Chapter 5: God "reclaims" His people...sometimes it seems painful to be claimed by God... at first... but then, the blessings outway the initial transformation requests. verse 2... that is, circumsize the new Isrealites that had been born since the original people had died off over the 40 years of wandering (see verse 4-8)... this isn't re-circumsizing the circumsized... makes me think about how once we are saved, we don't have to be re-saved (re-circumsized)... only need to do it once, and it stays done for all (see John 6:37, Hebrews 7:24-25, Hebrews 10:12-23) verse 3... ok, I had to laugh at the name of this place (see footnotes in Bible and you'll understand). :) verse 7... why hadn't they been circumcisized? because the Isrealites were upset and rebellious against God? because God was angry with the Isrealites? because God was not continuing His covenant with those who were circumcisized, so He wanted to wait until they were all dead before He re-issued His covenant with the others so there was no confusion about who was who? or why??? verse 9... "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you"... it is awesome how God forgives and forgets all our past mistakes when we confess and repent and become reconciled with Him (see Psalm 103:11-12, Isaiah 43:25, Hebrews 8:12, Hebrews 10:17-18)... if God forgives us and forgets our past sins, then why do we desire to hold on to these regrets? maybe we should reconsider this, especially since it can give Satan a foothold into our lives to try to overtake us with guilt and feelings of inadequacy... we must remember that we are enough becuase of God living in us... He is enough, so we are enough... we no longer have to live as slaves to our past, instead we have been set free by Jesus (Romans 6:4-11). verse 11-12... God provides all we need in the moment we need it... He does not underdo, nor does He overdo... His gifts to us are perfect. (see 2 Peter 1:3, 2 Corinthians 9:8-11)
verse 13-14... interesting that he replies 'neither'... why?... maybe because he is meaning that he is for God, and God alone, but he just happens to be carrying out God's plan to help the Isrealites at this point... do we remember that we are always working for God, and not for man, or do we sometimes think that we are to please and work for man?... Whose are we? if God's, then we should work solely for God and be solely on His side and at His tasks. verse 15... when we are in God's service, we represent Him and should be holy, as He is holy... and aren't we always to be in His service?... so,... you fill in the blanks here...
Chapter 6: see Numbers 10:1-10 about trumpets to be used in battle; specifically verse 9 in Numbers... the trumpet blasts are so the people will be remembered by the Lord... only the priests blew the trumpets... seems fitting since they went to God on behalf of the people, and the trumpet sounding was just another way of going to God here... they take the ark with them, so God will be with them... smart move... don't go ANYWHERE without God... put Him first and foremost, and keep Him there... where He deserves to be... verse 16... 'shout for the Lord has given you this city!'... do we proclaim our victory over sin in our lives? do we shout for joy or shout to tell others of all that God has done for us? if not, why not? verse 18... don't even think about associating with things that are unholy because they will lead you astray and defile you and all those around you... think about how a small sin can ripple into a large one, and how a small sin can encourage others to follow suit... just don't even go there... it is in everyone's best interest to avoid the temptation all together... I love how God knows what the people are prone to do (or will do- see Chapter 7), and how He tries to warn them so they can be aware of it in advance and avoid the problem... I wonder if this works any better in our lives (if we allow God's warnings to help us any more in our lives) than it did then? I sure hope so, but I am doubtful that I truly listen any better than they did sometimes. verse 20... ok, I just really love this story... can you imagine this tactic being used today by our military to capture the taliban or something? it seems farfetched, but I wonder if that is only because we are so intent on taking God out of everthing that the farfetched part becomes whether we would even rely on Him this much, not whether He could do it again... the reality is God can do anything, so why don't we rely on Him to do it? why do we try to push Him out of our lives and rely on ourselves so often? how might things be better (or at least different) if we chose to rely solely on God and His will and direction and even military strategies, instead of on our own intellect (or perceived intellect) and will power? gets a person to thinking at least... verse 22-23, 25... they uphold their promise to Rahab, and now she is part of the Isrealite community... when we uphold God's will and act in accordance to a way that brings Him glory, we attract others to Him... when we are righteous, because He is righteaous, we save lives and draw them into His family... now if nothing else, our desire to be a hero has to be stirred to want to follow God so we lead others to Him... out of danger and into eternal security... that something worth living for! verse 27... when God is for us, who can be against us... for those He called, He also glorified... for we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us (see Romans 8:28-39)
The IDEA: Romans 1:12-That we may be mutually strengthened, encouraged, and comforted by each others faith. Have you ever read the whole Bible before? We have never done it. We want to share God’s Word, but how can we if we do not know it.
The PLAN: Ecclesiastes 4:12-One person is easily overcome, but two can stand together and conquer. Three is even better, though, as a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. With each others help we can succeed-So, let us team up and read the Bible in a year.
The DATE: We will start Dec 26, 2009 - Dec 26, 2010.
The FYI: We will read 3-4 chapters each day, starting in Genesis, and post thoughts daily. If you do not have a Bible, you can access many translations at www.biblegateway.com. You can also download an audio for each chapter at: http://www.audiotreasure.com/webindex.htm
Chapter 5: God "reclaims" His people...sometimes it seems painful to be claimed by God... at first... but then, the blessings outway the initial transformation requests.
ReplyDeleteverse 2... that is, circumsize the new Isrealites that had been born since the original people had died off over the 40 years of wandering (see verse 4-8)... this isn't re-circumsizing the circumsized... makes me think about how once we are saved, we don't have to be re-saved (re-circumsized)... only need to do it once, and it stays done for all (see John 6:37, Hebrews 7:24-25, Hebrews 10:12-23)
verse 3... ok, I had to laugh at the name of this place (see footnotes in Bible and you'll understand). :)
verse 7... why hadn't they been circumcisized? because the Isrealites were upset and rebellious against God? because God was angry with the Isrealites? because God was not continuing His covenant with those who were circumcisized, so He wanted to wait until they were all dead before He re-issued His covenant with the others so there was no confusion about who was who? or why???
verse 9... "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you"... it is awesome how God forgives and forgets all our past mistakes when we confess and repent and become reconciled with Him (see Psalm 103:11-12, Isaiah 43:25, Hebrews 8:12, Hebrews 10:17-18)... if God forgives us and forgets our past sins, then why do we desire to hold on to these regrets? maybe we should reconsider this, especially since it can give Satan a foothold into our lives to try to overtake us with guilt and feelings of inadequacy... we must remember that we are enough becuase of God living in us... He is enough, so we are enough... we no longer have to live as slaves to our past, instead we have been set free by Jesus (Romans 6:4-11).
verse 11-12... God provides all we need in the moment we need it... He does not underdo, nor does He overdo... His gifts to us are perfect. (see 2 Peter 1:3, 2 Corinthians 9:8-11)
verse 13-14... interesting that he replies 'neither'... why?... maybe because he is meaning that he is for God, and God alone, but he just happens to be carrying out God's plan to help the Isrealites at this point... do we remember that we are always working for God, and not for man, or do we sometimes think that we are to please and work for man?... Whose are we? if God's, then we should work solely for God and be solely on His side and at His tasks.
ReplyDeleteverse 15... when we are in God's service, we represent Him and should be holy, as He is holy... and aren't we always to be in His service?... so,... you fill in the blanks here...
Chapter 6: see Numbers 10:1-10 about trumpets to be used in battle; specifically verse 9 in Numbers... the trumpet blasts are so the people will be remembered by the Lord... only the priests blew the trumpets... seems fitting since they went to God on behalf of the people, and the trumpet sounding was just another way of going to God here... they take the ark with them, so God will be with them... smart move... don't go ANYWHERE without God... put Him first and foremost, and keep Him there... where He deserves to be...
verse 16... 'shout for the Lord has given you this city!'... do we proclaim our victory over sin in our lives? do we shout for joy or shout to tell others of all that God has done for us? if not, why not?
verse 18... don't even think about associating with things that are unholy because they will lead you astray and defile you and all those around you... think about how a small sin can ripple into a large one, and how a small sin can encourage others to follow suit... just don't even go there... it is in everyone's best interest to avoid the temptation all together... I love how God knows what the people are prone to do (or will do- see Chapter 7), and how He tries to warn them so they can be aware of it in advance and avoid the problem... I wonder if this works any better in our lives (if we allow God's warnings to help us any more in our lives) than it did then? I sure hope so, but I am doubtful that I truly listen any better than they did sometimes.
verse 20... ok, I just really love this story... can you imagine this tactic being used today by our military to capture the taliban or something? it seems farfetched, but I wonder if that is only because we are so intent on taking God out of everthing that the farfetched part becomes whether we would even rely on Him this much, not whether He could do it again... the reality is God can do anything, so why don't we rely on Him to do it? why do we try to push Him out of our lives and rely on ourselves so often? how might things be better (or at least different) if we chose to rely solely on God and His will and direction and even military strategies, instead of on our own intellect (or perceived intellect) and will power? gets a person to thinking at least...
verse 22-23, 25... they uphold their promise to Rahab, and now she is part of the Isrealite community... when we uphold God's will and act in accordance to a way that brings Him glory, we attract others to Him... when we are righteous, because He is righteaous, we save lives and draw them into His family... now if nothing else, our desire to be a hero has to be stirred to want to follow God so we lead others to Him... out of danger and into eternal security... that something worth living for!
verse 27... when God is for us, who can be against us... for those He called, He also glorified... for we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us (see Romans 8:28-39)
Good night and Much Love,
sandJ