Contemplative Bible Reading

Ephesians 1:15-16 (English Standard Version)

15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,

Paul is writing to a group of Christians in Ephesus. Paul thanks God for this group of Christians in Ephesus.

When was the last time I thanked God for a group of Christians in some place? Uh, well, how about, it’s been so long ago that I cannot remember. That isn’t too good, is it?

I know Christians in a lot of places. God, thank you for those Christians. And please God, please help me in my unbelief.

1 Samuel 22:1-2 (English Standard Version)

1 David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. 2 And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.

David was on the run. He escaped to a cave to “lick his wounds” as we would say today. He is raising an army so that he can move into his rightful place of power.

David recruits the best and brightest for his army. NOT! Who is in David’s elite crew of 400 hundred men? The men were in distress, debt, and bitter in soul. A big bunch of losers who failed in business, agriculture, family, and everything else. On top of their failures, they are bitter about the whole thing. It is someone else’s fault. LIFE IS UNFAIR!

Uh, well, this isn’t going too good so far, is it.

The (hi)stories that follow tell us that this all worked. This army succeeded in many situations against all odds. Huh? How? We can assume that David was an inspiring leader. These men performed above what they had done previously in life due to David.

Perhaps it was God. Who does God recruit? Me. Huh? Me? I’m supposed to fill-in-the-blank-with-all-sorts-of-things-that-you-wouldn’t-recruit-me-to-do. Really? Really. That is how it works. That is how God works. The words to that song “God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform” come to mind. Can’t explain it, but folks like me get ‘er done for God sometimes. I should start believing in this army of bitter and distressed debtors.

Acts 22:16 (New Living Translation)

16 What are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord.’

In this verse, Paul is retelling the story of how he came to follow Jesus as the Christ. Ananias is talking to Paul. He tells Paul to be immersed in water while calling on God. In that act of submission, Paul’s sins would be washed away.

This story has been told countless times over the centuries. The concept of “washing away sins” has been explained just as many times over just as many years. It is still a timeless and powerful concept.

I am filthy. I cannot approach a ruler in my state. I need to “clean up” first. But I can’t do it. No matter how hard I try, I can’t scrub enough to remove all the filth that is stained on me. I can’t wash away this crud.

God can. God does. “All I have to do” is let God wash me.

Why is it that I struggle to let someone else do something for me that I cannot do for myself? I need God.

Deuteronomy 28:9-10 (New Living Translation)

9 “If you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways, the Lord will establish you as his holy people as he swore he would do. 10 Then all the nations of the world will see that you are a people claimed by the Lord, and they will stand in awe of you.

Let’s have a little background here: the people being addressed just spent 400 years in servitude in Egypt. They were L O S E R S !!!

Now, the next day, if they obey, they will be a people who are set aside for great things, i.e., “holy.”

All the nations will see with their own eyes (no mumbo jumbo here, just plain SEE IT) that these people are claimed by YHWH or Jehovah—the one god that created everything. All the nations knew there was one Creator God and none of the nations would mess with that God.

This people would be claimed by the Creator. They would be in a special relationship with the Creator. That inspires fear. That inspires respect. That inspires awe.

I find it unfortunate that over the centuries since, the people mentioned here and the Christians who followed have acted, well, not so awe inspiring. I flop on my face far too often to inspire awe. I shouldn’t be that way. In my body lives God’s Spirit. I need to move aside more often and let that Spirit show. Please God, help me in my unbelief.

2 Corinthians 3:16 (New Living Translation)

16 But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.

The verses before this describe the lack of mental understanding and the lack of emotional feeling of God’s people as a veil. There was a veil that covered their minds and covered their hearts when the words of God were read.

It just didn’t sink in.

Ever had a bad headache? I mean a really bad headache—one that makes you just want to lie down, close your eyes, and cover your face with a pillow to block the light even on a dark night. Nothing anyone says or does means anything to you because your head hurts, and you can’t take in anything from anyone.

It seems that was like the veil described here. God’s people just didn’t absorb anything from God. They couldn’t as they had one of those debilitating headaches or something like it.

Then a person turns to God—actually looks to God and says, “Please Lord, I am listening now. Please teach me. Please bless me. Please.”

God removes the veil, the headache, the pain, the crushed spirit, the life buried in worry, the life covered with shame. There is a clear light. The words of God enter.

Life on earth probably doesn’t change. The rent is still due. Groceries still cost money. Your teenager still frets and worries you. There is, however, the greatest difference the universe has ever known—the veil is taken away and God’s word enters. Thank you God.

Deuteronomy 26:8 (English Standard Version)

8 And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great deeds of terror, with signs and wonders.

There are times when God is terrifying. God appears in works of terror.

Terror is a harsh word. I don’t recall times in my life when I was terrified. Thank you God for that blessing. Such is not the case for all persons at all times. There have been times in the last several thousand years when terror was common for some persons in some places.

Still, God can bring terror for God’s purposes.

I live in one of the richest places in the richest country in the history of mankind. It sure is comfortable here in this air conditioned Starbucks with persons waiting on me, hot coffee in a cup in my hand, a super duper computer searching all the knowledge of the world at my fingertips, and I could go on and on with how good this is. Terror? God? Surely, we jest. No, we don’t.

Please God, let me never forget the terror you can bring. Let me never stop giving thanks for being spared that terror up to this moment in my short life.

1 Kings 10:23-24 (New Living Translation)

23 So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth. 24 People from every nation came to consult him and to hear the wisdom God had given him.

King Solomon had asked God for wisdom. God gave Solomon wisdom. People from all the nations came to consult with Solomon because they recognized how Solomon was blessed by God.

First, wisdom. This isn’t just knowledge (a₂ + b² = c²), it is how to apply knowledge and how to understand what people mean regardless of what they say. Solomon had wisdom from God. He understood people and things.

Next is God. The nations knew that there was a god who created all. They had their own gods for this and for that, but there was a supreme god above all others. They understood that the supreme god had a special relationship with the Jews and with Solomon.

The Jewish god Jehovah was different. And everyone knew that. And everyone acted in a way that showed they knew that.

We sure are advanced today, huh? We know better, huh? Nope.

Deuteronomy 10: 18-19 (English Standard Version)

18 He (God) executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 19 Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

In these verses, God is passing instructions to the people on how to treat sojourners.

One good source tells us: A sojourner is a person who resides temporarily in a place.

Okay, so when living in the land given by God, the people were to love those who passed through the land living here and there temporarily. Fine. We understand this. We read that God executes justice for those who cannot protect themselves, and that includes the sojourners.

Then this all falls apart. God describes the people as being sojourners in Egypt. The people were in Egypt 400 years. 400 years. “Residing temporarily in a place” and “400 years” don’t match. Do they? They don’t match in my mind. I mean America is some 240 something years old. That isn’t temporary, is it?

Yes, 240 years, 400 years, a few thousand years, all temporary and just passing through. God’s time and my time are different. This is a specific and concrete example of those differences. Something simple like a few years shows how far apart my brain is from the mind of God.

Oh well, and sometimes I think I am right along with God on these things. Please God, help me realize my place.

Nehemiah 6:15-16 (New Living Translation)

15 So on October 2 the wall was finished—just fifty-two days after we had begun. 16 When our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated. They realized this work had been done with the help of our God.

Those exiles who returned to Jerusalem had finished repairing the wall of the city in 52 days. Their enemies were frightened and humiliated.

It wasn’t the speed of accomplishing so large a task that troubled the enemies. The enemies realized the work of God. God the Creator (Jehovah) had helped this band of folks who had little means to accomplish anything.

If God would help this people do this, what else would God do for them?

We learn that it can be frightening to realize that God acts here and now, right in front of us.

We also learn that it can be humiliating for enlightened persons who think that all this “silly God superstition stuff” isn’t silly or superstition, but is real and right in front of us and undeniable. Uh, what? That’s real? I just thought it was…

“Give me a sign. Show me,” is sometimes heard. Signs and shows, however, can scare folks out of their skin and dump a large dose of humility on their head. And when they come trembling and humble to me for advice, I pray that I will react with fear and humility and thankfulness for the gifts from God.

Deuteronomy 4:34 (New Living Translation)

34 Has any other god dared to take a nation for himself out of another nation by means of trials, miraculous signs, wonders, war, a strong hand, a powerful arm, and terrifying acts? Yet that is what the Lord your God did for you in Egypt, right before your eyes.

The people are hearing the law given to them by Jehovah, their god. We have this question asked of the people. Has anyone seen or heard of a god so powerful and intent that the god pulled a nation out of another nation?

I saw nations come out of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (the Soviet Union) in the early 1990s. That, however, wasn’t performed by a god.

The removal of God’s people from Egypt came from miraculous signs and (get this last one) terrifying acts. Yes, acts that terrified, literally scared the Egyptians to death. The Egyptians told the people to get out, now, fast, take what you want, but just leave us alone. The Egyptians saw what Jehovah the god of the people could do. They wanted those people to leave and take Jehovah with them.

Seen any terrifying acts lately from God? I haven’t. I have seen powerful acts from God. Hmmm, if God is powerful enough to… then God is also powerful enough to …. Fill in the blanks with wonderful and terrifying things. Yet, I have days when I just don’t… What? Huh? God?

Please God, help me in my unbelief.