Contemplative Bible Reading

Isaiah 37:7 (New Living Translation)

“Listen! I myself will move against him, and the king will receive a message that he is needed at home. So he will return to his land, where I will have him killed with a sword.’”

The prophet Isaiah is speaking to King Hezekiah about the King of Assyria. The King of Assyria was about to trample God’s people. That King had all the soldiers and might and everything needed to trample a puny little people.

How does God defeat the mighty King of Assyria? A rumor. “You are needed at home.” Five little words that lead the King of Assyria to his death. Consider that for a while—five little words. Not much, huh?

Funny how God changes the course of human history with something so simple. Funny how God can use me to say a few little words to someone that changes their lives. I know God has used others to say a few little words that changed my life. God does move in mysterious ways His wonders to perform. Too bad I don’t notice these ways that are all around me everyday.

Esther 6:6 (New Living Translation)

So Haman came in, and the king said, “What should I do to honor a man who truly pleases me?”

Haman thought to himself, “Whom would the king wish to honor more than me?”

I love to read the (hi)story of Esther and those around her in the royal court. Haman is the model of the antagonist for all history. He is also the model of arrogance for all history. Two models for all history in one person, not bad for a bad guy.

Here, Haman asks himself, “Who would the King honor more than me? Of course, me. I am the greatest servant to the King who ever lived. Long live me!!!”

Haman died shortly thereafter. He wanted honor too much and put himself in a position to die.

Today? Well, not much has changed in a few thousand years. Daily I see folks who want to be honored just a little bit too much. The good folks are ambitious. The bad folks are just a little too ambitious. The extra-ambitious folks succeed for a while, but…

Me? Oh, finally got to me. Sigh. Rats. I fall into this too easily as well. I just can’t seem to accept the uncountable blessings of God as they are. There must be something more for me, right? Who deserves such-and-such more than me? Here comes Haman. There goes Haman.

Ephesians 3:19 (New Living Translation)

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

The Bible bounces back and forth among the concepts of feeling and knowing. This verse uses “experience” and “understand.” This is not a matter of “either…or,” but one of “both…and.” Those are the kinds of things that appear on inspirational poster that folks put on the walls of cubicle farms in the 1990s, but they are real here.

It isn’t enough to feel the love of God. It isn’t enough to know everything in history and the Bible. We should strive for both.

And, more importantly, we should not chastise folks who don’t have the one thing we have. That is the main problem we have. I want others to be the Christian that I am, and I want them to be “my kind of Christian” now (not next year or next week, NOW).

Who am I to tell others… Of course there is no answer to that question. It is difficult to  experience the love of Christ and to fully understand what that means in my life. Sounds like a good thing to request in prayer a few dozen times a day.

2 Samuel 18:6-8 (New Living Translation)

6 So the battle began in the forest of Ephraim, 7 and the Israelite troops were beaten back by David’s men. There was a great slaughter that day, and 20,000 men laid down their lives. 8 The battle raged all across the countryside, and more men died because of the forest than were killed by the sword.

This is the short description of what some call The Battle of the Wood of Ephraim. 20,000 men died that day. Why? Because a man wanted something that God had not given him.

Not much of a reason for 20,000 men to die. How about the widows and orphans and the ensuing suffering that lasted tens of thousands of lifetimes? Yes, that was there. No much of a reason for all that, was there?

Absalom, the son of King David, wanted to be King. He led a rebellion. A battle ensued. The rest is a miserable history. All because a man wanted something that God had not given him.

I am sure glad that I haven’t…let’s not go there, folks. We have all wanted something that God did not give us. Perhaps 20,000 men didn’t die because of it, but, most likely, we hated someone deeply because we didn’t receive what we wanted.

Humility, contentment…we don’t use those words often in the 21st century. That is too bad for us. Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Isaiah 58:6-7 (New Living Translation)

6 “No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
7 Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

The 16-hour fast, the one-day-a-week fast. Lots of fasting being promoted these days to reduce weight and all that.

Let’s pause a moment and notice the kind of fasting God wants: give up some of my silly little self-pleasing power. Stop abusing people. Stop being so greedy.

It isn’t easy for us in the 21st (aren’t we advanced and wonderful) century to think about the list from Isaiah. We live in America, land of the free, home of the brave, Google anything, text me, excuse me don’t you see that I looking at my $1,000 telephone?

Are you on the right or left politically? Sorry, but there is plenty here to condemn all sides and everyone who claims to be in between.

This is real fasting. This is yet another reminder of how I fall short of the glory of God daily and how I need to pray, “Please God, help me with my unbelief.”

Revelation 22:2 (New Living Translation)

It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.

The Tree of Life will grow on each side of a rive that holds the water of life. There are several fascinating things about the Tree of Life. Note the last one:

The leaves are used for medicine to heal the nations.

I’m not sure what that means, but I like the sound of it. What does it mean to “heal the nations?” Perhaps,

• Stop of from hating those folks on the other side of the border.
• Cause us to love one another.
• Give us the knowledge we need to live well, righteous, and just.

Other ideas?

Exodus 15:11 (New Living Translation)

“Who is like you among the gods, O Lord—
glorious in holiness,
awesome in splendor,
performing great wonders?

Set the scene: the people have just walked out of Egypt with lots of goodies. The charioteers—the elite of the Egyptian army—was destroyed in the Red Sea. Time to sing and dance and celebrate.

The people compare the creator, YHWH (Jehovah), to “the gods.” Recall that these people had lived in Egypt for 20 generations. The Egyptians had lots of gods. The people had learned all about all of them.

Hence, comparing YHWH to other gods was expected. Not good, but expected.

Today, we say things like, “I would rather be with God than have all the money in the world (or something else).”

Sounds good, right? Really? Comparing God to paper we use to exchange for goods? Really?

Lots of gods.

1 Timothy 4:8 (New Living Translation)

“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.”

Hate to burst the bubble of the fitness industry in America in the 21st century, but, well, burst that bubble folks.

Gold’s Gym? Good for us. Godliness training? Better for us. Nordic Track Fitness Machine? Good for us. Godliness training? Better for us. Pilates? Good for us. Godliness training? Better for us. I could go on.

Hmmm. Something to consider while doing an extra mile on that intermittent, incline changing, speed changing, pep talk screen showing, music blaring, walking machine.

Exodus 31:14 (New Living Translation)

You must keep the Sabbath day, for it is a holy day for you. Anyone who desecrates it must be put to death; anyone who works on that day will be cut off from the community.

Let’s correct a common fallacy. The Sabbath day was NOT a day that the old people “went to church.” They were not told, “Go to church or else.”

The Sabbath day was a day that everyone rested. God told the people, now get this one straight…

R E S T (REST) (rest) rest rest rest or die!

Did I get that one across? God commanded the people to rest one day in seven. How hard is it to follow that command?

Well, those people back then were…not so fast. Ever felt like taking a nap in the afternoon at work? Ever take a nap in the afternoon at work? How many Americans answer “yes” to both questions. What is wrong with us? We can’t rest.

Why is it so hard to rest?

Exodus 14:14 (New Living Translation)

The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.

Everyone has their own version of the “Stay Calm and…” saying these days. Here is one from when the people were about to be pushed to their deaths in the Red Sea.

So we have…

Keep Calm

and

Let the Lord fill-in-the-blank

What goes in the blank? Here are a few I list at this moment:

• Guide this meeting
• Tell me what to see to what’s-his-name
• Reduce this fever
• Grant me rest
• Rid me of these nightmares
• Find relief from this constant pain
• Give me peace

The list could go on for quite a while.