Contemplative Bible Reading

Malachi 1:7-8 (New Living Translation)

…“You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. 8 When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased?…

A long time ago in a prior millennium, we had this saying—Sunday best. We wore our best clothes, our best shoes, etc. on Sunday to “go to church.” Women wore dresses and men wore ties or they were turned back at the door (I exaggerate, but only a little).

Then we entered a new era in the 1970s or somewhere back when and decided that such dress was superficial and we needed to relax “at church.” Of course we did. God was interested in our hearts, not our clean shirts and neatly combed hair. And that was right; God is interested in our hearts.

Times change. Fashions change. “Sunday best” change.

And then we read something like the verses above about “respect” and offering defective things to God. Perhaps we should consider things like “best” and “less than best” and such. Is relaxing defective?

I don’t have the answers, just a few questions. Please forgive my awkward words.

This post is different from the vast majority of them in this blog.

There is much talk, yelling, demonstrating, banner carrying, and such this past month or two in the name of social justice.

Search this blog for the word “justice.” I don’t know how many posts in this blog are about justice and righteousness—several dozen at least.

Social justice is a theme of the Bible. A theme that is repeated everywhere.

Somewhere along the line, we have forgotten a basic. We are suffering the consequences.

Zephaniah 1:6 (New Living Translation)

And I will destroy those who used to worship me
    but now no longer do.
They no longer ask for the Lord’s guidance
    or seek my blessings.

The prophet is relaying a message from Jehovah God the Creator to the people. God will not tolerate those who do not worship God. The people had fallen into the worship of all sorts of things. (NOTE: This is the worship of things, not the love of things. We can love money, but not worship it.)

And we find that these people no longer seek God’s blessings.

Consider that for a moment. Consider the blessings that come from God—everything from sleeping in a bed with a roof over our heads to drinking a cup of hot coffee on a cool morning to the smile on the face of a child to…there isn’t enough space to list God’s blessings.

These people had turned so far from God that they no longer wanted any of God’s blessings. It hurts my head to attempt to think of such a situation.

Please God. Help me to always realize the blessings you give me. Please help me to always know the source of these blessings and to seek You.

Habakkuk 1:3b (New Living Translation)

I am surrounded by people
    who love to argue and fight.

I copied title from the news today. No, not really. I copied it from this verse. The prophet wrote this a few thousand years ago. Someone at the Washington Post or whatever could copy these words and put them where ever it is that “newspapers” put words these days.

Trouble is, the “new”spapers have little that is new. It is all repeats from several thousand years, and it is all about us.

What is wrong with us? Why is it that after several thousands years of fighting wars that stem from arguments about the color of the grass or the direction the wind blows that we still do these things? Won’t we ever learn from any of this?

Questions, questions, questions. We know the answers. We don’t like the answers. So we keep asking the questions hoping someone will give us a new answer. Hasn’t happened in 20 or 30 or 40 centuries.

We rejected God. God gives us a way to return to God. Will we accept God’s way? Maybe we will simply argue and fight about it for a few more centuries.

2 Timothy 4:5a (New Living Translation)

But you should keep a clear mind in every situation.

Paul is dictating a letter to Timothy. He is encouraging Timothy to tell people about Jesus, the Christ or Messiah, the one appointed to take away all our sins.

In the preceding lines, Paul warns Timothy that people will yawn when he talks. People will walk away from the message and find other things that are more interesting at the moment. Some people will even throw rocks at you (literally, not figuratively).

Expect this.

Above all, keep a clear mind. Always be able to think and discuss patiently and peacefully.

Consider this. Someone is throwing big rocks at your head. You are supposed to have a clear mind in such circumstances. Really? Sounds difficult. It is difficult. It is practically impossible without the help of God.

Thank you God for giving us the ability to do what we cannot do.

2 Timothy 2:8 (New Living Translation)

Always remember that Jesus Christ, a descendant of King David, was raised from the dead. This is the Good News I preach.

Paul is dictating a letter to Timothy. Perhaps this is a translation twist, but Paul tends to say things backwards—it seems that way to me. It would be easier for me to understand had this been written as:

This is the Good News: Jesus, the fellow from Nazareth whom we know descended from King David, he was raised from the dead. He is the one appointed to take away the sins of the world.

Pretty darn good news, huh?

Perhaps we all know this so well that we forget it. Simple, powerful, and almost unbelievable.

And that simple message is what Paul preached. Paul urged Timothy to preach it. Timothy passed it on to someone else, and this train continues today.

Praise God. Thank you God.

Mark 5: 18-19 (New Living Translation)

¹⁸ As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. ¹⁹ But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.”

These verses are near the end of the (hi)story of Jesus healing a demon-possessed man. After years of being the “wild man of the ruins,” we are told that the man sat dressed respectfully and perfectly sane.

All the man wanted to do now was follow Jesus. What better thing is there than to follow Jesus?

Jesus, however, once again does the opposite of what we expect. He tells the man, “No. Go somewhere else.”

Jesus sent the man to the people who had known him all his life. The man was to be an example of how God changes lives. We are told later that all those who met the changed man were amazed.

Sometimes we move forward with Jesus be going backwards into our past. That doesn’t make any sense, but we should become accustomed to the unaccustomed as we serve God.

Daniel 3:16-18 (New Living Translation)

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. ¹⁷ If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. ¹⁸ But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”

This is one of those “Bible stories” I heard as a child. God saved Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace.

Bible stories for children are great. They teach great truths and teach that teachers love children and love the Bible. All good things.

Let’s step into the adult side of the Bible stories. These three young men were confident in God and humble in their position as it related to God. They were quite confident to stand before one of the world’s most powerful men and tell him how things were.

• God is able to save us. The power of the king is not worth mentioning.
• God is God. God will choose what to do here and now.
• We will always serve God the Creator, not your man-made gods.

And they were tossed into certain death. Note, they didn’t jump into the furnace. They were tossed. They resisted death as best they could.

And, they let God choose their fate.

Mark 4:2 (New Living Translation)

He taught them by telling many stories…

This is how Jesus taught. He told many stories.

When I was a child (many years ago, or was it yesterday? Sometimes I confuse the two), people read me Bible Stories. My father read me Bible Stories. My teacher (it was a Christian school) read us Bible Stories.

The stories from the Bible were wrapped in stories about kids like me and about kids who weren’t like me.

Good grief. Now I have to decide what to write next.

• I learned that their were kids who were not like me, but who believed in the same God. God was God for everyone.
• I learned that those kids learned from Bible Stories, that the Bible was the Bible for everyone.
• I learned that some adults cared enough about me to spend time reading me Bible Stories.
• I learned that I wanted to hear those Bible Stories. There is something about Bible Stories that span time, places, and listening kids and telling adults.

I suppose I could go one longer about what I learned from those Bible Stories and those persons who told and read the stories.

Back to the basics, Jesus taught them by telling many stories.

John 4:48 (New Living Translation)

Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”

Jesus is about to perform another miracle of healing. Some people wouldn’t believe unless they saw something that convinced them (just like us today).

What do we need to see to believe? Do you remember the first time you saw a magnet push another magnet away if you held the poles right? Remember how you could feel the pushing even though you weren’t touching anything. The force that is invisible to our eyes exists and pushed that other magnet away. It was amazing.

What, however, do we need to see to believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God? How miraculous does a sign or wonder need to be? How much “magic” do we need to see?

How about one more sunrise? Will that do it? How about one more view of the stars in the sky? Will that do it? How about one more smile on the face of a newborn baby? Will that do it?

I guess we could go on and on with these “how abouts.” Somewhere out there is a “how about” that will trigger belief. I suppose each person has their own “how about” that works for them. Many are still waiting for theirs to appear. Some of us were blessed with people in our lives that brought that “how about” to us.

Please God, help me to be the sign and wonder that another person can see.