR SIN.

more to learn for in-depth study: This passage often gets me into trouble because I tend to live by similar principles. When David’s son was sick and dying he mourned terribly, going without food for the entire week and refusing to get off the floor where he lay weeping and praying. When the child died, he cleaned himself up and ate. Worrying over and praying over a person while they are alive may be beneficial if the Lord wills for them to live. No amount of fasting and prayer is going to cure death if God allowed it to occur in the first place.

(it should be noted this does not mean I don’t believe in resurrection. In addition to the fact that God promised to let his followers perform the same miracles Jesus did and more, I have seen some evidence that God has raised people from the dead, even in the modern era.)

tomorrow: Second Samuel 15-16

Weekly Assignment

2009-04-06T08:15:00.000-04:00

Monday: Second Samuel 20-21
Tuesday: Second Samuel 22-24
Wednesday: First Kings 1
Thursday: First Kings 2-4
Friday: First Kings 5-7
Saturday: First Kings 8
Sunday: First Kings 9-11

Still running behind I am determined to catch up

Second Samuel 8-11

2009-04-04T13:44:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Follow God’s commands and ask His advice before making any major decision, even if it seems like the right thing to do. “there is a way that seems good to a man...” "No good deed goes unpunished"

Promises: God promised to defeat the enemies in the promised land and, after taking several key positions that had been left un-captured, David found himself in several more wars against others who had been left behind. God ensured the Israelites were consistently successful in battle.

Commands: God wants us to seek His council in all we do. David was a nice guy who liked repaying the kindnesses that others showed to him. Unfortunately, while he was very good about asking God before going to battle, he didn’t generally ask before trying to repay favors. As a result, his kindness was often met with treachery and war.

Timeless principles: David was “A man after God’s own heart.” This did not make him incapable of sin and grave sin at that. In addition to the wives mentioned earlier and the many wives he took after moving to Jerusalem, David took Bathsheba who was married to another man. When he learned he had made her pregnant he tried to cover his sin by getting her husband back from the war to sleep with her. When that didn’t work he had her husband put in a position that would get him killed. Adultery and Murder are some pretty heavy crimes. After Urriah was killed in battle, David took Bathsheba as his wife and she had his son. This did not make God happy.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Seek the wisdom of God in all you do. I have to admit weakness here myself. Most of us don’t think twice about asking God before doing something that seems to be right. Following the law and obeying the rules are fundamental but, when the actions aren’t part of those rules, no matter how good they may seem, they can lead you into trouble.

more to learn for in-depth study: You have my apologies for jumping the gun a bit. I sometimes remember Israel’s history better than I remember recent history. This is the passage in which David shows kindness to the son of Jonathon and brings him to eat at the royal table as one of his own sons. He also tries to show kindness to the people of Ammon who helped him when he was running from Saul. The result is the war described in these chapters in which the Ammonites hired mercenaries to fight Israel.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 12-14

Second Samuel 4-7

2009-04-04T13:12:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God blessed Israel and promised to make them His people forever. Replacement theology ignores this oath which was established as a blood oath to Abraham and repeated throughout the generations.

Promises: God fulfills his promises. It doesn’t take our action to make it happen. God promised to make David king of all Israel. While forced to fight Abner and his army because the general kept starting fights, David never attempted to use force to bring the kingdom together. When god’s timing was ready David was made king over the entire nation at the age of 30 and ruled for 40 years including the 7 and a half years he ruled in Hebron over the part of the kingdom that accepted him first.

Commands: Keep your promises. But be careful about what you promise. Mephibosheth was Jonathan's son. As David Promised to watch over Jonathan’s household as his own, he took in Miphibosheth to honor his friend and fulfill his promise. David did a lot of nice things to those who were his enemies or would become his enemies. While it’s good to be a nice guy, his actions and promises served to ensure he spent his entire life fighting and running.

God’s commands are not optional. The ark was not to be touched. Even when carried it was designed to be carried on poles and not touched. Uzzah only sought to keep the ark from falling when the Oxen stumbled but was killed instantly for touching the ark.

Because of Uzzah’s death David feared to take the ark further and left it in the house of Abed Edom. When he heard the household had been blessed for having the ark he thought it might be safe to continue. When the men bearing the ark made it six steps without incident David celebrated and sacrificed to the Lord. then brought the ark to Jerusalem.

Timeless principles: murder is not the way to reward. When Ishbosheth’s general was murdered his captains sought to get on David’s good side by murdering Ishbosheth and bringing his head to the king. Ishbosheth may have been a puppet but he had done nothing wrong and the captains were more guilty of murder than the Amalakite who claimed credit for Saul’s death. At least Saul had died in battle.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Learn to listen to God’s command. The Philistines came against Israel in the valley of the Rephaim giants. David asked God if he should go against them and God said yes. Israel won the battle. When the Philistines came back to the same spot for another fight God told David not to go directly against them but to circle around and come at them from the forest when he heard marching in the tops of the trees. He did so and the Lord went out before him to attack the Philistines and they drove them out of the land from Geba(Gibeon) to Gezer.

Dignity is not required when worshiping the Lord. David’s wife, Michal, felt it was undignified for him to dance around so wildly before the Lord. David responded by saying he was happy to be undignified for God and to be humbled while God was exalted.

more to learn for in-depth study: David was the one who finally lead Israel in capturing Jerusalem. The mountain of Zion and the City of David which was to be the capital of Israel had been left since the Israelites entered the promised land because the people lacked the will to take it. David led the army to take it from the Jebusites who believed themselves superior to Israel, their king and God.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 8-11

Second Samuel 1-3

2009-04-04T13:10:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: It is God’s job to remove people from positions he has appointed them to. Our job is to accept God’s decisions.

Promises: God can use anybody to accomplish His goals. Whether or not the person gets to enjoy those successes depends on their willingness to serve God willingly.

Commands: An act of war is not an act of murder. This is one of the earliest passages to make that crystal clear. Abner killed Asahel in battle. He had given the man an opportunity to avoid the fight but Asahel refused and Abner stabbed him to death. Asahel’s brothers murdered Abner to avenge their brother. Theirs was not an act of war and, in fact, it was a cold-blooded ambush. David cursed them for their act because they avenged someone who was killed in war. If the right of vengeance extended to acts of war then wars would never end. David wrote another song of Lament. This time for Abner who was murdered after making peace.

Timeless principles: “How the mighty have fallen” The quote still gets heavy use today. David used it to describe his feelings over the death of the anointed king of Israel in a song he wrote to commemorate the dead. Saul may have been a murderous jerk but, David recognized how God used him. All to often, we as Christians, are quick to jump on the band wagon and tear down the men of God who fall to human frailty. Our pastors, evangelists and leaders are not supermen and are capable of grave errors and even sin. While it is sometimes prudent to support removing them from influence to prevent their leading others astray, we have no right to denounce the work they have done for God because of their weakness.

While David grew stronger as king he was starting a family which would bring trouble later on. His first son was Amnon sho’s mother was Ahinoam. His second son was Chileab(Danial) whose mother was Abigail. His Third was Absolom whose son was Maacah the daughter of the king of Geshur. His fourth son was Adonijah whose mother was Haggith. His fifth son was Shephatiah whose mother was Abital. His sixth son was Ithream whose mother was Eglah. Six son’s by six wives.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Remember to uphold those God has put in positions of leadership, even when their actions and sins make it impossible for them to continue in that service.

more to learn for in-depth study: The Amalekite lied about killing Saul but, a confession is a confession and by claiming credit for the kill he marked himself as guilty. When a false confession is made we often feel it is a hindrance to the investigation. In this case it was an act against the state. Killing the man God anointed as king of Israel was an act that deserved retribution and if another were to have been found guilty later there would be no guilt for killing that man or the Amalekite since both would have been considered guilty, on by the act and one by claiming credit for the act. If we would treat terrorist groups the same we could quit waiting on investigations before taking action. Wiping out the group that claimed credit and, if we find some other group was responsible later, wiping out the true guilty parties. This would certainly cut down on false claims and reduce the number of terrorists in the world.

I mentioned earlier that the kingdom wasn’t divided until after Solomon’s reign but, I had forgotten about the first division of Israel when Saul’s people moved to maintain power after David took the throne. Whle David sought to honor Saul’s memory, Abner set Saul’s son in power in order to maintain his own position. Ishbosheth was meant to be the puppet leader controlled by the former general. Hi reign lasted only two years. Despite controlling most of the nation, Abner failed to remove David from power by battle. When they met to fight David’s army lost 20 men while Abner’s army lost 360. The war would rage on for many years and David’s position grew stronger while Abner’s grew weaker. This tends to make my earlier assertion incorrect. The books of Samuel may have been written anytime after David took the throne. The next chapter does establish that the books were written while the Beerothites were still living in Gittaim.

While David was having all those boys by all those wives Abner had taken one of Saul’s wives, stepmother to Ishbosheth, which got Saul’s son a bit upset to say the least. The general didn’t like being harassed by the man he had put into power and swore to deliver the entire nation to David. David’s price for peace was that Abner bring him Michal, his first wife and the daughter of Saul whom the king had given to another. Her husband followed her until she met Abner, mourning over her loss. Abner sent him away. David had not divorced the woman or even desired to leave her but she had been taken by her father to hurt him.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 4-7

First Samuel 29-31

2009-04-02T08:24:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: It is the duty of Christians to understand our faith and defend it well. We need to know the difference between true Christianity and what the world calls Christianity. We need to know the truth of what Jesus taught. We need to know what the bible says, when it was written, how and why it was written and the evidence that supports it. In short we need to be ready to defend the bible, Christianity and God against attack by the powers of this world and we need to stand up unapologetically and declare with pride the truth of Jesus Christ and Jehovah God without fail.

Promises: God will preserve you and tend to your livelihood when you cannot if you follow Him. When Ziklag was attacked and burned the Amalekites stole all the livestock and treasure and kidnapped all the people but didn’t hurt any of it. When David’s people returned they grieved, not knowing what had happened to their families. David set out with his men to avenge what had been done and, in the process of avenging the families, they wound up rescuing them, retaking all that was stolen and capturing a great deal more in spoils of war. God preserved all that had been taken until David and his army could take it back.

Commands: It is always wise to check with God before making those decisions that He hasn’t already given clear commands about. While it takes no great leap of faith to avoid theft and murder, and act of war isn’t always right or always wrong. God makes that decision. We can only seek a way to deal with the situation and pray for God’s guidance in our decisions. David made a habit of taking it a step further. David asked God if he should go after an enemy and asked Him if he would prevail in the battle.

Timeless principles: God will put you where you need to be, when you need to be there. David had made a name for himself with king Achish and was expected to join the Philistine army against Israel. When the 2 armies met and Marched in parade in front of each other David led his men at the back of the formations where the Philistines would see him but not the Israelites. The other princes of the Philistines didn’t trust him to fight on their side so the sent him home. Returning to Ziklag, David and his men found God had given them good reason not to help Saul. Their families and friends and servants had been captured by the Amalekites. For the next few days David and his men were occupied with tracking down these raiders and when they found them, they fought from sundown to the next evening to kill them and take back what was theirs. God preserved all their people (both captured and soldiers) and all the spoils the Amalekites had stolen. David’s people rescued what was theirs, killed the enemies of the Lord and added to their own spoils by taking what had been the Amalekite’s all while being kept from aiding Saul in the battle in which he was meant to die.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: The honor of God and the honor due to His name should not be taken lightly. The Israelites would risk life and slavery in the most unlikely to succeed missions just to prevent an enemy from claiming victory over God. They would send tiny forces against enemy armies to keep the enemy from claiming God was to weak to defend them. David, a teen aged shepherd, of no great size, fought the Philistine Giant Goliath just to make him stop defying God and God’s people with insults about how Jehovah God was powerless against the Philistines and their gods.

There will always be those who try to claim victory in spite of clear defeat. Their folly is their own and we need only remind them of the facts in the matter. When Israel mops the floor with some terrorist group and the exiled leaders of that group go out and claim they won, no one is really buying it. When others go out and make great speeches about God being powerless and their arguments are given credence by the public, it is another matter entirely. It is wrong to allow others to dishonor God. God never let someone fail whose mission was to defend His name. We have no right to stand by while others mock our God and malign His name. When they equate Christianity with Islam and claim false religions have more credence than Christianity, we should not be silent.

God has given us the order, in 1 Peter 3:15 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: 16. Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. 17. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.” Learning what the bible says and the evidence which supports it is our duty to God. Standing up with that information and defending God and His word is also our duty.

Refer to the works of Dr Simon Greenleaf, and Lee Strobel. Also look for other apologetics from people like Tim Lahaye and other authors. Learn the truth and the proof of what the scripture says and don’t be afraid to use it.

more to learn for in-depth study: Saul, as predicted, died in battle against the Philistines. Having been badly wounded he fell on his own sword to avoid capture. His son’s and armor bearer all lost their lives there as well. When the Philistines discovered the bodies the next day they cut of Sauls Head as a symbol of victory to all their cities and hung the bodies of Saul and his sons on the wall of the temple of one of their false gods. The people living in Jabesh Gilead, heard what had been done and sent their soldiers to retrieve the bodies and take them back from the dishonor. The bodies were cremated and the bones buried in Jabesh.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 1-3

First Samuel 25-28

2009-04-01T13:22:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: God always provides a way for us to do right. David was never forced to face Saul in direct battle. God gave him opportunities to make a choice. He could have executed the King easily and without danger to himself or he could do something to embarrass the king and show that he was honorable enough not to attack the Lord’s anointed. David made the latter choice. He was never forced to defend himself directly.

David knew the embarrassment wouldn’t stop Saul for long and decided to hide in the land of the Philistines in order to avoid having to constantly run away or risk death at the hands of the king’s men. In order to ensure his safety there he asked the king to provide him a place in a small town somewhere for him and his men to live outside of the royal cities so they wouldn’t seem like a threat. In order to provide for his men David attacked the people God had told Israel to destroy when they came into the land and, after destroying the entire population of the cities he attacked, he took the loot back to the town of Ziklag which the king of the Philistines had given him. The Philistine king would ask who he had attacked and, since the enemy didn’t survive to tell the king about the fight, David would claim he had attacked or raided an Israeli settlement. That made the king happy and convinced him that Israel would hate David so that David could not be a threat to the Philistines. The king was convinced he had just gained a strong general who would be forced to serve him forever because he had nowhere else to go.

Promises: God will protect his people and provide them prosperity in adversity. Saul’s desire to kill David was unreasoning and foolish. David’s ability to show this publicly was interesting to say the least. Cutting off the corner of the king’s robe while he was “doing his business” and then showing it to him publicly to prove he could have killed him but refused was one thing. Embarrassing both the king and his general in front of the army was equally effective. David and his friend snuck into the heart of the camp and stole the kings canteen and spear from beside his royal head while he slept with his general next to him. Then he showed the entire camp what he had done and how he had refused to kill the king.

Commands: Use your brain. David could have reacted to the king’s threat with lethal force and saved himself some trouble but he chose to think things through and take tactical victories to divert attack. He could have simply hidden among the Philistines but chose to take advantage of his situation to destroy those God had condemned. He could have continued to work in secret but instead made the Philistines believe he was improving their position when he was actually doing God’s work on behalf of Israel.

Timeless principles: When God makes a decision it’s final. God took his blessing from Saul because of Saul’s disobedience. He promised to take the kingdom from Saul. After delivering that message to the king Samuel never visited him again until he died. When Saul sought God’s council in battle God would not answer as He had promised. Saul sought a medium to get council from Samuel and Samuel’s spirit simply reminded the king of what God had already said. The kingdom would be taken from him and given to David and the king and his son’s would be killed in battle.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: It is always wise to treat people well who have done good for you. David and his men had protected Nabal’s men in the wilderness. They had provided defense and friendship to the shepherds and others who had been working in dangerous territories. They treated them well and made no demands of them nor had they made any attempt to harm or rob them. As a feast day approached David asked Nabal, as their employer, to show hospitality to his men.

Nabal refused to return the favor David’s men had shown and, in doing so, insulted them. Nabal’s wife, recognizing the honor of the men who had protected her husbands servants and flocks, gathered some servants and hurried to show David the hospitality her husband had refused.(Nabal, by the way, means fool and the man lived up to his name.)

Abigail’s actions kept David from attacking Nabal and killing all the men in his house. Nabal, who had thrown himself a feast after turning David away, died 10 days after learning what his wife had done. Saul had given David’s wife to another in the course of his actions against the young hero and his multiple attempts at murder and his efforts to harm David had become well known in Israel so that David was seen as the future king and Saul was disliked. Having lost his wife and having met an intelligent and wise woman who no longer had a husband to provide her with a home and inheritance, he married Abigail. Then he married Ahinoam and began a habit of polygamy that would not make life easy in the future.

more to learn for in-depth study: Reading the books of Samuel you can glean two basic facts: First, the books were not written by Samuel(he dies in chapter 25), but about Samuel and the events that surround his life. Second you can see they were written after the time of Solomon and after the Nation of Israel had been divided.(there are multiple references to the people of Israel and the people of Judah which implies it was written after these two groups began operating as separate kingdoms. That didn’t happen until after Solomon died.)

Saul had been told that the Lord was no longer with him. When the Philistines came against Israel, he sought God’s council but received no answer. The prophets and priests could not give him an answer, the Urim gave no answer, and no dreams came to direct him. In desperation, he went looking for a medium. All mediums and witches and soothsayers, etc. had been driven from the land by Saul’s command in accordance with God’s law but, fearing defeat, he went looking for answers from someone the Lord had forbidden. He granted her immunity in exchange for her services and she called Samuel to council the king. Samuel gave his last prophecy from beyond the grave when he told Saul that he and his sons would be killed in the battle the next day and that the armies of Israel would be defeated and captured by the Philistines.

tomorrow: First Samuel 29-31

the other resolution

2009-03-31T13:47:00.002-04:00

The problem with falling behind is that it becomes routine. I let to much take my attention and fall behind on everything. I also neglect my goals. Not enough water, to much junk food, to many skipped meals, missing exercise all the result of not keeping priorities. I've allowed my blog to fall behind and failed to pursue my weight goals. I could list a number of things that took my time but the fact is I just let them interfere with priorities and neglected the things that need attention. I am weighing in at 233.6# this week and I'm already late for delivering my posts for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. I will probably be late with Wednesday as well since I have a meeting in about an hour.

Weekly Assignment

2009-03-31T13:44:00.001-04:00

Monday: First Samuel 29-31
Tuesday: Second Samuel 1-3
Wednesday: Second Samuel 4-7
Thursday: Second Samuel 8-11
Friday: Second Samuel 12-14
Saturday: Second Samuel 15-16
Sunday: Second Samuel 17-19

I've fallen behind once again and with preparations to make for Palm Sunday, Easter Sunrise and Easter morning services I'm going to be a little slow catching up so here are the Assignments until I catch back up to you.

First Samuel 22-24

2009-03-28T09:44:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God’s will is knowable. Use good sense, search the scriptures, listen for His voice, test the spirits, lay a fleece before the Lord... If nothing else, and done prayerfully and honestly, flip a coin. God will give you the right answer if you seek it.

Promises: God will not steer you wrong. When the last of the priests family came to David and reported Saul’s murder of the rest, he came with an Ephod. The Ephod was the ceremonial breastplate and pouch worn by the priest and contained the Urim and Thummin. This was a way of learning God’s answer to questions. A look at the answers gained in this seems to imply it was a simple yes or know type of system like flipping a coin or picking one of 2 different colored stones. David took advantage of this to inquire of the Lord when he made big decisions that could get him and his men hurt or killed.

By seeking God’s will in these decisions David was successful in his choices and protected his men.

Commands: Always seek God’s will in your decisions. The decision to stop at a red light or to eat dinner, lock your door on the way out, etc. is simply a matter of good sense. God gave you a mind and common sense and rules to follow so that you would know what to do in everyday matters. When a matter goes outside the everyday he gave instruction and example of how to seek his will so that you remain within it.

Timeless principles: Even when the world seems to be against you, it is good to look out for others. The city of Keilah was under attack by the Philistines. David and his men had no reason to interfere and every reason to remain in hiding but, David saw the opportunity to help people in distress and, after making sure God approved, he went to fight in the city’s defense. Not only did he win but he grew his army by 50%.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Learn to seek God’s guidance in all things and trust Him to provide the best route.

more to learn for in-depth study: By this point Saul has completely lost his mind. Convinced that there is a conspiracy with everyone against him he threatens his own men and kills the priests and all who live in their city for helping David. David, has never been anything but loyal to the king and has done everything to help Saul. The priests knew this and assumed he was continuing to do so when the met him.

Saul’s men knew not to turn against God’s priests but Doeg, who had been there when David was at the tabernacle, killed the priests on command. Whether it was loyalty, willing murder or fear that he would be the next target for not mentioning seeing David earlier, Doeg was now conspiring with the lunatic king in homicide.

In the meantime, David was attracting an army. 400 disaffected, endangered and indebted men had gathered with him in hiding and he became their commander. When the city of Keilah was under attack by the Philistines, David took his men to battle to protect the city. The men were afraid but trusted David who had inquired of God before moving to fight. The won the fight and when it was over and the men set out for new hiding David’s army was up to 600 men.

Saul continued to pursue David but the Lord would not let the king catch him. Jonathan encouraged David, the Lord guided him, spies and friends warned him of danger and God distracted the king when he got to close. Finally, David got the big chance. Saul went, alone, into the cave where David and his men were hiding. While Saul attended to (ahem) personal business, David had the chance to kill him. David cut the corner of Saul’s robe off without Saul noticing.

I can’t say I would have been so restrained. In my mind, if someone tries to kill you every time you meet, it’s a good idea to eliminate them the first chance you get. Saul had been anointed by God to be king and, while the Lord had taken that blessing and the right to be king away from him, David would not act against the one God had appointed as his ruler. God had appointed him and God would have to remove him. That was David’s view of the matter.

tomorrow: First Samuel 25-28

First Samuel 19-21

2009-03-27T09:28:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Being chosen of God and serving God does not mean your life will be easy. In point of fact it may make you a target. God can and will protect you from His enemies and use you through adversity if you only continue to do what is right. When your enemies break every rule in the book to get at you, sticking to the rulebook yourself is often the best way to overcome them and win the hearts of those who matter.

Promises: God will provide your needs. When David arrived at the Tabernacle, he needed food and a weapon. The only food available was the show bread which was placed before God and not to be eaten by those outside the priesthood. The priest provided it to him and his men anyway. He also found that the sword of Goliath was kept at the temple. Not exactly a logical place to find it but God certainly placed it where David would find it when he needed it.

Commands: Asking is the best way to find and get what you need and want. God can protect you in battle and out. Running is sometimes the best way to survive. Following David’s activities you can see that God has no problem with people avoiding danger or arming themselves to face it. Remember, God called David a man after His own heart.

Timeless principles: God can reveal the secrets and conspiracies to those who do not see them. David set a simple test which Saul could easily pass. All the king had to do was play along with Jonathan’s deception and wait for David to return but he got so mad that he actually tried to kill Jonathan. Up to that point Jonathan believed David was being paranoid and the king wouldn’t hurt him. After that Jonathan had no doubt his father was out to kill his best friend.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Do the right thing even when it is difficult. Fear is not a sin. Retreat is always an option. Weapons are not evil. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. These may seem cliche but reading this passage you see David living up to all of them.

more to learn for in-depth study: Saul was of two minds when it came to David. One mind understood this young hero had done great things for him and his army and that he should be revered. He was Saul’s son-in-law and his son’s best friend. He was a general in Saul’s army and a famous hero. He was loyal and the only one who could soothe his spirit with the music he played. Unfortunately, Saul’s other mind tended to keep a spear on hand wherever he went and routinely tried to put that spear through David and into the wall behind him. He made a habit of sending others to capture David so he could be executed. This other mind was a mindless homicidal idiot.

God was with David and helped him escape assassination attempts then overwhelmed those who came to find him and turned them to the purpose of the Spirit of God to keep them from fulfilling the kings orders. Luckily for Jonathan, God seemed to make Saul a really bad spear thrower. He not only missed David on more than one occasion, but he also missed when he tried to kill his own son. The part of him that hated David was so strong that he wanted Jonathan dead for being his friend. Saul understood that David would be the next king and, wanting his own dynasty to continue, he thought he could undermine the will of God by killing David.

As I mentioned before, you can see some similarities to the story of Percival in king Arthur’s legend. On the run from Saul, David comes to the temple in search of food and arms. He takes the sword of Goliath which he had taken from the giant’s corpse when he killed him. Running to the king of Gath he found that his war record had given a false perception. People singing that “Saul has killed his thousands and David his tens of thousand” had caused outsiders to believe David was king. Since the king of a country was considered a high value target, David was afraid the former enemies would kill him on the spot and feigned insanity to avoid execution.

tomorrow: First Samuel 22-24

First Samuel 17-18

2009-03-26T09:47:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: One man, serving God has an army outgunned. David was a young teen. If the average soldier of Israel is 5’10” in that time period, Saul is about 6’7” and Goliath is 9’9” David is seen as a small youth so you can imagine he’s no more than about 5’8” and not powerfully built. That makes David just a little over half Goliath’s height. When Goliath mentioned sending him sticks, he might have been referring to David's staff but, given the size difference, it might have been a way of insulting David as being little more than a toothpick for the giant. David walked away from the battle without a scratch on him and carrying the head and sword of Goliath in his hands.

Promises: The Battle is the Lord’s. When God is on your side, there is no one who can stand against you. this doesn’t mean it’s wrong to prepare. David couldn’t handle the sword and armor of the king, it was to big for him to use effectively. He did take his staff and sling into battle. While it may not seem like much, he had used these weapons to kill both lions and bears while defending his flock.

This mismatched battle would be like a kid with a .22 rifle going out to battle “Hulk” Hogan in Body armor and packing a small arsenal of military grade assault weapons. No one would expect the kid to come home but imagine the reaction when the kid fires one shot then drags home “Hulk’s” M60 machine gun and helmet. God can use what you have to overcome whatever the enemy brings after you.

Commands: Trust in the Lord to provide your needs. Stand up for His Majesty and let no one denigrate your God or those who serve Him. David offered to kill Goliath, not to gain fame but to shut the big bullies mouth. Goliath had been standing in that field for 40 days yelling about how incapable the people of Israel were and how powerless God was because no one was willing to fight him one on one. David trusted that God would not let that sort of bragging stand and accepted the challenge to battle.

Timeless principles: “If God be for us, who can stand against us” This old saying is as true today as it was when it was first said. While it may not have been those exact words the sentiment dates back at least to Abraham. God doesn’t allow His enemies to denigrate his name and claim victory over Him. They may gain a brief advantage but it is always the prelude to a defeat so overwhelming that none can honestly deny God provided the victory.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Stand up for God. There is no reason to ever allow anyone to insult God, your faith or you for His sake. Not everyone who stood for God survived but, God has never failed to avenge Himself. Never has there been a victory over those who serve Him that wasn’t followed by massive defeat so powerful that it’s supernatural origin was undeniable. God makes certain that no one can honestly say He is powerless.

more to learn for in-depth study: Describing Goliath of Gath: The cubit is the length from the tip of your elbow to the tips of your fingers and the standard is about 18 inches. Cubit is measured differently in different cultures at the time and could be between 18 and 25 inches but, since it is the most likely, I will use the standard 18” cubit for comparison of size. A span is the distance between the tip of your thumb and the tip of your pinky when your hand is spread out. By these measures Goliath was 9foot 9 inches tall. Using any other measure of the cubit and span used in that time would only make him bigger so we can safely say he was at least 9’9”.

His Chain mail was about 156-157 pounds. The spear head alone weighed almost 19 pounds and the shaft of a standard spear would be longer than the soldier was tall. A javelin of bronze on his back refers to the shorter, lighter spear soldiers would carry just for throwing. Just to make things interesting, David took 5 stones from the brook because Goliath had 4 brothers. Described elsewhere in the bible, Goliath was the runt of the litter and his brothers were quite a bit larger.

David’s rank: David was a captain of thousands. In modern terms that would make him a Brigade commander for most militaries with the rank of at least brigadier general (one star). Saul had become fearful and mistrusting of David and wanted him dead. He put him in the military to make him face the enemy. He offered his daughter in marriage so he could force him into battle by David's own choice. David killed twice as many soldiers as Saul commanded and married the kings daughter.

KINGS: David’s relationship with the kings daughter is growing. the king has tried to kill him on a couple of occasions and sees him as a danger to his rule. He has gone from private to Captain overnight and given the job of press liaison or official spokesman for the entire military.

tomorrow: First Samuel 19-21

First Samuel 15-16

2009-03-25T09:10:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Obedience is better than sacrifice. This is the way of God. The way of man is, it’s easier to ask forgiveness than permission. Don’t follow the way of man.

Promises: God does not see with man’s eyes. What you perceive as weakness may be overlooked by God and the strengths you do not see He will promote. No matter what you think prevents you from doing the work God laid before you He will overcome it. No matter what you think makes you the best person for the job, don’t complain if God puts someone else in the duty.

Commands: The law of God is what God commands. When God sent manna in the wilderness He said He was doing it to test whether the Israelites would obey His law. At that point the law had not been written. The only law was God’s command and his command was to gather one days worth of manna and not save any for the next day. (the Israelites failed that test too)

God told Saul to wipe the Amalekites off the map entirely. Saul took the best of the plunder and kept the king of the Amalekites alive. Both these acts were direct violations of God’s command. Faced with this fact Saul claimed the plunder was taken for sacrifice, when that argument failed he blamed his army for taking them and said he was afraid to defy them. That argument failed as well and he begged Samuel to sacrifice with him and give him forgiveness.

God is not a man that He should go back on His word. Saul defied God’s command and God removed His blessing from him. He would not pass the throne to his son and he no longer had the spirit of God to strengthen him. A spirit of distress settled in him. The spirit of God had gone to David, who would be king next. The effect of this spirit was to make David an attractive choice to aid the king. His musical ability could sooth the kings stress and he had the strength and ability of a strong soldier. Saul made him court musician and his personal armor bearer.

Timeless principles: Waste not, want not, is a wise old saying but it isn’t always the best course of action. Following God’s plan, even if it seems insane, will never fail you. The Amalekites were like bandits. When we first see their actions they are attacking the stragglers at the end of the group of Israelites coming out of a tough stretch of wilderness on their way to the promised land. Tired and weakened from their journey with most of their protectors to far away to help quickly, these travelers seemed like easy pickin’s and the Amalekites tried to attack and plunder them when they were least able to defend themselves.

Being bandits, they no doubt had plenty of goodies to claim but God wanted them destroyed completely with no reminders or souvenirs left behind. Saul ignored this and took the best stuff for Israel. He didn’t see any point in destroying useful goods but had no problem burning, smashing and destroying everything he saw no use for. By the wisdom of man(waste not, want not) he was doing right. What is the verse I keep repeating class? “Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Forget the view of the world and don’t look for the path that will be honored by men. Obey God’s command in all things and let His strength and honor be your reward. Man can only give you so much recognition and, as can be seen in the media every day, he will take that back with a vengeance. Those who gain fame, recognition and prestige are the biggest targets for those who look for a way to make every hero look like the worst among us.

What God gives can only be taken by God. No matter how the world sees you, your effectiveness and ability to succeed can never be diminished when you serve God.

more to learn for in-depth study: Remember the Amalekites? at the end of Exodus 17 they delivered a surprise attack at the rear of the formation and God gave Israel victory over them anyway. This was the battle in which Moses held his rod in the air and when it was up the Israelites were winning and when he lowered it the began to loose so Aaron and Hur got a rock for Moses to sit on and held his arms up so he wouldn’t get to tired to keep it up until the battle was won. The Amalakites had been causing problems since Abraham’s time and God tired of their ways. God commanded Saul to finish them off. When Saul failed and the king of the Amalekites was spared, Samuel saw to it that they wouldn’t repeat the mistake of the past and turn an enemy that should have been obliterated into a thorn in the side that wouldn’t go away. Samuel had the king brought to him and when the king suggested that they had seen enough killing for one war, Samuel said he was wrong. Then Samuel hacked the king into pieces before the Lord in the place where they had just worshiped and sacrificed to God.

KINGS: On the TV series, David Shepherd is a pianist. The Spirit of God has moved from the king and left him a paranoid old fool while the Spirit moves David into actions which continue to save his life from the kings paranoia and strangely sooth the kings nerves in the most stressful situations. So far, I gotta say, I like this show. It’s not mirroring the bible exactly but, that wouldn’t make sense in a modern setting. It is closely following the way Saul and David’s story might have played out if it occurred in the modern era.

tomorrow: First Samuel 17-18

First Samuel 12-14

2009-03-24T09:38:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Be certain that your brain is in gear before you engage your mouth. Think before you speak. Saul demanded that no one eat until he had revenge and he made everyone swear to it. His son didn’t know about the oath and he ate. Obviously he couldn’t take an oath he didn’t know about but, then he led those around him into sin by telling them they should eat. Famished after a long day of fighting without eating, the army took it’s first opportunity to kill and eat animals plundered from the enemy. They didn’t drain the blood or cook the meat and sinned against God by eating the blood.

Saul insisted on continuing the attack through the night but, when he was reminded to ask God’s council, he was given no answer from God. He drew lots to see if the sin blocking communication came from the army or from him and his son and the lot fell on him and his son. Jonathan told him about eating the honey and, true to his word he decided to execute his son. The army prevented him because it was Jonathan’s initial attack that put the enemy on the run.

Saul stopped people from eating when his army needed the energy to fight. Jonathan ate the honey and told the soldiers around him his father’s command was stupid and should be ignored. The army of Israel ate blood. Saul pursued battle well beyond reasonable limits for his army. Saul rashly called for the death of whoever countermanded him. The sins of this day were universally sins of impatience and unthinking reaction. People acted and spoke without considering consequences.

Promises: When God’s people move wholeheartedly to gain what God has promised he will not fail to give it to them. The surrounding people of Canaan had oppressed Israel for generations because they had not pursued the destruction of these enemies when God told them to. Saul led the army of Israel to beat back these enemies, knowing that he was made king to lead Israel in defeating oppression. God was with the army and Israel defeated it’s enemies on all sides in battle. So long as Saul continued to follow God’s command and wipe out the enemies of Israel they did not fail in battle.

Commands: Be patient. Do not take on yourself the duties that don’t belong to you. DON’T ASSUME. DON’T PRESUME. Saul waited for Samuel but when Samuel was late he decided to make a sacrifice to God without him. This was not his place, duty, privilege or station. It was no better than offering to a false god because the sacrifice was made outside the bounds of God’s law.

You see this mirrored in the first episode of KINGS. The king is ready to begin the ceremony celebrating the beginning of his new capitol city and Rev Samuels is late arriving. The king decides that his son should make the opening prayers so that they don’t keep the people waiting. Rev Samuels tells him the same thing Samuel told Saul. You and your family could have been rulers forever but, you did wrong in God’s eyes and he has replaced you. God has chosen someone who is after His own heart to lead his people and replace you as commander of His people.

Timeless principles: “I gotta do something even if it’s wrong.” I hear this line a lot and it’s as stupid as it sounds. Don’t just do something, STAND THERE. Acting without patience or thinking and doing things you shouldn’t do just because you think they need done will do nothing but make your life worse. God has His own timing and His own choice for who will accomplish what. Jumping the gun out of impatience just means your interfering with God’s plan and that doesn't work. No one can change God’s plan or step outside it. Doing things that are outside the plan will not interfere with it those things will simply fail. Often they will fail dramatically and with dire effects on the person who chose his own timing over God’s.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Wait On GOD. “Be still and know that I am God.” This isn’t just comforting words it’s a command. When things seem off the rails and you think you have to go outside the boundaries to fix them, it’s time to stop and pray. If God wants you to do something it will be clear what to do. If not then you need to stop, remember that the one in charge created everything you know in 7 days, nothing you can do is going to rearrange His plan and, no matter how much you worry, it won’t change anything. “What man among you can, by worrying, add one cubit to his height.” Stop trying to help God. He is there to help you. You are there to obey Him. He has the power, you have only the ability He gives you.

more to learn for in-depth study: In the dawn of the age of kings, Samuel reminds the Israelites of their history.

When the Israelites were oppressed in Egypt God raised up Moses and Aaron to lead them to the promised land. When they forgot the Lord, He gave them into the hand of Sisera, commander of Hazor’s army, the Philistines, and the King of Moab. When they cried out for forgiveness of their idolatry and asked God’s help he sent Jerubaal(Gideon), Bedan, Jephthah and Samuel to deliver them from oppression.

When the king of the Ammonites came the Israelites said “No, but a king shall reign over us”, but the Lord God was their King. This demand for a human king was an affront to God but, he appointed a king to rule the Israelites. He chose Saul. Like Gideon he came from the least of the tribes to the highest position. Saul was easily noticed as he was head and shoulders taller than all the other Israelites. His bearing and good looks made it easy to see him as king. Saul, on the other hand, took a while to get used to the idea. Once appointed king, he went home to plow the family farm.

God warned that the people and the king must continue to follow the commands of God or be given over to oppression again as in the past until they learned to turn back to the Lord.

The first and primary purpose of government is defense. Israel had always had it’s militia. Every man of fighting age, who wasn’t afraid, recently married, recently purchased land, etc. was expected to go to war to defend the land when called. Saul fulfilled God’s warning by drafting 3,000 Israelites into a standing army that was established outside of war time. 2,000 were garrisoned with Him and 1,000 with his son.

tomorrow: First Samuel 15-16

the other resolution

2009-03-23T09:52:00.000-04:00

OK, 232.6# is not exactly an improvement but, I have been much more consistent on the exercise. In addition, my wife is more committed to loosing weight as her friends are making similar commitments. As much as we both try not to let each others habits effect our own, it is easier to stay on track when both people are trying. Particularly since, we both try to be nice and share when we make something good, even if it isn’t particularly good for us. The next trick will be to stop eating Ice Cream during the Biggest Loser. Even though it’s a once a week thing it’s still, pretty much, defeating the purpose of the show.

I’m still not so good on the water intake but I am improving. Bottled water and low income equals less water. Since the stuff from our tap isn’t very good, the best bet would be to spend a little extra cash on a filter and spend less on bottled in the future. We say that all the time but it never seems to happen.

First Samuel 8-11

2009-03-23T09:50:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God can accomplish great things under any circumstance. Following His leadership we can have the benefit of His victory without a great burden of leadership. By following the worlds way and appointing others over us, we force ourselves into submission to those authorities regardless of their foolish ways. Even in the United States, where our representative Republic resembles the leadership of the judges by having representatives instead of rulers, we still find ourselves submitted to oppressive law. Anyone who believes our government is without oppression should try dealing with the IRS, Dept of Motor Vehicles, Social Security Administration or any other bureaucracy that has authority to make decision over you. Compare your experience with those who can decide what you do and don’t get with your experience at McDonald's, where their survival as a business depends on you being a happy customer. It won’t be hard to see what God meant about having kings.

Promises: God promised a draft and victory over the enemy. When those who didn’t trust Saul looked for a peace treaty on their own they were offered peace in exchange for mutilation and humiliation. When Saul heard of it he was still tending fields as a farm boy rather than leading as king. God changed that on the spot. Saul’s anger was such that he chopped up his own cows and sent the parts around all of Israel with word that the same would happen to all the cattle of the people who didn’t come out to join the fight against Israel’s enemies. (sound like a draft?) He then led the 330,000 man army into battle, divided into three companies. They started killing Ammorites at sunrise and continued until the heat of the day by which time the army of the Ammorites was on the run and so scattered that you could not even find two Ammorites running together. WHEN GOD MAKES A PROMISE YOU CAN COUNT ON IT.

Commands: This is implied through out the bible but never said directly. It’s God’s way or the Hard way. For some reason we are always prone to choosing the hard way.

Timeless principles: Even among the great heroes of the bible, it is often true that the children do not live up to the reputation of the father. Samuel was a good and just man who served the Lord through his entire life. As he was getting old and couldn’t continue to travel the circuit he used to travel judging Israel, he appointed his sons to be judges. His sons did not follow God’s ways, they took bribes, looked for dishonest gains and perverted justice to their own ends.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Christ tells us that his burden is light. Doing it God’s way is a lot easier than doing it our way. There is a way that seems good to a man but it’s end is destruction. No matter how politically, logically or seemingly correct our ideas may be they can never be easier or more successful than doing it God’s way even if God’s way seems insane, impractical or impossible. This is where faith really comes into play. God has left ample evidence so that proving the gospel is easy. It doesn’t take a lot of faith to look at overwhelming evidence and say, “I believe”. The real leap of faith is in saying, “I don’t know how your going to do this Lord, but you promised me you would and I believe.”

more to learn for in-depth study: As God had predicted centuries before, while giving the law through Moses in the wilderness, the people demanded a king. God told Samuel to warn them what it meant. A king would draft their children into the military. A king would appoint commanders at all levels to ensure his orders were carried out. He would take people to tend his fields, make his arms, cook his food, make his perfumes and bake his bread. He would take the best of the peoples fields, vineyards, olive groves and flocks and herds and give it to his servants. He would take a tithe of the grain and wine to pay his officers. The best of the peoples servants, cattle, pack animals, and young men would be put to work for the king. The people would be servants to their king and would cry out over the oppression of the king they demanded.

The people didn’t listen to the warning. Saul wasn’t a great king but he wasn’t a major oppressor. David was better but still continued to lead the armies to war. Solomon ruled in peace but held the largest army and the most wealth of any king of Israel. After Solomon, all the predicted evil of kings and more was visited on Israel by the various self centered and abusive kings that ruled.

tomorrow: First Samuel 12-14

Weekly Assignment

2009-03-22T08:35:00.000-04:00

Monday: First Samuel 8-11
Tuesday: First Samuel 12-14
Wednesday: First Samuel 15-16
Thursday: First Samuel 17-18
Friday: First Samuel 19-21
Saturday: First Samuel 22-24
Sunday: First Samuel 25-28

First Samuel 4-7

2009-03-22T08:32:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: God is not mocked. The Philistines took the ark and put it in the temple of the false god Dagon. The next morning they found their Idol face down on the floor pointed toward the Ark as in Worship. The set up the Idol and the next day it was in the same position again with it’s hands and head broken off and just the torso lying there. They decided it might be a good idea to send the Ark elsewhere after that. Despite that, their offense against God was repaid with a plague of tumors and rats. Some think it might refer to the bubonic plague. Those who didn’t die were plagued by the tumors.

They sent it to Ekron where everyone panicked and said the people of Ashdod (where it had first been sent) were trying to kill them. They too, had the same plague and demanded the lords of the Philistines send the ark away.

The Philistines held the ark for 7 months during which time the plague did not let up. These leaders didn’t forget where the Ark came from or what God had done for His people. While the Israelites routinely turned from God and failed to give Him credit for all His miracles, the Philistines remembered the stories of every curse, plague, lost battle and miraculous destruction God had brought against Israel's enemies from the captivity in Egypt to that day. They had no intention of being as stupid as Egypt and continuing to keep the ark after it was clear God was punishing them for doing so.

Finally back in Israel at the Ark rested in Beth Shemesh. The locals had immediately broken the cart for firewood and used it to make a burnt offering to God out of the cows pulling the cart. Unfortunately for them, they decided to inspect the contents of the Ark. none but the High priest was supposed to do this and then only under certain rare circumstances. 50,000 people of Beth Shemesh died as a result of the offense and they demanded the ark be taken from them. It was there for 20 years.

It was taken to a neighboring city called Kirjath Jearim where they placed it in the house of Abinadab and consecrated his son Eleazar to take care of it.

Promises: Just as sin will bring destruction, Obedience will bring salvation. By putting away their false gods and turning back to the one true God, the Israelites were taken out from the oppression of the Philistines and their cities and land they had lost to them was returned.

Commands: Implied rather than explained. Our faith should be in God not in objects, even if they are of God. False worship and false gods including false versions of Jehovah are a surefire way to find destruction for yourself. Remember the first commandment.

Timeless principles: Once again there is a test of God. The false priests and diviners of the Philistines were no doubt inspired by God to give the answer they did when asked what to do about the ark. Two milk cows who had never been yoked would mean two milk cows(not the usual choice for pulling a wagon)who had never been hitched to anything(and wouldn’t easily accept the yoke let alone go somewhere on their own) and had their young locked in the barn(where instinct alone would make them want to go to the barn as well) and left to make their own path. Every rule of nature says these cows would head for the barn and probably overturn the cart in the process because they weren’t trained to pull one. Instead, as predicted, they headed strait for Israel and returned the Ark of the Covenant to God’s chosen people.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Trust in God alone for my needs for only He can provide. Separate myself from anything that works towards false religion so that I do not offend God.

more to learn for in-depth study: one of the roles played by the Ark of the Covenant was weapon. More precisely it was a bit of a super-weapon. God had ordered it to be taken into battle on occasion and in each case it had been the direct cause of a great many enemy deaths. This particular occasion was something like the battle of the Alamo. The Israelites lost the battle in a way that was a lot more damaging to the Philistines than to Israel.

Not ordered to do so, the Israelites decided they needed the Ark in battle because they knew what had happened in the past. They were placing their faith in a thing rather than in God directly. they had already lost 4,000 in battle and with the Ark on the battlefield they lost another battle along with the lives of 30,000 Israeli soldiers and the two sons of Eli who had taken the Ark to the battlefield. When word was brought to Eli about what had happened he didn’t have much reaction to the loss of his sons but “fell over” when he heard the ark had been taken. When he fell his neck broke and he died at 98 years old.

News of the defeat drove the wife of Eli’s son Phinehas into early labor. She gave birth to a son she named Ichabod because the ark had been captured, Eli and her husband and brother in law were all dead and she said, “the glory has departed from Israel for the ark of God has been captured.”

tomorrow: First Samuel 8-11

Testing Spirits and KINGS

2009-03-21T11:22:00.000-04:00

Testing the spirits is a complicated issue and one I am no expert on. Here are a few tips that I use in trying to understand what God is telling me:

1) God does not contradict Himself. If you believe God is telling you to do something His word forbids then you need to realize you are hearing from a false spirit (or even your own imagination trying to get what you want)

2) Your own imagination will tend to tell you what you want to hear. If your hearing what you already wanted it’s time to lay a fleece before God and/or study more in the bible to find God’s will.

3) False spirits (ungodly spirits trying to influence you) will not recognize Jesus as the Son of God and God incarnate. The answer to “Who is Jesus?” Should be an immediate “the Christ”, “The Messiah”, “The Son of God”. If there is any doubt whatsoever the question should be “I Jesus God?”. The answer should be “He is Lord”, “He is God”, “He is divine” or something similar. If you believe this is answered then the spirit is true. Ask God to block out the voice of any spirit but His and test the spirits. Then you may trust what you hear if it is not in contradiction with the Bible.

4) God isn’t big on repeating Himself. If the answer you seek could be easily found by reading the bible you are not likely to hear it in a disembodied voice. If you do it will probably be more like one of those nagging songs you can’t get out of your head. You will simply hear the verse that applies going over and over again in your memory until you are willing to comply with it.

5) Laying a fleece before God: This is taken from the story of Gideon and is a basic principle of finding truth. When faced with a big decision and you truly desire to find God’s will in the matter, test Him. Pray earnestly and believing that God will give you his sign. Be specific about the sign and do not make it something that would randomly happen. The example of Gideon is perfect. The dew would naturally be on everything on the ground so he asked that it be on the ground and not the fleece. The be sure he asked again that it be on the fleece but not the ground. Nature would put it on both but God could choose what stayed dry. Remember that Gideon was triple sure. His first test was to lay a sacrifice before the Angel of the Lord and he saw that the Angel brought fire out of the rock to consume the sacrifice supernaturally.

Endless testing while refusing to comply is sin. Testing to certainty is not. Once God has made His will clear it would be sin not to comply with it. If you have asked His guidance and tested His will you must comply with what He made clear or face the penalty of disobeying a direct order from God.

KINGS: For those who might be following the show notice a few things. The events take place in Shiloh, which is the city where the Tabernacle of Meeting was set up before Israel had kings. The Preacher who inaugurated the current king is Rev Samuels. Rev Samuels anointed David in the garage after he fixed the Reverends car. David killed a Goliath tank from the enemy nation of Gath. David gained position in the kings court because of his heroism. David is in love with the kings daughter. The king has an unreasoning hatred of David building after learning from Rev Samuels that the Lord has ceased to bless his house and that another will replace him as king that is not one of his children. These are all elements of the story of king David and King Saul. I’ll be watching to see how closely the story follows the bible and I’m sure many of you will too.

It is interesting to me that God leads me to things in perfect timing. The series began last week and this Sunday is the second episode. It’s Saturday morning and we are beginning our study of the books of Samuel which is the beginning of the study of the first kings of Israel. Over the next several weeks wee wil learn all about that time in history with 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles. I hop that you will join me in taking notes as you go along to keep the timeline in Chronological order. Each of these books tells parts of the story and you will find they retell the same stories from different views and with different details. Keeping notes will help you get the whole story and refresh the information you may be comparing to the TV Series.

First Samuel 1-3

2009-03-21T11:19:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Listen for the voice of the Lord. Most of what God has to say to us can be found in the pages of the bible. Most, but not all. God did not tell us how to recognize profits and how to test spirits to know if they speak the truth just so we could decide neither existed anymore and we didn’t have to listen. God still speaks to us and, through the Holy Spirit, is more direct with Christians than He was with His people in the Old Testament. Learning to listen for His instruction and understanding how to recognize it is an important step of growth in our Christian life. I’ll add a supplemental entry on some basic principles.

Promises: God lifts up the lowly who look to Him for help. He strikes down the haughty who afflict others without cause and defy His commands.

Commands: Do not cause others to stumble and to sin by your actions.

Timeless principles: God can chose people from the most unlikely places. Samuel was not of the tribe of Levi and he wasn’t a descendant of Aaron. He was given to the high priest by a family from one of the sons of Joseph as an adopted son to serve the Lord. God raised him up to take the place of the priestly line which had become to corrupt to serve.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Look carefully for where God is working. You may find His handiwork in the most unlikely places. I heard people on the radio complain about the TV series KINGS. They think it’s propaganda leading to a one world government, a dictatorship, or something similar. They don’t see that, like Touched by an Angel, Promised Land, Second Noah and others, it is an attempt to tell the truths of the bible through entertainment. Whether it can stay on track or even on the air is questionable. Many shows based in Christian values are run off the air despite good ratings and others are corrupted to teach false doctrine.

Even something like Star Wars can teach lessons we should know. George Lucas was said to be quite upset when Ronald Reagan pointed out that his movie had created the environment the president used to overcome communism. It was a reminder that evil exists and must be overcome. It was a hopeful message of the ability of good to triumph.

more to learn for in-depth study: Samuel was an Ephraimite. His tribe was one of the sons of Joseph. He was not bound by law to be in service because the Tribe of Levi had been dedicated to serve the Lord in place of the first born. His mother vowed to make him a Nazirite in service to God for his entire life if she could have a child. His name means Heard by God. Notice also that a basic principle of prayer is demonstrated. The chief priest blessed Hannah and said, “may God grant your request.” Christ also mentioned agreement in prayer. Two or more agreeing before God for a prayer request will cause the request to be granted. Prayer is not meant to be solitary. Often it becomes a solo practice but whenever possible you should share the request and pray with someone.

The sons of Eli were abusive and unruly, ignoring the Law of God and causing people to hate going to the temple because of their abuse. The Evil they did was beyond contempt and would turn the stomachs of many who read of it. Samuel ministered as a priest from childhood and did so in accordance with the law as a priest should. God swore to kill both Eli’s sons in one day and raise up a faithful priest to lead so that the Israelites would not be driven to sin by the evil they encountered at the tabernacle.

Eli had not restrained his sons. He did not prevent them from interfering in the sacrifice. Because he treated them better than the sacrifice and showed more honor to them than to God, his house was cursed. He was still the high priest and so he was able to perceive the Lord was calling to Samuel in the night.

Eli knew the Lord wouldn’t call the boy in vain and asked him the next day to reveal what the Lord had said. Samuel knew it was a curse against the old man and didn’t want to tell him for fear of hurting him but, Eli insisted and Samuel told all. Eli replied by saying, “He is the Lord, let Him do what seems good to Him.” It was a wise and true saying worthy of the high priest. It also showed Eli understood his mistakes.

tomorrow: First Samuel 4-7

The book of Ruth

2009-03-20T09:48:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: If family can’t take care of each other, who will? Many will scoff at the connection I make with politics but history backs me up. The key reason for the welfare state is to undermine this concept of family. By making the state the source of help the bond of family is loosened. Reading the books and writings of Marx, Lenin, Mao and other communist leaders you see that this was their purpose in creating such states. The old and honored system known as the widows and orphans assistance became the modern welfare system. One was designed to provide for people who had little or no help from family during harsh financial times and with the loss of young men in WWI and WWI. The latter was the attempt of the state to take over a roll traditionally held by family, church and private charity.

Don’t begrudge the family member who needs help. Even though it may be a hardship at times, it is an opportunity for you to gain the Blessings God has for those who will stand for their family. If God can’t trust you to take care of relatives how can He trust you with interests beyond your family?

Promises: God blesses those who care for their family. Marriage was established and ordained by God to form this bond between people. Fulfilling the obligations of this bond will bring favor upon you.

Each person here gained favor from God for taking care of family. Naomi and Ruth cared for each other like mother and daughter. Ruth worked to provide for her mother and Naomi saw to the strategy that would provide for Ruth. Boaz, took care of Naomi and Ruth as family. He not only ordered that she be allowed to glean in the field but that his men intentionally drop extra grain for her. When she came to him on the threshing floor he sent her home with 6 ephahs of threshed grain. This probably doesn’t mean much to many people without knowing what an ephah is. The ephah is a dry measure slightly larger than a bushel. She went home to Naomi with over 6 bushels of cleaned grain. When she had gleaned in the field he saw to it she drank from the water his men had drawn and ate with the workers from the food already prepared. she even took home some of the prepared food along with what she gleaned to her mother(in-law).

For their actions, Naomi got a grandson raised in the name of Ruth’s late husband, Ruth got a husband of means. Boaz got a family and children and a son named Obed, who became the father of Jesse who was the father of David the king of Israel whose line leads to Jesus the Messiah. That’s some serious blessings.

Commands: Honor thy father and mother that thy days may be long upon the earth. This commandment is only the beginning of the responsibility to family and the law is filled with rules for taking care of family though all the ups and downs. This is the story of family.

Timeless principles: God can bring blessing through the harshest of circumstances. Naomi moved, with her husband and sons, to a foreign land to survive a famine. While living in this land her husband died, her sons married and then her sons died. She had no more children, no grandchildren and felt herself to old to start a family. She sent her daughters in law back to their homes so that they could find a life for themselves. She wanted these young women to have a chance for love and happiness and another husband and children. She knew no way to provide these things herself.

Orpah, one of the daughters-in-law protested but eventually gave in and returned home.(yes that’s how it’s spelled, yes it’s where Oprah got her name and yes she has said her family didn’t know how to spell it.) The other daughter-in-law Ruth refused to leave her mother-in-law.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Help family when they are in need according to all that I can help. Providing for family is the first duty, if I can’t be trusted to help my relative how can I be trusted to help others.

more to learn for in-depth study: Consider the tradition of the time. The male children had their inheritance in the house of their father. What their father left as inheritance would go through the male line unless there were no males. The daughters had their inheritance in the house of their husband. Fathers and mothers made a point of finding good husbands for their daughters so that they would be taken care of. The husband would inherit from the father and the wife shared in that inheritance.

Elimelech sold his land and then died in a foreign land, His sons died having had no children and with nothing to their name. The right of redemption in Jewish law applied to the men so even the opportunity to redeem their lands in Israel was not available to Naomi or here daughters-in-law. Sending Orpah home was the kindest and most loving act Naomi could think to provide the young woman. Ruth, refused to abandon her new family. She had married into this family and felt her loyalty belonged to Naomi. Naomi, in turn, did everything she could to ensure a future for Ruth in Israel while Ruth, worked hard to provide for herself and her mother-in-law.

The duty of close kin was to become husband to the childless widow and raise a son in the name of her late husband. The closest relative refused this job for fear he would not have a son to raise in his own name. Boaz took the job with honor, marrying Ruth, bringing a son in the name of her late husband and several more as well.

GENEALOGY: The son of Jacob (also called Israel) was Judah. Judah was the father of Perez who was father to Hezron who became father to Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was father of Nashon who was father to Salmon the father of Boaz.

Boaz married Ruth and had a son named Obed who became the father of Jesse whose son David killed the giant named Goliath of Gath, and later became the king of Israel. From the family line of king David was born Jesus the Christ who died for our sins and rose from the dead to save us.

tomorrow: First Samuel 1-3

Judges 20-21

2009-03-19T09:11:00.002-04:00

God’s message to me: Political correctness can convince us to sin. It’s one thing to recognize peoples right to live in sin and foolishness. It’s something else entirely to condone it, defend it, or accept it. This country maintains freedom for all at the expense of tolerating some foolishness. Tolerance of each others views is what allows us to maintain our freedom. However; no one has the right to be accepted, heard or have their view promoted over others.

Homosexuals have the right to live in their sin and Christians have the right to call it sin. Those who would count our biblical view as hatred and intolerance and would write laws forcing us to condone them are the enemies of God. Those who force us to pay for the murder of children through financing abortion and paying for fetal stem cell research are the enemies of God. Accepting their views and their laws without a fight is no better then the Benjamites protecting the Sons of Beliel whose practices resulted in a murder that brought the entire nation against them.

Promises: God will always fulfill His promises. Cutting off the tribe of Benjamin entirely would have breached the promise despite their sin. God kept the remnant to let the promise to that tribe live on.

Commands: Do Not tolerate, condone, except, defend, or sanction perversion and sin. The tribe of Benjamin tolerated perversion and defended the perverts and were nearly destroyed as a result.

Timeless principles: "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." (Edmund Burke) Christ "gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:14). “The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing” Albert Einstein

The sins involved in the worship of false gods and the activities tolerated throughout Israel led to a complacence that allowed evil to persist in the land for years. It was the murder of one woman and the very public and shocking act of her husband that finally made the Israelites wake up to the problem.

The same complacency and acceptance of evil led the tribe of Benjamin to protect those who had committed evil in their midst. These murdering fools should have been hung in the streets by their own tribe and the problem would have been resolved but, instead, the Benjamites protected them and their right to be perverts. The result was the near complete destruction of the tribe.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Fight against the politically correct with everything you have. While some of it may seem eminently good the evil hidden within will destroy the country and all who live in it from the roots. There is a way which seems good to a man but it’s end is death.

more to learn for in-depth study: 400,000 Soldiers from the other 11 tribes came to the council that sent the army against Benjamin. In the first two days of battle 26,700 Benjamites brought punishment on the nation for letting things get so bad and 40,000 Israelit soldiers died on the field of battle. The same number as the council had decided to send to punish Benjamin. After that the Israelites decided to give a whole hearted effort and the Lord promised deliverance. 25,100 Benjamites were killed and 600 sent into hiding. All their cities and all the non-combatants in them were destroyed.

Like the Benjamites the people of Jabesh Giliad failed to condemn what had happened and join the battle. They too were marked for destruction and from their destruction came the beginning of a new hope for the remnant of Benjamin.

tomorrow: The book of Ruth

Judges 18-19

2009-03-18T10:37:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: False worship, no matter how it is dressed, leads only to disaster. Micah hired a Levite as pries to his false gods and when the tribe of Dan entered his land to take their inheritance they took the priest and the false gods and the ephod(priests breastplate) made for the priest to serve the false gods. The Danites added to their own sin by setting the same priest up for themselves to serve the stolen false gods. Their false priest led them in false worship to false gods instead of respecting Jehovah who had given them the land they took as inheritance.

Among the tribe of Benjamin were worshipers of Beliel. Sexual immorality including homosexuality and rape were a common practice in this false religion. They took the beloved concubine wife of Levite and raped and abused her all night so that she died on the doorstep of the house in which he lodged. The Levite cut her body into 12 pieces and sent them throughout Israel as a message regarding the evil being done by the worshipers of Beliel in the tribe of Benjamin. The message would be received and acted on most dramatically.

Promises: God fulfills His promises even when we don’t. The tribe of Dan was promised territory in the promised land. They waited longer than they should have to take it but, when they went to take it God gave it to them easily. They went in with a small force and took the territory then promptly set up worship to false gods found there. They failed, pretty much, every part of their end of the bargain but, God did not fail one word of His end.

Commands: While not said specifically this passage demonstrates disobedience to the first two commandments. “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image -any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,”.

Timeless principles: Symbolism over substance. The tribe of Levi was chosen to serve God in the temple. Choosing a Levite to be your personal priest for false gods doesn’t change the false gods into real ones. symbols and lucky charms are still prevalent in society and in the church. They are false and have no place.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: I hear these things all the time. “my god is a loving god who could never send someone to hell forever.” “My god doesn’t make mistakes so how dare you judge my homosexual behavior.” “The bible is the flawed creation of man based on centuries of oral tradition. The real god wouldn’t behave the way it says.”

ALLOW ME TO BE VERY CLEAR. If your god is not the God of the bible you are worshipping a false god and have set up an image in your mind to worship as an idol. I have, in the course of this study, clearly established that the bible is and has been and was from the beginning a written record. It has been established that the words were given by God who ordered his servants to put them in writing. God, as described in the bible, is the only true and living God. There is no other. Worshiping some ideal that comes from your personal morality is idolatry, paganism, humanism, false worship.

more to learn for in-depth study: We see some of the results of false worship here. Tomorrows story continues with the results of Benjamin tolerating the sons of Beliel.

Rights, in the United States, are often misunderstood. You have the right to behave badly so long as it doesn’t interfere with the rights of others. You do not have a right to be accepted. When people demand that others stop praying because they are offended, when they demand that religious references be removed from public view and hearing, when they demand that we recognized their offensive actions as normal, they are demanding the right to be accepted. I don’t have the right to have Christianity accepted by all and they don’t have the right to have me accept abortion on demand, vegetarianism, bestiality, pedophilia, or any other perversion.

If you think you have an American or even a Christian responsibility to accept others as they are please read carefully tomorrows assignment and see the result of a tribe that accepted perversion as normal.

tomorrow: Judges 20-21

Judges 14-17

2009-03-17T09:01:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: God invented “shock and awe.” Remember the flood. Imagine being one of the people outside of the ark. Noah had been preaching about the coming storm for about 100 years but, no one on earth had ever seen rain in 1,656 years. Suddenly there is a full out thunderstorm, earthquakes, water shooting out of the ground and dark clouds everywhere and these folks have never seen any of that before. Now the people of Gaza wait at the gates of the city to ambush Samson in the morning. Instead he comes out at midnight, takes hold of the barred city gate, rips up the doors of the gate, the posts they are attached to and the bar that is locking it and carries it on his shoulders to the top of a hill near Hebron while the dummies from Gaza sit around with their jaws on their chests.

(don’t forget, he was there to be with a harlot which is another violation of the Nazirite vow. I tend to get the impression no one ever explained that vow to him. If they did he certainly didn’t seem to care.)

Promises: Even on your worst day, God will ensure that your actions make Him look good. You can work up a powerful thirst killing 1,000 Philistines with a donkey’s jawbone. God quenched Samson’s thirst by cracking a rock and letting a spring erupt from it so he could drink.

Commands: God will use you no matter what. Whether or not you enjoy it or profit from it depends on your willingness to obey Him in the process. Samson was a mighty man who could have had a lot more enjoyable life. Unfortunately, he had no respect for the rules he was to live by. Even if you forget his drinking, eating from old animal carcass’ hanging out with the wrong crowd and demanding self indulgence, you can’t get away from his involvement with Philistine women. The Philistines are most known for Goliath of Gath. Goliath was a giant of the Nephilim. He had 4 brothers who were also giants and was among the last of the giants. These events occurred well before Goliath’s time and the Philistine bloodline was well tainted by the nephilim. Forget marrying outside his faith and nationality, Samson was, for all intents and purposes, marrying outside his species. First he married a Philistine, then he went to a Philistine harlot, then he moved in with another Philistine women.

While it seems Samson lived the party life, it should also be noted that the only homes he is shown living in are his parents house, his in-laws house, his girlfriends house and a cave. No mention of great fortune, he had to kill 30 men to pay off a gambling debt. No mention of a home, land, position, respect or anything. He judged Israel, when he wasn’t out doing something stupid, he killed a lot of Philistines, he got in plenty of trouble and when he died, his brothers came to collect the corpse and bury him. He accomplished a lot, but I don’t see where he enjoyed it nearly as much as previous judges did.

Timeless principles: Those chosen of God can and will be used by him, even in their darkest hour. After allowing himself to be weakened by Delilah Samson was captured, blinded and imprisoned. If you recall past studies, a Nazirite who becomes unclean goes to the temple for ritual cleansing including having their head shaved. As Sampson’s hair began to grow back in the prison, the power God gave him as part of the vow returned as well.

The Philistines decided to celebrate the idea that their false god had delivered Samson into their hands. with a temple full of revelers including all the lords of the Philistines, and another 3,000 people on the roof of the temple they brought Samson from the prison to be a spectacle for them. Samson asked God for one thing. He wanted his strength back just long enough to die taking revenge. God gave him what he asked for. When Samson knocked down the support pillars of the temple the roof caved in killing those inside and those on the roof. Samson killed more Philistines in his final, suicidal attack than all the others he had killed combined.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: I can trust God to use me no matter what happens. I know that even in my darkest hour He can use me for mighty things. This story should remind us all to be obedient to God and do things the right way. I see the stories of the other judges and most of them gained profit and position after doing mighty works for God. They obeyed God in their actions and enjoyed a peaceful life after the job was done. Some failed to continue in obedience after they retired but, they profited from doing so when they were called. Samson fought until he died and never got much out of it, His party lifestyle just kept him in position to get mad and kill bad guys. Most of us would love to have the power to defeat enemies so easily but, I would rather be able to have a good retirement when I was done. On the other hand, if I must go down fighting I want to be like Sampson and the Texans at the Alamo. Losing the battle but winning the war because my final act did enough damage to the enemy that they couldn’t win afterward.

more to learn for in-depth study: The battle between what young people want and what their parents think is good for them is as old as time. Overindulgent parents and temperamental, self absorbed teens are nearly as old.

Samson had been a Nazirite from birth. For those who have been following the study you will remember that this means more than just not cutting your hair. A Nazirite is separate from normal people and must remain ritually clean to an extreme level. Taking a wife from among the Philistines was not in keeping with that tradition, but the boy picked the girl he wanted and his parents indulged him. God put it in his heart to want her in order to set up Samson's first big fight, On his way to see her he killed a lion and later took honey from the carcass. Aside from avoiding dead bodies a Nazirite would be well outside the rules to eat honey that came from a dead carcass. Honestly, I love honey and that even grosses me out.

The next problem this indulgence brought was when Sampson returned a few months later deciding that he wanted his wife back. (He had abandoned her after she informed the men about Samson’s riddle) Finding out that his father-in-law had given her to his best man he decided to start a little fire. Burning down the Philistines crops gathered attention and they burned down his father-in-law’s house killing the father-in-law and Samson’s wife. Not enough that his wife had been given to another, killing her got Samson truly mad. The bible says he attacked them with a great slaughter but doesn’t mention how many men he killed at that time. When they came to arrest him he killed 1,000 with the jawbone of a donkey.

A nagging woman is also a timeless theme. Delilah pestered Samson for the secret of his strength. Sampson lied to her 3 times. Each time she tried to weaken him using the method he lied about and did so with Philistines hiding in their bedroom. You would think that would be a clue but, strong arms and strong minds don’t always come in the same body. Samson stuck around long enough for Delilah to nag him to the point where he finally told her the truth.

Samson Judged Israel fro 20 years. The story of Micah begins with his introduction to idolatry and his firing a Levite to act as priest for his false gods. It continues tomorrow.

tomorrow: Judges 18-19

the other resolution

2009-03-16T10:26:00.000-04:00

I’m weighing in this week at 231.8. With warmer weather I’m walking more and My eating is a bit more on track. Still to many snack foods like Ice Cream but, I’m balancing that some. Water intake is still my week point and I need to correct that.

Judges 11-13

2009-03-16T10:19:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Do not bargain with God. God desires our worship, love and obedience, not trade. Jephthah bargained that he would give up the first thing that came to him from home as a burnt offering if God gave him victory. God placed him in position to lead. God would have accepted tests like Gideon gave him. He would have sent him to victory regardless. His bargaining was a promise to God which he could not take back.

Promises: God will deliver you from oppression. The people of Israel were oppressed for their sin and God was mad enough to tell them they should try asking the false gods they had ignored Him for to rescue them. Even so, when they turned from their sin, God could not bear the misery of His chosen people and sent Jephthah to rescue them.

Commands: Say it with me folks. “I Am My Brother’s Keeper.” This concept is basic to the Special forces of the US Military. It goes along with “No Man Left Behind.” The law of God handed down by Moses includes a bunch of rules for being helpful and generous with fellow Israelites. When the Tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh settled on the other side of the Jordan they did so under the provision that they would stand with the other tribes in battle to take the promised land.

Not only did the people of Ephraim fail to stand with the other tribes in opposing their enemy, they turned against the other tribes for passing through their land in the battle. This disloyal show of ingratitude was well beyond reason. It not only showed the people of Ephraim wouldn’t stand with their brothers, it showed they wanted to disown them.

Timeless principles: God can use anybody. Whether it is the brave spy like Joshua or the trained generals he commanded, the farm boy from the weakest tribe who leads a tiny task force against impossible odds or the son of a harlot who lives as a raider and bandit in the mountains and has his home restored when he leads the army of Israel. God can and will use anybody to accomplish his purpose. A willing heart is all God requires for us to profit by being used by Him.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Never judge a person on their past when God is ready to use them. Never believe your own past make it impossible for you to be used. DON’T BARGAIN WITH GOD, JUST OBEY HIM.

more to learn for in-depth study: Jephthah is a favorite because he reminds me of the Scorpion king. A long haired wild man with his own private army of raiders living in caves in the mountains until others realize he is the best man to lead a war. He is also one of the more difficult studies.

The sacrifice of His daughter as a result of bargaining is difficult to reconcile. Detailed study of the nations that were wiped out in apparent genocide makes it clear they were associated with Nephilim. The bloodline tainted by fallen angels resulted in the destruction of the flood and of a great many nations after the flood. Those wars appear in the mythology of almost every nation including the Native American tribes. The death of Jephthah’s daughter has no apparent connection and the fact that God did not interfere as He did with Jacob is something I can’t explain.

Jephthah also fought a war against another tribe of Israel. Ephraim refused to help in the war against the Ammonites and when Jephthah attacked the Ammonites he went through Ephraim territory to do it. Acting as though they were an independent country the people of Ephraim took offense at the Jephthah leading the other tribes across their territory. (sounds a little like France when the US attacks sponsors of terror) The not only complained about his actions but turned on their fellow Israelites and attacked them for going through their tribal territory without permission. Jephthah led the army that had just defeated Ammon into battle against the people of Ephraim and with similar success.

The people of Ephraim should never have turned on their brothers and, given that they refused to fight for themselves and the other Israelites, they showed how ungrateful they were by attacking the folks that had just freed them from the Ammonite oppression.

For those without a study bible, the word Shibboleth was used as a test of dialect. People from the tribe of Ephraim had an accent that caused them to pronounce the word in a specific way that was recognizable. The Soldiers of Jephthah’s army used this test to determine whether the person in front of them was an innocent traveler or an escaping soldier for the attacking army.

Jephthah Judged Israel for 6 years followed by Ibzan who had 30 sons and 30 daughters. Ibzan found wives for all his sons and gave his 30 daughters in marriage. He judged Israel for 7 years. After Ibzan came Elon who judged Israel for 10 years. Then came Abdon who judged Israel 8 years. He had 40 sons and 30 grandsons riding 70 young donkeys (reminiscent of Gideon).

After him the Israelites returned to their sin and were given to oppression from the Philistines for 40 years before God began to raise Samson as their defender. One of the most famous Judges, Samson is believed by some to be the inspiration for the legends of Hercules.

tomorrow: Judges 14-17

Weekly Assignment

2009-03-15T17:18:00.003-04:00

Monday: Judges 11-13
Tuesday: Judges 14-17
Wednesday: Judges 18-19
Thursday: Judges 20-21
Friday: The book of Ruth
Saturday: First Samuel 1-3
Sunday: First Samuel 4-7

Tomorrow: Jephthah. I added a picture from flicker that matches my mental image of this Judge of Israel. At least I thought I did, maybe it will load later.

Judges 9-10

2009-03-15T17:13:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: My job is what God gives me to do. Pursuing other things because I can is a path to disaster. Attacking others to promote myself is completely wrong. If I am not enough on my own destroying others will not make me more. The trick is to use what I have to it’s best effect and let God ceal with others.

Promises: “Vengeance is mine”, says the Lord. “I will repay.” Abimelech was in the position of a king with the backing of the locals and his family plus a military at his disposal. Jotham didn’t have much chance of being the Avenger of blood for his family against those odds. Instead he put it in God’s hands to decide if Abimilech was where he belonged and to deal with him if he wasn’t. God fulfilled Jotham’s curse on Abimilech and his followers and kept Jotham safe in the meantime.

Commands: Don’t assume authority that God hasn’t given you. God intends us all to be priests and kings in his kingdom and he has jobs for us here but assuming authority He reserved for another can be real trouble.

Timeless principles: The fact that you can do something doesn’t mean you should. Even if you can find a lot of people who agree with your actions you need to be certain it is your job. Just as Abimilech got those around him to make him king I think we can all remember someone who got into elected office and didn’t belong. Likewise I have known a few pastors who did the job for a few years and wound up losing the position later because they weren’t meant to hold it. Most had bad experiences on their way out as a result of doing things they shouldn’t have because they weren’t supposed to be there.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: God places us in positions we are often uncomfortable with. Some of those positions involve leadership. We often find ourselves surprised at how well we do in positions we felt unqualified to hold.

By the same token, there are times when we feel we could do a job better than the person who is in it. Most often these are jobs with authority. The appropriate way to handle this is to add our support to the leaders and WORK WITH THEM (not against them or in spite of them) to help them accomplish the job they are doing. If they don’t belong there God will put the appropriate person there. In the meantime, doing what God has gifted us to do will attract the attention of those who need those things done.

Those who do their best with what they have find their abilities and responsibilities increased. Do well in a little and God will give you much.

more to learn for in-depth study: Gideon had 70 sons and many wives. He even had a son by a concubine in Shechem. Abimelech has his own part of the story later. With all his mistakes Gideon did a few things right besides leading the army. After defeating the Midinites the Israelites tried to make him king. He refused the job and told them God would rule them.

Abimelech, son of the concubine, decided he could be king and convinced the people of his town to make him king. He killed all but one of Gideon’s other sons so that none could take his place. The last son called a curse on him for the evil he did to his father and on the people that made him king for repaying Gideon’s valor with treachery. Abimilech was king 3 years before people started turning against him. He tried to reinforce his rule with force and destroyed the city that made him king and was killed trying to take another city. God fulfilled the curse brought on him by his act of murder and attempt to take power that wasn’t his.

After Abimilech came Tola who judged Israel for 23 years and then Jair who judged Israel for 22 years and had 30 sons who rode 30 donkeys and had 30 towns called Havoth Jair in Gilead. After Him the Israelites again began worshipping the gods of the surrounding peoples. They worshipped the Baals, the Ashtoreths, The Syrian, Sidonian and Moabite Gods as well as the Ammonite and Philistine gods.

God gave them into the Oppression of the Philistines and the Ammonites who oppressed them 18 years even crossing the Jordon to harass the tribes that were there. When they cried to God for help He told them to try calling the false gods they had served after he delivered them from each of the oppressors that had come upon them from Egypt until that time. The Israelites got rid of the false gods and idols and served God and begged His help until He could no longer ignore their misery. As the people of Israel prepared for war against their oppressors they asked “who will lead us as an army?”

Thus the passage ends just prior to one of my favorite judges. Whenever I read about Jephtha I get a mental picture of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as the Scorpion King, striding out to defend Israel.

tomorrow: Judges 11-13

Judges 7-8

2009-03-14T09:29:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: God wants the world to know He had a hand in my greatest accomplishments. Gideon called up an army of 32,000 men. God told him to send home those who were afraid, as the rules of engagement given in the law state. 22,000 went home and he was left with 10,000 but God said it was still to much. He wanted the men to drink from the nearby creek. 300 men lapped water from their hands and the rest got on their knees. God told him to send home the ones that got on their knees.

I’ve seen this taught as taking the least capable. The ones who got on their bellies to drink. The description the bible gives seems more to imply that the 300 he kept were the ones who kept their heads up and were vigilant. Whether God sent Gideon to war with 300 dunces or with 300 of Israel’s elite He still sent him to war against an army to large to count with only 300 men. The previous few books have numbered armies in the millions and been relatively specific about total troops. for this army to be innumerable they must have numbered at least 3 million or more. I would have to look back to be certain but I don’t remember a group larger than about 2.5 million being mentioned as countable so I assume they could count to at least that high or a little higher. This army spread across the land like a plague of locusts and with the same result on crops.

Promises: God will do the impossible for you to make Himself known. Gideon faced an army to large to number with only 300 men. God saw to it that those 300 men set the enemy on the run, chased them down over hill and dale until they were all destroyed and then came back to punish the cities which refused the army help and hospitality. When all was said and done the Midianites were completely defeated and all 300 men plus Gideon returned home unharmed.

Commands: Trust God to do the impossible. After bringing fire from a rock and manipulating the dew around a fleece I’m certain God knew Gideon needed reassurances. He told him to spy in the camp of the enemy where he heard them dreaming of destruction by the mighty Gideon, of Israel. Gideon knew there was no reason these people should even know his name let alone fear him. He was just a farm boy from a weak family who had never been in a fight before. That was enough to convince him that God would make him victorious because God had already put fear in the hearts of the enemy and had given that fear the name of Gideon.

Timeless principles: People fall into sin far to easily. Gideon decided to create his own ephod from the captured gold of the Midianites. In addition to being an imitation of the holy ephod of the high priest(something he shouldn’t have made in the first place) it also became an object of worship. The Israelites and Gideans own family “played the harlot” with it(worshipped it as an idol). This had been made from the earrings and ornaments of the Midianite kings. Much of their jewelry was symbolic of their Gods and should never have been considered for any thing that even looked like it belonged in the temple.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: What seems like a reasonable and proper method to a man has no bearing on what God can do. Coming against an enemy on the way into the promised land the Israelites decided to send only a small force rather than the whole army. The enemy city was small and not well defended. With sin in the camp and the failure to consult God’s plan they lost the battle. When the sin was purged God told them to use the whole army. In Gideon's battle it was the opposite. His army was under whelming and even recruiting the whole army of Israel would have left him with a force to small to accomplish the job in the eyes of man. Instead God told him to send home most of the army he had and sent him to war with a force of 300 men against odds of probably 30,000 to 1. No one would expect success in those conditions yet, God made certain that the tiny force destroyed the army to large to be numbered.

IF GOD SAYS IT CAN BE DONE YOU MAY REST ASSURED THAT IT CAN. The Israelites had left several nations in the promised land because they didn’t think they could fight them. God had told them they could win but they didn’t really try. This war proved what God had said but, it was too late. The Israelites had disobeyed God’s command to destroy the enemy and God left that enemy to be a thorn in their side and a tempting snare.

more to learn for in-depth study: “Confusion to the enemy” The old military toast certainly went into play here. When Gideon and his 300 men exposed their torches and blew their horns, the enemy lashed out in a blind panic and wound up attacking each other instead of the Israelites.

As the Midianites fled, Gideon sent runners ahead to tell the other Israelites and Allies to guard the watering spots and stop the enemy as it ran. The men of Ephraim had not been called up for Gideon's army. After killing Oreb and Zeeb, two of the Midianite leaders, they complained to Gideon about having not been called to join the fight. In a wonderful bit of diplomacy he asked which was better, the leftovers of their own vineyards or the whole crop from Abiezer? Being proud of their grapes the people of Ephraim recognized the complement and saw that they had gotten credit for dealing with two of the midianite leaders so they left it at that.

Along the way Gideon asked for food, water and a place to rest for his men at the cities he passed. Several refused out of fear of the enemy Generals. Gideon promised to repay their unkindness after he dealt with the enemy.

When Gideon caught up to the last of the Mideanite army they were down to two kings and 15,000 men. 120,000 men from this part of the army had already been killed by Gideon’s small force. That’s 400 kills per soldier on average although the Lord dealt with many of them through confusion which resulted in killing each other. Despite being exhausted from battle and chasing Gideon’s men went gladly to battle against 50 to 1 odds. They routed the army and chased down the kings to capture them.

With the battle over Gideon caught a man from Succoth and interrogated him to get the names of the leaders of that city. It was one of the cities that refused him help. He showed the city the kings they had feared then captured the 77 leaders of the city and punished them with wild briers. When he got to the city of Penuel he tore down it’s tower and killed it’s men.

Interesting note: The Crescent moon symbol is still a common symbol of middle eastern and Muslim countries. Here it is described as being a common ornament of the Midianites and Ishmaelites. Muhammad would not be born until 570 AD and would not begin writing the Koran until 610 AD. He would not begin preaching until 613 AD and Islam and the Islamic calendar begin when Muhammad and his followers move to Medina in 622 AD to avoid those who don’t like the new religion. The next 8 years are filled with war against the tribes in Mecca. The Religion of Islam, was effectively born in 613 AD, more than 1000 years (probably much more) after Gideon took those Crescent symbols from the enemy.

tomorrow: Judges 9-10

Judges 4-6

2009-03-13T10:45:00.001-04:00

Today we begin to study two of my favorite judges who also happen to be among the most famous. Deborah and Gideon make two important points about how Christians should live and several minor points about things that may interest you. Hang on to your hat's, this one's a little long.

God’s message to me: Deborah, the wife of Lapidoth, was a prophetess and judge of Israel. As a Baptist, there are many in my faith who would disagree with women in leadership positions but, clearly, God does not ban them from such positions. While it is rare for women to fulfill these roles Deborah was a prophetess, a judge and leader, and, when forced to action by the inaction of men, she became a military commander.

Gideon asked for signs. First, he laid his sacrifices on a bare rock and when the Lord touched the rock with a staff fire came out of the rock and burned up all the offering. After calling together an army Gideon tested God again. He placed a fleece in the open and asked God to put dew on the fleece(Sheep’s wool) and not the ground around it. The next morning the ground was dry and Gideon squeezed a bowl full of water out of the fleece. Asking God not to be angry, Gideon reassured himself asking God to place dew on the ground but not the fleece. The next morning the fleece was dry and the ground around it was wet.

When facing a tough decision and asking God’s guidance, there is nothing wrong with setting a test and assuring results. Continued testing after a clear answer is wrong, as is ignoring the answer when you get it but, seeking a clear answer is never wrong.

Promises: The song of Deborah includes, not only praise for those who took part and great praise for those who played key rolls but also, curses on those who failed to join the war. Only two tribes contributed greatly to the victory and no allies came at all.

Commands: Do not tolerate false gods. I hate to repeat this but, the Taliban were right to destroy the idols to Buddha carved into their mountain. The Lord called Gideon to tear down the alter to Baal, build an alter to God, cut down the Idol of Ashteroth and use it for firewood to burn an offering to God. When people called for Gideon's execution for destroying the alter and idol his father called him Jerubbaal (let Baal plead) saying, if Baal and Ashteroth had power they could kill him themselves for his attack on them.

Timeless principles: Barak the son of Abinoam of Kedesh in Naphtali was the military commander charged with overcoming Jabin’s army. He refused to go to battle unless Deborah went with him. (apparently he didn’t have faith in a woman as prophet or judge either)

Deborah was quite willing to go but reminded him that, if she did, he would gain no glory for the win. Barak and his army defeated and killed all the army and chariots of Jabinand the General, sisera ran away on foot. Heber the Kenite was of the children of Moses’ father in law. His people were at peace with king Jabin. When Heber’s wife Jael offered Sisera a hiding place as he passed their tent.

He went in and she covered him with a blanket. He asked for water and she gave him milk. He fell asleep and she hammered a tent peg through his head “nailing him” to the ground. The Israelites continued their campaign against Jabin until he and his people were destroyed but Jael got credit for killing Jabin’s general and Deborah got credit for leading the nation to victory. After that the land had peace for 40 years.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Don’t be afraid to “test the spirits”. “Laying a fleece before God”, whatever form the test may take, is not only acceptable it is often the only way that you can be certain of God’s intent. Gideon met face to face with the Angel of the Lord and watched as he brought fire from a rock to incinerate an offering. Even so, God did not consider it improper for Gideon to set a test to be sure it was God’s will that he lead the Israeli Army.

more to learn for in-depth study: After Ehud died the Israelites fell back into sin against God were given to Jabin, king of Canaan ruling from Hazor and his general Sisera. With 900 chariots of iron the enemy oppressed Israel for 20 years.

Quick review: The children of Israel continued to serve God until Joshua and the other elders died who had seen the great works of God in the wilderness and in conquering the promised land. After that they began to serve the Baals and the Ashteroths and turn away from God. Before the turned against God they had consistently defeated the enemies they went against while those they allowed to remain were put under tribute. When the Israelites turned against God they began to lose their fights and their enemies became strong enough to oppress them.

The King of Mesopotamia became their oppressor for 8 years. Othniel the son of Kenaz, youngest brother of Caleb became the first judge of Israel. The spirit of the Lord was on him and he led the Israelites to victory in war against the king so the land had rest for 40 years. When Othniel died the Israelites turned back to false gods and Eglon, King of Moab gathered the people of Ammon and Amalek to defeat Israel. For 18 years he oppressed Israel until God raised the next judge, A man of the tribe of Benjamin named Ehud the son of Gera. The bible notes that this man was left-handed. Ehud made a double edged dagger around 18 inches long (for a look at something similar look up Arkansas Toothpick on the web). Ehud convinced Eglon he had a secret message for him and the king sent everyone out but him. Ehud told the king he had a message from God and he took the dagger out and buried it in Eglon. Eglon was a fat man and the blade and hilt were pushed all the way in so that they were hidden in the body and the king died. Ehud locked the doors and went out the window, meeting with the Israeli troops and leading them to battle against their oppressors. 10,000 Moabite died in the battle and the land had peace for 80 years.Shamgar, son of Anath killed 600 Philistines with an ox Goad (cattle prod) and only got one verse in the bible to cover his time as judge.

coming up: We won’t get to finish the story of Gideon today but we will start it. After the Israelites began to sin against God again The Midianites became their oppressors for seven years. The Midianites came in such numbers that the Israelites could not count them. The would loot their territory taking all the crops and livestock. The Israelites were forced to make their homes in the caves and rocks. This technique can be seen in the city of Petra which is entirely carved into the wall of a canyon. This was their defense but they could not protect their livelihood. God sent an unnamed prophet to remind them that his oppression was because they served a false god of the Amorites.

The Angel of God, came to Gideon, son of Joash the Abiezrite while he was threshing grain. He called Gideon a mighty man of valor and told him that he should go out and defeat the Mideanites because He had sent him.

Gideon was hiding in the winepress to thresh the grain so that the Midianites wouldn’t find it. He asked how he could be expected to accomplish this great feat. He was the least of his fathers house which was the weakest clan in one of the weakest tribes. The Lord said He would be with him and Gideon would be victorious. He asked for a sign. It is here that we get the name Jehovah-Shalom (the Lord is Peace)

tomorrow: Judges 7-8

Judges 1-3

2009-03-12T09:16:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: Finish the jobs God gives you. Don’t waste time with half an effort

Promises: If God gives you a job He gives you the ability to complete it.

Commands: There are tests before you. Follow God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. He will not look well on those who turn from Him. He will send salvation to those who ask for it.

Timeless principles: Peer pressure is the fastest way to trouble. Stay away from those who will not give themselves to God. Christ would often have dinner with sinners and spend a little time teaching them and encouraging them to turn to God. He never made a habit of hanging out with those who would not accept God. Neither should you.

By allowing some of the people in the promised land to remain the Israelites left themselves open to temptations and danger. The peer pressure from these enemy kingdoms led many in Israel to sin and turn to worshiping false Gods like their neighbors. They had married these foreigners and given their daughters in marriage to them. It wasn’t just a neighbor doing wrong, the Israelites had made these people a part of their lives and adopted their ways instead of following God’s ways.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Ignore the modern thinking of modernizing the church. Many have said that the church needs to change with the times and update it’s thinking on things like sex, homosexuality, reproduction, abortion, etc. Remember that these are not new things. These issues were a problem all the way back to the first five books of the bible. God didn’t change His thinking then and He won’t now. The people who insist on us changing to fit their views are NO DIFFERENT from the Canaanites that led Israel into worshiping false Gods. They must be ignored and we must follow GOD’S WAY.

more to learn for in-depth study: This passage begins with the list of those kingdoms the Israelites didn’t destroy. It wasn’t that they couldn’t it was that they didn’t. They made excuses(their chariots are iron, they refused to leave, they persist) and didn’t finish the job. In other words, they were lazy. They took the easy fights and ignored the difficult ones. God would have been with them in every fight but, because they refused to finish the job God left the others in the land to test them. They were there to offer false worship(which the Israelites did), to take the Israelites captive as punishment for their acts against God(which happened on a regular basis), and they were defeated only slowly and in small groups so that the Israelites would have them there as a test but God still got to eventually run the Canaanites out of the land for their transgression.

The third chapter begins the time of Judges. The Israelites would turn to false worship, God would punish them by letting a neighbor take them captive, they would cry for God’s help, God would send a Judge to lead them to victory. While the Judge was in charge Israel would normally continue following God, remembering their recent victory through Him. After the Judge died and memory faded they would turn back to false gods and the process would repeat itself.

tomorrow: Judges 4-6

Joshua 22-24

2009-03-11T09:31:00.001-04:00

God’s message to me: Never forget God whom you serve. Never forget His other servants. Never forget to stand with those who stand with God. Never place yourself above others who serve God. Never stand against those who serve God. Never, Ever, ever forget God’s chosen people Israel. There is no replacement of the covenant with Israel. We are grafted into the family of God and joint heirs with the family of Abraham but, we have not replaced them. They are our brother. They were born to the family, we are adopted. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, pray for the strength of Israel.

Promises: God will give you the desires of your heart, He will give you ease, rest, wealth, health, supply and comfort and all the rest. He will clear your enemies from before you and give you the power to strike such fear in them that one of you can chase 1,000 of them, so long as you serve and love Him. Turn from the path of faith, serve false gods and betray your faith in Jehovah, and He can swiftly bring on you the destruction He brought on those who refused Him and stood against you in the past.

Commands: Choose today, whom you will serve. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Timeless principles: In times of ease, it is easy to forget the Powerful Hand of God which brought you through the times of turmoil. It’s convenient to adapt to what is around you and easy to fall into false worship. It’s easy to forget worship altogether. It’s easy to forget God’s commands and look to enrich yourself at the expense of your tithes, offerings, and following the moral behaviors God set down for you. That is when God will punish your actions and bring you to misery in order to refocus your attention on the One who can bring you out of trouble.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: The world is filled with tempting ideas. Tendrils of false religion pretending to be acceptable within the true faith. Astrology, yoga, transcendental meditation, “biblical evolution” and so many more. Make no mistake, these are false religions serving false gods. An image you set up in your mind of a god that does not match the God of the bible is a false god and graven image. The loving god incapable of dooming anyone to hell is a false god. The god who uses evolution to accomplish his goals instead of simply speaking things into existence is a false god. Recognize and reject false gods and false religions. Choose to follow I AM unequivocally, and do not turn from that path. Do not turn your worship to any false methods that are not in keeping with what is commanded in the bible.

more to learn for in-depth study: These passages start by describing the events following the wars to conquer the promised land. The Tribes which had land on the other side of the Jordan River were given leave to return to their homes after the land had been conquered for the other tribes. They built an alter to be a reminder that they were indeed part of the tribes of Israel and followers of Jehovah just as their brethren in the promised land were.

The next portion is a description of the events around 25 years later just before Joshua dies. He reminds the Israelites that they serve a jealous God. Those who choose to serve God and then turn away to follow false gods can expect swift revenge from the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Israelite history starts with the father of Abraham in the land on the other side of the Euphrates. There the serving of false God’s was common. Abraham was brought into the promised land and traveled through out it as did his son Isaac and Isaac’s son Jacob. Jacob’s brother was given the mountain lands which is now Edom while Jacob, then called Israel, moved his family to Egypt. where other false gods were served. God brought them out of Egypt, through the wilderness and into the promised land where He fought for them and overcame the enemies in the land so they could inherit it. He drove out the others because they followed false gods, and some still dwelt in the land that followed false gods. Jacob warned the Israelites to choose to follow the One, True God, Jehovah or be brought down by Him for disobedience.

Finally, the passage reminds us that the bones of Joseph were brought out of Egypt with the Israelites. They are finally buried in the tomb of the patriarchs which Abraham purchased in the land to bury His wife and later became the burial place for Himself, Isaac, Isaac’s wife, Jacob’s wife and Jacob himself in a funeral attended by the royal guard of Egypt. Joseph made the Israelites promise to bury him there as well when the time came that God brought them out to inherit the land He had promised them.

tomorrow: Judges 1-3

Joshua 19-21

2009-03-10T09:06:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Life is not an endless struggle. God gives us an inheritance which we must claim. It may be a ministry, a job, a business or something else. We have to go out and take it. This fits a classic saying I heard from someone I used to work with. “Work really hard for 10 years and manage your finances through it and you will never need to work again.” The man was a financial advisor and knew his job well.

We will need to work for what is ours and, that begins with knowing what is ours. God intended us to do great things but discovering which great things involves a little study, prayer and soul searching. Once we know our destination we can start heading there and once we arrive we can enjoy it in peace. The Israelites fought several years of war to take their land and then rested on it in peace. The priests and Levites worked until a certain age and then retired. The people, generally, spent several years building their business or developing their lands and then could enjoy their wealth afterward.

Today we work until retirement and then rest. Many see retirement as 65 or older but the truth of what my friend told me is inescapable. The bible has something like 4 verses on money management for every verse it has on prayer. If we manage our money properly and are willing to work hard to earn it for a few years we can retire much sooner. Some are able to find a job doing what they love and, as such, they never feel like they are working. Such people rarely retire. Some will feel a duty to continue for others. First responders, soldiers, doctors and the like may feel they need to continue as long as they can be effective. The rest of us will retire as soon as the finances say we can.

Consider this, starting when you begin to work, you should look to save money for your future. Most young people have the retirement at 65 so ingrained that they don’t even think they can do otherwise unless they hit the lottery. Savings isn’t a priority. If the work statement is true a young person with a decent job at 18 could retire at 28-33 years old and spend the rest of their life financially free and capable of pursuing interests that they love. Some of those interests may even be profitable. I have seen the results of this with military people. Joining the military at 18 they pursue a 20 year career and retire with a military pension and benefits at 38. Still quite young they take advantage of military finance programs to get business loans with easy terms and start a second career without a boss. 20 years of military discipline tends to make them a little more successful than average and whether they pursue the new business for 10 years or longer they never have to concern themselves to much with money. Imagine retiring from your first career after 20 years with a pension and substantial retirement savings because you had low expenses in the military or, as a civilian, you worked more than one job and pushed to make the extra money. Your 38 years old and have nearly $1.5 million in your retirement account. That’s calculated starting from a part time minimum wage job with 5% growth in income per year for 20 years. That barely beats inflation and the savings went from 20% at 18 down to 5% at the end of 20 years assuming a drop in savings as the person moves into their own place, gets married and has kids. God can do it for you and for your children.

Promises: God will give you rest. When the Israelites obeyed His will they had to fight for their goals a few years and then could rest from battle and enjoy the fruits of their labor. Fields they didn’t plant, homes they didn’t build, fortunes they didn’t seek all earned through the efforts to claim the land God gave them and remove the ones God rejected from the land. Is that so different from working a few years in a job.

Commands: Claim what God has intended for you. You can never enjoy the gifts of God until you claim them. Salvation by grace is the greatest gift of all but until you accept it and claim it for your own you will never see the gates of heaven.

Timeless principles: I mentioned it earlier and I’ll repeat it. “Work hard for 10-15 years and manage your money and you will never have to work again.”

How can I apply what I’ve learned: The bible is filled with advice on stewardship and there are plenty of resources available in the secular world as well. Find the job that God intended you for and do it. Don’t be worried about failure, if you do what He wants you cannot fail. Manage your resources and your finances(don’t forget your tithes and offerings) and prepare for the future. You will find rest. Remember the lesson of Joseph. By setting aside 20% of the crop during the years of plenty Egypt had enough food to keep it’s own people and those of surrounding countries fed during 7 years of famine. They sold their stockpiles at profit so that at the end of those 14 years they were among the richest kingdoms on earth.

more to learn for in-depth study: These chapters complete the promise of the promised land. The remaining land is divided among the Israelites, Joshua Inherits the choice city he spied out and the cities of the Levites are given to them with the cities of refuge assigned. The tribes conquer all enemies and are given rest with no enemy willing to stand against them. The tribe of Dan even takes territory outside the assigned boundaries when a neighboring country starts a bit of a skirmish and looses. The tribe of Dan conquered the neighbor took the city and inhabited the land.

tomorrow: Joshua 22-24

the other resolution

2009-03-09T10:59:00.001-04:00

Weighing in at 234.2# this week. Not much of a loss but, I usually weigh in before getting into the coffee. That way I’m retaining as little as possible for the day. I’ve already gone through half a pot before I got on the scale today. Not the best way to start the day I know but, I’m a caffeine fiend. I also have done a lousy job with my diet this week. Eating to little some days and to much on others, not consistent on breakfast or drinking water. The fact is I’m probably lucky to loose the pound I did.

Like the lesson for the day, I'm not going to reach my potential until I get control of my eating habits.

Joshua 16-18

2009-03-09T10:45:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: Interestingly, this passage was used in my pastor’s sermon yesterday. He discussed the children of Manaseh, one of the sons of Joseph, had been allotted an inheritance which they failed to take. They saw the enemy and decided it wasn’t worth the fight. Then they came to Joshua and the High priest wanting to know why they didn’t have enough land for their large tribe.

Joshua asked them why they hadn’t taken what was theirs. The local inhabitants had repelled them with little or no fighting. Joshua told them to take the land and not be afraid of the locals because God had given them the land and they couldn’t fail.

The pastor was teaching on living up to your potential. The tribe of Manaseh was not living up to their potential because they let fear and laziness get in their way. In addition to that lesson this was a time for Joshua to see the other tribes were growing as well. Several tribes had no inheritance yet because much of the land had not been conquered yet.

Joshua sent spies into the unconquered land to survey it and divide it in lots so that the remaining tribes could have their tribal lands. When they returned with the map divided into seven regions for the seven remaining tribes Joshua and Eleazar cast lots to decide which territory would go to which tribe. From there it would just be a matter of conquering the land and moving that tribe into it. This passage ends halfway through describing the borders of the lots and which tribe inherited each.

Promises: God has given us the potential to do great things. We don’t get to sit around waiting for it, we need to find out what it is and take it. The bible is filled with God’s promises to us. Only by studying it can we learn what we are supposed to have and supposed to be. If it is promised to you in the bible it is yours for the taking and nothing can stand in your way.

Commands: Once we have learned what God has in store for us it is our job to take it. This isn’t a tough or dangerous chore but it does require action. If you won a mansion on 80 acres of land in California you wouldn’t have any reason to complain about not getting it while you continued to sit in your New York apartment. You can’t have what you won’t take. You would have to go to California and claim it.

Timeless principles: You will never live up to your potential until you act on that potential. No one gets elected to the presidency of the United States by sitting on their couch and complaining about public policy. They must get up and take action, sharing their opinion, forming policy plans and campaigning for the office. Ross Perot did a great job of pointing out the problems the country faced while most other politicians were trying to keep attention off the real problems. The major reason he didn’t get elected is that he was doing an advanced version of sitting on the couch and complaining. He pointed out many problems but proposed very few solutions. The solutions he did propose were not much different from what others proposed. Mr. Perot did half the job. If he had completed the job and developed strategies for fixing the problems he may have been one of the most influential men of the 20th century.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Find out what I am meant for and do it. God has a plan for each of us and has promised a great many things to all of us. By studying the bible we can find out what we are meant for. By actively going out and taking what we have been promised we can prosper beyond our wildest dreams. This doesn’t mean stealing and it doesn’t have to mean war. If you do what God designed you for you will win. If he meant you to be a truck driver then get in a truck and do your best, you will prosper and do well as long as you keep trucking, at least until God shows you that He wants you elsewhere. If he meant for you to be an executive then learn what it takes to be good at the job and look for a place to work where you can demonstrate your ability. You will soon find yourself moving up the ladder of advancement to the position of authority and prosperity God meant you for.

more to learn for in-depth study: This section and those around it give the borders of the land of Israel and the borders of each tribal land as well as the cities they inherited. For those interested in the details it wouldn’t be hard to figure these out using a map of the region and a little research. Many of the cities are still there in some form and a little research can find the locations of those that no longer exist.

tomorrow: Joshua 19-21

Weekly Assignment

2009-03-09T10:05:00.001-04:00

Monday: Joshua 16-18
Tuesday: Joshua 19-21
Wednesday: Joshua 22-24
Thursday: Judges
Friday: Judges
Saturday: Judges
Sunday: Judges

Mondays post is late and these Sunday posts are really late. I need to go back to reading ahead so I can keep these posts on time. I guess that's my project for today.

Joshua 12-15

2009-03-09T10:03:00.000-04:00

God’s message to me: The idea that people deteriorate as they age is a human failing. For those who followed God and stood strong for Him, the bible shows us long lives of good health. Moses and Aaron both walked to their own funerals. Despite being in their 80’s Joshua and Caleb were still as healthy and strong as when they had been in their forties and younger. Both were still capable soldiers who could go into, fight, survive and walk out of a battlefield not only safe but victorious.

Promises: God delivers. He promised Joshua and Caleb they would inherit the land they spied out because they wholly followed the Lord. Alone ,out of the people of Israel who came from Egypt, These two survived to enter the Promised Land. They had been spies at the age of 40, they had wandered with the Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years, they had fought in the promised land for 5 years. Caleb asked for the mountain which was Kirjath Arba, named for the Father of Anak whose name is the origin of the name Anakim which refers to Giants. This mountain was still under control of the Giants but, Caleb was still as capable a warrior at 85 as he had been at 40 and he knew God would let him overcome the giants because he had been promised the land as his inheritance. He overcame Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai, Giants of the sons of Anak and named the land Hebron.

Commands: Do what God commands and prosper. God told the Israelites to conquer the promised land but, they chickened out and wound up wandering the wilderness for 40 years until that generation died. A few tried to change their minds but were immediately defeated in battle. When the next generation went into the promised land they had no trouble defeating each and every enemy they encountered. They conquered the enemies, enjoyed they spoils of war and divided the land amongst themselves to form the country of Israel. 12 tribes inhabiting land once ruled by over 30 kings. That’s no small nation. God prospered the Children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just as He had promised. The best part was that He wasn’t close to finished.

Timeless principles: God delivers in due time. The population of Israel had grown large and they took a lot of land as their inheritance but, they did not take all they had been promised. God gave them what they could manage at their current size then allowed a time of peace in which they were not attacked and did not attack others so that they could grow and prosper some more until they were ready to expand into the rest of the promised land.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Never doubt God. Few people, even the if they were the most die hard devil dog Marines, would consider trying to attack and conquer a mountain kingdom ruled and inhabited by giants. Caleb asked for exactly that opportunity because he knew that God had promised him he would inherit the land he had spied out. That mountain full of giants had been one of his assignments and he wanted it.

more to learn for in-depth study: Before entering the promised land, Moses led the children of Israel to victory over Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan a rephaim giant. The lands of these kingdoms were divided between the tribes of Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh, who saw it as good grazing land and land to raise livestock. These tribes had a large amount of livestock and saw this as the perfect land for them.

The rest of the Israelites settled inside the promised land on the other side of the Jordan after defeating: the Hitites the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites. They also had to defeat the kings of Jericho, Ai Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, Eglon, Gezer, Debir, Geder, Hormah, Arad, Libnah, Adullam, Makkedah, Bethel, Tappuah, Hepher, Aphek, Lasharon, Madon, Hazor, Shimron Meron, Achshaph, Taanach, Megiddo, Kedesh, Jokneam in Carmel, Dor in the heights of Dor, the people of Gilgal, and Tirzah. 31 kings and their armies and peoples.

They weren’t nearly finished. As God had promised He allowed them to conquer what they could handle and left the rest for when they had grown enough to make use of the land. Still to conquer was all of the Philistine territory and that of the Geshurites. The land from Sihor, east of Egypt to the border of Ekron in the north which is considered Canaanite territory. The five lords of the Philistines, the Gazites, Ashdodites, Ashkelonites, Gittites, Ekronites and Avites. All the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah of the Sidonians as far as Aphek to the border of the Amorites and the land of the Gebalites and all of Lebanon toward the east from Baal Gad below mount Hermon to the entrance to Hamath also where left to conquer. In fact, they also still needed to take the mountains of Lebanon as far as the Brook Misrephoth and all of the Sidonians.

Balaam son of Beor is mentioned here again. Balaam was hired to curse Israel but God made him bless them instead. Balaam accepted money to do something God wouldn’t let him do. He could have, and even started to, turn down the job but, he accepted the money and went to work. God took control and blessed Israel through him but, for accepting the commission to curse them Balaam was marked among the enemy and killed in that war.

The Israelites failed to take Jerusalem from the Jebusites during this first series of wars. The rest of the territory and how it was devided between the tribes is described in detail in these passages.

tomorrow: Joshua 16-18

Joshua 10-11

2009-03-07T10:39:00.000-05:00

God’s message to me: When God is for you, none can stand against you. This synopsis of the initial conquest of Canaan reads like the recent history of Israel. The enemy comes with overwhelming force and God protects His people so that they defeat their enemies quickly and with minimal loss ending with their possession of the enemies territory. The major difference between then and now is that Israel keeps bowing to international pressure to give back the territory which just gets used to attack them again.

Promises: God will never let you fail. So long as you stand with God, His name is with you and He will not allow others to overcome His name. No matter the odds you will win.

Commands: Don’t Back Down! You are a child of the King and He will not let you fail. As long as you are standing on the promises of God you are unable to fail. Claiming, in the name of God, that which is not yours will not work any more than it helped Achan when he took the spoils that were meant for the treasury. Claiming what God has promised, you cannot fail, just as the rest of the Israelites claimed the booty of Ai and so many other cities that were overcome afterward.

Timeless principles: God doesn’t lose face. Despite the efforts of so many to point out disasters and claim God failed, the facts of history do not bear them out. The miraculous victories of modern Israel, the defeat of the Taliban by American forces in months when the Soviets couldn’t even slow them down in 10 years of war. The survival of Christian missionaries in war zones, even after capture by Muslim extremists sworn to kill them. The miraculous survival of various evangelists in assassination attempts. God does not allow defeat for those who represent Him.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Read and learn the Bible. It is the guidebook to what you can claim. If God has promised it you can claim it and He will grant it that your joy may be full. This is the promise of God, repeated by Christ, and reiterated throughout the bible.

more to learn for in-depth study: The treaty with Gibeon was a mistake caused by not waiting for God’s opinion. As the people of Israel were ordered to offer peace to any city they came against it is likely they would have spared their lives anyway. Their fear of Israel would likely have resulted in immediate surrender without a fight. As it is, they became the bait in God’s trap for the Amorites. While the five kingdoms of the Amorites were intent on eliminating the Gibeon army, which they considered strong and didn’t want allied with Israel, The Israeli army ambushed them by surprise and routed them. God provided the mobile artillery as he pummeled the fleeing army with hailstones as they ran. More Amorites died from hail than were killed in direct battle.

This is one of the more unusual events in the bible. As the battle against the five armies began Joshua commanded the sun and moon to remain in place. God, fighting on the side of Israel, stopped the sun and the moon for about a day. Adding an extra 12-24 hours to the available fighting time.

The book of Jasher is mentioned here. You won’t find this book in the bible even if you use a Catholic bible with apocrypha. Jasher is a book of Hebrew history. It’s not of vital importance to your study but, like the Talmud (and it might be part of the Talmud for all I know) it could provide some historical perspective. For newer Christians, I encourage you to concentrate on scripture. The reason the Talmud and Apocrypha are not included in scripture is because they are books of history, including myth and legend, and not even the rabbi’s who passed them along consider them the inspired word of God.

For those already familiar with the scriptures and interested in learning more, I recommend consulting a Hebrew scholar. Rabbi’s are a good start, I would try and find someone who is a Messianic Jew as this provides you with common ground from which to begin. There are several websites dedicated to education by Messianic Jewish organizations which could prove useful.

After defeating the 5 armies of the Amorites, Joshua led the attack on the other kingdoms of the region. The Israeli army conquered the armies and the cities they came from that had allied against it. Joshua conquered the mountain country and the Negev region, the lowlands and wilderness and all the kings and kingdoms in that region from Kadesh Barnea to Gaza and all the country of Goshen as far as Gibeon. All of this territory was conquered in one continous assault because God was with them in battle and they could accomplish it all in a short time with minimal effort.

When the conquest was done the Israelites camped in peace until another coalition force came against them. This coalition of many kingdoms came to their camp seeking to eliminate the threat but, God was with the Israelites and they defeated the attack force the next morning. Moving on they eliminated the rest of those armies, killed their kings and destroyed their capital cities keeping the lesser cities and the soils of war and livestock for themselves. The war was long but fruitful and the Israelites grew rich from the spoils and gained both land and the livestock to raise on it, not to mention the houses they didn’t build and the gardens they didn’t plant, just as God had promised. They even cut off the giants and killed off all of the giants who
remained in their lands.

tomorrow: Joshua 12-15