7 February 2010
Psalm 93, 96; Gen. 24:50-67; 2 Tim. 2:14-21; Mark 10:13-22
We begin to see Laban’s modus operandi here, trying to get the servant to allow Rebekah to stay perhaps ten days longer with them, but the servant won’t hear of it. Abraham has provided lavishly for his new daughter-in-law and her family. Their blessing of Rebekah partially echoes the blessing of God on Abraham, but they could hardly have imagined how great her offspring would be. It is also difficult to imagine this demure and compliant young woman becoming the woman we will later see.
How do we receive the kingdom of God “as a little child.” I think it has to do with our attitude and Rebekah’s attitude towards going with the servant is a good example. She didn’t know anything at all about the servant or Isaac, her future husband, yet she knew that the servant revealed the master to her in a way that made her decision to go with him quite simple. His testimony concerning the goodness of the master and his story about answered prayer convinced her to take the step of faith. Here, we also see another who comes seeking eternal life but isn’t willing to give up what he has in order to receive that which he cannot see with his eyes. Faith is, at some level, childlike in its innocence and trust or it isn’t faith at all.
We are called to cling to truth and not idle talk. There is much speculative theology in our world and often that becomes the thing that divides people and leads them astray. There are, however, simple, settled truths such as those things we confess in our creeds. The creeds are an important part of our worship as they remind us that we stand in line with the early church as well as the church throughout history. Sometimes we need to be reminded that our faith has particular content that was established long ago and yet we also need to remember that these are statements of faith not “fact” in the way that the world establishes fact. Saying that God created it all, that Jesus was born of a virgin, that his death was for our sins, that he was resurrected on the third day, that we believe in the Holy Spirit, and such, are indeed statements of belief that the world doesn’t validate, they are truths by which we live but which the outside world doesn’t affirm as true.
Oh sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the earth!
Sing to the LORD, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.
Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Saturday, February 6, 2010
6 February 2010
Psalm 75, 76; Gen. 24:28-51; Heb. 12:12-29; John 7:14-36
The servant is determined to tell his story and complete his mission. In this one passage we hear the story of how Rebekah came to be the wife of Isaac two more times. It is important that she is an answer to prayer, that as God has provided a son for Abraham, so has He provided a wife for that son. Now, Abraham and all those who read this story will know that God’s will was being done in all the events of the lives of the patriarchs. It was not only important to Abraham that his son not marry one of these Canaanites, it was also important to God. The story is remarkable in that the servant’s prayer was decisively answered in Rebekah. Even her brother Laban cannot find a word to speak in response to the story, a truly remarkable thing as we will see later.
His teaching gets their attention but their questions continually relate to his origins. Where did He get this learning since we know He didn’t study with any of the rabbis? How can he be Messiah when we know where He comes from and His parents? What Jesus was saying and doing should have been their focus and it appears that some did see these things and believe, but the leaders and many others miss what is in front of them. What they know or think they know is the problem. Jesus is clear that His purpose isn’t to make a name for Himself here but to glorify the Father. It continually amazes me that Jesus doesn’t bother to correct people when they assume they know something that is wrong. He doesn’t defend Himself against their mistaken assumptions, He simply continues the work.
Jesus is the firstborn, the only begotten, and like Abel, was put to death because His sacrifice was found acceptable by God in a way that Cain’s was not. God told Cain to deal with the sin that was crouching at his door as it wanted to have him and in the end sin won out. The writer here tells us that we are not passive in our spiritual lives either, he encourages action in order to grow and it is clear that we must work out our salvation with fear and trembling. We must resist sin and temptation but we have the Holy Spirit in us to enable us to resist. He also speaks of the tension between God as consuming fire and also in the love of God in sending His Son to die for us. We must not lose that tension in our understanding of Him, His holiness remains unapproachable, we must continue to treat Him with fear and awe but know that His love also desires us to come near the throne, but only by virtue of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf.
We give thanks to you, O God;
we give thanks, for your name is near.
We recount your wondrous deeds.
Psalm 75, 76; Gen. 24:28-51; Heb. 12:12-29; John 7:14-36
The servant is determined to tell his story and complete his mission. In this one passage we hear the story of how Rebekah came to be the wife of Isaac two more times. It is important that she is an answer to prayer, that as God has provided a son for Abraham, so has He provided a wife for that son. Now, Abraham and all those who read this story will know that God’s will was being done in all the events of the lives of the patriarchs. It was not only important to Abraham that his son not marry one of these Canaanites, it was also important to God. The story is remarkable in that the servant’s prayer was decisively answered in Rebekah. Even her brother Laban cannot find a word to speak in response to the story, a truly remarkable thing as we will see later.
His teaching gets their attention but their questions continually relate to his origins. Where did He get this learning since we know He didn’t study with any of the rabbis? How can he be Messiah when we know where He comes from and His parents? What Jesus was saying and doing should have been their focus and it appears that some did see these things and believe, but the leaders and many others miss what is in front of them. What they know or think they know is the problem. Jesus is clear that His purpose isn’t to make a name for Himself here but to glorify the Father. It continually amazes me that Jesus doesn’t bother to correct people when they assume they know something that is wrong. He doesn’t defend Himself against their mistaken assumptions, He simply continues the work.
Jesus is the firstborn, the only begotten, and like Abel, was put to death because His sacrifice was found acceptable by God in a way that Cain’s was not. God told Cain to deal with the sin that was crouching at his door as it wanted to have him and in the end sin won out. The writer here tells us that we are not passive in our spiritual lives either, he encourages action in order to grow and it is clear that we must work out our salvation with fear and trembling. We must resist sin and temptation but we have the Holy Spirit in us to enable us to resist. He also speaks of the tension between God as consuming fire and also in the love of God in sending His Son to die for us. We must not lose that tension in our understanding of Him, His holiness remains unapproachable, we must continue to treat Him with fear and awe but know that His love also desires us to come near the throne, but only by virtue of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf.
We give thanks to you, O God;
we give thanks, for your name is near.
We recount your wondrous deeds.
Friday, February 5, 2010
5 February 2010
Psalm 69; Gen. 24:1-27; Heb. 12:3-11; John 7:1-13
The story of a wife for Isaac is a wonderful story of God keeping faith with Abraham and answered prayer for his servant. It is interesting that Abraham does not want his son to go back to the land of Abraham’s family. His grandson will go there himself looking for a wife and will not return for twenty years. Abraham seems to have a particular fear and aversion to his son going back. He was in the land of the promise and yet he owned none of it other than the cave in which he had buried Sarah and it would surely have been tempting for Isaac to go back to the land where they had ownership and never return to claim the promise.
If Jesus goes to the festival in Jerusalem as his brothers suggest it is for the wrong reason, to make a name for himself. His purpose in live was to make the Father’s name known, his name spoke for itself, the Lord saves. It seems strange that He goes anyway and “in secret” and yet we have to assume that the Father told Him to go in much the same way that Nehemiah went up to the city several hundred years earlier and surveyed the ruins of the city in order to determine his next move in rebuilding. The motive for the action needs to be right in order for the will of God to be done.
The issue of discipline is important. We have too many preachers and teachers who would say that becoming a Christian is a ticket to health and wealth. Jesus said we were to take up our cross and follow Him, He told the disciples that they weren’t above their master, if the world hated Him it would equally hate them. When He sent them on mission He told them to take nothing for the journey to provide for their own material comforts, instead requiring them to trust God to provide all they would need. Paul speaks of the privations he suffered for His work. The writer of Hebrews speaks of discipline as though it should not only be expected but also welcomed in that it will lead to growth and maturity in their Christian walk. Indeed, discipline is painful in the moment but often we look back and see that it was for our good. It is important that we experience the frustration of our own wills in order that we can more gladly seek His.
I will praise the name of God with a song;
I will magnify him with thanksgiving.
Let heaven and earth praise him,
the seas and everything that moves in them.
Psalm 69; Gen. 24:1-27; Heb. 12:3-11; John 7:1-13
The story of a wife for Isaac is a wonderful story of God keeping faith with Abraham and answered prayer for his servant. It is interesting that Abraham does not want his son to go back to the land of Abraham’s family. His grandson will go there himself looking for a wife and will not return for twenty years. Abraham seems to have a particular fear and aversion to his son going back. He was in the land of the promise and yet he owned none of it other than the cave in which he had buried Sarah and it would surely have been tempting for Isaac to go back to the land where they had ownership and never return to claim the promise.
If Jesus goes to the festival in Jerusalem as his brothers suggest it is for the wrong reason, to make a name for himself. His purpose in live was to make the Father’s name known, his name spoke for itself, the Lord saves. It seems strange that He goes anyway and “in secret” and yet we have to assume that the Father told Him to go in much the same way that Nehemiah went up to the city several hundred years earlier and surveyed the ruins of the city in order to determine his next move in rebuilding. The motive for the action needs to be right in order for the will of God to be done.
The issue of discipline is important. We have too many preachers and teachers who would say that becoming a Christian is a ticket to health and wealth. Jesus said we were to take up our cross and follow Him, He told the disciples that they weren’t above their master, if the world hated Him it would equally hate them. When He sent them on mission He told them to take nothing for the journey to provide for their own material comforts, instead requiring them to trust God to provide all they would need. Paul speaks of the privations he suffered for His work. The writer of Hebrews speaks of discipline as though it should not only be expected but also welcomed in that it will lead to growth and maturity in their Christian walk. Indeed, discipline is painful in the moment but often we look back and see that it was for our good. It is important that we experience the frustration of our own wills in order that we can more gladly seek His.
I will praise the name of God with a song;
I will magnify him with thanksgiving.
Let heaven and earth praise him,
the seas and everything that moves in them.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
4 February 2010
Psalm 70, 71; Gen. 23:1-20; Heb. 11:32-12:2; John 6:60-71
The story of Abraham and Sarah comes to a close. It is an amazing thought that so many people on earth today trace themselves to these two people wandering about in the middle east several thousand years ago. The connection with the God of creation comes through this line, this faithful man who nonetheless wavered in faith from time to time persevered and saw the blessing of God in his life. Clearly the people around him knew him as a prince and one whom God had indeed blessed greatly. As he goes about finding a place to bury Sarah we hear them acknowledging his greatness and blessedness. The story tells so much that is contemporary in our world. Their wavering faith and his obedience to the voice of his wife in the episode with Hagar has repercussions in our day with the struggle between Islam and the rest of the world. Abraham’s faithfulness, however, was rewarded by God’s faithfulness to the covenant promise of descendants as numerous as the stars.
Now that the crowds have gone, Jesus is speaking only to the disciples and even they are struggling with this teaching. Jesus is pointing beyond the vagaries of this life into eternity, away from the temporal things to the eternal verities and they aren’t getting it. Sometimes He spoke so far over their heads it seems they are dense and yet the things He was saying and teaching were and are actually incomprehensible to us without the eyes of our hearts being enlightened. Just as the promises to Abraham were beyond the imagination so were the words of Jesus here. Peter shows the depth of his faith with his reply to Jesus, he knew that what he had seen and heard were words of life and even if he didn’t presently understand their full meaning he was staying the course.
We are encouraged by those who have gone before and lived by faith. They have done great things for God and yet some of them have also experienced great difficulties and surely had their times of doubt. We are called to run the race of faith not looking for the easy life or the simple life, but rather using Jesus as an example of persevering in the call in spite of the obstacles set before us. Our rewards are eternal, our pain is temporal, therefore let us live for eternity and be willing to risk everything on what we know to be secure. That is the call of faith and the proof of faith.
I will sing praises to you with the lyre,
O Holy One of Israel.
My lips will shout for joy,
when I sing praises to you;
my soul also, which you have redeemed.
Psalm 70, 71; Gen. 23:1-20; Heb. 11:32-12:2; John 6:60-71
The story of Abraham and Sarah comes to a close. It is an amazing thought that so many people on earth today trace themselves to these two people wandering about in the middle east several thousand years ago. The connection with the God of creation comes through this line, this faithful man who nonetheless wavered in faith from time to time persevered and saw the blessing of God in his life. Clearly the people around him knew him as a prince and one whom God had indeed blessed greatly. As he goes about finding a place to bury Sarah we hear them acknowledging his greatness and blessedness. The story tells so much that is contemporary in our world. Their wavering faith and his obedience to the voice of his wife in the episode with Hagar has repercussions in our day with the struggle between Islam and the rest of the world. Abraham’s faithfulness, however, was rewarded by God’s faithfulness to the covenant promise of descendants as numerous as the stars.
Now that the crowds have gone, Jesus is speaking only to the disciples and even they are struggling with this teaching. Jesus is pointing beyond the vagaries of this life into eternity, away from the temporal things to the eternal verities and they aren’t getting it. Sometimes He spoke so far over their heads it seems they are dense and yet the things He was saying and teaching were and are actually incomprehensible to us without the eyes of our hearts being enlightened. Just as the promises to Abraham were beyond the imagination so were the words of Jesus here. Peter shows the depth of his faith with his reply to Jesus, he knew that what he had seen and heard were words of life and even if he didn’t presently understand their full meaning he was staying the course.
We are encouraged by those who have gone before and lived by faith. They have done great things for God and yet some of them have also experienced great difficulties and surely had their times of doubt. We are called to run the race of faith not looking for the easy life or the simple life, but rather using Jesus as an example of persevering in the call in spite of the obstacles set before us. Our rewards are eternal, our pain is temporal, therefore let us live for eternity and be willing to risk everything on what we know to be secure. That is the call of faith and the proof of faith.
I will sing praises to you with the lyre,
O Holy One of Israel.
My lips will shout for joy,
when I sing praises to you;
my soul also, which you have redeemed.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
3 February 2010
Psalm 72; Gen. 22:1-18; Heb. 11:23-31; John 6:52-59
This passage is frustrating to me because I always want to ask why God felt it necessary to test Abraham after making him wait 25 years for the fulfillment of the promise of a child. The reality is that He is never done with us, we always are able to receive more of Him, we are never filled and He is never fully revealed to us. Growth is His desire for us and here Abraham’s faith is tested to see if it is in the gift of God or in God Himself. The language should not be hurried through. Abraham speaks of Isaac as the boy when he speaks to his servants before he and Isaac go up the mountain but on the way Isaac begins speaking to him with the word, “Father” which begs the response “my son.” There will be no avoiding the relationship, no distancing himself from the pain. Abraham’s faith is proved and in the process one has to think that Isaac exhibits faith in his father and then sees that God is the one who has saved him, faith is passed from one generation to another here in what Abraham referred to as worship. Isaac had to have reflected on this incident many times in his life, marveling at the faith his father showed and the action of God in saving him.
Jesus was clear that we must share in Him or we have no share in the kingdom. In order to be born again, we must partake of His sacrifice of Himself. In our tradition, believers partake of the bread and wine representing the body and blood of Jesus on a weekly basis. We believe that the sacrament is an important part of worship because it is our way of constantly reminding ourselves that we live and hope because of the cross. In partaking of the sacrament we connect not only with the death of Jesus on the cross, however, we participate in the hope of the resurrection through taking in the eternal Spirit of Jesus. We don’t believe that the bread and wine are more than bread and wine, we take the elements in the spiritual way Jesus speaks about his body and blood here in this passage.
Faith is the key to life. We believe that God is able to do more than we can ask or imagine but all of that is built on the last words of the Genesis passage, obedience to the voice of God. In this Hebrews passage we see Moses’ obedience to God’s voice in leading the people, keeping the Passover, and at the Red Sea and we see Joshua marching around the city of Jericho by faith in keeping with the word of the Lord. In attempting great things we must be certain that God is calling us to those things. Faith, however, sees beyond the signs or the dangers to the heart of the matter and beckons us to obedience. At communion we receive the elements by faith believing that spiritually we are obedient to the commandment of the Gospel and in that faith we leave in the sure and certain hope of the resurrection of the dead.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous things.
Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory!
Psalm 72; Gen. 22:1-18; Heb. 11:23-31; John 6:52-59
This passage is frustrating to me because I always want to ask why God felt it necessary to test Abraham after making him wait 25 years for the fulfillment of the promise of a child. The reality is that He is never done with us, we always are able to receive more of Him, we are never filled and He is never fully revealed to us. Growth is His desire for us and here Abraham’s faith is tested to see if it is in the gift of God or in God Himself. The language should not be hurried through. Abraham speaks of Isaac as the boy when he speaks to his servants before he and Isaac go up the mountain but on the way Isaac begins speaking to him with the word, “Father” which begs the response “my son.” There will be no avoiding the relationship, no distancing himself from the pain. Abraham’s faith is proved and in the process one has to think that Isaac exhibits faith in his father and then sees that God is the one who has saved him, faith is passed from one generation to another here in what Abraham referred to as worship. Isaac had to have reflected on this incident many times in his life, marveling at the faith his father showed and the action of God in saving him.
Jesus was clear that we must share in Him or we have no share in the kingdom. In order to be born again, we must partake of His sacrifice of Himself. In our tradition, believers partake of the bread and wine representing the body and blood of Jesus on a weekly basis. We believe that the sacrament is an important part of worship because it is our way of constantly reminding ourselves that we live and hope because of the cross. In partaking of the sacrament we connect not only with the death of Jesus on the cross, however, we participate in the hope of the resurrection through taking in the eternal Spirit of Jesus. We don’t believe that the bread and wine are more than bread and wine, we take the elements in the spiritual way Jesus speaks about his body and blood here in this passage.
Faith is the key to life. We believe that God is able to do more than we can ask or imagine but all of that is built on the last words of the Genesis passage, obedience to the voice of God. In this Hebrews passage we see Moses’ obedience to God’s voice in leading the people, keeping the Passover, and at the Red Sea and we see Joshua marching around the city of Jericho by faith in keeping with the word of the Lord. In attempting great things we must be certain that God is calling us to those things. Faith, however, sees beyond the signs or the dangers to the heart of the matter and beckons us to obedience. At communion we receive the elements by faith believing that spiritually we are obedient to the commandment of the Gospel and in that faith we leave in the sure and certain hope of the resurrection of the dead.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous things.
Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
2 February 2010
Psalm 61, 62; Gen. 21:1-21; Heb. 11:13-22; John 6:41-51
We skipped the end of Genesis 19 and all of chapter 20. At the end of chapter 19 we have Lot’s daughters deciding that they have no hope for the future of the clan and decide to get their father drunk and sleep with him in order that they might have children of their own. They have clearly been corrupted by their time in Sodom. One of the daughters is the mother of the Moabites, who continue to be a thorn in the flesh of the Israelites through the conquest of the land. Baalam’s advice to his kinsmen on how to destroy the Israelites is true to their origin, send your good-looking women to them to marry them and entice them after other gods. It is amazing that a Moabite, Ruth, is a faith hero and in the line of Jesus. In chapter 20, Abraham and Sarah again play the game of pretending she is his sister with yet another king, rather than trusting God to protect them and fulfill His promise.
In Chapter 21 the child of the promise is finally born! Sarah, surely recollecting the meeting with the men at their tent when she laughed at the promise, responds to the birth with a wry irony, ‘God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.’ The episode of Ishmael playing with Isaac is strange and difficult to see what is going on that has upset Sarah. The word for play could also mean mocking and it is the same word that is used in Exodus when the people got up to play after the golden calf was made. It isn’t entirely clear what it means but it isn’t fun and games. Abraham, for the first time, has to let go of a son and give Him to God. There are some parallels between this story of sending away Hagar and Ishmael and the next chapter. In both cases, God provides a way out of what looks like certain death for Abraham’s son. Hagar has once believed in the God who sees her and now she finds that He is also a God who hears.
The people murmur about Jesus, just as did their forefathers in the wilderness. They murmured about the manna and here they murmur about Jesus claiming to be bread from heaven. Belief in Jesus is the key to eternal life and here He says that belief is not from us, only those whom the Father draws will believe. Jesus presses the metaphor of His body a little too far in the end and the people now are disgusted and believe He is speaking of cannibalism. There is much here that looks and sounds like the conversation with Nicodemus in John 3. Jesus is speaking of heavenly things and they are thinking of earth, the fulfillment of their earthly desire for food in this case.
The life of faith is the life of recognition we are strangers and aliens on earth, on a pilgrimage towards our true home country. That recognition allows us to pass through and enjoy the country where we are but also to always be pressing on, never quite settling in here on earth.
CS Lewis makes the argument from desire to explain this life:
Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for these desires exists. A baby feels hunger; well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim; well, there is such a thing as water. Men feel sexual desire; well, there is such a thing as sex. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. (Mere Christianity, Bk. III, chap. 10, "Hope")
For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalm 61, 62; Gen. 21:1-21; Heb. 11:13-22; John 6:41-51
We skipped the end of Genesis 19 and all of chapter 20. At the end of chapter 19 we have Lot’s daughters deciding that they have no hope for the future of the clan and decide to get their father drunk and sleep with him in order that they might have children of their own. They have clearly been corrupted by their time in Sodom. One of the daughters is the mother of the Moabites, who continue to be a thorn in the flesh of the Israelites through the conquest of the land. Baalam’s advice to his kinsmen on how to destroy the Israelites is true to their origin, send your good-looking women to them to marry them and entice them after other gods. It is amazing that a Moabite, Ruth, is a faith hero and in the line of Jesus. In chapter 20, Abraham and Sarah again play the game of pretending she is his sister with yet another king, rather than trusting God to protect them and fulfill His promise.
In Chapter 21 the child of the promise is finally born! Sarah, surely recollecting the meeting with the men at their tent when she laughed at the promise, responds to the birth with a wry irony, ‘God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.’ The episode of Ishmael playing with Isaac is strange and difficult to see what is going on that has upset Sarah. The word for play could also mean mocking and it is the same word that is used in Exodus when the people got up to play after the golden calf was made. It isn’t entirely clear what it means but it isn’t fun and games. Abraham, for the first time, has to let go of a son and give Him to God. There are some parallels between this story of sending away Hagar and Ishmael and the next chapter. In both cases, God provides a way out of what looks like certain death for Abraham’s son. Hagar has once believed in the God who sees her and now she finds that He is also a God who hears.
The people murmur about Jesus, just as did their forefathers in the wilderness. They murmured about the manna and here they murmur about Jesus claiming to be bread from heaven. Belief in Jesus is the key to eternal life and here He says that belief is not from us, only those whom the Father draws will believe. Jesus presses the metaphor of His body a little too far in the end and the people now are disgusted and believe He is speaking of cannibalism. There is much here that looks and sounds like the conversation with Nicodemus in John 3. Jesus is speaking of heavenly things and they are thinking of earth, the fulfillment of their earthly desire for food in this case.
The life of faith is the life of recognition we are strangers and aliens on earth, on a pilgrimage towards our true home country. That recognition allows us to pass through and enjoy the country where we are but also to always be pressing on, never quite settling in here on earth.
CS Lewis makes the argument from desire to explain this life:
Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for these desires exists. A baby feels hunger; well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim; well, there is such a thing as water. Men feel sexual desire; well, there is such a thing as sex. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. (Mere Christianity, Bk. III, chap. 10, "Hope")
For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Monday, February 1, 2010
1 February 2010
Psalm 56, 57; Gen. 19:1-29; Heb. 11:1-12; John 6:27-40
Lot immediately offers hospitality in the same way his uncle did, in contrast to the rest of Sodom. Lot has moved from outside of Sodom into the city itself and his daughters have seemingly married men from that city. The wickedness of Sodom is so great that a crowd gathers demanding that Lot send out the men who are visiting him in order that they may “know” them. The word “know” is clearly here a euphemism for sex, they don’t want to have a friendly chat. The passage makes plain the frenzied nature of their demands and their insatiable desire to have their way. Lot is willing to give them his daughters to appease their lusts but they are unwavering. Lot lingers when told to leave and the men forcibly press him out of the city, his wife can’t bear not to have one last look and meets her end. This is a terrible story but also a warning to us to not accommodate ourselves to the world. Sin is a powerful thing, it has great allure for us and it requires an act of God to change us in order that we can see things aright.
Jesus calls them to faith and they call Him to feed them as Moses did in the wilderness. He speaks of heavenly bread and they ask for it always, just as the woman at the well responded to Jesus’ offer of living water, but they weren’t truly hungry for that spiritual bread. There are connections here with Isaiah 55 - "Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” Jesus is offering what they need, the bread of life. They want a sign and He offers reality, that to which the sign points.
Faith is believing in that which cannot be seen and living in the world as though it were not all there is. Materialism says that this is all there ever is or ever will be so either eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die or walk about in mourning for tomorrow we die. Hebrews 11 tells the stories of those who lived by faith, believing that the unseen or invisible is greater than the visible but that the visible matters. We can’t make the mistake of being anti-materialists because God created those things that are visible out of the invisible things and He pronounced them “good.” It is ungrateful to treat what God has said was “good” as though it were “evil.” We have already proven that we really don’t know the difference? How we relate to things of earth matters to God. We have been given stewardship of earthly, created things but often we live as though they have dominion over us.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
Psalm 56, 57; Gen. 19:1-29; Heb. 11:1-12; John 6:27-40
Lot immediately offers hospitality in the same way his uncle did, in contrast to the rest of Sodom. Lot has moved from outside of Sodom into the city itself and his daughters have seemingly married men from that city. The wickedness of Sodom is so great that a crowd gathers demanding that Lot send out the men who are visiting him in order that they may “know” them. The word “know” is clearly here a euphemism for sex, they don’t want to have a friendly chat. The passage makes plain the frenzied nature of their demands and their insatiable desire to have their way. Lot is willing to give them his daughters to appease their lusts but they are unwavering. Lot lingers when told to leave and the men forcibly press him out of the city, his wife can’t bear not to have one last look and meets her end. This is a terrible story but also a warning to us to not accommodate ourselves to the world. Sin is a powerful thing, it has great allure for us and it requires an act of God to change us in order that we can see things aright.
Jesus calls them to faith and they call Him to feed them as Moses did in the wilderness. He speaks of heavenly bread and they ask for it always, just as the woman at the well responded to Jesus’ offer of living water, but they weren’t truly hungry for that spiritual bread. There are connections here with Isaiah 55 - "Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” Jesus is offering what they need, the bread of life. They want a sign and He offers reality, that to which the sign points.
Faith is believing in that which cannot be seen and living in the world as though it were not all there is. Materialism says that this is all there ever is or ever will be so either eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die or walk about in mourning for tomorrow we die. Hebrews 11 tells the stories of those who lived by faith, believing that the unseen or invisible is greater than the visible but that the visible matters. We can’t make the mistake of being anti-materialists because God created those things that are visible out of the invisible things and He pronounced them “good.” It is ungrateful to treat what God has said was “good” as though it were “evil.” We have already proven that we really don’t know the difference? How we relate to things of earth matters to God. We have been given stewardship of earthly, created things but often we live as though they have dominion over us.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
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