Rehoboam

(2 Chronicles 11-13)

The king to follow Solomon. I can’t help but think this guy was just an idiot. He followed his father, Solomon, who sought God, who was wise beyond human power, who was successful and wealthy; you’d think he’d have learned at least something from his dad. Nope, at least not very much. Rather than taking the advice of older men who encouraged him to treat his people kindly, he takes the advice of young men and tells his people he will treat them harshly, he will use scorpions instead of whips. And of course, he refuses to seek God and his kingdom is torn in two, Israel to the north and Judah in the south, where he’ll reign as king for 17 years.

It’s really easy to look at this and judge Rehoboam, but what would this look like for us? What foolish advice do we follow? I’ve definitely gotten advice from friends that was unwise. It’s not that they were out to get me or to ruin me, but it just came from a heart not seeking God’s will. I’ve followed that advice too, and much like Rehoboam it’s lead me into destruction. Thankfully God has rescued me from that destruction over and over again, just as he rescued Rehoboam when he humbled himself before God, acknowledging that they deserved the impending destruction from King Shishak of Egypt. But how do we avoid going down that road in the first place?

The study Bible I’m reading asks this question, “How much of real living have we traded away for the things that do not last?” All of us serve something, whether that’s ourselves, the culture we live in, man (or the acceptance of man), money, or God. Of those, only God can give us life, true and abundant life, overflowing with peace, righteousness, and goodness. God is constant and He is good. I want to serve Him and not the caprices of myself and of this world. 

Does God Choose Some and Not Others?

I read Romans 9 today. I’m having a tough time with it. Paul writes, “For God said to Moses, ‘I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.’…So you see God shows mercy to some just because he wants to, and he chooses to make some people refuse to listen” (v. 15, 18).

I read these words and I wonder, how can this be a loving God? Why would God purposely make people not listen, are we not all created in the image of God? How can we be responsible if it isn’t even our fault? I guess I’m lucky that God has allowed me to hear his voice, and I certainly am! But what about the people I love how choose not to listen, are they choosing that or has God made them refuse to listen. 

So as these thoughts are streaming through my mind, I continue to read. Paul, or course, responds directly to those questions, “ Well then, you might say, ‘Why does God blame people for not listening? Haven’t they simply done what he made them to do?’” Yes, my thoughts exactly, Paul. He continues, “No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to criticize God? Show the thing that was c rested to say to the one who made it, ‘Why have you made me like this?’ When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make on jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into?” (v. 19-21). Ok, so I’m not suppose to question God. I understand that God is far beyond my comprehension, and I will never understand many of his ways, but he created man to think. He created us to question and to reason, and when I employ those capacities and I read these words I just don’t understand. Did God really make certain people to be used only to throw trash into? That just doesn’t make any sense to me, it makes me sick to my stomach.

I hope I’m misunderstanding what’s being said. There are a lot of debates between predestination and the free-will (I think those are the categories), and they explore this exact question. Maybe I should look into what people have written about these verses to get a bigger picture, a deeper understanding. 

I don’t have any final thoughts on this, I just read it this morning and was struggling with it. I read the next chapter in hopes to find more of an understanding but didn’t find much. If anyone is reading this and has thoughts or has struggled with this, please comment. I think it’s a good conversation to have, and I’m curious to hear other thoughts on it.

Sinful Self vs. True Self

I just finished the book Wild at Heart by John Eldridge. In his book he writes that we aren’t evil, that sin is outside of us and we give into it- it’s not our “true selves”. He uses Romans to back up his point. Paul writes “I don’t understand myself at all, for I really want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do the very thing I hate…But if I am doing what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing it; the sin within me is doing it” (Romans 7:15 and 20). What does this mean? We’re not responsible for our sin because it’s not actually us sinning? That’s what it sounds like to me. As a teacher of Life Skills classes, I want to say to Paul, “You are responsible for the choices you make, blaming something or someone else is not going to change that responsibility.” Am I right?

If we go back to the way beginning, Adam and Eve, they were perfect without sin, but with the ability to choose. Satan, who was not in them but outside of them, comes along and tempts them, and they give in. From that moment forward, mankind was born with a sinful nature and that’s who they were. In that very simplified story, we see man as God created him to be, or as John Eldridge would say, man in his “true self.” Temptation and sin were outside of him. In making the choice to eat the apple Adam and Even invited the sin inside themselves (and us). But, “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord…for the power of the life-giving Spirit us freed [us] from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 7:25, 8:2). I think this is what Paul meant when he wrote that he is not the one sinning, that the sin is something outside of his true self. 

So are we responsible for our sin? Absolutely. Adam and Eve were responsible. I am also responsible, but sin can no longer control me, not if the Spirit of God is living in me. I am no longer who I was under the sinful nature. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice I am made new. That is who I am. So Am I perfect? No, just as Adam and Eve were tempted, so I am and because I live in a fallen world I may (or will) give into temptation, but my true self is redeemed by the blood of Christ and that is who I am.

Faith vs. Works

Well, I guess it's been a couple years, but I'm still reading the Bible and have decided to start writing about it again. It had been my goal to read the entire Bible in a year, and two years later, I'm still working on it. I've read some since I last wrote, but not a ton. There's still much to read- I'm in Chronicles in the Old Testament and Romans in the New.

This morning I was reading in Romans 1 and 2. There's the verse we hear all the time, "This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, 'It is through faith that a righteous person has life.'" Then later, in Romans 2:7-8, Paul writes, "He will give eternal life to those who persist in doing what is good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and practice evil deeds."

These two verses grind against each other when I read them. Faith verses works. Does God give us eternal life because we have faith, because we know that we can do nothing to deserve his grace but because of Jesus' sacrifice, we live? Or does he give us eternal life because we do not sin, we seek after the Kingdom of Heaven alone.

If it's the latter, I've failed. I still fail, and I'll continue to fail. How often do I live for myself and go against the truths I know. Um... all the time. It's not that I don't do well sometimes, because I do put others before me, sometimes, I do seek to glorify God in my daily life, sometimes. But I'm sure I can't safely say that "I persist in doing good."

So then what? I know in Romans 3, Paul goes on about the Law and about Jews. He writes that no one is good or has understanding, that no one truly seeks God. Therefore, no one can be justified by the law because everyone will fall short. But--cue the Hallelujah Chorus--God has provided another way to be justified and that is through believing in Jesus, believing that because he gave his life for us, we can be made right before God. So then it is indeed by faith we are saved and not by what we have do or have done.

I haven't really written anything new, I've actually only summarized Romans 1-3 but the truth in these words is so critical to everything I believe that I had to write it out. In doing so, I realize how far short I fall from "being good" and how that doesn't matter. The sacrifice of Christ, the unconditional love he showed us on the cross, is the only thing that matters and may that profound act drive me to "persist in doing what is good."

Successful Idol Worshipers?

Backstory:
Micah sets up a shrine for an idol and has his son be his personal priest. Then a Levite stops by, and Micah invites the Levite to stay and be his priest. The Levite stays. Meanwhile, the a few men from tribe of Dan are searching for a place to settle and find some very fertile land with some people living nice, carefree lives. They decide to attack the land and claim it as their own, so they go back to where the rest of their tribe is and they all head to this new land, ready to attack it. But they stop at Micah's house to get the Levite to follow them as their preist. The Levite agrees and brings with him Micah's idol and ephod. They go into the land of the carefree people, attack them, and win. (Judges 17:1-18:31)

I'm completely perplexed with this story- first, why are idol worshipers successful and second, why is it written about in the Bible with no lesson attached. I recognize that a lot of ungodly people have been successful (and even in the Bible, but there always comes a downfall and a lesson learned) but we don't often find them in the Bible. Right? What am I missing here?

Anna

Women don't often get to make an appearance in the Bible. I can think of a few who are pretty famous- Ruth, Esther, Mary, Mary Magdalene, and a few others, but not many. So when I come across a woman I haven't heard of, my ear (eyes?) perk up. Today, I came across Anna. She's only given about three verses in Luke, but it's enough to get a small glimpse into who she is. She's a 84 year-old prophet (I didn't know women could be prophets). Sadly, her husband died after only seven years of marriage, so she decided to live as a widow and never leave the temple. Her devotion to God is poignantly clear in these few verses. She;s spent almost her entire life, day and night, fasting and praying. While Simeon is talking with Mary and Joseph about their son, Jesus, Mary comes up and starts praising God and talking about Jesus to all the people who had been waiting for God to rescue Jerusalem. That's all it says about her. She doesn't do anything fantastic, and her presence doesn't really even move the story along, but she got to make an appearance in the Gospels! I don't know that I have anything profound to say about her, I just wanted to write a little something because she stood out to me while I was reading. I ilke to see women in the Bible.

So God Doesn't Change His Mind?

In Numbers, King Balak of Moab begs Balaam, a man known for his curses on people, to come curse the Israelites because he is afraid of them entering his land. Balaam, being faithful to the Lord, tells Balak that he can only say what the Lord allows him to say. So when Balaam blesses Israel instead of cursing them, Balak is outraged; he tells Balaam to take the blessing back. This is Balaam's response: 

   "He is not human, so he does not change his mind. 

Has he ever promised and not carried it through?" 23:19

While the Bible may have had a different story if God had cursed Israel here, but I don't know if what Balaam is saying is true. How many times did God promise to wipe out the Israelites because of either their idol worship or their constant complaining but Moses (sometimes with the help of Aaron) change God's mind? Over and over throughout Exodus and Numbers. If Moses wrote these books, how can there be such a discrepancy in God's character? Call me anal, but I like consistency. Inconsistencies make me question the whole thing, which is it- this or that? I'm not ready to throw the baby out with the bathwater just yet, but come on, help me out here, Moses.

Here's what I wrote a few weeks ago on the same thing: Does God Change His Mind?