John7:25-53. The people started asking Jesus if he is the Christ. Rather than answering directly Jesus promised “Streams of living water”and more, but they were not ready to understand it yet.
So in Genesis 19 Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. There is ample evidence this is a historical true event, the Bible is verified true even here. God provided for Lot, his wife and two daughters to escape.They did, but Lot’s wife looked back towards the city and was no more. After that is recorded the strange story about Lot and his two daughters, and all I can say about that is that it is not good to take matters in our own hand rather than listen to God and let Him guide.
In Genesis 20 Abraham claimed Sarah was his sister. Why? Sarah was his half-sister, so Abraham stretched the truth, also called a lie, or sin. The chapter shows God’s protection even when we do wrong.
Psalm 4 is David’s appeal to righteousness, and the blessings that follow is David’s appeal to righteousness, and the blessings that follow.
Today we read about circumcision and its importance, in John 7 and 4 chapters in Genesis. But that is just one part of the story.
John 7:1-24. Jesus pointed out that according to Jewish law, circumcision is more important than keeping Sabbath, so, if the eighth day is on a Sabbath, it must be performed, but healing on a Sabbath is not permitted.
In Genesis15 God promised Abram a son, and Abram believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness.
But in Genesis 16 Abram badly wanted an heir, so Sarai, being too old, gave her handmaiden Hagar to be mother of Abram’s son, Ishmael. Sarai regrets what she had done, and Hagar was sent away with Ishmael into the wilderness.
Thirteen years later, in Genesis 17, Ishmael was back with Abram, God promised Abram his seed of promise, changed Abram’s name to Abraham and Sarai’s name became Sarah, established with an eternal covenant, the covenant of Circumcision, and it was performed on Abraham, Ishmael and all Abraham’s male servants.
Which brings us to Genesis 18 with Abraham still waiting for his promised offspring. He was visited by three angels that promised him he will have a son within a year. Sarah heard it and found it laughable, but God confirmed this promise, and was also proclaiming the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham tried to bargain with God at no avail.
The question to ponder: Why is circumcision important for Jews and Muslims, but not for Christians? Hint: read the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 15.
The four chapters chosen for today are significant and thought provoking.
In John 6:25-71. Jesus had fed 5000 and been seen walking on water. In spite of these miracles the Jews demanded a sign. Jesus responds in kind saying he is the bread of life, and if people want to have eternal life they must come to him and eat of his flesh and drink of his blood. When hearing this, many abandoned Jesus, but Peter said: To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
Then in Genesis 12 Abram was called to leave his home in Ur. He traveled to a land he did not know, promised by God, and he obeyed, but when a famine came he went to Egypt and resorted to deceit rather than trusting God.
In Genesis 13 Abram and his sidekick Lot went back from Egypt and separated paths. Lot chose the fertile plain of Jordan, and Abram went to the hills of Mamre.
And in Genesis 14 Lot got in trouble and was taken captive by a local Mafia. Abram rescued Lot, and on the way back gave a tithe to Melchizedek, king of Salem – (later to become Jerusalem), after God gave him success in battle.
Question: Who was Melchizedek, and why is that important?
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” ( Jeremiah 1:5)
I woke up one morning with a chorus we sang in Church in the 70:s.
With eternity’s values in view, Lord,
With eternity’s values in view.
May I do each day’s work for Jesus
With eternity’s values in view.
Then it hit me: Is this really right? It sounds so good, but is it right? The words from Jesus in Matthew 7: 21-23 rang in my ears:
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
In the case of the prophet Jeremiah God knew him before he was even conceived, but in the case of the false follower, Jesus never knew him in spite of all the things he did for Jesus. Why the drastic difference? Does God pick winners and losers, or is there anything we can do to be assured to be on God’s side?
The answer may lie in one more quote, this one from the apostle Paul in Romans 12:1-2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
There we have it: God doesn’t want us to do things for Christ, God wants us – all of us as a living sacrifice. He wants us to die to self and be resurrected to new life in Christ. This is available to anybody – a new life in Christ. Then the Holy Spirit can lead us into God’s perfect will.
One more quote. Many can quote Ephesians 2:8-9, but the answer is really in verse 10: 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
By the way, the word handiwork is in the Greek ποιημα (poiema) from which we get the word poem. We are God’s poem. I like that.
Genesis 9, God established His covenant with Noah (The Noahic Covenant), and as a sign He established the rainbow in the sky. Noah planted a vineyard, got drunk and exposed his nakedness. This lead to “the curse of Ham,” which gave the excuse that the black race was for slavery. It was in reality the curse of Canaan, the original inhabitants of the yet to be promised land. Ponder that!
Genesis 10 is a genealogy of the descendants of Noah. It describes how the earth was repopulated.
Len Bilén's blog, a blog about faith, politics and the environment. 