An audio version of my Daily Bible reading notes and encouragement!

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William Bode's Consider the Following Audio Blog

Friday, May 03, 2013

A costly defeat!
(First published on 12/19/11, edited and republished 03/05/13)
{Middle of the last book of the Bible}
Revelation 12:9 
This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.
-----------------------------
The Devil is real! Here in Revelation chapter 12 you get a great correlation of information, Dragon, Serpent, Devil, Satan, "fallen" Angel all referring to the same entity or being.
Satan is described as this great enemy of God and accuser of us who believe in God.
If you read on in the passage (included below) you'll see those people that Satan accuses are the same who defeat him by the Blood of the Lamb. You with Jesus defeat Satan! Not only is there a great enemy but He is defeated. But at a cost? We win but blood is shed. And it is the blood of Jesus and his followers' blood that is shed.
The defeat of Satan is sure, but it is also sure that it is costly to defeat him.
Jesus blood was a great cost. You too must suffer and some of the followers of Jesus will suffer to death to be involved in the defeat of Satan.
Have you thought about the serious and important role you have in the fight against evil?  God's salvation involves his people's participation. Please follower of Jesus don't ignore the fact that, Satan is a real and powerful enemy. But also don't despair, because we are confident that the Devil's defeat is sure!
But recognise this defeat comes at a great cost and you will suffer. Although this suffering now is nothing compared with Jesus' suffering and your suffering is guaranteed a victorious outcome.

The book of Revelation is full of picture language, simile, metaphor, analogy and symbolism. But although it is full of figures of speech, Revelation is also plain and clear. Because the pictures aren't as familiar as the ones we use today the meaning seems a bit more obscure. If you don't understand then email me and I'll write you a paragraph of current modern picture language /slang that you'll understand but won't mean exactly what it says but will mean exactly what you'll understand.
Here's are some guidelines for understanding the Bible:
Always ask what this passage contributed to God's revelation of Jesus. Genesis to Revelation the Bible is about Jesus. That's what Jesus said. Look for Jesus. What does this part of the Bible tell me about God's character, promise, will or expectations?
Compare the Bible with the Bible. Jesus referred to the Bible nearly in everything he said. It not only reinforced the truth but further explained it.
What did this mean for the original audience? Try to understand the words firstly in the whole Jesus /Biblical context and then secondly what did the immediate context of the first intended audience understand by it?
Lastly, how can this move you to trust Jesus today?


Revelation 12:1-18 NLT
Then I witnessed in heaven an event of great significance. I saw a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant, and she cried out because of her labor pains and the agony of giving birth. Then I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads. His tail swept away one-third of the stars in the sky, and he threw them to the earth. He stood in front of the woman as she was about to give birth, ready to devour her baby as soon as it was born. She gave birth to a son who was to rule all nations with an iron rod. And her child was snatched away from the dragon and was caught up to God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place to care for her for 1,260 days. Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels. Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens, “It has come at last— salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth— the one who accuses them before our God day and night. And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony. And they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens! And you who live in the heavens, rejoice! But terror will come on the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you in great anger, knowing that he has little time.” When the dragon realized that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But she was given two wings like those of a great eagle so she could fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness. There she would be cared for and protected from the dragon for a time, times, and half a time. Then the dragon tried to drown the woman with a flood of water that flowed from his mouth. But the earth helped her by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that gushed out from the mouth of the dragon. And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus. Then the dragon took his stand on the shore beside the sea.


https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/william-bode/id635644278

The Defeat Of The Devil  at Bingham Park

Saturday, May 04, 2013

Not a fairy tale.
Not a fairy tale. real people, real places,

Ezekiel 20:1-3 NLT

On August 14, during the seventh year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, some of the leaders of Israel came to request a message from the Lord. They sat down in front of me to wait for his reply. Then this message came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, tell the leaders of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: How dare you come to ask me for a message? As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord , I will tell you nothing!’

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The Bible is littered with times, places and people.

The Bible isn't self-congratulatory of God's people nor does it paint the picture of a man-made God. The gods of men usually are all sop or all bluster. Sugarcoated gods of self aggrandisement fill the pages of fiction in cultures around the world.

The one true God works in time and space although he exists beyond them.

So six days and nearly three thousand years before my birthday during the reign of an exiled Jewish king plotting a coup against the powerful Babylonians with Egypt, God's prophet spoke on God's behalf to His rebellious people.

See? Time, place, people are all represented. Although God is unknowable far beyond a mystery, He works within time and history!

And what does he say? This God says some unexpected things. And firstly this time he says he'll say nothing.

Real people, real places, 
hurt feelings and downcast faces
The Bible records a tale of woe
And God's own people become his foe
Travel in time and you'd find them there Plotting schemers God will not spare 
Trusting, humble hearts He does require 
If they are to avoid the judgment fire

Not A Fairy Tale  at Manchester Airport (MAN)

Sunday, May 05, 2013

Trickle Down Systemic Sin
Ezekiel 22:23-31 NLT

Again a message came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, give the people of Israel this message: In the day of my indignation, you will be like a polluted land, a land without rain. Your princes plot conspiracies just as lions stalk their prey. They devour innocent people, seizing treasures and extorting wealth. They make many widows in the land. Your priests have violated my instructions and defiled my holy things. They make no distinction between what is holy and what is not. And they do not teach my people the difference between what is ceremonially clean and unclean. They disregard my Sabbath days so that I am dishonored among them. Your leaders are like wolves who tear apart their victims. They actually destroy people’s lives for money! And your prophets cover up for them by announcing false visions and making lying predictions. They say, ‘My message is from the Sovereign Lord,’ when the Lord hasn’t spoken a single word to them. Even common people oppress the poor, rob the needy, and deprive foreigners of justice. “

I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one. So now I will pour out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my anger. I will heap on their heads the full penalty for all their sins. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”

------------------

One of the economic policies of the past 30 years was termed "trickle down" but it's not new. And the policy falls over in the same way that communism did. Both systems assume people are good. The conservatives think the rich will be kind and benevolent and the liberals think people will be honest and fair. 
But just like this indictment from God through Ezekiel to God's people nearly three thousand years ago shows people haven't changed. Enlightened, educated, informed people at all levels of society take advantage of those under them. 
What does seem to trickle down is corruption. So the result is oppression and suffering at every level. And everyone is in on it. The aristocracy harms the weak and their good position is not used for justice. The religious elite fail to fulfil their duty and don't set an upright example. The leaders of the people abuse their position and so destroy others for their own financial gain. The Prophets collude with the leaders. And the common person is abusive to the vulnerable too.

The result is the wrath of God!

Even with all the evil corruption God sought out people who would help rebuild a society of protection. God looked for individuals that would be a voice for the poor, the weak and the oppressed. But no one took seriously God's word. None were willing to 'stand in the gap.'

Although we should aspire to be better and although we should want leaders without corruption, men are never going to be truly trustworthy.

We must trust God who is the only one not corrupt. We must trust God who stands in the gap. We must trust Jesus who was a voice for the poor and oppressed. Our only hope is to hide behind the very one who can judge us. The only safe place is by the judge.

If you want a society that is right don't look to men, look to God.

(written while playing with my nearly three year old grandson .)


Trickle Down

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

A Catch-Up Day Promise
I'm currently on day seven of a ten week plan to read through the first five books of the Bible written by Moses. Every week the plan has built in a catch-up day. Here's a bit about the reading plan and an invitation to join me. For today's Bible thought skip to the passage from 2 Timothy. On this catch-up day I decided to add in another reading plan and I have included information about it and have written today's note in response to it. I'll plan to read this plan once a week on the catch-up days if I'm not behind.
---------------
Info and invite 
Old Testament – The Books of Moses
10 Weeks
This simple plan will lead you through the first five books of the Old Testament. With just a few chapters to read each day, this is a great plan for individual or group study.
This plan was created by YouVersion. For more information, visit: www.youversion.com
bible.us/r/3a Join me in reading Old Testament – The Books of Moses:
----------------
2TI 4:16-18 ESV
At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them! But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Pray: God, connect with me here, as I seek you in your Word. Begin with focus and openness to see what God has for you.
Read: the selected section of Scripture slowly. Take note of intriguing words and phrases and read them a second time. 
Reflect: on what strikes you as you read. Think through what God is communicating to you at this point in your life.
Respond: to the passage. Speak to God directly about what's on your mind and heart. Look for ways to live out what you've uncovered.
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Info about the 7 Days of God's Promises plan below
God's Promises
7 Days
Friends and loved ones will occasionally let us down; nobody's perfect. But when others disappoint us, we can take comfort in knowing God never fails.
We would like to thank American Bible Society for their generosity in providing this Uncover the Word reading plan.
---------------------
William's thoughts on today's passage. 
Paul is writing to encourage his young coworker in the gospel work, Timothy.
Both Timothy and Paul faced opposition from evil men who opposed the message about Jesus being talked about. 
Any one who makes it thier aim to spread the good news about Jesus will have opposition from people like the ones opposing Paul and Timothy. 
So you too should read these promises and find encouragement because it will happen to you. 

Share it if it's good!
If you are a believer, you will be compelled by the Holy Spirit of God to tell others. It only makes sense. Who could keep it to themselves? Once I heard it is like one beggar telling the other beggars where he found free bread. I'm sure you are aware of the terrible wrath of God coming to this world and you can not let your friends, family members, neighbours and colleagues race headlong into such a hideous end if in fact you know how they can be saved. You wouldn't let a group of children walk around the corner and plunge into a fresh sinkhole leading to a volcanic pit of fire? You'd warn them. You'd offer to lead them to safety.
So the christian must tell about Jesus' being the way the truth and the life. But evil people will oppose you.
Paul says to Timothy here in the passage above, When you face opposition although people may fail you, Jesus will strengthen you. God will come to your aid. 
You will be able to keep proclaiming the good news that Jesus saves us from the coming wrath of God. Jesus will stand by you strengthen you and rescue you so that you can keep telling others even when you are opposed or abandoned.
Jesus will save you too!
So keep telling unbelievers, keep telling each other, keep telling yourself, Jesus saves!

Catch-Up Day Promise  at Cruise Road

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Mistaken identity
Genesis 21:1-7 ESV
The Lord
visited Sarah 
as he had said, and the Lord did to Sarah as he had promised. 
And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age 
at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac.  And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, 
as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, 
"God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me." And she said, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age."
_________________

How many times have you heard this story? I know I've heard it many times. And it seems to me every time I've ever heard it before I've left thinking of Abraham and even more so of Sarah. And to be sure both of them are key characters. We should empathise with them. It is an exciting miracle. A very old couple have become first time parents. Sarah is ninety! Ninety year old women don't have babies! 
But this is not first and foremost a story about Abraham, Sarah, or Isaac.
This is a story about God!
If you take a moment to thumb through your Bible around these chapters in Genesis. Look for the number of times the narration punctuates the action with God or the Lord. God said. The Lord said. The Lord went. God came. God caused. 
And crucially in these seven verses above, God has made.
Listen to how Paul puts God the focus of Abraham's sorry in Romans, 
Romans 4:19-22 ESV
He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead ( since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was "counted to him as righteousness."
Romans 9:8-11 ESV
This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. For this is what the promise said: "About this time next year I will return, and Sarah shall have a son." And not only so, but also when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad—in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls—
Later the author of the book of Hebrews sheds this light on these events,
Hebrews 11:11-19 ESV
By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore. These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city. By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named." He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.
In every case the story is about God. Is your life story about God? Are you putting your faith in the promise of God to you?
When you review your past or contemplate your future is it seen though the lens of God's plan and God's promise?
Don't try to be the star of this epic saga. Trust God who, keeps giving. Expect God to enable you to fulfil his promise to you.
Do you even know God's promise to you? Here's a clue it is a promise about Jesus. Jesus is the son of promise, born out of time. Born into impossible circumstances. Born to declare God's intention to save. Born to show God to you. Jesus is ultimately the one who in every way fulfils the many promises of God.
Do you know him? 
Do you trust him? 
Are you expecting him to work out the promise of God to you? 
Are you making sure the story of your life is a story about God fulfilling his promise through Jesus?

Mistaken Identity  at Bingham Park

Saturday, May 25, 2013

A few things you may have missed about Abraham

Genesis 25:1-18 ESV

1Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah.2She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3Jokshan fathered Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. 4The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. 5Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. 6But to the sons of his concubines Abraham gave gifts, and while he was still living he sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.  7These are the days of the years of Abraham's life, 175 years. 8Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people. 9Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre, 10the field that Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with Sarah his wife. 11After the death of Abraham, God blessed Isaac his son. And Isaac settled at Beer-lahai-roi. 12These are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham's son,whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's servant, bore to Abraham.13These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, named in the order of their birth: Nebaioth, the firstborn of Ishmael; and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14Mishma, Dumah, Massa,15Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16These are the sons of Ishmael and these are their names, by their villages and by their encampments, twelve princes according to their tribes. 17(These are the years of the life of Ishmael: 137 years. He breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people.) 18They settled from Havilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt in the direction of Assyria. He settled over against all his kinsmen.
_________________
Did you know that Abraham had at least two wives and concubines and the liaison with Hagar?

Did you know Abraham sent all his concubines and sons away to the East with gifts?

Did you know Ishmael and Isaac together buried thier Father Abraham?
__
God is not endorsing Abraham's choices. 
Have we forgot already that this is a story about God?

A Sheffield Working Man's Hero
But let's learn some things through a little review. God spent a lot of time on the Abraham project. 
(How long has God been on your radar?) 
Abraham lived 175 years. God didn't even ask Abram to start the journey of the covenant till he was 75 years old! So all the story we know spans the last 100 years of God's life. Of that bit, Isaac is the centre piece of the promise and he doesn't show up for 25 years! Lots of stuff happens but until Isaac is born were all wondering if God might have forgot. Well not really forgot but not sure what's going on. Then there is the sacrifice incident about 37 years after the call and initial promise. And although Genesis 25 puts a pretty good light on Abraham's life, the facts and a bit of reality sure look like a different story.
Abram is a foreigner with designs on other people's land. This would not make you immediately popular. Delayed by his dad's plans in Haran. Then he's moved out by famine to Egypt (this becomes a theme right through to Jesus). He had a run in with Egyptian authority's over a woman and convenient truth. Then he has a full scale war and had to rescue Lot. They have more encounters with God along the way, a city destroyed by fire from heaven , a pillar of salt for a niece-in-law, and the Hagar situation which becomes a major domestic scene. Things look like they might be turning around, over the years business had been good, Sarah had Isaac, God provided a lamb in the faith test. And then Sarah dies. So although once a foreigner always a foreigner, when faced with funeral negotiations for his wife Sarah's resting place the locals appear to be cordial enough. 
Then we read about more wives, concubines and family schisms. And after all this time, waiting, trusting, and often doing the wrong thing Abraham's two sons Isaac and Ishmael who represent the biggest family feud many times worse and longer than the Hatfields and the McCoys, come together and bury their Father. 

Abraham is not the star,  nor the villain. 

We are not to read the bible story making our own saints of men who have exemplary faith or moral character.
We are to marvel at what God is doing through and in spite of mankind. What God is doing is on their behalf to glorify himself through his promise. A promise always pointing to Jesus. Whether we look back or forward with an expectation of his return or we were Abraham wondering why I'm sending away Ishmael or binding Isaac we are trusting God to write the story for his glory. and that is the way it should be.

This should help you get past yourself, your timetables, your judgemental attitudes and ask yourself, "What does God want me to believe about himself?" 
What promise fulfilled in Jesus am I trusting in?
How can I quit trying to get my name on the marquee of my life's story.
Most Christians these days would be too embarrassed to have the things written about Abraham written in their biography. Abraham could never have been a church leader in the contemporary Christian church.
We think we are better than Abraham. And come to think of it we'd not have done ministry like Jesus did either.
We know better.
Don't we?

Things about Abraham

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

a silent tsunami crashing the shore without warning.
Psalms 34:18 (NLT)

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
______________________________________________

There is a heaviness. It fills the breast and presses in like a weight. It takes your breath away but sometimes slowly crushing and other times coming like a silent tsunami crashing the shore without warning. While trying to shift it you feel guilt for a thing you can not put your finger on and everything you've ever done wrong. The burden of failures not your own coupled with inadequacies long felt and denied rush in to fill the black hole that is sucking your life away.

I pray.

The weight does not shift.

Fear invades.

Cold analysis seems painful and facts unable to change the feeling.

Keep telling myself the truth.

What is physical? What is mental? What is from outside myself and what is from deep within?

I am not a slave to this feeling. I will not be defeated by it; it will not overwhelm me! Tell my chest that. Tell my laboured breathing. Tell my tense muscles and tell my weary soul, that years of trying, and happy times have not erased that past. The future looms.

The future is sure. The past is erased. You are free. Even if you don't feel free you are free. Today, Now begins anew. Newness is a promise. You know newness and freedom. You will not be robbed.

You need sleep. You need to pray. You need to reach out. In reaching out you feel help. Make a list. Point your finger. Dismiss the Accuser! The debt is paid. The burden is shared. The burden is light. There is a lightness.

Let your worries for others go. Take them to the Father. Lay them down. He can raise the dead.
I meant it for evil but he can use it for good. They mean it for evil but He can use it for good. Evil does not win!

The head hurts from the battle. The neck aches. But I surrender not to darkness but to light.

Darkness can not defeat the light.

Wait for his rescue. It will come!

Silent Tsunami  at Millennium Gallery

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Go in, listen to , lie beside, be with
Genesis 38:7-10 ESV
But Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord , and the Lord put him to death. Then Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother." But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his. So whenever he went in to his brother's wife he would waste the semen on the ground, so as not to give offspring to his brother. And what he did was wicked in the sight of the Lord , and he put him to death also.

Genesis 39:5-10 ESV
From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field. So he left all that he had in Joseph's charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, "Lie with me." But he refused and said to his master's wife, "Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her.
_________________________________________

I won't pretend to have all the answers when it comes to understanding these chapters in Genesis (38-39).
However there are hints and themes that point us towards God's intent.
May I remind you that proliferation of the human race has been job one since man's creation. And although the blessing of offspring has been particularly promised to Abraham's family that promise has required a lot of faith. And proliferation when it does happen seems to be mired in family conflict, deceit, and immorality.
But the key to gaining clarity in this mottled ancestry is to look for God, and God's promise. Who is trusting God even when it appears to be counter productive in realising the promise. See God comes before even the promise. Hearken back to Abraham and Isaac with the lamb. Our experience of blessing should never need to be at the cost of God's glory. We can be faithful to God without forcing our self interest at the cost of regard for God's word.
To be honest I don't have all the answers about these two chapters. But I know that we are meant to notice the contrast. Two of Judah's sons are killed by God. Joseph is blessed. But it's not quite that simple. Joseph is a slave. Joseph is in Egypt. Joseph has no children. 
Judah's sons Er and Onan are wicked and they are not blessed.
Judah, Er, Onan, and Joseph all have to make a choice about sex. Only Joseph's abstinence policy is blessed. But again blessing includes prison, slander, and loss. In Joseph's life the way up is very much down. 
The Lord blessed Joseph's regard for God's way. Judah, Er, and Onan did not consider God's plan.
Do you? 
Are you willing to be blessed while in prison, slandered for doing right, or sold into slavery because you are relating God's plan revealed to you?
Ultimately this is a story about Jesus. Can you see Jesus? How would Jesus explain his Father's plan to rescue the world through his humiliation and  death in these few chapters of Genesis?

When and When Not To Have Sex?  at Bingham Park

Friday, May 31, 2013

Fruitful in the Land of my Affliction
GEN 41:51-52 ESV
Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. "For," he said, "God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father's house."  The name of the second he called Ephraim, "For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction."

----------------------------------------------------------


Joseph has had it hard. He was singled out by his father as the most loved of 12 boys. That's gotta hurt! The whole robe thing is embarrassing. He's sent by his Father to effectively be a nark and check up on his brothers. That's not going to make you popular. Then God gives Joseph these dreams that no one wants to hear, not even his father. He's tossed in a deep hole and then sold to his cousins as a slave and in turn sold in Egypt. Joseph does well though until a sex crazed woman lies about him. And He's tossed into another pit, jail. And again he does well and even gets a big break with the cupbearer to Pharaoh, only to be forgotten for another two years. So when Joseph is 30 he has a huge life change and comes into fame and fortune! And he is railroaded into marrying the daughter of a false religion's leader.

But Joseph makes the best of the situation and gets busy! Now he has two sons. Joseph's son's names are significant. In fact when the twelve tribes of Israel are named throughout all history you will not hear Joseph himself named. Instead you hear of Joseph's sons! Have you ever thought about the fact that built into the twelve tribes of Israel are two half Egyptian grandson's to the high priest of an Egyptian god? 

Sometimes we need another perspective. And nothing can quite give us a new vantage point like a newborn baby. All that a newborn encapsulates fills us with hope. They are needy, vulnerable, and full of possibility and still they are resilient and demanding.

Joseph sees a new future when God blesses him with sons. And the blessing erases the past and provides for the future.

Now I'd like to encourage each one of you to have sons! But I mean spiritual sons! You are not too old, too single, too afflicted to ask God to make your faith fruitful. What your church needs are new believers. What your family needs is someone who has newly come to trust Jesus. We need in the church today the hope that comes with people being born again. Wherever you are, whatever your state in life, I'm asking you to pray that God makes you fruitful! I'm asking that you hope for newborns in the kingdom of God. And I pray as they come you give them names, may be new names. In addition to brother or sister call them Hope! Name them Ephraim! 

As time goes on and God speaks of his people, he uses different tribes to refer to the whole or called them all Israel after Jacob's name change. When heartbroken over his people God's term of endearment in the book of Hosea is Ephraim. So an Egyptian boy whose grandfather was a very important religious leader for an Egyptian god and his other grandfather was a man who actually wrestled with the one true God of promise. Ephraim, the son of Joseph is a sign of fruitfulness that comes from affliction.

Posted by William Bode at 5/31/2013 07:41:00 am

Fruitful Affliction  at Bingham Park

Saturday, June 01, 2013

God tried to kill you!
Genesis 45:4-9, 24 ESV

So Joseph said to his brothers, "Come near to me, please." And they came near. And he said, "I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. 

So it was not you who sent me here, but God. 

He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt. Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, "Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not tarry.

Then he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, "Do not quarrel on the way."
___________________


Joseph has not had an easy life. But even though he could be full of bitterness and desire revenge against his brothers, he reassures them. There is no question that Joseph's brothers did a despicable thing throwing him into the well and selling him into slavery. And then lying to their father about Joseph's death really was evil. The brothers could have looked for Joseph since they saw the pain it caused their father. Truly Joseph and his brothers were like enemies. But Joseph became a powerful ruler of Egypt for nine years. And he held his brother in prison for one year. During that time his father could have died. Joseph for more than eight or nine years did not seem to have urgency about seeing his father. And that does not include the many more years in the house of Potiphar or in jail. Surely Joseph could have got word to his family that he was still alive.
As I've said the brothers don't go looking for Joseph and he doesn't try to contact them. So I'm not sure what Joseph was trying to do with the elaborate plan to put the money back in the grain sacks. I don't think we can assume that holding his brother in prison for a year wasn't Joseph planning revenge. But seeing his brother may have changed his mind. Now he wants to see his brother and his father. Could it be that during the meal, while Joseph sees his younger brother, God reveals to him the whole picture. It could be that Joseph knew all this all along and it was necessary that God establish Joseph as a crucial person of  importance in Egypt as the famine rolls along for the second year. I don't know how or when Joseph came to it but ultimately he hits upon the idea that God was in his brother's betrayal. In fact God used all his hardship to save him and his family. 



Could it be that like Joseph, God is the one saving you by making family members your enemies?
Could it be that you were given that promotion and the boss's wife came on to you only to put you in jail? Could it be God's plan that you have suffered slander? Could that sex-crazed liar be God's way of getting you closer to a position of salvation?
Did you ever think that being forgotten by the people you have helped is God's way of making sure you are in the right place at the right time?
Could this crisis facing the world right now God's way of saving his people?
Could it be that god tried to kill you via your brothers just to save all of you?

As the flood of emotion breaks loose with this odd family reunion, Joseph declares the purposes of God are found in the most hurtful of life situations. In the disappointments, in the betrayals and moments of being forgotten, God is working out his plan to save!

In my life I look back to these moments and I fail to see God! I'm pretty sure I'm not alone. And I'm not even sure Joseph always saw it. But here and now he does see it. He has compassion on his brothers. He loads them down with a windfall of gifts to convince his father that he is still alive! 

Put yourself in Jacob's shoes. Sooner or later you'd think he's going to know the whole real story, and who is going to blamed for the many years of deep grief. In the end he has no one to point the finger more than God.

Yet it was for his salvation. This was all God's plan. God was rescuing his people. But far more than the famine (which also came from God's hand) could it be that we can see even further? Can we see God is working out the plan to save mankind from the one thing that is of their own making? All this has been worked out by God to save you from sin! To save you and to save me from our own sin. The one thing we get a choice in, the one thing we can control is our love and recognition of God and we fail at this miserably, even when we know better. So God is going to use our sin to ultimately save us. Our murderous intentions will kill the one innocent man who will die in our place. And as Jesus dies he will say Father forgive them for they know not what they do.

Joseph's brothers have won the lotto! They are getting to move to the best land in the richest country in the world. They are loaded with royal gifts. They are riding in style. They have a royal invitation from the very people who wouldn't before sit and eat with them. They have a royal pardon for treason, treachery, and the murderous intentions they've harbored these many years. During this time of famine they have a harvest of goods unbelievable even in the best of times. And why? Because the one they intended to harm, the one they condemned to death, the one they mocked and maligned has forgiven them and blessed them beyond their wildest dreams.

We don't take to salvation very readily. We look the gift horse of grace in the mouth and we still find a way to argue with our brothers. So the man who has suffered to save us, has to still tell us to not quarrel along the way. 


God Tried To Kill You!  at Bingham Park

Big Up The Underdog  at Bingham Park

Tuesday, June 04, 2013

Big Tax Refund
Exodus 3:21-22 NLT
And I will cause the Egyptians to look favorably on you. They will give you gifts when you go so you will not leave empty-handed. Every Israelite woman will ask for articles of silver and gold and fine clothing from her Egyptian neighbors and from the foreign women in their houses. You will dress your sons and daughters with these, stripping the Egyptians of their wealth.”
__________________

Another reversal jumps from the pages of the Bible. And this time it's wealth that is redistributed. Throughout Genesis I saw a lot of position, prestige and status reversals. There were some plot spoilers where riches were caused by God to multiply for the person being mistreated. The spotted, stripped, and speckled sheep and goats scenario between Jacob and Laban was a situation where God saw to it that his people weren't swindled. And that's what this is all about.
God isn't arbitrarily shuffling the money deck and then dealing a bad hand to the Egyptians while dealing off the bottom of the deck for his people. No, not at all. God is righting a wrong. That's what a God of justice does.
So before you get your gimme hands ta grasping consider if you've been doing right by others with what God's given you!
Far too often people in the church start naming and claiming blessings, promises, riches, happiness and botox from their personal God genie. But they fail to see how long the injustice period had gone on. They choose to ignore the fact that literally days after one of the greatest wealth redistributions in history the lotto winners were full of fear and complaints. Riches will not make you happy. More will not solve your problems.

But God is keeping score.

Bingham Park at 20:30 03/06/13
And he loves to make things right. So if you've been done wrong God has a plan to give you justice. Consider it a heavenly savings plan.
There are plenty of God's people who have been taken advantage of. You may be one of the people suffering in silence, groaning to God as your hard earned cash is clothing the rich in Versace and Prada. But rest assured God will hear you. And someday and in some way the wrong will be righted.
Can you trust God? Can you let him provide for you?
Moses here gets the Exodus master plan from God. And as a reminder he's Abraham's God. He's Isaacs God. He's Jacob's God. That's an impressive list. God made sure each of them had plenty. Each started out with meager beginnings and each faced an obstacle of significant portion. But in each case God provided.
God is faithful. He always provides what you need.
And far more than riches you need a heart change. Remember that all though these former slaves turned into the wealthy making a stunning exit left rich they quickly and repeatedly were unsatisfied.
So make sure you desire the right riches. God does want to right the financial wrongs but more than your bank balance it's your heart that needs to be rescued.
Posted by William Bode at 6/04/2013 07:48:00 am 

Big Tax Refund Coming  at Bingham Park

Belligerent Little Man at Bingham Park

Friday, June 07, 2013

Behind the scenes, His purpose.
Exodus 9 :12
"But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh,"
_______________________
(a more complete sampling of these passages is included below my notes.)

Sheffield seen from Heeley
Two things you need to know about how God sometimes works. 


In the short term he may ask you to do something and then he might work 'against you' while you try to do what he said.
God may be doing something 'odd' in someone else's heart; You have no idea how he works.
God asks Moses to talk to Pharaoh and ask Pharaoh to let his people go.

Then God makes sure Pharaoh says no a lot!

For a while this makes Moses very unpopular with God's people and with Pharaoh. I'm sure the Egyptians weren't very impressed either.
From our perspective God sets Moses up to fail. Sure in the end it works out for the most part but along the way Moses has a lot to deal with. If you were given a job by God how long will you accept what looks and feels like failure.
Many modern day followers of God give up on a lot of things pretty quickly.
Pharaoh's heart was hardened. I find this incredible. And God gives a reason too.
" so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth."
" But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth."
God being seeing as God is the highest goal and greatest reason for all that God does. It is all for the glory of God. From my and your limited point of view we can not always see how God could get glory out of the situation. But God can. It's all part of God's plan. We should not be so quick to judge. We don't have all the information.
Moses and Pharaoh are both quite unlikely characters to accomplish God's purposes and bring him glory.
Maybe you are too. But the story of the Exodus is epic in God's plan. This incident is repeated over and over. These events are key to understanding what God is doing through Jesus. Jesus himself retells the story the night before he is crucified as did every faithful Jews at every passover celebration for over a thousand years and a couple thousand since Jesus.
I suppose I just think we need to be reminded that God doesn't always ask us to do things he's going to make easy. I can imagine God's people praying, 'Lord  please soften Pharaoh's heart so he let's us go.' All the while God is hardening his heart.


Are you sure you know what God is doing? 
What brings him glory? 
Do you really know how you'd be best partnering with him?
Do what you're told!
Leave the results up to God. 
Don't give up. 
Don't think you know what's going on. 
Have faith that God does.
______________

Exodus 9:12-21, 27-28, 34-35 ESV
But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had spoken to Moses. Then the Lord said to Moses, "Rise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, "Thus says the Lord , the God of the Hebrews, "Let my people go, that they may serve me. For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. You are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Now therefore send, get your livestock and all that you have in the field into safe shelter, for every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home will die when the hail falls on them."" Then whoever feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh hurried his slaves and his livestock into the houses, but whoever did not pay attention to the word of the Lord left his slaves and his livestock in the field. Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, "This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Plead with the Lord , for there has been enough of God's thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer." But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses.
EXO 10:1-2 ESV
Then the Lord said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them, and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord ."

Behind The Scenes, His Purpose  at Bingham Park

Sunday, June 09, 2013

The gift of a song.
Exodus 15:2
The Lord gives me strength and makes me sing; he has saved me. He is my God, and I will praise him.
---------------------



Daughters of Davis DVD
It all starts with a gift. God has been giving since the beginning when he gave Adam the breath of life. Then God gave him purpose, a job, a place and woman as a companion. God had given fruit to eat, a garden to care for, animals to name, a command to obey, sons to raise, and a warning with hope for the future. 
Here after a long, difficult process of trusting God and seeing his miraculous deliverance, Moses and God's rescued people rejoice because God gave them strength. And God gives them a song too.
I love how a relationship with God includes the gift of a song. Moses' song shared with the people and led by his sister says that God makes them sing.
I'm confident this isn't a one off. The Psalms are replete with people moved to song as a proper response to being rescued. Mary the mother of Jesus celebrates her saviour the baby she carried with a song. And Elisabeth the mother of John the Baptist also rejoices in God's salvation with a song.
Songs are an appropriate response to God's nearness. When God comes into our lives and hears our cries for help, often he gives us a song to accompany our Exodus from captivity.
Has the Lord of heaven and earth saved you? Has the creator of the universe given you strength? Do you sense his presence? Have you been set free from slavery? Are you wealthy beyond all imagination with a confidence that heaven is your real home and God's is your Father?
Then Sing!  Praise him.
Write your own song. Tell how God has saved you.
---------------------
Exodus 15:1-19 NCV
Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord: “I will sing to the Lord, because he is worthy of great honor. He has thrown the horse and its rider into the sea. The Lord gives me strength and makes me sing; he has saved me. He is my God, and I will praise him. He is the God of my ancestors, and I will honor him. The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name. The chariots and soldiers of the king of Egypt he has thrown into the sea. The king’s best officers are drowned in the Red Sea. The deep waters covered them, and they sank to the bottom like a rock. Your right hand, Lord, is amazingly strong. Lord, your right hand broke the enemy to pieces. In your great victory you destroyed those who were against you. Your anger destroyed them, like fire burning straw. Just a blast of your breath, and the waters piled up. The moving water stood like a wall; the deep waters became solid in the middle of the sea. “The enemy bragged, ‘I’ll chase them and catch them. I’ll take all their riches; I’ll take all I want. I’ll pull out my sword, and my hand will destroy them.’ But you blew on them with your breath and covered them with the sea. They sank like lead in the raging water. “Are there any gods like you, Lord ? There are no gods like you. You are wonderfully holy, amazingly powerful, a worker of miracles. You reached out with your right hand, and the earth swallowed our enemies. You keep your loving promise and lead the people you have saved. With your strength you will guide them to your holy place. “The other nations will hear this and tremble with fear; terror will take hold of the Philistines. The leaders of the tribes of Edom will be very frightened; the powerful men of Moab will shake with fear; the people of Canaan will lose all their courage. Terror and horror will fall on them. When they see your strength, they will be as still as a rock. They will be still until your people pass by, Lord. They will be still until the people you have taken as your own pass by. You will lead your people and place them on your very own mountain, the place that you, Lord, made for yourself to live, the temple, Lord, that your hands have made. The Lord will be king forever!” The horses, chariot drivers, and chariots of the king of Egypt went into the sea, and the Lord covered them with water from the sea. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry land.

The Gift Of A Song  at Bingham Park

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Egyptian Slave or Slave of God?
Exodus 20:1-6 NLT

Then God gave the people all these instructions : “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.

__________

Are we ever free? Does obligation cease to exist? Can we flout the laws of nature and live? Or are we slaves to pain or passion? Are we always possessed by another? Carefully answer, for do you not desire the commitment and companionship of another? Would you not willingly give your heart to the one you love?

The Israelites were slaves of the Egyptians but God had set them free. And still it seems in chapter 21 of Exodus that the Hebrews themselves had imbibed the elixir of ownership and possession of another human.

We should not wonder at this social structure. I believe that it is too simple to expect that since they've been freed they extend freedom. Far from our human nature, prison populations nearly always develop a strict structured hierarchy that includes servitude. Countries formerly under tyranny are some of the worst offenders when it comes to civil war, unrest and the ruthless struggle for power. It appears that freedom does not beget freedom!

So if we are going to fall prey to a regime, why not willingly serve God. As he set his people free he demonstrated his unparalleled power. But in his protection of his people he demonstrated his unparalleled love.

At this time, in this world, the idea that everyone will be good and can be trusted if they are left to thier own devices is not born out by reality. We love slavery!

So be a slave of God.

This is not just an idea of the age of law. Paul also persuades us to see ourselves as slaves. He evokes the picture of the indentured servant seen in Exodus 21. And like the challenge issued by Joshua 40 years later to God's people, Moses here in Exodus 20 is saying "Choose you this day whom you will serve"

Quit fooling yourself with lies of inate goodness flourishing in the nurture of "complete 'freedom'"!

You will serve a master. Of that you can be sure.

The question is whether your master is as good as God?

Serve the Lord God and live to the fullest!


Egyptian Slave Or Slave Of God?  at Bingham Park

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Serious business
Hebrews 10:26-39 NLT
Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins. There is only the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies. For anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Just think how much worse the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God, and have treated the blood of the covenant, which made us holy, as if it were common and unholy, and have insulted and disdained the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to us. For we know the one who said, “I will take revenge. I will pay them back.” He also said, “The  ord will judge his own people.” It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ. Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering. Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering the same things. You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy. You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever. So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. “For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay. And my righteous ones will live by faith. But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.” But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.
----------------------
Sometimes people think of Jesus as a placebo for the conscience. Many view the church as having some social benefits for society now but they don't really believe that God will judge the world. Everyone wants a heaven in the future for their dead loved ones and themselves eventually but nobody seems to want to believe in hell.


But Jesus is real. 
God's judgement is sure. 
And nothing is worth facing the wrath of God for.
I can honestly say that no other passage in the Bible is more disturbing to me than this one.
When I was young I used to hear a lot about the debate surrounding assurance of salvation. It's one of the oldest concerns in the church. 
It really is no more complicated than, 'what must I do to be saved.' And actually Jesus didn't make it easy.
I should rephrase that. Salvation is through grace alone! There are no works that buy your way into the Kingdom. You can't purchase it, or walk on your bloody knees praying to prove your devotion. For by grace are you saved through faith and faith is a gift from God, there are no works of man involved so that man can't boast that he saved himself. Jesus is the only way. 

Acts 4:12 NLT
There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

I've always said that when you are born again and are a child of God then nothing can change that fact. I was born a Bode. No matter what happens in my life the fact that Don and Bunny are my parents will not change. So as  salvation is a gift from God based on God's grace, secured by the work done by Jesus on the cross, nothing I can do will change what God has done freely for me. 

I'm not a universalist. 

But I've also known that to enjoy any real benefits of knowing I'm a Bode, I need to be on speaking terms with mum and dad. To really bask in the joy of their love and acceptance, I need to seek them out, invite them around and ask for all their wisdom and knowledge on so many of the areas of life they know so much more than me.
To feel the assurance of the salvation given freely by God I need to be in relationship with him. Hugs are best in close proximity. Laughs are best shared spontaneously in normal living.

God isn't about you just gold digging without the love relationship. Heaven isn't heaven at all without God. Jesus isn't the genie of the lamp. And you aren't going to pull a fast one over on God.

He isn't going to allow the very very serious death of Jesus on the cross be mocked by those saying they are family when in fact they are not.
You either love the Father and therefore his Son and all they stand for or you are not actually part of the family.
Don't  think you can say you know and love your Father because of what Jesus did for you and then completely ignore what Jesus did for you.

Serious Business  at Bingham Park

Thursday, June 13, 2013

No Danger for the Stranger
Exodus 22:21-28 NASB
"You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. If you afflict him at all, and if he does cry out to Me, I will surely hear his cry; and My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.   "If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, you are not to act as a creditor to him; you shall not charge him interest. If you ever take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge, you are to return it to him before the sun sets, for that is his only covering; it is his cloak for his body. What else shall he sleep in? And it shall come about that when he cries out to Me, I will hear him, for I am gracious.   "You shall not curse God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

Exodus 23:3, 6, 9 NASB
nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute.   "You shall not pervert the justice due to your needy brother in his dispute. "You shall not oppress a stranger, since you yourselves know the feelings of a stranger, for you also were strangers in the land of Egypt.

Exodus 23:10-11 NASB
"You shall sow your land for six years and gather in its yield, but on the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat. You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.
----------

Banner says, "PKK is not a terrorist organisation"

Immigration is a hot issue. Some people prize their national identity pretty highly. There's no shame in seeing the benefits of your nationality; in the Bible it is recorded that the apostle Paul used his Roman citizenship to protect himself at least a couple of times. But God is concerned for the vulnerable, and along with orphans and widows, he instructed his people not to wrong or oppress the stranger.
A few Bible translators translate the word 'stranger' as 'foreigner', 
as in Exodus 22:21 NCV (New Century Version):
“Do not cheat or hurt a foreigner, because you were foreigners in the land of Egypt."

Here in verse 21 it is clear that God was talking about people not considered local. Interestingly, God's people the Israelites had been living in Egypt for nearly 450 years. You'd have thought that would make your family local enough. It doesn't. The people in power get to decide who is local and who is a stranger in God's own land. Today there are people groups all over the world who have spent as much as a millenia living, working, building and contributing in one location and are still not considered local.
God does not want his people to perpetuate that mindset. In fact, it seems God is more concerned about fair treatment of the foreigner that the abolition of slavery.
What is your opinion of the immigrant? Jesus was an immigrant of sorts here on earth. And if you make it to heaven you'll be one in God's kingdom.
Makes the golden rule hit home.

No Danger For The Stranger  at Bingham Park

Monday, June 17, 2013

Hate bribes
Exodus 18:20-22 NLT
Teach them God’s decrees, and give them his instructions. Show them how to conduct their lives. But select from all the people some capable, honest men who fear God and hate bribes. Appoint them as leaders over groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten. They should always be available to solve the people’s common disputes, but have them bring the major cases to you. Let the leaders decide the smaller matters themselves. They will help you carry the load, making the task easier for you.
_________________


Disputes come with the territory. People, even God's people, maybe especially God's people, have a keen sense of injustice. Everyone knows when they have been wronged. Well at least everyone knows when they feel like fairness hasn't been observed in their behalf. Seems one of the first phrases a child declares with passion is, 'that's not fair'. 
And who do we imagine will right the wrong? At first it is our parents. But then it is innate that we appeal to leaders for justice. 
"Billy took my toy!, " we cry expecting our toy to be returned and maybe Billy will get a good thrashing so he'll not take my toy again. 
We long for mediators who will dispense fair, considered, impartial, wise justice.
I think one of the first interesting things in this passage is that this was not a particularly democratic process. Moses chooses these intermediaries. Next I've observed that as Moses chooses he determines the level of responsibility each leader will have from a handful of people to a thousand.
But what stands out most to me is the relativity short list of relevant criteria.
Capable 
Honest 
Fear God 
Hate bribes

Dispensing justice requires capability. There is a skill or talent that enables some persons as capable.
Then next in the list is a character trait, possibly a reputation of honesty. A person in leadership whose role it is to dispense justice has to love the truth, they must be without a practice of lying. It is interesting that the primary character trait of arguably one of the greatest presidents in American history was honesty. It has been passed down through the years that he was even known for the practice of honesty so much that he was nicknamed, 'Honest Abe.' 
I wonder could it be that actually there are only two requirements on this list stated first positively and then reiterated negatively.
Cable = fear God 
Honest  = hate bribes
It was not an uncommon literary device of Moses' people or time to emphasis by restating the points in opposite ways, or by building the point.
We'd do well to consider the possibly that real capability in leadership, particularly in dispensing justice, comes from the humility of  knowing your place before God. The Fear of God the Bible says is the starting blocks of wisdom.
And valuing the truth over personal gain is foundational. I've once heard it said that leadership requires an insight into the trajectory of truth. I'd heartily agree, that a person that sees the tangled web that is woven through deception will at all cost avoid the peril of entrapment and the demise of entanglements with bribes and lies.
For ultimately God knows exactly what has happened. God has seen both the action and the intent of your heart. Nothing has escaped God's view and God will ultimately dispense justice. The capable leader will be acutely aware that justice is not some subjective abstract concept but rather is deeply rooted in the person of God. And further that it has been imprinted on the human heart with the image of God given at creation.
First trust God to give you justice. 
Secondly, pray for mercy!

Hate Bribes at Bingham Park

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

The greatest hidden miracle?
Exodus 39:32-43 NIV
So all the work on the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, was completed. The Israelites did everything just as the Lord commanded Moses. Then they brought the tabernacle to Moses: the tent and all its furnishings, its clasps, frames, crossbars, posts and bases; the covering of ram skins dyed red and the covering of another durable leather and the shielding curtain; the ark of the covenant law with its poles and the atonement cover; the table with all its articles and the bread of the Presence; the pure gold lampstand with its row of lamps and all its accessories, and the olive oil for the light; the gold altar, the anointing oil, the fragrant incense, and the curtain for the entrance to the tent; the bronze altar with its bronze grating, its poles and all its utensils; the basin with its stand; the curtains of the courtyard with its posts and bases, and the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard; the ropes and tent pegs for the courtyard; all the furnishings for the tabernacle, the tent of meeting; and the woven garments worn for ministering in the sanctuary, both the sacred garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons when serving as priests.  The Israelites had done all the work just as the Lord had commanded Moses. Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.
----------------



People prize things.
Crossing the Red Sea was quite the miracle. But I'm inclined to see the building of the tabernacle as an even greater miracle.
To be sure there were a lot of people (maybe  more than a million) and since they were facing a wet wide deep sea they had their proverbial backs against the wall. There were ducks, cows, sheep, horses, chickens, and all manner of livestock. Then there was the large load of swag. Everybody had a looters paradise of booty. Wonderful to possess but a pig to transport. And lastly there was an army with horses and chariots in hot pursuit intent on getting back the contents of the of their mattresses, closets and safety deposit boxes. So the Israelites had a big motivation to exit stage left and make like a tree and leave. 
The rest of the story is well known rehearsed and sung about for many millenia. Dry crossing was provided by God for the Israelites as a trap to bury Pharaoh's army, horses, chariots and at the bottom of the sea in Davy Jones' locker.
But think about it everyone was highly motivated by survival and treasure! A combination that has kept the laziest focused and active.
Now consider the tabernacle. First miracle is that God's people give so much by way of  building materials the workers have to ask Moses to stop the people. Unbridled generosity is rare in an individual and then to see a band of refugees give up more than a ton of gold, and absolutely train loads of other materials willingly is unprecedented and unparalleled. Take for instance the bronze basin recorded for us and paraphrased by Eugene Peterson in the Message (Exodus 38:8 MSG)
He made the Bronze Washbasin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women's work group who were assigned to serve at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
Thier mirrors would have been highly valued items, often used and greatly desirable.
Then there's the fact the tabernacle was finished exactly according to plan, on time and with a budget surplus.
There were no overruns, nothing over budget, all the required skill was procured in house nothing had to be subbed out to another nation.
With so many people working on a project in the middle of no where makes the US Navy sea bees look like complete armatures. 
And everything fit. And worked together. Neither the function nor the artistry was compromised. Every detail was finely crafted.
And why? These people complained about food, water, wandering, Moses' extended quiet time and they made the golden calf idol to worship thereby breaking the first simple rule they were given.
The tabernacle didn't feed them, it didn't increase their wealth. Most of them would never see the pretty parts of the tabernacle.
On every level this tabernacle project defies logic and human nature.
Truly this was one of the most extraordinary miracles ever recorded in human history.
Oh and it wasn't completed by taxing the people nor by commanding or coercion.
Exodus 35:29 NLT
So the people of Israel—every man and woman who was eager to help in the work the Lord had given them through Moses—brought their gifts and gave them freely to the Lord .
This could be the greatest miracle in all of Exodus.
Has God done anything like this in your heart, or in your church?

Greatest Hidden Miracle  at Bingham Park

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  http://williambode.blogspot.com/
Daily thoughts on the world's most profound insights of the human condition as discovered in the Bible by William Bode. The Bible is about Jesus from Genesis to Revelation and everything in between. When I read the Bible I see the most honest view of my heart and human condition. Be careful--after you get past the poor grammar, bad spelling and punctuation there is some life changing truth I'm uncovering every day! 'the following' are people of The Way, those who claim to be following Jesus.