Contemplative Bible Reading

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.

Job 13:1-2 (New Living Translation)

1 “Look, I have seen all this with my own eyes
and heard it with my own ears, and now I understand.
2 I know as much as you do.
You are no better than I am.

Job the afflicted is talking to his friends. Job is trying to teach his friends what is right. Job’s friends are trying to teach Job what is right. This back and forth of “I know, you don’t” goes on for pages and pages and pages.

Consider verse 2. Notice the prominent use of the words “You” and “I.” What are the persons discussing? What is “this” mentioned in verse 1? We aren’t told. Who knows best has overshadowed what is right or wrong. What we are told is that two persons are arguing over who knows more and who is better. And these two persons are standing before God while they dispute the superiority of the two of them.

And I wonder how God doesn’t just whomp the two over the head with a baseball bat.

Take verse 2 and reverse the “I” and “you.” We now have: “You know as much as I do. I am no better than you.”

Perhaps that is how I should always begin a discussion where I disagree with another person. That reframes the conversation. Please God, help me remember that when I dispute another person, we both stand before you. We don’t really know much at all let alone know more than the other.

Deuteronomy 1:16-17 (New Living Translation)

16 “At that time I instructed the judges, ‘You must hear the cases of your fellow Israelites and the foreigners living among you. Be perfectly fair in your decisions 17 and impartial in your judgments. Hear the cases of those who are poor as well as those who are rich. Don’t be afraid of anyone’s anger, for the decision you make is God’s decision. Bring me any cases that are too difficult for you, and I will handle them.’

These are instructions to those who would be judging disputes among God’s people. First, we note that there will be and have always been disputes among God’s people. We just can’t seem to live without disputing with one another.

The judges are told to be impartial regardless of the person’s standing in the community. Everyone deserves a just judgement. The judges should not fear reprisal from those who “lose” in the judgement. The decision is God’s decision.

1. The decision of the just judge is God’s. There is to be no blaming the judge. If you are not happy, blame God.
2. The judge is supposed to be just. The judge is to declare the same thing that God would.

Whoa. This second one is tough on the judge, huh? The old “What would Jesus do?” hits the judge with “How would God judge?” That is what the judge would have to ask and that is how the judge would have to judge.

Again, this is easy and this is almost impossible at the same time. The choice was up to the judge. Do God’s will. Did the judge see God’s will as a promise or a curse?

Now we come to me and to today. Do I see God’s will as a promise or a curse? Do I give the choice to God? Do I keep the choice to me and try juggling several thousand years worth of “progress” and trends and fashions and philosophies and precedents and …

Why would I choose to disregard God and take on all those other things? What is wrong with me? Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Luke 10:21 (New Living Translation)

21 At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.

I think I’m pretty smart. I did well in school. I did well in an intellectual profession. Good for me.

Jesus thanks God for hiding some of the great truths and lessons from those who think they are pretty smart. They consider themselves to be wise and clever.

The truths from God are revealed to the childlike—not the child-ish, but the child-like. The childlike are humble. They stand in the back of the crowd. They can’t quite see what “everyone sees and knows.” They depend on others.

The childlike depend on others. That is it. The childlike know we need help. We know we need instruction. We know we cannot do it on our own. We need God.

Thank you God for helping the childlike. Thank you for providing what we cannot. Thank you for your grace that brings us to you and all we need. And please God, help the wise and clever to know what it means to need you.

Matthew 1:20-21 (New Living Translation)

20 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

This statement from the angel of the Lord is going great, until the last three words.

The people of the day are loving it, until the last three words.

The Promised Land and its people are loving it, until the last three words.

The Messiah from God will save His people! Great! We love it! We will be restored to peace, prosperity, security, national nationhood and something like that! Great, until the last three words.

Our sins? Well, sure we have sins, but… We are about to be saved from all our ills and our tormentors, right? Our sins? That’s sort of esoteric or something we can’t touch or something way out there. How about some real-life relief, huh?

Sigh. I want something tangible. I want something in the short term, today, this week. Give me a better coffee shop and a shorter commute. Give me flexible work hours and location. Give me a few more days off. Please.

Save me from my sins. That is so far away. That is so hard to grasp. I’m tired. I have a headache. Just be the God that I want You to be.

No. God is God. I am not. God understands much better than I understand. I need to grasp what it means to have my sins erased. On some days I come closer to that. Jesus came to save me from my sins. That is glorious. Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Luke 8:1-3 (New Living Translation)

1 Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, 2 along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; 3 Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.

This is one of those paragraphs that I gloss over while reading. Okay, here are the supporters who traveled with Jesus. I always wondered what they 12 apostles were doing to require so much help, but anyways, yeah yeah yeah, this person and that person, yeah yeah yeah.

Then there is Joanna. Okay, another name. Yeah yeah yeah.

Wait, Joanna was married to Chuza (odd name, but keep going) who was the business manager of Herod (Antipas). Whoa, wait, stop here. Herod wasn’t a king, but he was appointed by the Romans to rule an area of occupied Palestine. His business manager was married to a woman who traveled with the followers of Jesus of Nazareth (the Son of God).

Jesus would later appear before this Herod. That makes this all the more strange. There are several ways to discuss this. One is that Joanna was connected to an occupying army. She had it made. She had comfort with the enemy. A safe life. A hated life. She aided a foreign army. Jews didn’t like her.

She gave up a comfortable life and crossed over. The Jews hated her kind, yet accepted her.

Note,

1. Anyone can turn to God
2. The godly can accept anyone

Jesus accepted someone from Herod’s home; that shows His grace. I have more trouble with number 2; that is my problem. I don’t trust or something. I want to … well, I want to be God and decide the big things. Silly me.

Hosea 6:6 (New Living Translation)

6 I want you to show love,
not offer sacrifices.
I want you to know me
more than I want burnt offerings.

What does God want me to do? There are a few things; here are two:

1. Show love
2. Know God

Once again, these two cover the two big areas in a Christian’s life: relationship with God and relationship with one another. That just about covers it all. This is pretty simple stuff. How did we make it so complicated?

My fault, not God’s. I tend to make things more complicated and nuanced than they are. Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Jeremiah 33:15-16 (New Living Translation)

15 “In those days and at that time
I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line.
He will do what is just and right throughout the land.
16 In that day Judah will be saved,
and Jerusalem will live in safety.
And this will be its name:
‘The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’

The prophet Jeremiah is passing along a message from God to the people. In the future, there will be a new ruler. The people will be saved. Great news. Economic prosperity. Peace. Well peace is promised. Economic prosperity isn’t (so much for “It’s the economy, stupid.”)

And what will the new ruler do? The new ruler will do what is just and right. The new ruler will bring justice and righteousness according to the words of God. We are big on “justice” in today’s America, but not so much on “righteousness,” but that is another book to write on another day.

This is a theme in the Bible. What matters is justice and righteousness. God tells me what is right and wrong. Follow the “right” that God tells me. Apply the “right” to others. Expect others to apply the “right” to me.

Salvation and safety will be the result. Simple? Yes. Easy? No. Common practice? Uh, definitely NO.

Still, this is how God describes life here on earth. Let us all strive towards that description. As we stumble and fall, let’s stand again and keep striving. God forgives and helps me along the way. And for that, I am grateful.

Matthew 10:18 (New Living Translation)

18 You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and other unbelievers about me.

Jesus is talking here. Jesus is telling followers what to expect. The followers will stand before rulers and other unbelievers. What an opportunity!

But wait, many of those opportunities will be in trials where the rulers can punish the followers of Jesus.

Why does there always seem to be a “But wait” in these things? Why can’t Jesus arrange it so that I can talk to rulers and unbelievers without the chance of punishment? Why make it so difficult? Why do I have to fear punishment?

Uh, well, I don’t have to fear punishment. Fear is my response that I choose. I also choose to see the appointment with rulers as a trial or as an opportunity. Jesus is reminding me of the choices that Jesus gives me.

Why do I have to choose? Because God created me and gave me choice. And yes, I can ask, “Why did God give me choice? Why did God give me such difficult choices?” And the answer is, “Because God loves and created me with love.”

Sometimes it is hard to accept God’s love and wisdom. Please God, help me with my unbelief.