Old Testament
1. Israel was again promised full possession of the lane. But with the promise came a warning: "After the Lord your God has done this for you, don’t say in your hearts, ‘The Lord has given us this land because we are such good people!’ No, it is because of the wickedness of the other nations that he is pushing them out of your way."
2. Israel was then reminded of its history on unresponsiveness, and warned. Then, in touching words, God showed how deeply He loved this people, even though they had been rebellious. Read Deut. 10:12-22 carefully and you will see God's love in action.
New Testament
3. The parable of the sower
- The parable of the sower teaches that the Good News of Jesus falls like seeds on men's hearts. The seed falls on different kinds of ground.
- Some hear, but quickly are distracted and forget.
- Some hear and delight, but fall away.
- Some let the cares or delights of this world choke out the good seed.
- Warning: There will come a time when seeds of truth which have not been allowed to take root are snatched away.
4. How are we to use the seed and the light? We are to respond to it. Respond brings relationship, and our relationship hinges on whether or not we are willing to accept God's message about Jesus Christ. If we hear and believe, we become members of God's family. If we reject, we stay outside...forever.
Psalm
Proverbs
5. "The Lord approves of those who are good"
See you next post...
Showing posts with label parable of seeds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label parable of seeds. Show all posts
Friday, March 28, 2008
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Leviticus 9:7-10:20; Mark 4:26-5:20; Psalm 37:30-40; Proverbs 10:6-7 (New Living Translation)
Old Testament
1. Moses now passes the "rules" on to Aaron and his sons. Thier family will be the proests for the people, and make the sacrifices on the people's behalf. Aaron and His sons are anointed and purified.
2. Again, the purpose of the sacrifice is to PAY FOR SIN.
3. All is well, Moses and Aaron bless the people, and the glory of the Lord comes in the form of Fire.
- Sounds like Moses has come full circle, isn't that how he met the Lord... a burning bush?
4. The sacrifices are to be made the way the Lord commanded. Not with our own special flair or twist. This leads us to one of those "sticky" situations that people don't like in the Old Testament.
- God destroys people for doing wrong...on the spot. What a concept?
- Aren't we blessed that He doesn't do that now? Remember why?
5. The sins of Nadab and Abihu. Two of Aaron's sons decide to do something special and different for the Lord. In my opinion, in their zeal perhaps to show off, they used the "wrong kind of fire, different than he had commanded." God destroys them by fire for their disobedience. Come on guys, God just gave you the rules.
6. Aaron and his other priestly sons are not allowed to grieve ("leaving your hair uncombed or by tearing your clothes"), but the rest of the Israelites are. The bodies are removed from the camp.
- They are separated, because of their sin. Separated by sin...seems to be a theme.
7. Instructions regarding the priests portion of the sacrifice. Well, the other two sons burn their portion instead of eating it. This I think is about 2 things. Obviously they broke the commands given to them. They didn't learn anything from their brothers error or death. But i think it is also about being wasteful. They have wasted something that Gid has set aside especially for them.
- Do we waste God's gifts and blessings? Are we paralyzed by our earthly fears?
8. Aaron pleads for the life of his sons, and Moses (and presumable the Lord) is satisfied.
New Testament
9. Parable of the growing seed (mustard seed).
- This parable follows the longer parable about the farmer, scattered seeds and "good soil."
- To recap: The word Jesus spoke was like seed scattered by a farmer. When the word took root in "good soil" it produces much fruit. Those who hear Jesus are likened to various soils. Some are like stony ground, on which the seed initially sprouts but cannot grow because there is no place for it to take root. Any trouble or persecution brings rejection of the Word. Others allow concern for the affairs of this lfe to choke out the spiritual. But on those who are "good soil" (responsive to the Word) it produces a rich crop.
- This new parable, I think, means that the kingdom of God grows gradually, like a planted seed. The tiniest seeds, like a mustard seed, can grow into a large garden plant.
10. Jesus doesn't explain the parables to the crowd, but gives further instruction to the disciple when they are alone.
11. Jesus calms the storm.
- This section of Mark demonstrates Jesus' personal authority...
- Asleep at sea, Jesus is awakened by His disciples when the fishing boat is struck by the storm. He rebuked the storm...and suddenly the waters were completely calm! We can also see in our reading that the disciples don't know who He is? Makes you wonder, why are they following Him?
- Jesus has power over nature.
12. In the next stiry in this sequence Jesus casts many demons (Legion)out of a man, sending them into a herd of pigs. Once again, the demons recognize Him for who He is, "Jesus, Son of the Most High God." Jesus tells the man to go home and tell his family. Of course, he goes to tell everyone else. The people are amazed, but ask Jesus to go away and leave them alone. Wow. What blessing might they have received if their eyes had been open?
- Jesus has power over evil spiritual beings and forces.
Psalm
13. "Put your hope in the Lord."
14. "Look at those who are honest and good, for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace."
- It says a wonderful future, not necessarily here. But here is not what we are working on. We are working towards our bright and wonderful future...our eternal life and peace.
Proverbs
15. "We have happy memories of the godly" Don't we?
See you next post...
1. Moses now passes the "rules" on to Aaron and his sons. Thier family will be the proests for the people, and make the sacrifices on the people's behalf. Aaron and His sons are anointed and purified.
2. Again, the purpose of the sacrifice is to PAY FOR SIN.
3. All is well, Moses and Aaron bless the people, and the glory of the Lord comes in the form of Fire.
- Sounds like Moses has come full circle, isn't that how he met the Lord... a burning bush?
4. The sacrifices are to be made the way the Lord commanded. Not with our own special flair or twist. This leads us to one of those "sticky" situations that people don't like in the Old Testament.
- God destroys people for doing wrong...on the spot. What a concept?
- Aren't we blessed that He doesn't do that now? Remember why?
5. The sins of Nadab and Abihu. Two of Aaron's sons decide to do something special and different for the Lord. In my opinion, in their zeal perhaps to show off, they used the "wrong kind of fire, different than he had commanded." God destroys them by fire for their disobedience. Come on guys, God just gave you the rules.
6. Aaron and his other priestly sons are not allowed to grieve ("leaving your hair uncombed or by tearing your clothes"), but the rest of the Israelites are. The bodies are removed from the camp.
- They are separated, because of their sin. Separated by sin...seems to be a theme.
7. Instructions regarding the priests portion of the sacrifice. Well, the other two sons burn their portion instead of eating it. This I think is about 2 things. Obviously they broke the commands given to them. They didn't learn anything from their brothers error or death. But i think it is also about being wasteful. They have wasted something that Gid has set aside especially for them.
- Do we waste God's gifts and blessings? Are we paralyzed by our earthly fears?
8. Aaron pleads for the life of his sons, and Moses (and presumable the Lord) is satisfied.
New Testament
9. Parable of the growing seed (mustard seed).
- This parable follows the longer parable about the farmer, scattered seeds and "good soil."
- To recap: The word Jesus spoke was like seed scattered by a farmer. When the word took root in "good soil" it produces much fruit. Those who hear Jesus are likened to various soils. Some are like stony ground, on which the seed initially sprouts but cannot grow because there is no place for it to take root. Any trouble or persecution brings rejection of the Word. Others allow concern for the affairs of this lfe to choke out the spiritual. But on those who are "good soil" (responsive to the Word) it produces a rich crop.
- This new parable, I think, means that the kingdom of God grows gradually, like a planted seed. The tiniest seeds, like a mustard seed, can grow into a large garden plant.
10. Jesus doesn't explain the parables to the crowd, but gives further instruction to the disciple when they are alone.
11. Jesus calms the storm.
- This section of Mark demonstrates Jesus' personal authority...
- Asleep at sea, Jesus is awakened by His disciples when the fishing boat is struck by the storm. He rebuked the storm...and suddenly the waters were completely calm! We can also see in our reading that the disciples don't know who He is? Makes you wonder, why are they following Him?
- Jesus has power over nature.
12. In the next stiry in this sequence Jesus casts many demons (Legion)out of a man, sending them into a herd of pigs. Once again, the demons recognize Him for who He is, "Jesus, Son of the Most High God." Jesus tells the man to go home and tell his family. Of course, he goes to tell everyone else. The people are amazed, but ask Jesus to go away and leave them alone. Wow. What blessing might they have received if their eyes had been open?
- Jesus has power over evil spiritual beings and forces.
Psalm
13. "Put your hope in the Lord."
14. "Look at those who are honest and good, for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace."
- It says a wonderful future, not necessarily here. But here is not what we are working on. We are working towards our bright and wonderful future...our eternal life and peace.
Proverbs
15. "We have happy memories of the godly" Don't we?
See you next post...
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Leviticus 7:28-9:6; Mark 3:31-4:25; Psalm 37:12-29; Proverbs 10:5 (New Living Translation)
Old Testament
1. Offerings- wave...friendship, burnt, grain, guilt, sin. The priest's share. The Lord's share.
2. The ordination of the priests. The priests are set apart for purity and to worship the Lord.
3. Urim and the Thummim: the sacred breastplate.
- The description of the clothing of the Jewish high priest in the Book of Exodus portrays the Urim and Thummim as being put into the sacred breastplate, worn by the high priest over the Ephod. It seems to have been used for some type of divination- to answer questions.
- There is no description of the form of the Urim and Thummim in the passages. Nevertheless, the passage does describe them as being put into the breastplate, which scholars think implies they were objects put into some sort of pouch within it, and then, while out of view, one (or one side, if the Urim and Thummim was a single object) was chosen by touch and withdrawn or thrown out; since the Urim and Thummim were put inside this pouch, they were presumably small and fairly flat, and were possibly tablets of wood or of bone. Accoding to rabbinical literature, in order for the Urim and Thummim to give an answer, it was first necessary for the individual to stand facing the fully dressed high priest, and ask the question briefly and in a simple way.
- Josephus, a first century Jewish scholar, believed that Urim meant lights, argued that divination by Urim and Thummim involved questions being answered by great rays of light shining out of certain jewels on the breastplate; each jewel was taken to represent different letters, and the sequence of lighting thus would spell out an answer (though there were 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet, and only 12 jewels on the breastplate.
4. The priests were anointed and set apart? Are you set apart to servethe Lord? Can anyone tell?
5. The Lord says, once again, that all this sacrifice is to pay for your sins!
6. After the sacrifices and doing all the things asked of them, the people get ready...the Lord is coming!
- Are we ready?
New Testament
7. Jesus' comments about His mother and brothers may seem on the surface a rude coment. I think what He is trying to say is the in Christ and in love we are all brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers.
- In the church environment that I grew up in there was always a "Mother" of the church, and several other women whom we addressed as "mother", instead of Mrs. or "sister." These women seemed to have a certain wisdom about them. When my own mother couldn't comfort me or answer a question, there was always someone in my church family that could help me out. This in no way diminished my relationship with my mother, but gave me a much broader and richer experience. Experience which I can now draw on as an adult, and offer to others.
8. The parable of the farmer and the seeds. Refer to this parable discussion in Matthew, from previous posting. But,
- God is the Farmenr in this metaphor.
- The seed is the Word. Not money that you send into the televangelist.
- How fertile is the ground of our hearts for God's word. There is an advesary who seeks to kill and destroy! Are we in that group of people who hear and beleive the word...but fall by the wayside frequently because of life's worries, and business, and duties, and distractions?
- How good is the fruit we bear? I know I have said it before, but we are not here just to get stuff. To collect things, and get bigger SUVs, and get big bank accounts. We are not here just to become monetarily prosperous and get "the good life. We are here to help BRING THE KINGDOM OF GOD! That's what we are here for.
- The purpose of the parables is to teach us what the kingdom of God is like, in simple stories we can understand. Things we can get our minds around.
9. The parable of the lamp. Why buy and expenve lamp if you're going to hide it? Is your light for Christ showing, or do you hide it?
Psalm
10. Out of wickedness we will die by our own swords.
11. "Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever." This isn't just about money. It's about health and relationships, and so much more than money.
12. "The Lord directs the steps of the godly...Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand." Listen for the voice of God. He will tell you which way to go. Jesus says in the New Testament reading, those that have ears, let them listen.
- And, think carefully about what you hear. Don't just accept what someone says. Investigate. Read it for yourself. How many times have you watched those men and women on TV and they said something that didn't quite make sense, or didn't sound quite right. Go look it up!
13. "...Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned." You may feel like it at times, but the Lord is always with you.
Proverbs
14. Don't be lazy...
See you next post...
1. Offerings- wave...friendship, burnt, grain, guilt, sin. The priest's share. The Lord's share.
2. The ordination of the priests. The priests are set apart for purity and to worship the Lord.
3. Urim and the Thummim: the sacred breastplate.
- The description of the clothing of the Jewish high priest in the Book of Exodus portrays the Urim and Thummim as being put into the sacred breastplate, worn by the high priest over the Ephod. It seems to have been used for some type of divination- to answer questions.
- There is no description of the form of the Urim and Thummim in the passages. Nevertheless, the passage does describe them as being put into the breastplate, which scholars think implies they were objects put into some sort of pouch within it, and then, while out of view, one (or one side, if the Urim and Thummim was a single object) was chosen by touch and withdrawn or thrown out; since the Urim and Thummim were put inside this pouch, they were presumably small and fairly flat, and were possibly tablets of wood or of bone. Accoding to rabbinical literature, in order for the Urim and Thummim to give an answer, it was first necessary for the individual to stand facing the fully dressed high priest, and ask the question briefly and in a simple way.
- Josephus, a first century Jewish scholar, believed that Urim meant lights, argued that divination by Urim and Thummim involved questions being answered by great rays of light shining out of certain jewels on the breastplate; each jewel was taken to represent different letters, and the sequence of lighting thus would spell out an answer (though there were 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet, and only 12 jewels on the breastplate.
4. The priests were anointed and set apart? Are you set apart to servethe Lord? Can anyone tell?
5. The Lord says, once again, that all this sacrifice is to pay for your sins!
6. After the sacrifices and doing all the things asked of them, the people get ready...the Lord is coming!
- Are we ready?
New Testament
7. Jesus' comments about His mother and brothers may seem on the surface a rude coment. I think what He is trying to say is the in Christ and in love we are all brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers.
- In the church environment that I grew up in there was always a "Mother" of the church, and several other women whom we addressed as "mother", instead of Mrs. or "sister." These women seemed to have a certain wisdom about them. When my own mother couldn't comfort me or answer a question, there was always someone in my church family that could help me out. This in no way diminished my relationship with my mother, but gave me a much broader and richer experience. Experience which I can now draw on as an adult, and offer to others.
8. The parable of the farmer and the seeds. Refer to this parable discussion in Matthew, from previous posting. But,
- God is the Farmenr in this metaphor.
- The seed is the Word. Not money that you send into the televangelist.
- How fertile is the ground of our hearts for God's word. There is an advesary who seeks to kill and destroy! Are we in that group of people who hear and beleive the word...but fall by the wayside frequently because of life's worries, and business, and duties, and distractions?
- How good is the fruit we bear? I know I have said it before, but we are not here just to get stuff. To collect things, and get bigger SUVs, and get big bank accounts. We are not here just to become monetarily prosperous and get "the good life. We are here to help BRING THE KINGDOM OF GOD! That's what we are here for.
- The purpose of the parables is to teach us what the kingdom of God is like, in simple stories we can understand. Things we can get our minds around.
9. The parable of the lamp. Why buy and expenve lamp if you're going to hide it? Is your light for Christ showing, or do you hide it?
Psalm
10. Out of wickedness we will die by our own swords.
11. "Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever." This isn't just about money. It's about health and relationships, and so much more than money.
12. "The Lord directs the steps of the godly...Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand." Listen for the voice of God. He will tell you which way to go. Jesus says in the New Testament reading, those that have ears, let them listen.
- And, think carefully about what you hear. Don't just accept what someone says. Investigate. Read it for yourself. How many times have you watched those men and women on TV and they said something that didn't quite make sense, or didn't sound quite right. Go look it up!
13. "...Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned." You may feel like it at times, but the Lord is always with you.
Proverbs
14. Don't be lazy...
See you next post...
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