About this Blog Seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.
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By Anushka, on 4th November 2011 I went for a walk round my village earlier this week, and my route took me past the local church. Their noticeboard said:
What’s missing from C H – - C H ?
U R !
A slightly cheesy slogan, but one that made me think for a few seconds, and then smile!
People today are quick to criticize the church, and organized religion, and to say that they would rather be Christians in their own way instead of being dictated to by the church. Masses have disassociated themselves from the church because they are disillusioned with what is offered, they see hypocrisy, they don’t see answers being given to personal or world problems, and they no longer have respect for religious leaders.
But is abandoning the church really the way to improve the situation?
Despite the problems in the established church, it is difficult to deny that the general breakdown of society such as broken families, crime and violence, has been escalating over the last fifty years or so.
Even if you are a staunch Christian it is difficult to have God at the front of your mind when you no longer spend special time apart with those who feel the same way. We should keep going to church, and fellowship with those who believe the things that we do. We should bring the Bible back and use it as the basis of our faith.
Of course the church is going to have problems – but walking away and saying its not for me doesn’t solve those problems. Lets get back to Bible basics, see what God wants from us, look at God’s plan to sort the world out, and pray for his help to sort out our everyday lives.
Just because the church doesn’t always do a very good job it doesn’t mean we can manage better by ourselves.
If “U R” one of the people missing from church why not think again? Perhaps take your family to a Thanksgiving or Christmas service over the holiday season. Or get back in touch with some Christian friends. Just maybe you will remember what you have missed over the years, and remember that every single person in the body of Christ is important to God – and he wants you back in his house!
Praying that the holiday season is a blessing for you all!
By Anushka, on 14th October 2011 What happens in the book?
- The story of the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah continues.
- Elijah the prophet’s ministry ceases, and that of Elisha the prophet takes over.
- Elisha performs many miracles in the northern kingdom of Israel.
- None of the kings of Israel follow God, and the kingdom of Israel is taken into captivity by Assyria in 722 BC.
- A handful of the kings of Judah do follow God, but 136 years later, the kingdom of Judah is also taken into captivity by Babylon.
What are the main miracles Elisha performed?
- Increased the oil of a widow woman close to starvation (Chapter 4).
- Raised the Shunammite lady’s son to life (Chapter 4).
- Purifies a poisonous stew (Chapter 4).
- Cures Naaman’s leprosy (Chapter 5).
- Makes an axe head float (Chapter 6).
Who were the significant good kings of Judah?
- Jehoshaphat – followed God in his early years, did not worship idols.
- Joash/Jehoash – repaired the temple.
- Uzziah/Azariah – did what was right in the sight of the Lord.
- Hezekiah – removed the high places (altars to idols), did not depart from following the Lord.
- Josiah – repaired the temple, finds the Book of the Law and institutes reforms throughout the land including the Passover.
Are there any other significant events?
- There was one queen throughout this period, Athaliah. She was wicked and tried to destroy the rest of the royal family.
- The royal line from David – which God had promised would lead to Jesus – nearly came to an end in this period thanks to Athaliah, but one child was saved and hidden.
- The morality of all the kings is judged by whether they did what was right, or what was evil, in the sight of the Lord. A worldly king was a bad king.
What can we learn?
- Human nature doesn’t change – throughout history people do not learn from their mistakes, the next generation has the same problems. The people of Israel and Judah did not learn that when they followed God life was better. Their evil ways eventually brought destruction.
- In the miracle of Naaman’s cure from leprosy we see a sign pointing forward to baptism – Naaman was given new life following a cleansing in the water.
Next time: Bitesize Book of 1 Chronicles!
By Anushka, on 27th September 2011 When we welcome people into our community what kind of process do we go through? Do we vet people as they come in the door? Do we look at them and say, “I’m sorry, but you can’t come in until you put that cigarette out/get married to your partner/sober up/stop using that language!” Or do we straight away say, “Welcome, come in and see what we’re about.”
So often we insist that the people who walk through our doors first change their behavior so that they are acceptable to us. Then once they are respectable they can come in and listen to what we have to say. After a period of time maybe they believe the things that we are teaching, and decide they want to get baptized. Finally, they belong to our community. Now we can get to know them properly.
But hang on – what did Jesus do?
I seem to remember that he welcomed anyone who was interested to his little group of followers without comment. Who followed him round? Some uneducated fishermen, a tax collector or two, prostitutes, adulterers, and other people that the Pharisees called sinners. No-one special. People from all backgrounds – homeless, working class, middle class, and even a Pharisee or two themselves. All these people considered themselves his followers.
What happened to them? They were convinced by his teaching, they believed on him, and hang on, as a result of that belief they changed their own behaviour! An impetuous fisherman wrote an eloquent New Testament letter. A Christian-killer became an ardent preacher. A tax collector gave back what he stole and reformed. People’s lives were changed – and not because Jesus told them to – but because they saw themselves that the change was necessary to lead a life pleasing to God.
So next time a stranger walks into your church – try and make them feel like they belong, get to know them as a person, invite them to share in your community, and the message we are always trying to share may slip into their hearts that bit more easily, bringing us all closer to God.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8)
By Anushka, on 11th September 2011 As I’ve been doing the Bitesize Bible study series, sometimes I end up wondering what the point of reading a particular book is. There is such a variety of literature in the Bible; it’s full of history, poetry, prophecy, letters, and songs, all written by many different people over a wide span of history, but not all of it seems directly relevant to the message of salvation.
If you view the Bible as a whole, its clear to see that there is a thread running through it. Right from creation you can see that there was a plan for a Saviour, and that God chose his special people and promised them the land of Israel for ever, and that these two plans are linked – eventually the Saviour will be the means of Israel, both physical and spiritual, being restored to the promised land.
The thing that can be difficult is understanding all the details in between the various strands of this thread. Why do we care exactly how the Israelites prepared each sacrifice? Why do we care how many from each tribe entered the land, the exact borders of their territories, and exactly how many gold plates they gave to the Lord? What relevance do some of these details have for us?
Some books strike me as being very dry, or very difficult to understand or get into, and even when you do, the relevance for us today is not always obvious.
We have to have a starting point. Having decided that the Bible is the way to find God, it stands to reason that all these details must be there for a purpose. So, the question is, what is the point of the more obscure books and passages in the bible and how do they help us to find God? The Bible says:
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea…Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. (1 Corinthians 10:1-2,11-12)
We can summarize the above quotes as follows:
- The whole written Bible is inspired by God – for people who want to follow him.
- It teaches us how to behave and corrects our wrong behavior, so that we become more righteous and do good works.
- The character studies and stories present examples so that we can see the right and wrong ways to behave, and can learn from the mistakes of other people, and in doing so we will keep on the right path.
How can we put this into practice when reading an obscure or slightly dry book of the Bible?
- Review the passage briefly to start with to get an idea of what is happening.
- Focus in on words spoken by God or the story elements involving people.
- Can you take a lesson from Gods words or see something in it for yourself?
- Can you learn from the situation a certain person found themselves in and their reaction to that situation?
- Can you obtain any practical advice from the chapter?
- If not maybe you need to place the book in its historical context. Do some research and find out what period of history you are looking at, if there are links with any other parts of the Bible, and look at what the culture and society of the time was like. This approach is often helpful with the prophets to place them in the relevant king’s time period, and also with Paul’s letters to see what topical issues in his current culture he had to deal with.
- If the above doesn’t help, look at the cross-references in your Bible margin and try to find some links with other parts of the Bible which may give you an insight into the chapter you are reading.
- Finally, if you find it difficult, get some friends at church to help you study, read some books around the subject, or use the internet for research or to have discussions with other people.
It may be hard work to persevere and find out the answers, but knowing that everything in the Bible is there for a reason will mean that everything you learn is beneficial and helping you to walk in the way of the Lord. May God bless your studies.
By Anushka, on 29th August 2011 What happens in the book?
- David’s son Solomon becomes king of the land of Israel and reigns for 40 years.
- Following Solomon’s death the kingdom is divided in two, the south (Judah) is ruled by Solomon’s son Rehoboam and the north (Israel) by a man called Jeroboam.
- Jeroboam leads Israel into idolatry and his reign is followed by other kings who follow in his footsteps and do not follow God.
- The prophets Elijah and Micaiah try to turn the heart of one of these kings, Ahab, back to God to no avail.
What happened during the reign of Solomon?
- Chapter 3 – Solomon asks God to give him wisdom.
- Chapters 5 – 8 – Solomon builds the temple in Jerusalem. It is modeled on the tabernacle.
- Chapters 9 – 10 – Solomon becomes extremely wealthy, and the Queen of Sheba comes to visit him.
- Chapter 11 – Solomon sins by marrying foreign wives, building up a great army of horses and chariots, and turning to idolatry.
- God tells Solomon he will take his kingdom away from him and it will be torn in two.
What did Elijah do during the reign of king Ahab?
- Chapter 17 – he performed a miracle for the widow of Zarephath, providing her with food to eat when she had only a handful of flour left, and also raised her son back to life following a fatal illness.
- Chapter 18 – he competes with the prophets of Baal to see whose God is the true God – and wins.
- Chapter 21 – he rebukes Ahab and his wife Jezebel for murdering Naboth and taking his vineyard.
What can we learn?
- When Israel followed God the country flourished and had wealth and peace from their enemies.
- When they departed from God the kingdom declined.
- Wealth and peace sometimes led the people to become complacent and forget God – we should never forget to thank him for our blessings and to follow Him during good times and bad.
Next time – Bitesize Book of 2 Kings!
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