I love the old Christmas carols that I grew up singing and listening to on the radio and at church. But a couple of trees ago a new carol was written. To me, it is one of the best conveyors of the Christmas story.
Hope Has a Name.
Hope you enjoy it!
In our daily devotions my husband and I have been reading the book of Exodus. It was interesting to me to see that when the Israelites were delivered from bondage in Egypt God chose to not lead them directly to the land He had promised them. Rather, he led them into the wilderness.
When Pharoah finlly let the people go, God did ot lead them along the main road that runs through Philistine terriroty, even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land….God led them in a roundabout way through the wilderness toward the Red Sea. Exodus 13:17-18.
There, in the wilderness, God gave them two things they needed to become the nation He desired.
Since much of the Old Testament is devoted to the Tabernacle I have decided to take a closer look at this structure and what it meant to the Israelites, what it might mean to us in our understanding of the importance of worship of God.
First thing that caught my attention was the preparation to build the Tabernacle.
Looking at what was involved in the preparation to build the Tabernacle, I thought how that applied to our attempts to be involved in the church today.
Why did God tell them to build the Tabernacle? What was His purpose?
Have the people of Israel build me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them. Exodus 25:8
What a wonderful thought! God desired to live among them. Later when Jesus came John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus came to dwell among us. The Greek word used for dwell in John 1:14 is skenoo and literally means “to pitch a tent. This word is the very word used in the New Testament to refer to the tabernacle of God used by Israel in their early worship of God. Jesus came because God still desires to live among us.
Jesus told us that wherever two or three gathered in His name, He would be there. So when we come into church on Sunday, He is there. Do we realize that? How often we come in late, grabbing our coffee, looking around to see who is there, talking to the one next to us? Do we not realize we are entering the presence of God? He is there. Let our worship show we acknowledge that.
I will be writing more as I study this Old Testament Tabernacle. Hope you will follow me on this journey.
And just like that – Santa is gone for another year. But Jesus remains all year long. His gifts are year-round.
Santa comes but once a year; Jesus is an ever-present help; Santa fills your stocking with goodies; Jesus supplies all your needs.
Santa comes down your chimney uninvited; Jesus stands at your door and knocks, and then enters your heart when invited.
Santa Claus lets you sit on his lap; Jesus lets you rest in His arms; Santa may make you chuckle; Jesus gives you joy that is your strength; Santa lives at the North Pole; Jesus is everywhere present; Santa says you better not cry; Jesus says “come unto me all you who are weary.”
Do you ever read something in the Bible and think “what in the world does that mean”?
Do you ever read something in the Bible and think “that doesn’t sound right?”
Do you ever read something in the Bible and wonder “how does that fit in today’s society?”
Well – I have done all of the above.
Recently I read a book that really help shed light on why I do not always “get it” when I read God’s Word.
The book is called Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus. Written by Lois Tverberg, I highly recommend it if you want to gain a better understanding of what you read in the Bible. After earning a Ph.D in biology and teaching in college she started learning Hebrew and Greek, studying in the land of Israel and searching for more knowledge of the first-century Jewish world in which Jesus lived, died and rose again.
What she discovered was that not only are we thousands of years from the time the Bible was written but an even greater obstacle to our understanding is we are from a different culture.
She listed a few of the differences in our culture which I found very interesting and eye-opening. (The following is copied from her book.)
Our world: Thin is beautiful Biblical world: Fat is blessing, wealth
Our world: Youth is attractive Biblical world: Age is wisdom
Our world: Does God exist? Biblical world: Whose god is greatness?
Our world: Me – personal goals Biblical world: We – family legacy
Our world: Sunshine – happiness Biblical world: Rain – utter joy
Our world: Logic and reason Biblical world: Parable and prophecy
She pointed out that Bible translators have found that many cultures today have less difficulty understanding the Bible when it is translated into their language than we in the Western world do.
often the cultural issues we have with the Bible are not a problem for people elsewhere in the world. They’ve struggled with the Christian message as they’ve heard it filtered through the perspective of Western missionaries, but when it’s explained in its original non-Western setting, it makes much more sense to them.”
Perhaps the problem is not the number of years between us and the writers of the Bible as it is the number of miles between our Western culture and the Middle East culture.
I found a lot of her points in the list above to be true when I spent some time in the Philippines. Over and over people I met would say “you are fat.” (I am actually fat now but at the time no one in the USA would have considered me overweight.) Until I understood their culture I felt insulted and that they were the rudest people I had ever met. Only after living there a few months did I understand they meant that as a compliment. Clearly by not being very thin I obviously had plenty of money to buy food and was therefore a successful person.
Tverberg also explains how many Jewish words have so much depth and multiple meanings than our English words. Recognizing that really helps when we read things that tell us to “fear” God or when we forgive we must “forget.”
After reading this book, I am ready to do more studying on the Hebrews meaning of words and delving more into the Mid-Eastern culture.
Interested in learning more too? I highly recommend this book and follow her on FB at Our Rabbi Jesus (Lois Tverberg) where she breaks down the meaning of many Hebrew words to help us get a better understanding of exactly what the Bible means.
Check it out!
Christmas 2019 is history. My decorations are all back in the boxes and the boxes are all in the storage area in the basement where they will sit until next December. Here and there I see a few houses with Christmas lights still up but most of my neighbors have removed all the reindeer, snowmen and nativity sets from their yards.
Gifts have been given. Some were, no doubt, a big hit. Others may have been a disappointment. Store clerks have been busy at the return counters.
Children are counting down the days until they have to return to school while many are heading back to work after a few vacation days.
Here and there I hear comments about the letdown after Christmas. It is understandable that after all the shopping, decorating, baking, parties and family gatherings, going back to the “normal” routine of life can be a bit of a anticlimax.
But I have to wonder: If we really understood the true meaning of what we just celebrated – that God Himself came to earth to make things right with us – to restore a right relationship with Him – to bring us His peace – why would we experience such a letdown.
Did we not really “get it?” The real meaning of Christmas has nothing to do with the decorations, the gifts, the parties, the family gatherings. It has everything to do with our relationship with this little baby that grew to a man, died and rose again.
Having just celebrated that fact – should not our hearts be filled with joy?
Perhaps the problem is we hear a lot about keeping Christ in Christmas. What we really need to do is keep Christmas in Christ. Christmas is only a date on the calendar. Christ is our source of joy year long.
There were some shepherds living in the same part of the country, keeping guard throughout the night over their flocks in the open fields. Suddenly an angel of the Lord stood by their side, the splendor of the Lord blazed around them, and they were terror-stricken. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! Listen, I bring you glorious news of great joy which is for all the people. This very day, in David’s town, a Savior has been born for you. He is Christ, the Lord. Let this prove it to you: you will find a baby, wrapped up and lying in a manger.”
This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again.
Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.
This past Sunday I missed the service at my own church filling in at another local church for the organist that was out of town. The pastor’s sermon really spoke to me and reminded me of a song I heard years ago.
Since that time I have seen one line from that song on church’s signs, in church bulletins and even on Pinterest.
If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?
The pastor spoke about the need to be more than a “churchy Christian.”
He shared the story where Jesus had fed a multiple on a few fish and bread. He was drawing large crowds and the people were ready to make him their leader. If a poll had been taken then his popularity rating would have been high. Now was the time to begin setting himself up as a great rabbi.
But Jesus did something that in the natural really seems illogical. He began talking about his body and blood being the source of eternal life. (I will not try to get into any theological discussion about the meaning of all this.) The point is – what he did was unreasonable to the natural mind. If you were wanting to increase your following, this was not the way to do it.
At that point many of his followers turned away. Jesus even questioned his twelve closest followers if they too would leave him.
The pastor then pointed out that truly being a follower of Jesus Christ may often require us to do things that seem unreasonable, things that go against all that our culture tell us is the right thing to do.
Is it really reasonable to love your enemies? To pray for those persecuting you? Is it really reasonable to put others before yourself?
He then asked the congregation if we are more than “churchy Christians.” People who go to church, support the church with our finances, even do “good” deeds to others. But when it comes to being passionate about our faith, when our commitment to God calls us to do the unreasonable, where do we stand?
Got me thinking today.
If I were arrested for being a Christian and my neighbors, family, friends were called as witnesses, what would they say about me?
Today we sang a song in worship and it started me thinking.
When we go to church, are we coming as worshipers or art critics?
We often hear people complain about the church.
On and on it goes.
Now I know church is important for us as individuals. We need a place where we can find answers to our questions, where we can feel loved and accepted, where we can be challenged and encouraged.
Church should be a place that meets our needs.
But I wonder if we have become so focused on ourselves, we forget what true worship is supposed to be about.
This song reminds me:
It’s all about you, Jesus!
I’ll bring You more than a song for a song in itself is not what You have required You search much deeper within…
I love to read the Gospel of Mark. His story is full of action. More about what Jesus did rather than what He said. This week as I read once again how His disciples seemed to simply not “get it” I thought:
What was wrong with them? How could they be so blind – so stupid?
They saw Jesus take a few fish and a little bread and feed a multitude. And He did this not first, but twice.
This man, this rabbi they were following was more than a man, more than a great teacher.
Besides the miracles of feeding the crowds that followed Him, He also had calmed the violent storm by merely speaking to it. He had healed a man who had spent years naked living among the tombs and cutting himself with stones. He had raised a young woman from the dead.
Yet as they rowed across the lake once more and Jesus began to try to teach about the hypocrisy of the religious leaders by telling them to beware of the “yeast” of the Pharisees, they immediately thought they were in trouble because they had forgotten to bring any bread with them.
Then, I stopped and realized I’m not different.
How many times in my life have I cried out to God and He has answered?
How many times has He healed me? Comforted me? Gave me strength when I so desperately needed it?
Yet, what is my tendency when I get sick, when trouble comes, when I feel weak mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually?
Just like the disciples, I often forget what I have seen my God do – and I start to worry, to get all upset at the situation.
I wonder how God must feel sometimes at my inability to “get it.”
When my girls were growing up, I am sure I made mistakes in my parenting. But even so, I was a good mother. I saw that they had food to eat, clean clothes to wear, a comfortable bed to sleep in. I worked hard to provide not only their material needs, but made myself available to listen to their concerns, to play with them, to support them in their efforts in life.
I wonder how I would have felt if I had heard one of them say to a friend:
I really hope I have food to eat tomorrow. I hope mother doesn’t forget to wash my clothes this week. I’m really afraid Mom won’t buy me the new shoes I need.
How upset I would have been if I had heard them say that.
How could you say that? Haven’t I always had good meals on the table every day? Haven’t I always washed your clothes? Haven’t I always bought you new shoes and clothes as you needed them? How could you possible be worrying that I would not provide for you?
Perhaps God is up there saying
Barbara, how can you be worried? Haven’t I always be faithful to you?
Forgive me Lord. Help me to “get it.” To trust in who You are. The great I AM.
God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble….Psalm 46:1
I love this picture of Jesus laughing! I think too often we vision Him as somber, even stern. But He talked about giving us joy. At His birth, the angels proclaimed “Joy to the world.”
Studying the book of James this week I again realized how much we miss when the Bible is translated from the languages of Hebrew and Greek into English. James begins his letter by saying what is translated in most of our English version as “Greetings.”
To me I have just thought James was basically saying hello. Just the kind of start to a letter we often would use (in the days when we really wrote letters instead of texting or posting on Facebook).
Hi! How are you? I am fine.
As I began to take a more serious look at this word, I find it has much more meaning than just “hi”.
The word James used is “chariein” and it means basically “to rejoice exceedingly” or “to be well.” Used as a greeting James was essentially saying “joy to you.”
“Joy to you” seems a great way to start a letter to friends. Hey, I’m wishing you joy, happiness, that you do well. We do this for birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas.
On continuing to read this letter it is clear that James is not just being friendly in wishing his readers joy. After saying “joy to you” he immediately speaks of times of difficulty, trials, tests.
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.
You just wished joy and well-being to your readers and then you talk about troubles. What gives?
James was writing to the Jewish people who had accepted Jesus as the Messiah but who were now experiencing difficulties because of their belief. He indicated difficult times can be opportunities not just for joy – but great joy.
Difficult times bring joy? Trials, tests bring joy? What are you – some kind of Pollyanna?
James is not suggesting to his readers that they thank God when a loved one dies, when they get cancer or lose a job. (These are the things we think of as trials. The people James was writing to were probably experiencing more severe trials such as real persecution because of their stand for the Messiah, not just experiencing the normal cares of life that we characterize as trials.) Rather he was telling them they should recognize that these difficult times, while not in themselves something to take joy in, would bring about a real change in them – and that would be something to rejoice about.
When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives my brothers, don’t resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! Realize that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed, and you will find you have become men of mature character with the right sort of independence.
Hey James, I think you are right. As I look back at times of real trials (like becoming a widow with two young girls at 33 or getting aggressive and advanced cancer at 53) I realize that those times brought me much closer to God and gave me a strength I would never have had without those difficult times. While I will never thank God for the death of my precious husband, for seeing my body deformed after surgical removal of a breast or for the effects I still suffer in my body because of chemo and radiation, I am thankful for the growth I gained because of those trials. I am thankful that I have truly discovered what Jesus was talking about when He spoke of the joy and peace He was giving us.
Finally, James not only tells his friends to find joy in difficult times, he lets them know how they can do that.
And if, in the process, any of you does not know how to meet any particular problem he has only to ask God—who gives generously to all men without making them feel foolish or guilty—and he may be quite sure that the necessary wisdom will be given him
Oh I get it! That’s the beauty of the gospel. It is simple. Trust and obey. I sometimes make it so hard. My mind doesn’t want to just trust. I want detailed answers to my questions. I want to know the end before I take that step of faith God is asking me to take.
Peter sums it up pretty good in his letter to the church.
And though you have never seen him, yet I know that you love him. At present you trust him without being able to see him, and even now he brings you a joy that words cannot express and which has in it a hint of the glories of Heaven; and all the time you are receiving the result of your faith in him—the salvation of your own souls.
Yes that it is. It is a joy that words cannot express. Joy unspeakable and full of glory! To all my friends who follow me on my blog, chairein!
Grandma's Ramblings 