Question 1: When was Genesis 15:13-14 written?
It says, "Then the LORD said to him, "Know for
certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their
own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years.
14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions."
If it was written before it occurred, then the verse is a prophecy that came true. It specifies the number of years, too.
Question 2: Why was the Pharaoh punished for Abram's lying?
"Since Abraham didn’t properly protect Sarah, who was the promised mother
of a new nation that would bless the whole world, God had to step in to
keep her away from Pharaoh’s bed.
... These plagues on Pharaoh and his house were not so much a punishment as a
message, but they are definitely an example of the sins of one person
causing others to suffer. Our cursed world is full of examples of
innocents suffering for the sins of others.
...God’s purpose in these plagues wasn’t to unfairly punish Pharaoh and his
court but to protect Sarah and to force Abraham to own up to the truth.
Abraham’s actions served as a poor testimony of God before this pagan
king, but God would not allow His long-range plans for sending the
Savior through Abraham and Sarah’s descendents to be foiled by Abraham’s
cowardice or Pharaoh’s lustful appetite. Pharaoh got to see that
Abraham’s God was indeed powerful, a good lesson for any pagan. Pharaoh
also saw that the God of Abraham didn’t let him get away with his lie." (http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2011/05/20/feedback-unfair-plagues)
Question 2: What is the relevancy of circumcision in the modern world? If you're not circumcised, does that mean you broke the covenant, as stated in Genesis 17?
Circumcision is apparently outdated.
"First Corinthians 7
makes it clear that if an uncircumcised man becomes a Christian, he is
not to have himself circumcised (at least not for religious reasons) (1 Corinthians 7:18).
To do so would be a bad testimony to others, as it tends to indicate
that the person believes that circumcision is a requirement of
Christianity. It is not. To claim that any work of man is required for salvation is heresy. Salvation is by grace, not by works (Ephesians 2:8-9). Circumcision means nothing to God, since Christ’s death (see Acts 6:15; 1 Corinthians 7:19)." (http://christiananswers.net/q-eden/circumcision.html)
"However, circumcision was not merely a physical and external practice.
It symbolized something internal. God described idolatry and
disobedience as a result of an uncircumcised heart (Leviticus 26:41); he
described repentance as a circumcision of the heart (Deuteronomy 10:16;
30:6)." (http://www.gci.org/law/circumcision)
Question 3: Why did Lot's wife turn into a pillar of salt?
"Lot ran, his daughters close behind. “But his wife, from behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt” (Genesis 19:26).
She lagged behind. She turned and watched the flaming sulfur fall from
the sky, consuming everything she valued. Then it consumed her. The
Hebrew for “looked back” means more than to glance over one’s shoulder.
It means to regard, to consider, to pay attention to. The Scriptures
don’t say whether her death was a punishment for valuing her old life so
much that she hesitated in obeying, or if it was a simple consequence
of her reluctance to leave her life quickly. Either she identified too
much with the city—and joined it—or she neglected to fully obey God’s
warning and she died." (http://www.gotquestions.org/pillar-of-salt.html)
Side note: In my opinion, Sodom and Gomorrah had what was coming to them. If there were just TEN people that were righteous in God's eyes, the town would have been saved. Abraham brought it down from 50 to 10... and there weren't even 10 righteous people!? And the men wanted to rape the men who were visiting Lot, when they were given the option of sleeping with Lot's daughters (that's another problem, but anyway...)? They screwed themselves over by letting sin overwhelm them.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Monday, February 18, 2013
Day 13-15: Job 35-42
I have two questions, and a couple of thoughts.
The first question: What is the Leviathan referenced in Job 41?
I don't have much of an answer to this except that it's some kind of creature that is referenced a couple of times within the bible. hahah, sorry to disappoint!
----
The second question: What did Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar do that was wrong enough that they needed to make offerings to God and have Job pray for them? Weren't they defending God while Job cried out against Him?
"When Job’s three friends - Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar - heard of his adversity, they came to visit him, saying they wanted to comfort him (Job 2:11). But they didn’t actually comfort him at all, when we see the way they spoke to him later on. They only criticised and accused him. All three of them were in fellowship with the devil, the accuser of the brethren.
These three men were jealous of Job, because Job was a godly man and a rich man and everything was going well for him and for his family.
Many believers are jealous of godly men, when they see their influence and ministry - and are often waiting for some calamity to hit them. We know that the devil is eager for some calamity to befall godly people. But there are believers who wait for that too, and who are secretly happy when it happens.
These three men pretended that they were very sorry for Job. They wept when they saw Job and tore their robes and threw dust over their heads. They were really good actors. But secretly they were delighted, because they were jealous of him. These three preachers only knew about God. They didn’t know God personally. That’s why God couldn’t point out any of them to Satan.
...When God’s blessing and anointing are on a godly man, and someone else is jealous of him, God may allow some physical calamity to come to that man, in order to expose the other person’s wicked jealousy. Once the other man’s evil has been exposed, God will heal the sickness and restore the godly man to health.
All three of these men could not truly understand why Job suffered as he did. They could only find fault with him. That is because they were religious people like the Pharisees later on, in Jesus’ time..." (http://www.cfcindia.com/web/mainpages/word_for_the_week.php?display=11_04&year=10)
I can relate to being like Bildad, Zophar, and Eliphaz. I've felt jealous of people and what they've had. I would start to think, what's so good about them that they deserve more than me? But that's just selfish. Other people have nothing to do with my life and what God has blessed me with, so I have learned to be a little happier for other people instead of dwelling on what I (don't) have. Of course, this is still a battle every now and then...
-----------
But all in all, what came to mind while reading the chapters, and when God began to answer Job directly, is something that occurs pretty frequently in real life. I am a sensitive person. It's not just because I'm a girl, but because of who I am and how I grew up. With that in mind, I feel very intimidated around sarcastic, witty, or snappy people. Whether a mean comment is directed towards or me, I tend to recoil because I feel like they could have said it in a nicer way. I've had a couple of conversations with my friends about people who are blunt and don't censor what they feel in how they relay it to whoever, but basically the response that I've gotten is... yea, it might be mean to say it out loud or to say it bluntly, but it's the truth so you can't really do anything about it. You can't counter it because it's not as if they're stating a lie, but rather you must accept what they're saying.
In the same way, when God is talking to Job, He brings up the fact that He knows more about everything than Job. At first, it seems as if God is a cocky being who likes to talk about Himself and boast about how much better he is than humans, however, that is not the case. Job was never neglected and left alone by God. God just wanted Job to trust Him because there is no one who knows more about anything than Him nor is there anyone who loves more than Himself. In Job 40-41, God elaborates that He was there when the world was being created (because He created it), when the first humans were created, when animals hunt to eat, and when seemingly insignificant things occur, like a single ox hides from the shade by sitting under a lotus plant. God is by definition an all-knowing, all-loving, and all-feeling being... so doesn't that mean that if Job was hurting, that God was hurting an equal amount PLUS the pain of all of the other humans and creatures on the Earth? God didn't deserve being rebuked by Job, even if he did go through so much. And Job recognizes this, resulting in forgiveness from God and a blessed life until death.
Pride is one of man's greatest enemies. Pride is so easy to give into... we think we deserve something and fight to get it. Or we feel like we don't deserve punishment and we run away from it. God is the maker of justice... if we deserve punishment, then we need to recognize it like Job. It takes more of a man to be punished for something that we don't think we completely deserve than to run away from it, avoid it, or push it onto something else.
The first question: What is the Leviathan referenced in Job 41?
I don't have much of an answer to this except that it's some kind of creature that is referenced a couple of times within the bible. hahah, sorry to disappoint!
----
The second question: What did Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar do that was wrong enough that they needed to make offerings to God and have Job pray for them? Weren't they defending God while Job cried out against Him?
"When Job’s three friends - Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar - heard of his adversity, they came to visit him, saying they wanted to comfort him (Job 2:11). But they didn’t actually comfort him at all, when we see the way they spoke to him later on. They only criticised and accused him. All three of them were in fellowship with the devil, the accuser of the brethren.
These three men were jealous of Job, because Job was a godly man and a rich man and everything was going well for him and for his family.
Many believers are jealous of godly men, when they see their influence and ministry - and are often waiting for some calamity to hit them. We know that the devil is eager for some calamity to befall godly people. But there are believers who wait for that too, and who are secretly happy when it happens.
These three men pretended that they were very sorry for Job. They wept when they saw Job and tore their robes and threw dust over their heads. They were really good actors. But secretly they were delighted, because they were jealous of him. These three preachers only knew about God. They didn’t know God personally. That’s why God couldn’t point out any of them to Satan.
...When God’s blessing and anointing are on a godly man, and someone else is jealous of him, God may allow some physical calamity to come to that man, in order to expose the other person’s wicked jealousy. Once the other man’s evil has been exposed, God will heal the sickness and restore the godly man to health.
All three of these men could not truly understand why Job suffered as he did. They could only find fault with him. That is because they were religious people like the Pharisees later on, in Jesus’ time..." (http://www.cfcindia.com/web/mainpages/word_for_the_week.php?display=11_04&year=10)
I can relate to being like Bildad, Zophar, and Eliphaz. I've felt jealous of people and what they've had. I would start to think, what's so good about them that they deserve more than me? But that's just selfish. Other people have nothing to do with my life and what God has blessed me with, so I have learned to be a little happier for other people instead of dwelling on what I (don't) have. Of course, this is still a battle every now and then...
-----------
But all in all, what came to mind while reading the chapters, and when God began to answer Job directly, is something that occurs pretty frequently in real life. I am a sensitive person. It's not just because I'm a girl, but because of who I am and how I grew up. With that in mind, I feel very intimidated around sarcastic, witty, or snappy people. Whether a mean comment is directed towards or me, I tend to recoil because I feel like they could have said it in a nicer way. I've had a couple of conversations with my friends about people who are blunt and don't censor what they feel in how they relay it to whoever, but basically the response that I've gotten is... yea, it might be mean to say it out loud or to say it bluntly, but it's the truth so you can't really do anything about it. You can't counter it because it's not as if they're stating a lie, but rather you must accept what they're saying.
In the same way, when God is talking to Job, He brings up the fact that He knows more about everything than Job. At first, it seems as if God is a cocky being who likes to talk about Himself and boast about how much better he is than humans, however, that is not the case. Job was never neglected and left alone by God. God just wanted Job to trust Him because there is no one who knows more about anything than Him nor is there anyone who loves more than Himself. In Job 40-41, God elaborates that He was there when the world was being created (because He created it), when the first humans were created, when animals hunt to eat, and when seemingly insignificant things occur, like a single ox hides from the shade by sitting under a lotus plant. God is by definition an all-knowing, all-loving, and all-feeling being... so doesn't that mean that if Job was hurting, that God was hurting an equal amount PLUS the pain of all of the other humans and creatures on the Earth? God didn't deserve being rebuked by Job, even if he did go through so much. And Job recognizes this, resulting in forgiveness from God and a blessed life until death.
Pride is one of man's greatest enemies. Pride is so easy to give into... we think we deserve something and fight to get it. Or we feel like we don't deserve punishment and we run away from it. God is the maker of justice... if we deserve punishment, then we need to recognize it like Job. It takes more of a man to be punished for something that we don't think we completely deserve than to run away from it, avoid it, or push it onto something else.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Day 12: Job 32-34
Especially lately, with that video about the racist British woman on the tram on youtube, and Donner's exposure of the corruption and racism within the LAPD, the idea of a world without prejudice and discrimination seems... pretty laughable. Hate is incredibly ugly, but it's unavoidable. People judge you, one way or another.
Job 34:17-19 says, "Will you condemn the just and mighty One? 18 Is he not the One who says to kings, 'You are worthless,' and to nobles, 'You are wicked,' 19 who shows no partiality to princes and does not favor the rich over the poor, for they are all the work of his hands?"
Kings and Queens, or in the modern era, CEOs, Presidents, and world leaders do not mean anything to God. The world may put them on a pedestal, but to God each of us are just as valuable to Him. I like the idea of that. It isn't true that God doesn't judge you. God does judge you, but not based on who you are and what you've done or with whom you're associated. God judges you based on your heart, and you can't ask for more than that, can you?
Job 34:17-19 says, "Will you condemn the just and mighty One? 18 Is he not the One who says to kings, 'You are worthless,' and to nobles, 'You are wicked,' 19 who shows no partiality to princes and does not favor the rich over the poor, for they are all the work of his hands?"
Kings and Queens, or in the modern era, CEOs, Presidents, and world leaders do not mean anything to God. The world may put them on a pedestal, but to God each of us are just as valuable to Him. I like the idea of that. It isn't true that God doesn't judge you. God does judge you, but not based on who you are and what you've done or with whom you're associated. God judges you based on your heart, and you can't ask for more than that, can you?
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Day 11: Job 29-31
I'm having a hard time looking through Job, so I found outside help from http://www.calvaryfullerton.org/Bstudy/18%20Job/2003/18Job%2029-31.htm. This is copied and pasted, except for the NIV verse that was inserted for Job 30:11.
"Job 30:1 whose fathers I would have disdained to have set with the dogs of my flock.
What people think. I think it’s one of the hardest things in life to separate yourself from what others think of you. It seems that we each have people in our lives that we long to have approve of us. It’s not that we ought to feel this way, but truthfully we often do. What Job is expressing is very, very real for most of us. We long to have “important” people fawn over us. About the lowest humiliation we can think of is to have people we consider to be stupid ridiculing us. God’s hope is that we become more concerned about what He thinks of us than what people do." (http://www.calvaryfullerton.org/Bstudy/18%20Job/2003/18Job%2029-31.htm)
"Job 30:1 whose fathers I would have disdained to have set with the dogs of my flock.
People not fit to hang out with Job’s sheep dogs.
Job 30:11 Because he hath loosed my cord, and afflicted me
(Job 30:11 [NIV]) Now that God has unstrung my bow and afflicted me, they throw off restraint in my presence.
Job 30:14 in the desolation they rolled themselves upon me.
What a long way Job has come. He used to be honored by the greatest of people. Now he’s scorned and ridiculed by the lowest of people.
What people think. I think it’s one of the hardest things in life to separate yourself from what others think of you. It seems that we each have people in our lives that we long to have approve of us. It’s not that we ought to feel this way, but truthfully we often do. What Job is expressing is very, very real for most of us. We long to have “important” people fawn over us. About the lowest humiliation we can think of is to have people we consider to be stupid ridiculing us. God’s hope is that we become more concerned about what He thinks of us than what people do." (http://www.calvaryfullerton.org/Bstudy/18%20Job/2003/18Job%2029-31.htm)
It's funny how I was recently discussing the same topic on my personal blog... I have a hard time dealing with people's opinions of myself. It's always been a problem of mine, and it's gotten me into a lot of trouble in the past. I guess peoples' opinions would pale in comparison to God's opinion if I really understand the value and depth of His love for me. To know that Job struggled with this makes me feel like he is more of a real human than a character in a book. It gives me some hope that I will overcome these trials one day too.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Day 10: Job 24-28
I don't find anything too significant about Job 24-28. Job's just being stubborn and saying he won't spread lies about God, but he won't admit that his friends are right. Maybe I'll take a deeper look at it another time.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Day 9: Job 21-23
Justice isn't always served on Earth.
Undeserving people have good things happen to them, even though they say "14... to God, 'Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways. 15 Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?'"
But is it justice that people crave, or revenge? If it's justice, then justice will be served at the gates of heaven. If it's not justice, it's not really your concern. Wanting something less for people merely because you don't have as much (or don't think they deserve it) is selfish, undesirable, and pointless.
Instead, trust that God will know what to do when the time comes... for you, and others.
Undeserving people have good things happen to them, even though they say "14... to God, 'Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways. 15 Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?'"
But is it justice that people crave, or revenge? If it's justice, then justice will be served at the gates of heaven. If it's not justice, it's not really your concern. Wanting something less for people merely because you don't have as much (or don't think they deserve it) is selfish, undesirable, and pointless.
Instead, trust that God will know what to do when the time comes... for you, and others.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Day 8: Job 17-20
Job continues to go back and forth about God with his friends.
In Job 19:22, Job says,
21 “Have pity on me, my friends, have pity,
for the hand of God has struck me.
22 Why do you pursue me as God does?
Will you never get enough of my flesh?
At least he acknowledges that in his hardship, even though he's angry and resentful and discouraged, God has never let go of him.
That's the biggest message for a Christian. Once you lay down your life in front of God, God will never let you go. Some might argue, well, maybe you want God to let you go. I say: there's no place in the heavens and the earth that you'll find to be a better place without God. And if you truly desire to be without God, then you have to wonder if you ever laid down your life for God in the first place, or consider that you just don't know what's best for you in the long run.
In Job 19:22, Job says,
21 “Have pity on me, my friends, have pity,
for the hand of God has struck me.
22 Why do you pursue me as God does?
Will you never get enough of my flesh?
At least he acknowledges that in his hardship, even though he's angry and resentful and discouraged, God has never let go of him.
That's the biggest message for a Christian. Once you lay down your life in front of God, God will never let you go. Some might argue, well, maybe you want God to let you go. I say: there's no place in the heavens and the earth that you'll find to be a better place without God. And if you truly desire to be without God, then you have to wonder if you ever laid down your life for God in the first place, or consider that you just don't know what's best for you in the long run.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Day 7: Job 14-16
Eliphaz the Temanite, another one of Job's friends, replies to Job by refering to the sin that stemmed from Adam in Job 14:5-7:
"Your sin prompts your mouth;
you adopt the tongue of the crafty.
Your own mouth condemns you, not mine;
your own lips testify against you.
Are you the first man ever born?"
Job's words are harsh against God, but the following verse shows that he has not yet given up completely.
In Job 16:22 he says,
“Only a few years will pass
before I take the path of no return."
The only way to not be angry at God for all the terrible events that happened to Job is to remember that Job didn't deserve any of it in the first place. Adam essentially screwed all future generations in what they would be able to inherit ON EARTH. Fortunately, Jesus died so that Adam couldn't affect what humans would inherit in heaven.
To be continued.
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Day 6: Job 10-13
Job continues crying out against God:
“Only grant me these two things, God,
and then I will not hide from you:
21 Withdraw your hand far from me,
and stop frightening me with your terrors.
22 Then summon me and I will answer,
or let me speak, and you reply to me.
23 How many wrongs and sins have I committed?
Show me my offense and my sin.
24 Why do you hide your face
and consider me your enemy?
25 Will you torment a windblown leaf?
Will you chase after dry chaff?
26 For you write down bitter things against me
and make me reap the sins of my youth.
27 You fasten my feet in shackles;
you keep close watch on all my paths
by putting marks on the soles of my feet.
As I have said in my previous post, man does not sin alone, but the sin moves from generation to generation.
But I stand behind the hope that Job does not turn away from God in the end. To be continued with the next readings.
“Only grant me these two things, God,
and then I will not hide from you:
21 Withdraw your hand far from me,
and stop frightening me with your terrors.
22 Then summon me and I will answer,
or let me speak, and you reply to me.
23 How many wrongs and sins have I committed?
Show me my offense and my sin.
24 Why do you hide your face
and consider me your enemy?
25 Will you torment a windblown leaf?
Will you chase after dry chaff?
26 For you write down bitter things against me
and make me reap the sins of my youth.
27 You fasten my feet in shackles;
you keep close watch on all my paths
by putting marks on the soles of my feet.
As I have said in my previous post, man does not sin alone, but the sin moves from generation to generation.
But I stand behind the hope that Job does not turn away from God in the end. To be continued with the next readings.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Day 5: Job 6-9
A bit late!
After Job cries out about all that God has taken away from him unfairly, one of Job's friends, Bildad the Shuhite, says these words:
"Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh?
Can reeds thrive without water?
12 While still growing and uncut,
they wither more quickly than grass.
13 Such is the destiny of all who forget God;
so perishes the hope of the godless.
14 What they trust in is fragile;
what they rely on is a spider’s web.
15 They lean on the web, but it gives way;
they cling to it, but it does not hold.
16 They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine,
spreading its shoots over the garden;
17 it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks
and looks for a place among the stones.
18 But when it is torn from its spot,
that place disowns it and says, ‘I never saw you.’
19 Surely its life withers away,
and from the soil other plants grow."
Why do people follow God? It doesn't necessarily mean that they will have a nice and pleasant life all the time. And when the bad arrives, it is not for certain that it will not stay indefinitely.
So why follow God? Why should Job follow God if he has everything taken away from him. Not only was Job affected, but his family and his servants were affected. They had their lives taken away from them.
Why is human life made to be a test if God knows how each and every person will react?
I have two main thoughts provoked by these questions.
1. It takes a man of immense humility, a man/woman that longs after God, to even try to comprehend why God does the things He does.
At first, Job is faithful in his reactions to God when he has his money and his health taken away. Then, God allows the devil to take Job's family. There is only so much even the most faithful man can take. Before long, Job breaks down and begins to resent God. He says he is "blameless" in Job 9:21, but is that really true? Job has done nothing in his life to anger or dissatisfy God himself, but he descended from a line of sin. Job, as everyone else in the world, is a son of Adam. And no matter what he does, he will never be able to escape the punishment that Adam bestowed upon future generations. So... just because my great-great-great-great x infinity grandmother and grandfather did something wrong, I have to pay for it? The instinctive reaction is to say, THAT'S NOT FAIR. And sometimes, it's hard to think otherwise. But life in this world isn't meant to be a gift anymore. Earth was always Satan's domain, and Adam and Eve failed the first test of many. Right after sin entered the first humans, this world and its offerings became a mere journey-- a pitstop. If humans had all the reason they needed to love the world, why would they have any incentive to move to heaven? But it says in the Bible that no man can do anything good to earn his way to heaven, and this is truth. The only way to reach heaven is to love and accept God and His ways. As for Job, I have to read the upcoming chapters to see if he changes his perspective. But in my mind, God already accepted Job into heaven. God doesn't give anyone more than they can handle... and God knew how Job was after His own heart from the beginning.
2. Life is a test for the sake of humans, and not the sake of God.
I've already stated that God loves us so much, and all equally. God loves everyone unconditionally, and it's not as if he doesn't feel pain when we feel pain. Now, think about your parent(s). Your parents are not capable of unconditional love. That is a fact. They are very capable of showing nearly-perfect love, but they could never love their sons and daughters as much as God loves us. So... imagine the pain your parents feel when they have to ground you for staying out past midnight, or give you a scolding for earning an F on your test. Why do they not want you to stay out so late? Maybe it's to keep you safe. Or to make sure that you'll be able to wake up rested in the morning. Or maybe they want to spend more time for you. But you don't care-- all you care is that you're grounded. Your parents do not take pleasure from grounding you, but they do it for your own good, and if not now, at least in the future you'll recognize that it hurts them to do something that seems like punishment for you. In the same way, God hurts when bad things happen to his children. And I imagine that because He loves us more than anyone, that God hurts more than our parents when we struggle. He knows and feels with us... all of our love, thoughts, feelings, pains. God is all-knowing, and if it's not for the best of each individual, what God does and allows to happen is for the best of the world. To accept this is to understand that the world doesn't revolve around us, or the "I" we always have in mind. But God says to lay the burden on Him. So if and whenever you struggle, try to pray for God to help you with it. God isn't just a looker... He can help give you peace, if not help solve the problem altogether.
P.S. It's better to suffer with God now than to suffer for eternity without God.
After Job cries out about all that God has taken away from him unfairly, one of Job's friends, Bildad the Shuhite, says these words:
"Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh?
Can reeds thrive without water?
12 While still growing and uncut,
they wither more quickly than grass.
13 Such is the destiny of all who forget God;
so perishes the hope of the godless.
14 What they trust in is fragile;
what they rely on is a spider’s web.
15 They lean on the web, but it gives way;
they cling to it, but it does not hold.
16 They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine,
spreading its shoots over the garden;
17 it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks
and looks for a place among the stones.
18 But when it is torn from its spot,
that place disowns it and says, ‘I never saw you.’
19 Surely its life withers away,
and from the soil other plants grow."
Why do people follow God? It doesn't necessarily mean that they will have a nice and pleasant life all the time. And when the bad arrives, it is not for certain that it will not stay indefinitely.
So why follow God? Why should Job follow God if he has everything taken away from him. Not only was Job affected, but his family and his servants were affected. They had their lives taken away from them.
Why is human life made to be a test if God knows how each and every person will react?
I have two main thoughts provoked by these questions.
1. It takes a man of immense humility, a man/woman that longs after God, to even try to comprehend why God does the things He does.
At first, Job is faithful in his reactions to God when he has his money and his health taken away. Then, God allows the devil to take Job's family. There is only so much even the most faithful man can take. Before long, Job breaks down and begins to resent God. He says he is "blameless" in Job 9:21, but is that really true? Job has done nothing in his life to anger or dissatisfy God himself, but he descended from a line of sin. Job, as everyone else in the world, is a son of Adam. And no matter what he does, he will never be able to escape the punishment that Adam bestowed upon future generations. So... just because my great-great-great-great x infinity grandmother and grandfather did something wrong, I have to pay for it? The instinctive reaction is to say, THAT'S NOT FAIR. And sometimes, it's hard to think otherwise. But life in this world isn't meant to be a gift anymore. Earth was always Satan's domain, and Adam and Eve failed the first test of many. Right after sin entered the first humans, this world and its offerings became a mere journey-- a pitstop. If humans had all the reason they needed to love the world, why would they have any incentive to move to heaven? But it says in the Bible that no man can do anything good to earn his way to heaven, and this is truth. The only way to reach heaven is to love and accept God and His ways. As for Job, I have to read the upcoming chapters to see if he changes his perspective. But in my mind, God already accepted Job into heaven. God doesn't give anyone more than they can handle... and God knew how Job was after His own heart from the beginning.
2. Life is a test for the sake of humans, and not the sake of God.
I've already stated that God loves us so much, and all equally. God loves everyone unconditionally, and it's not as if he doesn't feel pain when we feel pain. Now, think about your parent(s). Your parents are not capable of unconditional love. That is a fact. They are very capable of showing nearly-perfect love, but they could never love their sons and daughters as much as God loves us. So... imagine the pain your parents feel when they have to ground you for staying out past midnight, or give you a scolding for earning an F on your test. Why do they not want you to stay out so late? Maybe it's to keep you safe. Or to make sure that you'll be able to wake up rested in the morning. Or maybe they want to spend more time for you. But you don't care-- all you care is that you're grounded. Your parents do not take pleasure from grounding you, but they do it for your own good, and if not now, at least in the future you'll recognize that it hurts them to do something that seems like punishment for you. In the same way, God hurts when bad things happen to his children. And I imagine that because He loves us more than anyone, that God hurts more than our parents when we struggle. He knows and feels with us... all of our love, thoughts, feelings, pains. God is all-knowing, and if it's not for the best of each individual, what God does and allows to happen is for the best of the world. To accept this is to understand that the world doesn't revolve around us, or the "I" we always have in mind. But God says to lay the burden on Him. So if and whenever you struggle, try to pray for God to help you with it. God isn't just a looker... He can help give you peace, if not help solve the problem altogether.
P.S. It's better to suffer with God now than to suffer for eternity without God.
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Day 4: Job 1-5
Job 3
I've been told that all babies go to heaven. I think this following passage is relevant:
Job says, "Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb? 12 Why were there knees to receive me and breasts that I might be nursed? 13 For now I would be lying down in peace; I would be asleep and at rest 14 with kings and rulers of the earth, who built for themselves places now lying in ruins, 15 with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver."
Job had conversations and a relationship with God. He wouldn't have said such words if he hadn't known for a fact that babies go to heaven regardless of whether they've had the chance to accept God as their Savior. I'll go more into this later when I read passages about this topic.
ANYWAY, I like these lines the best:
Job 3:6-8 "...hardship does not spring from the soil, nor does trouble sprout from the ground. Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward. But if I were you, I would appeal to God; I would lay my cause before him."
I know better than anyone that God can do the impossible. If you want something deeply, just ask God for it. He WANTS to do everything and anything to make you happy and care for you. If it's ultimately the best for you, you will receive it. And if it's not, God will protect you from it. It's as simple than that. [Recently, I was advised to pray for SPECIFIC things, not just broad topics and desires]
God may provide great things, but not to ruin you by spoiling you. God may bring you harm or allow it to happen to you, but from the struggles you grow. Love and fear for God are both key to understanding and choosing to obey God.
This is my understanding of my loving God.
However, I do wonder WHY Job feared God before all the hardships in chapters 1-2. Peter posed this question. I realize that Job must have held God in awe, but is that related to his fear of Him? Is the meaning of fear in regards to Job and his relationship to God synonymous to terror? There are different kinds of fear, so which one does this reference?
At the same time, I acknowledge that there are MANY, MANY, MANY more reasons to fear God than to not fear him. Love God with all of your strength, but fear him even more and you will reap rewards. Proverbs 9:10 says "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..."
I've been told that all babies go to heaven. I think this following passage is relevant:
Job says, "Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb? 12 Why were there knees to receive me and breasts that I might be nursed? 13 For now I would be lying down in peace; I would be asleep and at rest 14 with kings and rulers of the earth, who built for themselves places now lying in ruins, 15 with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver."
Job had conversations and a relationship with God. He wouldn't have said such words if he hadn't known for a fact that babies go to heaven regardless of whether they've had the chance to accept God as their Savior. I'll go more into this later when I read passages about this topic.
ANYWAY, I like these lines the best:
Job 3:6-8 "...hardship does not spring from the soil, nor does trouble sprout from the ground. Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward. But if I were you, I would appeal to God; I would lay my cause before him."
I know better than anyone that God can do the impossible. If you want something deeply, just ask God for it. He WANTS to do everything and anything to make you happy and care for you. If it's ultimately the best for you, you will receive it. And if it's not, God will protect you from it. It's as simple than that. [Recently, I was advised to pray for SPECIFIC things, not just broad topics and desires]
God may provide great things, but not to ruin you by spoiling you. God may bring you harm or allow it to happen to you, but from the struggles you grow. Love and fear for God are both key to understanding and choosing to obey God.
This is my understanding of my loving God.
However, I do wonder WHY Job feared God before all the hardships in chapters 1-2. Peter posed this question. I realize that Job must have held God in awe, but is that related to his fear of Him? Is the meaning of fear in regards to Job and his relationship to God synonymous to terror? There are different kinds of fear, so which one does this reference?
At the same time, I acknowledge that there are MANY, MANY, MANY more reasons to fear God than to not fear him. Love God with all of your strength, but fear him even more and you will reap rewards. Proverbs 9:10 says "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..."
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Day 3: Genesis 8-11
So it turns out, Peter usually writes his blogs before me, which enables me to somewhat tailor my blogs to answer some of his questions.
Question: Where did the flood-waters go after Noah's Flood?
In order to answer this question, it first must be asked whether the flood covered the entirety of the planet, or a local (though undeniably vast) region.
This is the debate I have going on in my head.
Here are two main reasons for why I believe it might have been a LOCAL FLOOD:
1. The translation from Hebrew to English for the word "earth" isn't exact.
"Various passages tell us that life was to be destroyed from the face of the "earth" (Genesis 7:12), the waters were on the face of the whole "earth" (Genesis 8:9), etc. When these passages were written it would be hard to believe they were made with the understanding of a global planet. We have to recall that it was not much more than 500 years ago that people believed the "earth" was flat. The word "earth" used in these passages of Genesis is the Hebrew word "erets" (Strong's O.T.#776). Erets does not actually carry any connotation of a global, spherical planet in its translation. While it has been translated as "earth" many times, it is also translated "country" 140 times, "land" 1,476 times, and "ground" 96 times in the Old Testament. In the various references to erets it can be shown it is most often used to infer a limited land area rather than the entire planet." (http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/noahsflood1.html)
2. There was no place for the water to go.
People argue that if there was water covering 100% of the earth, then how come today's earth is only 67% covered today? Where could the water have gone?
Here are three main reasons why I believe it might have been a GLOBAL FLOOD:
1. A flood could not have stayed local if it lasted for forty days and forty nights. Water covered mountains for many, many days, so it's not as if there was something stopping the water from moving on to the next region of the Earth.
2. Just because there was no place for the water to go after the flood doesn't mean it didn't go somewhere. The first option is that, as said in Psalm 104, the topography changed--- there were deeper trenches for the water to flood and raised mountains/land for people to live upon. The second option is that: God got rid of the water somehow. He could have made it go POOF and had it disappear, for all we know --- but to accept this you need to have faith.
[At one point in my life, I talked with a mentor of mine about it's crazy and neat how a lot of things that Jesus did can be scientifically explained, and how it's only a matter of time before all things are cleared up by science. For example, I liked how people were trying to use buoyancy to explain how Jesus walked on water. But she made a very important comment to me, and it has stuck with me til now. She said that if there is science behind everything that God/Jesus does, then there is no room for faith. If there was hard evidence for everything, then there wouldn't be any difficulty in believing and following in God. To trust in God is to accept hardship because life on earth is a test. Why make humans go through a test of hardship? Because the reward at the end is greater than what's on earth. I think only someone who believes in God can accept this. So for now, I'd rather believe that Jesus walked on water through a way beyond science. I'm not stupid-- I just have faith.]
3. If it was a local flood, Noah could have just used the 120 years spent building an ark to walk to an area that was not flooded. If the flood was local, and Noah chose to build the ark just because God told him to do so, then it shows that Noah was preaching of his faith in God by doing something apparently nonsensical to the people around him. I admit to that. At the same time, the purpose of the flood was to wipe the slate clean-- to start humanity over again and start with Noah's family (Genesis 6:7). Therefore, it is more consistent with God's intended purpose for the flood to have been global than local.
I honestly don't know which one I believe. I don't have seminary training, and I'll be the first to admit that I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING! However, I do know that I would like to ask a few of the pastors I trust about this topic.
-- Edit 2/7/13
The more I think about it, the more I seem to lean towards a global flood. But it begs the question of when the different races came about. Though... I do remember some people being cursed... I'll figure this out later. That's the cool part about writing all your questions down.
I also had a question about why Ham was cursed by Noah after seeing his father naked. I know I'm missing some kind of context. Any help?
Question: Where did the flood-waters go after Noah's Flood?
In order to answer this question, it first must be asked whether the flood covered the entirety of the planet, or a local (though undeniably vast) region.
This is the debate I have going on in my head.
Here are two main reasons for why I believe it might have been a LOCAL FLOOD:
1. The translation from Hebrew to English for the word "earth" isn't exact.
"Various passages tell us that life was to be destroyed from the face of the "earth" (Genesis 7:12), the waters were on the face of the whole "earth" (Genesis 8:9), etc. When these passages were written it would be hard to believe they were made with the understanding of a global planet. We have to recall that it was not much more than 500 years ago that people believed the "earth" was flat. The word "earth" used in these passages of Genesis is the Hebrew word "erets" (Strong's O.T.#776). Erets does not actually carry any connotation of a global, spherical planet in its translation. While it has been translated as "earth" many times, it is also translated "country" 140 times, "land" 1,476 times, and "ground" 96 times in the Old Testament. In the various references to erets it can be shown it is most often used to infer a limited land area rather than the entire planet." (http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/noahsflood1.html)
2. There was no place for the water to go.
People argue that if there was water covering 100% of the earth, then how come today's earth is only 67% covered today? Where could the water have gone?
Here are three main reasons why I believe it might have been a GLOBAL FLOOD:
1. A flood could not have stayed local if it lasted for forty days and forty nights. Water covered mountains for many, many days, so it's not as if there was something stopping the water from moving on to the next region of the Earth.
2. Just because there was no place for the water to go after the flood doesn't mean it didn't go somewhere. The first option is that, as said in Psalm 104, the topography changed--- there were deeper trenches for the water to flood and raised mountains/land for people to live upon. The second option is that: God got rid of the water somehow. He could have made it go POOF and had it disappear, for all we know --- but to accept this you need to have faith.
[At one point in my life, I talked with a mentor of mine about it's crazy and neat how a lot of things that Jesus did can be scientifically explained, and how it's only a matter of time before all things are cleared up by science. For example, I liked how people were trying to use buoyancy to explain how Jesus walked on water. But she made a very important comment to me, and it has stuck with me til now. She said that if there is science behind everything that God/Jesus does, then there is no room for faith. If there was hard evidence for everything, then there wouldn't be any difficulty in believing and following in God. To trust in God is to accept hardship because life on earth is a test. Why make humans go through a test of hardship? Because the reward at the end is greater than what's on earth. I think only someone who believes in God can accept this. So for now, I'd rather believe that Jesus walked on water through a way beyond science. I'm not stupid-- I just have faith.]
3. If it was a local flood, Noah could have just used the 120 years spent building an ark to walk to an area that was not flooded. If the flood was local, and Noah chose to build the ark just because God told him to do so, then it shows that Noah was preaching of his faith in God by doing something apparently nonsensical to the people around him. I admit to that. At the same time, the purpose of the flood was to wipe the slate clean-- to start humanity over again and start with Noah's family (Genesis 6:7). Therefore, it is more consistent with God's intended purpose for the flood to have been global than local.
I honestly don't know which one I believe. I don't have seminary training, and I'll be the first to admit that I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING! However, I do know that I would like to ask a few of the pastors I trust about this topic.
-- Edit 2/7/13
The more I think about it, the more I seem to lean towards a global flood. But it begs the question of when the different races came about. Though... I do remember some people being cursed... I'll figure this out later. That's the cool part about writing all your questions down.
I also had a question about why Ham was cursed by Noah after seeing his father naked. I know I'm missing some kind of context. Any help?
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Day 2: Genesis 4-7
Genesis 4
Question: Were there humans besides Adam and Eve and their children by the time Cain was of marital age?
I've heard from here and there that there were other people besides Adam and Eve that populated the earth, but where is the evidence in the bible? I think it is more likely that there was incest. All of mankind is said to be descendents of those first two humans, who both lived a long while and had 20+ children of each gender. I recently came to a conclusion after a discussion with some friends: there are no real morals outside of the Bible. There are human tendencies, and social norms, but no universal morals because rules change with time and culture. The main reasons incest is not acceptable today is because of 1) biological consequences: mutations and 2) the bible says it's wrong.
To address reason #1, lets start with the fact that Adam and Eve were made in God's image. God is perfect, and His works were also perfect. The only source of corruption that could have caused the original mutations was external, such as sin. And, while sin is sneaky, it doesn't necessarily have an instant effect. Therefore, many, many generations would need to pass for any mutations to accumulate in the genome to such a degree as to be detrimental to humans. In fact, people in Genesis lived MUCH longer than any modern humans. Currently, not withstanding accidents, people die around 70-80 years of age, when their bodies give way. Not to say that Adam's immediate line didn't experience stress, but their bodies then were more perfect than ours now. By 2013, there have been over 3000 years of transformation and rearrangement of the original genes and sequences that were given to Adam and Eve by God. We are a generation that is lucky to live to 100. Without biological consequences, there was one less reason to avoid incest.
As for the Bible upholding that incest is wrong, "The law forbidding marriage between close relatives was not given until the time of Moses (Leviticus 18-20). Provided marriage was one man to one woman for life (based on Genesis 1 and 2), there was no disobedience to God's law originally when close relatives (even brothers and sisters) married each other." (http://www.christiananswers.net/q-aig/aig-c004.html). I think that's really interesting, but weird. Incest was okay by all standards in the time of Cain and his siblings. I feel like a lot of people aren't happy about this... about how God let something happen but then seemed to ban it on a whim. I don't actually know if I would be accepting of the way things played out without my faith. But the God I believe in does not make mistakes.
I believe the only reason God makes rules of any kind is for the sake of humans. Even with my limited experience as a student, daughter, friend, etc., I already know that just because we dislike something now doesn't mean it's not the best thing for us in the moment (not that I like incest. . .o.o;). Anyway, yes, incest was allowed for the population of the Earth, and God watched it happen. And yes, God decided to ban it after letting it happen for a while. But it was banned because God knew it was coming to a point where incest could physically and mentally debilitate future generations. Who knows the repercussions of the future? No one except God-- so I think it's best we just accept that He did (and continues to do) what is best for us.
Lastly, this will be a straight up copy & paste of something I've always found fascinating.
A short geneology of man from Adam is this: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah.
"Methuselah
The Flood of Noah did not come as a surprise. It had been preached on for four generations. But something strange happened when Enoch was 65, from which time "he walked with God." Enoch was given a prophecy that as long as his son was alive, the judgment of the flood would be withheld; but as soon as he died, the flood would be sent forth.
Enoch named his son to reflect this prophecy. The name Methuselah comes from two roots: muth, a root that means "death"; and from shalach, which means "to bring," or "to send forth." Thus, the name Methuselah signifies, "his death shall bring."
And, indeed, in the year that Methuselah died, the flood came. Methuselah was 187 when he had Lamech, and lived 782 years more. Lamech had Noah when he was 182. The Flood came in Noah's 600th year. 187 + 182 + 600 = 969, Methuselah's age when he died.
It is interesting that Methuselah's life was, in effect, a symbol of God's mercy in forestalling the coming judgment of the flood. It is therefore fitting that his lifetime is the oldest in the Bible, symbolizing the extreme extensiveness of God's mercy." (http://www.khouse.org/articles/2000/284/)
Moreover, if you translate each of the names from Adam to Noah, it reads:
Man Appointed Mortal Sorrow The Blessed God Shall come down Teaching His death shall bring The despairing Rest, or comfort. (http://www.khouse.org/articles/2000/284/)
In other words: God will come down as a mortal and teach the world His ways... and his death will be both sorrow and comfort (we will lose a great man, but gain eternal life).
Now THAT, my friends, is the prophecy of Jesus Christ in Genesis Chapter 5.
Question: Were there humans besides Adam and Eve and their children by the time Cain was of marital age?
I've heard from here and there that there were other people besides Adam and Eve that populated the earth, but where is the evidence in the bible? I think it is more likely that there was incest. All of mankind is said to be descendents of those first two humans, who both lived a long while and had 20+ children of each gender. I recently came to a conclusion after a discussion with some friends: there are no real morals outside of the Bible. There are human tendencies, and social norms, but no universal morals because rules change with time and culture. The main reasons incest is not acceptable today is because of 1) biological consequences: mutations and 2) the bible says it's wrong.
To address reason #1, lets start with the fact that Adam and Eve were made in God's image. God is perfect, and His works were also perfect. The only source of corruption that could have caused the original mutations was external, such as sin. And, while sin is sneaky, it doesn't necessarily have an instant effect. Therefore, many, many generations would need to pass for any mutations to accumulate in the genome to such a degree as to be detrimental to humans. In fact, people in Genesis lived MUCH longer than any modern humans. Currently, not withstanding accidents, people die around 70-80 years of age, when their bodies give way. Not to say that Adam's immediate line didn't experience stress, but their bodies then were more perfect than ours now. By 2013, there have been over 3000 years of transformation and rearrangement of the original genes and sequences that were given to Adam and Eve by God. We are a generation that is lucky to live to 100. Without biological consequences, there was one less reason to avoid incest.
As for the Bible upholding that incest is wrong, "The law forbidding marriage between close relatives was not given until the time of Moses (Leviticus 18-20). Provided marriage was one man to one woman for life (based on Genesis 1 and 2), there was no disobedience to God's law originally when close relatives (even brothers and sisters) married each other." (http://www.christiananswers.net/q-aig/aig-c004.html). I think that's really interesting, but weird. Incest was okay by all standards in the time of Cain and his siblings. I feel like a lot of people aren't happy about this... about how God let something happen but then seemed to ban it on a whim. I don't actually know if I would be accepting of the way things played out without my faith. But the God I believe in does not make mistakes.
I believe the only reason God makes rules of any kind is for the sake of humans. Even with my limited experience as a student, daughter, friend, etc., I already know that just because we dislike something now doesn't mean it's not the best thing for us in the moment (not that I like incest. . .o.o;). Anyway, yes, incest was allowed for the population of the Earth, and God watched it happen. And yes, God decided to ban it after letting it happen for a while. But it was banned because God knew it was coming to a point where incest could physically and mentally debilitate future generations. Who knows the repercussions of the future? No one except God-- so I think it's best we just accept that He did (and continues to do) what is best for us.
Lastly, this will be a straight up copy & paste of something I've always found fascinating.
A short geneology of man from Adam is this: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah.
"Methuselah
The Flood of Noah did not come as a surprise. It had been preached on for four generations. But something strange happened when Enoch was 65, from which time "he walked with God." Enoch was given a prophecy that as long as his son was alive, the judgment of the flood would be withheld; but as soon as he died, the flood would be sent forth.
Enoch named his son to reflect this prophecy. The name Methuselah comes from two roots: muth, a root that means "death"; and from shalach, which means "to bring," or "to send forth." Thus, the name Methuselah signifies, "his death shall bring."
And, indeed, in the year that Methuselah died, the flood came. Methuselah was 187 when he had Lamech, and lived 782 years more. Lamech had Noah when he was 182. The Flood came in Noah's 600th year. 187 + 182 + 600 = 969, Methuselah's age when he died.
It is interesting that Methuselah's life was, in effect, a symbol of God's mercy in forestalling the coming judgment of the flood. It is therefore fitting that his lifetime is the oldest in the Bible, symbolizing the extreme extensiveness of God's mercy." (http://www.khouse.org/articles/2000/284/)
Moreover, if you translate each of the names from Adam to Noah, it reads:
Man Appointed Mortal Sorrow The Blessed God Shall come down Teaching His death shall bring The despairing Rest, or comfort. (http://www.khouse.org/articles/2000/284/)
In other words: God will come down as a mortal and teach the world His ways... and his death will be both sorrow and comfort (we will lose a great man, but gain eternal life).
Now THAT, my friends, is the prophecy of Jesus Christ in Genesis Chapter 5.
Day 1: Genesis 1-3
For this day's reading, the blog will be about Genesis 1:1.
As much as I don't like to admit that I've heard Genesis 1:1 enough times that I've begun to tune out... I won't deny that it's not true :P. Looking at it now, I am very confused about the light references from the bible.
What exactly is the light that was present from beginning (Genesis 1:3) if the sun, stars, and moon were created on the 4th day (Genesis 1:14-19)? Does that mean that God was the source of light? Or does it mean that there was another light source? Or does day four provide a flashback to the creation of the sun, stars, and moon on the first day? There are different theories and I can't figure out which one I believe.
What do you think?
As much as I don't like to admit that I've heard Genesis 1:1 enough times that I've begun to tune out... I won't deny that it's not true :P. Looking at it now, I am very confused about the light references from the bible.
What exactly is the light that was present from beginning (Genesis 1:3) if the sun, stars, and moon were created on the 4th day (Genesis 1:14-19)? Does that mean that God was the source of light? Or does it mean that there was another light source? Or does day four provide a flashback to the creation of the sun, stars, and moon on the first day? There are different theories and I can't figure out which one I believe.
What do you think?
Monday, February 4, 2013
The Purpose Driven Blog
I've actually never read the Holy Bible front to back. There are
still some verses that I hear now that I've never heard of before. Day
to day, I waver about what it really means to be a Christian, however,
in the past year have I taken to heart that no one is more sinful than
anyone else, and therefore there is nothing I can or cannot do to be
loved by God. Today, I am starting a journey with my boyfriend Peter: to read the
entire bible in 365 days. Surprisingly, this challenge was his idea. He is a self-proclaimed atheist, and I am a
baby Christian, despite having grown up in the church. There is nothing
wrong about asking questions or having doubt, and I believe reading the
bible alongside a non-believer will foster a greater and truer
understanding of God's word. I wonder about how far we can get into this
challenge, how diligent we'll be with the readings, and whether or not
we will get to the last unread word. But I'll hope for the best, and pray that it'll give both of us insight into God's plans as well as a way for us to navigate the world without as much apprehension.
Most of the blogs will have links to sites that I have used to research the chapters and answer my questions. The verses will be posted from the New International Version Bible. Please do not hesitate to comment and/or question, but please refrain from attacking whatever is published on this blog. Because frankly... it IS a blog. This is a place of faith and opinion, and not a source of absolute truth for readers.
Each entry will often focus on a single chapter... for relative succinctness.
Most of the blogs will have links to sites that I have used to research the chapters and answer my questions. The verses will be posted from the New International Version Bible. Please do not hesitate to comment and/or question, but please refrain from attacking whatever is published on this blog. Because frankly... it IS a blog. This is a place of faith and opinion, and not a source of absolute truth for readers.
Each entry will often focus on a single chapter... for relative succinctness.
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